CAUCE No. 131 Winter 2009
Merry Cfiristwas, Everyone!. ... and a Happy New Yearí From the Footplate. Welcome to issue No. 131 of the TA" Gauge News and your new Editor David A Nicholson. Many thanks especially to Bob and the rest of the Committee for their help and support in the changeover. Bob has put a lot of systems in place that make the Editor's job much easier than it could have been and I am very grateful for this. 1 do not think we have seen the last of Bob as Editor and I am sure he may edit several more issues in the future. I was happy to meet some of you at the recent AGM and was glad to receive several offers of articles for the magazine. Please do not walk away if you see me Coming, I am happy to receive brief notes and a few sketches or photos if you do not feel up to writing the full article and I will do the rest. Some of our most skilled members seem reluctant to put their work into print. What seems obvious to someone with an engineering background may save a novice many hours of wasted work. As mentioned by Bob in his last éditorial and John Nicholson (no relation) in the letters section of this issue I have been a member of the Society for many years. The early AGMs were very enjoyable but very différent from Leyland, small gatherings where you could meet and talk to everybody there. Unfortunately many of the early names are no longer with us but 1 hope to recali some of them in later issues. I am building a IVi" gauge American style narrow gauge locomotive which was in my workshop for many years as work commitments permitted only very slow progress. I have now retired and the loco has been moved to the Moors Valley Railway Workshops for completion. Thanks to Jim Haylock and Tim Woron for their help and encouragement. I hope to have it at Echills Wood next year. If your railway has not had a mention in the "News" for some time, or you are in the process of building something please send in an article. If you use a supplier who provides a good service please let the Trade Liaison Officer know or if you are one of the companies that support our gauge an article about your company would be welcome. May I wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you ail. Ed.
Merry Christwias J^ jfirm everyone!!! JH
PRESS DATES FOR SPRING ISSUE. The latest possible dates for inclusion in the Spring issue #132 are; advertisers' instructions and copy to be with the trade Liaison Officer NO LATER than 4th Jan. Articles, Letters, Hints, tips & Snippets etc. Must be with the Editor by the 8th Jan. Sooner eases the workload. Notices of "Events" and members "Sales and Wants" should be put directly on to thp new Website or in case of difficultv sent to. our Chairman. David Bovde hv tut Februarv 2010.
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3 TINKERBELL DEVELOPMENTS by Paul Ash - Member 02766
Firstly I would like to thank our latest 'NEWS' editor for the support and encouragement in writing this article. I was more than pleased to be able to offer my support and I hope members will find this of interest. My first experience of miniature live steam came as a child thanks to a 5" gauge garden railway, then as I grew older I moved up to IV" gauge and constructed a narrow gauge battery electric locomotive. I have always loved the 7 V" gauge 'Tinkerbell' design by Roger Marsh, and following a visit to the Moors Valley Railway in the early 1990's I resolved that one day I would own one of these beautiful engines. Helped on by Jim Haylock I was finally able to build my own enlarged 'Tinkerbell' class loco (named Perseus) in 2006 and this currently runs at the Moors Valley Railway in Dorset. I hope, with the editor's permission, for Perseus to be the subject of an article in a future édition of the 'NEWS'. After completion of the first loco I soon found I had itchy feet and wanted to build something new again. 1 have always had a soft spot for the Heywoodesque qualities of the early Roger Marsh 'Tinkerbell' design and therefore it seemed a natural choice to build another 'Tink'. I purchased this latest 'Tinkerbell' loco from Joe Nemeth as a part-built in summer 2007 as a 40th birthday present to myself. The loco at that time consisted of the main frames, wheel sets, cylinders (unmachined) and the completed (CE marked) steel boiler. Joe had originally started the build I believe for the Oldown Miniature Railway (now closed) however it appears to have had a number of différent owners up to the point I purchased the loco. The loco is a standard Roger Marsh design and features 2'A" bore x 414" stroke cylinders with Heywood valve gear. In a change from the original concept the engine will feature
4 a locomotive type boiler, as opposed to the marine type of the original design. In order to balance the additional weight of the firebox on the locomotive boiler 1 plan to add some ballast weight to behind the front buffer beam and make the smokebox from 6mm steel plate. Other minor changes to the original design include adding sealed bearings to the rear pony truck, hopper ash pan (required for the locomotive boiler) and a less obtrusive draincock operating mechanism. From the outset it is planned to have an open cab with front spectacle plate as currently found on the original 'Tinkerbell'. Construction to date has been slow, however the frames are now fully assembled and painted, with wheel sets and coupling rods fitted. The brake gear is complete and the cylinders are fully machined (thanks Joe) and ready to go on. Whilst the build has gone well it has not been without problems as can sometimes be the case when buying a part built project. To date the main issue has been mis-set fly cranks causing the coupling rods to bind. This was eventually diagnosed after checking the quartering between lathe centres-it has since been corrected. Attention has now moved to the valve gear where, in another change from the original design-maximum use will be made of water jet eut parts and needle roller bearings throughout. Hopefully this should speed up the build and see the chassis running on air by the end of the year. After that there is the smokebox and chimney to complete, plate work (cab and side tanks) and then painting and piping. Expected completion will be sometime in 2010 based on the current rate of progress, with the target being the 7 gauge AGM in September at the Echills Wood Railway. 1 then plan to run the loco not only at the Moors Valley Railway, but also to take the engine to other railways and special events. 1 hope you have enjoyed this short piece and I look forward to being given the chance to write for you again in the future.
