1880's Floating Steam Donkey Pile Driver by Keith Black - 1:120 Scale

[Keith Black]

 I've resisted starting another build log before the Tennessee was completed but a recent gift of assorted woods from fellow Michigander Dan Kimmer @Daniel Kimmer (thank you, Dan) has made resistance futile. The pile driver will be part of a larger project that I'll go into as this build nears completion. I can't wait to get started.

 

 The hull will be a solid waterline hull highly weathered and work beaten. Pile drivers have a special place in my heart having worked on and operating one (skid mounted)  when working on the salmon cannery docks in Alaska.

 

Pile drivers are loud and dangerous, preventive maintenance was always an afterthought. Climbing up to the Head Block (my Beach Gang foreman called it a Head Log) was done without a safety line. The Head Block sheave greasing and block inspection was only done at the beginning of the season.

 

 Personal experience.......when driving piling two men with peaveys would pry/hold the piling into the sled (Hairpin Lead, see terms below) to insure the pilling didn't kick away from the intended vertical path, this was the Hospital Side. The two men were hanging on with their toenails trying not to slip as the hammer rammed into the pilling. Footing was iffy because of flying sap being beaten out of the piling. Piling tops would often times splinter when the hammer hit and the two men holding the pile into the sled were unprotected and extremely vulnerable. The pilings were slippery, the skid was slippery and as the jarring blow of the hammer hitting could cause a man to loose his footing and be tossed off and forward into the water. Oh, I didn't mention that a skid pile driver is moved around the docks with block and tackle and to minimize drag tallow was smeared on the dock decking along the drivers intended path. 

 

