Interesting real world steam engine restoration

saber964 wrote:If you want a really tough and thorough restoration the Smithsonian Air & Space museum is currently restoring a SPAD XIII with its original fabric. The plane was built in 1917. From what I have read they want to complete it for its 100th anniversary and have been at it since 1992.

According to the website, it was restored between 1984 to 1986 - http://airandspace.si.edu/collections/artifact.cfm?object=nasm_A19200001000#

Unless they are re-doing it.....

MWadwell wrote:

saber964 wrote:If you want a really tough and thorough restoration the Smithsonian Air & Space museum is currently restoring a SPAD XIII with its original fabric. The plane was built in 1917. From what I have read they want to complete it for its 100th anniversary and have been at it since 1992.

According to the website, it was restored between 1984 to 1986 - http://airandspace.si.edu/collections/artifact.cfm?object=nasm_A19200001000#

Unless they are re-doing it.....

Nope different aircraft.

Henry Brown wrote:Since there has been a fair amount of discussion about steam power and railroading in the forum, I though I would post this. Basically, one of the biggest, most powerful steam locomotives ever is going to undergo a complete restoration and be returned to service for special events.

http://news.yahoo.com/huge-big-boy-stea ... 58235.html

To be sure, seeing a Big Boy back in steam would be a wondrous thing! But for an interesting steam engine restoration I would suggest looking over the pond at the restoration of 71000 Duke of Gloucester?

Design and manufacturing errors during it's original manufacture led to a reputation as a poor steamer, so after an 8 year life it gets sent (minus both outside cylinders!) for scrap. And first gets sent to the wrong scrapyard, before spending the next 7 years rusting away in the correct scrapyard by the coast - by 1973 it "consisted of little more than boiler, frames, inside cylinder (minus cambox), wheels, cab frame and rusting cladding".

... and yet 13 years later it was back!

PalmerSperry wrote:To be sure, seeing a Big Boy back in steam would be a wondrous thing! But for an interesting steam engine restoration I would suggest looking over the pond at the restoration of 71000 Duke of Gloucester?

Design and manufacturing errors during it's original manufacture led to a reputation as a poor steamer, so after an 8 year life it gets sent (minus both outside cylinders!) for scrap. And first gets sent to the wrong scrapyard, before spending the next 7 years rusting away in the correct scrapyard by the coast - by 1973 it "consisted of little more than boiler, frames, inside cylinder (minus cambox), wheels, cab frame and rusting cladding".

... and yet 13 years later it was back!

Great job by the team, and even more improvements since.

Unfortunately they seem to be having some internal and financial problems at the moment so whether we'll see DoG run again soon is uncertain.

When working hard, with its poppet valve "transients", it tends to sound very much like a Sulzer diesel, though!

http://www.nelpg.org.uk//images/simplel ... v7fjg0.jpg

Try this link for a very small locomotive (by US standards)

(I've left skin and blood on this while rebuilding it!)