Looking for Reed valves for Dynajet

[Chuck in Detroit]

Hello everyone.

I have an old Dyna jet and would like to know where to buy the Reed ( pedal ) Valves for a reasonable price (I want to buy 6 pieces).
Ideas?

Thanks, Chuck

[Mark]

You could contact Dyna-Fog and see if they would sell you some or advise you of where to buy them. You could buy them now for $12 dollars on eBay, the "original Curtis petal valves"
PS I just noticed your question Chuck in this ebay ad. (I'm a bit slow) ha

eBay listing and info
"These are the original Curtis petal valves, not the chinese aftermarket knockoff's with rough edges that make it very hard and at times impossible to start the jet. Sadly these low quality valve knockoff's have flooded the market over the past couple decades and most pulsejets today have this poor quality valve installed in them rendering these pulsejet virtually useless at worst and at best extremely hard to start! Our petal valves will put an end to these hard starts and when paired with our "Hot Spark" starters provide quick, easy and reliable starts each and every time."
Thank you for taking the time to view our auction.
Regards,
~Doc
Questions and answers about this item
Q: Please quote me 6 pieces including shipping to Warren, Michigan 48089 Thanks, Chuck
A: Hi, They are $12 each $1.50 for the first and $.50 for each additional. So for 6 it would be $76 total to MI. Regards, Doc
Nov 30, 2009
Q: G'day Oildoc I bought an igniter from you recently. Now for valves! (1)I do not know the manufacturer's name for my pulse jet. So I can do a match, please advise the outside and hole diameters of your product.... Continue reading
A: Please refer to the auction site for dimensions. In pictures, you will find a complete drawing of the valve. As for shipping, reg first class mail is $3.00 and $1.00 for each additional valve. The US Postal Service... Continue reading
Nov 19, 2009
Q: What is the metal thickness of the reed valve?
A: .006"
Sep 29, 2009
http://cgi.ebay.com/Petal-Valve-Dyna-Je ... 2c50c9be60


Some history for your interest. ha
"Curtis Dyna-Fog, Ltd. was founded in 1947 in Dayton, Ohio by Russell R. Curtis and his father W.H. Curtis. Originally named Curtis Automotive Devices, the company specialized in manufacturing valves for the automotive and aircraft industry. Before joining his father in business, Russell Curtis attended the University of Cincinnati where he graduated in Aeronautical Engineering and later completed a cooperative work program at Wright Airfield (now Wright Patterson Air Force Base). At the time, Wright Airfield was the center of all aircraft technology. In 1952 Curtis Automotive Devices moved to Bedford, Indiana to be closer in proximity to its major customers. The company began producing other types of components for the aircraft industry and began doing some development work using acquired Pulse-Jet Engine Technology. During Russell Curtis' employment at Wright Airfield in Dayton he was first exposed to a Pulse-Jet Engine, a unique device used to power the German VI rockets during the war. The Pulse-Jet was comprised of the basic technology that would later be the foundation for his companies future."
" One of the first pulse-jet products they produced was the Dyna-Jet "Red Head" miniature engine for use in model rocketry. Initially developed in 1945 by a long time associate of Russell Curtis, William Tenney of Aeromarine Company, the Dyna-Jet once held the American Modelers Association land speed record at 179+ MPH! A speed amazing at the time, especially when only standard grade gasoline was available."
http://dynafog.com/about/history/
http://dynafog.com/other/dynajet/index.htm

And a previous post on this forum. (More Dyna-Jet history)

dynajetjerry on Fri Jan 12, 2007 10:03 am
Yep, Mark and Irvine.J.
.006 in. is the most often used spring steel for reed valves but that is suitable for pjs that are similar in size to the Dyna-Jet. For smaller engines, .004 might be best but for significantly larger designs, .008 and up would be preferable.
Aeromarine developed a 30-35 lb. thrust pj that utilized 5 modified D-J valve head assemblies and they, too, used the .006 valves. Obviously, reed valve design depends more on the type and size of the valve head than on the thrust that is delivered.
Jerry
Louder is always better.
dynajetjerry

[dynajetjerry]

To whom it may be of interest:
The "history" information about Curtis Dyna-Fog, Ltd., as posted on this site, is taken from CDF's website and must be taken with a grain of salt. W. L. Tenney founded Aeromarine Co. in 1945 or '46 in Dayton Oh and his sole employee, Charles Marks, created a small p-j without Bill's knowledge. After learning of it, Bill joined Charles in developing it into a model-suitable engine, first offering the jet for sale to the public in 1946, shortly after the introduction of the Minijet.
After several significant changes in design and construction methods, it was named the "Dyna-Jet" and again offered, in 1947.
Today's D-J differs very little from that 1947 design but is better looking and more powerful. Those of us who worked at Aeromarine never heard of Russell Curtis until he visited us in late 1952 and bought out Bill Tenney.
I'm still working on my version of the history of the D-J and associated follow-on products and projects. I can only hope Curtis' company will not object to some of the information I've inserted but which disagrees with the official history. I am in touch with their legal representative and will soon send him a copy of what I've written.
Pray for me!
Jerry Wiles

[Mark]

