This was my first attempt at a Stirling
engine, after a design I found on the web.
The piston
sealed well, but it never worked. I learned a lot about
machining, however.
In the process of cutting off a cap for the displacer
Same thing, only from a different angle.
The displacer with the two end caps.
The finished and assembled displacer
The cutoff tool again, this time used to cut
cooling fins. The tool is in focus,
on the left; the cooling fins
are in the foreground, and are out of focus.
A close-up of the cooling fins. The dings are
because I did not yet know
how to clamp everything down properly,
and I threw the piece across the room a few times.
Cutting the cooling fins. The piece is held
and driven on the left in the
three-jawed chuck, and is steadied
by a dead center held in the tailstock
on the right. The parting
tool is creating all of the chips in the middle of the picture.
A close-up of the piece as the fins are cut.
A side view of the cutting process
The displacer on the left, the cooling fin section in the middle, and the base on the right.
Another set of cooling fins being cut.
The finished engine with two cooling fin sections.