Topic: Mini Steam/Live Steam

[1979T/A6.6]

Anyone here into mini steam engines or live steam model trains?  I bought this model steam engine recently with the intent of using it as an engineering design platform. 
Its pretty cool, Ive run it twice since I bought it and its a noisy, smelly and spews boiling hot water everywhere but its pretty cool to watch and rev the engine.  This model is a Jensen 75 that I bought off ministeam.com.  Its got s huge boiler, largest cylinder they have and had a reversing lever. 

Questions, Comments, and Steam enthusiasts welcome.

[Rebel 5150]

Been a fan of just about anything that's steam powered since I was a kid.  Used to have stacks of books on the progression of steam power in Trans-Atlantic commercial shipping, particularly from the early 20th century through to about WWII.

[Rick]

My father-in-law got his start on the railroad working with steam engines.  Those are some pretty impressive pieces of machinery.  Good ol' James Watt was a pretty bright boy!

[ponchonutty]

I've got one that's a tractor replica with the huge metal wheels.  I need to get some fuel for it again.  My one son likes to see it run.  It's actually pretty neat.  It even has a wistle too!

[Rebel 5150]

I want this one, although it may be a bit difficult seeing as how it's 2 miles deep in the Atlantic.  Check out the guy on the right to give it some scale. 

[stimpy]

our senior year in highschool machine shop we were allowed to build steam engines as our final project ( if you took the 2 year course) and some of the engies the guys built where great the only problem we had was we had to run them off of compressed air and it would mess them up as the water has a little lubricating effect to it . My dad  has mine ,a 2 cylinder compound engine . it took a whole year to build and $300 buck ( 1984)