I hate the Hand Pump ! ! !

Saving my shoulder, replace the hand pump. 

The STW Hand Pump is a backup device.  You have to have a way to get water into the boiler if the level drops too far and trips the safety shutdown.  After driving the Lyka for a year (60 miles total) I have been studying how the water level moves during driving, how it changes after being parked hot, and what happens if you play and interrupt the natural physics of the boiler and steam system. 

But the hand pump is very slow to fill the boiler.  There is a handle provided that attaches to the pump.  You have to stroke it up and down, netting an unknown amount with each stroke.  It takes a real long time to get any level change in the sight glass, and frankly, my shoulder gets very upset after about 5 minutes. 

I was watching Jay Leno work on his Stanley Vanderbilt Racer where he was explaining the startup procedure and made the statement that they replaced the hand pump on the Vanderbilt with an electric pump to top off the boiler if needed.  I figured that if Jay could do that, I could too!

 

Here is the hand pump installed and plumbed into the feedwater system. 

 

 I came up with a number of criteria for the replacement pump:

• 3/8" NPT fittings
• 12 volt DC power
• 200 PSI max pressure
• capable of running dry
• reasonable amperage use
• fit into the space near the hand pump location

 

 

This is the model I chose.  About $125USD

 

Test placement.  Might be tight.

I chose to mount the pump to a piece of 1/8" plate, the unit comes with rubber feet and you screw thru them to give yourself a shock absorbed deal.  I also added the following items to the assembly:

• 12 V automotive relay w/socket.
• inline fuse holder / 20A fuse.
• barrier strip for connections
• SPST switch to be mounted next to sight glass in engine compartment. 
• 2 - 3/8 NPT M/F close elbows - brass. 
• 2 - 3/8 NPT x 12" high pressure braided pigtails (3/8"NPT M each end) 
• 1 - 3/8 NPT F - 3/8 Compression adapter.
• 1 - 3/8 inline check valve - 2PSI differential - 3/8"NPT F/F
• 1 - 3/8 NPT M - 3/8 Compression adapter. 
• High temp (plenum) 2 cond cable for hookup - 18ga for switch, 10ga for main power.
• cable cover (woven black) cause I want things to look old. 

I tapped into one of the positive battery connection points and my ground buss bar up under the floor. That cable ran along the top of the frame near the tabs for the fuel tank and then snaked back along the outside of the left hand water tank. 

The switch is installed in the frame over by the sight glass.  I do not use the engine cover at this point, so it's placement is not an issue.  In the future I may move it to a more obscure position. 

After removing the hand pump, I used the bracket to mount the plate. Then routed the flex hoses thru the available holes to meet up with the 3/8" tubing in the hand pump circuit.  I cut the tubing to length and attached via the compression ends.  All NPT threads were sealed with Rectorseal#5 and I added teflon string to the brass elbows as they threaded pretty deep.  

Here is the resulting assembly with the inlet flex tube coming up thru the hole in the hand pump bracket and the outlet flex tube leaving via the space between the frame and the back wall.  All electrical connections are at the back of the pump. The relay is hidden under the fuse holder. Everything is sealed in shrink tubing after crimping.  

 

A view from the back, the inlet pipe is on the left, the outlet on the right.

 

A look from the side. 

 

It is hard to see but there is a 3/8" check valve in line on the output.  I chose to do this because I was seeing some anomalies on the hand pump that indicated there was backwards pressure in the system and the little ball bearings were not always stopping it.  Most of the time after a run, I would find the handle of the hand pump in the "fully extended" position.  This indicated to me that pressure had been applied to force the piston out.  I would move the handle back to the mid position, and it would be forced out each time.  Since this is feedwater, the temperature was basically ambient, so just pressure was involved.  The pump has an automatic cutoff at 200PSI, that will keep me from overtaxing the system.  

 

A lonely hand pump

 

SYSTEM TESTS 

I flipped the switch, the pump whirred, nothing came out.  I went inside, had a pee, sat and pondered a moment.  I disconnected the two compression connections and put the inlet in a bucket of water, nothing.  I went to the outlet - I could feel some slight pressure against my finger, but nothing else. 

I stuck the out tube in my mouth and sucked - EUREKA - a mouthful of bucket water - and it kept on coming.   I know there are chambers and diaphragms in the pump head, so I am guessing that they were dry and sealed up.  Just needed a priming to get the juices flowing. 

Of course each time I played with the plumbing I needed to drain and fill the tanks, so I hooked everything back up, checked for drips, refilled the tanks some more and did my first test. 

