Dead Man Speaks (Steamhead)

Steamhead (in transit)

Fifth Edition, 1915. This was an eBay find.

To paraphrase Dan: "A hundred years from now, they will gaze upon my words, and marvel at my knowledge, but never know my name. And that will be good enough for me."

This catalog includes several different categories of product ASME was concerned with at that time, such as power plant equipment, power transmission (gearing, belt drives etc.), elevators, machine tools, metal working machinery, air compressors, and much more. We find Dunham, Webster and H.B. Smith in the sections that include steam apparatus.

Several short introductions and discussions appear in this book, but none of them are credited. So we don't know who wrote this in the introduction to the "Measuring and Testing Apparatus" section. The writer is referring to the amount of guesswork which at that time still existed in manufacturing:

"While more and more plants are beginning to rely on precise measurements rather than pure guess-work, one has unfortunately to recognize that the use of measuring instruments is not by far as extensive as it ought to be. There still prevails to a certain extent the idea that investment in an instrument which will tell exactly what can be told approximately by touch or by guess, hardly pays for itself."

"That this idea is wrong, many have already found to their sorrow. The only way to insure that everything shall always be done right is to make it impossible that it shall be done wrong. The human element in mechanical work must be eliminated as much as possible."

Sound familiar? This might have been written about the use of combustion analyzing instruments in our industry today. There are still those who think the cost is not justified, some of whom have found out, the hard way, that the opposite is true.

Thanks, Dead Man. We're still listening to you. Rest in peace, whoever you are.



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Timco

"That this idea is wrong, many have already found to their sorrow. The only way to insure that everything shall always be done right is to make it impossible that it shall be done wrong. The human element in mechanical work must be eliminated as much as possible."

As I read that, I thought of combustion analysis before I read the end of your post.

Dead men speak to me with every fitting of a great old gravity system still working or beautiful radiator standing proud. Thanks for sharing.

Tim

Big Ed_4

Fuel Use

I would guess the btu in put and combustion readings varied with coal. How much the fireman shoveled in and how much air . I guess they where looking to matain the steam pressure. They always where tapping on the pressue gauge in the old movies ..

Steamhead (in transit)

At that time

combustion analysis was brand-new and very complicated, so it was found only in the largest installations.

"Steamhead"

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