My Steamboat Project Page 2
The Steam tug "Salty" built from Reliable Steams' plans
The Steam tug "Salty" built from Reliable Steams' plans
The Boiler:
As reported earlier, I did not have a boiler. I finally found one. Had to buy it and an engine
together to get it. It was all on a meant to be antique looking homemade cart with some pathetic
looking old steel wheels, after much pleading the seller agreed to keep the cart. He wouldn't
budge on the engine though, and I actually kind of like it. He wanted it gone, all of it. The engine is
in my shop, it's an O&S 4X5, or maybe a 5X5 vertical mill engine complete with governor etc. No
reverse. It stands about 4 feet tall. What am I going to do with it? I haven't the foggiest.
On to the boiler: It's a VFT 42 square foot. 1-1/2" tubes, waterleg. The boiler was professionally
made, bought and only fired a few times. Then it was left outside and got a light coat of surface
rust.
Here is a few pics of the combo.
As reported earlier, I did not have a boiler. I finally found one. Had to buy it and an engine
together to get it. It was all on a meant to be antique looking homemade cart with some pathetic
looking old steel wheels, after much pleading the seller agreed to keep the cart. He wouldn't
budge on the engine though, and I actually kind of like it. He wanted it gone, all of it. The engine is
in my shop, it's an O&S 4X5, or maybe a 5X5 vertical mill engine complete with governor etc. No
reverse. It stands about 4 feet tall. What am I going to do with it? I haven't the foggiest.
On to the boiler: It's a VFT 42 square foot. 1-1/2" tubes, waterleg. The boiler was professionally
made, bought and only fired a few times. Then it was left outside and got a light coat of surface
rust.
Here is a few pics of the combo.
As you can see the boiler is a bit rusty, but an hour or so with a wirewheel on a drill and it was down to
bright metal. And of course the shell is .375" thick and the tube sheets are .500" thick, so it would take
quite a bit of rusting to compromise either. The tubes still have the coating down inside. After a quick
cleaning it was on to a coat of heat paint black and it looks as good as new. I'll try to post a pic of it.
Now this "lucky" find presents a new problem, but I may have accidentally fell onto the right path via
divine intervention or just dumb luck, but this boiler is too big for the single M, And the Single M was
really too small for this large of a steel hull. So this may be one of those rare occurrences where
everything is going to work out right, no matter how much input I have in it. So after having the boiler
and realizing the dilemma, it was time to go shopping again.
And that I did, I combed the internet and Ebay of course, and Eureka!, I found an engine. It was in kit
form, but nonetheless, a twin about the right size for this boiler and boat. Around 10hp. It's a tug so the
larger powerplant is sort of keeping in credo with the whole tugboat design philosophy.
Here is a link to the Twin M engine page (click)
Then came all the contemplation and the eventual realization, I'm not as flexible (or small) as I once
was. Moving about in the now cramped cabin with the big boiler and engine was going to be a bit of
an issue. So with the click of the mouse and a few tries, I scaled the whole hull up by a factor 1.1. This
took the length from 20 feet to 22 feet. And the beam out to 96". Which is legal to trailer on most roads,
in most states, including here in Michigan. And requires no special permits, and no restrictions. Some
of the narrower two lane highways, 96" is it.
Anyways, I have not tested this boiler to date, and will as soon as I get a chance. I have a 400 PSI
gauge and pump to test it with. I'll fill it full of water and take it up to 250 or so and let it sit for an hour.
I'm thinking it will be ok, but I'll take all precautions, just in case.
A pic below, wire wheeled and a few coats of high heat paint. Still have to lag it and hydro it. I did as
much investigating as I could through the small openings, but it looks virtually new inside. But, I'm not
taking anything for granted. Confidence is no substitute for precaution. One of these fail and it can
mess up the whole outing :)
This boiler is really perfect. all of the bosses are on one side, and it is going up against a bulkhead, so
it is going to work out great. The only boss on the backside is a blow down for the mud ring.
bright metal. And of course the shell is .375" thick and the tube sheets are .500" thick, so it would take
quite a bit of rusting to compromise either. The tubes still have the coating down inside. After a quick
cleaning it was on to a coat of heat paint black and it looks as good as new. I'll try to post a pic of it.
Now this "lucky" find presents a new problem, but I may have accidentally fell onto the right path via
divine intervention or just dumb luck, but this boiler is too big for the single M, And the Single M was
really too small for this large of a steel hull. So this may be one of those rare occurrences where
everything is going to work out right, no matter how much input I have in it. So after having the boiler
and realizing the dilemma, it was time to go shopping again.
