[Steam-engine] The Rice & Sargent Corliss Engine Lives!

James Mackessy jmackess at twcny.rr.com
Mon Nov 27 20:37:39 PST 2006


In 1998 we learned of a corliss steam engine in our home town in need of rescuing. In searching for advice and to know if it was even possible, we discovered the ATIS lists on the web. Through the things we learned here, we were able to put a plan together and successfully rescue the engine.
Well, after 8 years of work, we finally got to a point where we could test her on compressed air. We only have enough air for about 3 power strokes on this 18 x 36" cylinder, but to see her under power for the first time in over 56 years was, well, ....AWESOME! For those who don't know, 450 horsepower @ 150 RPM on 145 PSI steam, 7 ton 11' flywheel. We have a lot of small details to attend to, such as a leaky packing on the piston rod, oiler line piping, indicator pipes, etc., but we're almost there. The boiler is about 85% complete, and we hope to be done by spring. We took a few videos, less than 15 seconds each so they should not be too much to download. Here are the links:
http://www.youtube.com/v/YkmoWjqsCwo
http://www.youtube.com/v/6mio1Ub_2q4
http://www.youtube.com/v/ZXGH5fcjlXQ
To see the project web pages, a little out of date now, go to:
http://www.eriecanalcamillus.com
and click on "steam engine".
Best Regards;
Jim Mackessy
Camillus Canal Society Steam Engine Project




More information about the AT mailing list