Description:Reverse general section of 'Sun & Planet' engine for Don Fernando de Torres, Cadiz, Spain, January 1791.
Another European engine, this time for Spain. This was one of a handful of engines that Boulton & Watt sold in Spain, through the London merchant Fermin de Tastet. The engine was to power a saw mill at the docks in Cadiz. This was the biggest 'sun & planet' engine that Boulton & Watt built, with a 60 inch cylinder and approximately 169 horses’ power. Note that the engine had a braced beam of a kind that was used on large pumping engines. William Murdock’s brother James went to Cadiz to erect the engine, but clashed with de Torres who accused him of laziness and conning money out of the authorities. The engine was eventually completed by another Boulton & Watt engineer, Malcolm Logan, and James Murdock was sacked on his return to England.
This drawing is part of the Archives of Soho, held at Birmingham City Archives [Ref. MS3147/Portfolio/5/58]