5
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7 THE DRAGON AWAKES! - Part One by Dave Lewis The last time I put finger to keyboard we were waiting for the man with his JCB to start building the embankment using the sub-base and anything else left over from the pond excavations. He arrived in December 2008 and in three and a half days he put in the complete embankment, and in my mind it would have taken us about three and half months to achieve the same result. It starts from the station junction and runs for 300 ft., to the bridge and climbs to about 2 feet high after the bridge yet another 300 ft. to ground level, so it should tax one or two loco's and drivers. On designing this site it seemed a good idea (Oh the work). Since Christmas it has been a hard slog of slaving away to build track panels and the track bed, plus the bridge and the second set of points. So far the track bed gang have laid some thirty to forty tons of chippings for the ballast, plus the wood sides to retain it. The whole of the track is being built to TN3 standard, this includes the bridge and ali the curves are to a 70 ft. radius, so as to allow the bigger locos a chance run. We have also had to move many tons of soil to backfill ali of the above work-while ali this has been going on a few others have installed a second generator. Also we are looking for another container to make a garage for our tractors, front loader and trailers, etc. As many of you know ground maintenance takes up a good amount of time and effort. This year has been the most productive in the building of the track as up until the middle of last year we only had bits and pieces of track going into nowhere, or so it seemed. But not now! So what is it like to drive on? On leaving the station we have a slight down grade to the first set of points, to allow you out on to the main line and the first of the two level crossings (which are to be fitted with gates) then the first of the 70ft. curves passing the site for the steaming bays on the right and out on to the main straight passing the Station Junction points. On to the climb up to the bridge at 1 in 100 level out over the bridge and with the second curve behind you have an easy run down-grade (watch the speed). Straighten out and run down to the third turn towards the clubhouse running parallel with the Newport to Hereford main line (good site for steam specials), passing the club house, workshops, generator house and over the level crossings for the second time this time to take right-hand fork at station junction (this is where the exit from the steaming bays will be, yet another job!)And back into the station after a run of some 2800 ft. This is phase two of the ground level track. Phase three should include the extension to the raised track and possibly the wildlife pond also there will be the canopy on the ground level station and the second road. At the time of putting together this article we opened the track to the public for the first time in conjunction with a (Meet the Police) day on the sports field of which our site is part. It looks like the day was a success as far as testing the track for the first time in anger so to speak, and apart from some minor bits of checking and fettling the ballast that we only laid the day-before, the ride was first class (I had to say that for ali the hard work the track gang put in) thanks guys!. Our plans for this winter: we hope see a finished station and some way towards the turntable and steaming bays and maybe the centre road.
8 The raised track gang are now looking at starting taking the track ìnto the middle of the site which will shadow the ground level out and back to the stations. It has been a hard slog to get to where we are today and I would like to put in print a big Thank You to ali the members for their hard work to date, and by the way there is another 15 tons of chippings delivered to move! I am hoping to put on a Charity event in aid of the British Legion so more on that in the New Year. I know that once we have a few more bits and pieces in place we will have an opening event that we can invite members to have a run next year. So watch this space!
