valve gear

noun

(in a reciprocating engine) the mechanism for opening and closing the valves at certain points in each stroke.

Also called valve train.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for valve gear

Historical Examples of valve gear

One form of valve-gear is the link motion invented by Stephenson.
The Story of Great Inventions
Elmer Ellsworth Burns
The devices for controlling the steam are the throttle-valve and the valve-gear.
The Story of Great Inventions
Elmer Ellsworth Burns
The valve-gear is the Stephenson link, as in the ordinary engine.
A History of the Growth of the Steam-Engine
Robert H. Thurston
The valve-gear and the feed-pumps were worked from the engine-shaft.
A History of the Growth of the Steam-Engine
Robert H. Thurston
The valve-gear of this engine, a view of which is given in Fig. 27, was quite similar to that used on the Watt pumping-engine.
A History of the Growth of the Steam-Engine
Robert H. Thurston

British Dictionary definitions for valve gear

valve gear

noun

a mechanism that operates the valves of a reciprocating engine, usually involving the use of cams, pushrods, rocker arms, etc

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012