W H Allen V16 1860hp genset

Right, first task is to try and upload a few pictures so this is the test..... Which has hopefully been a success!

Early on in the year I had the job to remove a very complete and in excellent condition W H Allen generating set. Payment being the engine and the contents of the generator house as long as we did not scrap it. The project in itself is a story on its own but I will post that later. The appeal for this particular engine was the fact the rocker gear is open and can be visually seen once the rockers covers are hinged out of the way. They are very slightly lubricated so no masses of oil been thrown about. Should it have been a totally enclosed unit then it would have probably gone for scrap.

The engine is a 4 stroke, V16 with 9 1/2 inch pistons and a 12 inch stroke. It has got twin turbo's with a charge air cooler. The engine is started by compressed air at 300psi. The horse power is 1890hp (continuously rated) with an overload to 2000hp for one hour. The generator is 6.6kv at 1.33 megawatt. Rated speed is 750rpm

The complete skid weighs 37 tons and is mounted on numerous anti vibration feet. luckily for the engine, the only time it was outside was for its delivery to my place so it never spent a night outside so we have been able to preserve its condition.

I will start posting where we are up to in terms of getting this thing going again and the systems we are having to install to enable it to operate.

W H Allen may be a British engine manufacture that is not that well know amongst the stationary engine group, one of the reasons may be the fact they did not really produce anything that can be taken on a car trailer to a rally! One prime example of their pedigree.......Who kept the lights on as the titanic met her end? W H Allen high speed generating sets is your answer!

They were a very common engine for local authority water companies to use within their pumping stations and they also produced gas and steam turbine driven sets.

W H Allen ( Allen Diesels ltd)  is still going as an after service provider for the engines that have been built, there is also a very active heritage group comprising of ex employees and persons interested in the kit they built.

So the pictures are: the end of the building being demolished to get acces to the engine, the engine being skated/jacked out of the building and the low loader with the generator set now secured leaving site.

See what you all think

Mark

Mark,
Nice looking engine, are you aware of a museum Called Internal Fire, Tan y Groes Wales, they have a large collection of W H Allen engines, plus some records, which I took to the museum a few years ago. I live in a Village near Bedford where W H Allen was based, now full of housing. I have a good friend who worked and served his apprentishship in the factory.

Maryalice

maryalice wrote:Mark,
Nice looking engine, are you aware of a museum Called Internal Fire, Tan y Groes Wales, they have a large collection of W H Allen engines, plus some records, which I took to the museum a few years ago. I live in a Village near Bedford where W H Allen was based, now full of housing. I have a good friend who worked and served his apprentishship in the factory.

Maryalice  

Hello Maryalice

Paul Evans who is the curator is now a very good friend. We have recently helped him with the removal of the T47's Allen engines from Peckforton pumping station. I do not know how he does it as I know how much effort and cost goes into saving these large lumps. I have the access to staff and kit and can "lose" some of the costs, he doesn't. The ironic thing is, these large engines.....the scrap man would not thankyou for it as the cost to then dismantle to obtain the cost per ton is not financially viable. The cost to carefully remove and transport, well that is a different thing. Basically a lot of effort to save something that then has no value, a small lister D is probably more valuable!

Should we have charged our client to undertake the removal of the this V16 engine then the project cost was in the region of £15k to include the demolition works. I wanted to save the engine so to ensure all went well we did not ask for any payment. I must be as daft as these museum owners!

Places like Internal fire and the Anson engine museum need all the support we can give them so we can witness first hand these large pioneers of diesel power.

W H Allen produced a lot of very well respected and skilled engineers that Bedford as a whole probably benefitted from. What a shame these types of companies no longer exist as I am positive their apprenticeship both made good engineers and more importantly decent people.

I was very lucky to have been one of the very last electromechanical apprentices at Michelin in 1992, a proper 4 year apprenticeship......very strict and almost like the army. I hated it but how lucky was I!