9 SANDBOX by Rob Bongers After a few years of driving, it started to irritate me. Only a few drops of rain could reduce the braking power to an irresponsibly low level, and tractive power went too. Not only wet weather, grease and oil from the steam engines could also spoil the fun, especially in the station area. Every full-size loco has a sanding system, in third-world narrow gauge there's a bloke sitting on the front of the engine with a bucket of sand. A handful of sand on the railhead can solve part of the problem, there's still emergency stopping... I couldn't find any death-daring pixies to do the job, so a system had to be invented. Biggest problem was the sand valve, it shouldn't be too big, the desired amount of sand proved to be like what comes out of a table salt dispenser, very little is needed for good effect, too much might cause damage to gears and bearings. In the big household rubble box I found a disused gas valve, easy to mount with screw on pipe joints. I didn't need gas-tight closure; I figured that removing the coil spring which kept the conical valve airtight might do the job, and decided to put it to the test, expecting to need to replace it after a few months. Instead of the knob I mounted a little arm, to connect a pull rod with return spring to open and close the valve. The valve was mounted on the bottom of a steel bowl, containing about half a litre, and below I made an upside down Y-shaped copper tube, to lead to the wheels. The whole system is mounted on my moped engine powered loco 'Panter', just below the top of the hood. The last five em's of pipe are made of garden hose, to prevent damage when derailing. I use special fine braking sand, provided by Romeo, the Rotterdam historical tramway, or sieved bird-cage sand. The system proved to be very effective; on wet tracks I had no problem anymore on moving or stopping a full passenger train. On dry tracks the braking power is beyond belief, I can stop like the full train is braked, with only two braked axles. The durability of the valve exceeds my expectations; the first valve still works after more than ten years of service. Last year the system was slightly modified, instead of a hand pulled rod I mounted a foot pedal, which made it much easier to sand, especially when making an emergency stop, when two hands are already needed for brake wheel and clutch handle. At the AGM on the Comrie Railroad I could put the system to an ultimate test on the 1 in 23 slope. Solo engines stood with spinning wheels, I pulled my ten wagon train with four passengers from a full stop without spinning. My engine The Miniature Railway Supply Co. Ltd. weighs 135 Kgs, the driver's (my) weight adds it up to 200 www.mrsc.org.uk) Kgs. One problem remains, after a few hours of driving in rainy weather the sand pipes tend to clog up, as the falling Phone/Fax:01442 214702 sand sticks to the wet inside, so Email:[email protected] I have to figure out something 42 Stratford Way, Boxmoor, Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP3 9AS with an air jet to keep them Lever clean. And, when reversing, I frames have to use the old hand [Signals] method, as the pipes are only in £ j cri'W front of the first driving wheels. Wagon I still have to build a second 42 Stratford Way, Boxmoor, ' p'| Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP3 9AS setup for reverse driving. E-mail: [email protected] My oh my, there's always Phone/Fax: 01442 214702 something left to do... www.scalewaysignals.com
10 ALL STEAM ENGINES WANTED any âge, size or condition considered - any distance any time
ALL 5" GAUGE LOCO's WANTED Hunslet, Simplex, Speedy, BR Class 2, Horwich Crab, BR 8400 tank, Maid of Kent. Black Five. Jubliee. Royal Engineer, BI Springbok, Torquay, Manor.
ALL 3'A" GAUGE LOCO's WANTED Tich, Juliet. Rob Roy, Firefly. Jubilee, Maisie. Doris, GH'R Hall, Britannia, Hielan Lassie, etc.
ALL 7V4" GAUGE LOCO's WANTED Hunslet. Hercules, Jessie, Ronmlus, Dart, Bridget, Holmside, Paddington, GWR Mogul 43xx, GWR King, Black Five. A3, Bl, etc. ALL TRACTION ENGINES WANTED Minnie. Burrell, Royal Chester, etc.
