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• GunNut Posts: 6,729 Senior Member

  June 2020 #2

  I love it!!!  My uncle used to have one of those that kept me entertained for hours when I was a kid.  Are they still being made?

  Old West Saying: God created men, but Col. Sam Colt made them equal.
  
  

  General George Patton:  “Watch what people are cynical about, and one can often discover what they lack.”

  
  

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 edited June 2020 #3

  GunNut said:

  I love it!!!  My uncle used to have one of those that kept me entertained for hours when I was a kid.  Are they still being made?

  Yep, they sure are. It's a quite popular hobby, especially in the UK. The pic above is a German made Wilesco D21. They make several models. Others are Jensen  (American made) and Mamod. For the more serious steam enthusiast, Stuart Models and Martin Marine Engines make ready to run steam engines as well as castings where you can machine and make your own. Both are based out of the UK. Martin makes a beautiful miniature triple expansion steam engine that is very similar to what the Titanic and other Edwardian period steamships used. A basic steam engine such as a Jensen 85 costs around 150 bucks. After that, the sky is the limit on how much you want to spend and invest. The Jensen's are cool for the beginner but most have electric boilers rather than tablet, gas, or coal fired. I'm kind of a purest in that sense so I like actual flame to fire the boilers. These little engines are a blast and you actually have to oil all the fittings and lube points frequently. The smell of oil and steam adds to the nostalgia. 
  

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• GunNut Posts: 6,729 Senior Member

  June 2020 #4

  My uncle used to run his on Alcoholado, a type of Bay Rum popular in Puerto Rico.  I loved the smell that came off when he had it going!  Very cool!

  Old West Saying: God created men, but Col. Sam Colt made them equal.
  
  

  General George Patton:  “Watch what people are cynical about, and one can often discover what they lack.”

  
  

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• bhl2506 Senior Member Posts: 1,966 Senior Member

  June 2020 #5

  There's a few machining forums that have separate sections for  miniature steam engines. They can get quite elaborate. The craftsmanship on some of the engines is outstanding.

  Refusing to conform to the left wing mantra of political correctness by insisting on telling the truth does not make you a loud mouth.

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• zorba Senior Member Posts: 24,107 Senior Member

  June 2020 #6

  Now THAT is friggin' cool! I've wanted one for years, but never wanted to spend the money.
  

  -Zorba, "The Veiled Male"
  
  "If you get it and didn't work for it, someone else worked for it and didn't get it..."
  

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• tennmike Senior Member Posts: 27,457 Senior Member

  June 2020 #7

  Machinist's Workshop  and online has a lot of small engines you can build on their website, and there are several others on the internet that have ready built  and kits for  sale. Just search 'model steam engines' and have a towel ready to wipe the drool off your mouth! They have boiler plans, too.
  The one DrawbarFlats has in his pic is really nice!
  
  

    “I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that I don't know the answer”
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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 #8

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 edited June 2020 #9

  tennmike said:

  Machinist's Workshop  and online has a lot of small engines you can build on their website, and there are several others on the internet that have ready built  and kits for  sale. Just search 'model steam engines' and have a towel ready to wipe the drool off your mouth! They have boiler plans, too.
  The one DrawbarFlats has in his pic is really nice!
  
  

  Hey, Mike and Bhl2506! Perhaps you can help. See my machining and milling thread. 
  

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 #10

  bhl2506 said:

  There's a few machining forums that have separate sections for  miniature steam engines. They can get quite elaborate. The craftsmanship on some of the engines is outstanding.

  Yep. many of those hand-made engines are works of art! There's something natural and humane about a steam engine. The sound, smell, and watching the mechanical linkage work is memorizing to say the least. What really amazes me is that the real ones were all designed by guys hunched over drawing boards with nothing but slide rules and T-squares!   
  

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• RugerFan Senior Member Posts: 2,429 Senior Member

  June 2020 #11

  There's a British series on Netflix called "The Repair Shop". People bring in old stuff and the experts at the shop restore it. One of the experts is a watchmaker but he also repairs toys. He has repaired/restored steam toys.
  
  It's an interesting show. The experts can repair wood furniture, ceramics,  stuffed toys, paintings and other things. Their skill and patience is amazing.
  
