Hercules/Economy Manual page 18

Kerosene or Gasoline Engine Instructions

PACKING THE CYLINDER HEAD

We use a special graphite asbestos packing between the cylinder and cylinder head to prevent the escape of the compressed gas.

To repack the cylinder head in case the packing should blow out or if you should break the packing when removing the cylinder head, you can use ordinary asbestos packing such as you buy at your hardware store or the kind we furnish under No. 17 on page 32. If you use the ordinary asbestos packing, soak it in linseed oil; if you use our special graphite asbestos packing or gasket, it is all ready to be put on.

Before putting on new packing be sure all particles from the old packing which may have stuck to the cylinder or cylinder head are scraped off and that these parts show a smooth, clean surface. If all the old particles are not cleaned off the new packing will blow out in a short time.

After you have the packing in place push the cylinder head in close to the cylinder and screw on the nuts by hand as far as they will go, then use a wrench and turn each nut, one after the other, about one-half turn at a time. Do not screw one nut down perfectly tight and then go to the next, as this causes an uneven joint and the packing will not hold. After the engine has been running for about ten minutes tighten the nuts again and you will have a perfectly tight joint.

CYLINDER HEAD PACKING

If you make a new packing from sheet asbestos you must be sure to cut openings in the packing so the water can circulate from the cylinder, through the cylinder head and around the valves; if you fail to cut these water openings the cylinder head will get too hot and be ruined.

BEARINGS

Page18Fig8.jpg (4041 bytes) Figure 8
The Main Bearings

Be sure all bearings are kept properly adjusted. An engine should never be run with a bearing that is too loose or too tight. A loose hearing will soon rack your engine and break something, and a tight bearing will heat up and soon melt.

The main bearings and crankshaft end of connecting rod have die cast hearings which fit perfectly into the machined bearings. The piston end of the connecting rod has a cast bushing.

All the bearings can easily be replaced; the bearing in the piston end of the connecting rod can be driven out and a new one driven in

The crankshaft bearings and the bearing in the crankshaft end of the connecting rod are made of a special die cast babbitt. They are fitted with steel liners so you can take up any wear in the bearings. Remove the bearing cap and take out enough of the steel strips from both sides of the bearing so it fits snug.

After you have removed the Steel strips and put the cap back on again, screw down the bolts, but before starting the engine open the exhaust valve by pushing the detent blade in behind the catch block on the cam rod and turn the flywheels around by hand to see that they turn freely. If they bind you have taken out too many steel strips and you will have to put enough back until the flywheels turn easily. Watch the grease cups closely and give them a quarter of a turn each time you start the engine. See that all bolts are tight and you will have no trouble with the hearings.