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H FROM THE PRESIDENT
I was really delighted and felt greatly honoured to be appointed Président of our Society at the recent A.G.M. It is indeed an honour to follow Brian Rogers who we ail greatly admired; we owe him so much for his foresight in the work he undertook to lay the foundations for the Society - he will always have a spécial place in the history of our organisation and in ail our memories. I could never equal the standing that Brian will always have so far as we are ail concerned; however I can certainly emulate his love and enthusiasm for the Society. Kathleen and I have made so many friends through the Society and I have always enjoyed making a contribution over the years to the management of our affairs and I look forward to helping where I can in my new role! I look forward to continue to see as many members as possible visiting Society Stands at exhibitions, events at various railways etc. My thanks to the Committee and Membership for my appointment - Best Wishes to ail our members and their families for Christmas and of course "happy running for next year" Brian Reading Président of the 7 'A" Gauge Society
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13 THE 36™ A.G.M OF THE 7 GAUGE SOCIETY. LEYLAND 2009 by John Arrowsmith
The only way to describe this event held at the Leyland Society of Model Engineers over the weekend of the 25th-27th September is "WOW"! Welcoming, Organised and Wonderful. I think everyone who attended this fine event were astonished at the number of members who attended and registered, over 700 members came to Leyland and brought over seventy locomotives with them, all of whom had time on the track during the three main days. The Leyland club did everyone proud with their superb organisation of such a large number of people and engines. Their welcome to the Society was marvellous and the overall result was a wonderful weekend. The furthest travelled member was Lindsay McDonnell a member of the British Columbia Society of Model Engineers from Vancouver in Canada. Rob Bongers came over from Holland and another continental visitor was Claude Magdelyns from Le Petit Train au Vapeur de Forest in Brussells, the hosts for the AGM in 2007
The 36th AGM held in the large marquee completed the formal business of the Society without any serious problems or awkward questions, except for getting one persons name wrong in the report of the 2008 meeting. This glitch was resolved with some good natured banter and humour, which added a little something to the proceedings. The presentation of the Charles Simpson Trophy for services to the Society in the past year was made to Gareth Jenkins. It was received on his behalf by his young son, who again caused some amusing moments, for the assembled members. Following the sad loss of the Founder and President of the 7 V" Gauge Society, Dr Brian Rogers, the meeting was asked to endorse a Committee proposal that the current Vice President, Brian Reading, be inaugurated as the new President. This was whole heartedly agreed by the meeting, and Brian duly accepted the nomination to the acclaim of the attending membership. Additional changes to the Committees saw Bob Gray relinquish his position as newsletter Editor remaining a committee member. The new editor of the 7 %" Gauge News will be David Nicholson. To complete the formal business Jeff Stevens from the Echills Wood Railway, duly invited the Association to hold the 2010 AGM at their track in the Kingsbury Water Park. Prior to the formal business of the AGM, the Society members had enjoyed a full days operation of the superb track of the host Society. The variety of locomotives just had to be seen to be believed. Diminutive battery operated engines happily mixed in with large narrow gauge prototypes, and in between were the standard gauge locomotives and a wide selection of smaller narrow gauge and freelance machines. The quality of all the locomotives running was excellent and a fine tribute to the Society. The local community fully appreciated the size of the event and there was always a good queue for rides. The Track Manager and his assistants worked extremely hard to maintain a full service on both Saturday and Sunday and with over seventy locomotives wanting track space, it was no mean task. I must mention one particular train which had its turn on the track and that was a special named " The Matrimonial " because the drivers of the double headed goods train Gilly Gould and Matt Rainer were married two weeks prior.
14 What a wonderful way to start married life, I would like to add my congratulations to them and hope that they continue steaming together for many years to come. Brian Remnant from Romney Marsh in Kent brought along his latest effort in the shape of a Simplex Rail Motor. This was just a basic steel frame with all the workings exposed to the elements so that Brian could check the drive system. It looked most odd with Brian travelling around the track with what appeared to be an open box in front of him, many a raised eyebrow was cocked at this combination. As usual though, there were no serious problems with either the operation or personnel, and the younger drivers were able to enjoy themselves along with their senior colleagues. The catering providers also had their work cut out to maintain a full service with over seven hundred members signed in, but again they coped and everyone who needed their service was able to enjoy a wide range of food and drink. On Sunday the new President, accompanied by his wife, together with the Chairman David Boyde and his wife, boarded the Presidential train driven by Bill Dadswell to enjoy a circuit or two of the track whilst quaffing a glass or two of a suitable beverage. I must say it provided a splendid finale to the official proceedings. The local community again arrived in large numbers to ensure that Sunday continued in the same way as Saturday. The weather remained fine and dry so that the maximum number of drivers and engines could enjoy time on the track. Sunday is also the day when the homeward journeys begin and the weekend friendships that have been renewed, say their goodbyes, with the wish that it may be repeated in the near future or perhaps even next year at Echills Wood. Whatever the outcome is, this weekend will be remembered for its good organisation, camaraderie, and the superb hospitality of our hosts the Ley land Society of Model Engineers. On behalf of the 7 %" Gauge Association please accept our sincere thanks for a splendid weekend.
