40 Avery re-flueing project

[M Kerkvliet]

Authors note... The material in this thread was actually originally written a year ago, for another project I am involved with. If you find some reference to dates, or times that don't make any sense, that would be why! This project was done starting in the fall of 2005 and finished in the late spring of 2006.

I thought some here might be interested in the process of reflueing a boiler on a steam traction engine.

I will build this thread over the next few weeks of the entire procedure.

One Friday afternoon we started cutting the flues out of Jim Briden's 1911 40-120 Avery traction engine. By Saturday evening we had the new ones in... all 55 of them! Still a lot of work to do, but we were happy to get that far. Work was all done at Larson Welding in Fargo.

So... here's one picture to get it going, and give you some idea what we are talking about here.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2012.jpg


Obviously the new flues are installed in this picture, so my next post will go back a bit, and tell the story!

Feel free to comment or ask any questions whenever you want to in this thread.

[M Kerkvliet]

Here is a shot looking in the firebox door. Gary Muhl is in the firebox cutting flues out the sheet.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2020.jpg

He would cut about 8 or so loose on his end, then we would cut the same flues loose on the smoke box (front) end and pull them out the hand hole (clean out / inspection hole) in the front flue sheet. There are 55... 2-1/2" flues in this boiler. The flues were cut an inch or so back from the sheet, and then the what was left, the "ferrel" was cut out separately. This was the only way to get the flues to drop to the bottom of the barrel so they could be removed.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2018.jpg

Above is a shot of Gary's torch at work looking in the smoke box end of the engine. You can see the pattern we had established for removing the flues, and see some of the old flues still in the boiler. The center oval shaped hole on the bottom of the sheet is the hand hole we pulled the flues through to get them out. At this point the ferrels are still in the sheet.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2015.jpg

Above... Rick Halldorson getting ready to cut his end of the flues.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2024.jpg

Above... Me all lit up ready to take my turn. Rick and I switched out every other row of flues, but Gary stuck it out in the fire box for every flue! He had a more comfortable surroundings... and a place to sit! ROF

To be continued...!

[M Kerkvliet]

On with the story...

... Sorry this is stretching out, but I am trying to cover a lot of bases here at home, you know... work, more work, run errands... and then a little time for posting here!

So... here is a picture of all the flues after they were removed.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2033.jpg

They don't look too bad for 15 + years of use, since the engine was put together. Jim said they were like new when he got the boiler, he thought they had been fired once. There was still writing on the outside of the flues back then. (They had the cover off the steam dome and could see them that way) We are using a new water treatment in our boilers at the show, and the lighter gray rust is supposed to be "good" rust... protects the iron rather that corrodes it. Don't ask me to explain this... it is over my head.The powers that be like the way it is working (Rick?). These new flues will be a good test for that treatment as we are starting with bare iron now.

Below is a shot of the ferrels (flue ends) we cut out of the flue sheet after the flues were removed. Note how we "nicked" them with a torch, and then used an air chisel to fold them in and get them out of the sheet. In the background you can see a couple of the grates we removed to make the fire box easier to work in.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2030.jpg

Next, a shot of the fire box end flue sheet, empty and ready for the new flues. This end will have the flues welded after they are rolled.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2034.jpg

Below... a very rare shot of the inside of the barrel. You will not see this again, at least on this boiler as there are no hand holes that can see through the flues! This is looking down the barrel from the firebox end. Opposite end is the front flue sheet, (smoke box).

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2038.jpg

The picture is crooked as I had to tilt the camera so the flash and the lens would line up with the holes in the flue sheet. (picture is taken through the flue sheet.) The large bolts you see on top are called "stay bolts" and go from the front sheet, over the top of the back flue sheet and the crown sheet, to the back of the boiler. I think they are 1-1/2" bolts, and are about 10 feet long. they hold the top of the front flue sheet in under the extreme pressure (208 PSI) of operation. The flues themselves also hold the sheet in place. The pipe you see on top is the main steam line to the engine itself. It elbows up into the steam dome on top of the boiler. On the steam dome end of the pipe is a valve connected to a rod that goes to a lever on the engineers platform. This is of course the throttle!

Note the line where the rust changes color... This represents the level of water we keep in the boiler. Where the red colored areas are... that is steam. Grey areas are water. Note the flues are always covered with water.