Glossary of Piledriving and Foundation Construction Terms

TERMS	DEFINITIONS
H-Beam	See Steel H-Pile.
H-Beam Lead	See Spud Lead.
H-Pile	See Steel H-Pile.
Hairpin Hammer	A lightweight hammer, resembling a clothespin or hairpin, dropped by gravity to tap the pile down while setting the pile line. Also to tap sheets down that are hung up in the interlocks before reaching the template.
Hairpin Lead	A structure in which a pile hammer is mounted to adapt it to box leads with rails spaced wider than the hammer width. See Telescope Lead. Also called Pony Lead or Sled.
Hairpin:	A gravity hammer in the shape of an inverted "U" used without leads to start sheet piles into the ground. Sometimes called pants.
Hammer Cage	See Hairpin Lead, Offshore Lead.
Hammer Cushion	See Pile Cushion.
Hammer Efficiency	The ratio of kinetic energy of the ram immediately prior to impact divided by the rated energy.
Hammer Energy	See Energy, Impact; Energy, Rated.
Hammer Grab	A heavy tool used in breaking and removing obstructions in large diameter caissons or other excavations.
Hammer Line	The wire rope line of the crane assigned to raising and lowering the hammer.
Hammer Speed	The number of complete strokes of a pile hammer achieved by the ram per minute.
Hammer Uplift	See Cylinder Lift.
Hand Spike	A short slender pole used to position and hole a pile in the leads.
Handling Holes	Hole or holes located near the ends of each piece of sheet piling, and used to facilitate handling procedures during installation.
Hanging Leads	See Leads, Swinging.
Hard-Bite	Proprietary cast-steel driving tip with cutting "teeth" for H-piles.
Hardpan	1. Most commonly a very dense heterogeneous mass of clay, sand and gravel of glacial drift of glacial origin. 2. The hard stratum of consolodated earth underlying surface soil, too hard for roots to penetrate.
Hawser	A very large soft line, 1 1/2" or larger in diameter used for towing or mooring. It is generally used to refer to all three strand right lay rope.
Hay	Donnage or timber used to stack rows or layers ofpiling, lumber, or other building materials. (aka Chocks)
Head	1. Shortened form of the phrase pressure head, referring to the pressure resulting from a column of water or elevated supply of water. 2. The top of the pile.
Head Block	Top section of a fixed, semi-fixed or extended pile driver lead with sheaves for carrying lines holding pile and hammer over top of leads. Also called Cross Head, Sheave Head Assembly and Top Head.
Heave	1. The uplifting of earth between or near piles, caused by the displacement of soil by pile driving. 2. The uplift of a previously driven pile caused by the driving of an adjacent pile. 3. The upward movement of soil and/or foundations supported on soil, caused by expansion occurring in the soil as a result of such factors as freezing and swlling due to increased water content or sulphite soils exposed to air. 4. Frost heave refers to the vertical soil movement which occurs in freezing temperatures as ive layers or lenses form within the freezing soila nd cause the soil mass to expand. See also Bottom Heave.
Heaving	The uplifting of the earth between or near pile, caused by soil displacement from driving piles, the uplift of an in place pile caused by the driving of an adjacent pile. Can also be caused by freezing and thawing.
Helical Binders	Mild steel rods spirally arranged about the main reinforcement steel to bind the latter to form a cage.
Helical Shell	Corrugated (usually 12 to 18 gauge) steel rolled into a sprial pipe with the joint crimped or welded watertight. The shell is installed as a pile with a mandrel.
Helix	Rebar bent to form a spiral shape. Used to reinforce concrete columns.
Helmet	See Drive cap, generally refers to cast steel component only.
Hickey Bar	A tool used for bending re-bar or conduit.
High Chair	A heavy wire device used to support and hold reinforcing steel in place in the form.
Hiley Formula	A dynamic pile driving formula for estimating the static load bearing capacity of a pile driven from its penetration resistance. It includes terms for pile weight to ram-weight ratio, pile rebound, and cushion properties.
Hitch	A knot that secures a rope to a post, ring, spar or rail, etc., or to another rope which takes no part in tying the knot. It won't keep its shape on its own. In climbers jargon, a "hitch" is often just a temporary fastening.
Hoisting Engine	A prime mover and a hoist with one or more drums mounted on a common sled base.
Holding Bolts	Used to connect wales or walers to pilings.
Hollow-Stem Auger	An earth auger with an end bit on a hollow center shaft. See Auger.
Home, Pile	A point at which a pile has reached specified soil penetration and/or blow count.
HorsenSchitz	What you say when you catch someone trying to use good ol' American traditions like home cooking and apple pie to sell products made in Germany. See also BullzenSchitz.
Hospital Side	A colloquial expression indicating the side of the pile driver which is the most dangerous.
House	The structure on a crane that covers the mechanical parts, motor, brakes, frictions, and drums. Also a term "let's head for the house" meaning "let's go home".
Hydraulic Collapse	The hydrostatic pressure in the ground (usually below a clay strata) which will cause the collapse of thin pile casing.
Hydraulic Fill	Earth fill moved and placed by pumping with water.

[Keith Black]

 Below gives a rough idea of where I'm headed with this. It'll be slow to develop but hopefully will pick up steam as we get into August. 

 

 Old skid mounted pile driver. That was some tough ole hombres. 

 

 Floating pile driver. This will be what I try to replicate. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pile driver drawing.

 

 

 HO scale pile driver kit model, pretty neat. 

 

 

Edited Thursday at 02:56 PM by Keith Black

[Knocklouder]

Good luck on your journey, . Tagging along 😊. 

Bob M.

[kgstakes]

I’ll be watching the progress on this one for sure be interesting to see how you build everything

[KeithAug]

Looks fascinating Keith - I will be following. Have you agreed the project with Ole Bob?

[Cathead]

Oh man, this looks absolutely amazing as a project. Given the intended waterline design and hints at a broader project, I'm guessing this is intended as part of a diorama/display?  

 

How did you settle on the scale you're using? It isn't a standard model railroad scale, which would have been my first guess for something intended for a broader setting than a lone model.

[Keith Black]

12 minutes ago, KeithAug said:

Have you agreed the project with Ole Bob?

 Keith, ole Bob's found a job. 

 

 

6 minutes ago, Cathead said:

How did you settle on the scale you're using?

Eric, the Tennessee is 1:120 and all the leftover bits from her build will fit the driver. Plus, 1:120 is real simple math of 1/10 inch = 1 foot. This will not  be a stand alone model should I live long enough to complete the project. This floating pile driver is not self propelled so there will needs to be a paddle wheel tow barge at some point and if you have a pile driver and tow barge, well, you need a dock and if you have a dock you need a.........and on it goes. This will be my final hurrah. 

