Chris's New Steering Engine

[Michael S.]

Perfect 👍.
Makes you want to be a captain.
Another beautiful engine that showcases the history of marine technology.   

Michael

[crueby]

Thanks  guys!




I replaced that one leaky gasket with a slightly thicker silicone  one, that got rid of the air leak and hiss sound.   




Our next RC submarine  run is tomorrow  morning. Batteries  charging now. Might be a short run, temperature  is heading into upper 90s in the afternoon!  Better than last month when it was cold and heavy rain though.

[Dave Otto]

Nicely done Chris and a very good runner!
Another one to add to your interesting collection of models.

Dave

[PaulR]

Fantastic, I love the chunkiness of it and that wheel looks really satisfying to use... one day I'll make an engine that has something to twiddle even if it's only a reversing valve or throttle!

[gbritnell]

Another unique and outstanding creation Chris! Do you attend any local shows where you can exhibit some of your creations?

[crueby]

Thanks  guys!


George, other than Cabin Fever the only ones that I have  exhibited at are some of the railroad shows, not much else close by. A lot of my models are too big for easy transport, which is driving me back down to smaller projects again like this one.

[Krypto]

Great engine build and quite educational!  Found a video about the Donkin steam steering on UTube which works similarly to the one you modeled.  Not as smooth as yours, though.

[crueby]

Great engine build and quite educational!  Found a video about the Donkin steam steering on UTube which works similarly to the one you modeled.  Not as smooth as yours, though.

Thanks!   I have seen that video, same basic principles, closer in arrangement  to the first one I did.


 

[Don1966]

Awesome work and beautiful running model. Dog you do the model industry proud with your outstanding work. And did I say I likeeeeeee……..

 
Don

[crueby]

Awesome work and beautiful running model. Dog you do the model industry proud with your outstanding work. And did I say I likeeeeeee……..

 
Don

Thanks Don!  Great to hear from you!   

[bent]

Catching up...wow, what a neat model.  Glad to have been onboard for most of the build! 

[steam guy willy]

Hi "C"  ,Another lovely engine and it works a treat with the porting arrangement      am i right in thinking that you turn the wheel clockwise to turn right  and anticlockwise to go tother way  ?!! just thinking about reversing the ship and using two engines for the props , this might be a silly question but it may confuse the landlubber engineers when connecting everything up ?!!

Cheers
willy

[crueby]

Hi "C"  ,Another lovely engine and it works a treat with the porting arrangement      am i right in thinking that you turn the wheel clockwise to turn right  and anticlockwise to go tother way  ?!! just thinking about reversing the ship and using two engines for the props , this might be a silly question but it may confuse the landlubber engineers when connecting everything up ?!!

Cheers
willy

Exactly, though this is a completely separate system from the props. It does not change based on which way one or more props are turning. For those who don't know, there are a lot of ships with two propellers, and by changing the speed and direction of them independantly they can help the ship turn, and sometimes spin in place.  I have a radio controlled twin-screw tugboat model, each prop with its own motor and controller, and its easy to steer it with just the props, leaving the rudders in the middle. When stopped in the water, running one forward and the other in reverse, it will start to spin in place. Things get even more fun on modern ships with 'azipods', that actually turn the entire propeller around on a vertical axis, a lot of cruise ships with that setup can maneouver themselves in and out of the pier without a tugboat (many also have a thruster up near the bow). Fun stuff!

[ShopShoe]

Diversion to an aside comment:

I was aware of the effect of multiple propellers and their use in turning (or trying not to turn) of a ship when I saw a picture of a torpedo as used in WWII with the two props coaxially mounted, and I assumed they rotated In opposite directions to provide a straight course to the target.

Have you built or considered building a watercraft with that feature? (And I can visualize it as two: One to swim and one to demonstrate the various interesting mechanisms involved)

On the steering engines: Is there an Elvin crewman who operates these when humans are not around?  Perhaps his penchant for constantly causing the rudder to shift back and forth might have earned him the appellation "Flipper."

ShopShoe

[crueby]

Diversion to an aside comment:

I was aware of the effect of multiple propellers and their use in turning (or trying not to turn) of a ship when I saw a picture of a torpedo as used in WWII with the two props coaxially mounted, and I assumed they rotated In opposite directions to provide a straight course to the target.

Have you built or considered building a watercraft with that feature? (And I can visualize it as two: One to swim and one to demonstrate the various interesting mechanisms involved)

I have not built one with two props inline but counter-rotating, but another guy in our local club has done one like that, with a clever gearing system to drive the inner shaft one way, and an outer tube around it the other direction. Works quite well, and there were (still are?) torpedoes built that way for many years. It gives more thrust with a small diameter to still fit in the same torpedo tube.

On the steering engines: Is there an Elvin crewman who operates these when humans are not around?  Perhaps his penchant for constantly causing the rudder to shift back and forth might have earned him the appellation "Flipper."

ShopShoe

Oooh, Pun Alert! You've been hanging out with CNR again!