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http://www.pcez.com/~artemis/NWSSBgiz.htm




"Gizmo"

During our annual visit to Lopez Island's Fisherman Bay, I noticed a
couple of intriguing steam launches at the Island Marine Center dock.
Ron Meng, owner of IMC, informed me that there are a few steamboat
enthusiasts on Lopez.

"Most afternoons," said Ron, "you will see at least one of the
steamboats getting underway for a sunset cruise. The folks who own
them are pretty friendly, and if you see any of them you could
probably ask some more questions about the boats."

Later the same day, I noticed some activity around one of the steam
launches. I grabbed my camera and tape recorder and walked over to see
what I could learn about the steamboat. Little did I know I was about
to enjoy one of the more memorable interludes of our summer cruise.

"Gizmo" is a fiberglass replica of a steam-driven logging boat. She
has small decks forward and aft, and just enough side deck to provide
a place to step. She is slightly over 22 feet LOA, and carries a beam
of about 8 feet. With a canopy rigged overhead, she could be a little
sister to the "African Queen." A wooden coaming surrounds an open
cockpit, with a stainless steel enclosure surrounding a firebox and
boiler. "Gizmo" is a work boat, with a steam engine positioned abaft
the boiler, a couple of simple plank-style seats, and a tiller for
steering. Form definitely follows function- but boys between the ages
of six and ninety-six will typically be fascinated by the
anachronistic technology of the vessel. I walked up to Gizmo just as
her owner was stoking the firebox. Ron was right, the owner was a
friendly and informative individual- exactly the sort of person who
deserves to be lucky enough to own a functional steam launch.

I introduced myself, and the master of the steam launch replied;

"My name is Jimmy Jones, and this boat is a fiberglass copy of an
older wooden boat that was a steam powered log tender. There are three
or four boats around the Puget Sound area that have exactly this same
hull. The engine and the boiler are built by Mosquito Enterprises,
which is a subsidiary of Everett Engineering; owned and operated by
Dan Martin. Dan is sort of the guru of steam boating here in the
Northwest."

"So," I asked, "that's an enterprise that is still functioning? Can
you still go out and buy all the necessary gear to set up a steam
boat?"

"Yes. You can get the whole package from Dan Martin. He makes boilers
and he makes engines, but there are other sources as well for boilers
and engines, both new and used.
You'll see old boats fitted out with new engines, new boats with
antique engines installed, and a lot of different combinations. I
belong to the Northwest Steam Society, and the organization is alive
and well. I heard somebody say that throughout all of North America
there are probably only 500 or 600 steamboats remaining in service. I
think that as many as about 10% of them are located in Puget Sound,
British Columbia, and northern Oregon and nearly all of the owners
belong to the Northwest Steam Society."

Jimmy shared the fact that "Gizmo" has been very much a hands-on
project, and in some respects is still a work in progress. He was
eager to acknowledge some valuable assistance and tutelage received in
the process.

"The boat you see just down the dock was built right here on Lopez
Island back in the 1890's, and is owned by a local woman," said Jimmy.
"She's been my mentor. She has helped me along, as have Dan Martin,
some of Dan Martin's employees, and members of the Northwest Steam
Society. I know about boats, but I'm not a machinist. I'm not
particularly good at woodwork, but I have cobbled something together
here. After I bought the boiler and the engine from Dan they helped me
with the shaft and the steering mechanism, but I have to say I did the
actual work to put it together."

"Not everybody sets out to build a steamboat," I observed. "What
prompted you to take up the challenge?"

"My interest in steamboats dates way back to puberty," replied Jimmy.
"I grew up in a house next to the Naval Shipyard in Bremerton. They
were retiring steam launches out of the navy, and were lining them up
on a vacant lot only about a block away from where I lived. I began
admiring the boats, and wanted one ever since. I reached a point in
life where I decided to go ahead and fulfill the dream."

"I notice that you're putting chunks of wood into the firebox, so
obviously that's your primary fuel."

"Yes," said Jimmy, "but when I first set up the boat it was rigged for
propane. I had two 16-gallon propane tanks that weighed about 120
pounds, and they had to be hauled up the dock to be refilled. A friend
of mine underwent a hernia operation, and he pointed out that if I
kept on lifting 120-pound tanks in and out of the boat I'd be next in
line for the same. I decided he was right, and converted to wood. Wood
is a lot more fun to work with than propane."

"Can we assume a steam launch isn't a recommended craft for somebody
needing to make a fast get-away? How long does the fire have to burn
before you get up enough steam to run the engine?"

