Steam Launch parts acquired

[archbuilder]

So it looks like the crank also serves as a cam, running the valves open and closed?

 

[seikeinlemming]

The stroke is 3 3/4", and high pressure cylinder is 3" bore and low pressure is 5.25" bore. Yes- the crank shaft does move the valves (one is a slide valve, one is a piston valve) open and closed. Below is a link to a video of an engine similar to mine running. Many of the parts look the same, although I cannot confirm it is the exact model, it will show you what it looks like with everything moving around in perfect synchronization.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCvVmzjjqas

 

[Tnstratofam]

That is an impressive piece of engineering to me. I'm also very impressed with the progress and fabrication, or rebuioding I should say, you've accomplished so far. Great work and a great video.

Every time I read your updates I have an image of the African Queen with Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn going down the river with a steam engine running in the background. Although I don't remember what the African Queen was powered by, a steam engine fits in my mind.

Keep up the excellent work, and my hats off to you for the amazing job you've done so far.:yo:

 

[shaw520]

Very cool project, following along

 

[shaw520]

This may have been posted already,.. but man how interesting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2-kbSURgds

 

[sphelps]

I love the sound those engines make ! Very cool ! I hope ya add a nice steam whistle to the project ! :joyous:

 

[Ned L]

Very nice work. Fun stuff,.... machining things on a manual milling machine.
This is a double acting engine,... isn't it??

(For some here,.. in a "double acting" engine the steam alternately enters both above and below the piston, so there is a power stroke on both the upstroke and down stroke. ... unlike a gasoline engine with a power stroke only on the down stroke. Effectively a compound two cylinder double acting steam engine has as many power strokes as a four cylinder gasoline engine.)

Steam engines really are neat!

 

[seikeinlemming]

tnstratofam - It will be very similar to the African Queen. I often use that as an example when people ask what it will look like when it is done, except ours will be shorter.

shaw520 - That is a fantastic video of how a steam engine runs, and that specific model is sold through the same company (well, really, it is just one guy in portland, oregon) that we got our hull and engine castings from. The Elliott Bay Triple in the video is the next step up from the compound engine we are building.

 

[seikeinlemming]

sphelps - It will have a steam whistle when it is done. My father who is working along on this project has an extensive history in owning various steam-related items and worked at various steam-related attractions so we will probably start with a whistle we have sitting around and then fabricate our own whistle eventually that sounds exactly how we want it to.

Ned L - Milling on a manual milling machine is a lot of fun. We have digital readouts and auto-feed servos to get nice smooth feed rates and ensure we are always making consistent cuts. You are correct - it will be double acting, so there are 4 "power" strokes with each revolution. This makes the engine run smoother and be more powerful.

 

[seikeinlemming]

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Progress has been made on the bottom cylinder heads. The cylinder block is pictured upside down, and we have positioned these castings and drilled all of the holes to fasten them to the cylinder block. The four "pads" with screw holes are what will attach to the supports to hold the cylinder block in place. The holes in the middle will be where the piston rod will come out each cylinder. The shiny gold piece in the second shot away from the camera is the cover for where the high pressure cylinder valve will go in and out (distributes steam to both sides of the high pressure cylinder).

 

[archbuilder]

As usual, very cool and great workmanship!

 

[seikeinlemming]

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The cylinder block has finally come out of the milling machine for good, and I took some time today to piece together as many of the finished pieces that we have to see what it will look like. Attached are photos from lots of different angles.

Photo 2 shows the covers off the top of the cylinders revealing the piston heads, Photo 4 has them in place showing how the engine will look when finished.

You will notice that there is a missing post supporting the cylinder block. This is almost finished and will be in place in the next week or so.

All pieces that you see are 95% or more complete. There are a few edges that need machined, holes drilled, or holes tapped, but for the most part, these parts are done.

 

[seikeinlemming]

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One more photo of a slightly better angle of the middle.

 

[archbuilder]

As usual very cool and amazing work. This has been great to follow, looking forward to the splash! I'd love to see a video of it underway.

 

[pckeen]

So quick question for you - are the parts going to be left bare metal, or are you going to paint them when done?

 

[seikeinlemming]

Pckeen - Most of the parts will be painted with a few exceptions of the brass/bronze pieces, and a few shiny machined surfaces. (like the cylindrical braces holding up the one side of the cinder block)

 

[seikeinlemming]

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Progress continues with the crank shaft. Here you can see one crank completed and the second progressing nicely. After these two cranks are done, we will machine the rest of the shaft down to dimension, and then move it over to the milling machine to square off the flat portions.

We are hoping to have the engine running on air by Labor Day or shortly thereafter, so stay tuned!

 

[archbuilder]

Thanks for the update, I always look forward to seeing your progress. Its not very often you see one of these getting built!

 

[Ned L]

+1 Very nice work.

 

[seikeinlemming]

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A few more photos of some random parts that weren't included as they were made. Many of these hold other pieces together, included in there are a steam chest cover, slide valve, piston connecting rods, reverser lever, and parts of the eccentrics.

The first photo shows an issue that we come into occasionally when building this engine. This part happens to be part of the connecting rod that connects to the crankshaft (so spinning inside the large round hole). The castings (top two pieces) were getting bored out and things just did not line up. We essentially had to throw out 13 hours of work and start over remaking both parts out of a new block of bronze. Would the engine have run with the set of castings? Yes. There would have been some workarounds, but it physically would have run. By remaking the parts we will have an engine that runs a little smoother, quieter, and wears slower. This is one of those cases where every thousands of an inch count and we just didn't quite want to push it. In the grand scheme of things, 13 hours in the overall construction of the engine is nothing, so we decided to remake the part.