JV Puleo

That sounds good and the synthetic is advertised as having no odor. At $50 a gallon it isn't cheap but with a 20:1 ratio and a water system that doesn't leak (I hope) 20 gallons of water should last a long time.

Does anyone here know when "flush" grease fittings were invented? This is the type that used a pointed attachment or a needle on the end of the grease gun. I know the fittings with a little ball check valve were in use because there are several on the car in places where they must be original. I'd prefer to keep everything that shows on the car in my 1910-1915 time frame.

I think it is a 1-cylinder Cadillac, about 1905.

That's a good sign. I'll make a note of the name. This discussion has given me some ideas that may work. I'll have to make a small part and adapt a tiny grease cup but the good part is that I can make the part first and then, if it looks as if it will work, add it to the pump. Thinking a bit further on this... maybe I'll put a seal on each end of the bushing and lubricate it by connecting a small Gits "twist" oiler using way oil. I like way oil because it much stickier than motor oil (which isn't all that great a lubricant for anything other than motors).

I can revisit the problem in the future if it does prove to be a problem. Adding grease cups would be a challenge, mostly because it would require a tube passing through the inlet water passage to the bearing in the back and passing through the bracket that holds the pump in place in front. I could shorten the bearings and put seals on both sides...that would make it easier to lubricate but would decrease the bearing surface by 1/2". That may not be an issue - the total surface is slightly less than 3" now which is a lot for a 3/4" shaft. If I did that, I'd be inclined to put a seal on each end of the bushing and a small "button" type oil fitting in the middle. I actually those since they were incorporated in my original design. I bought a pair of ceramic seals but there simply isn't room for them. The width of the pump is limited by the bracket and the magneto and I've got it as tight as I dare go now. I wonder what the original thinking was since they didn't have water-soluble oil. The original pump shaft was badly corroded from electrolysis but the bushings didn't show much wear at all. They may have picked up some lubrication from the packing material.

The problem is that the front bearing is inside the bracket that holds the pump - that one might be possible but the hole would have to go through both pieces. The rear bearing is much more complicated because it is surrounded by the inlet water passage. I did think of a way to do it but it rapidly gets complicated and creates the risk of a water leak. Since the original pump didn't have either I thought it would be safe to rely on soluble oil in the coolant, the oilite bearings and the fact that I can replace them easily.

I'm jealous.

Ed, what oil do you use? One of the characteristics of water-soluble oil is that it decays and stinks to high heaven. That is the reason I don't use it in my mill even though it has a built in coolant pump. I seem to remember the product that was sold as "water pump lubricant" years ago was just that but didn't stink.

Yes. I lean toward plain soft water with a little water-soluble oil in it. I also used oilite bearings and they are easy to replace if they wear noticeably. The original pump had no means of lubricating it. It's important that it not leak because I'll probably put anti-freeze in it for winter storage. A heated garage is beyond my means.

Your students aren't alone in that. I also find patent specifications difficult to work with. On a completely different note, last night I found a reference to aluminum pistons in 1908 or 09. I'd always thought W.O. Bentley, with his DFP race cars was the first to use them. I'd guess that Bentley didn't know about the earlier car, which wouldn't be surprising because it to was a race car and I doubt the builders were going to advertise their idea. Bentley didn't either. He did share it with the Admiralty at the beginning of WWI which is how he came to designing the BR1 and BR2 engines for airplanes. I do have the formula for determining the crush. The challenge will be to work to an extremely close tolerance. That's why I think I should make a test set before cutting into $200 worth of bearing bronze. The job will probably require more special fixtures, one in particular to hold the shells together while I machine the thrust faces.

Main bearings....actually a set of temporary mains made of aluminum as a test for the machining processes and to use when I'm fitting the con rods. Then the rods and then the pistons. With those done I'll do the bronze shells for the mains. That's the plan in any case. Actually, I'm getting ahead of myself. I also have to finish the oil passage for the center main and make the parts to secure the center bearing of the camshaft and provide oiling. I should do that before I bore the case.

The whole process makes it clear how much work is required to design and make something. I can't imagine why I didn't make the casting first...it all seems so simple from this end. It is one of my shortcomings that my design progression always seems to go from complicated to simple.

I am now in the final stretch of the water pump job. I put the studs in...to keep them from turning when I tightened them I put a drop of super glue on the threads. Then assembled the pump without the shaft. I then ran a barrel lap through. It took only two light passes for the pump shaft to turn very easily. The next step was to put a slot for a Woodruff key in each end of the shaft. And mill a flat opposite the key. Then the seals were pressed in. I need a gasket to go under the seal cover on the inlet side because the screws go into the water passage. These were made by putting a 3/4" hole in the gasket material with a Forstner bit. I then put them in the lathe sandwiched between the two pieces of aluminum that I used to make the seal cover. They were trimmed down with a razor blade and the touched up with a bit of sandpaper. I actually made 4 of them. The inlet tube was screwed into the bottom of the pump using this old-fashioned thread sealer. Then I put it all back on the engine to make sure everything lined up as it should...which it did. I still have four gaskets to make but the pump is now assembled and ready to go on the shelf until it is time to assemble the engine. Here's the finished product.

