I don’t want to brag, but I just went for a ride on my SIXTEEN HORSEPOWER 250cc Honda Rebel... er, I mean Honda “Superbike”.

I was inspired to try the rotary valve after buying a copy of “Model Four-Stroke Engines” (ca. 1986) that covered various brands of miniature four cycle engines meant to power model aircraft. It had an entire chapter devoted to sleeve valves, conical valves, disc valves, horizontal rotary valves and (of particular…

Fantastic work! My hat is off to you. I appreciate you posting all extra - and interesting - information about the project. As I posted elsewhere in the comments, I attempted a similar project in the late 80's using a 5 hp Tecumseh. It was not a success. Makes me appreciate your success even more!

This is one of the centrifugal superchargers that I built in the same era. This one was for a Continental engine (small, probably fractional horsepower unit, likely an old washing machine engine). I had grafted the engine into an old 80 cc Yamaha dirt bike frame for use as a minibike. The engine would pull the bike…

So sorry to disappoint you... I decided to get a degree in electronics, which eventually led me into the electrical power industry. Lots of fun mathematics in poly-phase electrical transmission! I don’t do much experimenting with small internal combustion engines anymore, as my main hobby is restoring small antique…

I am a bit hesitant to post this... but I suppose confession is good for the soul. In my mis-spent youth, on a quest to get more power from the 5 HP Tecumseh on my go-kart, I built my own rotary valve head. My pathetic engineering skills were matched only by my kindergarten level machinist skills, and the results…

Not only am I glad that everyone is OK, but as a Mustang owner, I am just glad to see the car is not a Mustang. This time.

Our high school had two gravel lots that were separated by a paved road that ran up to the school buildings. The Vo-Tech students (including myself) had to arrive earlier than the others to catch the Vo-Tech bus. This (of course) led to various shenanigans by the Vo-Tech students, such as burnouts and drag racing on…

I concur. I’ve actively tried to break the bad instinct of target fixation for most of my adult life. Anytime I have something unexpected happen while driving or riding the motorcycle, the first thing I do is mutter to myself, “Look where you WANT to go!” And then, I do...

Came here to post this. Was very pleased to see it already posted, so I watched it again. Liiiinnnnn-coooolllllllnnnnnn...

Ya’ll are doing good work here... correcting the general public’s perception that ABS “helps you stop faster”. No it doesn’t - it helps you keep some steering capability to (theoretically) avoid an accident while mashing the brake pedal as if you were killing a spider. Which -for the majority of drivers with target…

I grew up around steam men, well schooled in both reciprocating stationary steam as well as steam traction engines, both of which used flyball governors. These were old timers that had grown up at the end of steam, and had been schooled by old(er) timers that had known nothing but steam. And not once did I hear that…

I view it as a kindness to the synchros...

Came here to say this exact thing. I learned the basics on a 1939 “B” John Deere. The hand clutch with the brake on the flat pulley meant shifting on the fly was possible... but woe to me if I made a shift on the non-synchronized, non-constant mesh spur gear transmission and even hinted at a grind! Later, when I…

I didn’t actually count them. I just awarded a star to E36Jeff for double checking the math. I did not award a star for accuracy...

...and I gave you a star because you double-checked Urambo’s math. Good teamwork!

I hereby bestow a star upon you for use of the word “peckish”.

This guy is a modern day legend in my book. Perhaps he can get a movie deal... a sequel to “The World’s Fastest Indian?” What should the movie be named?

In my mis-spent youth, I was involved in welding two differentials in street vehicles, one being a Ford Courier and the other a VW bug. Both handled terribly (although the little pickup was the worst). Both were awful to drive. Both held up amazingly well. But it is a horrible, terrible idea for a street vehicle. On…

“Your honor, I hereby submit this video as proof that the Mustang was in fact named after the P-51, and not the horse.”