Also on the left side of the barrel you can see the "butt strap" this is the seam where the ends of the rolled barrel meet. This particular boiler is 5/8" thick. There are butt straps on the inside, and the outside of the barrel... (seam is sandwiched in between them) so in this area the iron is about 2" thick! If you look in the first picture of the engine in this thread, or in the plowing picture, you can see the outside butt strap.

One more interesting picture...

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2039.jpg

Here you can see the top of the barrel where the steam dome is attached. The pipe is the one I just spoke of. Inside the steam dome is the throttle valve. The steam dome is on the top of the boiler so you can get dry steam for the engine. In this case I am using the term "dry steam" to mean steam without water mixed in. Since the engine may be moving... i.e. plowing when your using it (vs. belt work) water can be sloshing around in the boiler. You do not want water to get into the engine. This is called "priming" and since water does not compress, it is lethal to a steam engine. By taking steam out of the dome, the chances of getting water in your steam are reduced substantially. You can see the outside of the steam dome in the pictures above.

Another thing to note in this picture is the method used for cutting the hole in the barrel for the steam dome. There were no cutting torches, or welders in 1911. The hole was made by drilling a series of holes in a circle, very close together, and then knocking the plate out. You can see evidence of this in the picture if you look close. I did not know that, or had never thought of it... until I saw it myself and asked my mentors about it!


The next installment... Installing the new flues!

[Jerry Christiansen]

Mark,
Thanks for the pictures and the story. Re-flueing is a job that a lot of people aren't aware of.

Flues have not gone away. New boilers build every day and they still have flues in them.

Jerry Christiansen

[M Kerkvliet]

The story continues... Sorry it has been a while since I worked on this thread. I have been pretty busy!

I don't have any pictures of the new flues, or of them being cut to fit, because I was one of the guys doing that job! Jim Briden, Gary Muhl and I cut the new flues, and Rick Halldorson and Kelly Muhl installed them just as fast as we could cut them! We started about 8:00 Saturday morning, and had them all fit by noon! It took us until about 8:00 Saturday night to get them rolled in and beaded over. That is not easy work... and it is very noisy!

Here is a picture Kelly took when he was in the firebox installing the new flues. This end was rolled in, but not beaded over as they are going to be welded. The smoke box (front) end looks very similar to this at this point... about the same amount of flue left hanging over the sheet.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%201.jpg

This next shot shows the roller we used to roll the flues into the flue sheet. The tool spins in the tube, and works itself tighter and tighter, pressing the tube tight to the sheet. This, in combination with the beading is what makes them (hopefully) not leak! Sorry... I should have got a better picture of the roller.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2010.jpg

This is the home-brew drill setup (below) that we used to turn the roller. This job could be done by hand, i.e. with a ratchet, but it is hard enough with power tools. The round device on the end of the drill chuck is another gear reduction. You better be hanging on tight when the roller starts to get tight in the flue, and get ready to let go of the trigger. I don't think it would stall the drill.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2011.jpg

Now... a picture of Kelly with the beading tool. (This process is also called "bucking" the flues over. It is a big air chisel with a special beading tool in the end of it. Again, this is another job that used to, and still can be done with a hammer and a hand tool. No thanks! You can see some of the flues have been beaded over, and some have not.

Note how Kelly fits right in the smoke box! He gets nominated for all of the tight work! We all took our turn, but nobody else could "get into" the work like Kelly!

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%206.jpg

This is just a fun shot I took of Gary when I was in the fire box rolling flues. It is looking out the fire box door from the inside.

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2040.jpg

Continued...

[M Kerkvliet]

Finally... The crew that was involved in the project, (at least to this point) and how clean we managed to stay!

In the first picture, from L to R is the engine owner Jim Briden, Mark Kerkvliet, Rick Halldorson, and Gary Muhl. Rick took me in on this crew 5 years ago, and for that I am very grateful. He and Gary taught me how to fire. Also , thanks to Jim for entrusting me with his very rare, piece of history!

Not in the top picture, (because he was actually still working) is Kelly Muhl. Kelly (bottom picture) is Gary's son, and he started on the engine about the same time I did. He is another very conscientious engineer, and another good friend! He also prides himself in being the dirtiest at the end of the day!

http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2032.jpg

http://www.98dodge.com/images/kelly.jpg

[40avery]

Mark,

I talked to a non member this weekend that I referred to the site. He was really interested in this thread. We need to continue to encourage members to post show related items like this. People are interested.

[M Kerkvliet]

Mark,

I talked to a non member this weekend that I referred to the site. He was really interested in this thread. We need to continue to encourage members to post show related items like this. People are interested.

