The steam engine that originally ran the clock is a Stuart #4 single expansion double acting 1" piston engine. Gastown steam clock
Raymond Saunders' first steam clock was built in 1977 at the corner of Cambie and Water streets[2] in Vancouver's Gastown neighbourhood. 49°17′04″N 123°06′32″W,[3][4] It was built to cover a steam grate, part of Vancouver's distributed steam heating system, as a way to harness the steam and a means of masking Central Heat's sidewalk steam vent at the corner of Water Street and Cambie Street."[5] Although the clock is now owned by the City of Vancouver, funding for the project, estimated to be about $58,000 CAD,[6] was provided by contributions from local merchants, property owners, and private donors. Incorporating a steam engine and electric motors, the clock displays the time on four faces and announces the quarter hours with a whistle chime that plays the Westminster Quarters.[7] The clock produces a puff of steam from its top on the hour.[2] The steam used is low pressure downtown-wide steam heating network (from a plant adjacent to the Georgia Viaduct) that powers a miniature steam engine in its base, in turn driving a chain lift. The chain lift moves steel balls upward, where they are unloaded and roll to a descending chain. The weight of the balls on the descending chain drives a conventional pendulum clock escapement, geared to the hands on the four faces. The steam also powers the clock's sound production, with whistles being used instead of bells to produce the Westminster "chime" and to signal the time.
Size: 4800px × 3195px
Location: Vancouver, BC
Photo credit: © Mette Holm / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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