Jim Tangeman's Steam Engine Collection
Garden Tractor, V-2 Frostline, Boat Engine, Steam Engine Collection, Duplex Steam Pump and Converted Sirius engine, and High Efficient Steam Engine.
Garden TractorYouTube Video from the 2012 September Chicago-land SACA Steam Meet Blog Post on the Tangeman Garden Tractor This is the best running ever steam vehicle and thus it is a danger to the driver as it goes far faster than the chassis is designed to handle. The engine is based on castings purchased from LocoGear out of Lake Worth, Florida. These are castings for a Shay Locomotive live steamer and have the advantage of being piston valved. Jim purchased only two cylinders and made the connecting rods and crankshaft for the engine himself. |
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 The boiler is of Worthington design (pages from a Worthington sales brochure) and wood fired. Much effort was made to produce dry steam with many welds made and it works. There is a very clever pressure controlled draft dampener in the front of the vehicle. Everything that Jim makes works and works well and is a joy to drive. |
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Taken September of 2012 |
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The Worthington style boiler was made from many of these pre-welded up sections. Note that the larger diameter vertical tubes are 2 ½ times the diameter of the angled heat exchange tubes. This makes a solid water wall all the way up and puts the heat exchanger natural circulation tubes just far enough apart for good combustion gases flow and close enough together for excellent heat exchange. Also note the large down comers at the ends of the boiler. |
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(Note: Click on a picture to see a larger view and then use your browser to enlarge it further.) |
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| This vehicle has a two speed gear box and a dog clutch to use when shifting gears. Therefore it will go slow through the woods or speed up to 40 mph, which is way too fast for the narrow tread, quick steering, and no suspension, of this vehicle on the road. The boiler has very large down comers and after the experiences I have had I suggest that there is much to copy from this well done machine. In fact there is much to copy from anything Jim Tangeman makes. He is too modest to tell you that himself. | ||
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Steam Meet in January 2005 during the time trials. |
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Steam Meet in January 2005 during the time trials. |
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Steam Meet in January 2005 during the time trials. |
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Steam Meet in August 2007 during the time trials. |
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Tangeman's Collection |
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| Jim Tangeman and some of his steam things being donated to the Kimmel Steam Museum. Loading up. |  |
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| V-2 Frostline engine double acting uniflow with intake poppet valves beautifully made by Jim Tangeman. |  |
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Tangeman 1” bore 1” stroke boat engine |
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| Carbon “D” valve. |  |
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After much use the carbon pistons, 3/8” thick each broke into four pieces. | ||
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Duplex Steam pump and Sirius Engine |
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| Duplex steam pump from castings, and the Sirius engine converted to bump valves uniflow. |  |
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High Efficient Steam Engine |
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Jim Tangeman, Oroville, California. Under construction December 2013.
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Jim is making a 4 cylinder high efficient steam engine. | |
| This will have one of those triangular connecting rods so there is never a top dead center anything. |  |
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| The engine is designed for minimal clearance volume. The exhaust poppet valve is vertical from the top. The intake poppet valve is vertical from the bottom and beside the cylinder. | Steam passages shown. |
| Jim in his shop. He does excellent machine work as well as very good steam engine design. Everything he makes runs. In steam circles this is a very big compliment. |  |
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