Hello Friends,

A friend sent me the attached photo of foundry pattern they are trying identify. Knowing that Underwood was manufacturer of portable machine tools for the railroad industry my best guess it a housing or cover for a facing machine. Any thoughts?

out of business by 1962, Located at Ridge and Hamilton streets in Philly, building still stands but in an area of recent gentrification.

Hagley Museum & Library has the company records

H.B. Underwood & Company. Records, 1886-1962.
Hagley Museum & Library

Search YouTube for a Underwood boring machine being used on UP 4014

list of products
http://vintagemachinery.org/mfgindex/de ... 3009&tab=6

Well it looks to me like the front (main) casting for one of their joint facing machines;

http://vintagemachinery.org/mfgindex/im ... px?id=3925

This could bolt "around" the top of a steam dome (for instance) with "setscrews". Inside this main frame is a rotating "arm" with a cutting tool. As you cranked the cutter arm it would "face" or surface a steam joint so it was nice and flat. Then take the Underwood machine off, slap on a new gasket and finish the job.

These could also do the end faces of a cylinder to seal the cylinder ends to the cylinder heads.

As the cutter arm was turned (by hand with the handwheel, or with a flat belt) the cutter would "feed" outwards from the ID to the OD of the joint.

Very unique and ingenious tools, why take the whole cylinder casting off the loco when all you needed to do was take 1/16" off the gasket surface to make it flat again.

These took quite a bit of skill and patience to "setup" properly, but once you had the "knack" they were very slick tools.

Cheers, Kevin.

Pictures of the facing machine about half way on page of link provided. Mid Continent member Bob Ristow was heavily involved in setting up and using this unique tool back in about 2006 or so. A little while later it was used again by contractor on valve work in cyl of the same locomotive. Wish I had took pictures and paid closer attention at the time. But was not involved in using this tool. I did get to work with the Underwood Boring machine when the Polson #2 cyl was bored. Very ingenious machines. They are heavy duty and weigh a lot. They work well too.

https://www.midcontinent.org/category/w ... -1/page/4/

Pattern Looks to me for the end of the worm drive gear box used to drive a portable boring bar. We have some of those gear boxes at CSRM for each a 3" , 4"and 6" bar. I got them from Hunter Point Shipyard. The older portable boring bars used a open spur gear drive.
I have a complete underwood catalogue. I have it scanned If anyone is interested PM me and I hopefully can email it . Today Climax machine tool make portable machines which are available for rent.

Dennis Daugherty