Automatic lubricator
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An automatic lubricator is a device fitted to a steam engine to supply lubricating oil to the cylinders and, sometimes, the bearings and axle box mountings as well. There are various types of automati
Modern locomotive lubricators. The center item is a mechanical lubricator for the cylinders, operated by the connecting lever seen below it (or by the hand wheel, for priming). The smaller one to the right is a § syphonic lubricator. The item on the left is not a lubricator, but the filler for the sandbox.
Hydrostatic lubricator showing sight glasses with oil drops rising through the water
Patent drawing of the original Midland Railway version of the Silverton mechanical lubricator as reproduced in the December 1911 issue of 'The Engineer' magazine.
Nathan mechanical lubricator fitted to South Maitland Railway ten class loco No.18 in preservation.
Elijah McCoy
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Elijah J. McCoy was a Canadian-American engineer of African-American descent who invented lubrication systems for steam engines. Born free on the Ontario shore of Lake Erie to parents who fled enslave
Automatic lubricator
…locomotive was coasting. However, this proved ineffective in practice, particularly if the locomotive was coasting for a long time (e.g. down a hill). Elijah McCoy, a Canadian who moved to Michigan and became a U.S. citizen, received a patent for his 'improvement in lubricators for steam-engines' in 1872. Piping…
McCoy c. 1895
McCoy historical marker, Ypsilanti