Steamer Admiral Whistle

Thanks for starting this interesting thread. I had never heard the Admiral's whistle, but it would be interesting to know what became of it. Could it still be on the boat? If so, I would like to see it blowing again.

Pressure is not a problem, as any steam whistle with a removeable languid plate can have it exchanged for a slightly smaller one that will allow the whistle to achieve its full performance at a reduced pressure. Simply lowering the bell also reduces the output, along with the operating pressure. This would result in a wimpy sounding whistle, which we certainly don't want. We need a whistle that can compete in output with the air horn.

The real problem is whether or not the air receiver is large enough to supply the required flow rate in CFM for a reasonable amount of time, as most whistles, as a rule of thumb, require around 100 CFM/inch in diameter. The best way to make the most efficient use of the air for a whistle is to design it for maximum performance at the least possible pressure by using an annular slit width of .0625" and a high capacity pressure regulator, such as a Wilkerson R41 directly in the line before the whistle valve.
http://www.wilkersoncorp.com/9EM-TK-190/9EM-R41.pdf

These modifications will allow the whistle to blow at its full output until the pressure in the supply tank drops to the pressure set on the regulator rather than beginning to lose output no sooner than the pressure in the tank begins to drop.

We are actually making the whistle several times more efficient, as the formula HP = Volume (cfm) x Pressure (lb. per sq. in.) /229 x Mechanical Efficiency of Fan applies well to Roots blowers. For a Roots blower, assume a mechanical efficiency of 80%. For a rotary screw compressor, assume a mechanical efficiency of 90%.

The formula also predicts the boiler HP requirement shown in the Lunkenheimer whistle catalog for whistles requiring the same CFM rate at a much higher pressure of 70 PSI, assuming a mechanical efficiency of 85% after converting CFS to CFM. The same whistle designed for operation at less pressure uses proportionally less input drive power while maintaining a given acoustical output in dB/100 feet. That makes it several times more efficient and more competitive with an air horn.
http://www.lunkenheimercvc.com/images/CVC-Engineered-Specialties.pdf

Stephen McMullen;22672 wrote: Please forgive me for starting a new thread.....I did not know where to look.
Does anyone know what happened to the SS Admiral 3 or 4 chime whistle? Does anyone have a recording of it? It had a very distinctive sound. I don't know if it was 3 or 4 chime, but I have never heard anything like it anywhere else, live or in a recording. When the boat converted to diesel they no longer used it (used a gawd-awful horn) I guess because no compressor could produce enough pressure.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. To hear that whistle one more time
is on my "bucket" list. No, I am not terminal, but why wait?

Stephen McMullen;22672 wrote: Please forgive me for starting a new thread.....I did not know where to look.

Does anyone know what happened to the SS Admiral 3 or 4 chime whistle? Does anyone have a recording of it? It had a very distinctive sound. I don't know if it was 3 or 4 chime, but I have never heard anything like it anywhere else, live or in a recording.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. To hear that whistle one more time
is on my "bucket" list. No, I am not terminal, but why wait?

Stephen,

Yes, I have a recording of the Steamer ADMIRAL's whistle, which I recorded live aboard the boat on August 24, 1969. Not only did I record her whistle that day, but also her scape (exhaust through the stacks) and two medleys of songs played on her steam calliope by musician Dick Renna. If you want to send me an address, I would be most happy to burn an audio CD of the whistle, scape and calliope for you. You may post an address if you wish here on the message board, or else contact me privately by e-mail at [email protected] Glad I can be of help in your quest to hear those wonderful sounds of steam again aboard the ADMIRAL.

OMG!

That would be fantastic! I sent you my address via email. If there is
some way you could allow Steamboats.org to post it, I think people would
have the chance to hear the most distinctive and beautiful whistle anywhere.

Admiral whistle

Distinctive maybe, but most beautiful???? Beauty is in the ear of the beholder, I guess. That tape to which Dave refers was copied by a group of DQ crew and pax at his home in Dubuque during a shore stop back in 1978, I believe. Since we didn't have patch cords, we had to remain silent during the recording, a fate not so simple - but it was worth it.

SS Admiral Whistle

Well, it was a multi-chime whistle, and the notes were put together well.
When I get it, I will decode the various notes that are there.

For your information, in the steam era, railroads would select a whistle
sound that was distinctive for their railroad. For instance, the Norfolk and Western lines had a very throaty whistle. In a city, you could sit in your living room and discern what railroad was signalling! In East St. Louis, Ill
we had 22 different railroads going through town.

There are dozens of variations of horns available, Leslie, Nathan, etc, but the
practice of standarizing a sound is a tradition these modern railroads no longer live up to.....

Whereabouts of Whistle

Does anyone know what happened to the steam whistle? I don't think it
was dismantled when they converted......they used a gawdawful horn.

And what happened to that Calliope? I understand it came from The Capitol,
so it has been around a long time. Anyone know where it is now?