YouTube Small systems Builds

Here BobMac is a 1,113,330 viewed fellow I stumbled across looking over at my recommended side feed on youtube:

As a no-weld system I hope @tcholton717 catches this one too.
Best to watch this one with CC enable and a finger over the pause button. He said what? He is trying to explain a lot. Does a fair job of it with virtually no loaded run time experiences.
You’d swear this young fellow is building a cross draft charcoal system. Nope. Real wood being chopped up and loaded at 27:19-27 (he misses preloading with charcoal).
But he has been doing his reading, and video watching, to know a bad pyrolysis flare; then waiting for a fair, reduced gas flare: 28:38-29:22 minutes.
At ~29:30 → he shows wood gas blowing out his blending air valve before the generator engine is running. Then woodgas puffing out the air valve between then engine intake strokes.
At 30:34 he gives shut down steps saying to power shut off the blower. So that explains it. He was continuously blower running. Hard on the plastic squirrel cage blower he is using.

Actually his fabrication skill are great using just hand tools. And his cross-draft combined SS ash grate and gas exit shield bulkhead should be looked at real carefully by the charcoal-tier guys.

After I left active in the Victory Gasworks Shop in~2012 . . . so then there’d be no conflict of interest, until the foster girls came in November 2019 I volunteered to travel and help guys independently building for small generator engines sort out their operational problems.
It was fun. It was very challenging. Then guys stopped building; set aside and did not run, with the low, low gasoline costs.
Once you know, a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g can be made to produce on wood with lots of jiggering. They vary by how long they will batch cycle. How much maintenance re-setting you’ll have to do. How often need doing. How long the system would last.
Watch and see his is actually a vertical flute air system. Easy opened up for pipe flute replacing.
This guys is on the high end of capability of an independently conceived build up.

So the one million interest is for Grid power down for whatever reasons for personal generators fueling systems.
Listen to his words. Those the ones he built this for.
1.3 million views in just 18 months shows the largest woodgas interest area.

Regards
Steve Unruh

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I remember when he uploaded the video. He has one other gasifier from a few years before that one. The grate style definitely impressed on me.

Edit: you may see a comment from me on that video where I suggest he use dampened charcoal in place of wood

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Hi CodyT,
With 1306 comments on his youtube, my scrolling finger tired before I saw yours.
On some with very low views and comments counts youtubes, I’ve been able to Operations help a guy move forwards. 1306 and anything I’d say would just be another non-valid brainac jabbering.

I learned. And re-learned that face to face works the best. Especially if you can show a fellow some trick and techniques that help him out when he is stuck. Even face to face can get henkie quickly if the other fellow is too prideful, paranoid, suspicious; or weird himself. And then sees you as a square peg in his round hole world view.

My youtube builders’ point is some of those guys Forums shy are doing reasonable work.
Like Larence Garringer.

My second point very relent to small engine fueling category here on the DOW . . . .
many of that 1.3 million have endured a tornado. A hurricane. An ice storm. An earthquake. A sweeping flood.
Lots of wood got put onto the ground. Thier generator fuels ran shy.
They know well from direct experiences that they can warming heat and cook with this new woods. It can be made to release energy. So why the hell not can they run their electrical generators and well pumps, eh?
Why they will sucker fall for “easy” “from lay around parts” squirrel away a F.E.M.A. plan set. Even build a knock off FEMA, test run their generator. And then set it aside.
They can do much much better than that.

Make wood charcoal as an added step first AFTER your are out of Grid, running out of gasoline, propane, diesel and they literally clambering over put on the ground trees?
Nope. Nope. Nope. Not going to happen. They will hatchet chop the newly made available wood man.
I could jigger-do his base system to use fresh 40% moisture wood.

A Charcoal-tier system is not what these folks are looking for. Back and forth “Charcoal versus Woodgas” efficiency manic-ing turns them off. They do not care about any of that. They do care that their generator, generates some.
For them this DOW small engine category has become over 50% irrelevant to them now.
Click away. Move onto something they feel can be made to fit for them and theirs come needs-musts.
The L.E.A.F. gasifier system. Other, small engine raw wood fuelers.

