the much derided internal combustion engine..

[chapel gate]

..be it the little stationery engine happily "bop,bop,boping" away at the county show or the mighty V8 rasping its sweet harmony. today I took this little two stroke 3.5 horse out board out of the shed, put a drop of petrol in and after a few pulls it spluttered a bit then came to life. it had been stood in a damp shed for about five years. I stood there for about 20 minutes watching the slight haze of blue smoke slowly clear and its note become more regular...

theres just something about 'em..

 

[BobMurphy]

There certainly is .

That reminds me, I have a (blue, 100:1 mix) "Yamaha 5" sitting in my garage, I bought it from a local Yacht Club in 1975 and it has done a vast amount of work on canal restoration and boating competitions. Its been sitting for at least 10 years . . . I must fire it up again .

Bob.

 

[clivehorridge]

I rebuilt a Suzuki twin 60hp outboard I bought in bits chucked in three cardboard boxes for £50.

I’d only worked on a pig of a 50hp pull-start Mercury before, so had little idea what I was doing, apart from tinkering with a BSA bantam, moons before.

The suzi needed a new piston holed by some jerk using a long-reach plug , a new reed valve bent up by the starter motor being dumped on top of it in the box, and of course a new gasket set.

Luckily, there was a photocopied manual in one of the boxes, so like a Lego set, I pieced it all together and it ran sweet on the first flick of the switch.

Magic...

 

[Towpack]

Nothing wrong with strokers IMO. All this emissions crap is just that. Nothing like the sound and smell of a 2 stroke “on the pipe”. As well as the 2 st bikes I’ve had I also had a Yamaha 20 hp on the 14ft cabin boat I used to own. Quite thirsty and didn’t like idling for long periods compared to the 4st I replaced it with but the power delivery was much more ‘exciting’.

Wow! I’m nursing a semi here....

 

[nick_the_fish]

We all take engines for granted these days as they are so common and well used, but it still amazes me that we can design and engineer bits of metal that can create lots of small controlled explosions and use the energy released to move heavy loads at high speeds.......

 

[Chris]

That's wheely bin put through its paces CG.

OK come on, you were all thinking it.

 

[BobMurphy]

Talking of small 'strokers' I've been on a chainsaw kick recently.

About four weeks ago we had a stiff East wind, nothing unusual but surprisingly a 90ft Sycamore at the edge of my garden fell over (it looked healthy but the roots were weak and the ground very dry and light during the extended dry spell). It hit my wall, taking out a telephone line, and the upper branches (and some from nearby trees) blocked the road into the farm. Luckily no-one was near it .

A neighbour and I set to with our saws, drivers of trapped vehicles came to help and with the farm's Teleloader we cleared the road in under an hour. In all, we had about 20 people mucking in.

Today I'm tackling the 4ft diameter main trunk with a Stihl MS880 with a 48" bar.

small, light (relatively) and very powerful these small two-strokes .

I now have eight chainsaws, collected over the past 35 years, ranging from a 10" Pole Saw up to the 48" 'Beast' . . . Can a guy ever have enough chainsaws .

Bob.

 

[Towpack]

Dip your bread here Bob!!.......

 

[Chris]

But what did they use to cut the tree down in the first place?

Just how many people die at this event each year? Don't tell me it's none.

 

[Higgy]

We all take engines for granted these days as they are so common and well used, but it still amazes me that we can design and engineer bits of metal that can create lots of small controlled explosions and use the energy released to move heavy loads at high speeds.......

I have always maintained that an engine in its simplistic form ie block crank rods pistons, petrol or diesel, if maintained properly should run forever (why not). its all the other stuff they bolt to it that lets it down... brilliant invention. Unless you sat at the side of the motorway in a cloud of steam and smoke waiting for the AA. Then its not such a good invention

 

[Ian Rubie]

I used to be well into radio controlled cars. I had one that had a 3.5cc engine that produced something like 1.5hp at 28,000 rpm. This was 35 years ago. I've had a quick look and the first 3.5cc current engine I saw is 2.61hp at 34,000 rpm with a practical rev range 4,000 to 42,000 rpm.

 

[Towpack]

Just how many people die at this event each year? Don't tell me it's none.

That thought crossed my mind too. Not much in the way of PPE in evidence.

 

[Towpack]

I used to be well into radio controlled cars. I had one that had a 3.5cc engine that produced something like 1.5hp at 28,000 rpm. This was 35 years ago. I've had a quick look and the first 3.5cc current engine I saw is 2.61hp at 34,000 rpm with a practical rev range 4,000 to 42,000 rpm.

I’ve still got the FG Modelsport, 1/5 scale Off-road Beetle I bought years ago. Pull start Komatsu Zenoah 23cc petrol engine (used in strimmers etc) and goes like stink. You can get big bore kits to take them to 30+cc.

 

[Chris]

If it will cut through a meter thick tree, I'm not sure a pair of gloves is really going to protect you.

 

[chapel gate]

That's wheely bin put through its paces CG.

OK come on, you were all thinking it.

It was a little choppy in there...

 

[BobMurphy]

Dip your bread here Bob

Fantastic, a neighbour (with a Husqvarna 36" chainsaw) had told me about that video, they really are mad. All the bits are chrome plated and beautifully prepared, its a different world over there.

That 121.6cc / 7.1 bhp 48" beast of mine is quite heavy enough thank you. I was cutting slices off the 4ft diameter trunk yesterday and each cut buried my feet in chippings - more than ankle deep. Each cut took a couple of minutes only. YEAH ! We have the Power .

My 25" Stihl MS461 is a good saw as well (and so is the Stihl MS181 12" logging/pruning saw).

Bob.

 

[goodoldboy]

Can a guy ever have enough chainsaws

No