Can we talk about the sheer weight of some of the old riveted boilers we still find?

I was reading an old trade journal from 1958 and it said a single 72-inch steam drum for a power plant boiler could weigh over 18 tons before it was even installed. How did they even move that without modern cranes? Anyone ever had to work on something that massive from that era?

3 comments

3 Comments

danieltaylor21d ago

Those old riggers were a different breed. They moved that kind of weight with block and tackle, timber cribbing, and a lot of patience. Modern cranes make it faster, but the basic physics of leverage and rolling it on pipes hasn't changed. The real trick was setting it perfectly level without digital readouts, just a spirit level and maybe a plumb bob.

simonw4121d ago

Watched my grandpa level a barn beam with just a water hose and his eyeballs, never seen anything like it since.

walker.rowan11d ago

Ever see a rigger's notebook? They had math for that, not just patience like @simonw41's grandpa. I'd trust their old lift plans over some digital readouts today.