Steam Car Blog

​Engine rebuild progress...the block, piston rods, crank assembly, heads, are all shipped off to the machine shop for machine work. The block will be bored and new pistons made (new rings too). The piston rods will be hard chromed and thread repair done...finally the crank gear will be replaced (chipped tooth) with a new old stock gear.

Seamus Michael Hnat writes:
I always forget to put pictures in this album. Most recently I took the 10hp engine and rear axle out of the 1913 Stanley 64. It is going up to Rempco in Cadillac, MI for a 10hp kit upgrade as well as some axle work. Wheels are going to get sent out for new spokes and fellows. I am going to start checking out some of the pumps, valves, and check valves, to make sure they are all up to snuff and get a better understanding of how they all work. I am also going to re-pipe some of the car to make it more organized. A completely mechanical car.

Joe Shukay writes:
​Some views under the Stanley from yesterday. The packing glands (which i was repacking) and area between the crankcase and cylinder head, rear axle assembly and master cylinder. I find i often would rather be on the creeper under the car inspecting and looking at everything, finding things that need tightening or cleaning. Just getting up and down is the hard part. It's been tough doing any work the past week with these migraines that come on suddenly. It seems they love to come on in middle of working on something. UGH

8 Steam Cars were entered for this year's run on the 3rd November. As usual Ray Clark ran his Steam Car coffee stop at Redhill, which was appreciated by all. Photos Courtesy of Simon Webb, Jamie Allen and Chris Wedgewood. 

Mark Herman visited the Smithsonian to view the 1906 Stanley "Rocket" Land Speed Record Car Engine.  

John E Barrett writes:
​In 1969 Bill Lear, inventer of the Lear Jet, created a Steam Powered Indy Car known as the Vapordyne. See it August 28th at the Geneva Concours d'Elegance.

A great selection of photos from the recent Eastern Invitational Steam Car Tour in the Litchfield Hills, Southbury, Connecticut, USA. Thank you to Andi Mead, Steve and Sabrina Howard Bragg, AJ Joyce, Michael Zerega, Herb De La Porte, Daryl Kendall, and Nate Dickey for the photos. 

Spring City Steam Works Reports:

​22nd July 2019

While it's crazy hot and in between the new kid prep.... I'm printing some fixtures to test out and help decide on the fixtures for the pancake coils for the Mason. Hopefully a little bending and fixture time this week!

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23rd July 2019

One may have been thinking... Why the need to pallet jack the weld table around.... Well, I'm trying to take a 21 foot piece of pipe and wind it into a double stacked pancake flat coil of pipe to replace some coils in the Mason's monotube steam generator. Shops too small, so out in the driveway it goes!!
As for the 3d printed pieces, I'm working out how to fixture the hairpin bent pipe so that the top leg is ~1/4" gap above the lower when it gets wound into a coil. The center section will be made of steel and there will be a clamp on top as well as the pipe getting tack welded to the clamp. Then the 11 foot long top pipe will swing a huge circle as the lower pipe is wound on itself to make the pancake coil. The whole mess then gets flipped over and hopefully that leg winds into a nice pancake below it. Works in my head, got to refine the pieces a little and make some chips and then try that plan out!!!

Article Courtesy of ENDURORALLY.COM

Mitch Gross’ and his dream of completing the Peking to Paris Rally, with a more unusual method of propulsion

What are you most concerned about?’ I ask Mitch Gross, about his upcoming Peking to Paris adventure. ‘The roads when we hit Western Europe’ comes the unexpected reply. ‘The car doesn’t like running at high RPM for an extended period of time, so we will have a few long days behind the wheel covering the extra mileage asked of us in Europe’. The answer is a surprise, as when you immediately consider the task of travelling 8000 miles from Peking to Paris, across the expanses of Eurasia, it is the challenges of remote places like the Gobi Desert and the less than agreeable roads through Kazakhstan that one might expect to be playing on Mitch’s mind, but after some background on his car, his answer begins to make sense.
The machine in question is a 1910 White MM steam car, yes you read that correctly, and more than that there are only around three of this particular model left in the world. Two reside in museums, the last, highly original example belongs to Mitch’s extensive collection of steam propelled cars. Not as popular in Europe, the steam car was a much more common sight over the water in America, making up around 50% of the machines on the road at the start of the 20th century. The White produced cars were some of the finest and most luxurious, and the White Brothers dynasty, that began with sewing machinery and finished up with heavy goods vehicles, is still evident today with its DNA found in Volvo trucks.

JC Tractor Restoration writes:
"1926 Bryan steam tractor restoration.This is one of the rarest and most complex steam tractors in existence. This is also the only restored and currently running Bryan in the USA. Runs at 600 psi and burns any liquid fuel that can vaporize. We can restore any tractor that come here. Call us about restoring your machine on 219-771-9915."

Basil Craske's 1908 Stanley Model K being prepared for the New Season ahead.