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15 WHAT WE NEED IS A BIG DIESEL! - Part One Designed by Martyn Redfearn (2212) built by Brian Biggs (1158), with a little help from others.
Bogie as drawn It all started when we ran the first Santa Special at Brighouse and Halifax Model Engineers in 2004. 1t was my idea to run the Santa Specials and I did ali the planning which included a 10 minute timetable. I had timed the physical process of driving the circuit loading/unloading at both ends and the swop of locos at 'North Pole' at 7.5 minutes. No problem then two locos should easily cope, one at a push, but the first run on the actual day took 12 minutes-we had problems! Anyway with a lot of geeing up we settled into the 10 minute timetable. But then we lost a loco, now it became really tight the answer was something that we could instantly get going, 'a big diesel'! Brian and I discussed at various times over the next few months, then the Summer 7 VA" Gauge News arrived and there was the first instalment on 'Albert'. Now someone else has a similar idea, we were planning to go the AGM at Millerbeck so it was a perfect opportunity to have a look and see someone eise's 'big diesel' or in the case of Albert a battery electric. Also at the AGM were two big diesel-hydraulics, more food for thought and a future project for Brian. We started to think it through and the main thought was to keep it simple, scrounge or buy off the shelf (well EBay) as much as possible. One aim was unlimited running which ruled out batteries so Brian suggested a proper diesel electric, using a single phase generator-feeding 3 phase motors through digital phase Converters. This would provide industry standard Controllers designed for everyday use and therefore long term reliability. So the EBay hunt was on, first target a multi cylinder diesel generator (Brian wanted the classic diesel sound and to be able to leave the loco ticking over whilst parked up then increase the revs before you set off with one throttle control before using a second leaver
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17 to control the loco speed. After a few very low bids which led to failure we bought fairly cheaply a 6KVA twin cylinder diesel which Brian completely stripped and serviced. Now we had an engine we needed to start a design. I happened to have the remains of a failed project to build a very large 2-8-0+0-8-2 narrow gauge Garratt (it would have been 21 ' long and 27" wide). A few sketches later, I emptied my mother-in-law's garage (which for some strange reason made her very happy) and loaded the car up with Garratt remains; - wheel castings, flame cut cranks, flame cut frames and lots of 27" wide steel. 1 am not sure if the car springs ever recovered but it is a good job Brian had proper foundations for his workshop. Our thought on body design went through many phases, English and American prototypes were considered, but ultimately we kept coming back to Albert and to be precise one photo that I had of Carnegie which was the second loco in the originai Hunslet series of 18" locos for Woolwich Arsenal. Once we focussed in on Albert/Carnegie as the basis the project gained the name Victoria (or Vicky as she is affectionately known to me and Brian), why because what other name would you associate with Albert? For those who these means nothing your history is lacking and 1 suggest a Google search for 'Victoria and Albert'. Production department (Brian) got underway with the first task being a bogie. 1 adapted the drawings I had of the Garratt bogie from 2-8-0 to 0-6-0, this was first departure from the prototype which is a 0-4-0+0-4-0, we had lots of wheel castings and with the expected size it seemed that more wheels better spread the weight. Bigger narrow gauge 4 and 6 wheelers have increased the track (steel bar not rail section) maintenance significantly at Brighouse and Halifax Model Engineers, we did not want to add to the problem because guess who would have to sort it out?!
