Stumbling over some nice toy’s… putting them on my wish list…
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A small supercharger…
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A nice programmable ignition for small engines ( 1 cylinder)
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That’s interesting you found the programmable CDI ignition module as I am just in the middle of trying to advance the timing on one of my small suitcase size inverter generators , trouble is I am a old points type man and have never had to mess with electronic ignition before now and so just stumbling in the dark at the moment , the generator I have says its a TCI ignition , I wonder if I could convert it to run on one of these ? any idea’s anyone .
Dave
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Hi Dave,
Looking at the schematics provided at the link, it might be used on any single cylinder unit.
Just need the proper coil and a pickup sensor… and the voltage of course…
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Hi Koen , I have seen complete cdi units including pick ups and coils for very little money , so maybe one day when I get time I may have a go at trying to convert one of these little generators as the TCI units on these units tend to go bad and I have found that there are so many plugs and wires going from inverter and ignition I am sure it wont be an easy mod for me as I am terrible with modern day electronics .
What are your thoughts on the little roots blower then do you think it could work on charcoal gas ,without pulling too hard on the nozzles ?
Dave
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Whoa, that is one sweet roots blower! A little pricey but nice. By controlling the RPM it should work well with different size gasifiers. One problem I see is it has to be placed where no soot will get in. My understanding is these blowers have tight tolerances. The other issue is you cannot pull gas through them unless they are running. The impellers are mostly engaged which prevents flow of air unlike a fan blade blower Even if you just use it for pushing air, you will still need to disconnect it to allow air in the gasifier if you are using the engine to pull the gas.
Still a sweet blower!
Gary in PA.
Hi Dave,
These little blowers might be the best thing i could wish for 
Nozzle size might be to be upgraded, if you pull more gas of course , this opens a door to a new topic:
Next is my opinion towards the theme of vacuum readings and power outputs:
There are 2 main factors that determine the output power of your engine running on wood or charcoal gas:
1: quality
2: quantity
I prefer to enlarge the quantity of the gas entering the engine above the quality
hence, increasing the efficiency on engine displacement
Less quality but still good gas, mixed in a correct air to gas ratio, has less influence in the engine power output then increasing the quantity of the mixture entering the engine.
To point 1: yes, some hydrogen does enhance the burning velocity and power efficiency from your given engine. Up to a point where as advancing the timing is no longer needed.
To point 2: removing carburators and other restrictions made my progress to jump forwards…
Porting, CR ratio and so on, all benefit the engine efficiency
Also: and imho the most important factor:
Make sure that your gasifier run’s on the lowest vacuum possible… Less restriction = more gas flowing to your engine ( gentlemen, pick up your stones and start throwing… )
Exactly this is the point where the blower will perform at its best, overcoming the suction restrictions from a natural aspiring engine…
Now, my little Tuk Tuk, with the Daihatsu 660 CC engine, is going to need an overhaul
Its not been ported yet, no increase of the CR , no modifications…
A perfect way to use the standard engine with external modification: roots blower
An ultimate modification: Porting, CR increasing, … and a roots blower
Making it Drifting on Woodgas
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Hi Gary,
Yes they are sweet 
The best place to mount them is on the intake, between carb and manifold, so indeed, no soot please
Second is to “dial them in” on the rpm needed to overcome your standard airflow restriction from your gasifier/gas mixer setup.
After that: enjoy the performance…
PS: standard airflow restriction = vacuum between carburator and airfilter
This will be different when using a gasifier 
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Ok Koen you have given me some food for thought , regarding a project I am currently working on , namely 3.5KVA suitcase generator that will only put out just over the 1 KW on charcoal gas .
I am trying to get 1 of these units set up with advanced ignition by closing my spark plug gap and also moving the pick up slightly forward on the rotor , I may also remove the carb off one of these units and try piping the gas in directly through a gate valve, and I may also see what can be done as way of opening up the intake port a small amount on these little engines .
Dave
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Good morning Koen.
