Getting on your wick

Did I miss the bit in the words that describe how to make wicks for all the oilers??? I ran yesteday again and could have really done with wicks in to know that there was at least some oil there most of the time. I have considered pipe cleaners but dont know how effective they would be, altenatively whats the best method to make them and is there a particular material to be used??

Cheers Kev.

Hi Kev,
Having spoken to a chap last year at Fraser Castle steam fair, he showed me the wicks on his engine. You simply get some very fine stiffish wire & some wool, then & this is what I have done, wind the wool a couple of turns round the end of the wire & bend the wire back on itself to trap the wool. You simply push the wire with wool attached down the centre oiler tube & let the "tail" of the wool hang into the oiler cup. Fill with oil & hay presto the oil, as if by magic, simply "wicks" its way into your bearings & then onto the floor via all that lovely paint work!!

Sorry this pic is out of focus, but you can just see component parts & one completed wick!!



Regards,
Tony

Made up some wicks yesterday and set them up to trial them. The left hand one has two strands of wool and the right has one. Although the right one looks good it has sadly leaked past the threads and through the hole in the top so I will need to add some sealant. The right hand one doesnt seem to have done anything much at all. The wool was a quite fine and the wire was some stiff single strand hook up wire. Is the wire too fat? or the wool too fine? Or should it be that slow?

Hi all
Worthwhile having a look at Heritage Steam Supplies catalogue page 127, it shows all the different types of wicks and how to make them.

Tom A

Hi Kev

Worsted wool. (Long strand and raw ie not cleaned by the mill)

Hook 2 lengths of 2ply with a thin copper wire, twist copper wire up to just above the length you want, about 1"
Put wool between wire and create a slack loop to hold. fold loose ends into bottom of pot. Ideally you want the tail in the pipe to be below the bottom of the pot to assure the siphon.

The smaller pots I can only get 1 strand of my big wool, also have thinner to try if results are not good, in each as you do not want tight but "slack'ish" All my pots except right main bearing have emptied the pots over night on to the garage floor. (Right main bearing is very close fitting, will monitor when I can hand turn the flywheel).

I got my kit from Heritage Steam but the wire supplied is WAY TOO big. Think my wire is 30swg.

Hi Kev,
One strand of wool should be plenty, I did try two but it was quite difficult to get down the centre tube & as you have found it didn't seem to work!! The thinner the wire that will do the job, the better. I think you'll find that although some oil may have leaked passed the threads on your right hand oiler, most probably went down the wick!!
Regards,
Tony

On the plus side the pots look shiny though, I finally bothered to polish something!!! Although I did use the myford at the local ME to spin them up and run wet and dry over them.....

I put little pots into the rear axle oiler boxes to restrict the oil volume. With the size that they are, as supplied, you will waste a huge amount of oil on the floor of your garage/trailer; which makes an awful mess. The alternative is to lift the wicks, but this is easily forgotten.

Tim

Hey Tim,

Are you currently on vacation in the New Forest??? If not I have seen your exact double, not only did he look like you visually but he also had a white straw boater on and was walking a small scruffy dog just like yours in Lyndhurst High Street this morning at about 10.30..... Wasn't you was it?? If so I should have wound the window down and hollered at you.

Cheers Kev.

No, at 1030 this morning I was over the South Atlantic: just back from Brazil, sitting at Heathrow airport waiting for a lift. Max would take great exception to being described as a scruffy dog!

Tim

Max is many things but scruffy is not one of them:

Canine engineer/driver
Rugby ball player
Hot water bottle
Life long companion
Loyal
Full of energy
Lookout
Guard dog
Mans best friend

To name but a few!