How To Start & Stop the Lister D Type
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- Here is a video showing how to start, run and stop a Lister D type stationary engine.
The engine shown here was built by R.A Lister in 1941 and is a typical example of the model. The D type was built from 1926 untill '64 but this spec 26DH is the most numerous of all variants.
Specification:
Bore x Stroke: 3"
Capacity: 347cc
Speed: 700RPM
Output: 1.5hp
Cooling: water
Fuel: unleaded petrol
oil: sae30 motor oil (the cheaper the better as it will have less detergents, unwanted in engines such as these)
Weight: 135kg
Price new: £22 (1941)
I hope the video is usefull to new owners of these trusty little engines, just remember, these old machines were designed before the days of interfeiring "health and safety" rules so a little common sence won't go amiss when running them.
Most parts that are likeley to need replacing, such as bearings and even complete pistons are still available new today, these engines therefore are ideal for the begginer, whether for rallying or for hard work.
Hope you enjoy the video!
Hi Steve,
It was oil floating on top of the water. I often put a few squirts of motor oil in so that when the water is drained the inside of the hopper is coated with oil which helps prevent rusting. Putting a teabag in the hopper is another trick, the tannin in the tea is quite effective at stoping rust. Just make sure you can get it out again or the bottom of the hopper will be a right mess!
I needed to refresh my memory on how to start a D that has not been cranked up for more than a decade, - and your video told me everything; big thanks.
I bought one of these back in 1988 and it was fully rebuilt and painted, it's still sat in my shed.
I'll have to get it going again.
Many Lister Ds were used on local farms around here back in the 40's and 50's.
I have enough problems with old cars, never mind stationary engines!
Thanks for the info - good to know there's chaps like you out there preserving our history.
I never tire of watching this video, its just perfect for me.
Excellent vid, very informative, no pointless music and no verbal bulls..t, ten out of ten.
Thank you!
How to make lister d magneto shims
Thanks for the compliments and I'm glad the video was helpful. I'll have a look at your Lister....
Great Video. I have just inherited one and this answers all my questions.
I always do the checks before starting, always runs well.
i am rebuilding my Lister D it is almost done and this video gives me a good idea on everything
Just water yes, but I often put a shot of oil in as well to help stop corrosion.
You sir kno how to operate a lister, nice video !
Excellent, very easy engines to get going and nice to run.
Cracking vid. I picked one up for £50 today, and this vid has helped enormously.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.
Great video, very informative, thank you.
very helpful seeing i have just bought a lister d !! :)
Very good and very formative, It helped me a lot. Just got into the hobby and looking forward to going to my first rally.
Nice old one ! Thanks
Glad the video was of interest.
As the water boils, it can't get hotter than 100 degrees c so it maintains that temperature, but in reality at shows the water rarely boils. You just top it up as it evaporates away.
Yes, very heavy! The lister D is one of the lightest "propper" stationary engines around at 135kg minimum, I have engines of 200kg+ and we use a van for them. You will need a trailer, you wouldn't want to put one of these in a car.
No idea when I'll ever use this information but very interesting to watch none the less. Useful info about where to put the thumb when cranking too - bet a few people learned a painful lesson doing that wrong.
I ve just decided to find one for workshop use..Saw the name Steamwally and thought it would be a good one.It was!
Thanks for the compliments.
I would beware of doing that when starting, sometimes if you try and start one of these on a weak mixture they try and kick back, but it's what ever you find easiest. What I've shown in the video is the "by the book" way of starting it. An old gentleman once said to me, "get the mixture wheel where the engine is happyest, then leave it well allone. Start the engine on the throttle and you'l never have a problem with it."
All the best,
Phill.
Cheers man...............Brilliant
Great video! Now time to see if I can start one!
Enjoyed that, very useful. I pick up my engine next week, it is going into a miniature railway loco (7 1/4" gauge). Looking to build a loco with a bit of character.
Many thanks. Very useful.
That's a very good video. I start my D's a bit differently though. I do basically the same as you, but when it comes to turning the mixture wheel on top of the carb I set it completely CLOCKWISE (ie closed) before I start to crank the engine over. Next i start cranking, get up to speed, and only then do I turn the wheel up to full (anti-clockwise) then back a bit once it's fired up.
Thank you, I knew it wouldn't be long before you bought one!
The cast iron wheels came from ebay but are also available from the bearingboys website. You can also find them at farm auctions and alike. PM me if you can't find any for sale on the net.
I new what you meant!
Cheers.
I need one of these in my life. No idea what I'd use it for yet.....
Thank you. It runs better with the new plug it had in it but that was taper seal and doesn't seal well so I put a gasket plug in. I need to buy a new plug to make it as smooth as it was before but it's not too shabby.
Cheers
sweeeeet … i have one of these in bits in a box … i hope it runs as well as this one when i have built it … great video ;-)
love lister engines and love the video
@steamwally Thanks for the advice. If you saw my Lister / Petter video, you may see the cast iron wheels with bearings, on those trolleys, however, I didn't go out and buy those personally, but I do like them and now want to try and get 4 more from somewhere, as I need to construct another trolly in the same style as fitted to my other two engines.