[Glen McGuire]

Glad to see you kicking off another project, Keith!  This one looks very interesting.  Count me in.

[KeithAug]

1 hour ago, Keith Black said:

This will be my final hurrah. 

Then you had better make it last a few decades. No early retirement for you.

Edited Thursday at 05:47 PM by KeithAug

[mcb]

Hello Keith,

This is going to be good.  I was going to ask about the choice of scale, but it's been covered.

I think I may have some early 1900's views of pile drivers in the glass plate images I have saved.  Let me know if you would like me to send them to you.

You probably don't need them; it sounds as though you can build one from memory.

mcb

[Canute]

Keith, I'll tag along too. These marine pile drivers were all over the place in any harbor. I know the many miles of piers in New York harbor needed constant replenishment. I know the Lackawanna RR had 2. I spent too much time staring out at the heavy traffic in that harbor from my calculus classes in Hoboken.

 

Who made the HO model?

[Desertanimal]

Looking forward to this coming together! 
Hopefully I’ll learn a thing or two. 

[Keith Black]

 Bob @Knocklouder, @kgstakes, Glen @Glen McGuire thank you the encouragement and for following along.

 

23 hours ago, KeithAug said:

Then you had better make it last a few decades. No early retirement for you

 Keith, hopefully I can make a dent in this vision before I start dribbling my pablum. 

 

 

14 hours ago, mcb said:

This is going to be good.  I was going to ask about the choice of scale, but it's been covered.

I think I may have some early 1900's views of pile drivers in the glass plate images I have saved.  Let me know if you would like me to send them to you.

You probably don't need them; it sounds as though you can build one from memory.

 MCB, thank you for the glass plate images offer but those are best left in your care. If you could take photos of them and post that would be fantastic.

 

 I have you, Eric @Cathead, Brian, @mbp521, Roel @Javelin to thank for the inspiration to attempt this project. The build logs by you guys has illustrated the both grand and simple beauty of the common mostly unheralded workboat/ship to which we owe so much. I only hope I'm able to accomplish a smidgen of that which you gentleman have achieved.

 

 

53 minutes ago, Canute said:

Keith, I'll tag along too. These marine pile drivers were all over the place in any harbor. I know the many miles of piers in New York harbor needed constant replenishment. I know the Lackawanna RR had 2. I spent too much time staring out at the heavy traffic in that harbor from my calculus classes in Hoboken.

 

Who made the HO model?

 Ken, not just New York. Think of all the thousands upon thousands of miles of dock across the world made possible by a lowly pile driver and her crew.

 

 https://fosscalemodels.com/products/floating-pile-driver-ho-scale-kit

 

 

Thank you to all for the comments and likes. This is a fresh journey, may we never tire. 

 

  Keith

[CDR_Ret]

This reminds me of the steam-driven pile driver barge operated by the Lake Champlain Transportation (LCT) Company back in the day. I drove 100-ton-class car ferries for the company between Vermont and New York during my college years. Same thing in principle but different in the details. From what I recall 50 years ago, it was all-steel construction with a steam boiler under a deckhouse within the swivel cab and heavy composite hoses connected to the hammer driver cylinder. The company's work tug was propulsion. You could hear the pile driver working from miles away! The steam-engine crane (not sure you could call it a donkey engine) also pulled damaged pilings out. Very entertaining for the passengers when pulling a ferry into an adjacent slip!

 

[Edit: 7/15/24:] So as to not hijack Keith's topic any further, I'll post my marginally-relevant information here. I contacted LCT, and their Operations Manager was able to locate several photos of the steam crane I had mentioned in this post. Nothing too close up, but they provide an idea of an early-to-mid-1900's barge-mounted steam crane. The company's little work boat is also shown.

 

Terry

Edited 6 hours ago by CDR_Ret

[ccoyle]

Anytime anyone mentions a steam donkey, I have to point out that John Dolbeer invented it for yarding redwood logs in my native Humboldt County, California.

