Lou Pisani's Steam Launch "JJ" 

I completely agree. I'm sure his family, and whomever ends up with JJ, will appreciate your sentiments.

They are powerful, and well designed engines. What happened to the one you had? By 'the boiler's I'm assuming you mean a Ward watertube boiler? That's great your dad had the opportunity to run them. Did her have many stories about them?

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for watching!

He had some good times, but it's never enough of course.

She is incredibly powerful, and the hull is very seaworthy.

They sound even quieter when all the bearings are perfectly adjusted

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE No no don’t do anything to quiet her down…….she is strutting her stuff.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE how much did this boat sell for?

@@rudycarlson8245 it is still available for $55,000. About half of what it cost to build.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE it’s a beautiful boat what is the boiler fired by?

Haha he's thrilled with the ride he built.

I'm happy you enjoy it. She sure sounds like it doesn't she?

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE yes, what a craft.

She is also much faster than was was shown... I hope to get some full throttle footage in the next year.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE Realy? 🤔 What a Steam Rocket!!!

@@michaeltrilck5680 yes indeed! The k was rated at about 300 RPM I believe. This was just loafing along in the video...

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE Hey Wesley! Thanks for your VERY FAST answer! Your little Streamer is wonderful! The ship's hull is perfect ... Fast like a dolphin..😉 😎 👍 👍👍Sorry for my bad English! Greatings from Germany! ( I'm at work, nightshift) 😉 Have a nice day and everytime a handbreadth water under the keel! 😎

How fast would it go if it was fitted with a little steam turbine 🙂

It's like they're living, breathing beings.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE yes

Get comments about 'African Queen's nearly every time we go out 🤓

I'm a marine steam guy because you can sit right there with the engine. I love anything steam though as well

You feel transported back in time every time you get aboard one.

Thank you!

But what fuels this beauty. Bob Huffaker

Lol it was filmed in the California Delta. Thank you for the kind words. I'm glad you enjoyed watching.

There are Steamboats/ steam launches currently for sale and supplies to make one available as well

Thank you for your kind words

Haha! I'm glad you enjoyed it! She's a really fun boat!

Thank you! I'll pass it on to Lou

Oh, she definitely has A LOT more in her. That engine is designed to turn up to about 300rpm.

Thank you!

She is quite fast indeed. Those shots were at about 1/4 throttle. She can very easily surpass hull speed and push a mountain of a wake while doing it. She'd make a fun boat to surf behind.

Very happy you like it

She really scoots for sure, especially when opened up (Which wasn't in the video 🤓)

She's just a smidge bigger Thanks!

Thank you! I will pass on your kind words. I am not sure... I will have to ask Lou what his heritage is.

It certainly is, isn't it? I'll be sure to pass on your kind words to the owner.

Thank you!

In my experience it's actually the die block bearing or slippers that end up being subject to the most wear due to their high loading for such small bearing surfaces. The up and down motion, very little ability to maintain a hydraulic wedge of oil are Usually where the 'clack' comes from. This particular design of the die blocks in this Stephenson link was particularly prone to the quick wear, with little to no room for adjustment other than replacing parts

Walt disney loved steam engines and locomotives. He commissioned a number of them to be built for his parks. He even had small steamboats commissioned but they turned out a bit different than anticipated and they were canceled.

Yes they did a wonderful job indeed! The boiler was purpose built to fit the engine and hull. It has more than adequate hearing surface with much reserve to spare. She truly has more grunt than most launches and would do a wonderful job towing.

Большое спасибо

Thank you so much! I'm really glad you are enjoying my videos. I'm not sure where Lou bought his steam siren from. I know there are some new manufacturers of them and they're becoming more common on steam launches both here in the USA, as well as overseas.

Thank you. I've watched all the building "Persistance" videos. You have a lovely family! Keep up the good work

@@GardenRailway I appreciate your kind words. I'll hopefully be posting a nearly three-year update video here soon.

On very rare occasion new old engines still pop up. Most you find are used, though they don't wear out as easily as a internal combustion engine. There are a few sources for used and antique engines online. Here are some links. I also included a link for an online steamboat discussion forum. discoverlivesteam.com/discoverforsale/marine.html www.northweststeamsociety.org/classifieds prestonservices.co.uk/category/steam-engines/steam-boats/ thesteamboatingforum.net/forum/

Boiler is a 100sq ft B&W style watertube with two steam atomizing burners burning diesel. Condenser is a keel condenser sized for the engine.

