Steam Whistle for a (my) steam boat

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dampfspieler
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Steam Whistle for a (my) steam boat

Post by dampfspieler » Mon Dec 14, 2020 8:57 pm

Hello,

i have built a steam whistle for my steam boat project. With a diameter of 30 mm and a overall length of 275 mm it is the biggest of my ring split whistles.

The bell is made from a brass tube and a cap of gunmetal.
ED_RiSpa04_006kl.jpeg
The Parts of the bell
ED_RiSpa04_006kl.jpeg (38.04 KiB) Viewed 6223 times

The base is made from four parts.
ED_RiSpa04_008kl.jpeg
The parts of the base.
ED_RiSpa04_008kl.jpeg (65.02 KiB) Viewed 6223 times

Two parts of the base form a chamber in which the steam settles and the first condensate is separated.
ED_RiSpa04_009kl.png
The steam chamber in the base.

---
Dietrich
Last edited by dampfspieler on Sat Dec 26, 2020 2:18 am, edited 2 times in total.
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barts
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by barts » Mon Dec 14, 2020 9:03 pm

Neat! Did you bore the holes w/ a ball end mill? I've had problems w/ grabbing with partial holes like that.

- Bart
-------
Bart Smaalders http://smaalders.net/barts Lopez Island, WA
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by dampfspieler » Mon Dec 14, 2020 9:28 pm

Hi Bart,

first i have drilled the six holes upside, then drilled a pilot hole downside. Then it was turned out to the final dimensions on the late.

The steam delivery disc has a bit different design, it is much thicker and has a 30° slope on the outside. So the steams Speed increases four times and the flow is laminar. So the whistles tone is clear.
ED_RiSpa04_011kl.png

The base and the bell are silver soldered.
ED_RiSpa04_016kl.jpeg
ED_RiSpa04_016kl.jpeg (70.24 KiB) Viewed 6215 times

The slot is very small, only 0,1 mm so the steam consumption is very moderate, so it is possible to test the whistle with my little test boiler.
ED_RiSpa04_025kl.jpeg
ED_RiSpa04_025kl.jpeg (60.73 KiB) Viewed 6215 times

--
Dietrich
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by dampfspieler » Mon Dec 14, 2020 9:38 pm

Hello,

last weekend i have tested the whistle with steam and adjusted the distance between the base and the bell to get a clear tone.
ED_RiSpa04_029kl.png

How it can sounds you can hear in this video.

https://youtu.be/6jP3eD-3tC8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jP3eD-3tC8


Hope it enjoys
Dietrich
Last edited by dampfspieler on Sat Dec 26, 2020 2:23 am, edited 4 times in total.
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barts
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by barts » Mon Dec 14, 2020 10:48 pm

Of course; this is silver soldered togther ! I don't know why I didn't see that immediately.

Very nice sound on the video, and amazing for so little steam consumption. The whistle on our Otter was made by Cedric Witham back east; it can be blown by mouth (~0.2 bar). The one on Rainbow consumes 10x the steam and is being replaced during the replumb.

- Bart
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by DetroiTug » Tue Dec 15, 2020 2:36 am

Very good work. The sound is clear.

Anyone thinking of making a whistle and need brass tube, search eBay for ''bar rail''

My limited experience with whistle making shows that they have a pressure range they will operate, the antique whistle on my steamcar can be operated on breath, but just squeals at pressures above 60 pounds, I had to mount a needle valve on it to try to limit the flow. It only operates at favorable pressures and it's nearly impossible to adjust. The gap between the languid plate and the outer shell is what determined the pressure on the whistle I made for the tug, it cannot be sounded on pressure below 30 psi. Higher pressure = narrower gap.They are a science unto themselves.

In Dietrichs picture showing the opening with the languid plate, one can see the gap. It is also important that the top of the plate is flush even with the shell to direct the curtain of gas straight up into the sharp bevel edge of the bell. His looks perfect.

It operates by filling the bell chamber with gas at pressure above atmospheric. As the gas tries to escape over the sharp edge it cracks. The length and volume of the chamber determines how many times per second this happens, larger chamber means lower frequency and a lower note. The larger the chamber, the longer it takes for the whistle tone properly as it takes longer to pressurize.
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by dampfspieler » Wed Dec 16, 2020 6:56 pm

Hello,

this sketch shows the dimensions of the whistle.
Ringspaltpfeife_30mm_kplt_20201225.png
Ringspaltpfeife_30mm_kplt_20201225.png (20.35 KiB) Viewed 5893 times

--
Dietrich
Last edited by dampfspieler on Fri Dec 25, 2020 9:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by dampfspieler » Sun Dec 20, 2020 11:58 am

Hello,

i have tested the tone with soundcorset. The program is easy to handle and the screen is clear.

The whistle produces a tone of 493 Hz (B4). That is a bit higher than the planned 440 Hz and is due to the somewhat shorter inner bell length (180 mm instead of 190 mm).

--
Dietrich
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Re: Steam Whistle for my steam boat

Post by DetroiTug » Thu Dec 24, 2020 3:59 pm

Dietrich,

Thanks for sharing your drawing.
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Re: Steam Whistle for a (my) steam boat

Post by dampfspieler » Sat Dec 26, 2020 9:15 pm

Hi Ron,

I liked doing it. If someone would like to have the complete set of drawings, please write me a PM.

I have changed the title of the blog because another steam whistle is being built in my workshop, which I would like to show here. It is a single tube three tone one. The basic design is based on an article by D.A.G. Brown. I increased the diameter to 40 mm.

--
Dietrich
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