I'll keep looking...
Great video
Hi there, there are a number of things you can do to a magneto which may put the spark back into it! Assuming the plug and lead is in good order then you can try cleaning the contact points inside the mag. You can do this with a bit of fine emery paper or similar. That will often revive a dead magneto, but the Lucas RS1/SR1's fitted to the D types often suffer coil and/or condenser failure but try cleaning the points and checking the points gap first, it should be about 12 thousandth of an inch.
Hi there, yes I use the same Comma Classic SAE30 non detergent engine oil in everything, engines, lubricators, pumps etc....
It's very important to look after the engines, oil them up before starting and they will last twice as long.
Nice video.
I'm restoring a Lister D right now I got mine for £100 working! But needs a good lick of paint.
I often wondered,
What going like a clock ment ?
👍
Thank you, my camera is a Samsung S1075, it's a cheap 10,2MP pocket camera with good film quality, got to be one of the best for under £75!
Runs very nice now.
Nice video how to start / stop it!
Hanomagman.
Thank you for making and sharing this video. It is a very clear explanation of how to start and stop a Lister D.
I have just bought a Lister D myself made in 1941. I bought a manual and a few spares. Today I checked it over, lubricated it, cleaned the points, cleaned and gapped the plug filled the radiator and tank then followed the starting procedure. It started first time. Not bad for a 76 year old machine.
What I would like to ask is that when running my machine (Which I bought to run a rotary screen) did rather bounce. To what would you attribute this? It seemed as if it was rather out of balance. It did not tick over smoothly on its trolley as yours does.
If you could advise that would be most helpful.
Thanks for posting. That was very interesting. I'm not a stationary engine buff (yet!), but how does the water in the hopper retain its cooling action when it starts to heat up and boil (?).
2nd daft question..is this engine very heavy to manually lift for an average guy? Do you think one of these would fit in a family car if I took the front seat out? Do the heavy bits come off easily? I want one, but don't have a van or trailer to transport,see. Thanks very much!
The "D" type is a very solid engine, pretty well all the bits that will wear out/fail are available new still.
It depends if you want a project or something running allready. Get hold of the flywheel and rock it, there will be some mechanical noise but you don't want excessive knocking, sign of very worn bearings. Try lifting the crankshaft and try pulling it in and out to feel for wear. There should be good compression. The Lucas magnetos are generaly quite good.....cont....
Great for hard boiled eggs as well.
I do yes, some people leave the hoppers full of water if they just keep the engines in garage, but I can't do that. If the water freezes in winter then it can crack the block so I allways drain it.
Lots of Lister's for sale on ebay all the time and in the adds at the back of stationary engine magazine.
It was changed last winter. I don't think it will need doing this year, that said with the leaky head gasket it might be as well to do it and sort the gasket too.
I'll probably change the oil on the Diesel and Ruston again though.
@steamwally Oh right, you can see the blue colour of the oil on this 1, My Lister A is overdue for an oil change. I thought the head gasket had gone on my D aswell, nearly brought 1 off B. J. Sims at Newark.
....but if the mag has a poor spark, bear in mind you could be looking at £80 for a rewound coil and a new condensor, and that doesn't include fitting. You'd need to replace the condensor anyway. The D type does not suffer frost damage as easily as some Lister's do, but none the less, look for old repairs, ask to see the hopper filled with water. If you can see the engine run, even better, it should start with a few brisk turns of the handle and run to a steady beat with no knocking.
Thank you for this video. We have a Lister water pump. Pump No. 3777/1. Where can I purchase the crank starter to start pump?
i have just git it running perfect now
Wish i had one.
....check the oil is not milky (a sign of water getting in) and you want to watch the exhaust when it's running. The engine should not smoke heavily, a sign of very worn rings. (blue smoke).
But in general, they are a pretty solid engine...bearings, gaskets, valves, valve guides, springs, pushrods , piston rings, pistons etc are all still available new. As with any old engine, buyer beware...get into the hobby and you'l soon get used to doing lots of repair work as the projects grow!
Phill.
Proper engines!!!!
Thanks Dan,
When I made this I had forgotton another chap has a video just like this up here allready, his is probably better but mine had a few other details not covered in that one.
Did you get the piston back in you Lister today? It was a shame we couldn't finish that yesterday. This winter I'm going to give my D a top end overhaul. Decarbonise, grind the valves and a new gasket, it still has the factory one! I've got to sort out some noisy tappets too.
cool i want one
Perfect! Just wanted I needed to know :-)
@steamwally can I ask what oil you used to oil all the parts up with before you start it
very nice.
you see the throttle bouncing on the carb mine dosent do that. would this be and issue
Thanks : )
@steamwally Thanks for the advice, i thought you were going to surgest puting the teabag in to make a brew! would be quite handy to have a hot drinks tap on the side of my engine!
thank you for your reply i wonder when my engine was built its a 28 dh
Very helpful. I've inherited one of these, and after 13 years, I'm about to start restoration. Due to the weight, I'm gonna start with a trolly. I see some rather posh one's around. Any tip's on this issue?
hi i noticed in your vid that the water you filled up with looked oily, do you mix something in or is it just dirty? when i bought mine the previous guy had got antifreeze in there, he said to stop it corroding over winter, ive drained it all out and just just tap water but after seeing yours im thinking maybe i should have kept it in?
