Cat 340D Excavator build

[crueby]

Originally Posted by 9W Monighan

Wow; That Marion Type 91 is very nice! I would like to see it in person someday.
Any build pictures?

I did a full build log over on the Model Engine Maker site:


http://www.modelenginemaker.com/inde...ic,7530.0.html


There will be an article series with full plans of the build starting around the end of 2020 in Live Steam/Outdoor Railroading magazine. It will be a long series, for a model like that - 4 double-acting steam engines, gear trains, winding drums, boiler, frame...



The shovel is sitting outside the quarry it worked in from 1906 to 1949 in Leroy NY, on Gulf Road. It is fenced off, so you can only get within about 20 feet of it (I worked with the historical society to get full access to get in and photograph and measure it a number of times to draw up the plans for it). It is the last remaining Model 91 - if you search for it online you will likely see references to it being used on the Panama Canal. NOT true, this one was working in the quarry here before the canal was started, and I've been able to account for where all the ones at the canal went later on. Its in remarkable shape considering that its been sitting out in the open for so many decades, the wood spacer blocks in the boom are half gone but the rest is there, aside from small parts that have been stolen. It was originally on railroad trucks, in 1923 it was converted to crawler tracks using Marions 'kit'. About 75 feet long, over 100 tons, it dug limestone in the quarry for use in railroad beds, roads, and dams.

[Originalrob]

Chris

wow ! I have just been looking through briefly your steam model build thread and I must say the detail is amazing. 3 years in total? how long do you expect the excavator to take?

I think the excavator should be a walk in the park in comparison !


Rob

[crueby]

Thanks Rob - the Marion build was in a whole different league than this one, everything was scratch built on the Marion, thousands of parts, this one I am using off-the-shelf parts wherever possible and am not being as minutely fussy with pure scale details. The tracks/sprockets will (initially at least) be RC tank parts, which will save a ton of machining time - can always replace them later with home-made ones. This build will likely be in months rather than years, at least to get it to the point of doing some playing with it. The detailing/refining stage can go a lot longer, but the initial shell and working mechanisms wont be as long (retirement helps timelines a lot!) as the other build, modern sheet metal designs vs older forgings/castings styles helps a lot. This build is sharing time with a 1/4 scale Stanley steam car engine build, so it will go in bursts - right now waiting on some taps/dies on the engine so am working more on the excavator.

[crueby]

The two booms are further along, got the four sides bolted together, ready for the steel pivot plates. They are quite rigid, dont think I will need any internal steel framework other than the plates at the pivot points.

[crueby]

More done on the main boom, made up the steel plates for each end which will hold the pivot bearings/rods. They were milled out of 303 stainless bar stock and screwed in place.





Still need to do some trimming on the ends.





After that is done, will make up the extension plates at the top of the outer boom that the hydraulic cylinder attaches to, and make up the pivot rod bearings.