[SEL] My Taylor Vacuum Engine LIVES!!

[Alan Bowen]

Very nice video, Rick !!
   
  Another case of, "Never Say Never."

  My 1928 Hercules S is a 1 3/4hp H&M with a Wico EK.
  When I forget to flip that retard lever up it reminds me by kicking hard as I pull it over.
  Flip the lever up and start the engine.
  Flip it back down and she picks up a little attitude.
  I use this engine to power my two hole corn sheller.
  It's gov. spring is a wimp compared to the very stiff one I removed.
  My experience says The Wico Retard/Advance Lever Works Great.
  This engine will run with the lever up or down.
  It starts better with it up and runs better with it down.
   
  Yes, I could set my engine like you say and slow it way down. 
  That wouldn't run my sheller too good though. 8>))
   
  When I first started this barn fresh engine with that stiff spring it was a raging beast. 
  The whole thing jumped into the air every time it fired and it hardly ever locked out. 
  The challenge was shutting it down.  
  There was no way to hold in that kill button on the Wico.  
  I had to take several swipes at it to shut down the mixer needle.
  A nice weak spring and a little adjustment of the lockout parts and 15 minutes later I had a very nice running engine.
   
  Alan Bowen
  Williamsburg, Michigan
   
  
"Rick I." <rdi at rochester.rr.com> wrote:
    I got my Taylor Vacuum Engine running!!! My club had a crank-up two
Sundays ago, and I brought the Taylor. I asked for help figuring out my
timing problem- that no matter what I did, the start/retard lever always had
WAY too much of an effect. We solved the prob, and got it running nicely!
I can start it on the first pull now! :D

Here's the KEY piece of advice: the Wico retard/advance lever never works
right! Just set it to "run" (down), time the engine so it works with that
setting, then forget about using it, "we all do it that way". Ha! I
would've had it running a year ago if I'd known that!!
Mucho thanks to the Pioneer Gas Engine guys who helped me!
  I have a 15 second digital video of its first run at:
  http://www.oldengine.org/members/inzero/images/TaylorFirstRunOK.avi
   
  The file is about 2MB in size.

You can see the blue tape on the flywheel flash by that I was using to time
it. Using VirtualDub video editting software, I viewed this video
frame-by-frame to count the revolutions, and the engine's doing 368 RPM
here. The engine is rated at 450 RPM, so we indeed have slowed it down a
bit.

-Rick I.
The full story's at: Rick's Taylor Vacuum Engine web site:
http://www.oldengine.org/members/inzero/
   

       
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