Rolling Mill

What is the Tod McDonald Rolling Mill?

We are building a steam driven, two stand demonstration rolling mill here at Youngstown Steel Heritage. The Tod Engine will provide power to two 14" bar mill stands from McDonald Steel with the intention of producing select rod and bar shapes for demonstration purposes.

When complete, we envision a series of operating days where the Tod Engine is operated on steam, turning the rolls to form steel bars into various sizes and shapes to demonstrate the steel rolling process. It is extremely rare for any rolling mills to be preserved and practically unheard of to actually have one in operating order, so this project truly is something unique.

Our tentative schedule is to have the Tod Engine operational by September, 2026 and the rolling mill operational by mid 2027.

Since this project is an attempt to preserve the engineering and manufacturing legacies of the Mahoning Valley, we are partnering with several local businesses to sponsor portions of the mill installation.

Plan view of the steam driven rolling mill with the Tod Engine driving both mill stands via two driveshafts and a bevel gearbox. The engine is from the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Brier Hill Works, the driveshafts, gearbox and mill stands are from the US Steel McDonald Mills.

McDonald Mill Engineering Drawings

February 07, 2026 4:41 PM | Rick Rowlands (Administrator)

Links to drawings for the major components of the Tod McDonald Rolling Mill:

OO-702 Roll Carrier and Bearing

OO-703 Mill Shoes

OO-744 Arrgt. of Spindles and Coupling Boxes

OO-765 Pinion Stand

OO-788 Pinions

OO-857 9" x 23" Ring Oil Bearings

OO-860 12" x 30" Ring Oil Bearings

OO-860A Ring Oil Bearing Details

OO-863 Oil Rings, Dust Guards for Ring Oil Bearings

OO-890 Flange Couplings

OO-943 9" x 23" Bearing Base Plate

OO-944 10" x 25" Bearing Base Plate

OO-946 12" x 30" Bearing Base Plate

OO-1948 Two High Mill Stand

OO-1949 Three High Mill Stand

OO-1951 Mill Drive Shafting

OO-1952 Mill Drive Shafting

OO-1770 Breaking Spindles and Coupling Boxes

OO-2057 Bevel Gearbox Guard

OOT-4F Wabbler Templates

OOCR-30 Blank 14" Mill Roll

14 Mill Training Manuals:

McDonald Mill Crew Training Manual

Roller Training Manual Volume 1

Roller Training Manual Volume 2

Ohio Works Rolling Mill Procedures Manual
Mill Driveshafts

January 22, 2026 9:30 AM | Rick Rowlands (Administrator)

Connecting the engine to the gearbox and the gearbox to the pinion stand are two large diameter solid steel shafts. To get the mill to fit into our limited space, both driveshafts must be shortened.

Currently the gearbox to pinion stand driveshaft is at Mandrel Group in McDonald, OH being shortened ten feet. The much longer engine to gearbox shaft also needs to be shortened by approx. ten feet.

Connecting the engine to the driveshaft involves the creation of components to adapt the universal mill coupling on the engine to the flange coupling on the end of the driveshaft. We have designed a new coupling and spindle based on the original William Tod designs.

The new design for the universal mill coupling that would be bolted to the end of the shortened driveshaft. A new casting must be made and machined to create this part.
Reassembly of the Mill at YSH

January 19, 2026 1:34 PM | Rick Rowlands (Administrator)

In late 2024 we poured a concrete foundation for the rolling mill on the south side of the Tod Engine building. In our design a driveshaft from the Tod Engine will pass through the wall into the bevel gearbox, turn 90 degrees through the support bearing then to the pinion stand and two mill stands. Eventually an addition will be built on this side of the Tod building to house the rolling mill and the wall opened up between the rolling mill and the engine room. All of this will be operational when the Tod Engine operates.

The J&L Narrow Gauge Railroad was used to move the components to the new foundation and the Grove 14 ton crane, also from McDonald Steel was used to set everything in place.
Removing the 14" Rolling Mill from McDonald Steel

January 19, 2026 1:00 PM | Rick Rowlands (Administrator)

The heart of the Tod McDonald Rolling Mill is the mill stands. We saved five stands from McDonald Steel including No. 6 and 7 in this photo. In these, a pair of 14" dia. rolls would squeeze and deform 2,000 degree steel into different shapes depending on how grooves called passes in the rolls were configured.

The power from the drive motor was transmitted to the mill stands via a driveshaft to this pinion stand that took one power input and turned it into three outputs. The pinion stand is in the middle with stands 6 and 7 on the left and a driveshaft bearing on the right.

The power was transmitted through this bevel gearbox to stands 6 and 7.

Removing the bevel gearbox base casting was the most difficult part. It was firmly grouted in, covered with a century's worth of mill grease and weighed 28,000 lbs., over the rated capacity of the overhead crane that we needed to lift it with! But good old DC Morgan cranes are incredibly strong and made this last big lift with relative ease. Here we are using a mini excavator to break the grout out from around the base casting.

The two driveshafts that we also acquired are on the right.