Steam & Excursion > 4449 Today

Getting closer, plus 700 will be running on a 30 day extension shortly for a MAX line opening
ceremony.

Out

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Ah, stuffing the superheaters back in the ole gal. Is that Doyle running the crane? Continued kudo's in completion of the 4449 work.

Bob Krieger
Cheyenne, WY

Bob3985 Wrote:
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> Ah, stuffing the superheaters back in the ole gal.
> Is that Doyle running the crane? Continued kudo's
> in completion of the 4449 work.

Yes, Bob. Doyle operating the crane, with Pat Tracy facing the camera. 

Also, that's Neil Ferris helping Pat and probably Mike Warren in the smokebox.

Posted from iPhone

You guys can't get that overhead crane fast enough!
SR

What do they do if some of the front tubes leak when they hydro? It seems like you would want to block off the dry pipe and do a hydro before putting superheaters in.

Posted from Android

We're a couple of steps ahead of you.

Posted from iPhone

Cool, I was not aware the hydro was complete. That is good news.

Only a preliminary one, for just the reason you stated.

Posted from iPhone

Still, keep up the good work!

Posted from Android

Typically, the vendor of the Units does a strenuous hydro on each completed 'unit', before shipping....
Then, any leaks will be confined to the ball/socket joint at the superheater header --- and a possible insufficiently tightened clamp-bolt.  You definitely DO NOT want to see any water, not even a drip..., running out of a superheater flue during a hydro....

The typical name for this type of metal-to-metal [ non-gasketed] joint used to be a "ground joint" ---- typically lapping the two surfaces together for a very finely polished joint.  Also, for assemblies that may be slightly out-of-line, they used cone-shaped female seat, and a spherical-section male matching portion.  The spherical joint allows for a steam tight joint even when the two surfaces meet at other than a perfect right-angle ---- also, it's hard to make a threaded joint for 20-foot long units!

Wes C.
 

wcamp1472 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Typically, the vendor of the Units does a
> strenuous hydro on each completed 'unit', before
> shipping....
> Then, any leaks will be confined to the
> ball/socket joint at the superheater header ---
> and a possible insufficiently tightened
> clamp-bolt.  You definitely DO NOT want to see
> any water, not even a drip..., running out of a
> superheater flue during a hydro....

> Wes C.

Wes is correct, in that each individual unit assembly was hydro tested well prior to installation.  

True learning lessons........

WAAAAAY back in 1971....
Scene:  NKP roundhouse ( stripped clean....no fixtures, etc..) 2 Giants slumbered in adjacent stalls.
NKP 759 & RDG 2102.

2102 had its superheater units repaired at Babcock & Wilcox, Akron, Ohio.
Young Doyle and Wes were replacing all of the type A superheater units back into the boiler.
Our strategy was to start at the top flues and work our way to the front of the superheater header, and thus down the flue sheet to The bottom row of superheater flues.

We would insert a complete row of units, then starting at one side, we would use the large sized air operated impact wrench to tighten each unit's clamp bolt.   Then install another row.

The work went went steadily and way later we finished installing the last of the units....

As I recall, we started filling the boiler to prepare for the hydro test.....
We came back the next day to do the hydro, begin the re-install of the Cyclone front-end, and button the 2102 up --- preparing for two fan trips on the AC&Y across the state of Ohio.

We connected up the hydro pump, and began pressurizing the boiler.
Our NKP  boilermaker Extraordinaire, Joe Karal came by the roundhouse to see how we were makin' out.

When the boiler was full, we started the hydro test.....at about 150 PSI, we had water ruining out the bottom of the smokebox's open boiler front.  Not a flood, but a steady stream.

Joe got up in the smokebox, grunted and came out...... The water was coming out of a unit/joint about 4 rows deep, in the midway point of the header....

Joe instructed us to totally remove the row of units, in front of the leaker, all the way back to the leaker.  
Units full of water are WAYYY heavier than empty units.
Doyle and I struggled, but we got our way all the way back to the leaker.... 

Joe was getting ready to teach us a valuable lesson:  "Take that nut on the clamp bolt", he said "And  shake it!"
Doyle was up top, I was in the smokebox....

Both of us were incredulous....That nut and bolt were only hand-tight, and rattled loudly when Doyle shook it.  Neither one of us wanted to believe that we had missed tightening a unit---- we had been SO CAREFUL to be sure we tightened each and every one...
Yet, here, right in front of our faces was a unit dribbling water and a loose clamp bolt...
Under Joe' s watchful eye, we completed the assembly, did the hydro --- & it passed.
Under Joe's  watchful eye, we reassembled the entire front end...... Later,The AC&Y trips were wonderful....

But, Doyle and I, to this day, remain deep in gratitude for Boilermaker Joe Karal's 'hands-off' teaching style...
He  could have dug in himself, corrected the leak and carried on.
But he knew that we had to be taught a lesson that we would never forget --  and he knew that would only happen if we HAD to do the work.... He was not only a master boilermaker, he held a PhD in life experiences.  He was a master teacher..

I'd BET  that Joe was the 4449's biggest FAN, when, back in '75, he got to work with Doyle in Portland ---- doing what Joe loved to do....Make steamers run and be the mentor for young, eager folks like Doyle, Scott, Andy and Russ,  the and many countless more young steam mechanics.  We're older and gray now....  
Thank you, Joe!  You never know how much you meant to ALL of us.....

Seeing Doyle on that crane cab, I know what he was thinking ----- as each unit got installed!

Thanks for the memories..

Wes C.
 



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 08/29/15 17:18 by wcamp1472.