page_title: Marine steam engine
section_title: Grasshopper
hierarchical_section_title: Marine steam engine / Engines classified by connection mechanism / Grasshopper
caption_attribution_description: English: Diagram of a marine grasshopper engine.
context_page_description: A marine steam engine is a steam engine that is used to power a ship or boat. Reciprocating steam engines were progressively replaced in marine applications during the 20th century by steam turbines and marine diesel engines.
context_section_description: The grasshopper or 'half-lever' engine was a variant of the side-lever engine. The grasshopper engine differs from the conventional side-lever in that the location of the lever pivot and connecting rod are more or less reversed, with the pivot located at one end of the lever instead of the centre, while the connecting rod is attached to the lever between the cylinder at one end and the pivot at the other.
  Chief advantages of the grasshopper engine were cheapness of construction and robustness, with the type said to require less maintenance than any other type of marine steam engine. Another advantage is that the engine could be easily started from any crank position. Like the conventional side-lever engine however, grasshopper engines were disadvantaged by their weight and size. They were mainly used in small watercraft such as riverboats and tugs.
caption: Diagram of a grasshopper engine
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