Corliss Steam Engine (Coles Power Models)

[ZAPJACK]

Dear all,
After my third tractor, I will start THE great Corliss Steam Engine from Coles Power Models.
For and Continental old European guy, it's double complicate
Because I'm thinking in metric decimal. So the translation from fraction imperial size is not always easy.
The quality of iron castings can be better....
So pictures spoke from themselves.
LeZap

 

[ZAPJACK]

Next steps the flywheel
LZ

 

[Gordo]

I like your build so far.
I was always impressed with the big Corliss steam engines, when I was a kid my dad made me get a job at the lumber company he worked for and they had a Corliss in the boiler room that had not been run since the 40's. They used it for making electricity for the plant and on weekends they sold power to the local electric company . I used to sneak in there to get a drink of water from a Artisan well that was coming out of the ground.

 

[kuhncw]

LeZap,

That's very nice work on your Corliss. Thanks for posting the photos and especially the picture of your Shop Cat.

Chuck

 

[delalio]

That is a beauty of a flywheel!

Nice!

 

[Richard Hed]

Dear all,
After my third tractor, I will start THE great Corliss Steam Engine from Coles Power Models.
For and Continental old European guy, it's double complicate
Because I'm thinking in metric decimal. So the translation from fraction imperial size is not always easy.
The quality of iron castings can be better....
So pictures spoke from themselves.
LeZap
View attachment 116172View attachment 116173View attachment 116174View attachment 116175View attachment 116176View attachment 116177View attachment 116178View attachment 116179View attachment 116180View attachment 116181

That's wonderful to see what you are doing. I had to machine the same crank bed on a faceplate.

 

[awake]

Beautiful work! And I love your shop helper on your shoulder!

 

[ZAPJACK]

And I love your shop helper on your shoulder!

It's the boss, I'm only the workmen!
LeZap

 

[ZAPJACK]

Inside/ outside 20TPI tread for the cross head barrel.
LZ

 

[Richard Hed]

Dear all,
After my third tractor, I will start THE great Corliss Steam Engine from Coles Power Models.
For and Continental old European guy, it's double complicate
Because I'm thinking in metric decimal. So the translation from fraction imperial size is not always easy.
The quality of iron castings can be better....
So pictures spoke from themselves.
LeZap
View attachment 116172View attachment 116173View attachment 116174View attachment 116175View attachment 116176View attachment 116177View attachment 116178View attachment 116179View attachment 116180View attachment 116181

Where did you get those castings? I'm surprised there are any out there at all. Where did you get the drawings--they are so clean and roomy. The dwgs. I have are from the originals from AW Ray (Eloda Ray)--they are absolutely HORRIBLE by today's standards. They mark them as 1946 and drawing standards were not agreed upon til 1972. The originals are very cluttered and difficult to read, and occassionally incomplete or misleading. So are the drawings you have copyrighted?

I have redrawn them for my own use but I consolidated several peices as I could not understand what the use of having two separate pieces for a couple parts (other than for having a "pure, clean" exact model which I consider up to the maker exclusively). The easiest to consolidate are the steam and exhaust bonnets which are both made from two peices. The bases are identical in both bonnet types so one can "mass" produce them, that is, make 4. then you need two each of the exhaust tops and steam tops, but I just consider it bad designing and extra things to go wrong . Maybe there is some reason for those two parts but I could never thimk of what it might be. There is one reason, I believe these might have been designed this way and that is simply because people might not have had access to a mill or better machines that we have today. I thimk that is far fetched however, because most of this can be done on any lathe.

Oh, yeah, they used to put all the dimensions in fractions which is very irritating simply because no matter what, one has to convert the fractions to decimal, at least nowadays. I read that there were calipers and maybe indicators that used the fraction system but I have never seen one. They would be collectors items today. I'm redrawing something that has these types of dims: 39/64ths, 27/32, etc, . Lots of calculator time on that. and when I have to add up several of the dims like 2-27/32 + 1-9/16 + 5/32*2+ 3/8, it gets to be a real pain. The Ray drawings are fractions but never anything worse than a 1/16th. Truth is, the Ray drawings are a work of art, just not up to modern standards--like the Mona Lisa.