 

Photo via The Humboldt Historian

[FriedClams]

Well, Mr. Black, you have made my day.  This is a fantastic project, and I can't wait for you to get started.  This driver along with barge and dock will make an amazing and interesting display.  Best of luck on this new project!

 

Gary

[Keith Black]

3 hours ago, Desertanimal said:

Looking forward to this coming together! 
Hopefully I’ll learn a thing or two. 

 Thank you following along.

 

2 hours ago, CDR_Ret said:

his reminds me of the steam-driven pile driver barge operated by the Lake Champlain Transportation Company back in the day. I drove 100-ton-class car ferries for the company between Vermont and New York during my college years. Same thing in principle but different in the details. From what I recall 50 years ago, it was all-steel construction with a steam boiler under a deckhouse and heavy composite hoses connected to the hammer driver cylinder. The company's work tug was propulsion. You could hear the pile driver working from miles away! The steam-engine derrick also pulled damaged pilings out. Very entertaining for the passengers when pulling a ferry into an adjacent slip!

 

 Terry, cool remembrance, thank you for sharing. 

 

 

9 minutes ago, ccoyle said:

Anytime anyone mentions a steam donkey, I have to point out that John Dolbeer invented it for yarding redwood logs in my native Humboldt County, California.

 Chris, thank you for the photo and the lead in.........

 

 I changed the title of this build from '1870's Floating Pile Driver' to it's current, '1880's Floating Steam Donkey Pile Driver'. Reason being as Chris pointed out, John Dolbeer invented the steam donkey but not till 1881.   

 

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_donkey

 

 Historic steam donkey photos and YouTube videos are plentiful. Research on steam donkey engines of the 1880's time period is the easiest research I've done, tons of information.

 

 I'm currently calculating the measurements for the hull and pile driver tower and once completed I'll cut out the hull. The pile driver tower is pretty straight forward. Depending on how well I'm able to replicate the steam donkey details at 1:120 will determine if there'll be a shed covering the engine. If I'm able to create good engine detail there'll be no shed, if I'm unable to replicate believable detail I'll make a shed to house the engine.

 

 The steam donkey will be an early one cylinder single drum type engine. Later more efficient steam donkeys would be two cylinder, two drum engines. 

 

 Early Donkey

 

 Improved two cylinder, two drum Donkey 

 

  And the journey continues.

 

   Keith

 

 

[BANYAN]

This will test your skills in a whole lot of other ways Keith.  Looking forward to seeing this all come together.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[gjdale]

This looks to be an unusual and very interesting build Keith. I’ll grab a seat in the second row to follow along. 

[Paul Le Wol]

Hi Keith, thank you for sharing your memories of this wonderful piece of equipment. A great start to a very interesting project. Good luck!

[KeithAug]

14 hours ago, Keith Black said:

If I'm able to create good engine detail there'll be no shed, if I'm unable to replicate believable detail I'll make a shed to house the engine.

Keith - as we have to keep you occupied for a long time we should insist you make it a working model.😬

[Javelin]

Good to see another project. Work boats allow for so much more to show than regular navigating ships. They interact a lot more with their surroundings which kind of forces you to build the environment and show their main activity. 

I'll be following along to see where you are heading with this one!

[Keith Black]

15 hours ago, FriedClams said:

Well, Mr. Black, you have made my day.  This is a fantastic project, and I can't wait for you to get started.  This driver along with barge and dock will make an amazing and interesting display.  Best of luck on this new project!

 Gary, you've made my day signing on to be part of this journey. I'm going to be relying heavily on your weathering skills as this project moves forward. 

 

6 hours ago, BANYAN said:

This will test your skills in a whole lot of other ways Keith.  Looking forward to seeing this all come together.

 Pat, I look forward to replicating the Donkey details. I've not tried to model machinery before so this is new and exciting. 

 

2 hours ago, gjdale said:

This looks to be an unusual and very interesting build Keith. I’ll grab a seat in the second row to follow along. 

 Grant, thank you for being willing to look over my shoulder. Please don't hesitate to say something if you see that I've gone awry.