Thank you! I think the Navy K engines were rated at 25hp

I will try to if I get a chance to go out on her again. It's B&W style watertube boiler using diesel for fuel in two steam atomizing burners.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE thanks for the help

It was filmed in the California Delta, on one of the sloughs near Isleton, CA. There is nearly 1,000 miles of navigable waterway in the California Delta. One could steam from Sacramento, out to the Pacific, and off to Australia if they had the fuel and fortitude.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE oooh that's lovely, I'm saving up to hopefully immigrate to the US, wouldn't mind building my own steamer to sail the waterways

@@ZhatFatScav I wish you luck and safe travel. There are many reasonably priced steamboats available here that would help you get your feet wet while building your own. Where are you immigrating from?

The US Navy put these engines in launches of about 30' in length. That being said, if a hull was light enough and fair enough I would think it conceivable to put in something up to 40' long.

It's power to weight ratio these old engines are not as powerful as you might think,well compared to modern combustion engines

@@mosapedoterrorist7529 Steam has actual power, gas/diesel has inflated power. The Navy would have downrated the engine as 25 Hp, it probably put out a good bit more.

Absolutely. There are kits available from Elliot Bay Steamboat Company and some people make their own designs.

If you have to ask, you can't afford it.

Thank you! She burns wood, really really old vegetable oil, or diesel.

That lever is the reversing lever. Often called a 'Johnson Bar' on American steam locomotives. In this case with Stephenson link valve gear it switches which eccentric (offset circles, effefctively camshaft lobes) on the crankshaft are affecting the valve events. In this valve gear there are two eccentrics per cylinder. One for ahead, and one for reverse. Whichever one that has its eccentric rod (effectively a pushrod) directly under the valve is the one that affects the valve movements. Compound engines like this one use the high pressure steam from the boiler in the smaller 'High Pressure' cylinder first. As the steam pushes the piston down it expands and is then at a lower pressure when it is exhausted into the receiver for the Low Pressure cylinder. The Low Pressure cylinder is a larger diameter for the purpose of trying to extract the same amount of power out of the now lower pressure steam by way of having more surface area (100psi on a 10sqin piston area, vs 10psi on a 100sqin piston area). The low pressure cylinder then exhausts into the condenser. This enacts a vacuum on whichever side of the low pressure piston is exposed to the exhaust at that time. That additional 'pull' from the vacuum of the exhaust side will provide additional power. The whole purpose of multiple progressively larger cylinders, and the vacuum on the exhaust, is to extract every available bit of power possible from the steam available. I hope that explanation helps. I hope that helps!

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE That was an absolutely brilliant explanation of both concepts, thank you so much! I have discovered an interest in steam piston engines, only having rudimentary knowledge of diesel engines, maritime and automotive, and zero knowledge of steam engines beyond steam turbines used in civilian nuclear power, it is all tasty green grass for me!

@@homeopathicfossil-fuels4789 I'm happy to help. There are lots of resources for info and even your own steam engines if you so desire.

Haha yeah that engine is about double the horsepower that would normally be in a launch that size. She's a really fast boat. Extremely well put together.

Kinda like Shelby putting a 427 in a cobra huh

@@skeets6060 exactly haha Raceboat!

No such thing as too much power :)

@@Chris-fo8wp you are 100% correct!

🤓🤗

The water is just municipal water carried onboard in tanks. The whole system condenses the exhaust steam and recycles the water, so there is no need to pull water from the river (or lake, etc.).

There are a number of sources throughout the world. Here are a few; www.northweststeamsociety.org/ www.discoverlivesteam.com/discoverforsale/non-railroad.html steamboatassociation.se/ steamboatassociation.co.uk/ prestonservices.co.uk/ www.stationroadsteam.com/ www.steamworkshop.co.uk/ www.steamtractionworld.com/ www.steamboat.com.au/ Good luck!

Exceedingly rare, and even rarer today. They are still out there to be found. Someone probably bought it a military surplus with the intent to do something with it and never did. Lou had it for at least 20 years before he did anything with it.

