Ancient steam engine rescued!

[Hemi Joel]

Last year, we found this antique steam engine at a farm auction. It was neglected and stuck, like it had been cast aside as obsolete junk 100 years ago. I could not control myself, I had to bid on it and win.

I figured it would be a good project for my retirement years. But my son Cam took a liking to it, and began a weekly ritual of spraying every moving part with penetrating oil. A couple months ago, he got the head bolts loose and the valve body bolts, and started spraying the insides.

Yesterday day he called me at work and said he had a surprise for me when I got home. He wouldn't tell me what it was, but he was so enthusiastic, I though he had a new puppy or something. But when I got home, he showed me the steam engine, running on compressed air!

He told me that every time he sprayed it, he tried to turn the flywheel. This time it moved! So he got busy taking apart the main bearing caps, cleaning and lubricating everything, untill it spun over freely. Then he made new gaskets for it and put it together, hooked up and air hose, and voila!


I love old junk, especially if it works. Now I have try to find some type of a small boiler to run it. I was thinking it would be cool to hook it up to a line shaft system and run some antique ceiling fans off of it.
Here is a video of it:

http://youtu.be/DVSmPWyNaz4

[Deaf Bob]

Hmmm...heat the shop with the boiler, run fans to distribute heat.. Sounds like win to me!

[squirrel]

that's neat! Looks like fun...

How big is the bore/stroke? HP?

[Hemi Joel]

Squirrel, you are the man! That ad is awesome, It looks almost the same as what we have. I haven't measured the bore, but it does have a 5" stroke, a 3/4" inlet and a 1" exhaust, so it must be the 4 horespower.

[squirrel]

I bet there were a bunch of companies making them, too...

[Hemi Joel]

THere is no name on a tag or casting. The flyball governor says Gardner Governor on it. That is still stuck, so we have the belt off of it.

[squirrel]

I wonder if that's one of the parent companies of Gardner-Denver?

[tedly]

That is some serious levels of cool!

[SuperBuickGuy]

amazing and awesome also describes the steam engine - but even more describes your kid's perseverance to make it work. I suspect that your shirt is under more pressure than a boiler with well-deserved pride.

[Barry Donovan]

that was cool to see.
I was reading they are converting the big boy 4014 to diesel.
I ponder like an led display of lights getting any pattern they want, all computer controlled, to gain a thorough burner.

I am still with something jay leno said. The steam era is simply on hold...it will return.

Imagine steam taking over the electric diesel train? I do. Simply so. The big boy left off hauling much more than original numbers, and that was on the sloppy coal, one source of draft cramming a fire.


I was looking at the separate rod articulation, leaving a solid piston with its rod.. I saw a bizarre drawing similar for a boxer engine, a strange looking center crank.

[DanStokes]

Good job Cam!!

Joel - you guys have the neatest stuff.

Dan

[STINEY]

THAT is all favors of awesome rolled into one! I love it when patience and perserverience pays off.

[JOES66FURY]

So effing cool. I love the sound of steam engines operating...

[Hemi Joel]

Thanks guys for all the nice comments! Yes, it is rewarding to have a son who is interested and involved in this kind of stuff. He even likes some of the old music I listen to!

One thing that I really like about steam engines in motion, is that the mechanical workings are so visible. I can just sit in a chair and watch it run, it's great entertainment.

[Matt Cramer]

Very cool! I've sometimes wanted to salvage an antique engine myself, but have no idea where to start looking for one (or where I'd keep it when I found one).