#steam cycle

[olivesandchives]

The ants in my washer after I put them on steam cycle:

[nycmixing]

Steam Cycle

[steambikeonline]

1894 Sylvester Hayward (S.H.) Roper Steam Bicycle (Roxbury, Mass.)

- Back in 1894 this was called a “Steam Velocipede” and was based on a Columbia bicycle that had a wheel base of 45.5″.  With water and coal this bike weighed 165 lbs.  Based on pictures it is very likely he built more than one.

- The single cylinder (1.75″ diameter x 4″ stroke) with D-slide valve was efficiently located inside of the smokestack (on the right side of the rear wheel).

- On the left side of the rear wheel was the water feed pump (1/4″ diameter x 1″ stroke).  The water tank was placed at the top of the boiler and absorbed the stack heat.  Roper also had a hand pump located near the handlebars.

- The Firetube rectangular boiler burned “Franklin” coal (~11,200 But/lb) and was 20.75″ high x 15.5″ long x 8″ wide. The firetubes are 10.5″ long and 9/16″ OD, wall thickness ~.020″.  There is also 1/2″ space around the boiler for a water jacket.

- Working boiler pressure was 160 psi with the ability to raise the steam pressure to 225 psi for hills.  It was cold pressure tested to 450 psi. 

- Tragically S.H. Roper, 2 years later in 1896, had a heart attack while racing this bike against the Butler brothers tandem at the Charles River Track in Boston.  Thus becoming the first motorcycle fatality in US history.  The track was a circular 1/3 mile and his first pass was 42 seconds (28.6 mph), followed by 39 seconds (30.8 mph) and finally 37 seconds (32.4 mph).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJbZkSKg3XM

**** There are 3 notable replica’s of Ropers Steam Bicycle 1- Roper 1894 Replica built by Bob Jorgensen (owned by Pete Gagan) in ~2001

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdSx1wtR4cM

2- Roper 1894 Replica built by Paul Brodie for Dick Winger in 2005 using Bob’s replica as a foundation for study.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t93QlgBu4Is

3- Roper 1894 Replica built by Nigel Weber in 2009 (New Zealand)

[steambikeonline]

1947 Steam Motorcycle by Ray Clift

- It is easy to have experience with gas motorcycles and think that this experience translates well to a steam motorcycle. Internal gas combustion engines state that the bigger the engine the faster the bike.  But with steam the boilers need to be big and motorcycle space is a premium.  Ray stated that this motorcycle “wouldn’t go very far”.  The reason for that is that Ray had twin steam engines estimated at 2.5″ x 4+″ on either side of the rear wheel.  The amount of steam (lbs/hr) needed to feed these is high.

- Ray built a Derr Boiler but because of the height it doesn’t look like he had any room for a superheater, economizer or much combustion volume for the burner.  But what Ray excelled at was the machining and building of a very beautiful and well crafted steam engine with connecting cranks on the rear wheel.  

- This bike is currently housed in the National Motorcycle Museum in Anamosa, Iowa.  To my limited knowledge the museum states that the motorcycle was made in 1934 but according to Ray’s notes on the back of the boiler picture he said it was under construction in 1947.  Also the Anamosa musuem doesn’t seem to give Ray Clift the credit for this amazing steam motorcycle.  

Keep steam alive,

Vince   

[steambikeonline]

1919 Steam Bike by L.L. Vaelchert (Johnson town, Pa)

- Firetube boiler is 16″ diameter and 12″ high.

- To get a horizontal 6.5hp locomobile (slide valve) steam engine into the frame the wheel base had to grow to a whopping 75″ and it weighs 350 lb.

- But in all fairness this bike certainly not only ran, but ran well.  With a low rpm, properly sized boiler (with plenty of water capacity) this bike was successful in its design execution. 

Keep steam alive,

Vince

[steambikeonline]

1973 Hubbard Steam Motorcycle by Arthur “Bud” Hubbard of Monroe, CT.  One of my favorite builds.  Apparently the build was inspired by a 2 part article in Model Engineer by Thos. Hindle back in 1918.  Since Thomas did not build the steam motorcycle Bud Hubbard was tasked with working out and improving the design flaws.  The motorcycle was designed with:

-  Twin cylinder Single Acting that equals 6 c.in.  (perhaps a twin 1.5″ x 1.75″).  A variable steam cut-off lever allowed for 80% cut-off (to start) all the way to 20% cut-off once the bike was moving for big efficiency in steam usage.

- The boiler was a Flash boiler made with 3 concentric connecting steel coils.  The OD of the tubing and surface area is unknown. Designed for superheating the boiler delivered 400-700 psi. It also incorporated a smart feed water heater to take advantage of the high temperature exhaust steam. The style of the burner and boiler was similar to the flash racing as seen in the book published in 1949 called “Flash Steam” by Edgar Westbury page 49.  

- The burner was a vaporizing kerosene burner but flame pattern and burner performance was not quite dialed in so increasing percentages of gasoline were added to the fuel mix.  This type of vaporizing burner is stylized after a torch “blowlamp”.  In this type of lamp burner air pressure applied to the fuel container forces fuel through the vaporizing tubes (which you can see wound around the cover of the burner).  It is forced through the end of the burner jet with an orifice ID of ~(.024″ - .045″).  The heat of the flame is used to vaporize the fuel, so that it is in a gaseous form by the time it arrives at the jet.  The burner was the main problem for Bud on this motorcycle.  After Bud’s development Richard J Smith was able to solve the burner and boiler configuration very similar to Bud’s horizontal flash boiler approach.

Keep steam alive,

Vince

[steambikeonline]

Built some time in the 1970′s this Steam bike was made from an old 1930-1940 Iver Johnson 26″ bicycle by an unknown inventor.

- It was auctioned off on 6/5/2004 by Kings auction service and nothing else is known about this bike.

Keep steam alive,

Vince

[steambikeonline]

1962 Corgi “Modified for Steam” minicycle by Cyril Smith.

- The one of a kind frame is built off the military Corgi and is one of the smallest motorcycles made.  It was designed to be parachuted/ dropped in behind the lines in WW2.

- If I had to guess this looks like a fairly advanced setup that utilizes a monotube or water tube boiler.

Keep steam alive,

Vince