I used these blowers for a while . I think they will be more expensive than the blower you showed but they have an electric clutch if needed .
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Hi Koen ,
you mentioned that removing the carburettor , what was the other restrictions that made your progress jump forward ?
I have been messing with a few small suitcase generators that will make 3 kw power on petrol , but only just 1 kw on charcoal , I have removed carb , advanced timing , water dripped and still all I seem to get is around the 1kw , I think maybe skimming the head is about all that’s left without going over board , no idea how much to take off to make a improvement so I guess its all trial and error unless anyone has any idea’s on these small engines .
One thing I did find out on these small engines is the speed they run at , 5500 rpm , its amazing really considering how quiet the engine sounds even sat without the covers on it , a normal generator that runs at the 3500 revs is screaming the place down .
Dave
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Hi Dave,
To be more helpful to you, do you have some more tech info on those suitcase generators ?
In my experience, my 2,8KwH rated 2,5 Kwh , only puts out 1800 watts before going down on rpm.
When i adjust the max output, there is more to gain but then the governor will not work on low loads…
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Music to my ears… 
Hi Koen ,
The only specs I can find for my type of generator are these ,
Displacement 149.5cc , Engine Speed 5500rpm , Ignition Mode T.C.I ,
Max AC output 3.5kW ,Rated AC output 3.0kW , Rated Voltage 240V , DC output Current 8.3A .
I will be firing it up again in a short while and so might take a video of how it runs with a load .
You mention yours putting out 1800 watts before going down , well that’s a hell of a lot better than what mine is doing and mine have larger inverter ratings ,
what do you mean when you say you "adjust the max output " how do you do that ?
Cheers Dave
Hi Dave,
1: Can you post a picture of the engine ?
2: It can be cumbersome to run on woodgas/ charcoal gas with RPM above 4000
3: The power factor on the type plate is assumable 1.0 ? ( the best generators have in reality only between 0,8 and 0,9 )
4: Yours is using an inverter build in ?
5: Adjusting the tension on the governor, hence opening the throttle manual when going down rpm on its own
6: The mentioned 1800 watts ( 3000 Rpm, 50 Hz ) was measured on gasoline, i have about 1300 watts on gas, but without using water. Trying to get more out it later ( 3600 Rpm and 60 Hz )
Hi Koen ,
Yes its a inverter pure sine wave type same as these ones http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Portable-4-Stroke-Pure-Sine-Wave-Petrol-Power-Inverter-Generator-Max-3-5KW-Rate-/311616077906?hash=item488dc40052:g:pYcAAOSwZVlXmal8
the governor’s on these types of generators are servo motors attached to the carb
, on this one I have removed the carb , bored out the spacer attached to the inlet port and now taken it up to 3/4 of an inch dia , from just under the stock half inch size , it runs no better than with the carb on, and moving that pickup forward advancing it a couple of mm forward also has not made any difference from what I can tell .
I am starting to think that this engine is just going to be too small to be able to get anywhere near the power needed , and that’s a shame because it runs so smoothly and very quiet too even when running at those high revs out of the case .
Dave
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Hi Dave,
Do you run with the “econ switch” in on or off position ?
Dave,
I came across a report online by a guy who raises CR by removing the head gasket. (There are thin copper head gaskets that also do this.) The head and the block must be lapped smooth on a piece of plate glass using valve grinding compound. Then a small amount of high grade gasket sealer is used between. You do not want the sealer to squeeze into the cylinder. He noted that piston and valve clearances must be checked carefully even with this method. I have all the stuff to try this, but haven’t got around to it yet. There were some comments pushing back on this method, but if I remember correctly the author said he had done this successfully on many (15?) different engines without fail.
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Hi Bruce,
Same here, many engines, no fails… only thing to worry… use good fuel
test i perform: grind the head, place without sparkplug and without gasket… when kicking the starter or pulling the rope does not knock the piston to the head, then continue grinding
once it “knocks” then use shims to find out the thicknes of a gasket desired… i use 0,1 to 0,15 mm…
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