Start with an 8 foot beam, cut it in half and lay them parallel. Find some 2″x 2″ or larger angle iron and lay it on top and inside of the beams. Set the Lister on top, and trace the holes. Drill a 9/16s hole in the angle and inset bolts up thru the angle. Use a wood bit to countersink a hole deep enough for the bolt head, so the angle lays flush. put lag bolts in three places along the lower inside of the plate.
Set the Lister over the mounting bolts, note how the engine is set back to one end of the frame, with plenty of angle in front for the generator base to ‘track’ on. leave engine loose for the moment.
Note the detail on the Generator frame base, this is a few pieces of scrap angle welded to some flat iron to make a sliding mount. In this picture you can see that the generator is trapped and can not twist.
Here’s an excellent way to mock up the generator base and make sure you have the generator head in line with the flywheel. In this picture you see a very rigid piece of steel that is flat against the inside of the flywheel, and also flat against the end bell. You will also note that the pulley is opposite the the position so the belt is further from the operators hands.
In the pictures below, you see a bar across the front used as a spreader, this was placed to assure the frame is parallel and it also serves as a place to tie in the tensioner for the belt.
This is all too easy, and there is plenty of room to individualize your generator set.
I run 4 6/1 Metros. Each bank of 2 listers is bolted to 2 6x6x8 wooden beams. The harmonics of vibration keeps it from walking and the noise is a LOT less.
Simon
Simon,
There are folks that like one or the other.. there are those who put wood under a good steel frame.
I would like to buy one of these where could I buy one new or used. Prefer used if possible due to cost.
arnold,
Thanks to the EPA, this is now a more difficult task.
If you do find one for sale, (ck ebay, or use google keywords to search) there are sources .. you best see it run and check it out first, or get some kind of assurance it’s not a mess…. maybe a money back clause if you find problems you can’t fix? Those who have good engines tend to keep them.
I doubt Slow Speed will die completely during our life time. There will be parts kits, and even conversion kits sold. Rajkot does make air compressors, they are made out of the exact parts the Lister clones are, and I don’t think the EPA has rule over air compressors ‘yet’.
The main interest of course is the ability of these engines to burn veggie fuels and with much lower emissions than petrol diesel, but the EPA demands that the engine we want will meet their tier 4 on petro diesel no matter what we plan to burn, so long as it has an oil injection pump. If the demand for slow speed remains, we might even see a unit setup for natural gas. The COV plug is easy to convert to a spark plug holder, and an ignition system is on the shelf. All we need is enough demand for a dealer to order slow speed engines set up for nautual gas or propane use. I think if you were to check with the EPA, they’d have no problem with you ‘building’ a Lister 6/1 clone to run on natual gas or propane. If you decide to burn a veggie fuel later, you might cogen and bring the exhaust into your certified wood stove for full EPA approval for all I know?
Since the EPA will soon employ half the population of North America, there should be plenty of people there to answer all your questions, give them a call.
It was once a law that government entities had to reply to your written questions in writing, this might be good way to learn, and it would give EPA employees something to do…
The larger problem may be Rajkot and their lack of Quality control, If there was any certainity of quality, we’d likely see a North American dealer selling natural gas engines today. I believe the demand is there for a reasonably priced engine with reasonable quality. The dollar is weak against the Indian currency, this makes the problem even larger..
For those who have experience… taking an engine out of the crate, making inspections, and making mods takes time, and that cost is very difficult to pass along to the consumer…only the insane would try and make a market here.. The people who are interested in slow speed are handy, and they got that way by ‘doing it themselves’. Few would pay others so much to do it wrong.