A Different Look At Old Steam Power

[rake60]

I can remember tales of the old Steam Shovels.

A three man crew could do the work of 80 men with hand shovels.
The Fireman kept the boiler stoked, the Ground Man actually operated the controls.
The Engineer was the boss of the machine. He had to be sure the boiler didn't blow
up and the machine wasn't being overloaded.
If it happened to break down, HE had better be able fix it, and FAST!

This is a great video of one in action.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjGIAe8zUj8&feature=related[/ame]

Today one man can sit on a front end loader and do twice the work, but it isn't half as cool! 8)

Rick

 

[steamer]

Amen to that!
Thanks for posting that Rick!

Dave

 

[Don1966]

Thanks Rick that is awesome video, it reminds me of the steam train that use to pass by my grandmother's house when I was little.

Don

 

[Maryak]

Back in the 60's at Defoe Shipbuilding in Bay City Michigan all the dockyard cranes were steam driven on a railway system in the yard.

I remember standing there awestruck as the guys dug a hole in the ground alongside the rails, shaped it with a former, dropped a hull plate in it and then, along came puffing billy, complete with steam hammer hanging off the jib and beat the crap out of this plate until it took the shape of the hole in the ground. Up puffed another crane grabbed the plate and bingo it was welded into the hull. Clever guys those Yanks

Best Regards
Bob

 

[b.lindsey]

Just out of curiosity, was there storage for extra boiler water on board the cranes? Steam locos carried water in the tender and stopped every so often to replenish it at water towers along the tracks. Am wondering how that was done for these steam cranes? Great video though!!

Bill

 

[steamer]

That's a great question Bill, there must be at least a "day tank" on board to last a few hours anyway.

The application my be unique, but the technology is the same.

Dave

 

[Captain Jerry]

Steam locos could pick up water by being driven over shallow pans of water at high speed, with a scoop extended between the tracks. Might not work for a steam shovel.

Jerry

 

[geoff p]

When I left school (early '60s) and started training in civil-engineering we used a steam pile-driver. Unfortunately the boiler couldn't be used so we provided (lots of) air from a compressor. The thing rattled away on top of the piles, which went down v-e-r-y slowly.

Then someone brought in a Delmag diesel pile-driver. Thump, thump, thump, job done.

In the company yard they still used several steam cranes but none had valid boilers, so they all ran from compressed air. The company reckoned it was more cost-effective than buying new cranes.

Almost everywhere, there are remains of steam-engines. Most could be got working again fairly easily but ..

The boilers have long ago rusted down to tin-can thickness and cannot be 'restored', only replaced. And that is prohibitively expensive in most cases. If only we could make boiler-steel as long-lasting as cast-iron.

Geoff

 

[Deanofid]

Just out of curiosity, was there storage for extra boiler water on board the cranes? Steam locos carried water in the tender and stopped every so often to replenish it at water towers along the tracks. Am wondering how that was done for these steam cranes? Great video though!!

Bill

They had tenders too, Bill. Once in a while you'll see an old picture of a mule drawn wagon, but usually
these shovels were working in a pit, and a truck could come to tend it, or they had water cars, if the
dig site was near rails. Some of the pictures of the Panama Canal show rail tenders near where the shovels are working.

 

[steamer]

Steam locos could pick up water by being driven over shallow pans of water at high speed, with a scoop extended between the tracks. Might not work for a steam shovel.

Jerry

Yes they had scoops for this, but keep in mind, it was to fill the tender only. From there it was all pump or injector to the boiler.

Dave

 

[purpleknif]

Shay locomotives could use a steam siphon to suck water from ponds. If you ever get the chance, a trip to "Cass scenic Railroad" in Cass WV is well worth the trip. You can get "up close and personal" with operating original Shay logging locomotives. Fascinating.

 

[ChooChooMike]

Super cool video! Where/when taken?

 

[RollaJohn]

Information from YouTube: International Plowing Match in Teeswater, Ontario. September 19,2008