  

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• tennmike Senior Member Posts: 27,457 Senior Member

  June 2020 #12

  Some stuff that is available as kits and plans.
  
  https://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_focus.php?Focus=Model%20Engines
  
  https://model-steam-engines.com/model-steam-boat-engine-kits/
  
  https://steamshed.com/model-steam-engines-for-beginners/
  
  Littlemachineshop is a neat site. It has a learning center, support center, and more.

    “I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that I don't know the answer”
  ― Douglas Adams
  

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• earlyagain Posts: 7,157 Senior Member

  June 2020 #13

  Somewhere back in the past I came across some information on the big steam engines in old ships. I remember the people running them had to know how to reroute the steam during mechanical failings. 
  
  Another time I saw a documentary on the restoration of a locomotive engine. The mechanics had problems figuring out how to keep the new refurbished boiler from leaking. They said that the old time methods had been lost to the passage of time.

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• sakodude Senior Member Posts: 4,091 Senior Member

  June 2020 #14

  My old neighbor as a retirement hobby would build and sell hand made hit or miss engines(I think that’s what there called) big single cylinder things with a large flywheel that you spin by hand to fire it up. Pretty cool construction.

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• Tugar Senior Member Posts: 2,296 Senior Member

  June 2020 edited June 2020 #15

  Cool stuff. 
  
  I was watching an episode of Jay Leno running a Doble. They had fixed a few things and had a probe built by NASA to test how hot burner got ( I might be misremembering where it was testing) The gauge went up and then down. "Ok. That is the temp." Nope. Probe melted. 

  Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.
  Winston Churchill

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• pjames777 Senior Member Posts: 1,421 Senior Member

  June 2020 #16

  those are so cool.  Wonders of steam...the massive steam locomotives of the 1930's-40's.  Visit California RR Museum at least twice a year just to sit and gaze at those old fire dragons.

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• jaywapti Senior Member Posts: 4,981 Senior Member

  June 2020 #17

  If any of you live in the Mn.or Wisc. area and like trains and steam engines take a trip to the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth Mn. 
  
  JAY

  THE DEFINITION OF GUN CONTROL IS HITTING THE TARGET WITH YOUR FIRST SHOT

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• Tugar Senior Member Posts: 2,296 Senior Member

  June 2020 #18

  There is the Boise Train depot. I lived here 18 years and haven't made it. I need to when it reopens. Here is the engine there. 
  
  
  

  Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.
  Winston Churchill

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• AlleyCat Posts: 459 Member

  June 2020 edited June 2020 #19

  
  

  
  

  Belgian mining corporation launch, so wrong flag. 

  
  

  But down the Ulanga with Mister Allnutt.
  

  So cool.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 #20

  Excellent vid on Jensen steam engines. They're American made, too!
  
  
  

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• AlleyCat Posts: 459 Member

  June 2020 #21

  DrawbarFlats said:

  Excellent vid on Jensen steam engines. They're American made, too!
  
  
  

  
  

  From your link, you now have me trolling YouTube for steam engines, some small models, some not so small models.

  But all man toys.

  Thank you, I think.

  
  
  
  
  
  

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 #22

  AlleyCat said:

  DrawbarFlats said:

  Excellent vid on Jensen steam engines. They're American made, too!
  
  
  

  
  

  From your link, you now have me trolling YouTube for steam engines, some small models, some not so small models.

  But all man toys.

  Thank you, I think.

  
  
  
  
  
  

  They're addicting, aren't they? Let me know which one you buy - Lol!!!!
  

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 #23

  RugerFan said:

  There's a British series on Netflix called "The Repair Shop". People bring in old stuff and the experts at the shop restore it. One of the experts is a watchmaker but he also repairs toys. He has repaired/restored steam toys.
  
  It's an interesting show. The experts can repair wood furniture, ceramics,  stuffed toys, paintings and other things. Their skill and patience is amazing.
  
  

  I'll check that one out. Thanks!
  

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• DrawbarFlats Posts: 788 Senior Member

  June 2020 #24

  Okay, not steam powered but this RC jaw crusher is pretty cool!
  
  
  

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• BamaakII Posts: 322 Member

  July 2020 #25

  Several years ago, I saw an oldtimer launching a poontoon boat he converted to steam.  Built it all himself.  Left before he had steam Built up but is pretty cool.

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