Swiss lake steamer operations

[Hunt Dowse]

Here's a video of the steam operation of a Swiss lake steamer.  They have almost horizontal high and low pressure pistons due to space restrictions.  It's a good explanation of steam operations in general and specifically to the lake steamers in Switzerland.
https://youtu.be/_dNSyEmp64o

[John Kokas]

The wife and I took a similar steamer out of Interlaken while on our trip to Switzerland.  The Swiss lake boats are all of similar design, with the engine machinery open to the upper deck and yes - the engine room is so clean you can eat off the floor.  The equipment kept in such excellent repair that they truly run like Swiss watches.

[Dag Bonnedal]

Terrific video of a Swiss watch in superscale!

In Stockholm we are lucky to have two 115 years old steamships running in regular service as part of the Stockholm local transit.
During the pandemic they overhauled the machinery of the flagship s/s Storskär and as a passenger you are always welcome to visit the engine room and chat with the crew there. They are so proud of their ship and you can have a conversation in normal voice next to the 650 hp trippel expansion engine. And the very brief stops at all the piers are just touch and go, just as efficient as the modern ships thanks to the huge torque of the engine and big propeller. Here is a short video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dNSyEmp64o
A five hour evening round trip ending with steak, onions and fried potatoes in the dining room is an essential part of every summer.

Dag

[Philip Marshall]

What a great video, thanks for sharing it.

I'm reminded of this classic Fox Movietone film footage from 1930, filmed on a steam ferryboat in New York (engine room sequence begins around 5:20): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlPir688cDc

-Philip Marshall

[Carl G. Soderstrom]

When I was in 6th grade (About 1953) I was lucky enough to take a Class Trip up the
Hudson River to Indian Point on a side wheel steamer. Sadly I did not get a chance to
see the Engine Room but inspected all the mechanical stuff I could.

[Ted Miles]

Carl,
        Your class trip would have been aboard the Hudson River Day Line's side wheel steam boat Alexander Hamilton. She was the last of a long line of Day Line river boats. She was retired in the late 1960s. Plans to turn her into a floating restaurant failed to happen when the boat was wrecked in a winter storm back around 1975.

Ted Miles, fan of old things that move. 

[Carl G. Soderstrom]

Ted

I remember it was the Day Line - but after all this time the boat's name escapes me.

It has been overwritten or in a few years I will remember (probably because you said so)

[Keith Taylor]

Carl,
        Your class trip would have been aboard the Hudson River Day Line's side wheel steam boat Alexander Hamilton.

Ted, in 1953 it could also have been the Robert Fulton as that wasn’t taken out of service until 1954.
Keith

[Carl G. Soderstrom]

It had a huge walking beam - I remember that, Though I remember most of the boats
had Walking Beams.

Glad Midsommar

[Keith Taylor]

It had a huge walking beam - I remember that, Though I remember most of the boats
had Walking Beams.

Glad Midsommar

If it had a walking beam it was “The Robert Fulton.”  The Hamilton was not a walking beam boat.

Keith