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Author Topic: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...  (Read 16484 times)

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Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« on: December 20, 2023, 09:28:37 pm »
Hi fellow steamers
I saw this listed on Ebay in rather poor condition (not Jacks doing, I'm sure that's how he received it) and after contacting the listing seller (our own jack @steam engines USA) he so graciously pulled the listing & made a present out of it to me, so very kind of Jack  :)

here it is in as received condition...



and the after restoration video...


Bruce, St. Paul Indiana, USA
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #1 on: December 21, 2023, 06:01:03 am »
Looks like a really good job restoring it Bruce but I'm not surprised. Just out of curiosity how did you reattach the dangling cylinder? I would guess by silver soldering but thought super glue might work also.
Regards,
Larry

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #2 on: December 21, 2023, 08:06:52 am »
Wow!  What a generous gesture by Jack!  Well done Jack.

This engine ended up with the right person to give it some TLC.

Nice Job Bruce.

Merry Christmas!

Charlie

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #3 on: December 21, 2023, 09:12:11 am »
What with the 55 being something of a personal favorite of mine, in the Jensen line, I'll have to thank you very kindly Bruce, for bringing that one back from the edge, or perhaps even a little over the edge, and making it once again the wonderful engine that it was originally built to be!!!
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #4 on: December 21, 2023, 09:47:04 am »
Looks like a really good job restoring it Bruce but I'm not surprised. Just out of curiosity how did you reattach the dangling cylinder? I would guess by silver soldering but thought super glue might work also.
Larry , I use staybright #8 solder, the highest temp "soft" solder I've found ,probably a little overkill, but I don't want it coming  off again.Jensen didn't silver brazing them on either, they used softer solder than I just did. If you get it hot enough for silver  brazing you will definitely ruin the nickel plating & likely distort the part as well.I Remove the snout and piston so I can use a locating positioning pin in the one steam passage that's available. On a Jensen #20 you can access both ends, all this information is on Roger's "restorers toolbox" thread.
Bruce, St. Paul Indiana, USA
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #5 on: December 21, 2023, 09:49:31 am »
wow, what a transformation!  Well done.
Richard

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #6 on: December 21, 2023, 11:56:04 am »
Looks like a really good job restoring it Bruce but I'm not surprised. Just out of curiosity how did you reattach the dangling cylinder? I would guess by silver soldering but thought super glue might work also.
Larry , I use staybright #8 solder, the highest temp "soft" solder I've found ,probably a little overkill, but I don't want it coming  off again.Jensen didn't silver brazing them on either, they used softer solder than I just did. If you get it hot enough for silver  brazing you will definitely ruin the nickel plating & likely distort the part as well.I Remove the snout and piston so I can use a locating positioning pin in the one steam passage that's available. On a Jensen #20 you can access both ends, all this information is on Roger's "restorers toolbox" thread.

Love Staybright, bonds aluminum and other metals really well and is much higher temperature and strength than regular soft solders!

Also, love Indiana Rog's Restorer's Tool-Box and could not be happier that it has been saved by many and is still accessible!!!
"Information is not knowledge, Knowledge is not wisdom, Wisdom is not truth, Truth is not beauty, Beauty is not love, Love is not music: Music is THE BEST...   
Wisdom is the domain of the Wis (which is extinct). Beauty is a French phonetic corruption of a short cloth neck ornament currently in resurgence..."
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #7 on: December 21, 2023, 05:20:46 pm »
Bruce, I just had an idea.  You could put it out on eBay, Marketplace and other online sources..."Jensen Restorations by SPS".  You could take as many as you had time and interest doing, save a lot of engines in the process and make a few dollars in the process.

I'm serious, you do wonders on these old engines and sir!!

Rog
my YouTube channel:  https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=indianarog

my website:  IndianaRog.com

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #8 on: December 21, 2023, 08:23:41 pm »
Bruce, I just had an idea.  You could put it out on eBay, Marketplace and other online sources..."Jensen Restorations by SPS".  You could take as many as you had time and interest doing, save a lot of engines in the process and make a few dollars in the process.

I'm serious, you do wonders on these old engines and sir!!

Rog
Maybe something to consider in retirement Rog, thank you for the compliment. I could see owners spending the funds on a "collectors series" & up , & maybe the occasional rare or sentimental hobbies plants, probably enough to keep me as busy as I want to be. I really enjoy saving these engines from the scrap heap. Does Jensen Mfg. Still repair customers engines anymore ? It would be nice to be factory approved/certified to do repairs but not necessarily needed.
Bruce, St. Paul Indiana, USA
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #9 on: December 21, 2023, 09:08:30 pm »
Good on you, Jack for your giving spirit.

And....

Good on you, Bruce for putting a nice restoration on a tired Jensen #55.

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #10 on: December 22, 2023, 09:54:00 am »
Hi

could someone give me a link to Rog's web site for the restorers information.  I tried the link on his post no luck.

Thank you

Bob

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #11 on: December 22, 2023, 11:03:43 am »
Hi Bob,

The website has been taken down, but I believe you can still download the content. See this thread for more info:

https://www.officeofsteamforum.com/general-discussion/indianarog-and-the-temple-of-steam-website-to-be-no-more/msg58683/#msg58683

Paula
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #12 on: December 23, 2023, 08:43:47 am »
Great work Bruce; thanks for sharing.

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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #13 on: December 23, 2023, 10:01:14 am »
Bruce, as usual, your Jensen restoration skills are impeccable. It's always a pleasure to see the results.

I Remove the snout and piston...

If you could share how you do this, I would be grateful. I have an old 25 waiting in the wings, and it was subjected at one time to some very amateur repair attempts:

  [ Guests cannot view attachments ]

It almost looks like they took a vise grip pliers to it. When I restore this engine, I will need to replace that part. Is there a trick to removing it?

Thanks,
Paula
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Re: Jensen #55 ,needing some love...
« Reply #14 on: December 23, 2023, 12:59:45 pm »
It looks amazing....
Very well done Bruce!!!
Cheers
Jan
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