Test #1 - no pressure. 

I drained the boiler to just above the cutoff sensor, then ran the pump while manipulating the feed valve lever. 

 

 Test #2 - under medium pressure - 120PSI.

This test simulates the situation where you have run the water level low and cut-off the burner but for some reason the engine-driven pumps are not doing it for you.  You pull over and park, turn the pump on and manipulate the feed lever to fill her back up. 

Watch the video - I will discuss it after.

 So here is what I saw - 

1. The water level was late in starting to change.  I think this is because the "bubble" was trapped so I did not see the fill happening until late.  
2. I played with the bypass lever, should have moved it the closed and stayed there.  I was working from ear, waiting for the same clack I get while driving and pumping.  I did not hear that, I heard a "rattle".  The rattle was occurring as the bypass was opening and closing.  One closed, the pumping action "flow rate" was enough to keep the check valve open, so we do not hear the "clack".
3. Once the bubble moved, and I stopped playing with the bypass, the pump did its work and filled the boiler back up. 

Notes: My check valve is a mechanical flapper (brass) and gives a noticeable "clack" when opening and closing against the engine-pump action.  It would appear that the pulses in the flow allow the valve to close between pumps.   The electric pump is much more continuous, reducing the clacks except when opening and closing. 

I will continue to play with scenarios and push the pressure up to test limits. 

The end result is that I now have an electric pump and my shoulders are grateful. 

Thanks for reading - 

Jim

poppapope

Denver, CO USA 

Just a few more things before I go. (Steaming)

You can not have a steam engine without a whistle!!!

                                                My good friend Frank testing the valve action.

 

Lets start at the beginning.  

About the second thing I bought on E-Bay after I signed up for the Lyka process was a steam whistle.  I paid too much, got a hand made but still serviceable two-chime made out of copper.   It also included the whistle control valve and handle.   That was worth the price I overpaid for the whistle.  

4 Years later - The car is done, and I want a whistle.  But I decide I want to show it off visually as well as audibly.   So I go out and buy a pretty 4-Chime Brass unit from the UK. 

It has a 1/4" solder connection so it will fit in great with the rest of the tubing system.   Back when I was plumbing the boiler I made the decision to rework the runs to the pressure switch and the gauge.  I chose to loose the metric sized tubing as I needed to supply some of the missing pieces, so instead I converted it all to 1/4" copper with compression fittings.  

I also rummaged thru my junk drawer and found a brass bracket and fashioned a band that would allow me to mount to the front panel.  I used a little JBWeld to secure the band, just to keep it from moving.  

The injection point for the whistle is a compression T inserted in the Switch/Gauge line.  I chose a point at the top of the initial loop right before the tubing turned to head off to the pressure switch. I routed the tubing over the top of the right cylinder and then down on the far side of the left one.  

This brought raw steam down to the front of the engine, and I worked hard to find a place where I mount the whistle valve.   The biggest issue was the strength of the spring in the whistle valve, and I found a way to mount it so I could reach back with my heel and press down.  

The other issue was that the valve was 3/8" and the tubing was 1/4" so there were some other demands to be met.   I ended up with multiple adapters. 

 The little red handle is for a ball valve to allow for a restriction to control the amount of steam allowed into the whistle valve.  The max pressure of 265 PSI is just too much for the whistle to handle. 

I made a brass plate and anchored the outlet port and then used a metal zip tie around the lubricator to stabilize the motion when the green valve handle was pressed down. 

The outlet points down and has a reducer down to the 1/4" inch tube size.  The tubing drops down about 5 inches and then heads over to the side of the car and turns forward along the edge of the frame. 

 

Once the tubing clears the front edge of the fuel tank,  I added a cover to the tube, just to look cooler.  Then the tube curves up to the underside of the whistle. 

Since I anticipated a lot of steamy water spurting so I searched the scrap drawer again and found a plate to add as a barrier.  

 Another look in the pile found a bracket to add support to the flex tubing.  Makes it very stable.

 AND THE FINAL RESULT IS . . . 

 

Finishing up the whistle, I wrapped the new piping in the same insulating wrap I used on other steam piping.  I wanted to accomplish two things, one protect fingers, and second, conserve steam.  

 

Improving the wrap of the boiler. 

Heat - lots of it. 

Sitting on top of the boiler with the engine panel off,  you can really feel the heat.   So much so that I have seen some of the electronics ( the relays controlling the lights) get cranky and stop operating when the engine panel is on.  

