eshland coal gun 130

What is the history of the coal gun?
Eshland made one very similar. Did AHS take them over ? Can one get parts for the eshland?

Inquiring minds want to know!!

I was told that Eshland almost went under at one time and was bought out by an employee(s). The boilers AHS makes are identical to the Eshland models except where minor improvements have been made. My dad purchased an Eshland E180 in the 1980's and replaced it with an AHS E180 stainless model a few years ago. Same boiler, different inner material.

I was also told that Eshland once made parts for Axeman-Anderson and this is why the coal gun is similar to the AA130.

Perhaps Patrick could shed more light on this.

Glenn, if you make a call to an old friend, you'll get the 'rest of the story'. You will have an inside track then.
Evolution from the old AA design was where it started, but just for that type of boiler. Growing pains as mentioned by Steam-up, cost time and money. Like outdoor boilers, live and learn. I've seen 15 of these (outdoor boilers) in my little town of 2800 folks since last Sept. I've only gagged a few dozen times from the acrid smoke........they keep stuffin' the wood right to em'. Most have used 10 cords or more. That's a lot of sticks, even if they were 'free'.!

Is your Eshland an indirect blower or the direct mount? Ashing timer or thermocouple? The older models replaced all the gear mechanisms with a simple timer usually set to run 2 minutes for every 10 minutes that the fan ran. Auger fed or a hopper model? Most auger fed models used a bindicator(tm) to control coal level in the smaller hopper. As far as I know, they were bulletproof. Anyone with an Esland/AHS is probably not doing much to it, they are a simple, rugged and hands-off unit.
The 130 is like the story of "The Little Train That Could". The 260 is a take no prisoners model. It makes some real heat, for not much coal usage. The 500 is not for the faint of heart! Big Toys for BIG Boys!

Send me a PM if you have one available, I have a friend looking right now. He burns propane (@2.58/gallon) and used 1120 gals so far this winter heating 1610 sq ft. at 66 degrees. I don't go nuts with my house, 70 is very comfortable, 66 at night.
He shivers and is now listening when I mention the uniform heat and quiet operation of the boilers.

2 pics I have so far.

Whistlenut, can you tell the answer to those questions by the pictures?

This a real early one. The auger is a copy of the AA unit, not the current hopper variety. That auger is independent.
The blower is an indirect (belt driven), can't see the other end, so I don't know about the timer. If you do take this one apart, take your time and remove the wires or mark them. After the piping and auger are removed, then the two outer jackets, there are only 4 bolts that hold it to the base. Remove the blower assembly ( 4 bolts that could be rusted, so soak them before twisting them off.) Two real rugged guys can move the top section a short distance, 3 or 4 would be a cake walk, get it in the truck or trailer and go find another one! I'll bet that unit will look like brand new inside. The AA's, AHS's, EFM's and Keystoker's' are lifetime units. If the tankless unit was used, don't forget to blow it out to keep anything from freezing up. Winter isn't over yet!