Show Us Your First Steps

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Encouragement for Beginners!

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

It's not unnatural that when we post pictures of our work, we tend to showcase our latest and greatest creations. Let's be honest, we all started off with far more modest models.

Later I'm going to photograph a couple of my early projects and put them up here to show the sort of thing beginners can reasonable expect to achieve in their first year in the hobby.

Would anyone else like to share pictures of their humble first steps?

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

I'll do it when I get in from work.

[Russell EberhardtParticipant @russelleberhardt48058]

The beam engine "Mary" on the left was my first model. Mind you the book by Tubal Cain describing the building process is excellent and taught me a lot.

Russell.

[john carruthersParticipant @johncarruthers46255]

my first attempts made from whatever was in the scrap bin last year.

[Gas_mantle.Participant @gas_mantle]

A great idea for a thread

John, how well does that coffee machine work as a steam supply ? I'm needing something similar for my small efforts till I can get my head around making a simple boiler.

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

I reckon an electric shower unit could be another source perhaps.
BobH

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Great little engines John, nothing like seeing something you have made whiz round to get you hooked.

I started with a cappuccino machine as well, until the domestic authorities caught me in the act. I have the 'boiler' from one set aside waiting for me to figure out how to make a safe enclosure for it.

Russell, no shame in tackling a big project as a first go! Do you want to post a bigger picture?

Neil

[HopperParticipant @hopper]

I built this little wobbler and boiler for a high-school science project, with supervision from the old man, done on the old Drummond lathe.

It still works today, having survived two generations of boys.

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

Here's some of my early attempts at steam engines, the one in the middle was made by someone else, and I rebuilt it so that it would work, the one at the rear is the one I made at night school class's about twenty years ago, Both those engines were made at the same time. The engine at the front is a V twin with improved boiler casing that I had in a boat. The v twin replaced the larger single at the front. Those plus the Mamod SE 2 are about as far as I go for now with steam.

Ian S C

[John BaguleyParticipant @johnbaguley78655]

My first effort made at school when I was about 15. Double acting oscillator of about 3/4" bore I think. Never did make a boiler for it but it runs on a few psi of air.

John

Edited By John Baguley on 13/11/2015 12:44:57

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

My first engine was a complete chaos of bits of scrap with a piston valve and transfer tubes soft-soldered in place. Amazingly it worked. I can't find any bits just yet. I also need to dig out my number 2, a Stuart 10V which was my first one from castings:

Number three was an experiment to help me figure out how Stephenson's valve gear works. I wasn't particularly worried about making it look like a real prototype… it has a smaller flywheel now (original donated to my 'Buxton' engine) but still runs frantically on air or steam:

This is Edgar T. Westbury's Trojan, an excellent subject for a first model (I it was my second from castings). Gunmetal castings are very forgiving, but a make it a bit more expensive than if they were CI.

This one was a solenoid operated beam engine almost entirely from card, it used to work but the coil got very hot:

[Gas_mantle.Participant @gas_mantle]

This little single acting steamer with a sort of spool valve was my first build, it's got quite a few amateurish parts (the flywheel isn't very well balanced) but I made it only a few weeks after first getting my lathe and it runs well.

After first completing it, it would only run in the vertical position which kinda defeats the object of a horizontal engine ! after a lot of tinkering and hair pulling I noticed that in the horizontal position the piston rod would tend to slide toward the open end of the crank pin – 2 minutes work to make a small retaining ring and a dab of glue and I was well pleased how it ran

And a little video of it running :-

**LINK**

 

Edited By Peter Nichols on 13/11/2015 14:39:07

[john carruthersParticipant @johncarruthers46255]

The coffee machine says the pressure vessel is rated to 15 bar Peter. I haven't put a gauge on it yet. It certainly does make them go for a short time

[phil burleyParticipant @philburley12227]

my first attempt at an engine , age 75 not exebition standard but runs well so I am quite satisfied. Working on a beam engine now

[mechman48Participant @mechman48]

My first attempt with a simple oscillator running on air back in 2014 …

A video of it's first run…

**LINK**

[URL=http://i1136.photobucket.com/albums/n490/mechman48/Running2.mp4][IMG]http://i1136.photobucket.com/albums/n490/mechman48/th_Running2.mp4[/IMG][/URL]

Can't seem to rotate video…?