Steve unruh

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Here’s another only seen on youtube small engine woodgasfier system for Grid-out; no-Grid.
The Garringer Gasifier:

Then for the woodgased generator power proving here:

“Ideal”? “Perfect”? “Ultimate”? Nope. No. Doesn’t matter. It was effective to turn scrap and found woods into electrical power.
11 years ago.
You’ll see no comments from me on his videos. CC enable and listen/read his presentations.
11 years ago, I had nothing to contribute to him. He was teaching me.
Use a powerful variable speed purpose built true vacuum blower.
Use a command activated grate.

On other videos now down he has I reacll three diffnet capacity systems. Showed that his system cores were actually round. The square outer housing were? for? Never asked. Very impolite to ask a commercial selling guy his design features. I never bought one. I should have.
Lawrence Garringer got short shrift on the Forums because he never joined.
So was overlooked. His narrow focus on Grid-Down and Off-Grid folks is explained in his presentations. Good enough back then. Good enough today.

Steve Unruh

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My intention to promote easily built no-weld personal power station gasifiers has all but vanished. I have been cyber associated with quite a few people over the past 12 years and some of them share my views on the future but not one has even thought about putting together a system. I believe that if over a million three people have watched the first video then maybe a couple hundred ever built anything. I am done with people who don’t have the ambition and foresight to learn simple skills such as basic welding or who cannot adapt from their old ways of doing things. Getting real crabby in my dotage. The old world is in a death spiral. I won’t irritate anyone by political discussion but if people cannot not see that the goal of all authority is absolute control then they are hopeless. All the so called shortages are engineered. Every day a new law is proposed that says you can’t protect yourself, you can’t grow anything but grass on you suburban property, You have to be grid tied, you can’t heat with anything other than metered fuel or energy. However all these controls become so complex that they are in the long term unsustainable. Your mantra that wood is the ideal form of energy is right on Mr Steve. It is the ideal substance for self sufficiency. It can be burnt for home heat, used to produce wood gas to run engines, used to produce charcoal to run engines, purify water, amend soil.

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Yes exactly TomH.
Nearly all of my relatives, friends and acquaintances . . . sheeple. Wave flags for their favorite political party or sports teams as if that will ever change things. Those activities will not keep their lights on, and water pumping in needs-musts.

Ferrous metals welding, brazing, and even soldering ARE basic life skills. Just like foods growing, preserving and from-scratch ingredients cooking. Cutting and screwing together boards. Basic electrical and plumbing too. Yes since my run engines on wood beginning too many have wanted to electronify control wood gasification as the newest, next best, leap forward answer. Oh yeah. Loved to program I’s and O’s yet never personally invest learning to do fabricating, building and especially manual systems operating.

Ferrous metal welding has allowed many fellows to gasfier build Cheaper, Lighter, more durably.
Here’s one youtuber from 9-10 years ago who did self-learn operating. And obviously can weld well. Joshua Burks. Running his highly modified small FEMA on Douglas Fir wood chips:

And earlier video of him electrical generator running (fuel is wood pellets):

And then him showing a from stone cold gasifier starting up. Note is blackened hands. Note he had developed a whole pre-starting sequence of rodding down in two places, grate shaking, etc.:

He had 9-11 other videos step by step developing and building his gasifer and trialing it.
Why has he done nothing more since?
He had achieved what he wanted. A workable system for him and his family as a powering back up.
Everything, woodgas-for-power; does not have to be a never ending, year after year, big-damn-deal.
Steve unruh

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Yes, you are both so right. The doers are ready with their systems working for them. And life goes on for them being the doers. In this failing world governing system when it all goes down they are ready because they are living in what they have built for them selfs. Others? They were warned but did not prepare. Will we survive the unprepared hords of robbers and looters with guns trying to survive with their families. This is a very good question. If they don’t know what you have and you are isolated away from the popuations maybe. Stealth and do not tell is the key. If you know how to build this is good.
Bob

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Stealth Is the key Bob. You are right. Gray is the way. In 2020 we saw what was possible when mayors and governors allowed lawlessness to reign in their states and cities. It will happen again and many time amplified. When everyone around you is dirty and haggard and struggling you had better appear to be so as well or else you will be wearing a bulls eye. There is a guy that posted for a long time on a Site called the Organic Prepper. He endured the war in the Balkans and then reported his experiences. Important insights and information.

