The Sabino Compound Engine Completed

[crueby]

Hi all,
Well, the build of the model of the JH Paine compound steam engine in the steamship Sabino at Mystic Seaport is now complete! Decades ago I built this radio comtrolled model of the Sabino and took it to Mystic to run with its big sister:


Watching this engine run during the regular daily cruises they took up and down the river is what hooked me on steam engines as a little kid.


This past fall, with the help of Ron Ginger both in arranging the access to the engine for a day and in measuring it, I finally got a chance to get up close to the engine, rather than just watching it from the upper gallery around it. Not as little a kid anymore, but still a kid inside!


First step after spending the day measuring the engine and taking many many (not enough) pictures, was to model the engine in the Fusion 360 CAD software:

Over the last six months or so I built the model at 1:8 scale, with the engine frame in brass and stainless steel, and the crankshaft and engine blocks in 1144 Stressproof steel. The full build log is over in the Your Own Design subforum on this site:

https://www.modelenginemaker.com/index.php/topic,10757.1050.html

With the help of my trusty shop elves (as well as help from lots of you on this forum, especially Ron Ginger and 'Steamer' Dave (who used to be one of the engineers on the real ship and helped immensly with the endless list of questions I had on how things worked and where different pipes led), the build is now complete.

This afternoon the engine chugged its way out to the front yard for some portrait shots:





The steam pipe from the boiler would connect to the open fitting in the upper center of the engine block in this next photo:


The pipe at the left in this picture is from the receiver drain, on the ship that pipe would lead up to one of the gauges on the back wall of the engine room.


And of course a new video of the engine running, on compressed air. It self starts on 15 to 20 psi, and has a pretty good range of speed using the throttle valve on the side. With compressed air rather than steam, it likes to have the starting valve cracked open to add a little extra pressure to the low pressure cylinder since compressed air does not expand anywhere near as much as steam does.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9TnCof44Og" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9TnCof44Og</a>
Thanks very much to all who followed along on the build!   
Chris

[MJM460]

Congratulations Chris, that is a magnificent result from all your work.

It’s been great to follow along and watch the progress, and I never miss an update.  You have documented it beautifully with great photos.

It’s a pity you haven’t finished the ship around it yet, though I seem to remember you saying early on that it would really be too big to be practical.

Now the inevitable question, given your history, what is next?

Thanks for all the enjoyment and learning from being able to follow along.

MJM460

[crueby]

Thanks MJM,  yeah the model at that scale would be something like 8 feet long, so I'll be happy with the smaller scale one I built years ago.


Next is going to be the Ransome tree feller, I posted plans for it a while back. After that might be another ship engine, plans for that are in the works, more as that develops...

[cnr6400]

Running beautiful Chris! well done! 

Great news re the leg remover tree feller project. 

[Dave Otto]

Stunning model Chris!


Dave

[Kim]

Beautiful engine, Chris!  And it runs great!  Thanks for taking the time to bring us all along with you in this beautiful build!

Kim

[RReid]

You gotta be over the moon with how that looks and runs. Congratulations on a job well done, especially one that was so important to you!

[horst.b.0]

Congratulations on yet another excellent job done! The engine looks just beautiful. Looking forward to follow your next project!
 

[derekwarner]

Little more can be said, but a visual symphony to ears and eyes.........

[close your eyes...... I suspect the engine of the full sized Sabino could sound similar to this model engine]

Derek 

[Admiral_dk]

It's another of those fantastic builds, where one get very satisfied to see it completed and running as it should    + a little sad to see that this is the End (of that build).

Per

[ozzie46]

Fantastic!!!  As always. Congrats.

Ron

[Michael S.]

I can only tip my hat and congratulate you. A great run of the machine.
👍
I would be interested to know what the machinists of the big steam engine say when they see the model?

Michael

[ShopShoe]

Fantastic, Beautiful. Awesome.

I've been following and waiting.

Thank You for posting the build log, and so detailed too.

I look forward to your next project.

ShopShoe

PS: I bet you could build an engine-room telegraph for a ship project, but I suspect the elves won't answer bells.

SS

[crueby]

Thanks very much everyone, this has been a special project for me.   

I can only tip my hat and congratulate you. A great run of the machine.

I would be interested to know what the machinists of the big steam engine say when they see the model?

Michael

The engine was built in the early 1900s so I can't get the reaction of the original machinists, but back when I built the model of the ship and took it to the museum, it was not long after the shipyard at the museum had finished a major overhaul of the Sabino. First stop for the model was in the break room at the shipyard building where all the workers were, they were thrilled to see it. That model was built using the plans they had created as part of the overhaul. Then we took the model over to where the ship was docked and ran it in the water in front of the ship. The captain was there, so I handed him the transmitter and he ran it for a while. Then took the model up inside the main cabin, and it sat on one of the benches for the first cruise of the day. The captain called me up to the pilothouse, and put me at the wheel for the cruise! He was right there directing me, of course. Quite an experience!


It was decades later that I finally got the chance to go in and measure the engine for the current model, they didn't draw up the engine on that earlier renovation. I donated a copy of my CAD drawings to the museum for thier collection.

Fantastic, Beautiful. Awesome.

I've been following and waiting.

Thank You for posting the build log, and so detailed too.

I look forward to your next project.

ShopShoe

PS: I bet you could build an engine-room telegraph for a ship project, but I suspect the elves won't answer bells.

SS

A model of a telegraph set would make a great model!    For the Sabino there is no telegraph, they used a one way bell system. There are two handles on the wheel in the pilothouse, one rings a large flat  bell to indicate forward, stop, and reverse (one bell forward, another one for stop, two bells for reverse). The second handle rings a smaller 'jingle' type bell which calls for more speed.

Chris

[crueby]

It's another of those fantastic builds, where one get very satisfied to see it completed and running as it should    + a little sad to see that this is the End (of that build).

Per

Very true!