Wareagle
I can only make a few educated guesses based on how it was built and then rebuilt at some point in its apparently long existence. It appears to have possibly been an apprentice piece from sometime in the 1920's, based on some of the parts used. To give you an idea... the old base was a cast iron electrical junction box.
It doesn't quite bear the mark of a master machinist, but the internal workings are really quite nicely made. The exterior was another story. The valve system appeared to have been made from stray bits and pieces of scrap and old steel fittings, none of which were in any way uniform in profile.
Part of this was due to the engine having been badly repaired sometime after it was built. The unknown repairer attempted to match the original design, but mismatched and misaligned the parts he installed. In short, it was a bit of a mess when I spotted it in a local auction and bought it.
I studied the engine for quite some time before deciding that it needed much more than a simple cosmetic restoration. Since I had no access to the original fittings or materials, I chose to do a bit of remodeling and make it "my engine" to some extent. All the brass is my doings while the pistons, block and crank are still the original builder's work. I tried to retain as much of that guy's metal craft as possible while making it a keeper engine. This is the project that finally gave me the confidence to recently attempt my first from scratch engine build .
It's basically complete, except for building the exhaust system, soldering up the incoming steam lines and deciding how I want to display it. I've just had it on hold while I cogitate how best to match an exhaust system to the new design. The recent Elbow engine project supplied the lacking clues as to how that will have to be fitted, so its back on the active list as I get time to work on it.
Steve
(who is an incurable sucker for broken down old steam engines)