Hit and miss momentum – a friendly foe
By Ernie Mitchell
HTF Columnist
A friend of mine has an antique McCormick Deering “Hit and Miss” stationary engine. Built in the early 1900s the old Hit and Miss or “Flywheel” engines are fascinatingly simple. They have one cylinder and two large cast iron flywheels, one on each end of the crankshaft and most of their moving parts are exposed for the eye to see.
Unlike modern four-cycle engines that fire once every four revolutions and rely on varying fuel rates to increase or decrease the output speed, Hit and Miss engines are governed by the rate of cylinder fire. When the cylinder fires with a single loud “POP” the propulsion energy and subsequent RPM increase from the explosion is absorbed by the two large flywheels. The engine then coasts, continuing to rotate from the momentum stored in the flywheels and does not fire again until rotational friction (work load) slows the output speed below a preset level at which time the engine fires again and the process cycle starts over. When not under heavy load the engine may coast (swish) seven or eight revolutions between each ignition pop. If you were to listen to one of these old relics run at idle you would hear: “Pop – Swish – Swish – Swish – Swish – Swish – Swish - Pop Swish – Swish – Swish – Swish – Swish – Swish – Pop…”
In essence, the two large, heavy rotating flywheels serve as banks where the energy from each ignition explosion is deposited and then drawn upon to keep the shaft rotating.
The antique apparatus with its whirling fly-ball governor, brass oilers, rotating flywheels, exposed moving parts and pop-swish-swishswish medley is a simplistic symphony of genius in motion. It is also a subtle reminder of the way many people function - with their single cylinder firing just enough the keep their wheels of industry from coasting to a complete stop.
Without the universal law of momentum the mechanical engineering world would not exist as we know it. Interestingly, momentum also plays a huge role in governing the success of our business lives. Graduates fresh out of school sometimes experience difficulty finding employment because they lack the momentum of practical experience. Once hired, a 90-day new-hire probationary period gives the employee a chance to establish credibility with their employer. Positive credibility is, in essence, positive momentum.
New start-up companies with no prior established customer rapport or positive brand reputation (two more forms of momentum) suffer the same dilemma. The first sale can be the hardest to make. Once given an opportunity to be of service, if the company rises to the occasion and performs as promised the momentum created by a job well done will create positive momentum that makes the next order, and the next, easier to get. Without momentum new companies and new employees can’t afford to make mistakes. Once you’ve earned a reputation as a reliable employee of worth that can be depended on to show up and get the job done or, as a new company that can be depended on to perform as promised, the phenomenon of momentum kicks in and life gets easier.
When this happens many enter into what I like to call a state of perpetual-power-glide where like that old Hit and Miss engine that “pops” every six or seven rotations they can survive with very little effort. Barring a major catastrophe, stored up momentum can carry them over the bumps and small hills in life. But beware; the road of perpetualpower glide, as enjoyable as it is to travel, is also a dangerous road to mediocrity - even disaster.
People that fire every sixth or seventh revolutions doing just enough to keep your flywheels turning may “get by” but unless they are extremely lucky they will never be truly prosperous. The dangerous thing about momentum is that you never know exactly how much you have in reserve until you run out. Sometimes companies and employees don’t realize they are running low until it is too late. If you lose your momentum with your boss or wake up one morning and learn that your Friendly Republican Banker is no longer friendly it is indeed a different world.
If you look around you will find that the old one-cylinder Hit and Miss engines are obsolete relics of the past. To prosper in today’s modern economy performers must fire on every revolution and run on smoothly and continuously on eight cylinders. Momentum is one of the most powerful tools in the universe. Learn to create it, manage it and profit from it.
Ernie Mitchell, Moose Lake Hill, Orr, MN, © All Rights Reserved 2010.
