Rust??
Steam Powered Go Kart
- Thread starter SpeedBoy
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jamyers
Well-known member
What's that?
Seriously, I love steam engines, and I think it'd be pretty cool for parades and such...likely to be heavy, and you'd prolly need to gear it down and therefore slow, but hey - you're not trying to build a race kart.
To convert a gas engine to a single-acting steamer, you'd need a custom camshaft, since it'd be very similar to a 2-stroke.
Intake valve opens and live steam goes in - and pushes the piston down. Flywheel pushes piston up, spent steam exits.
The problem with this is that there's no throttle, speed/power is going to be based on boiler pressure.
"Real" steam engines use some sort of variable intake valve timing (like a slide valve) to control/throttle the incoming steam, and sometimes even to reverse the engine. Most are also double-acting (steam moves the piston both ways), which wouldn't work on a compressor- or gas-engine-based project. Check out animated engines' steam locomotive (awesome website!) for a great view of the valving.
How about a large air compressor pump running in reverse? Hmm...check out this link for a way-lengthy discussion of that....
I can see pretty quickly why internal-combustion engines replaced steam power so quickly...
Yep i never thought of using a compresser pump and i have a old working one outside i could use right now! I have built on 4 cycle engine into a little air engine and going by the power it put out im not sure i would have to gear it down to much, just have bad acceleration but then again what steam engine has good acceleration? Expanding steam in a cylender would produce alot of power, the stany steam car talked about was setup to the rear axle was the crank shaft because of the power of steam. If i use a gas engine i will make the exaust port the intake port because its smaller then the intake port thus expanded steam exits through the bigger intake valve hole.
What's that?
Seriously, I love steam engines, and I think it'd be pretty cool for parades and such...likely to be heavy, and you'd prolly need to gear it down and therefore slow, but hey - you're not trying to build a race kart.
To convert a gas engine to a single-acting steamer, you'd need a custom camshaft, since it'd be very similar to a 2-stroke.
Intake valve opens and live steam goes in - and pushes the piston down. Flywheel pushes piston up, spent steam exits.
The problem with this is that there's no throttle, speed/power is going to be based on boiler pressure.
"Real" steam engines use some sort of variable intake valve timing (like a slide valve) to control/throttle the incoming steam, and sometimes even to reverse the engine. Most are also double-acting (steam moves the piston both ways), which wouldn't work on a compressor- or gas-engine-based project. Check out animated engines' steam locomotive (awesome website!) for a great view of the valving.
How about a large air compressor pump running in reverse? Hmm...check out this link for a way-lengthy discussion of that....
I can see pretty quickly why internal-combustion engines replaced steam power so quickly...
I think i will build a simple boiler like this one and witch has automatic water sencer so it keeps itself full! im good enough with electronics to build that sencer so i don't realy see a better way to go, its way safer then watching a sight glass every 5 min! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ift3UNKLvs
If use coper tubing theres no worry for rust 
Nodroz
New member
Lolwat? Is that spark plug on the side of that boiler?
jamyers
Well-known member
Why, yes - yes it is.. LOL!
jamyers
Well-known member
Aha, a poor man's water-level sensor - brilliant!
Looks like he ithier is pumping alot of fuel or water in but it looks like a cool kart. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NO7gtH0tHE
builder bob
New member
If you build the boiler make sure to seal it up, put it behind a dirt pile, give it a lot of fuel and close all the valves. Then go hide in your house and if it doesn't explode by the time it runs out of fuel then it's safe. Better idea I think is to run the engine off of compressed air(like from a scuba tank). Any steam engine will run off of compressed air so you can still build the engine. Nice thing about air though is that the scuba tank will give you 2300 psi and so it'll last awhile if the engines designed right and no hill will be to much for it, just open the valve some more! You also don't run the risk of being scalded by steam.
I thought about it and would love to do it that way but the nearest place to fill scuba tanks around here is 75 miles away and if i used air i would ride it everyday probably lol
builder bob
New member
you could hook it up to 4 big paintball canisters i bet. how are you planing on doing the timing for the compressed air? rotary valve, ball valve, slide valve, replacing the spark plug with a solenoid and hooking that to the magneto? air powered (and probably steam too) rely like to rev up to extremely high rpm so you've got to be careful. i built a little air engine awhile ago with a ball valve and i've blown the crank so many times on that engine, almost every time i run it! having it be to parts held together with red loctite probably doesn't help either lol. MDI has figured out air engine pretty well and they've got little bits on how the timing is set up in some of their video's. i wish they'd make a factory in the US cause i rely want one of their cars! 1000 miles per fill up and each tank of air costs less then a dollar!
Hmm that could work but im not sure where i can get them near me ithier im sure there is a place within 50 mi but i also like the idea of steam because it would be cool and all i need is wood and water and about 40 min and drive around. The idea of haveing a compresser pump mounted on it with the boiler so if i wanted to run compressed air from off a batt i could.
builder bob
New member
some auto body shops have a powerful enough compressor and you can get tanks online. steams real cool too though because of the clouds of steam! be careful making the boiler though.
good luck!
good luck!
builder bob
New member
where are you going to find a big enough pipe to make a boiler? on steam engines and boilers: http://www.john-tom.com/html/SteamPlans.html
just scroll down past the boats and it'll show you how to make a boiler
just scroll down past the boats and it'll show you how to make a boiler
builder bob
New member
oh awesome! your kart's going to be sweet!
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