Another tough inspection passed!
David Jenkins - 8/5/07 at 09:51 PM
I managed to get one of my other projects through its regular inspection tonight - my locomotive has passed its hydraulic test once more! 
It's been packaged up for several years, so it's a great relief to know that it's fit for use again.
It's not clear from the photo, but it's a 5" gauge loco that has over 6 litres of water in the boiler and runs at 80psi - the test is
to pump it up hydraulically to 1.5 times working pressure (120 psi) and keep it there for 10 minutes - no leaks of any sort permitted).
The final thing is a steam test, to ensure that the safety valves will dump excess pressure when the fire's going full-blast, and that the water
pumps work - that's in a couple of weeks.
It's not quite the same as driving a home-made car down a main road at 70mph, but I REALLY wouldn't want to be nearby if this boiler let go
when at full pressure! 
DJ
stuart_g - 8/5/07 at 10:02 PM
That's really cool!
DIY Si - 8/5/07 at 10:07 PM
A neighbour had a little steam engine when I was young(er) and I've wanted one ever since!
907 - 8/5/07 at 10:08 PM
No Stuart, they get really hot.
Actually, I always thought they ran at higher pressures than that.
Very nice David
Atb
Paul G
MkIndy7 - 8/5/07 at 10:09 PM
I'll bet thats nerve wracking!..
Last time we had to do one on a Heating boiler we left the inspector to it while I ran... and ran.. and ran lol,
More worrying is I know somewhere that to this day is running a Steam Heating boiler thats not been inspected or tested for the past 3 years!.
Needless to say I drive the long way around there!
David Jenkins - 8/5/07 at 10:22 PM
quote:
Originally posted by 907
Actually, I always thought they ran at higher pressures than that.
80psi is low to moderate in this scale - but I've hauled about 15 overweight adult males with that loco, so it's not short of puff! It did
bark a bit, though...
A 5" model of a mainline express loco may go as high as 120psi, but that's unusual. 100psi is more common.
Still quite scary, especially when the safeties are venting full blast! Especially when they are 'pop' valves - if you've ever heard
one go off, they're a bit knicker-wetting...
coozer - 9/5/07 at 07:23 AM
Do you wear knickers then?
Top class machine by the way