Something new and kinda sorta 100 years old looking

curtisfox said:
Were did you get the fenders with the mudgards? Love the way you changed them its like the old Indians
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They were offered on Ebay for a while but not when I went looking for them, of course. So I googled a while and they turned up from Dick's Sporting Goods, believe it or not. I bought them from their online store, pretty cheap, too. Then I ground off the rivets and spot welded the guards where I wanted them. I know I'll be hacking up the rear one once I start mounting chains and such.
 
fishguts said:
They were offered on Ebay for a while but not when I went looking for them, of course. So I googled a while and they turned up from Dick's Sporting Goods, believe it or not. I bought them from their online store, pretty cheap, too. Then I ground off the rivets and spot welded the guards where I wanted them. I know I'll be hacking up the rear one once I start mounting chains and such.
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Awesome I will check it out. Thanks
 
Picked up some Uberwaycoolawesomeradirificwunderbar tid bits - the 100 psi relief valve and a solenoid valve to control the boiler inlet water. The way this will work is, the water pump will run all the time at 100+ psi and the solenoid valve between the pump and the boiler will be open until the water level sensor (on a 2 second delay) tells it to close (when the boiler coil is half full). I needed a high pressure pump because when the solenoid valve is open, the steam pressure in the system will try to push the water back to the pump and the inlet water has to be able to overcome this.

I ordered a steam pressure/temperature gauge today. When my paycheck comes I'll order the $$ deep fryer thermostat. That will take care of the major components except for the battery.

steambike3.jpg
 
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Well, I ordered pretty much all of the last parts I need today. I still need to pick up the battery and there will be common fittings I can get from the hardware store, but all the big stuff is now accounted for. I decided to skip the deep fryer thermostat ... just couldn't make myself drop the $150 for it. What I decided to do is mount a standard gas grill regulator on top of the water tank or maybe down beside the seat and adjust the heat manually, watching the temp gauge. It would have been nice to have the deep fryer thermostat because I could have set the temp and allowed it to regulate itself. But that's a luxury I think I can live without.

I figured out a cool way to hide the propane tanks and electrical components, but I ain't tellin' until what I bought arrives!

I need to do a little more welding/fabricating and then paint the frame (and tank again) and then toss this thing together.
 
I had what many little kids dream about: my (late) uncle Ray was an inventor, and held a few patents. He built a compact steam engine also, (didn't patent it though) and a frame to build a small auto body onto. Derned thing ran rather well. Some of what Fishguts is doing here is starting to look somewhat familiar.
 
I promise to have some updates real soon. I'm finishing up a steampunk sculpture that I'll have done in the next couple days and then it's on to the bike. I'm trying to meet a deadline for a juried show. When I get the sculpture done I'll post a photo. Oh, and it's steam powered, too.
 
IamTheBear said:
halloween horror nights had a steampunk area this year not very good either wish i had pics i could send you
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I saw some youtube clips - looked kinda ho-hum.

What I'm building is something that's more of an dreamer's/inventor's toy, a decorative piece that's a spin-off of some late nineteenth century and contemporary steampunk illustrations. It's not all that original in concept, but more so in execution, a 3D version of something that is commonly found in drawings, paintings and video, but more than a model as this has a fully functional steam engine powering it.
 
IamtheBear, thanks for the video!

re: steampunk fair. It may take a while to catch on. People are sitting on their money so they aren't really going out as much, and its hard to start a show. Maybe your fair will be able to grow.
 
happycheapskate said:
IamtheBear, thanks for the video!

re: steampunk fair. It may take a while to catch on. People are sitting on their money so they aren't really going out as much, and its hard to start a show. Maybe your fair will be able to grow.
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Steampunk has been around for decades. I understand it is still going strong as people need a diversion from reality once in a while. I know I do.

And that steam bike ... I love it when some crazy people start bolting crap together and try to make it go. Awfully large piston for such a small boiler, though. But hey, who wouldn't want to ride around with an uninsulated steel box of burning firewood between their legs! My kind of people.
 
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