Great to hear this Rick! That is what it is all about!

On with the series...

A few pictures, and more of the story.

First, a shot of the flues on the firebox end. This is where Jim had them welded to help with the leaking problem we have had on this end. They were welded by a certified welder with an "R" stamp.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2041.jpg

Here is another shot of the flues on the smokebox end. These were rolled and bucked over. No welding here. The flue sheet was painted to protect it from the elements as it had to sit outside for a couple weeks waiting for the welders, and the smokebox door was off. You can see the main steam line (elbow) at the top. We will be working on getting this all put back together this weekend.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2042.jpg

We filled the boiler with water, right up to the top of the steam dome (or as close as we could get it) to get it ready for the hydro inspection. The flues on the firebox end "seeped" a little bit (4 of them) but the smokebox end was tight! This is not that uncommon, and often goes away as soon as you put a fire in it. To test this, we did just that!
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2043.jpg

We heated the firebox for about an hour or so. Got the water temp up to around 100 degrees, and the leaks went away.

We then hooked an air hose up to the boiler and took it up to 125 PSI. Remember, the boiler is full of water, so this only takes a matter of a few seconds. Everything still held great, so we felt we had the boiler inspection nailed.

I went to the shop on Monday and met with the inspectors. They asked that we take the boiler up to 165 PSI. This is 80% of operating pressure (208 PSI for this boiler) and we used a pressure washer pump to do this. They then looked for leaks, anywhere, and we did have the 4 flues seeping again in the firebox, but they were not concerned about that. They know they will seal up when it is fired. The smokebox end was dry!!! There was one other drip... one of the 13 hand hole gaskets I put in new. It was just that... a drip, and I am sure it will go away with a 1/8 turn of a wrench on the nut. Again, this was not a big deal to them.

As a side note, normally a hydro test takes the boiler to 1.25 times the operating pressure, in our case a little over 250 PSI. Since the reason for this test was for repairs, code only required 80% for this test.

The boiler was due for ultra sound testing this cycle, so after we drained the 350 gallons of water from the boiler, they went to work on that test. One of the inspectors got into the firebox, and checked the crown sheet (top) and the sides of the firebox. The crown sheet showed .380 for the lowest number (just over 3/8"). It has not lost any thickness since its last UT 4 years ago! Great news! We will not lose any pressure! The inspectors use the results of this test to set the operating pressure. Since the Avery has a relatively small engine (7X10) we need all of the pressure we can get.

I had to leave for work before they got to the barrel readings, but the barrel of that boiler is 5/8 of an inch think so I don't think that will ever hold us back.

The re-flue project is a success!

Now on with the rest of the re-assembly...

[M Kerkvliet]

I have a few pictures of the re-assembly project.

First a shot of the main steam line and the exhaust line back in place. Now you can see why they had to be removed for the flue work. Also visible is the smaller "blower" line that we control for the cab to induce draft if we need it when the engine is not running. We don't use the blower a lot. NOTE... The exhaust has the brass capped nozzle and is centered on the smoke stack.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2044.jpg

Crew member Kelly Muhl working on the governor and main steam valve connections. These pieces all had to go in together as there was no union, other than the slip fitting on top of the valve and the pipe had to be inserted before the valve and governor was bolted in place. Note the exhaust pipe is not in place yet. You can see the manifold with a rag still stuffed in it. Also note the smaller 3/4" pipe coming out of the exhaust manifold. This takes steam and sends it to a water heater on the side of the boiler that pre-heats the feed water when we use the steam powered pump to add water to the boiler. I have never used that pump. We use something called an injector... that's a subject for another thread sometime!
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2045.jpg

One of my mentors of all things steam, Rick Halldorson works on installing heat shields and smokebox ring bolts.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2046.jpg

And this photo (below)... I climbed on top of the boiler and took this picture looking down the stack. I did this to help answer some questions elsewhere in this thread, and to better help you understand what makes all the smoke!

The blue arrow points to the main steam line to the engine. It just passes through the smokebox and ends up going to the main valve and the governor. Steam in this line is controlled by the throttle lever in the cab. The red arrow points to the engine exhaust. All steam exhausted by the engine comes out here. Note how it is centered in the smoke stack. The harder the engine is pulled, the more exhaust. If you look at this picture and then one looking in the front (3 pictures up) you should be able to see how the exhaust induces a draft up the stack and therefore pulls more fire through the flues and makes the boiler heat faster. Remember, the smokebox door is shut when we are under way so ALL draft comes through the flues. The yellow arrow points to the blower we use to induce draft when the engine is not running (if we need it). It is not centered on the stack, mainly to keep it from messing up the work of the main exhaust which is very important. We still can really wake up he fire with this blower if we have to!
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2047.jpg

I have a few more pictures to add later! Soon I'll have this subject about covered!

