TROUBLESHOOTING THE GAS ENGINE

By Staff
1 / 2
Courtesy of H. R. Stonerook, Waterside, Pennsylvania 16690
Courtesy of H. R. Stonerook, Waterside, Pennsylvania 16690
2 / 2
Courtesy of H. R. Stonerook, Waterside, Pennsylvania 16690
Courtesy of H. R. Stonerook, Waterside, Pennsylvania 16690

Star Rte. 2, Gunnison, Colorado 81230

Some of you have been speculating on the number of engine makes.
I have a list of Gas, Gasoline and Oil engine Manufacturers of 1906
listing 542. Many of these companies made more than one make engine
and many small machine shops and foundries are not listed. A total
list today, 61 years later, would be astounding.

Kitty writes that John D. Benner, Jr., 313 Ruby St., Lancaster,
Pa., would like some information on Maytag engines. Since I’ve
been preparing some material on two-stroke cycle engines, I’ll
put it all together. I haven’t been able to locate an
instruction book on Maytag, so I’ll have to generalize until I
do and will pass along the information when I receive it.

The first model Maytag engine I am acquainted with was a
vertical, single cylinder, two-cycle with spark plug ignition
supplied power by a separate high-tension coil and battery
connected with an electrical contact on the crankshaft. Later
models were horizontal with magneto ignition built into the
flywheel and included a two-cylinder model. The last gas-powered
Maytag Washing machines I saw used a 4-cycle Briggs and Stratton
engine.

Maytag engines were air cooled with blades in the flywheel
supplying an airflow around the finned cylinder. Since these
engines were small and relatively slow speed, they were low powered
but adequate to power the Maytag washing machine and smaller
jobs.

With 2-stroke cycle (for brevity I’ll refer to these as
2-cycle) engines, the intake and exhaust strokes are eliminated.
Every inward stroke is a power stroke and every outward stroke is a
compression stroke.

This is made possible in most 2-cycle engines by using both ends
of the piston action.

The air-fuel mixture is first drawn into the crankcase on the
outward stroke and compressed there on the inward stroke. The
piston, near the lower end of its stroke passes an opening which is
the exhaust port, allowing most of the exhaust gases to be
expelled. Next it passes another port, opposite, which is connected
to the crankcase. The compressed fuel-air mixture in the crankcase
then rushes into the cylinder, strikes a baffle on top of the
piston which diverts it toward the top of the cylinder, further
forcing out the exhaust gases as the piston starts outward. Some
turbulence in the cylinder causes some of the exhaust to remain and
some of the intake to be lost, preventing the engine having the
power output efficiency of the 4-cycle. Further power is lost
compressing the crankcase charge. However, twice as many power
strokes are obtained. A lighter flywheel can be used and
elimination of valves and associated moving parts makes a simpler,
lighter engine. An automatic valve is usually used in conjunction
with the fuel-air mixer to allow the mixture into the crankcase and
prevent its escape. Early engines used a pop-pet-type valve and
more modern ones a reed-type.

The Maytag engine used a hole through one main bearing journal
con-meeting a circuit between the mixer and crankcase to perform
the valve action.

The crankcase must be air-tight in a 2-cycle engine. If air is
drawn in anyplace other than through the fuel mixer it won’t
get sufficient fuel. If it loses the mixture through a leak it
won’t have pressure to force the mixture into the cylinder.
This can especially cause hard starting since at cranking speed a
leak has more time to interfere with the fuel-air function.

The main source of leaks are worn main bearings since the
fuel-air mix traveled through one of them. Maytag was particularly
affected by loose main bearings since the fuel-air mix traveled
through one of them.

With most 2-cycle engines the lubricating oil is mixed with the
fuel and enters the crankcase with the fuel-air mix. As the fuel is
vaporized the internal parts are bathed in a mist of oil. Most of
the oil is subsequently lost into the cylinder and burned or
exhausted. Operation of larger 2-cycle engines is costly,
especially for long periods of operation.

Thus most 2-cycle types are limited to small sizes or are of
different design. (One large type uses a conventional oil reservoir
in the crankcase, receives air from an external pump and has the
fuel injected direct into the cylinder).

The oil used for mixing with gasoline should be non-detergent
oil such as outboard motor oil, not just a cheap oil. The gasoline
should be non-leaded. Detergents and lead tend to accumulate in
hard deposits around port-type valves and cause scoring and wear of
the piston and rings.

Maytag furnished two measuring cans. A small one measured oil
into the larger one, up to a stamped mark, then gas was added to
another mark near the top. Mix well. The mixture for Maytag figured
one part oil to 12 parts gasoline.

On Maytag a small hand-valve controlled the fuel flow from a
small tank under the engine. Clockwise shut off the fuel and
approx. one-half turn counterclockwise was maximum opening.
Adjustment should be made for best operation of the engine, usually
between one-fourth and one-half open. I’ll take up ignition in
the next Issue.

These are pictures of an Oil Pull I built last summer, using an
Allis-Chalmers W. C. rear axle frame and transmission and using a
Witte 12 hp. oil engine. It is driven through belt pulley. I had to
move transmission back 11 inches to make room for this size engine
and welded 10 inches to front of frame.

I used ? ton Ford front axle. A Ford radious rod, 18′ saw
mill pulley on engine and a Silver King driven pulley. Exhaust
piped in smoke stack.

 I put plate over cooking hopper and ran pipe in smoke,
stack. Exhaust is below steam pipe. When running, looks and sounds
like Rumely Oil Pull. I had a Rumely Oil Pull 20-35 for several
years and sold it last year. I had it down to Williams Grove
several years-had this one down last year and to the Pioner Power
Reunion at Roaring Springs. It will run 4-5 miles an hour on 4th
gear. I’ll try and have more stories and pictures later as I
have 10 gas engines counting this Witte – from 1 – 12 hp. I have a
beauty of a 9 hp. Galloway on factory horse truck. I put it on
rubber to tow back of this Oil Pull in parades.

I have been playing with engines since I was 13 and we bought
our first one in 1909, a 6 hp. International like the one on Page
38 in May-June Gem. I am 71 and love to hear the one lunger bark.
Had the Witte running today.

  • Published on Sep 1, 1967
Online Store Logo
Need Help? Call 1-866-624-9388