All the energy being produced in the firebox of a steam locomotive is not used in heating the water in the boiler. A SUPER HEATER runs the steam line through this wasted heat in order to capture additional energy. This provides more power that can be used by the locomotive, thereby increasing its efficiency.
NOTICE:
This is only a description of what I chose to do to my own RUBY engine. It in no way is meant to encourage others to make this or any
other modifications to their equipment. This is a major modification and CAN NOT BE UNDONE. Exert EXTREME
CARE and remember to MEASURE TWICE / CUT ONCE! Again, this is what I did and how I did it. It worked for me but NO guarantees are expressed
nor implied that this is the way any sane person would accomplish this task.
Here are a few pictures and a 'brief' description on what I did:
I started by drilling a .125 " (1/8) hole directly next to the burner body through the burner flange and the back of the boiler cap of the flue about 225 degrees from vertical. This places it out
of the way of the burner air in-takes. I cut a slot to the outside of the burner flange and to the inside towards the burner hole in the flue cap itself. This
allows me to remove the burner and the super heater pipe when necessary. I bent the Stainless Steel tubing that I use as the Super Heater as in the first
picture. The 'firebox' end gets a full 180 degree bend with about a .75 (3/4) " diameter and about .5" (1/2) left for the union that connects to the lubricator
line. You can not really tell from the picture, but just inside the boiler there is a small lateral bend to put the tube the bottom of the flue right under the
burner element. Just before the end of the flue the tube bends up to run along the top of the flue so there will be enough height to allow the 90 degree bend
and .1875" (3/16) 'straight' for the union that connects to the steam in-take for the central valve body. (This necessitated grinding a small portion of the sheet between the valve body and the boiler so it will clear the union fitting.) By keeping this section small, I can
still withdraw it down the length of the flue even with the union installed. I was not able to bend the copper line from the central value body up with out
crimping it, so I removed the copper and its fitting altogether. A small .5" (1/2) length of Stainless Steel tubing was cut to fit into the resulting hole and
connects to the line from the flue. (See SMOKEBOX VIEW below) I cut the line from the lubricator and bent it to point back towards the new tube going
into the flue. I brazed the fittings into place and it was done.
(Well, almost. . . .)
It seems while trying to heat the center value body (Sans valve) I somehow managed to get some silver filler into the union end of the tube. I duplicated this
feat of 'skill' and also got filler into the 90 degree bend of the super heater pipe. With a lot of luck and a only slightly oversized drill bit I was able to drill out
the excess. The small length of 'straight' after the 90 degree bend was not quite enough to for the union fitting, so I had to file a bit out where the tube slides
in. If there is a 'Next Time' I'll attach the union LAST, after brazing the tube to the valve body.
While I had the saddle and cylinder assemblies apart, I took the opportunity to blacken them with BRASS BLACK. I left the cylinder caps bright brass.
NOTE: TAKE GREAT CARE WHEN DISASSEMBLING THE CYLINDERS FROM THE STEAM CHESTS AND REMOVING THE CYLINDER END
CAPS!! There is a thin paper gasket between these sections that you don't want to tear!
From the DO AS I SAY NOT AS I DO Department: There is NO SUBSTITUTE for the RIGHT TOOLS. If you should decide to attempt a similar conversion,
I recommend having a Dremel or similar tool, cutting and grinding bits, a drill with an assortment of small metal bits, small metal files, TUBE BENDERs of
the appropriate size, a good hot torch, and all SAFETY EQUIPMENT! Nothing is worth an eye or a hand!
PICTURES OF MY RUBY SUPERHEATER MODIFICATION
Shape of SUPERHEATER Pipe
Rear view of SUPERHEATER in place
Side View of SUPERHEATER Pipe in place
Rear view of SUPERHEATER Pipe in place
View of SMOKEBOX connection
Rear view of SUPERHEATER Pipe in place (No Burner)
For better or worse I've taken the plunge. I am getting over 20 minutes of run time on a tank of fuel, which is well over my average of 8 minutes I was
getting before. If I can figure out why the movement is so STIFF I should be able to get a good long run out of it.