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19 I have previously mentioned 27" wide steel, the Garratt was 27" wide across the buffer beams and there happened to be 4 pieces 27 x 10" so to save lots of cutting Vicky ended up 27" wide with 10" buffers. This steel and therefore the bogies start to set Overall size of the loco, but all I had was a single photo of Carnegie and the one of Albert in the "News". I did try the Yahoo Hunslet Group for drawings and one contributor suggested writing to Hunslet, which I did. They were very helpful but most of Hunslet's drawings are held by Armley Mills, Leeds Industriai Museum so 1 had to wait until they could check, unfortunately no copy of the drawings could be found-now why did I not try Phil Ridgeway? About this time the most fantastic design tool came my way, 3D drawing software. I literally drew the whole loco in a week! Admittedly there have been lots of changes since those initial drawings (well virtually every part has been redesigned) but as you can build up parts into assemblies I could work out what needed to be changed. 'Production' (Brian) had the habit of not building to drawings, he blamed 'Design Department' (me) for not getting it right but I think he was being lazy and was often tempted to use a bit of material that was in stock. To be honest this was the first design I had ever done I was trying to use as much as possible from the pile Garratt bits and anything else we could get for free. The software is usefiil in swopping between metric and imperiai, the Garratt stufi was all imperial, but 'Production' liked metric! In the Garratt remains were lots of brand new roller bearings, now the 'Design Department' had to sort out axle boxes, but I had just discovered take-up bearings which seemed to fit our original plan of 'buying off the shelf' rather than spend lots of time making (we still have lots of large roller bearings in stock if anyone can make use of them). Amazingly the flame cut horn slots were a perfect size for a standard take-up hearing, so Brian went hunting cheap take-up bearings. The guy at Spen Bearings got very used to Brian arriving and asking for some form of cheap Chinese bearings/sprockets, at least one of the sprockets was very old and slightly rusty stock but cheap! He refused to seil us cheap chain insisting that we needed a good quality chain. Interestingly the change away from axle boxes meant a change in width between the frames of the bogies. The 3d software came into its own with a very quick change to the dimensions to check everything would fit although it also meant I supplied 'Production' with some interesting measurements, 9.97561mm instead of 10mm, Brian also reckons that I asked him to do '3 foot 4.6mm' but I don't remember that one-perhaps he had been on the beer! When I found 'tracepartsonline.net' it made 'Design's'job much simpler as I could just download the pre-drawn 3d parts. That is how I found that the take-up bearing was a perfect fit; this site is great (and free, well mostly) as it has lots of standard parts already drawn for various 3d software packages. We tried to keep the coupling rods as simple as possible; my original drawing had a take-up bearing on each end with a round bar between and two separate rods rather than a jointed one. We ended up with bearings (yes cheap Chinese) mounted in a bored piece of round bar with fiat bar welded between them, the centre crank carries two bearings, the iront and rear have one each with a spacer either behind or in front of the rod, a 'Production' redesign. Now as the cranks were designed for normal locomotive style rods it is perhaps not surprisingly that these simple rods were heavier that the cranks. This became obvious when the bogie always ended up with the rods down when it was given a slight push, so we have had to weld some plates on the back of the cranks. Now the weight was really piling on I am glad we went for 12 wheels-one thing for certain adhésion would not be a problem.
20 Carnegie the photo it was drawn from
Take-up bearings
21 CHAIRMAN'S CHRISTMAS CHATTER The time has come around to summarise 2009 and indeed to plan for the future enjoyment of our Society. The 2009 AGM is over and what a fantastic job the Ladies and Gentlemen at Leyland did for us all! The site was magnificent, the hospitality was awe-inspiring, and the picture on everyone's face was one of total satisfaction and enjoyment. Our thanks must go to the fantastic work done by the Leyland Society of Model Engineers for a job exceedingly well done and for that the IV" Gauge Society is extremely grateful. Looking briefly at the past, it was with great sadness that the person who was chiefly responsible for the forming of our Society way back in 1973, Dr. Brian Rogers, passed away in 2009. His influence on us all is something we must never forget. He was a great innovator in developing a very small group of people (40) into the Society we are now, with a membership, as I write, of 1720 people, being represented in 26 countries throughout the world. What an incredible achievement! Brian Rogers' successor is Brian Reading, whose appointment as our President was approved at the A.G.M. He has been our Vice President for the past four years, and prior to that our Chairman for six years. Congratulations, Brian -1 know your enthusiasm to help develop our Society is equal to that of your predecessor. So what happened at the AGM? Bob Gray, our ex editor ('X-Zed' as he now calls himself), retired after four years and passed the pen (or is it the keyboard) over to Dr. David Nicholson. Thank you Bob for a job well done and you certainly have achieved a great deal in such a short time. David will, I know, strive to build upon Bob's successes and we look forward to seeing his input into our Society magazine - The 7 Vi" Gauge News. Dare we hope that it will be selected for next year's Booker Award?! ! I must also mention that David Tedford decided that he should stand down at the AGM and I would like to thank him for his assistance throughout the past two years. Where then are we going in the future? Members everywhere, our future bodes well! We have introduced new systems to help our Society grow, including help for Railways/Clubs. These were the AGM Assistance Scheme and our Beneficiary Scheme and Development Fund. These two new schemes are completely new to our Society. So I will briefly summarise their aims. With the rapid growth of the past few years we really do need to continue spreading the word about our Society, and our events throughout the calendar are an ideal opportunity for this. For A.G.Ms, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find new locations where we can invite 70+ locomotives to attend with over 700 visitors. We can now offer assistance to Railways/Clubs proposing to host an A.G.M. by contributing towards enhancement of their facilities to standards now required for Staging this event. Making a contribution in this way is bound not only to improve their facilities, but would automatically provide for our members' long-term access for running enjoyment. At the same time we are well aware that the average age of our members is increasing, but it is interesting to see how the Proficiency Scheme and is helping to reduce it. Our future is bound up with the Junior Members. Therefore with the last two points brought to the fore we are introducing the Beneficiary Scheme and Development Fund. We have been asked to do this by people who have been members for many years who have enjoyed the benefits of our Society. The whole idea is to generate additional funds, which can be used accordingly.
