Help Please - Coborn Duel Fuel

Colin, I dont know where you live, which part of country are you, but advise you join local club first.

  1. Wico Mag spares can be bought at a price, the Stationary Engine Magazine bought from WH Smiths is a good start but you can adapt car points just remove them and go to a car spares shop to compare.
  2. We usually adapt air fittings for nuts and olives etc also copper pipe for fuel line.
  3. To start with make your own silencer, the thread on the engine is usually !/2 inch or 3/4 BSP thread. All you need is a round box drilled on the end, no baffles inside needed.
  4. nothing usually connects to the choke unless it came out of a piece of machinery where it was not easy to get to and needed a lever for access.
5.It may have had a filter but doubt it so dont worry.
  1. quickest way is to make your own starting handle to suit.

Martin

Reply to
Campingstoveman
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Reply to
CHARLES HAMILTON

Colin,

I will try to answer the queries Martin hasn't. I'll dig out what photos there are of my wreck and send them off-group.

My C6C didn't have an air filter.

The flywheel is finned in order to force cooling air through the cowl and over the cylinder fins. The governing on Coborns is operated by a vane which is deflected by the stream of cooling air. The speed of the cooling air is proportional to engine speed, so this can be used to control the throttle. The vane was missing on mine, so I can't give you any more details.

The magneto is fortunately a common one, and your best bet might be to pick up a complete one at an auto-jumble or rally, where they often appear for sale. The magneto is the component you've GOT to get working well and the help available in a club would point you in the right direction.

I'm a relative engine novice compared to the others here, and magnetos were the item I had most trouble with when I started out.

Do you have the cowling and is it complete?

Regards, Arthur G

Reply to
Arthur Griffin & Jeni Stanton

Sorry Colin, I forgot to finish it off properly but what the other two fine gentlemen says is correct. Martin P

Reply to
Campingstoveman

It looks like you have a battle on your hands.

Reply to
Scenic O'Faolin

The first thing to do is to get a spark. As long as all the bits are present, WICO mags are very reliable and I've only ever come across one that didn't work after I'd cleaned the points. First off, rotate the engine and look at the points. You will (should!) see them opening and closing. Leave the operating cam in the open position.

Remove the moving and fixed points from the hole they live in, making sure you note where all the bits go - a digital camera is a great help for this sort of thing.

Get a sheet of at least 400 grit wet and dry, preferably finer and fix it to a piece of glass - wetting the back will do. Take the moving point and rub the working face to and fro along the abrasive surface until it is smooth and clean - don't try to take out every pit, if they have seen better days, there will be nothing left! Repeat this with the fixed point.

It is MOST IMPORTANT to maintain them as flat as you can and it would be no bad thing to practice with a nail head until you can get it right.

Refit the points and gap them at their open position with feeler gauges (if you've got them) to 18 thou. If not, the thickness of a postcard is about right.

Take the plug out and spin the engine on the flywheel. You should get a loud clacking sound as the magneto flick mechanism whips the magneto across its firing point and a nice fat spark should jump at least an 1/8" from the end of the bare wire to the body of the mag. Make sure it will also jump from the plug lead to the cylinder head as it would not be the first time that I've found the mag inadvertently insulated from the engine by a dimwittedly applied layer of paint!

We are all interested in what you're doing as you are at the most interesting time in a rebuild, getting it going, so don't leave us in suspense!

Regards,

Kim Siddorn,

Reply to
J K Siddorn

Hi There, Many Thanks to Arthur,Kim, and Martin for replying to my previous message. Arthur - I have tried to contact you without success,please e-mail me. As I said,I am new to stationary engines,so please bear with me if the terminology is not correct! I am now the proud owner of a Coborn duel fuel air cooled engine (C6?) It is in a bit of a state,but I see it as a long term project. It has a magneto (Wico A),but is missing the points cover and spring clips.The points also look naff. The engine does rotate,but is missing the following bits - One fuel line from the parraffin tank half to the changeover c*ck. The exhaust silencer is mangled. On the carb inlet,there appears to be a choke butterfly,but whatever operates it is not there. Should there be an inlet filter on the carb ? I also have no starting handle,but I am sure that could be made. Any advice/help with pictures,stripdown,spares would be greatly appreciated -- this engine WILL run! Also any advice on how this engine operates,why is the flywheel finned,and how does the governor work? Sorry it is so long winded. Thanks in advance. Colin

Reply to
Colin Spooner

How are you getting on Colin?

Regards,

Kim Siddorn,

Reply to
J K Siddorn

Keep us posted, Colin, its always nice to follow progress.

Reply to
Arthur Griffin & Jeni Stanton

Reply to
Colin Spooner

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