I found a source for "muffler wrap" that is a dimpled aluminum with a layer of ceramic wool.  I used it to start the insulation process earlier, but still had some parts that only had the original cladding from STW.  I used large stainless steel zip ties to add two large pieces, one panel in the front between the steam outlets, and another larger one wrapping the rear, from side to side. 

                            The rear area behind the boiler - just the original STW cladding in place. 

                                                  The same area with the new cladding added. 
 

The front panel in place.

That wraps up the whistle installation.  You might have noticed that the hand pump is missing from the rear cavity.   I will discuss that in the next post. 

Thanks for reading.

 

Jim

(poppapope)

Denver, CO USA 

VIN VIN, who's got a VIN - . . . I DO!.

More Strange Roads Traveled.  

It has been my goal to have my Lyka titled, licensed, and plated as a vehicle under the laws of the State of Colorado.  This has been first & foremost on the to-do-list for a couple of years.  I started doing research on the C.R.S. Section 42 -  Motor Vehicles - ended up reading most of the section, and concentrated on the Collector Vehicle sub-section.  

The process is not difficult, just time consuming, especially since I had to take the Lyka to meetings with the Colorado State Patrol - 15 miles away.  Which means a trailer and enlisting my son as my driver in his Lexis. 

 

But let's go back to April 2026.   I went to the CSP (Colo State Patrol) website to make an appointment for a VIN Inspection, the first step in applying for a VIN.   Appointments are booked 2-3 months out, but you can "wait-list".  I made an appointment for late May at a patrol office near me (10 miles) and started my wait.  

In early May I got antsy and drove over to the CSP office to see if I could meet with one of the inspectors.  I had pictures, and wanted to confirm what documentation might be needed to make things go smoothly.  As it turns out that was a good idea.  While I did not talk to the inspector myself, the clerk took my papers back and I could hear the conversation with the inspector.  When I heard "I don't think that is 'road-worthy'", I knew I had the wrong guy and went home, cancelled the appointment, and looked into one at the headquarters.   That was the right thing to do.   I managed to luck out and signed on to the appointment system right when someone cancelled, which gave me an appointment the next week. 

In the appointment system, you get an email from the inspector to confirm yours.  I used this to ask him if I would need to take the Steam Buggy off the trailer.   He replied no - and as it turned out was intrigued so he looked me up.   YouTube.   

When we got there, he came out and was saying how cool the Lyka was and that I was sure to come out ok in the process.   We went over the car, discussed the brakes, lights, reflectors, and other required items.  I showed him the documentation from STW and the certificates I had from inspections.  We then discussed how I wanted to be considered a "collector car" ,  or better yet a "Horseless Carriage"  - because it is one. 

There was a wrinkle in the process - My vehicle was completely built from scratch.  Most "kit" cars start with a donor vehicle.  The year and model draw identities from the donor, and the kit modifies the result. In my case, with no donor vehicle,  there was no make/model - just a result.  The VIN Inspector decided he could not proceed without further guidance, so all my information was bundled up and sent off to the Colorado Department of Revenue - Motor Vehicle Division for a decision on where to put me. 

Fast forward a month, now June, 2026 - The D.O.R. said I am an ASVE  - Assembled Vehicle with a year of 2025, which is when I finished it.   Not exactly what I was hoping for, but it got us moving forward. 

So the next step in the process is to go to DMV and actually apply for the Colorado Assigned VIN.  I went, waited in line for 3 hours, and paid my $3.50 to have the application sent back to the D.O.R. for approval and issuance of the plate.  I suspect that there is some old guy in the back of the DMV office hand stamping out plates.  It took another month before I got a call to come back out (another trailer rental) and have my plate attached.  

So by the end of July -  I have a VIN.  Now to apply for a title. 

 

Keep on Steaming - Stay Sane.

Jim   

The End of an Era - Steam Traction World closes down - Finish a build on your own - Tips and Tricks

They took all the money and ran . . . 

('nuff said)

 

OK, so for all you Lyka Builders,  How to get your baby on the road?

Since I do not know what has been shipping and in what condition the shipments were in, I can only speculate based upon my experiences and the questions I have been getting.   

I received final shipments a year ago.  This was because Dean started building my pile before he left, and I got a lot of parts that were the spares from the previous series.  Even so I was missing a lot of the individual pipe pieces and a number of adapters and connectors.  

I will build on this post as the questions come in.  