Today I made nuts to hold the pump together. Why, you may rightly ask would I bother to make nuts? Because I want them to look appropriate for the period. It isn't that they look like originals, it is that they don't look as if they came from the hardware store. The first step was to cut some pieces of 7/16 brass hex stock. It was faced off and drilled with a #25 drill. Then I set up the radius turning tool and put a slight crown on one end. This was done with a collet stop in place so all the pieces would come out exactly the same length. Then the other end was turned down to 3/8" And went back in the lathe to be trimmed to length. I then threaded them (although I forgot to take a picture of that). I only need 5. The 6th was my insurance in case I ruined one. I have to admit it doesn't look like much for most of a day's work but my feeling is that it is small details like this that disguise the fact that the entire unit is new.

Wow...I haven't seen that in years. Stanley Benoit lived in southern RI - around Exeter or West Greenwich – in a trailer next to his garage. He built miniature steam locomotives in the garage - one per year - which he sold for $30,000 each. That was a lot of money in the early 70s (It's still a lot of money to me). I visited him there. The Stan-Ben steamer was all apart having been rear ended on Main Street in East Greenwich, RI. I seem to remember he told me it was a 1928 Pontiac chassis. The engine was one of the larger Stanley's (20 HP?). Since I was in my 20s at the time and he must have been in his late 60s or 70s he must be long gone now and I too have wondered what became of the car.

I had several distractions today but still managed to make two threaded sleeves. I have to make 30 of these so it is important I make sure they will work. 12 are for the main bearing studs. Those will be 9/16-18 on the OD and 7/16-20 on the ID. 18 are for the sump. They will be 9/16-18 OD and 3/8-16 ID. Cutting a 9/16 thread with this tool is pushing the envelope but it seems to work, probably because this is free-machining brass. The long one is for the main bearings and the short one for the sump. I also got 4 packages in the mail at the end of the day, including these nice Franklin brake-line fittings from my friend Mike West that I'll use to conduct oil to the center main and the center camshaft bearing. The hex stock and the collet I need to make the final parts for the water pump also came in so I've gone from having to think of something to make to having plenty to do.

There is an AACA chapter in Westerly which is very close to Exeter. Its likely members live there so you may be able to find a one who would store the engine until it can be picked up if that is a problem. I'd offer to do it myself but I'm at the other end of the state (which still isn't far), have no good way to bring it back to my shop, and I'm leaving on an extended trip in two weeks and have a great deal to do beforehand. But, if it is an emergency, I'd try to help. jp

Cut it out guys... this will go to my head...I'm just a Yankee mechanic. To answer Mike's question, this is the collet stop. It is just a plug that screws into the end of the collet with another threaded piece inside that can be adjusted to the desired depth. This one has been modified by adding the 1/4" dowel pin for a job that needed a smaller diameter pin. The thread is 7/16-20 so I have a few extra bolts and nuts to use for different setups. It wouldn't be too difficult to make but, if I remember correctly, it was inexpensive. To cut small pieces to a uniform length, I set the stop and also set a stop on the lathe bed for either a turning tool or a cut off tool. I usually face one end of a short piece square then use the collet stop to match the exact length of the piece multiple times. I'll use this to make the studs that hold the jugs down and the studs for the main bearing caps. If you needed more travel, I don't see why you couldn't make an extended version. Edit: The pin is actually screwed in backwards in this picture because I needed extra depth.

What is clear is that it was some sort of roadster/speedster. The fact that the chassis doesn't even reach the rear end tells us that the body must have been very short. There isn't room there for any more than a couple of seats and a gas tank.

It doesn't make any difference to me at all although I'm perfectly happy taking advantage of other people's aversion to RHD. Except for later American RRs, most of the old cars I've worked on were RHD.

Thanks guys. The pump has been a bit of a struggle but I'm happy with the way it is coming out. There are still a few tweaks to do but overall it would work just as it is. This project has made it clear why people build prototypes. When the job is done you ask yourself "why didn't I think of that the first time" but it seldom works that way.

I made some little brass studs to replace socket head cap screws...the first step was to cut them to length. The trick is to make them identical so I did it in the lathe with a cut off tool and the piece of rod in a collet with a stop set. Then both ends were threaded. This threading device was critical. I'd never have been able to thread them straight by hand and they are too small to single point. This is what they are supposed to do. I'll make special nuts for the end but I'm waiting on the hex stock. I then drilled and tapped the holes for the cover plate on the small end. And pressed in the bushings. With the plates screwed together, the fit is just about perfect. However, when I put the middle section in the pump it tightenes up just a little so when everything is done and bolted together I'll hone the bushings a little.

I intend to but haven't gotten to it. Its one of those jobs I'm leaving for a day when I'm waiting for materials to arrive.

I took yesterday off to do the laundry and work on my book and because I wanted to give the slip fit Locktite time to completely set. This morning I put the inlet end of the pump in the lathe to turn off the extra material. It seemed to work perfectly. Then I put the pump back in the engine to mark the length of the brass inlet tube. I cut it off... And threaded the end. I then assembled it and tried it in the engine. The angle iron sides of the engine stand are the same material I intend to use for the sub-frame so if it fits here it will fit when the engine is in the chassis. I don't think there is any question that this looks a lot better than the welded pieces. Its stronger too. Next I'm going to replace the socket head cap screws with brass rods and special nuts I've dreamed up. It certainly doesn't look like the original pump but I think it does look like "1910" – or at least a lot more so than my previous efforts.

I suspect it's the dry air – something I doubt you get much of in Norfolk.