I'm getting a little worried about everyone's safety inasmuch as so many
keystrokes have been devoted to the perils of the Midwest Boiler that we may all
end up suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome...
Here's something else to loose sleep over:
=
Hi Jim,
The things you wrote about the Midwest boiler worried me as well, ie: no
saftey valve and brass flue pipe. In my attempt to fix these things I
noticed areas in which I thought improvements could be made, now mind you
this is my first venture into steam. Identifing these inadequacys afte
ncern. I share your interest in keeping this hobby
as safe as can be. This hobby is supposed to be fun, not an opportunity
for carelessness to cause personal injury or property damage.
Casey Sterbenz
From: Susan Parker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: [EMAIL PROTECTE
> I figured the run time would be shorter, I would also guess it builds
> steam
> quicker?
>
Yes it seems too.
> What I wanted to test with the Thermocouple is the temps before and after
> the Superheater to determine how well it worked and if a longer run of
> superheater tube is neede
Pete,
Copper has greater mass and higher heat conductivity than brass.
Therefore it will be a better heatsink if used for the stack, especially
if it is a solid continuation of the flue. The brass tube as a stack
slipped over the copper flue should be less of a heatsink. The slip fit
between t
eping this hobby
as safe as can be. This hobby is supposed to be fun, not an opportunity for
carelessness to cause personal injury or property damage.
Casey Sterbenz
From: Susan Parker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: BPE boiler mods?
Date:
Hmm, interesting that both the 12 and 8 gauge wire had about the same
performance
I figured the run time would be shorter, I would also guess it builds steam
quicker?
What I wanted to test with the Thermocouple is the temps before and after
the Superheater to determine how well it worked
Hi Bob,
In your design I would guess that you need to keep the water level above the
top cross tube in the flue, how long of a run can you get before this
happens?
Do you have any drawings/info on the 'butane ceramic heater' that you
created?
I do like the boiler desgn and may well build one to
Hi Steve,
But doesn't the flue pipe also absorb the heat from the fire on it's way
out? I could machine an adapter to connect the two. In either case I
don't believe it is the root of the problem, I ran it one more time with the
sheet elevated and the fire went out after burning about hal
The quills I initially made in the project boiler were 12ga copper wire 1/2"
long spaced about 1/4" apart and more than 30 were used. The wire was
placed with 1/4" in the boiler and 1/4" out. Staybrite solder was used.
On a second boiler for my Midwest Steam Launch I used 8 guage wire with
about
PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: BPE boiler mods?
Date: Tue, 2 Sep 2003 19:32:26 -0500
Hi Casey,
You wrote:
> I added three water tubes to my Midwest boiler. I cleaned out some
brass
> ball point pen refill tubes, annealed them, bent them into a "U" shape,
then
> soldered them into th
I have been reading this thread with interest and while I have never built
the BPE, my grasshopper Logger has some similarities. This is a link to a
drawing of the boiler that I have designed for my engine:
http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/BobStarr/Pictures/ghboiler.jpg
I originally had used a s
Pete,
I'm in agreement that the copper pipe flue and stack might be
functioning as a heat sink that is cooling the boiler a bit and the
Sterno fire cannot make up the difference. Can you try cutting off the
copper flue/stack about a half inch above the boiler top and then
slipping a piece of t
Pete --
IMHO the definitive study on the BPE (including boiler) was written and demonstrated
by John Thomson. He published several articles in SitG a few years ago (contact Ron
Brown for back issues.) The ultimate was a coal fired engine. Mine has been
operational for about 18 months. Obviou
Steve C wrote:
> I had tried a super heater with poor results also, The fire (Meths) would
> stay lit but performance was down. I just abandoned it at the time. I
had
> thought at the time there was too much restriction in the flue also.
I guess I'm in good company then :-) Pity we were wron
Norman wrote:
> > boiler about 3/32" over the top of the fuel cup to let more air in - is
> this
> > normal?
> >
> Yes. Or punch more holes in the shroud.
It makes sense now, thinking back my first couple (and only) runs were made
during much cooler weather and this problem didn't come up. Mor
Hello Mike,
You wrote:
> 1. The Midwest Boiler has minimal air intake area in the firebox/wrapper.
>snip<
Thanks for the air inlet resizing info, I will have at it!
> 2. Instead of running the superheater/steam dryer up the stack, consider
the
> following modification: Plug the hole in the top
Hi Casey,
You wrote:
> I added three water tubes to my Midwest boiler. I cleaned out some brass
> ball point pen refill tubes, annealed them, bent them into a "U" shape,
then
> soldered them into the bottom tube plate of the boiler.
Let me see if I understand this correctly, the lower end of th
ms.
Steve
> -Original Message-
> From: PeteH [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Sent: Monday, September 01, 2003 8:41 AM
> To: Multiple recipients of sslivesteam
> Subject: BPE boiler mods?
>
> Has anyone modified the vertical Midwest boiler as used in the Basic
> Pro
Subject: Re: BPE boiler mods?
> boiler about 3/32" over the top of the fuel cup to let more air in - is
this
> normal?
>
Yes. Or punch more holes in the shroud.
Pete,
1. The Midwest Boiler has minimal air intake area in the firebox/wrapper. Even
without any obstructions in the flue, it is necessary to enlarge and/or increase
the number of air inlets in the wrapper by 100% or so. On the prototype the
fire "flitted" about the firepan seeking its next gulp
iciency of heat transfer to the water.
Casey Sterbenz
From: "PeteH" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To: Multiple recipients of sslivesteam <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: BPE boiler mods?
Date: Mon, 1 Sep 2003 10:40:30 -0500
Has anyone modified the vertical Midwest boi
n" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Try allowing more air to be drawn in at the burner.
>
> ----- Original Message -
> Subject: BPE boiler mods?
>
>
> > Has anyone modified the vertical Midwest boiler as used in the Basic
> Project
> > Engine? I have made some change
Try allowing more air to be drawn in at the burner.
- Original Message -
From: "PeteH" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Multiple recipients of sslivesteam" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Monday, September 01, 2003 11:40 AM
Subject: BPE boiler mods?
> Has anyone m
Has anyone modified the vertical Midwest boiler as used in the Basic Project
Engine? I have made some changes with mixed results and am soliciting
advice to see if I am on the right track. The first change was to replace
the brass chimney with a 'type L' copper tube of the same diameter. The
sec
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