#1 - Lubricators -  

There are a couple of places you can find them.   Note that the ones originally provided by STW did not meet with rave reviews.  They had an eccentric on a shaft that activated the pump.  This wore out.   Most of us now like the Foster type lubricators.  I cover these in my post "Subsystems Part #2" in May 2025. but I left out a few things.   

 

The 4” model was chosen to match the size of the model provided by STW.  The model they provided had a bottom outlet, the Foster’s have a side one.  So the pipes needed to be changed, one was totally replaced, one was just bent.   The 4” sits just fine on the little shelves just a new hole pattern to mount.  

My kit was missing the check-valves for the lubricator lines, I got them from:  https://steamfittings.co.uk

If you look at the check valves on the site, the last part of the part number is the same as the part number on the STW parts list.   Other wise John Rex has them.  Just make sure you get them in the right direction when you put them in.  If you have to “splice” in the feed tubing, you can soft-solder (plumbing type) anything below the check valve as it does not get hot.   Silver solder on an 1/8 ID tube is a pain some time.  

The lubricator and also the water hand pump, plus inline water check valves etc came from: John Rex. 

https://johnrexmodelengineers.com/shop/    He also has an eBay shop but will cut you a deal or two if you use his other store, it saves him from paying e-bay fees. 

 

As to the connections to the con-rod,  there are two barrel nuts for the con-rods.  Strangely enough I got one way back on kit #14, and the other never showed up.   So I made 2 matching ones out of brass hex stock.  They are threaded all the way thru length wise, and have a hole thru in the middle.   They thread onto the con-rod bolt, then have another short bolt in the end to lock in the lubricator rod. 

I used the provided push rods from STW but re-formed it to fit.   Whatever you do, make sure the push rod is NOT TOO TIGHT, meaning the linkage should be a little loose.   The ratchet pump is part metal, part plastic and you do not want to stress it. 

The 4” Foster lubricator fits well and seems to distribute the oil efficiently.  I fill the oil reservoir at the start of a run,  usually 4-5 miles it is down about 1/6th of the way.  Remember that you need to adjust the pump on the lubricator, by moving the piston in/out and locking it down with a nut.  Make sure you know how to do it before you fill it and hook it all up.  

At the end you want each pump cycle to release about a pea-sized drop into the pipe.   It takes a while to fill the pipe, and once it does, the fact that oil is uncompressible will keep the injection stable.   The lubricators are nice in that there is a little crank and you can prime them by pumping it a few times to get some oil into the steam before you start up.   

The Hand Pump

The water hand pump from John Rex is the 3/4” ram size and IS the one STW provided originally. It might be made by someone else, but it bolts right into place.  You just have to replace a part for the handle to fit out the back of the body.  In Kit #14 I got a few random items, one was a piece of steel in a right angle.  This replaces the one on the pump from Rex as it are straight. 

 

The pump has two built in check valves and works well but it takes a long time to fill the boiler.  Better than nothing though.  When I put mine in, and used the stock pipe to hook it up, I noticed that the engine pumps managed to pump feedwater back thru hand pump and into the left hand tank.   This might seem to be ok and the tanks are hooked together but it filled faster than the transfer back to the right hand tank so I got water coming out of the vent.   To correct this, I put in two check valves - one close to the engine pump witch allows water to flow OUT of the hand pump and into the common connection in the engine pump but blocks the flow in the other direction.  The other is inline with the outlet of the left tank into the hand pump,  this keeps the flow from going backwards as well.   A belt-and-braces approach.   JRME has all the necessary valves as well. 

 

 

   .  

 

A Review of Some Modifications

Just something to pass the time. . . 

December 8 - update 

Got a very nice write-up in a local on-line automotive magazine: 

www.shiftcoloradomagazine.com  

Earlier in Late Summer:

I made a video discussing the a few of the modifications I made to the Lyka.   Remember that  I came into this project for STEAM, not necessarily HISTORY.   To those that pursue the holy grail of the historically correct original paint-job rolling chassis, I wish you well, and we can wave when we pass each other on the road.

 

I am getting near the end of my build.   

Hope you enjoyed the ride. 

 

 

 

 

 

 Be safe. 

Jim (poppa) Pope

Denver, Colorado

USA 

 

 

Update on the Regulator

Testing the rebuild

To recap - The regulator was very messy when first assembled.  It spit a lot along the push-rod thru the stuffing plate, and had a continuous leak at the seam of the two body pieces. 

