c.1928 English Electric Willans Air-Blast Injection Diesel Start and Run
The Willans air-blast injection diesel starting and running at the Melbourne Steam Traction Engine Club. Only running on two cylinders as the fuel system needs further work (including some backfires from the third!). This video contains footage from two separate runs of the engine.
This engine was built around 1928 (serial number ID219) and is rated 250 hp at 220 rpm.
It was one of two engines that were purchased new by Carlton & United Breweries Ltd. (CUB) in Melbourne in 1928 to serve as backup generators, directly coupled to DC generators which were replaced by AC alternators in the 1930s.
While the fate of the second engine is unknown, the first engine was replaced by a larger standby unit and stored at the Abbotsford Brewery in 1950, before it was later moved a second time and was installed at the Yorkshire Brewery in Collingwood around 1953.
The engine continued to serve as a backup generator until the big-end conrod bearing of cylinder 2 failed in 1969. CUB decided to scrap the engine, but this fortunately did not happen, and the engine was later removed for preservation in 1982.
In 1988, the engine was donated to the Museum of Victoria where it remained until 2010 when it was donated to the Melbourne Steam Traction Engine Club. After 12 years of extensive restoration, the engine is finally operational after more than 50 years.
This engine is based on Rudolf Diesel's original design which was first built under licence by Willans & Robinson Ltd. in 1904. The company was acquired by English Electric in 1919 who continued to build these engines under the Willans name until the 1930s.
This engine is the only known running example. Details here:
www.melbournesteam.com.au/wil...
Date recorded: 10 March 2024
Recording equipment:
- iPhone XR
- Kaiser Baas S1 Gimbal
Editing software:
- MacBook Air M1
- iMovie
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I remember the engine well having helped to put it temporarily together last time
Thoroughly enjoyed watching this old girl run. I'm glad they saved it!
Those 12 years of restoration definitely paid off well.
Its old high inertia sets like this that gave our power grids resiliance and the ability to withstand shock loads
That's exactly what they were designed for.
Ein hoch interessanter Motor Unverwüstlich und absolut robust,so eine Stabilität haben die heutigen Verbrennungsmotoren nicht mehr 👍👍👍👍
Ich stimme zu!
Great to see her running Ian and Len Great job. Dennis
That thing needs an outdoor vent!
It's getting one. It just hadn't been fitted yet when I filmed this.
Love it! Sounds like it’s running on two cylinders though.
Because it is. Fuel system is a bit dodgy.
I just lurve the smell of diesel fumes of a mornin'.
Me too.
It appears only the cylinder on the end closest to the flywheel is actually having a combustion event. The timing of the cam lobes and rocker arm motion along with the puff of exhaust smoke and sound all line up, to me it seems the other two cylinders are basically coasting and contributing no power pulses. I'm not criticizing , I love the old machinery, it's only an observation!
To me, it seems like the cylinder next to the flywheel is the one that backfires a few times in the video, but I suppose it just differs from different perspectives.
Besutiful engine
Love the smell of diesel.
Same! I can never get enough of it. 😁
Nice beat :)
It was only running on two cylinders that day, but it still makes up for a cool beat.
@@Wh4tTh3H3y In this circumstances, I wonder if this engine is cappable of working on single cylinder ?
It probably could, but it wouldn't be very powerful.
I so want this to be hooked up to a Tesla charge point.
LOL. My favourite comment.
I'm an engineer in a coal-fired powerplant in the US. I also drive a Tesla. I plug it into a free charging port in the staff parking lot at the plant, less than 100 yards from the coal pile, every day. I'd be glad to send you a picture of it! Hahaha!
I started my 77 Chevy wagon pretty much the same way
Gotta love a good old cold start.
Great old girl ! However I am interested to see the lack of proper ventilation.
It's getting an outdoor exhaust, but it just hasn't been put in place yet.
Bonus comment. I have some very rare spares, oil gauges etc. Which I may be able to help with. I live on the edge of the Western Desert of Western Australia, so if you want an engine block YOU pay the postage.
Lovely engine mate im surprised its not in a carport type shed or has an outdoor exhaust but then again we all die ov something, never heard of Yorkshire's brewery in Melbourne is it still around and what beers did it make, thanks for the video
A few things to note: - The outdoor exhaust hadn’t been fitted yet at the time I filmed this. - The Yorkshire Brewery in Collingwood is still around today and now serves as an apartment complex, but I’m not sure what beers they made back in the day. Thanks for watching.
Very good video! What is the RPM of an engine of this size?
