This guy has a complete machine shop running off a steam powered line shaft.

There are 20 videos in the series, be careful you don't disappear down the rabbit hole!

I could watch stuff like that for hours. OSHA would have serial conniption fits over the web of belts, flywheels, and gears without guards as well as various other issues. Thankfully, they didn't exist when this equipment was in its heyday.

Thanks for posting.

Very cool. Thanks for sharing.

Neat!

Very cool. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for this,man I got excited when he showed the 1927 south bend.
I have one and enjoy working it,I would kill for that oil can.
He turns cast too fast for my liking.I have used this one to turn down model A ford flywheels.has a 13 inch throw.
I have a bigger older lathe than his big lathe.
It is a bare to operate and I mastered thirty years ago.
Mine are pully run with v belts and electric motors.
The south bend has d/c variable electronic controls
This man has some cool old machines.

Very cool. Thanks for posting.

Steam was used a lot longer than a lot of folks realize, too. My grandfather was a master machinist and worked on steam driven gear.

He also ran an oil lease in southwestern NY. I still remember him taking me out to walk in the woods with him as he checked his wells. The pumping jacks were pretty ancient. They were all driven from a central pumphouse with a steam boiler. This drove a big horizontal wheel to which were connected iron pushrods; these were segmented and ran through the woods to each jack. the reciprocating motion worked the jacks.

I worked as a fireman a couple of times on a steam crane - crane was scrapped about 1990. 1990, I inspected 6 steam cranes still in use. Last on I saw still working was dismantled in 2006.

Lots of maintenance, 2 or 3 people need to operate, and LOTS of fuel to run. All were diesel fired. Rule of thumb was that it took three times the fuel to the same amount of work as an internal combustion engine.

quote:

Originally posted by zoom6zoom:
Steam was used a lot longer than a lot of folks realize, too. My grandfather was a master machinist and worked on steam driven gear.

He also ran an oil lease in southwestern NY. I still remember him taking me out to walk in the woods with him as he checked his wells. The pumping jacks were pretty ancient. They were all driven from a central pumphouse with a steam boiler. This drove a big horizontal wheel to which were connected iron pushrods; these were segmented and ran through the woods to each jack. the reciprocating motion worked the jacks.

Very interesting video. I like the old machinery. My dad also ran oil leases in Texas with the power wheel attached to rods running a number of pumpjacks. The engine was a huge single cylinder natural gas engine, as the steam model had been retired due to the abundance of free casinghead gas. My brother and I used to ride back and forth on the reciprocating rods that ran to the pumping units. He now has a large collection of Black Bear and Superior engines he fires up once in a while to watch them run. OSHA would be horrified at the open moving parts and huge flywheels on them.

Very interesting, enjoyed watching that - thanks for posting!

He's got some cool old knob & tube wiring in that shop too.

Thanks, very cool. Love the sound of a stream engine

Very cool.

 
Steam driven machines were gradually replaced by electric motors. But the machines remained driven by flat belts for quite a while. During the time I spent in a millwork shop, many of our machines retained the flat belt drive and overhead motors, but electric. Our 6" molder with 15hp electric motor would actually shake the concrete foundation when it fired up.
 

cool....looks like a major safety hazard ?

That was terrific!

quote:

Originally posted by PR64:
cool....looks like a major safety hazard ?

They were! As has been mentioned, OSHA folks would have a coronary.

flashguy