Home Made Engine Running Stands

[Garf]

I need some ideas for a home made engine running stand. I have 80 engines that need to be proof run before selling them. I need something simple and strong. I have the Tatone engine mounts, but they need a firm heavy base to retain them.

[Dennis Leonhardi]

Concrete block or two,
2 slabs of wood,
Threaded rod (3/8" to 1/2") - available at Fastenal,
Some tubing to cover a portion of above - bar & restaurant supply,
Attach your Tatone mount & fuel tank

Start your engine and then walk away from the noise and exhaust!

Dennis

[Phil Krankowski]

So we are not holding the engine but instead the engine holder?

Get a folding work table or similar.  Harbor Freight has a cheap version, Black and Decker makes a slightly better version.  There are some premium versions too.    (or make your own from a set of folding table legs and some plywood)  PAINT the top with some polyurethane varnish before starting to use it.  Pay attention to the edges.

Fasten the Tatone mount (s) to an adequately long 2x4 that has also been painted with polyurethane.  Clamp the 2x4 to the work table.  Make sure there is a safety of some type in case of things coming loose. 

Fashion a hard tank mount out of a vertical 1x3 that has been pre-drilled  and slotted for a shelf of some type for the fuel tank.  The shelf can be pretty lightweight, it will only be holding a small fuel tank.

You can put 2 mounts on each board, one on each end, if you are using multiples. 

You will want to use a ground anchor of some type so the table can be tied down.  A couple cinder blocks and some rope will probably be all you need... or some long tent stakes.

Phil

[Chris Wilson]

Hmm, I tried using a portable folding work station and without some sort of restraining mechanism it will (with large engines) pull itself over or walk forward on smooth floors!

If I ever did make another one it would be a heavy steel tripod with the back leg being hinged - the angle of the legs around 30º to prevent movement

[Mike Griffin]

I like this one that Fred made.

http://stunthanger.com/smf/scale-models/engine-test-stands-33302/

Mike

[FLOYD CARTER]

I get quite enough kneeling on the asphalt at the flying field.  At home, I run engines on the top rail of a fence (A 1X6 is nailed to the top rail).  I then clamp my commercial engine stand to that.  I work standing up.  Much mo' betta'.  Since I live in the country, I don't have neighbors to complain about noise!

(I even have a target practice range for .22 in my front yard).

Floyd

[Randy Cuberly]

Mine is an old metal office desk that I bought from Raytheon as "Salvage" when I worked there.  Weighs about 200 lbs.  Just mounted an old Tatone mount on it and it works fine.  Not very portable though!  
Like Floyd it saves my "Old" knees.

Randy Cuberly

[Dennis Leonhardi]

The beauty (beauties) of the stand I built - borrowing some ideas from a friend - are:

- it's portable
- it's compact
- it's heavy enough to walk away from when a strong engine is running
- the tubing on the rod is a convenient handle

Knees: well, as long as I get cortisone injections in the knees about once a year to combat the arthritis ...

Dennis

[Steve Helmick]

My Tatone engine test mount is bolted to a Rigid (brand) portable takeoff table from Home Depot. About $35. The late Don McClave promoted the use of this combination. It works fine, but it needs something to keep it from pulling over with engines bigger than Don't Fox .35 stunt. Either a piece of paracord and a tent stake, or a bungee cord to a cyclone fence works fine. I did replace the hinge pins with bolts with elastic stop nuts to keep the vibration down. It no longer folds flat, but it is no problem to transport to a suitable area or store in a shed. I have a place where I can run 'em next to the freeway and use a bungee cord hooked to the WADOT's fence. Helps keep the fence from rusting, and blows the sound out onto the freeway, where it's probably unnoticed.  Steve

[Paul Smith]

Here's what I use.  A Tatone stand mounted to heavy wood frame that includes a fuel tank holder.

The red assembly fits into a stand-up framework made of 2x4's with enough space to set my pit box.  That has two wheels so I can move it around the yard.

Bending over a low stand is not comfortable in the long run.

Finally, the Tatone module can be swapped out with a similar EZ Just module for certain engines.

The massive C-clamp is overkill.  For most smaller engines the mass of the test stand module is plenty.

[Bob Matiska]

I've been using a Harbor Freight Adjustable Height Heavy Duty workstation #46725 for a few years now. I think it was $22 before discount but now lists for $39.95. After using the discount coupon in Model Aviation, it should be $32.

The pic shows a metal engine mount on a piece of scrap wood, held on top with two c-clamps. Cardboard helps prevent oils from soaking into the top of the stand. I don't recall the brand of metal mount, but it works well. That old EZ-just stand held a K&B 61 40 years ago, but I probably wouldn't use it for anything over a 15 or 19 these days, if I needed to use it at all.

Bob in NEPA

[Roy DeCamara]

I really enjoyed seeing the Twin Stack OS running.  Back in 1953 I bought a Twin Stack OS 29 imported at that time by Bill Atwood.  It sold for $14.95 and came with a red anodized fuel tank attached to the back plate.  Brings back old memories...............Thanks.  Roy D.   

[Geoff Goodworth]

I have a folding saw horse and I screw adaptor plates to it. The pipe legs of the saw harsw are about 1" dis so I kept four extruded bricks from the houe I buit as dead weights if the rig moved. The bricks have three holes about 1.5" dia.

So far, I've run engines up to an LA 46 on this rig and it doesn't creep away.

Phil, since you are testing to ensure that the engines are ok, I suggest you think of something similar.

If you need a pic—tomorrow.

[Fred Cronenwett]

My engine test stand sit on the ground are made from scrap plywood, cans, long bolts, then I bolt the pre-made engine test mounts. this is a an example I made to test run four OS-25FP's at one time. The sound they made with all four running was great.

put a 4x4 beam on the bottom, they don't move when you put them on the ground. Make it smaller to run one engine

Fred

[Fred Cronenwett]

this is the smaller version with just two mounts (large and small)