I'd like to give an update on the progress of the Nathan 1921 Balanced Lever Starting valves.
After the rejected castings, I ended up with 61 finished valved bodies. They still have to be hydro tested to ensure the castings are solid, so there may still be some rejects to come. At this point the valves are all spoken for, but that may change if some people have found alternatives and decide not to buy. I will run another batch of starter valves soon alongside the 1918A injectors since they go together.
These valves have a "priming" position. The first .2" of travel of the handle merely cracks the valve open. This provides enough steam for the injector's vacuum to prime the cones, but not deliver. After priming, the valve can be opened all the way. That said, if desired, you can certainly swing the handle wide open to operate it as a quick starting valve. Personally, I enjoy letting them prime first. Makes it feel more like full sized operation.
Wanted to get one assembled to show, but there's still quite a bit of work to do! All the quadrant castings need to be tuned up, and all the handles need to be straightened, polished, and sent out for nickel plating (the prototype had steel handles). All the valve stems and poppets need to be made as well. All fun stuff!
A note on prototypical installation. These valves were designed for non-lifting injectors, and they were installed in 3 different ways:
- In the cab within reach of the engineer or fireman
- In front of the cab and operated with an extension on the handle
- Bellow the cab, mounted directly on top of the 1918A injector, and operated with an extension through the cab floor
Shown below are the two versions of the valve. The most common type had the flanged pipe connections, but I will also offer a limited number of spanner nut connections as well.