And that I did, I combed the internet and Ebay of course, and Eureka!, I found an engine. It was in kit
form, but nonetheless, a twin about the right size for this boiler and boat. Around 10hp. It's a tug so the
larger powerplant is sort of keeping in credo with the whole tugboat design philosophy.
Here is a link to the Twin M engine page (click)
Then came all the contemplation and the eventual realization, I'm not as flexible (or small) as I once
was. Moving about in the now cramped cabin with the big boiler and engine was going to be a bit of
an issue. So with the click of the mouse and a few tries, I scaled the whole hull up by a factor 1.1. This
took the length from 20 feet to 22 feet. And the beam out to 96". Which is legal to trailer on most roads,
in most states, including here in Michigan. And requires no special permits, and no restrictions. Some
of the narrower two lane highways, 96" is it.
Anyways, I have not tested this boiler to date, and will as soon as I get a chance. I have a 400 PSI
gauge and pump to test it with. I'll fill it full of water and take it up to 250 or so and let it sit for an hour.
I'm thinking it will be ok, but I'll take all precautions, just in case.
A pic below, wire wheeled and a few coats of high heat paint. Still have to lag it and hydro it. I did as
much investigating as I could through the small openings, but it looks virtually new inside. But, I'm not
taking anything for granted. Confidence is no substitute for precaution. One of these fail and it can
mess up the whole outing :)
This boiler is really perfect. all of the bosses are on one side, and it is going up against a bulkhead, so
it is going to work out great. The only boss on the backside is a blow down for the mud ring.
Finally got around to hydrotesting the boiler. It was actually quite simple. My buddy Gary and I rode out
to the Charlton Park steamshow last weekend. He offered to come over today 7-17-10 and help test the
boiler as he had a pump to do it with and the gauges, and the know how. We laid the boiler on it's side
so we could fill it through one of the bosses and not have any air at all inside, which is very important.
Water will not compress, any air trapped in the boiler, will. If something were to fail, compressed air
would quickly expand, creating an explosion. The whole vessel completely full of water, if anything let's
go under test pressure, the force would immediately drop to zero. The pump was actually the pump for
an hydraulic ram or "Portapower". It was amazing, one stroke of the little pump, the boiler pressure
would jump 25 PSI. We estimated the boilers volume to be around 50 gallons. We took it all the way up
to 300 PSI for a short duration and then backed it off to 250 and let it set for a few hours. There were
absolutely no leaks. Gary remarked, he wouldn't be afraid to use the boiler at 150 PSI working pressure,
after looking at how it's made etc. I'll use two safety reliefs, one at 100 and one at 125 for a back up.
This success today, really has me excited about firing this ol tub up..
I mention Gary here. He is a very knowledgeable guy about all things steam and related. He is in the
process of producing a set of castings for a two cylinder uniflow steam engine for marine other uses. I've
heard one of his engines run, they purr. If anyone is interested in one of the casting sets, let me know. I
seen a few of the castings today and they look first class.
to the Charlton Park steamshow last weekend. He offered to come over today 7-17-10 and help test the
boiler as he had a pump to do it with and the gauges, and the know how. We laid the boiler on it's side
so we could fill it through one of the bosses and not have any air at all inside, which is very important.
Water will not compress, any air trapped in the boiler, will. If something were to fail, compressed air
would quickly expand, creating an explosion. The whole vessel completely full of water, if anything let's
go under test pressure, the force would immediately drop to zero. The pump was actually the pump for
an hydraulic ram or "Portapower". It was amazing, one stroke of the little pump, the boiler pressure
would jump 25 PSI. We estimated the boilers volume to be around 50 gallons. We took it all the way up
to 300 PSI for a short duration and then backed it off to 250 and let it set for a few hours. There were
absolutely no leaks. Gary remarked, he wouldn't be afraid to use the boiler at 150 PSI working pressure,
after looking at how it's made etc. I'll use two safety reliefs, one at 100 and one at 125 for a back up.
This success today, really has me excited about firing this ol tub up..
I mention Gary here. He is a very knowledgeable guy about all things steam and related. He is in the
process of producing a set of castings for a two cylinder uniflow steam engine for marine other uses. I've
heard one of his engines run, they purr. If anyone is interested in one of the casting sets, let me know. I
seen a few of the castings today and they look first class.