Steam RC; a new category?

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EvhCo

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WARNING!
Boring story ahead.




With all respect to owners of 1:1 scale electrics and RC electrics, I never even gave thought to a future powered entirely by electricity, until I read about the potential fossil-fuel vehicle ban that is planned in certain countries. As the head-on petrolhead I am, these news scared me to hell. I couldn't imagine driving a car that is propelled by a cylinder filled with magnets and a coil (artistic exaggeration, of course), when my love is about oiling cylinders, building your own car and listening to that engine roaring like it's pissed-off while the smoke is stinging your eyes. Hell, I think only a petrolhead can see the heaven in this picture.

This got me thinking of all the shapes a combustion engine can take. As long as it burns hot, sounds good, has plenty of moving parts and fills the area with smoke, the fuel isn't of much importance. What is something that matches these conditions and is also enviroment-friendly?
Oh god. Of course!
Steam!


First of all, I'm aware that nitro (or methanol, to be more precise) has nothing to do with the fossil fuel ban, but all my 1:1 automotive thoughts automatically mirror to my RC thinker. We've got nitros. We've got 'ellies. We've got petrol, and we've even got hydrogen. Why not steam?

To be practical in an RC, a steam engine would need to fulfill a couple of conditions. It needs to be small, it needs to be light, it needs to provide ready-and-packed power whenever the controller needs it, and it needs to be "stand-alone". Following this research of mine, I started building probably the first stand-alone big-block steam engine to be used in an RC, and I am actually close to finishing it.
What do you guys think of my research? I'll be sure to post photos of the steam engine as it progresses if anyone is actually interested in my project.
 
Sounds cool to me! So what heat source do you use for the steam engine that will go along with the eco friendly theme? Or perhaps i'm jumping the gun in thinking that is a consideration!
 
Sounds cool to me! So what heat source do you use for the steam engine that will go along with the eco friendly theme? Or perhaps i'm jumping the gun in thinking that is a consideration!

Of course it is, we've got to heat the water somehow :). I plan on using an induction coil to electrically heat the water. This will only take a few seconds (since the coil heats up hella quick) and will also go along with my totally eco-friendly objective, since there is no burning at all. All it uses is water and a battery pack, so we get all that beauty of a combustion engine, with no combustion!
 
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Of course it is, we've got to heat the water somehow :). I plan on using an induction coil to electrically heat the water. This will only take a few seconds (since the coil heats up hella quick) and will also go along with my totally eco-friendly objective, since there is no burning at all. All it uses is water and a battery pack, so we get all that beauty of a combustion engine, with no combustion!

That's fantastic - so you get to use electric technology to essentially fuel a real piston engine. Us ecig users are very familiar with using lipo + coil to heat things up so makes perfect sense!
 
That's fantastic - so you get to use electric technology to essentially fuel a real piston engine. Us ecig users are very familiar with using lipo + coil to heat things up so makes perfect sense!

That's exactly what gave me the idea in the first place! I noticed how the e-liquid is turned into vapors in the blink of an eye, the moment you press the button :).
By the way, what vape do you use? I used to own an iJust before taking onto normal cigarettes again (damn :().
 
That's exactly what gave me the idea in the first place! I noticed how the e-liquid is turned into vapors in the blink of an eye, the moment you press the button :).
By the way, what vape do you use? I used to own an iJust before taking onto normal cigarettes again (damn :().

I've been through quite a few , problem being they either discontinue the coils replacements or they just break. So after spending too much money trying different ones, i finally bought a rebuildable atomizer where the intent is you build your own coils - its called an "asmodus voluna". I build new coils maybe once a week for it. You can buy the kanthal wire and cotton at vape store (any cotton balls will do though), then just wrap it around a screwdriver to make a coil, screw each end into the posts, and check your resistance on your battery.

For battery - again have had too many that developed issues. So i keep one of those around to check my coil ohmage, but now just use a homemade "mechanical mod" - which is basically a socket from an old battery, wired up to a momentary switch i had laying around, and then wired to a 18650 battery - all in an old battery case from previously broken battery. You can charge it using the socket chargers they sell at vape stores or with any compatible charger. I have a few of the loose 18650 batteries and just keep an extra charged up. Also have a few "emergency mods" laying around - a "mod" is just the battery box, and associated circuitry. Wiyth the mechanical mod, since you can't regulate the power the coils you build determine the wattage due to the resistance.

These days i prefer the ecig - i still have a real cig once in awhile when offered one, but it no longer satisfies! If you want to get back into it -2 rules

1. ALWAYS have an extra battery ready to go - nothing says "i need a cigarette" like an ecig with a dead battery lol.
2. start at 12mg - don't let the guy at the counter talk you down
3. Use it! it takes awhile to equate ecig to satisfaction, but once you use it during a craving you realize it actually works!
 
Sounds like a plan ;)
 
I didn't give up on this. I've had a pretty rough time with my studies, but I've kept thinking of concepts all along.
The 'final' plan imagines a steam-based rotary engine similar to the Wankel engine. I will 3D print the parts soon, and will try running it on compressed air before going forward with the steam principle. If everything goes as planned, the rotor won't even come in contact with the housing, preventing it from getting hot. In the end, we'll get a RC engine that can run on steam, but also on compressed air (CO2 cartridges could be used for 'emergency' situations, or for increased performance). The induction coil heating is almost done as well.
 
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