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Interesting read indeed TomH. I’m glad it is broken down into segments.

Stealth. Sometimes stealth is hiding right out in plain sight. And being non-interesting.
Out of the 1990’s Yugoslavia conflicts widely photo’d and even televised what struck me was the farm tractors multiple trailers hauling around refugees.
These got more or less left alone. Whereas any 4x4 enclosed vehicle got strong arm stolen/confiscated/impressed into someone else’s service.
We’ve seen Ron Lemlers. We’ve seen WayneK’s. Now seen J.O. and Tone’s.
Here is an ealier modern Ford 641 Workmaster done up by Hugh Wilson and youtube shown:

Sorry fellows no CC enabled on this one.
What to look for is not so much his gasifier systems components “ideals”.
But later on him demonstrating that flipper up and down lever on the side of his adapting carburetor/gas blender. He is seamlessly switching from gasoline to woodgas.
Also later on in his farm drive around; look at his camera view forward out the front of his tractor. What do you see? Almost nothing of the gasifer system. No working visual blocking.
Field/crop working a tractor and visibility forward across your front wheels is critically important.
He does comment that he front bumper mounted this system. And his Ford the front bumper follows the front axle. So up and down wheels/axle movements is shaking his gasifer system enough to not need much rodding down; and he then doesn’t need a grate shaker.

These tractors sure look like self-movable power and woodgas supply systems to me. Makes a same sized stationary system seem kinna’ use-limited, eh.
Nobody much notices farm tractors hung with various equipment’s. (Just as long as they do not appear to be chemical spray booms.)

And back to the Selco article advise on SHTF stay-in-place, versus moving: you really want to live beforehand where farm tractors are common sights, and numerous. Better neighbors, with good values. Good enough soils and growing seasons.
Steve Unruh

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All good points SteveU. Very few actually believe that North America could ever become like the 90’s Balkans but lets indulge our imaginations and say it did. Say that in the coming months the food supply to urban areas badly disrupted either due to shortages or because delivery services would be unable to provide supply’s due to the trucks being commandeered. This was all previewed in several major urban area’s a couple summers ago. Only the military would be able to bring goods in and out and people living in those areas would be standing in long lines at distribution centers waiting for a care package that hopefully would sustain them until their number was called again. Other than that gangs and urban warlords would rule the streets. Think Venezuela. Or even Seattle.

you point about tractors is well taken. Tractors mean work, not transportation. No one wants to work now. Some people want things provided for them and other are happy to take what they want. Some one looking at a gasified tractor wouldn’t have a clue what it was. As for transportation, where would you go anyway. Millions of vehicles without fuel scattered around. Your wood gas truck would not really register with anyone even if it had a WK in the back. It would serve to work around your homestead but other than that you ain’t going nowhere. Eventually things would normalize some. People in rural settings could establish trade. Think, Abner Valbuena, a doctor trading services for whatever a patient produces. In the early stages the sound of a generator or lights in a building would attract not only criminals but also decent folks driven to desperation by their needs. Draw no attention to yourself in any way. There are limits to what you can do for others. Do whatever you can but remember a storage cellar full of canned goods will only stretch so far. Now the real test begins.

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Thanks Steve, yes the seemless switching back an forth from woodgas to gasoline I like it, that is a KISS for the whole system.
Took longer to light he said, long story? Forgot to add fuel or open and valve? What horse power do you think the ford tractor is. 25 hp. The no cooling rails and using a bubbler scubber in the filtering system with rock wool. Simple enough. For high horse power cooling rails are going to be need though.
Bob

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Ho BobMac,
I looking up the specs on that tractor it is rated from 28-33 horsepower depending on whether propane or gasoline. And where measured . Wheels. PTO. Belt drive. ?? (I did not see a drive belt pulley on his)
On a tractor the easy cooling is like Waynes did by added a needed rollover protection cage.
To better cool a liquid filter barrel . . . stick with plain steel, not plastic. Add external cooling fins to barrel bottom and sides. Next step up - forced air circulation.
Not KISS anymore, even a liquid circulation pump out to a chosen placed radiator.

