The Humbug & Honeydew Railway
Steam Donkey Pole Hoist

Steam, smoke, oil and lifting heavy things with machinery, cool eh?
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Overall View of the Pole hoist
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My Pole Hoist model is loosely based on a three drum loader style Steam Donkey. The module is approximately 20" wide and 47 " in length. The steam donkey is based on the MM-901 single drum hoist by Ozark Miniatures. The sled was scratchbuilt from poplar. The drums were made by cementing two control knobs face-to-face. I found the knobs at a local surplus hardware store for $.25 each. The drums were then cored with plastruct 1/4" copoly tubing. The tubing was then bored to 1/8" and brass axles were inserted.

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The hoist drums are driven thru delrin (Grandt Line or Serv-o-Link) chains and sprockets from gearhead motors. The gearhead motors are hung beneath the module on a piece of machine aluminum angle. Each of the motors has a momentary-on-center-off-momentary-on control switch that reverses the motor.


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Each of the control switches corresponds to an individual drum. The left switch controls the hook. The center switch controls the boom height. The front switch controls the front drum which swings the boom to the left. The counterbalance (55 gallen gray drum) is used to return the boom to its neutral position.

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The operation of the unit is an acquired skill. I do not allow myself to touch the hook or loading ring when picking up the palleted materials. Instead, I use all three drums to manipulate the hook to the correct position. Once you get the hang of it, the hoist functions like an extension of your hand.

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The steam donkey is driven by a gearhead motor. A Seuthe smoke generator resides in the stack of the donkey. I am planning on adding one of the newer style, fan driven smoke units soon. To further enhance the well used effect, the module has a Miller Models sound system of a steam donkey driving through an amplifier and large speaker. The donkey turns a small motor that simulates a generator complete with an operating belt and pulley. The generator lines run to several lights that help illumnate the module. The module is further finished with junk, clutter, vehicles and debris.