 

39 minutes ago, Paul Le Wol said:

Hi Keith, thank you for sharing your memories of this wonderful piece of equipment. A great start to a very interesting project. Good luck!

 Thank you, Paul. The subject matter is interesting , hopefully I'll be able to do it justice. 

 

49 minutes ago, KeithAug said:

as we have to keep you occupied for a long time we should insist you make it a working model

 Keith, not only would I need to live several lifetimes, I'd have to make a pilgrimage to your workshop for your tutelage. 

 

 

 As I was finishing up the woodworking portion of the Tennessee, I smoked my 1/2 inch cordless drill. Using a drill as a lathe is hard on a drill motor. I've been putting off ordering a replacement till this morning. A drill, acting as a lathe, is absolutely necessary for this project. I dare say I'll probably smoke the new one as I see many many hours of turning in my future. But it'll be well worth it and in the great scheme of things it's pretty cheap entertainment. 

 

 I have to mow today but hopefully I can cut out the hull this afternoon. 

 

 Thank you for the comments, the likes, and for being part of the journey.

 

   Keith

[Keith Black]

29 minutes ago, Javelin said:

Good to see another project. Work boats allow for so much more to show than regular navigating ships. They interact a lot more with their surroundings which kind of forces you to build the environment and show their main activity. 

I'll be following along to see where you are heading with this one!

 Roel, how very true. Thank you following along!

[Glen McGuire]

I gotta be honest, Keith.  When I first glanced at the title of this project I thought it read "Steaming Donkey Pile".   It really got me anxious to see what you were stepping in here.  I figured you might need to borrow @Knocklouder's character with the shovel.   

[TBlack]

I don’t know how you think of these interesting topics, dear brother, but you have captured the attention of a number of us. I don’t suppose you’ve determined a scale yet. Also, I need to remind you that when you were in Alaska canning salmon, mom was really worried about you once again, displaying that you were the favorite son.

Tom

[KeithAug]

6 hours ago, Keith Black said:

I'd have to make a pilgrimage to your workshop

You would be welcome Keith.

[Keith Black]

On 7/13/2024 at 10:37 AM, Glen McGuire said:

I gotta be honest, Keith.  When I first glanced at the title of this project I thought it read "Steaming Donkey Pile".   It really got me anxious to see what you were stepping in here.  I figured you might need to borrow @Knocklouder's character with the shovel.   

 Glen, hold that thought. This could easily go south. 

 

On 7/13/2024 at 12:06 PM, TBlack said:

I don’t know how you think of these interesting topics, dear brother, but you have captured the attention of a number of us. I don’t suppose you’ve determined a scale yet. Also, I need to remind you that when you were in Alaska canning salmon, mom was really worried about you once again, displaying that you were the favorite son.

 But Tom, we all know Dad liked you best. The scale is 1:120

 

On 7/13/2024 at 4:06 PM, KeithAug said:

You would be welcome Keith.

 God bless ya, Keith. If only I could. 

 

 

 The new drill arrived this morning. It's made by the same manufacture as the old drill but looks to be more cheaply made which means it'll last half as long.

 

 I haven't done any real woodworking using my table saw and cutoff saw in years, it was like an archeological dig getting them out. Hull 1.0 proved to be too short and too narrow, hull 2.0 is in process. I did manage to successfully build the base for the pile drive along with cutting many of the driver components. The steam donkey is going to be tiny but I've got a positive feeling. Hopefully I'll have enough of something made in the next couple of days worthy of taking and post photos. 

 

 Thank you to all for the comments, the likes, and for support by following along.

 

   Keith 

[Knocklouder]

Keith if it goes South  it's @Glen McGuireaka SIB  fault . He's upset because I made Dimples look like a brahma bull instead of a Texas longhorn.lol

 I for one want to thank you for all your help and ideas,  all though my Donkeys will look different the enjoyment will be the same.

Again thanks for adding two years to my build lol.

 Can't wait to see it started,  in for the long journey  my friend.     

Bob M.

Edited yesterday at 12:38 AM by Knocklouder
always typos

[KeithAug]

Keith, is your steam donkey going to get a name? I think we could all suggest names for you to choose from. My suggestion is "Donkey Oaty".