Maximum speed is around 220 revolutions per minute, which is what it makes its peak power at (250 horsepower).
I'm assuming the generator is not generating any volts yet, due to the slip rings not being shiny. Will it be operational some day? Do you know what its rated voltage is?
I'm not sure if they'll have it operational (it may possibly be beyond repair), but my guess at the output voltage would be somewhere higher than 400 V AC. The engine originally had a DC generator which is not known to survive.
Did they ever get it to fire on all 3?
From what I was told, the fuel system (or one of the injectors) needed some additional tweaking. It can be seen backfiring a few times in the video, which could possibly be the third cylinder firing. I did see earlier videos of the engine running, in which is was firing on all three, but I'm not quite sure.
Would have been nice if the third leg had joined the party 😂
Kinda surprised that the exhaust isnt piped outside.
Not yet it isn't. They hadn't fitted the outdoor pipe at the time I had filmed this.
How do you contain or attempt to contain lubricant with all the exposed parts - cam, rockers, crank, etc? I would think the engine would be an oily mess after a few hours.
Open-crank engines seem to be designed in such a way that the cylinder supports catch the sump oil being flung by the crankshaft. That's just my guess, I'm no expert.
@@Wh4tTh3H3yThe engine crankcase is closed, so the oil circulates through hydraulic lines and is distributed by the oil pump. The camshaft cams run dry here and should be lubricated from the platform by an oiler. An oiler on a steamship had to service 100 lubrication points in an hour.
The crankcase is not closed
@@MrGlenferd But it has forced lubrication of the crankshaft.
I think one cylinder is a little rich 🤠 250hp, Amazing they make outboard motors way bigger than that these days.
Not necessarily "rich" as it's a diesel, but rather a bit of a dodgy fuel system that needs further work.
It's all about the torque, there's a good analogy that says "it's like hitting a wall, horse power is how fast you hit it and torque is how far you push the wall back". 👍👍
@@Antony_Jenner that’s a great analog, I’ll remember that one
I have two very similar engines. Can you tell me the bore and stroke of this engine please and thanks.
The bore × stroke of the engine is 381 mm (15 in) × 559 mm (22 in). Very curious to hear about your similar engines.
@@Wh4tTh3H3y Thank you for your quick reply. The two I have are Built here in England. Both are Mirrlees Bickerton and Day engines. One is a 55hp single cylinder and the other is a 180hp 4 cylinder both are air blast injection, post first world war.
What happened to the roof stack ?
If, by that, you mean the exhaust, it hasn't been directed outside yet.
I think there might be some of these, or similar in a decommissioned power station in Western Samoa.
It would be interesting if that were actually the case. The Willans engine at Scoresby is the only known running example.
I want one 😂
So do I, but we haven't any room in the shed!
Why is it only running on 2 cylinders?
Dodgy fuel system that requires a bit of further tweaking.
running on 2?
Only running on two cylinders, but it backfires a few times in the video, which could be the third cylinder firing.
Looks like one of the two cylinders that are running is rich or burning oil.
That's probably the case, as the fuel system still needs further tweaking.
It is a diesel. the term "rich" does not apply to diesels - the intake air is not throttled and so there is ALWAYS an excess of air for the amount of fuel. it is running on only 2 cylinders - there is a mechanic fault either affecting compression or preventing fuel injection on one cylinder.
Have they ever thought of installing an exterior exhaust system?
Yes they have, and they’re in the process of doing it.
All that fk'n pollution!
Yep. I love it.
This ( indoor ? ) exhaust system would make young Greta T .... ( PROUD ) ... ( ? ) ............. DAVE™🛑
Poor Greta would be balling her eyes out upon seeing this beast running. 😂
How absolutely annoying! Lovely 3cyl EE running. HOWEVER, in the background is a 4Cyl Southern Cross BGC motor doing what???. Mine runs a 180CFM S+ compressor and is fully original and I have had the pleasure of using it for over 40 years. Might have to get the generator and starter motor fixed as I am getting too old to crank it.
I don't know if that Southern Cross actually runs or not (I've never seen it run). It might as well just be a display piece.
Sounds like music to me.
It's a nice beat in 3/4 or 6/8 time.
Muito mal apresentado existem vários pontos de controle não apresentados
Mostrei tudo claramente visível no motor, então não vejo o que poderia ter perdido.
Not very healthy to breath the exhaust smoke gases.
I was aware of that, and that's why I waited until it cleared out before moving over to film more shots.
Should run the exhaust outside
No worse than smoking cigarettes
You should move on with your life. None of this matters.
What, exactly, does that mean on a video like this?
Yes