26425 S. E. 39th, Issaquah, WA 98027
Having enjoyed accumulating, restoring, and showing engines for
several years, I decided a year and a half ago to start this
project. I wanted to put the Carlisle and Finch engine to work
because it always ran so well. Furthermore, with a three year old
son as a helper, keeping the display small scale seemed
appropriate. So, Marshall and I have worked together on much of the
project.
I started by cutting the steel tubing and welding the frame for
this building together. The finished structure is 36 inches wide,
96 inches long, and 46 inches high. For decking tongue and groove
1×4 inch offered a secure floor to which I could bolt machinery. I
cut a shallow slot in each board making the floor planking look
narrower.
To accomplish convenient speed options and power in opposite
directions, I mounted two overhead line shafts. The shafts are ?
inch cold rolled steel and each hangs on five pillow blocks.
Surprisingly, finding vintage flat belt and round belt pulleys so
small to match pulleys on the machines required some searching.
Fortunately, I found approximately the sizes I needed but, of
course, I settled for speeds that might be a little too slow on
some of the machines. I even found the old idler pulley with a cast
iron bracket. This wheel hangs against the drive belt from the
engine and serves as a clutch.
As I mentioned the engine is a Carlisle and Finch (see C. H.
Wendel’s American Gas Engines, p. 83). This engine has an
ignitor and is hit and miss. With a 2? inch bore and a 2? inch
stroke, it develops ? HP. The 8 inch flywheels have 1? inch faces.
When I bought the engine, the Modine radiator was attached. I built
and elevated the brass fuel tank which supplies the ? inch
Lunkenheimer mixer on the engine. A No.000 Lunkenheimer Royal oiler
lubricates the cylinder and wrist pin.
On the same side of the building and to the right of the engine,
the first tool is a grinding stone mounted on a steel frame that I
riveted together.
Next on that side stands the 9? inch high drill press. This has
1902 and 1910 patent dates, and other information on the tag
includes: STOCO No. 53, Serial No. 3772, manufactured by the
Standard Optical Company, Geneva, New York. This tool had a diamond
bit and a curved table on which an eyeglass lens could rest. Then a
person could have drilled holes through the lens so screws could
attach the lens to the frame. The vertical travel distance is
adjustable to a maximum of ? inch. I built the more conventional
table, added a twist drill, and made a couple of other
modifications.
The last machine on this side is a metal lathe. It has no
markings, but I have been told Sears Roebuck sold some like this in
the 1920’s. The overall length is 24 inches and the height is
8? inches. The swing is 5? inches.
On the other side of the shop, directly opposite the metal
lathe, is a wood lathe. Again, no markings appear on it. Since the
head stock and tail stock are separate units, a person could mount
them to turn any length of material. I have mounted them so the
overall length is 24 inches. The center on the tail stock will
travel 7? inches so that now the lathe will swing a 5? inch
diameter piece of wood that is between 5 and 12? inches long. The
lathe also has a 3? inch face plate. It can be moved to opposite of
its present position by simply loosening a set screw in the flat
belt pulley and pulling the shaft out, then inserting it from the
opposite end and tightening the set screw.
To the right of the wood lathe is a cutoff saw I fabricated. It
has a 2? inch diameter blade with 60 teeth.
The C. M. Sorenson Company of Long Island City, New York,
patented this model number 425-692 compressor that stands to the
right of the sewing saw. It had provided compressed air in a dental
office and was driven by a 1/6 HP electric motor. Each of the four
cylinders has a 1? inch bore and a 1? inch stroke.
Finally, the dynamo is a Wizard auto sparker, Type BCI, No.
99274, built by Hercules Electric of Indianapolis. I removed the
friction wheel and governor mechanism and slipped the flat belt
pulley on the shaft in their place. This unit actually produces
about six watts of six volt electricity.
The small building next to the air tank on the platform contains
an ignition battery and coil for the engine and a battery for the
lighting system.
The ‘billboards’ on the gable ends of the shop primarily
advertise various stationary engines and log saws. I made these by
photocopying and enlarging old magazine ads from 1908-1922 and by
gluing them to 1/8 inch masonite. Actually, I
made about thirty different signs so I can display different
ones.
While everything is functionally finished and hopefully somewhat
authentic, I plan to add several details-perhaps even an annex! So,
Marshall and I will continue to work on it during some of our free
time.
