DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE

[R.G.Y.]

Sitting watching rubbish on TV  !!! Thinking of when i can get back in the shop. The jobs are mounting up, made a list number one must finish the Duke in time for the spring. I will fit the new gears & add insulation under the engine plate. I also need another gas regulator to adjust the two burners seperatly. At the moment one will starve the other. But only when the fingers heal over. Geoff

[derekwarner_decoy]

Hi PD's.... & we hope the fingers are healing OK RGY......... ....

On all current day OZ paddlers the wheel timber floats always appear grey & split & waterlogged  .....however I am impressed with the natural tone & hue of your wheel floats as below......

May I ask what type of wood have you used here & what preparation for immersion in the briney?..........Derek 

[R.G.Y.]

Wood is just 5mm ply, the finish a mix of light oak & wallnut stain, final coat of mat varnish.  I tried  to emulate elm an ideal wood in salt water. Will we get up to 27000 hits next week. Geoff

[R.G.Y.]

14 days since my accident and I have been in the shop,    just for half an hour. I am starting another gas regulator, as explained I need to regulate both jets separately. I also have to reduce the pressure as No 3 gas jets seem to be unobtainable, so No5 is what I have to use. I have 22mm fire tubes, with full pressure not all the gas is burning in the boiler, if I had used 28mm I would not have had this problem. I had down loaded Malcolm Beak's article from the down load section on this site, using this with a few alterations for my effort.
My ( rubbish ) camera had broken when I made the last one so this time I will show some.  from the bottom the car tyre valve, any tyre fitter should give them away. We need the short type, removed be the tool made from a nail. the rubber cut away and a 1/4 40 tpi (my mod)cut in its place. At the top the first complete regulator.

[R.G.Y.]

After centre drilling bored out the pocket, I marked out for the bolt holes. Made sure the 5/16+32thread was deep enough. Posted this to show my bargain depth gauge, a cheep tyre tread gauge £10. also note the glove protecting damaged fingers.  Turned the spigot with the parting tool, then parted off, the tool is upside down & lathe running in reverse. I repeated the process to mke the other piece, no need to mark the bolt holes & the thread is larger than the in the first, this time 10mm coarse so just enlarge. But did not part off. Drilled the holes for the bolts in the first piece the super glue together and drill the other the tap 6BA. Then part off then screw together. more tomorrow. Geoff

[Eddy Matthews]

Please, PLEASE, PLEASE be careful if your doing turning with a glove on Geoff! I dread to think of the outcome if it gets caught up in the lathe!

Regards
Eddy

[R.G.Y.]

Thank you Eddy for your concern.  I will keep my hands on the handles I can promise you that. Being aware of the danger is the best defence. I was not prepared for the danger with the linnisher. But I am now it won't catch me again ever. Geoff

[R.G.Y.]

Drilling the gas passage. 1&2 Tapping the same 1/4+40 (with my home made tapping stand)3. Brass tube threaded in, because there is only a short thread I also stuck it with JB Weld. 4. Important the pressure plate must be just below the membrane or level with it. 5. The pieces ready for assembly, I have show 2 adjusters so you can see both ends. Geoff

[R.G.Y.]

I forgot to say the adjuster & the pressure plates are just a simple turning job. One more thing I did was to run an end mill around the bolt holes to level the seats. Geoff

[R.G.Y.]

Well the Duke has had 4 outings in steam, without a certificate. !!! With the change in the rules as of 1/1/13/ if I want to sail in public I am  thinking it is all to much trouble, Just for one or two shows. So have removed the steam plant (temporary) and going electric. I was given an old RC truck the motor & gear box fitted on to the steam plant fixings, making them interchangeable. Only four nuts & four screws to change over.

[steamboatmodel]

Having tested the boiler hydraulically to 60psi, I have now set the safety valve to 20psi. (first photo).  I did this by pumping air in with a foot pump, and adjusting the valve. Just to show you I but soapy water on the valve. The end of the boiler next,  and finally a doggy photo for Derek. This shows the difference a red line makes to the visibility in the sight gauge. Geoff

Hi Geoff,
I had to look back to last August to find the post I wanted. Having tested your Boiler already what would be the obstacles to getting a Boiler Certificate? it would be a shame not to be able to steam the Duke in public.
Regards,
Gerald.

[R.G.Y.]

Thanks for keeping an eye on me Gerald. As you have no doubt seen the mess I made when I drilled a hole in the fire tube. The new boiler inspector (new to the job a bit keen) is not happy with the repair, although the inspector who moved away was OK with it. I do have the materials (inspector wants to see them ) to make a new boiler some time. Geoff

[R.G.Y.]

Update on the Duke. New Boiler well on the way the bridge pipes between the two boiler shells, need more heat to solder that's a lot of copper. Waiting for my sons Oxy gas set to complete. I need advice on the new burner. Lights with a nice blue flame, but as the ceramic starts to glow red the flam turns yellow. is this normal?? Geoff

[derekwarner_decoy]

Hi PD's......& thinking RGY.........

When No1 Son arrives with his oxy acetylene set.......perform a test with the hand burner torch piece

1. light the acetylene = orange/red flame & soot
2. add increasing oxygen flow until  = bluish flame

From this we could question if your new burner is suffering from a lack of oxygen 

Does your new burner have some sort of sliding orifice disc to alter or regulate the amount of oxygen that is able to be drawn in?..........Derek

[R.G.Y.]

I was sure I could rely on you for an answer Derek. The primary air is OK, the burner is a copy of a Cheddar burner as I have in Glen Usk. I have had an answer on another site, saying Sodium partials in the burner could be the yellow. I think this could be right as what ever air gas mix it only goes Yellow when the ceramic glows red. With the burner in the boiler the end of the flame ( all that I can see) is blue. So all is well. The reason I ran out of No:5 jets they got blocked!! I used PTFE on the threads I have been told the gas can de solve  PTFE & block the .15mm hole. 
I have brazed ( no flux )the boiler as opposed to silver solder. I have used Rothenburger-Rolot S2 cost 70 British pence per stick. I don't want to know the cost of silver solder.