Micro CoGen.

Quote from: Tom on May 06, 2014, 11:22:38 AM
Even more interesting, to me anyway, would be an engine with no head and dual opposing pistons. There were some old marine designs that worked this way. They had 2 crankshafts geared together and each crank shaft turned a screw. My thought would be to eliminate the dual cranks and electrically couple the pistons together. Kind of like this but integrated with what Toyota is doing.

Some also used three cranks:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napier_Deltic



Seems like that would smooth out the power!

With 3 LBCs sharing the garage with the BIE (Big Indian Engine) I should probably stock up! ;-)

Quote from: glort on October 09, 2013, 06:56:11 PM
I have come to a sad realisation.  I'm not wacked out enough to sell this garbage. I'm not wired right but I'm no where near far enough gone that I could even dream up such utterly ridiculous rubbish let alone keep a straight face when trying to tell people about it.

Remember that sincerity is the key. Once you can fake that, the rest comes easy....

Quote from: quinnf on October 02, 2013, 10:01:34 PM
dingos' kidneys (a technical term),

"fetid dingo's kidneys"

FTFY ;-)

Quote from: Jens on October 04, 2013, 06:10:39 PM
So if I ran a Listeroid at let's say 300F, would I get more work out of it?
No, I wouldn't use water for cooling but a special synthetic coolant. It's been a long time since I saw details so I can't give a name of this stuff off the top of my head.

Smokey's pet project was an "adiabatic engine" -- one without a cooling system at all. All heat was retained in the engine as much as possible except for that the produced mechanical motion. He never got all the bugs worked out.

So I'd say, "provisionally, yes." It would take some major re-engineering though to make sure everything could handle the heat....

Quote from: Jens on October 03, 2013, 09:33:16 PM
What happens if the cooling system runs colder, or warmer?

A bit of a different application, but Smokey Yunick (NASCAR pioneer) had this to say about engine temps and cooling systems:

Quote"It is easy to see how overheating can be a problem, but I think some racers overlook the fact that it is possible to 'overcool' the engine. Some guys go to great lengths to keep the engine temperature down to 180 degrees. And, though the engine doesn't overheat, they don't realize that they're putting energy (heat) into the cooling system that could be used to produce power at the crankshaft. Running the engine at 180 degrees will drop the overall horsepower by 2%-3%. For max power the cooling temp should be at least 200 degrees."

The problem is that the heat will want to take the path of least resistance out of the combustion chamber. Making the engine hotter makes it "harder" for the heat to escape into the castings so more goes into producing mechanical motion.

Wow. Just.... wow.

The power's out and I'm running my internet/phone stuff from a little Harbor Freight 2-stroke genny (I'm on call this week and have to be reachable). If it stays out I'll have to drag the 3600rpm screamer from the shed. Need to get the 'roid going! ;-)

I was almost home when it hit. That was some crazy driving. Lost a few big tree limbs but that was it -- could have been much worse. We lost internet (TWC) overnight but the power just flickered a little. I've got my modem/router/etc on a UPS but that doesn't help when the uplink goes out....

Quote from: AdeV on November 15, 2012, 02:42:48 PM
But what is it with you guys and driving? Almost everyone was doing exactly the speed limit (or less),

Florida must not be like North Carolina then. If you do the speed limit here in NC you'll get run over.

I visited Scotland in 1996 and rented a car. I drove there like I drive here, and noticed that other drivers tended to pull over to let me go by. I didn't think I was pushing or tailgating but apparently they thought I was!

Quote from: hwew on November 04, 2012, 02:36:28 PM
You can buy a go phone just about anywhere. ATT, Target, Walmart, Best Buy, Super Markets, Dollar General and Malls.

Indeed -- even the Harris Teeter grocery store near me sells Tracfones. BTW, the Tracfone-branded LG800G sucks. ;-)

Quote from: mobile_bob on September 12, 2012, 08:16:37 PM
how about these?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B001ADR6M6/ref=dp_olp_new?ie=UTF8&condition=new

bob g

That appears to be the same one I got from my local hardware store.

i bought one about a year ago at my local hardware store.

I like those ebay ones!

Quote from: vdubnut62 on August 02, 2012, 11:48:31 AM
Ok, I have my towel..................................
Ron.

You hoopy frood, you.... ;-)

Quote from: AdeV on August 01, 2012, 05:44:31 PM
The radio series was the original - and widely regarded as best - version.

...and vastly superior to the movie. The TV show was pretty good if you can get past the very cheesy (but at the time pretty good, especially considering the budget) special effects.

"Last Chance to See" is also well worth the read.

Finally, check this out:
http://www.vintagemacworld.com/iifx.html

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