But did 9 still have it's original jacket, or did it have a jacket that was put on by the Sandy River or one of the other roads it worked for?

Even in the era of Russian Iron there were other materials used for boiler jackets. I am surprised we have not heard of these in this discussion.

I agree completely. Looks like it was hot blued--making the coating magnetite.

I'm going to try to answer the questions in a concise fashion.

Daniel,

Steve,
It wasn't hot blued. It received black oxide treatment. Black oxide is the same material that was created in the "real" Russia Iron process as detailed by the books. So, we are trying to create the original material as best we can. The real holdbacks from replicating the original process to the "t" were the quantity required to replicate the process and the need for a large oven adjacent to several large planishing hammers.

Brian,
Interesting point about other materials. I think its worth noting that all of the material we collectively refer to as "Russia" Iron was not made in Russia. We are talking about a specific type of planished iron that was famously produced in Russia. Both the Americans and English imported it to a great extent. Later, the Americans studied and improved their own process so they could make a similar type of planished iron here in America. The same thing may have also been done in England .

Daniel,
#9 still had it's original jacket. The Portland plans specified a planished "russia" iron jacket and the jacket that came with the engine when it came to us was "Russia" iron. Considering all factors it is most probable that the jacket is the one the locomotive was built with.

Steve

Black oxide IS what hot gun blue is.

http://www.blackworksusa.com/whatisblackoxide.html


I have no doubt the finished engine will look stunning, but the metal, while very shiny, looks far more black than any other images I've ever seen of genuine Russia Iron or planished iron.



http://www.pacificng.com/template.php?page=/ref/russiairon/index.htm

Hi Steve,

Are there any markings on No. 9's assumed-to-be original jacket that might indicate where the material was manufactured? For example, the pacificng.com link Randy Hees shared on the first page of this thread has some photos of forge stamps or touch marks on surviving pieces of Russia iron jackets that show they were indeed of Russian origin. Anything comparable on the jacket pieces the WW&F has?

-Philip Marshall

Steve,

After reading your link and your post I am confused. The link says there is a variation in the chemicals used for gun blueing and the chemicals used for black oxide. So it seems they are similar, but not the same.

Philip,

I have done some cursory inspection and have not been able to find any mill marks. This does not mean I have given up though! I am also consulting the Portland Company's business records. My goal is to find out who their supplier was for planished iron. I am excited about what might be revealed in this process about the locomotive and what we might learn about where the Portland Company acquired their "russia" iron.

Steve

Steve,

I hate to play devil's advocate (especially with friends!) but here is a photo of No. 9 in her earliest years as Sandy River RR No. 5 -- essentially new and as delivered. The jacket is clearly much lighter in color than the smokebox, domes, or cab. How does the new jacket compare to this?

-Philip

Philip

What do you call being devil's advocate to the devil's advocate?

The image you present is obviously a hand colored print from a B&W negative, so the color is strictly up to the colorist, who may have been working in a studio hundreds of miles away, and never actually seen the subject of the photo. Hand colored photos are notorious for getting the colors of passenger equipment wrong. The image only illustrates what the colorist expected the boiler jacket to look like, which, I suppose, is a useful addition to the discussion, but it may not be actually recording the color of that particular locomotive.

Balck oxide is a chemical method of generating the same chemical oxide(s) as in atmospheric bluing, by using a defined chemical process. The resulting magnetite layer is thicker, and probably more regular, than that produced mechanically in the Russia iron processes described in many of these references.

There are a number of proprietary mixes for this (just as there are for boiler treatments, snake oil or otherwise!). The saturated solutions for some of these run at a temperature considerably above the boiling point of water - and 'makeup water' is required fairly often, so there is a safety problem both from small steam explosions and spatter of the chemicals used. Surface prep is important, as it is with other methods that 'blue' by creating a thin continuous oxide layer. It's difficult to produce a finish other than 'black' in one of these tanks. Do not expect this to have the 'glanz' or Russia iron without the mechanical planishing of the surface, or have a surface color other than 'black'
The black oxide tank coating is good to temperatures above 1000 degrees F, so it should hold up in any reasonable cleading or jacketing if the lagging is any good. On the other hand, a coating of oil over the magentite layer is essential in keeping the surface free of corrosion in a typical 'locomotive environment'. If I recall correctly, silicone oil, which does not degrade the way carbon-based oils do, can be used. Be very careful when rubbing or polishing as the oxide coat is relatively easy to scratch, and the iron surface to distort, if pressure is applied to particles of sand or grit, which of course tend to adhere to the oily surface. If you clean the jacket with a detergent, or alkaline-treated boiler water or feedwater gets on the surface, re-establish the oil film.

Randy Hees posted a note to one of Don Strack's articles indicating that some form of Russian 'Russia iron' was fabricated via a 'caustic' process that involved 'ureic acid'. I have been unable to find any detail references to this -- can someone, or more particularly Randy, point me at the actual material, or a reference that discusses the chemistry in detail?

Why did you have to replace the jacket?

Steven, here's a section of the old jacket...too far gone I think.