 

[lathe nut]

I will post the story behind this Corliss tonight got to get off to work, Joe

 

[BaronJ]

Hi Richard, Joe, Guys,

Richard you haven't replied to my Email yet ! Taking you up on your offer of drawings !

Joe, its a shame the pictures are only thumbnails. That big flywheel reminds me of Agnes.

 

[Richard Hed]

I will post the story behind this Corliss tonight got to get off to work, Joe

This makes me weep. Such a beautiful engine thrown to the wolves, sold as scrap. I wish I had this in my back yard. Could you send larger photos?

 

[lathe nut]

I was sad to back and she how much they had stolen, wish I would haven taken the steam whistle, I was first fried with wood, they cut year around, then they discovered crude oil and 1901 so the went to crude burning, then later come a natural gas like so we tapped into it and heated the boiler quick, all I had back then was a floppy dis camera, I was a kid and wanted to stop it, well I got at 3 o'clock or 9 o'clock they would laugh and go home had to craw in the hole tie on to a spoke and 12:00 to start it, i finally got the hang it if.

 

[plipoma]

Attached are photos of my Corliss build in progress. I didn't attempt to thread the cross slide barrel and the cylinder interface. The cylinder will be securely fastened to the base via the basin plate as is the crank assembly, there will be little to no forces on this interface. I machined them close and will use set screws and will not have to worry about threading so the parts are correctly clocked.
Another thing I would like to point out, the 8-32 screws specified almost through-out, I think are over-sized, particular where the cross head barrel adapter mounts to the cylinder, 8-32's will not fit, I used 5-40's. I also believe the 8-32's are proportionately large in other places. I used 5-40 studs for head and the steam bushing/valve and 5-40 bolts on the top valve plate. I will also use 5-40's on the valve covers and bonnets. I used 8-32's for the cross-head barrel to crank assembly interface, a good size for that interface. The basin plate and the cylinder are not secured in these photos.

I wouldn't use over 6-40's in these places.

 

[Rudy from Norway]

One impressive build LeZap". In addition to the impressive cat, I can't help noticing the nice Schaublin machines you got. Would be interesting to see a thread on those too?
Rudy

 

[ZAPJACK]

@ Richard Hed: I bought the castings in 2011, before Coles's stopped business.
Drawings are very good except some difficulties to "translate" in metric size.
I fully respect the imperial size but I'm working and thinking in decimal-metric.
Original drawings are from Eloda Ray in 1946.
Cole's Power Models upgrade the drawings in sept 1979 (R. Bromps)
@ Plipoma: very clean design on the top and side of the cylinder bloc.
I expend you're working with a CNC milling machine?
@ Rudy: here is my worshop
https://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/threads/zapjacks-workshop.27705/#post-305085LeZap

 

[propclock]

Beautiful. I think you can skip the iron supplement pills for a while.
I can almost taste it.
Thanks for all your posts.

 

[Richard Hed]

That is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. My drawings are copies of the original 1946 AW Rays (Eloda), they are terrible (but a work of art in themselves). I thimk I will try to photograph one of the 13 dwgs. and post it so peeps can see what it was like. It's quite interesting

 

[gredeby]

Dear all,
After my third tractor, I will start THE great Corliss Steam Engine from Coles Power Models.
For and Continental old European guy, it's double complicate
Because I'm thinking in metric decimal. So the translation from fraction imperial size is not always easy.
The quality of iron castings can be better....
So pictures spoke from themselves.
LeZap
View attachment 116172View attachment 116173View attachment 116174View attachment 116175View attachment 116176View attachment 116177View attachment 116178View attachment 116179View attachment 116180View attachment 116181

Nice workshop & work.
I realy like your machines. I,m a fan of Schaublin. I used Shaublin when I worked as a toolmaker in1970.