That is quite a difficult one to answer... If one is going hull speed or slower the fuel would last exceptionally longer than if one was pushing it even a knot/mph over the hull speed. I am pulling a figure out of the air here, but would say one could comfortably go 200 miles on a cord of good hardwood, or even softwood, in this boat... If I'm wrong and it ran out, one could always pull up to the riverbank and get some more. If I'm wrong and there's too much, then there's many more fun days of steaming ahead.

I believe she can get up to 10mph maybe more... with a mountain of a bow wave.

There are a few sources for used and antique engines online. Here are some links. I also included a link for an online steamboat discussion forum. discoverlivesteam.com/discoverforsale/marine.html www.northweststeamsociety.org/classifieds prestonservices.co.uk/category/steam-engines/steam-boats/ thesteamboatingforum.net/forum/

Diesel

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE Thank You. That was my guess. Beautiful works, lovely Lady.

​@@donquihote6023thank you! I believe she can run a mix of diesel and oil also.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE Nice. These days multifuel may end up very important. Keep her Hot and Gleaming. Cheers.

@@donquihote6023 completely agree. Never know where you might have to source your fuel from next.

California Delta steamboat meet at the b&w resort marina in Isleton, California. Annual meet is coming up September 23-26th 2021

Welcome to the steam world. It's a vertical compound with a piston valve on the high pressure cylinder.

Wesley Harcourt ah! Thank you, some more reading for me tonight! :D

@@michaelgarofalo6231 you're very welcome! Definitely lots to read out there! thesteamboatingforum.net/forum/ www.northweststeamsociety.org/ steamboatassociation.co.uk/ prestonservices.co.uk

It's a steamboat, hull is a fiberglass copy of a 26' US Coast Guard surf boat. Built by Mosquito Enterprises of Everett, Washington, USA

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE is it still available

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE is it wood fired

@@austinward1543 it's generally oil fired, but can run wood

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE nice

¡Gracias! Los viajes son gratis si encontraste el camino hacia el barco.

She's quite a bit faster than that even. That's only about 1/4 throttle

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE that’s incredible

@@daanbos5918 yes she has a lot of power for her size!

Ага. Надо на аэросани такое приколхозить...

Владимир Владимир Дефиле не то будет, на кораблике круче.

большое спасибо

Паровой снегоход был бы восхитителен!

Это из стихотворения?

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE Yea :3

Not yet. There are plenty of steamboaters that would be happy to give them a ride if asked.

There is boiler water treatment in the feed water entering the boiler and the dissolved solids/oxygen and PH are monitored. The engine uses very little internal lubrication and exhaust/condensate returning from the condenser goes a tank called a 'hotwell' where the condensate settles and has to go through oil absorbing filters before being pumped back into the boiler. There are no existing 'exams' or classes for steamboat operators, and every boat is unique. It's a matter of learning and understanding the basics through knowledge gained from old publications and/or passed down from other individuals.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE I know that when there were steam locomotives, the water was monitored and specially prepared before it was poured into the locomotive. There was also a "preparatory station" on the locomotive itself. The steam condensate passed through filters before it was re-fed to the boiler.and cleaned of oil. I was interested to find out how all this is solved in such a small volume. I thought it was impossible. But there is your video. Thanks, I roughly understood.

@@user-oe8yd1tl8y you're very welcome. Yes locomotives have a very different life than steam boats and steam ships. Much more control of feed water of boats and ships as you are usually working with what you have onboard or what you desalinate (on a ship). Locomotives play the lottery of quality of water from one water stop to the next, with 100% loss in their systems. Treating each load of water for it's specific chemistry can be a bit tricky, especially when it's all gone in a short while anyway. I believe that is one reason why locomotive boilers required so much more intensive maintenance.

@@WesleyHarcourtSTEAMandMORE Yes, I did not take into account that the engine of a steam locomotive and the engine of a small pleasure boat are designed for different operating conditions. And this, it turns out, is important to know. Although one "competent" expert on steam engines proved to me here that it is impossible to insert it into a pleasure boat, and mathematically calculated when the boiler should coke, burn out and explode if the water is not prepared and the oil is not filtered. In response, I showed him your video demanding to explain how it works then, because the man in the boat is clearly resting and does not look like a suicide bomber)))Thanks.

@@user-oe8yd1tl8y haha! You're very welcome. I hope you enjoyed watching