Hello Everyone,

The Wiscasset, Waterville, and Farmington Railway's Master Mechanic Jason Lamontagne, who is also project manager for the restoration of #9 asked that the following be posted here regarding the jacket currently being installed on #9:

Steve Hussar's image above shows what we had to work with- an old rusted out jacket with numerous spots of surviving finish. We don't know that this is definitively the locomotives original jacket. It is some form of planished iron that was worn on the locomotive while it ran on the WW&F. It is either the locomotive's original jacket or one that was installed during a rebuild after it's first wreck that was probably done by the Portland Company.
This reproduction is not an exact match for any existing Russia Iron that we have seen. Instead it is a reasonable representation of the original using readily available commercial methods. It was never meant to be an exact reproduction.

Here is a picture taken from a different angle, which shows how the color hue of our iron can vary in different light conditions. Our material, like the original Russia or planished iron, appears vastly different in varying light conditions. This is due to the highly reflective nature of the finished product.
This picture was (obviously) taken outdoors:

Photo Courtesy of Stewart Rhine.
This reproduction is not an exact match for any existing Russia Iron that we have seen. Instead it is a reasonable representation of the original using readily available commercial methods. It was never meant to be an exact reproduction.

Also, hot blueing is in fact the same process as black oxide.

Our reproduction material is darker than that shown in the photo of the locomotive as built. Our research shows that it tended to darken over time. While our reproduction is not a perfect match it is a reasonable match to several surviving patches from the locomotive's original jacket. Again, the reproduced jacket is meant to be a reasonable representation and that is all.

Hope this helps to be more representative of our philosophy and process and better explain our intentions.

Here are some documents and photographs that others looking to do research on russia and planished iron may find helpful:

Advertisments:

A Phelps-Dodge advirtisment from the January 4, 1873 American Railroad Journal. Interestingly, this publication was published on a weekly basis.
https://books.google.com/books?id=20MjAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA769&lpg=PA769&dq=russia+sheet+iron+importer&source=bl&ots=XmGC3vZLa2&sig=H3m19VyNTUu9wV3N8ry05bN7K30&hl=en&sa=X&ei=6YGeVZy5FtPpoATyvYagBg&ved=0CDAQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=russia%20sheet%20iron%20importer&f=false

Articles:

A February 23, 2011 article from The Tube City Almanac (McKeesport, PA) on W. Dewees Wood's mill for the production of planished iron in McKeesport.
http://www.tubecityonline.com/almanac/entry_1651.php

A reference to Bruce and Cook of New York from the August 8, 1898 edition of "The Metal Worker". It mentions Bruce and Cook as "now about the only importers of Russia Iron in this country."
https://books.google.com/books?id=XIlCAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA7-PA54&lpg=RA7-PA54&dq=russia+sheet+iron+importer&source=bl&ots=VCwoz9ubDS&sig=X3TIqV5MBhcRJXxj3LbBUVnb3Fc&hl=en&sa=X&ei=iICeVYXiBor8oQTyvJmgBg&ved=0CB4Q6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=russia%20sheet%20iron%20importer&f=false

An index of suppliers from the July 2, 1920 Metal Worker, Plumber, and Steam Fitter
https://books.google.com/books?id=NZxCAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA614-IA29&lpg=PA614-IA29&dq=bruce+and+cook+iron&source=bl&ots=aZbckAVoWx&sig=jGQlwhlOLGnkD1ChKc3UpOCPwBs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=74CeVeq2CJTsoASy6YLABg&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=bruce%20and%20cook%20iron&f=false

A July 27, 1907 Trade Report from The Metal Worker, Plumber, and Pipe Fitter mentioning the difficulty in obtaining Russia Iron.
https://books.google.com/books?id=2NgfAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA3-PA77&lpg=RA3-PA77&dq=russian+sheet+iron+boiler+stove&source=bl&ots=VfJhHSXb7t&sig=yxRWViQqUmahc0yShoWLkwqAOjE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=XjOdVeT3I4XggwTatICwCg&ved=0CBsQ6AEwADgK#v=onepage&q=russian%20sheet%20iron%20boiler%20stove&f=false

An article from the September 21 1878 Engineering and Mining Journal regarding Russia Iron
https://books.google.com/books?id=8OQ-AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA203&lpg=PA203&dq=russian+sheet+iron+import&source=bl&ots=8TI9bjyUbY&sig=cRfS0T8zNZkE85qUWDzKbyYphU8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=3jSdVef9HcfUggS_jLGICg&ved=0CCoQ6AEwBTgK#v=onepage&q=russian%20sheet%20iron%20import&f=false

Dealings with a sheet mill labor dispute from the July 6, 1901 The Metal Worker:
https://books.google.com/books?id=bJ1CAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA43&lpg=PA43&dq=dewees+wood+sheet+iron&source=bl&ots=Ddk8HLuAaX&sig=aqtVLOTOGLikIPd64jSvXZSamRI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=HmidVYibFYOeNqOag_AJ&ved=0CCYQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=dewees%20wood%20sheet%20iron&f=false

W. Dewees Wood obituary dealing with his involvement in the Russia Iron Trade from the February 10, 1899 American Economist:
https://books.google.com/books?id=OacRAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA65&lpg=PA65&dq=w.+dewees+wood+company&source=bl&ots=LFgp2TPrjE&sig=R4BozoiZL-NfpP1N_HL3ZxzFpZQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=bXKdVebyFMjYggTm6oqQCg&ved=0CCIQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=w.%20dewees%20wood%20company&f=false