Corliss Engine

[jones]

Hi,

Somebody posted a request on one of the forums for pictures of Corliss engines. I said I would post the pictures I took today. I can't find which forum it was on, so I am putting them here. Enjoy!

[paul]

Fantastic pictures!! Great engine,I want one!!

[lancelot]

It was me...thank you for the piccys Jones, different model of the Corliss to the one I am building, but a cracker of an engine,
All the best,
John.

[Jo]

Hi Jones,

Very nice! Am I right in thinking that your engine is based on the Corliss Engine from Coles Power Models (California)?

If so for those who are intrested: If so it was serialised in Live Steam from Jan 1994 to May 1996. And if anyone does have access to the March 1994 magasine: I would very much like to gain access to a copy of the articale for this engine as some how the postman lost my copy somewhere on its trip across the pond!

Jo

[jones]

Hi again,

Jo, I dont know what sort of Corliss engine this one is as I didn't build it. It runs at my local club on run days and it driven by a small electric motor because we don't have a boiler large enough to fuel it and it does not run nearly as well on air. Probably because the efficiency of the Corliss engine relies on the expansion of steam. (Probably, dont quote me on it .

Regards,
Andrew

[spurley]

Is it noisy? Just wondered as the little chap 'driving' it seems to be wearing ear defenders! ;D

Just a little joke (I thought anyway!), it looks really superb. I'm sure I remember there being a magnificent example in the Engineerium in Brighton in the 80's. Did it survive the recent sale do you know?

Cheers

Brian

[lancelot]

Hi Brian,
have a listen to one on...utube...great sound, be a long while before mine reaches that stage ;D
All the best,
John.

[GWRdriver]

This engine is certainly at least based upon the Coles Corliss design. The Coles engine has always been characterised by the considerable foreshortening of the mechanism by proportionately reducing the stroke and trunk guide length, the length of the connecting rod, as well as reducing the diameter of the flywheel and widening the rim, resulting in a considerably "fattened" overall appearance.

[lancelot]

Hello all.
Just made a start on the ''Corliss''. I set up and machined the three bed plates, they were right on the limits of my mill table, lucky me...lovely castings to mill but horrible stuff when it gets up your nose...some one please invent glasses which don't steam up ::)some photos in due course.
All the best for now,
John.

[Myford Matt]

Hi Spurley

The whole museum survived the sale - it's gone to a local property speculator who wanted to keep it together. Estimated reopening in Spring 08.

MM

[spurley]

Hey Matt

Thanks for letting me know. I knew one of the chaps who was involved in the Engineerium from the beginning, Gary Wragg now at Hampshire Museum Service, who I used to work at the Bluebell with. He showed me around the place on several occasions and I remember the Corliss especially because up until those early visits I'd never heard of one before! Look forward to seeing John's engine when it has advanced a bit further.

Cheers

Brian

[Myford Matt]

It's a wonderful engine to watch. There's also a nice one in Armey Mills if you're ever up in Leeds.

Matt

[lancelot]

Hello All,
anyone out there have copies of Model Engineer from the early sixties, I have narrowed it down to hopefully, volume133 issue3332 and volume 135 issue3382, these issues apparently contain a write up on the ''Fleet'' CORLISS model engine [Peter Southworth] design, this was a diary of a build by JOHN A. PICKLES of BARNOLDSWICK, if some one who has these would care to email me copies it would be greatly appreciated, any costs will of course be covered.
All the best for now,
John.

[baggo]

Hi John,

I have both issues. 3332 contains a description of the Corliss engine and 3382 is basically an obituary in 'Smoke Rings'. If you send me a pm with your email address, I'll forward the articles to you.

John

[lancelot]

Hello Baggo,
thank you very much for the kind offer, I have sent you a PM.
All the best for now,
John.

[lancelot]

All right folks, I am back in the land of the living...And I,ve got the certificate to prove it ;D...slight lapse of memory...forgot what it was all about for a while... anyway, now back in workshop on the ''Corliss''...set up and machined 10'' flywheel for drive shaft...just under 1'' diam...used the mill with the adjustable boring bar set up...wee bit scary for first time use...will now need to find a lathe with a big gap bed. Next step is the shaft, bearing blocks and caps crank web then on to the cylinder...Does anyone know the diameters for the inlet and exhaust valves, can't seem to see them on the drawings, unless I am missing something...The ''unwarpable'' hunk of timber I obtained for the engine base ...WARPED...currently using it for a new bench top...back to the drawing board on that one...
Will post some pictures in due course,
All the best for now,
John.

[Jo]

Hi John,

The Inlet and exhaust valves, parts 266, 267, 268, 269? 5/16", 3/8", 3/8" and 7/16" respectively: I am doing the cross compound I cannot remember are you doing the single cylinder version? if so you want the first two measurements. The valve bonnets 285, 286, 287 are missing the bore diameter that should all be 5/32" see the corliss valve spindles parts no 231 to 234....

I would offer to let you use my Colchester Master to turn up your flywheel it would fit nicely on the small faceplate without having to remove the gap. But I fear am a bit far away.

Jo
-----------
Still tempted to do the four cylinder corliss version of the engine .

[lancelot]

Hi Jo,
thank you for that, I have just now discovered the missing sheet of drawing for valves in among some others for a different engine. It is the single that I am building, remember me saying about castings working out a bit smaller than drawing size, this problem arose when skimming the two halves of the flywheel for bolting together, I had to shim the faces otherwise it would have been oval, worked out fine. Marked out and drilled holes for studs by 3/32'' superglued the two halves together and used a ''WIRE DRILL'' [bendy drill] to spot the other half, then opened holes to full size, after splitting apart, had to make the 1BA studs, the nuts were 2BA opened to 1BA, could not get a supplier of 1BA anywhere. Just have to skim the outside to size now and job done. Got myself a wee Sherline from Millhill Suppliers, looking forward to doing the fiddly bits on it, tested it out and seems very capable...
All the best for now,
John.

[steam4ian]

G'day all.
What great work!
No body has mentioned the mill engine with Corliss valve gear in the Kensington Science Museum. As I recall it is located on the ground floor, central, towards the rear.
Sorry! As an Ozzie I just had to tell the POMS how to suck eggs, at least where to get the eggs! LOL.
We have a small Corliss valve engine extant in Adelaide, it drove a brickworks; a friend was engaged to give it a cosmetic restoration. Thankfully it received heritage classification before the site was "developed". Hands off collectors, Ozzies are getting very touchy about OUR heritage disappearing overseas. Watch out for Garratt K1, we'll get it back!

Regards,
Ian

[Jo]

Hi Ian,

You mean the Pinsley View Mill engine. I am not sure if they run her but if anyone wants to see a single cylinder corliss engine running for free (!!!!) then, if you are in the area, a visit to the Royal Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh is worth while.

Jo