S.U.

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I think roll cage, combined with dual parallel piping and maybe meeting into a frontwards radiator of pipes would be sufficient. The engine fan sucking in air for its own radiator will draw air over the gas cooler as well even at the slow speeds of a tractor.

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Yes, on my new build no plastic gas filtering barrel steel all the way. Even the lower part of the gasifier barrel will be part of the preheater and helping to cool the gases come off and through the grate. There will be no muffler preheating on the jeep. I am still coming up with ideas to maybe use. Lots of pre building planning being done. Mainly because this is a first build in a Jeep Grand Cherokee that I know of. It is great we can go to so many different threads like this one and find awsome ideas for a completely different gasifier build, like this. My new build is not a small engine but there are a lot of simularities that can cross over by just scaling it up. Thanks again Steve for your imput and all the other members too.
Bob

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Steve, the Fords and I believe others of that style, had a belt pulley (gear box) that had to be slipped onto the PTO shaft. TomC

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Hi All,
I was watching Marcus Norman YouTube serial episodes build videos he is posting up on V-10 WK Build-up on the Premium side . . . then this video popped up as y.t. recommended:

So is his system claims possibly True? Or Not Possible? (Not true)
Read the commentors below carefully and expand out for his reply’s.
Three of the commentors I recognize as experienced woodgasfier guys.
I know what has them and me skeptical is his no-tars too clean hopper cover. Not quite enought heat rainbowing on his thick SS hearth core.
But . . . his claimed produced number mostly hold up IMHO.
His ME-1016 mounted above his Kohler V-Twin is searchable as a 1000-3000 watt 12-36VAC PM magnet three phase Hydro generator,

So his CHP is high on made farmed out heat for waters,domestic and space. And with electrical as a secondary.
I want to say True. But maybe I am allured by the thick stainless and the Kohler V-Twin. Him answering using that V-twin directed force flow for heating recovery too. Great. Smart.

He answers that from the usage of commercial wood pellets he did switch to chipped wood fuels. Too much shut down hopper steam turning the wood pellets to wood mush. Thats true.
Anyhow enjoy and wonder 7 years later where is this system now.
Steve Unruh

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Ha! Three years later he speaks.

And this one Is, CC enabled, for translations.
Engine system starting and running on propane until woodgas system pulled up to good hot clean producing. Yes, yes. Many details steps still in there. Details. And Details.
But hearing that engine loading, producing, power on woodgas; I’d say TRUE.
S.U.

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And then there are some small engine youtube gasifier systems where the to-be-learned is not the actual system build; but the Operator use-accumulating experiencing knowledge.
Here is TontoBob’s Part 6 developmental video titled “How Not to Build a Wood Gasifier - Part 6 (Problems)”

Ignore his FEMA beginning and his too much hodge-podge-ing. Listen to his self-analysis correctly about his problems at that stage. Look inside and see the tar goos. He seriously did run this trying many times, in many ways.
Save your time/attention for the next video of his I’ll post up, Episode 11

Hey! Finally, a decent power flare and a clip showing unloaded engine running.
The gold in this one is his ending 11 points of self-analysis failures causes. What he’d do better “next” time. Then says he will be moving on to other things. Or maybe not.
These are all correct, hard learned steps too. Steps, most all of us have had to overcome.

He misses in my opinion two of his struggling faults:

  1. This is just an interesting project to him. One of many in his interests range. Not actual NEEDS driven then that is where too many good enough for the cameras takes place.
  2. He severely limits himself to experiences to just the youtube stunt men woodgasing. And he Only document refers to the “free” FEMA Gov’Mint publication.

Shows the real value of the DOW in live Operators recorded experiences; and the accumulated DOW publications Library.
Shame to see a fellow insisting on not just building with one hand behind his back. But with both hands stuffed into his rear pants pockets.
Steve unruh

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I have a question for you SteveU. After everyone else’s name it says premium member which I know you are. Yours says Regular. Are you bragging about the health of your colon?

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Tom, you ask funny questions. :laughing:

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