Great video, very informative. I myself have only just bought one of these engines. My Q is where did you get those cast iron wheels from on your trolly? I need to get the exact same thing myself.
Anu info gratefully received, thanks
sweet thanks
I'll PM you the link to where you can get some very similar....
Nice find, lots of spares available for these. I suggest you log onto the stationary enguine forum "fozzers forum" and you will get all the help you need there.
Spares are availavle from a company called stationary engine parts as well as lots of small specialist firms and individuals who knock out new parts for these engines.
As to how you should restore them, get the spanners out and take em apart, best way to learn!
@steamwally my lister is 90% complete thanks
Ah ha, well there was on old boy on a farm who had a little watercooled Villiers two stroke, they used to use that for making the tea!!!!
When I take these engines out to shows in the winter I often pop a tin of soup in the hopper and it heats that well.
Engine enthusiasts are "nutty as a fruitcake" in general.....
Phill.
if i was to go and buy one of these what would i have to look out for
thanks for know how i did one but it never got loaded on youtube
Thanks mate, was supposed to say great tips for my engine not vid! Woops
Hi. Great video… I have just purchased my first ever Lister D engine, made in 1940. What oils would you recommend? Also the lubricants you are using/grease etc. Would be much helpful. Would you mix a lead additive with the fuel, or shouldn't it make a big difference?
Many thanks,
- Rob.
what stuff goes in to the water hopper is it just water
Do you use the sae30 oil in the sump and to lubricate it (in governor wick etc.) ?
Oil looks quite clean, was it recently changed?
Do you use the sae30 oil to lubricate it as we'll (governor wick and 'oil hole')?
I WANT ONE!
hay how to set the valvs on the lister
ok thanks
Good vid steameally. What oil are you using to lube everything up? And what engine oil do you use in your d?
SAE30 is perfectly fine all year round. To be honest, I usually chuck any motor oil which is to hand in the current Lister D... often the same 20/50 I put in the Land Rover.
running sweetly at 4 35
hi ive just bought 1 of these engines as a project but i cant seem to get a spark, do you think i need a new magnito?? (im new to this) cheers.
Well you never know....an old Lister may find it's way into your shed some day... closely followed by more engines....!
Reaslisticaly, a little engine like this is unlikley to do much damage if it kicks, although it is possible. Cranking an engine correctley is much more important when you get to machines of 1000cc upwards. The largest single cylinder petrol Lister was the 9hp, I should imagine that is around a 3litre single cylinder....when they kick you know about it!!!!
Hello Pauline
воду с маслом заливают или с чем?
do you use unleaded petrol?jusy got a d type today thanks
yes, that will be fine
@steamwally forever I hope
My lister D has lost all compression and when it did run it bounced all over the place can someone help
That should be easy enough to sort out, it sounds like one of the valves has seized in the valve guide. You can just remove the valve chest cover and using a soft drift (copper or brass NOT timber as you'l get bits in the engine) you can gently tap the valve with a little paraffin and or oil around it, it may release.
But.... it's seized for a reason and this is usually excessive carbon build up - the best remedy is to remove the cylinder head (which as this video shows is very easy) and give the engine a thorough de-coke. Remove the valves and clean everything until there is no oil, grease and carbon left. Re-assemble with fresh oil in the guides etc.... grind the valves gently if they need it, new gasket etc - Need any help, just ask.
As for the bouncing, they usually only do this when running too fast, try backing the governor spring off a bit. If that doesn't work then it's getting air from somewhere in the carburetor or the linkages are not fitted correctly.
Phill.
steamwally I should say rather, there is a series of 3 videos I made years ago showing a top end rebuild on a D type, not this video as per my last comment...
the throttle is backed right off but it still bounces around thanks for the help phill
So it's still running fast with the throttle shut? If so then it's getting air from somewhere.
Look to see if the casting is worn around the throttle spindle, see that the butterfly hasn't been fitted to the spindle upside down, and make sure all screws are present. A screw left out can cause it not to seal when the throttle is closed.
was there something mixed in with the water?
I often add a squirt of oil to help prevent rust in the hopper
+steamwally not a good idea I did that and mine burnt the piston rings when it got hot
Why would adding oil to the coolant burn the piston rings? The oil is just there as a preserveative when the water is drained. Burnt rings would more likely be improper lubrication.
+steamwally it had a cracking in the head
That will be why then lol.... So oil in the coolant is no problem if you put it there.