[M Kerkvliet]

Focus on the governor...

Everyone knows what a governor does, but I had the governor off of the engine and cleaned it up. I took the time to study it so I knew how it did what it does!

In the first picture (governor is off of the engine) the arrow marked "A" points to the "fly balls." A belt that comes off of the engine crankshaft drives the pulley on the governor and causes these balls to spin. Centrifugal force makes the balls "fly" out, and this forces the valve stem "C" down, closing the valve therefore controlling the steam into the engine and slowing it down. The spring "B" counteracts the fly ball springs, and it is adjustable. This makes the governor more or less sensitive, (or controls how fast the governor reacts to changes in speed.)
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2048.jpg

In this next picture, the round knob is turned to adjust the governed speed of the engine. We DO NOT use the throttle to control the speed, at least not when pulling or doing belt work. We run the throttle wide open and let the governor do that job. Turning this knob lengthens or shortens the valve stem, thereby allowing the fly balls to open the valve more (for more speed) or less.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2049.jpg

Now... this arrow points to the "sawyers lever." A rope can be tied to either end through the eyes in the lever, and when the engine was used on a saw mill, the sawyer could either over-ride the governor to give the engine a little extra snort getting through a tough log, or by pulling the other rope... shut the engine down. When we saw at Rollag, we have both a fireman and an engineer on the engine. It is the engineers responsibility to keep an sharp eye on the sawyer, and a hand on the throttle, ready to shut down in case of an emergency, or when the sawyer signals us to do so. We don't use the sawyers lever.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2050.jpg

This picture shows the valve itself. It is hard to get a shot inside the 2 1/2" governor, but you can see the valve. The steam enters from the seat under the valve.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2051.jpg

Here's a picture of Kelly putting the governor back on the engine. Note the oil line (not yet hooked up) that goes to the upstream side of the governor. This introduces steam cylinder oil to lubricate the governor. The other lines from the oiler go to the intake manifold directly before the valve chest(s) and provide lubrication to the valves and to the cylinders.
http://www.98dodge.com/images/avery%20flues%2045.jpg

Thats about all I have for this thread. This material is all about a year old now, and of course the engine is back up and running and has worked great at Rollag during the summer of '06 and during the show. Jim also took it to Andover and we plowed with it the week after our show. I will post some pictures of that sometime.

If anyone has anything else to contribute here (Rick?) feel free to add to the story.

[40avery]

Nothing much to add to this post Mark you have covered it very well.

I did notice something we need to check on though. If you look at the picture taken down the stack there seems to be a part of the smoke box that protrudes into the stack. If it is as the picture shows it could account for some draft problems from trubulence in the stack. I have looked down the stack several times to check the alignment of the nozzle and never noticed it. I will have a flashlight along next time to check it better.

[M Kerkvliet]

Nothing much to add to this post Mark you have covered it very well.

I did notice something we need to check on though. If you look at the picture taken down the stack there seems to be a part of the smoke box that protrudes into the stack.

I never noticed that before! A torch would cure that! I suppose we should get an opinion from Jim.

One thought... we already slaughter the competition on the spark shows... If we correct this problem, we might have to notify the FAA before we participate in any more!:biglaugh: :rof:


:hide:

[40avery]

Roger that!:bannana:

[tubeit]

hi I like that gear reduction on your drill. Can you tell me where to get one or how to make one? thanks bob

[40avery]

Model T steering reducer.

[M Kerkvliet]

Model T steering reducer.

Yep... That is what Jim said. I have no idea where you would get one, but buy can they take the torque!

Thanks for joining tubeit!

[Kenronsberg]

I never noticed that before! A torch would cure that! I suppose we should get an opinion from Jim.

One thought... we already slaughter the competition on the spark shows... If we correct this problem, we might have to notify the FAA before we participate in any more!:biglaugh: :rof:


:hide:
Mark,
See sorry to rain on your parade, please make note of the railroads entry for the sparks show. Although there was no official height measured that I am aware of, I think we can compete with the Avery!:bump:
Ken Ronsberg