American LaFrance Steam Fire Pumper

[steamin]

I thought I would share a set-up with you for making long tapers on a milling machine.
Picture #1 shows the typical 5” sine bar being used to produce a very accurate angled surface for setting the work piece on to machine a very precise angle.

Picture #2 is a similar situation except in this case I did not have to calculate the angle in which the wood had to be set at to mill the sides.

First I want you to notice the 3/8” dowel pin that is in a piece of CRS. The original block had a complete 3/8” diameter hole reamed through. Then material was milled away to expose a portion of the hole. Then a 3/8” diameter hardened steel dowel pin was pressed in what was left of the hole. This left part of the 3/8 “ dowel pin exposed. Then the “T” slot width of the milling machine was measured. Then the opposite side from the dowel pin was machined down to within 0.005” of that dimension. The block was clamped in a vise with a 0.002” thick shim under one end of the dowel pin. The remaining stock of the block was ground away leaving a slight taper to the back side in relation to the dowel pin. Now when the block with the dowel pin is placed into the “T” slot, the dowel pin is wedged against the inside surface of the slot.

There are two of these blocks at 14-1/2” apart. This is the length of the required taper. The difference between one end to the other is 0.093”. So a 0.093” diameter gage pin was placed between one 3/8” diameter pin and the straight. The end of the wood blank that is to be the narrowest was placed on the centerline of the 3/8” pin. After clamping the wood blank to the straight edge, the end mill was brought to the wood, the DRO was zeroed out and then the table was moved 0.093”. Power feed was engaged and away we went. The clamps were moved periodically to keep the wood blank tight against the straight edge.

Now when it came time to do the opposite side, the 0.093” diameter gage pin was replaced with a 0.187” diameter gage pin. Then the same cutting procedure was performed as described above.

 

[steamin]

Greetings, well I finally got some pieces painted and assembled for the draft gear. I have been fighting outdated spray paints from the discount stores in our area. One piece I removed the paint 7 times until I got something worth while to keep. Anyway, some progress is finally being made.
Grace & Peace, Larry

 

[ShedBoy]

Amazing attention to detail as always Larry. :bow: :bow:
Brock

 

[nsfr1206]

I really like this fire engine. Did you ever finish it?

 

[steamin]

Greetings and Happy New Year, I do appreciate your interest and to answer your question; the engine is not completed yet. I have been working on all the chassis components and attachments. I wanted to get all this finished before I start on the best part yet to come; the steam engines and pump. I have been busy of late doing a lot of contract work for some local companies. I do hope to get back to the fire engine soon or at least post some updated pictures for you.
Thank again for your interest.

 

[steamin]

Greetings, It has been a long while since my last post; way to long. I finally uncovered the LaFrance project and spent most of the week refreshing myself on the project and was able to get the draft door and latch mechanism made. Sure was good to be back working on the steamer.

The first picture shows the draft door closed and locked in position. The second picture shows the door fully opened. It can be open in varying degrees by placing the door latch pins in other grooves. I plan to make some fancier handles later on.

Next is to assemble everything and finish up the brake parts and pin the linkages to the shafts.

Then I plan to start on the heart of the LaFrance. The engines and pump assemblies.... Yeh !!!

God Bless,
Larry

 

[ozzie46]

Glad to see you back on this. Great work.

Ron

 

[steamin]

Greetings, I have been working on another frame detail. This time it is the rear axel vibrations clamps. In the early days of these horse drawn steamers, the engine would start to jump up and down with all the vertical motion involved while running the pump. Some of the written accounts described some pretty violent motions. So the builders started to add clamping mechanisms to tie the axels to the frame.

The first picture shows my interpretation of a clamping mechanism for the rear axel. There will be one on each side of the frame.

The second picture shows how the front axel was tied to the frame through the fifth wheel mount.

All for now :wave:

God Bless,
Larry

 

[Allen]

Lovely work Larry! Good to see you're back at 'er.

BTW did you get my e-mail last week?

 

[ProdEng]

Larry,

I enjoy explanations of your build very much, you make what appears to me impossible happen. Once I see it done it is no longer impossible and making an attempt to do better seems to be a bit more hopeful. Please continue :bow:

Jan

 

[steamer]

Hey Larry!

Glad to see the post...your work is excellent as usual! Keep em comin! :bow:

Dave

 

[steamin]

Greetings,
I did reach a my mini-goal this afternoon. All the brake rigging is in place plus a few other small frame details were taken care of. Now I can focus my attention on the steam engines and pump assemblies. I plan to build a jig that represents the center section of the frame. That way I can sit the LaFrance off to the side and free up a lot of bench space and do all my assembly work within the jig.

Thanks to all for following this build and your kind comments.

God Bless,
Larry

 

[vcutajar]

Larry

Just came across this thread and went through it from the start. Your attention to the details is amazing. :bow: :bow:

Vince

 

[ozzie46]

Absolutely amazing workmanship! :bow: :bow: :bow: :bow:

For some reason I thought the steam engine was already made. Oh well the saga con tinues.

Ron

 

[steamin]

Greetings, Progress is being made on the fixture for the engine and pump assembly. The frame work is assembled. I need to cut the recesses for the main bearings and drill and tap the mounting holes. The main bearings and flywheels are roughed out. There were some bosses on the inside of the main bearings for 10-32 threads. They were not adequate for 10-32 threads so I have machined them off and will add some larger ones.

Till later,
Larry

 

[steamin]

Greetings,
Main Bearings:
I was able to correct the bosses on the back side of the main bearings by turning some brass pieces and soldering them in place. The tops and bottoms are tapped 10-32 for the support rods for the engine and pump mounting plates. Picture #1
Crankshaft:
I took a different approach on the crankshaft. I machined individual components and pressed them together with Locktite.Then the parts will be pinned together with taper pins. Picture #2 shows the individual pieces and picture #3 shows the assembled crank ready for the pinning operation.

Till Later,
Larry

 

[steamin]

Good evening, Made some more progress. Picture #1 shows all the posts turned and mounted in the main bearings. The cylinder mounting plate is made and in place. There are two pieces of brass that have been machined down to 1/8" and 3/16" thick from 1/4" thick plate. I suppose I could have bought some stock already to size, but the surface finish leaves a lot to be desired. Picture #2 is a close up of the newly attached boss on the bearing plate with the post screwed in. While I was set up for fly cutting, I dressed up the top and bottom surfaces of the pump body. Then I was able to drill a cross hole in a very suspicious area of the pump body casting. My concerns were if the holes you see in Picture #3 went through to the cross hole I drilled. The best I can tell all is well.
Till later, Larry

 

[steamin]

Good Evening,
Great news, there are NO inclusions in the pump body casting. All the holes have been drilled and bored as should be without any problems. All that is left is to tap the mounting holes and mill 4 channels. The top mounting plate and bottom cover are finished except for matching the outer edges to the pump body. Are we having fun yet, you bet !!!!
Till later, Larry

 

[vcutajar]

Still following you Larry. Amazing work.

Vince

 

[rhitee93]

Wow, that pump body is quite a piece! I'm glad you didn't run into any inclusions as that would have been a bummer!