Here is a 1930s Big Power Plant, a recent (February) eBay auction win by our friend Bill for $1,525.
This style is incorrectly identified in the Jensen online museum and archives as a #10. It is not.
It is a Jensen Big Power Plant as described in early Jensen literature. The larger #20 cylinder is used and the cast iron base is extended to accommodate the Bakelite brush holder for the direct drive DC generator. The #10 utilizes the smaller #25 cylinder. In addition these engines were never assigned style numbers in the 1930s. These designations were backward assigned to 1930s engines based on post-war pieces that do have factory assigned style/model numbers.
It also has a 3"x 6" riveted boiler while 10s and 25s have a 2.5" diameter boiler.
A previous owner soldered a steel slug over the cartridge heater tube entrance and proceeded to build fires under the boiler and managed to turn that part of the wood base into charcoal. There are also several cigarette burns on the wood base. These indignities will remain after the clean-up as they are part of this engine's character.
It is a very interesting piece with a few oddities. The original blue paint is correct for mid to late 1930s. The large thick steam chest is early 1930s as is the round disc instead of a crank arm. Curiosity makes one ask why is that early 30s big cylinder and crank disc doing on the mid to late 30s cast iron base with mounting tabs instead of the early bases with screw holes drilled through the top surface of the base? Best answer is Tom Jensen Sr. wasted nothing.
I will add more photos and explanations as time allows.
Gil
Here are some as arrived (before deep cleaning) pictures.
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Not sure why someone soldered the steel slug to the end of the cartridge heater tube.
I wrapped the barrel with a wet towel and placed it in a bucket of water with only the top 1/2" above the surface to avoid melting the soft solder off the escutcheon pins (rivets) and end cap. The boiler was also full to the same level. I was hoping this would help protect the original solder holding the heater tube in the end cap.
Still... I assumed the worst and that the cartridge heater tube was leaking or melted out.
I was very pleasantly surprised after removing the steel slug to find the heater tube not just intact but also not leaking.!
I filled the boiler with water and pressurized it to 25 psi and there were no leaks re the heater tube.
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Some people ... and their children, make me wonder how we have survived this far as a species?!?!
You have your work cut out for you on this one Gil .... but I know it will be a labor of love!!!
Gil, do you have a picture of it all together as it came to you?
That's fine, more pictures. Thanks guys.
More progress
and pictures.
I don't know why but some of these pictures stretched out.
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A few more pictures...
The correct chimney should be painted black for the 1930s, not nickel plated.
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Very very nice steam engine!!!
Nice job Gil, that cleaned up very nicely. I like those cigarette burns, looks like an old bar table.
Hey, maybe those aren't really cigarette burns, but rather are actually cigar burns .... ala Tom Sr!?!?
We are now much closer to steam-up time as I have fitted a new heater to it and a cloth cord (I have a roll of it). It also got a period accurate reproduction brown bakelite 10 sided (decagon) plug.
I had these heaters made up about 18-20 years ago.
The one thing remaining is a couple gaskets for various boiler fittings.
Gil
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