Lister LT1

[AKcrab]

I have a lister LT1 from a '70's highway arrow sign trailer. Got it years ago. Nice little single cylinder air cooled diesel. Electric start. Don't remember which build it is, but they put out up to 7hp@3000 rpm. Some builds were governed at 1,500rpm and 1,000rpm with lower output of course.


This one ran a 60A alternator that kept a single 12v battery charged to power the incandescent light board.

I thought it would be perfect for keeping my deep cycle battery bank charged at the cabin in the fall when the solar system performance drops off.

It wasn't. Noisy as hell and the single belt slipped badly. Added a dual belt system which worked great until the alternator burned up shortly thereafter. This happened years ago before I found Micro CoGen and all the info about 110-555 alternators with balmar regulators.

The good news is the lister is still sitting under the cabin right where I abandoned it. Time to give her a second chance.

This time around after fitting a proper alternator and regulator I need to build an enclosure for reducing noise, then figure out the cogen part.

Cabin is fairly remote so I'd like to keep it as simple as possible.

Anyway, I don't see any mention of the Lister LT1 here. I think they are worth a look. Parts availability is still pretty good. Engine is equipped with a decompression lever. Cold starting aid is a small plunger that adds oil to the intake to increase compression.

That's all I've got. Now off to research cogen options for air cooled engines....

[veggie]

 AHcrab

Yes, definitely worth a reconditioning.
Those are excellent engines. Built like a tank.
I had a Lister LR1 a few years back. Ran like a Swiss watch.

Please post pictures or a video as your project progresses.

veggie