 

I reassembled the unit after adding an O-Ring to the base of the threaded end at the seam of the two body pieces.   I used a US vendor - www.oringsandmore.com.    I measured the groove on the threaded end and bought a selection.  The one that fit was: 3/32"cross section, 15/16"I.D. , 1 1/8" O.D. , and made of FKM. FKM is rated at 600F.   

 

STW did not mention anything about an O-Ring.   As a matter of fact, the instructions for assembly of the regulator basically said - "Look at the diagram, you figure it out."  I used X-Pando on the threads and around the O-Ring.   I connected the two body parts together and torqued it in a vise with a large wrench. 

I then installed the regulator back in the car.  The nipple end bottomed out in the "T" location so I did the procedure where you paint the threads with SteamSeal, add a sealant thread, and then paint the threads again.  This allowed the mating to take place and gave me the ability to rotate the regulator to meet up with the brackets without worrying about being loose.

 

Once back in the car I let everything sit and harden for a week while I traveled.  Then I came back and fired her up for a test.  The test was with the boiler at the top of the glass, but the tanks are still out so I can get in and feel for exhaust and or steam leaks.  I heated her up to 200PSI and let her soak.  I purged a little thru the cylinder drains and over the next 2 hours watched for drips or steam in the area, purging every 15 min or so.   

After everything had cooled down, I finished wrapping the pipework to cover flare joints and exposed pieces in an effort to reduce the heat.  Once the tanks are back in, I can move on to the burner adjustments and hopefully finalize this whole lady. 

 

 

 That's all for this little update.

 

Thank you for reading,

Jim (poppa) Pope

 

 

 

SPECIAL NOTES on PIPEWORK AND FITTINGS - in case you have not figured it out yet.

Pipework - Threaded Parts

STW uses mostly NPT fittings on the Lyka plumbing.  I am not sure about the other models, but my Lyka is over 95% NPT.   The small amount of BSP is on the commercial items that are from EUR and UK.  These always get adapted to NPT.  

STW has a habit of "Tapping too deep" on some of the manifolds, tanks, and other pieces, the tap goes way to deep, and you end up with pieces bottoming out.  One way around this is to layer some teflon thread in with the sealant as you assemble the pieces.   This does a great job of tightening everything up but still allows disassembly in the future.  

Pipework Part Numbers - If it has a part number like - LKxxxx, it is a custom part.  If it has a strange longer part number, it probably came from McMasterCarr.  Plug the part number in to their website and you will most likely find it.   

Same thing with most of the bearings. 

Flares: 

Here is the info I have discovered on the flares 

1. Non-standard flare adapters and nuts. STW makes all the flare adapters and nuts - so ALWAYS keep them as a "matched pair". The NPT side of the adapter is standard, the flare is not. If you need to reconfigure a piece of pipework, insert any changes but keep the two original ends intact. If you are building a new piece - steal a nut off the old if you are going to attach to something like a manifold with welded pieces, otherwise get a new PAIR and replace the adapter too. 

2. Flair ends - DOUBLE FLAIR. Standard flare kit with the double flare widgets (45 deg) work great. NOT BUBBLE FLARES. You need to end up with pretty cones. 

3. ANNEAL THE COPPER TUBE ENDS - really saves on the pain of flaring the hard copper. STW uses almost all 3/8" copper. Most of mine is "L" type - thicker wall. 

4. Get a GOOD tube bender - and make sure you put the nuts in place BEFORE you bend. I had a bunch of issues with getting the nuts over a tight bend.  

5. Get a set of NPT Pipe Taps and Dies. 1/8, 1/4, 3/8. 1/2. I can not count the number of times I needed to clean up the threads. 

 

Pipe Thread Sealant - 

A. I use a soft set (Rectorseal #5) on all the feed-water stuff because it is low pressure mostly. and you need to un-hook stuff if you are going to pull the tanks etc. 

B. I use the Steamseal with some teflon thread (looks like dental floss) on high pressure that might need to be serviced. Butter the pipe threads, add the teflon, add some more Steamseal to cover, screw it all down tight.  Great for when things are tapped wonky.  

C. I used X-Pando (real good stuff) on the pieces on the boiler and the main steam outlet. as it expands and locks it all real nicely.  But if you "break the seal" you will need to disassemble, clean, and reseal it. On the main steam outlet I suggest you get everything staged so you can swivel the pieces around as you build the stack of parts.  X-Pando takes a while (24 hrs) to harden so you have some working time - it is NOT like Loc-Tite.  Stick with Steamseal/Thread on the regulator attachment to the T as you will be servicing that.