"I'm getting better at it," remarked Jimmy. "This fire's been burning
for an hour, and it's almost ready. But it's only my third or fourth
fire since switching over from propane, and I'll get a little more
efficient."

I asked about "Gizmo's" range.

"With two or three grocery sacks full of wood, I can get out of the
harbor, steam out in front of the Bay Café, spend a little time on the
water, and then come back to the dock and tie up. If I wanted to load
up the entire front end with wood, I could probably make it all the
way over to Friday Harbor and back. Some people have asked why I would
want to have a boat that goes such a short distance, and I always
answer that no matter what sort of boat you own you always make a
circle and come back to the dock. Most people make a much larger
circle than I do, but I think my circle is a lot more fun."

We discussed some of the safety issues and mechanical systems.

"The stainless steel shield you see around the boiler is double
insulated, and never gets too hot to touch. The main steam line that
goes from the boiler to the engine does get so hot that you could burn
yourself."

"There are two cylinders in this engine, a high pressure cylinder and
a low pressure cylinder. The cylinders are arranged in a steeple
compound, so they are situated with one on top of the other rather
than fore and aft. In this engine there is a three inch cylinder and a
six inch cylinder, and they work together. Steam is allowed into and
out of each cylinder by valves. We shift from forward to reverse with
this Johnson bar, and when we move it from one side to the other it
mechanically changes the timing and the order of the valves so that
the engine literally runs in reverse. With the Johnson bar in the
middle, no pressurized steam is getting into the cylinders past the
valves and the engine will stop turning."

I asked, "Is it correct to assume you control the speed of the engine
by changing the volume of steam delivered from the boiler?"

"Yes," said Jimmy. "There is a main steam shutoff valve, and there is
also a separate throttling valve. In addition, I can control the
amount of steam that goes through the engine by placing the Johnson
bar somewhere between the neutral and full forward or reverse
positions. When the bar is in an intermediate position, it prevents
the valves from opening as much and that restricts the amount of
steam. Steam propulsion is a low rpm, high torque technology. The
propeller is 24-inches in diameter, and has a 31-inch pitch so the
boat theoretically advances 2 ½ feet with each revolution of the
prop. Hull speed is about 5 knots, and trying to drive the boat to
anything higher is a waste of time and steam."

Jimmy described the complete recirculating circuit of steam and water,
and mentioned that he normally carries 2 ½ gallons of water. I was
surprised to learn that the steam and the water are the primary
lubricants of the engine, and oil is only used on the exterior
mechanical fittings for valves and crank.

"We're ready to start up," said Jimmy. "First we need to preheat the
cylinder for a short while, and then we can introduce a full charge of
steam. 'Gizmo' will start with a lot less pressure than some of the
other boats, I can get underway with as little as 20 psi and some
steam launches need closer to 40."

After a moment's preheating, Jimmy opened the throttling valve and
shifted the Johnson bar slightly ahead. "Gizmo" was tied to the dock,
but her prop turned slowly but steadily and created an impressive
wash. The steam engine and drive mechanism clicked, clacked, and
clattered with an assuring and orderly ka-chunk, ka-chunk, ka-chunk.
At low rpm, "Gizmo" sounds like an enormous heartbeat. The late
afternoon breeze teased our nostrils with wisps of sweet alder smoke,
and we quite literally enjoyed the sounds and smells of "power
boating" in the 1890's.

"I've got enough pressure up to blow the whistle," observed Jimmy. "I
suggest you cover your ears, I always do mine."

Jimmy pulled a lanyard and "Gizmo" raised her voice. A shrill moan of
defiance resounded throughout Fisherman Bay, in a tone that
simultaneously seemed weary, yet ready still to go adventuring. The
cry was a hot breathy sound, with an undertone of dark wind several
octaves below the masculine scream. In the seconds the whistle
sounded, nearly everyone in the marina ceased all activity and stared
toward the sound. It was as if time, literally, was standing still for
"Gizmo" and her whistle, and as if the bystanders were responding to
an ancestral command.

Jimmy's wife, Carol, appeared on the dock. I thanked Jimmy for his
time, and they got underway for a sunset cruise aboard "Gizmo". I
walked back to "Indulgence" where Jan asked, "Well, what did you think
of the steam boat?"

"I think I need to figure out how to rig up a boiler on 'Indulgence'"

"What?! You can't possibly be considering converting to a steam
engine!"

"Steam engine? That would be fun, but heck no. I just want to be able
to sound the whistle!"

"Boys and their toys," sighed Jan. "Boys and their toys."