We are after a young engineer to start at our place but we are finding it very hard to find the right one, we need that lad/girl with the lister D that he/she has restored!! Years ago companies like ours would have benefited from the training, companies like Allen's gave their staff.

Mark

I've known Paul and Hazel for quite a few years and he's had his physical problems but doesnt understand the word stop, at one time I was a Gofor for them if something needed collecting, within reason the UK, I worked as a service engineer for twenty five years and had a transit sized van and my last company didnt mind me collecting stuff as long as it didnt affect my work, for instance in the telephone room at the museum there is a complete telephone exchange, I helped a friend who removed it from a site in Luton and installed it in the signal box at the Nene valley railway, he worked for the GPO and we then removed it from the Nene Valley signal box years later and I took it all in my van and a large trailer to the museum. Sadly I have problems with my legs and feet which means I cant stand for long periods of time so volunteeering has had to stop but I still visit the museum to see how its doing. I'm a time served machine tool fitter by trade with what was Lucas-CAV, now enjoying retirement.
Sadly apprentices that dont mind getting their hands dirty are very rare these days, my last company took on apprentices and they were put with us engineers to learn the ropes, they either thought they knew it all or were totally useless, I found the useless ones learnt quicker and were more willing to get stuck in, the know it alls were sometimes dangerous.
Where is the engine based, I would love to see it.
Maryalice

Awesome piece of kit !
Don't think that would fit in my shed.

Mark,
A short article on this procedure based on your initial posting, plus the pictures and a few more if possible, would be very well received at Stationary Engine magazine I am certain.....
Eric

Brilliant!
Mark, well done for saving that.
It's a shame that wasn't filmed for one of those 'mega trucker' type programs they have on the television; it may have helped with the cost.
George.

That is certainly a remarkable piece of machinery, it is amazing that you are able to rescue it from being scrapped. Only a very few people could take on that challenge, you should be congratulated for doing so.

As a point of interest, the 1931 BTH Diesel electric loco which used to work at Fords Dagenham, now on the Kent & East Sussex Railway, which is thought to be the oldest working Diesel electric in the country, is powered by a W.H. Allen engine. This engine is of rather smaller proportions though, being an in line six cylinder and being rated at 150 BHP at 550 RPM.




Specification plate on W.H. Allen engine powering the BTH Diesel electric locomotive.




Flywheel end view of the BTH loco W.H. Allen engine. (Due to lack of space it is difficult to photograph engine in situ)




W.H. Allen engine powered BTH Diesel electric Loco. (Picture Internet)

I worked on a couple of engines like this, not identical, possibly slighlty older, they were V16 engines & generators for backup for a Nuclear Power station, we were replacing the steel cooling jacket pipework.  
Huge effort to rescue that set up,

Chris

Oh, I've gone all tingly now...

Well it looks like some of you are interested in this generator!! If you want, I will post a separate subject on each of the systems used on this engine such as the fuel and start methods as if you have never worked on large medium speed diesels you may find it a good read. The combined weight of the engine and the low loader etc approached 85 tons so we had to get permission from network rail to pass across the railway outside our yard. The load had to take a route as dictated by the various highway departments to ensure we did not damage any bridges!! At our end we used a 120 ton crane to lift it off the low loader, the engine was placed on to machinery skates and..........I then shifted it on my own with a Tifor winch into the exact position without even getting a sweat!

Some more stats for this engine.

Sump capacity 550 litres
fresh water cooling jacket capacity 480 litres
exhaust outlet diameter 480mm
fuel consumption at full load...@ 600 gallons over 4 hours.
hours run 2666 since 1965.

The crank case has been drained of all oil and wiped clean and we are nearly there with connecting up all the services to the engine such as fuel and electrical shut downs etc. The sump has now been recharged with clean oil and we have already blown it over on air.

If any of you feel that you need to spend some quiet time with this engine and worship the damn thing then we are in Staffordshire near to Uttoxeter and you can always private message me or when this bit of a virus has passed a group of you could pop along.

It has been good that the W H Allen name is being discussed such as the unit fitted to the locomotive.




Cheers

Mark