July 18, 2006

  • yet more pics from Camp Creek....



    very nice Model T pickup, complete with Moto-meter radiator cap that has a thermometer in the cap, and the running board mounted spare. These are true wire wheels, which of course is what they had before they invented solid steel ones, quite the step up from wood spokes....



     This is a Whippet, which was a base-line car offered in the 20's. Very inexpensive, but cheaply built; the engine had babbit bearings in the rods and mains, babbit wore quickly and when too worn, the engine had to be dismantled and bearings rebuilt. And they weren't inserts. You had to heat the babbit into a liquid state, and re-pour it into the rod and main castings, then machine it to fit the crankshaft. Tremendous amount of work. Also it had mechanical brakes, not hydraulic. Meaning there was linkage rods that ran from the pedal to the rear wheels (rear wheel brakes only) and every few hundred miles you had to stop and adjust the brake linkage, or you would have no brakes. Very crude. Fun to see a few of them still around, tho...



    this was a massive stationary engine, single cylinder, 40 hp oil field engine. it is a hit and miss, which means it fires about every third of fourth revolution....when it fires it rocks the entire engine and sled back and forth...it is water cooled, with a sort of primitive radiator on the rear...these engines had to be tended to constantly, as they had mechanical grease cups, which had to be tightened  every hour or so to feed grease to the bearings...they would often have these "powerhouses" in an oil processing plant, and run long shafts and belts to the various machines from the engine....



    the steam railroad crane was operating, it was 103 outside by that time, and the rear of the crane you can see the boiler, it is about 6' diameter and 8' tall, originally coal fired, now they use propane for convenience....can you imagine how hot it was in that cab....



    this was another massive stationary oil well engine, also rated 40 hp, hit and miss. The exhaust stack was 6" in diameter, and when it fired it sounded like the commercial fireworks displays at 4th of July where they launch the aerial bombs...like a mortar...they were running this one on propane, it would originally use waste gas from the oil wells; they simply ran a tube from the top of the well head where the gas collected, piped it over to the engine and used that. This one is so huge they mounted it on 4 aluminum semi truck rims and tires...flywheels are over 6' diameter....pretty neat stuff...



    the miniature steam trains were running, although there wasn't much interest because of the heat...still fun to watch tho...



    this truck is a USA, they were manufactured in Detroit, along with the Patriot. It is a 5 ton, and originally had hard rubber tires. It is in the process of being restored. The small building it is in houses about a dozen stationary engines as well...



    the axle is so massive it is hard to see. The truck dates from about 1916 or 18, it was pretty advanced for its time, it used a driveshaft and closed differential, not a chain drive...



    this is a pretty cool tractor, it is a factory demonstrator that had sections cut away so people could see how it was constructed...they would bring it around to dealerships for promotions, county fairs, etc. They had chromed all the internal parts, for looks and to protect against rust...



    this tractor is diesel, and you can see the fuel injection tubes, etc. If you look closely you can see the lifters, pushrods, rocker arms, camshaft, etc...



    you can see transmission gears, brake bands, hydraulic lift parts, etc. Quite the engineering feat when you think about it....


    There were several hundred tractors out there, a testament to those who participated, expecially given the heat. I hope before too many more years I can bring the Diamond T or the AC out and play "show and tell"....although Deer Creek Sodbusters may be more my size....


    laters.....