Jerry,
I noticed the same thing after I hurriedly posted/cut and pasted it, but decided nobody would care if I interjected/corrected some conflicting information. So I didn't bother. After all the information Don has sent me on the history, the name Marks is kind of hard to forget. ha
By the way, it was only yesterday that I was talking to Don Laird, and I asked him if you were ever going to finish your book, that I paraphrased "Jerry knows a lot of little things that are really interesting/unique about the Dyna-Jet history and evolution, as well as other details about various marketed pulsejets."
One of the funniest things was reading some of the nostalgic accounts of how frightened grown men became when they saw a Dyna-Jet spring to life for the first time. It reminded me of a thought Tharratt wrote, "... the duct is, in fact, nothing less than a good acoustic generator." ha

[Rocket Man]

44 Reed valves $29.23 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... :MESELX:IT

[dynajetjerry]

Mark & all,
Thanks for your confirmation.
I just delivered most of my writings to a professional writer who also has a small publishing firm. He will look at it and let me know if he is willing to help me finish this project. If he OKs it, I'll need to come up with some cash to get things started and estimate how many copies will be needed. I guess 50 to 100 will be appropriate. A probable charge for each is not yet known but I doubt if I'll get my money back. I won't mind, if others enjoy my efforts.
We're talking of about 90 pages, 8 1/2 X 11, including about 100 pictures. Only the cover (of the Dyna-Jet sales flier of 1952,) will include some red color. All the others are b&w.
I may not have previously posted the bad news for those of us who worked on the D-J: Jerry Nolin, my friend of 62 years who helped me get work with Bill Tenney, and who did most of my "training" there, died last August. He was an AF retired Lt. Col. and had flown Mustangs in the WW II Pacific theater. A good and interesting man and I'll miss him very much.
jerry

[Rocket Man]

Here is some more information. I have a Dyna Jet Engine about 1950 model I believe. The Instructions says, Engine Serial no 3660, Shevlin Manufacturing Company, Dayton Municipal Airport, Vandalia, Ohio.

Who was Shevlin Manufacturing Company?

[dynajetjerry]

Rocket Man,
Aeromarine Co. was renamed and reorganized into Shevlin Mfg. Co. in 1952, still under W. L. Tenney. That change was made to facilitate fulfillment of a new contract to build pulse-jet powered smoke-screen generators for the US Army.
The contract was cancelled after we constructed 60 items and submitted them, losing the planned-for order for another 600. Disgusted, Tenney sold the company to Russell Curtis and never again did business with the government. He sued and won a $100,000 judgement against the guilty parties but had spent more than that to win.
Details are in my up-coming story on the Dyna-Jet.
Jerry

[dynajetjerry]

Hi, Guys,

An update on my efforts.

The small publisher will handle preparations and printing of my stuff, providing I give him some cash up front. I plan to do so.

I've received a letter from a former pres. of Curtis Dyna-Fog, Ltd. and he is P-Oed at "my" having bothered him about this subject! I reminded him I had nothing to do with his being brought into this discussion. Among other things, he tells me I am very WRONG about several of the people @ Curtis in Bedford, IN, even though he was not there at that time. No specifics. No mention of my request for permission to use the D-J circular in my book. No offer to discuss any "errors" I may have made.

I've contacted Dennis Roudebush at Curtis and am awaiting his suggestions if any.

If the truth be known, however, it is possible I don't really need CDF's approval so long as I acknowledge, in print, the ownership of the Dyna-Jet and Dyna-Fog trademarks. But I am trying to soothe the feelings of everyone involved, without mangling the true story too much.

My book will contain more than 100 pages and will include more than 100 pictures, as soon as the experts at our local library helps me organize everything. (I'm pretty computer-illiterate.) My out-of-pocket costs will add up to about $3500 if we print 50 and about $3700 for 100. I can handle that but I realize I'll never get my money back, much less get any compensation for my efforts. I don't mind because its been fun despite a few glitches.

Jerry

[jamespipers]

I’ve seen some reed valves for Dynajet in Ebay last time and it cost more or less 15 dollars. You might try to search on Ebay. Or, you can go to some dynajet stores.

[Rocket Man]

Reed valves are very easy to make. Buy some .010" blue spring steel $29.00 + postage and cut them out with tin snips. There is enough metal to make 60 reed valves if I lay them out in 3 rows of 10 per row on 2 sheets. Including postage that is about 65 cents per reed valve.

Here is a video of my dyna jet engine with over 2 hours of run time on the home made reed valve.

[dynajetjerry]

Hello, All,

A word of caution may be in order for anyone who intends to use tin snips for cutting reed valves from spring steel. Such cuts usually deform the metal near the cuts and interfere with their ability to seal. All valves made by that method MUST be flattened and their edges smoothed so that they don't damage the seating surface of the valve head. Also, that tyhpe of metal is pretty hard and can render the snips' cutting edges. Be sure those edges are sharp!

Jerry

[gone2fly]

Hello, All,

A word of caution may be in order for anyone who intends to use tin snips for cutting reed valves from spring steel. Such cuts usually deform the metal near the cuts and interfere with their ability to seal. All valves made by that method MUST be flattened and their edges smoothed so that they don't damage the seating surface of the valve head. Also, that tyhpe of metal is pretty hard and can render the snips' cutting edges. Be sure those edges are sharp!

Jerry

That is true if you use the wrong tin snips. The correct name is Avation shears and they must be extremely sharp or brand new for them to do a good job. Here is a link to some for sale on ebay. They work great. I can hand cut reed valves for a Dyna Jet engine about 1 valve in 5 minutes work. A whole sheet of .010" spring steel will make 30 valves.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-HIGH-LEVERAGE-O ... 3cb6285b8a

[Heli-NuBee]

You may want to try Jet Bill - his e-mail address is: jetbill50@aol.com.