Working at a different scale

[Adrian R2Participant @adrianr2]

Some of you might find this interesting.  A chap in Ohio who has taken on the life task of saving and rebuilding heritage steel production machinery including a huge Tod rolling mill engine. After some 30 years of effort they now have it mounted and the 50 ton crankshaft turning via a motor, now moving on to reassembling the 8 ton connecting rod and pistons for steam operation. They also run a narrow gauge railway around the site.

Youtube “YoungstownSteelHeritage” https://www.youtube.com/@YoungstownSteelHeritage/videos

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

What an awesome project !!

… I have just watched this episode:

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and am duly humbled.

MichaelG

[Adrian R2Participant @adrianr2]

Indeed, I find it doubly amazing. Firstly that such huge machinery was built and then again that someone has the skills and determination to build it again.

There is one where he explains how the high and low pressure sides of the Tod engine work, two different types of valve gear are used to extract the power from the steam.

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

It was quite normal for the compund steam engines that drove wool or cotton mills to to use different forms of valve gear.  Slide valve for low pressure and corliss for the high presure cylinders in some cases.

Howard

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