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 Post subject: Lookout Boiler
PostPosted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 8:52 pm 
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Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 10:08 pm
Posts: 632
Location: Poconos/Lehigh Valley
Here is a link to photos of my recently acquired boiler:
http://good-times.webshots.com/album/560593411uCjqhw
It is a vertical fire tube boiler built by the Lookout Boiler and Manufacturing Company of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Nobody knows its age, but it appears to have been built prior to 1915. It was built to burn solid fuels, most likely bituminous coal. The boiler was used at a farm/dairy in Blooming Glen, PA. In the late 1970s an ad was placed in a local paper, offering the boiler “free to a new home.” Don Fenstermacher, now a local steam launch captain, saved the boiler and put it into storage.
Earlier this summer I met steam restoration specialist Mike Tillger, who told me about the boiler which he had been storing for Don. Both had moved on to larger projects and simply wanted to see the boiler go to a good home, so they offered it to me. On Saturday, August 25th, I met them at the storage site and they loaded the boiler into my pickup truck. I made it within a few miles of home when I started seeing steam. It was not coming from the boiler, but the hood of my truck (1979 Dodge). I made it to a local mechanic who replaced the radiator. A couple of weeks ago, the boiler finally made it home. I had a boiler inspector look at it today. He said it is not in good shape, but can probably be made serviceable with new tubes, a new mud ring, and patches to replace worn/corroded metal around the washout holes. The repairs will take a lot of effort and money, but I can still make a nice static display in the meantime. Once assembled, the boiler will look like this one:

http://www.smokstak.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=22260&d=1187494413


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PostPosted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 9:28 pm 
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Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2005 2:34 pm
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Location: Within 60 Miles of the Northern Anthracite Field
nice mike, i like the pic of you sitting on it........ acutally with the hoist in the background looks like your yard is beginning to look like mine! :lol:

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 9:40 pm 
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Location: Poconos/Lehigh Valley
"looks like your yard is beginning to look like mine!"
That’s my goal!


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 10:13 pm 
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Joined: Fri Jul 08, 2005 12:41 pm
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Location: Hard coal region, PA
:lol:

your old dodge thought you'd like it even more if it started steaming for ya!!

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PostPosted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 11:27 pm 
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Location: Poconos/Lehigh Valley
That’s a good way to interpret it. Maybe it was jealous of the boiler it had to haul. :D


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PostPosted: Sat Jul 05, 2008 8:32 pm 
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Location: Poconos/Lehigh Valley
The boiler was set up-right yesterday afternoon. I told my father I would paint it soon, but preferred to do the work after the boiler was vertical, as it is supposed to be. Rather than wait for help, he assembled the boiler himself:
Image
Image
Image
Note the can on the middle right edge of the last photo.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Sun Jul 06, 2008 12:22 am 
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Joined: Mon May 08, 2006 2:16 pm
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Location: Central Ohio
NICE WORK,

I have to say doing rigging work ourselves the floor jack on the die cart was very interesting on the second to last shot :shock: :shock:

Well it worked.

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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Mon Jul 07, 2008 11:26 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
Posts: 3080
Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
Very nice Mike! Do you have any plans to restore that boiler to operational status yourself? That would certainly be a good project to power that hoist!

Miner Greg


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 12:07 am 
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Location: Poconos/Lehigh Valley
I appreciate all the comments. I don’t think this boiler will be operational anytime soon. The flues are rusted through just above the crown sheet, the shell around the inspection ports is thin, and the bottom of the boiler (mud ring) is severely deteriorated. I can get a similar size (but non-code compliant) boiler for less than it would cost to repair this one, so that is probably the route I will take. In the meantime, I have a really nice static display:
Image
I still need to attach the sight glass, tri-cocks, and create a smoke stack.


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 Post subject:
PostPosted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 12:22 am 
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Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:33 pm
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Location: Above the Sterling Hill Mine
Understood.. It would be much neater seeing that boiler fired again, but it does appear to need a lot of work..

Miner Greg


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