I'm looking for a 2cyl lister that I can turn a generator with so when the power goes out I can keep some key things running IE frig etc... I was wondering if anyone had the chance to work with these engines before and their thoughts on how quiet/noisy they are.. a plus would be if you knew anyone who had one they were not using and wanted to get rid of it..

Thanks

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hum.....
1987 300TD 311,000M Stolen. Presumed destroyed

I always wanted one.
Check out www.amproexports.com and www.listeroid.com

I have also seen old ones sitting at abandoned oil wells out in Pa.

I think being slow turning they are pretty quiet, especially if you plumb the exhaust through a car muffler.

Good luck

__________________
"I have no convictions ... I blow with the wind, and the prevailing wind happens to be from Vichy"

Current
Monika '74 450 SL
BrownHilda '79 280SL
FoxyCleopatra '99 Chevy Suburban
Scarlett 2014 Jeep Cherokee
Krystal 2004 Volvo S60
Gone
'74 Jeep CJ5
'97 Jeep ZJ Laredo
Rudolf ‘86 300SDL
Bruno '81 300SD
Fritzi '84 BMW
'92 Subaru
'96 Impala SS
'71 Buick GS conv
'67 GTO conv
'63 Corvair conv
'57 Nomad

Once the snow clears, I'd like to find out where these are. The negotiations on buildings are getting closer, and this would be great for back-up at home and at the new shop.

It would be fun to rebuild them, too!
Or am I a glutton for punishment?

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Strelnik
Invest in America: Buy a Congressman!

1950 170SD
1951 Citroen 11BN
1953 Citroen 11BNF limo
1953 220a project
1959 180D
1960 190D
1960 Borgward Isabella TS 2dr
1983 240D daily driver
1983 380SL
1990 350SDL daily driver alt
3 x Citroen DS21M, down from 5
3 x Citroen 2CV, down from 6

I don't know if I would described them as quiet... The open valve train makes quite a bit of noise. However, these engines run about 600 RPMs and have an almost pleasant sound...especially compared to typical gas engine genset running at 3600 RPM. I exhaust my Listeroid into an underground cistern so the exhaust noise is pretty minimal.

Since engine wear is more or less proportional to the square of engine RPM, one might expect these 600 RPM engines to last 36 times longer than the ones screaming along at 3600 RPMs.

Most folks who use these engines in remote locations will often run them 24/7 for many years before having to do major maintenance. It is also very easy and relatively cheap to do the major maintenance (i.e., replace rings, piston, piston cylinder, cam shaft, etc.) on site with minimal tools.

A driller I used to know had a Lister diesel running a 6X6 water pump, 24/7/365. Only stopped to change the oil. Ran for years, at least according to him.

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

thats what i thought with them only operating at a few hundred rpms... the listeroid link diddnt work. the other site diddnt sell motors

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hum.....
1987 300TD 311,000M Stolen. Presumed destroyed

utterpower.com is the site for Listeroid info.

I don't own a Lister/Listeroid but did a LOT of research on getting one and setting it up to generate electricity while burning VWO. For backup power, I opted for the fast solution to multiple needs...a 10kw Miller engine-driven welder. Also, the whole WVO thing was beginning to lose it's shine for me and I didn't want to be dumpster diving 80% of the time just have lights and coffee.

In owning/purchasing a Listeroid to generate power, there are two big issues to consider:

• There's no out-of-the-box solution, be prepared to spend a lot of time fabricating the parts needed to make one of them into a light plant.

• The Indian Lister should be disassembled and 'blueprinted' (for lack of a better word) before you ever run it. QC at the factories isn't all that great and pulling a new engine down to make sure all the casting sand is cleaned out and that the rod caps are properly torqued is mandatory. This isn't a big deal to pull one down but should be done nevertheless.

That all said, they're awesome pieces of machinery that are pretty daggone efficient considering that they were designed 70-something years ago. I'd almost have one just to hear it run...

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

This has renewed my interest in Listeroids and surfing has revealed a new engine to consider, something called a Redstone; a Chinese mfgd, medium speed diesel.

I'll look into this some more and post links here as I come across them.

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Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

I have a friend who bought one- does what it's supposed to, but you're going to do a complete disassembly on that one also. It also weighs about 600#, and you'll have to fabricate a cooling system. For a little more money, you can buy a packaged 1800 RPM diesel generator set.

Most modern gas powered generators, for consumer use, are pretty darn quiet.

If you're just looking to run a few appliances, a 2k Honda generator is super quiet, VERY portable and can be used in a broader array of circumstances than a home built Lister generator.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

I've got a Honda powered 4.4Kw generator. It's not that quiet, but it is portable.

I want something that I can work on and play with etc, why I've been looking for a lister for years now. At the time there were true listers on ebay configured with a genset but I diddnt have the money for them at the time...ah well..

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hum.....
1987 300TD 311,000M Stolen. Presumed destroyed

Yeah I know... I was also going to turn a spare 617-951 I had into turbocharged genset. I never got around to doing that either. Ibet the neighbors would have LOVED hearing an unmuffled 5 cyl running 24hours a day

__________________
"I have no convictions ... I blow with the wind, and the prevailing wind happens to be from Vichy"

Current
Monika '74 450 SL
BrownHilda '79 280SL
FoxyCleopatra '99 Chevy Suburban
Scarlett 2014 Jeep Cherokee
Krystal 2004 Volvo S60
Gone
'74 Jeep CJ5
'97 Jeep ZJ Laredo
Rudolf ‘86 300SDL
Bruno '81 300SD
Fritzi '84 BMW
'92 Subaru
'96 Impala SS
'71 Buick GS conv
'67 GTO conv
'63 Corvair conv
'57 Nomad

It doesn't have the same "fun factor" or efficiency, and the fuel storage issues are different, but I picked up a garden variety gasoline generator (10 HP Briggs & Stratton) secondhand through Craigslist a couple of years ago for $300. It was in pretty good condition, and obviously hadn't seen much use.

Prior to purchasing it, we had managed to get by without a generator for over a decade without experiencing any outage long enough to cause us any real hassle. Not long after purchasing this one, though, we had a ~40 hour electrical outage resulting from tropical storm Fay in 2008. The generator saved the contents of our refrigerator and freezer. It's 240 V capable, too, so I could rig it up to run our well pump in a pinch.