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Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Dick Vennerbeck (IP Logged)
Date: May 09, 2003 01:44PM
<HTML>A question or two for those with experience on Stanley boilers. Most Stanley owners have had experience with swaging the ends of their boiler tubes at one time or another.
I have located a source of new and affordable (~$200.00) mechanical roller tube expanders. Great info and downloadable PDF catalog here [www.elliotttool.com]
My questions are:
Were the tubes originally rolled or swaged into the tube sheet.? It seems that swaging the tubes with a tapered drift would tend to (re)seat the tubes only at the outer surface of the tube sheet.
Would rolling the tubes provide a better seal due to the fact that the tube would be expanded uniformly against the full thickness of the tube sheet? Are there any risks involved in rolling vs swaging a Stanley boiler with the steel ferrules?
We are in the process of swaging a boiler now and thought a few of us would pitch in and purchase one of these tools if it made sense.
Thanks,
Dick Vennerbeck
Los Gatos, California</HTML>
I have located a source of new and affordable (~$200.00) mechanical roller tube expanders. Great info and downloadable PDF catalog here [www.elliotttool.com]
My questions are:
Were the tubes originally rolled or swaged into the tube sheet.? It seems that swaging the tubes with a tapered drift would tend to (re)seat the tubes only at the outer surface of the tube sheet.
Would rolling the tubes provide a better seal due to the fact that the tube would be expanded uniformly against the full thickness of the tube sheet? Are there any risks involved in rolling vs swaging a Stanley boiler with the steel ferrules?
We are in the process of swaging a boiler now and thought a few of us would pitch in and purchase one of these tools if it made sense.
Thanks,
Dick Vennerbeck
Los Gatos, California</HTML>
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Rolly Evans (IP Logged)
Date: May 09, 2003 02:56PM
<HTML>Dick if your using Steel ferrules your obvious using copper tube. Have you looked a an alterative type of tube.
Check this site.
[www.wlv.com];
Check this site.
[www.wlv.com];
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Mike Clark (IP Logged)
Date: May 09, 2003 07:46PM
<HTML>Dick,
I just discussed this subject with John Goold who builds boilers. His comment on swaging with a drift is that using a drift tapered 1 thou per inch then the drift acts on the lower (inner) end of the ferrule and expands the tube from the inside outwards, not from the outside in as you might think. Haven't tried it yet but I can see that my drift does contact the inner end of the ferrule first.
Mike</HTML>
I just discussed this subject with John Goold who builds boilers. His comment on swaging with a drift is that using a drift tapered 1 thou per inch then the drift acts on the lower (inner) end of the ferrule and expands the tube from the inside outwards, not from the outside in as you might think. Haven't tried it yet but I can see that my drift does contact the inner end of the ferrule first.
Mike</HTML>
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Tim Senior (IP Logged)
Date: May 10, 2003 06:57AM
<HTML> I have tried tapered drifts and rollers on my Stanley boiler, copper tubes with ferrules. I had trouble with the drift in that even when well lubricated it tended to pull out the ferrules when removed.
I used a tube roller in a cordless drill on a quite low torque setting with great success. A lot of pressure can be applies with these tools and it is possible to distort the end sheets or cut the ends of the tubes so be careful and start with a low setting and build up till you find the one that gives a good result. With the roller I did both ends of the boiler (10hp) in well under an hour.
Regards Tim Senior</HTML>
I used a tube roller in a cordless drill on a quite low torque setting with great success. A lot of pressure can be applies with these tools and it is possible to distort the end sheets or cut the ends of the tubes so be careful and start with a low setting and build up till you find the one that gives a good result. With the roller I did both ends of the boiler (10hp) in well under an hour.
Regards Tim Senior</HTML>
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Dick Vennerbeck (IP Logged)
Date: May 10, 2003 01:19PM
<HTML>Tom,
We are using a drift that machinist made for Ron Parola. A little oil and a smear of neverseize allowed us to easily remove the drift. Ron's drift has a square area milled on the shaft and a quarter twist with a wrench drops it right out. I was suprised to find that your ferrules came out too.
Thanks for the heads up on the torque settings. I can see how one could easily ruin a boiler with one of these gizmos. Do you happen to have the part number and manufacturer for the expander? Did it have a bead roller incorporated also?
Dick</HTML>
We are using a drift that machinist made for Ron Parola. A little oil and a smear of neverseize allowed us to easily remove the drift. Ron's drift has a square area milled on the shaft and a quarter twist with a wrench drops it right out. I was suprised to find that your ferrules came out too.
Thanks for the heads up on the torque settings. I can see how one could easily ruin a boiler with one of these gizmos. Do you happen to have the part number and manufacturer for the expander? Did it have a bead roller incorporated also?
Dick</HTML>
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Dick Vennerbeck (IP Logged)
Date: May 10, 2003 01:28PM
<HTML>Rolly,
Thanks for the info. The boiler is from Don Bourdon and is two years old. We had three "weepers" at 750 psi. Not yet ready to retube. The nickle copper you mention is good stuff. I had a nice vacation in Malta while in the Navy as the yards retubed a failed feedwater condenser with NiCu tubing. Does anyone run a rolled tube Stanley boiler without ferrules?
Dick</HTML>
Thanks for the info. The boiler is from Don Bourdon and is two years old. We had three "weepers" at 750 psi. Not yet ready to retube. The nickle copper you mention is good stuff. I had a nice vacation in Malta while in the Navy as the yards retubed a failed feedwater condenser with NiCu tubing. Does anyone run a rolled tube Stanley boiler without ferrules?
Dick</HTML>
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: Dick Vennerbeck (IP Logged)
Date: May 10, 2003 01:32PM
<HTML>Mike,
Does that mean the ferrule has a greater wall thickness at the bottom or that it may be bell shaped. My friend has a Gould boiler and it works just fine. I'm just having a hard time visualizing how a taper drift will make the bottom of the hole more snug that the top.
Dick</HTML>
Does that mean the ferrule has a greater wall thickness at the bottom or that it may be bell shaped. My friend has a Gould boiler and it works just fine. I'm just having a hard time visualizing how a taper drift will make the bottom of the hole more snug that the top.
Dick</HTML>
Re: Stanley Boiler Tubes
Posted by: SSsssteamer (IP Logged)
Date: May 20, 2003 01:00PM
<HTML>Running with out ferrules? I ran the boiler in our '14 Stanley for about 2 years while it was missing a ferrule from one of it's tubes. It didn't have any problems with leaking. I eventually made a new ferrule and now it looks like the rest of the tubes of the boiler again.</HTML>
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