 

George.

Edited By mechman48 on 13/11/2015 16:50:47

Edited By mechman48 on 13/11/2015 16:52:34

[Bruce EdneyParticipant @bruceedney59949]

My very first was a Wobbler of Mr Pete 222 design

My second was a Potty – Horizontal

[Russell EberhardtParticipant @russelleberhardt48058]

Posted by Neil Wyatt on 13/11/2015 08:50:05:

Russell, no shame in tackling a big project as a first go! Do you want to post a bigger picture?

Here you go:

[Alex CollinsParticipant @alexcollins55045]

After 2 failed attempts at the Puddleduck engine, this was my first engine that ran.

**LINK**
 

Edited By Alex Collins on 13/11/2015 21:31:40

[Gas_mantle.Participant @gas_mantle]

Great model Alex, have you tried it on steam ?

[Paul LousickParticipant @paullousick59116]

I have always worked in mechanical engineering as a design draftsman but never in a workshop running a mill or a lathe. The only time that I used a lathe was way back at school in metalwork. The old lathe that I purchased is the same as the ones that we used at high school and I had never run a milling machine before. Fortunately I have some friends who could give some good advice about machining. The post for my traction engine is the biggest model engineering project which I have made. It has been a steep learning curve for some things but has been well worth the effort. (only had to re-build a few components, which is why I model everything on the computer in 3D before attempting it in steel). My advice is to join a model club and have a go.

Paul.

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

These are the first two models I actually have photos of. Before that, my first vehicle was of wooden construction with a dynamo used as a motor (age 11). The second was a motorised bike using a small 2-stroke lawnmower engine. A policeman told me to stop riding it. I then made this thing with a friend using a Suffolk Punch engine and gears from a Honda C50 that we'd blown up by not rebuilding it correctly. The other vehicle at the bottom had a car engine and 45hp (my first Honda). When I hit 17 I fitted that engine into a car and used it to go to school.

[Martin CottrellParticipant @martincottrell21329]

Heres a video of mine from a GLR Tina & boiler kit. Took about 7-8 years on and off to finally get a running pair!

 

Edited By Martin Cottrell on 13/11/2015 22:08:57

[Mad muppetParticipant @madmuppet]

Good morning all
Now that is the kind of pictures that might encourage others to get involved. A friend of mine sent me a couple of pictures of his five and a half inch steam loco he has built. Along with a diorama for it. Magnificent work even more so as we are in Thailand. I was reluctant to send him a photograph of the rather not so well made mill engine. But this thread shows not all models are shiny well painted works of art. But as was stated when it first turns over and runs. It is something you feel you want to share. Normally with Shmbo who normally will smile say very good and wonder what all the fuss is about.
So thanks to all for the photographs of models that would normally not be seen.
MM Thailand.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Well I did make a crude beam engine at school but don't have a photo, was not much of a sucess as the aluminium flywheel I cast using a Mamod one as the pattern was never going to carry things round with all the tight spots and air leaks to contend with.

I do still have the square that I made, rivited together from layers of 1.5x20mm steel, still gets used for rough marking out of things like black bar

When I was about 15 Dad bought me a Unimat3 and I made several bits for that, the only one that I could find knocking about in the back of a draw was this marking gauge minus it's pianowire point.

At about 16 or 17 I made a proper engine all on the Unimat 3 in the form of a Stuart 10V, its a bit rough when I look at it closly now but was the best I could manage at the time.

I dusted it off over the weekend and made a connector for the compressor, does not run as slowly as I would like due to quite a big airloss around the piston rod gland as that has to be left very loose if things are not to bind up. I suppose I should remachine the offending bits now but will probably leave as is.

J

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