Assuming you want to buy plans/castings for engines then here are a few for starters.

Blackgates Engineering do 3 or 4 beginners size engines, a couple of which have metric drawings available which you are probably used to working with. Don’t be put off by the catalogue the engines look like this and this and this

Stuart Models are the usual suspects but generally all imperial

Reeves again have some engines suitable for beginners but imperial

Polly do some nice engines but I would not suggest them to start with as they are scale models of full size so more detailed and intricate, quite a few in metric.

There are also a reasonable number of designs about on the net like those by Stuew Hart that go under the Potty banner and I have a couple such as this and this as well as a couple more that are in Model Engineer. For materials my usual port of call is M-Machine do metric and imperial Tooling I have bought from ARC the most over the last 10years or so.

Welcome!

I guess you’re looking for a kit?  I’ll open by suggesting a Stuart.   Well established, popular, and their plans are error free I believe.

Not where I started though.  With many exceptions, kits are based on castings, a time honoured way of producing parts in a rough state, that have to be machined to size and finish.

Not for me.   I built engines as a way of learning technique, not for show, and all of them were made from stock.    No castings!  The stock came off-the-shelf from my local metal emporia, but there are several internet sources.   Have a read of this recent thread which discusses a supplier you might choose to avoid!  If going the stock route, avoid unknown scrap, and buy ‘free-cutting’ metal.  (Kits usually supply suitable metal, which is beginner friendly.)

My first engine was a Stewart Hart PottyMill, plans here.  Although this version is unconventional and tightly packed, I found no errors.  Difficulty about right for me as a beginner, made me think, but not too simple or too hard.

I run mine with compressed air because boilers are another game.

I assume you wanted a stationary engine too.   Ask again if a loco is wanted – they’re harder!

Years of fun ahead!

Cheers,

Dave

On 8 January 2025 at 13:42 Plasma Said:

a few tool making projects first, get into the feel of your machines before you start on a precision piece?

Mick

Don’t let people catch you saying tool projects are not precision😄😄😄😄😄😄

Dave, there are some errors in Stuart drawings.