| Description | 60 horse power double-acting sun & planet engine, with 40 inch cylinder, 5 foot stroke, parallel motion. Engine originally a double cylinder crank engine not made by Boulton & Watt. Sun & planet wheels replaced with crank 1798.
Coloured elevation and ground plan of the engine in its original construction and ground plan of the mill; coloured original and reverse general view, ground plan and front view of the engine; reverse general view and plan marked "sketch of the alteration of the engine"; parallel motion - reverse drawings; working gear - coloured original reverse front and side views; rotative wheels and lower part of connecting rod, nozzles, parts of the working gear, parts of parallel motion, plan and section of air pump and condenser (partly coloured original and reverse), piston rod cap, gudgeons, connecting links (all reverse except where noted); plan of engine house with engine roughly pencilled in; notes on the mill with rough pencil sketches of shafts, air pump etc. All the drawings except the first and last 2 items bear letter codes.
Also plan and sections of boiler and seating dated 8 Jul. 1801 (coded GKF2).
Original Portfolio or 'Book' No. 278. Catalogue of Old Engines p. 54.
For Davison & Hawksley. Worsted mill, Arnold, near Nottingham. The engine was originally an atmospheric engine built by Francis Thompson. Dickinson & Jenkins [p. 312] say that one of Thompson's engines powered the first steam-powered worsted mill near Nottingham - it was almost certainly this engine. The firm asked Boulton & Watt to convert it to Watt's principals, but using as much of the old material as possible. Boulton & Watt supplied the air pump, condenser, working gear, parallel motion and sun & planet wheels. According to the correspondence the sun & planet wheels were replaced with a crank in 1798.
See also: Incoming Correspondence.
Published references: J. Farey, A Treatise on the Steam Engine, p. 444. |