22 As part of these new schemes, I am pleased to advise you all that Rex Mounfield has agreed to help look after the development of the Proficiency Scheme and Junior Members. The Proficiency Scheme involves participants throughout the year which will hopefully encourage and maintain their interests in our Society. Thanks to Roger Greatrex, who was the 'early bird' when he helped start and hold the 'Juniors Weekend' at Hilcote. Following the success of these (thanks, Roger), other railways are now wishing to hold similar events. More détails of ail these schemes will appear in the 'News' in due course. Our new website is about to be launched with a modem interactive system. I personally cannot wait. You will be able to update your own records, add or alter sales items, ask questions, add pictures and videos etc. Come on everybody - make us the greatest! "That's ail folks" - Come to next year's AGM at Echills Wood and see for yourselves what they have achieved in a relatively short time. In the meantime, my thanks go to your magnificent Committee. Their total support over the past year has been awesome. Without them we would have been mere mortals. Please remember, as I said at my inauguration as Chairman, four years ago - "It's a Hobby so let's have fun"! A Very Merry Christmas to you ali and a very Happy New Year and thanks for your tremendous support and enthusiasm. David Boyde Chairman of the 7 'A" Gauge Society
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23 A UNIQUE PAIR OF PORTER SADDLETANKS By Brian Lee At the recent Montreal Live steamers 75th anniversary rally ( July 2009), member Joseph- Jean Pacques (or JJ as he is known to his friends) was running his unique pair of 7 gauge Porter 0-4-0 saddle tanks. At a first glance the two locomotives appeared to be identical other than their names and livery colour. However a close examination soon showed that this was far from the case. NETTIE, like many Porter locomotives, has inside Stevenson valve gear which drives the outside slide valves via rocking shafts. ELLAC on the other hand has the most unusual and unique form of Walschaerts valve gear I have ever seen. The most popular form of this valve gear is the outside cylinder and outside valve gear version.lt was widely used with outside cylinders locomotives all over the world and particularly in the USA. A small number of British locos such as the GWR King, Castle and Star classes used the inside cylinder version. In the Walschaerts valve gear, as most people will know, the overall valve motion is derived from two distinct functional parts. The combination lever / union link provide the lap and lead function whilst the port opening is derived from the eccentric rod and expansion link. In every example of Walshaerts valve gear previously seen which uses a combination lever, the combination lever and eccentric rod are mounted in the same vertical plane and either on the outside of the frames for outside cylindered locos or on the inside of the frames for examples like the GWR Kings and Castles.
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25 ELLAC has the unique combination of the eccentric rods and expansion links mounted inside the frames with the combination levers and union links mounted outside the frame. The eccentrics inside the frames directly drive the expansion links/ die blocks. The valve motion is then transferred via a rocking shaft from inside the frames to the outside of the frames where it is connected to the combination lever. Now, normally in Walschaerts valve gear, the combination lever is mounted outside the locos crosshead. However in ELLAC the combination lever is mounted on the inside of the crosshead i.e. between the crosshead and the frame. This is probably why at a first glance it is not noticed. JJ used a computer program which is available on the Internet to calculate the basic dimensions for the valve gear. Then using this information, he did the detailed and highly innovative mechanical design for his locomotive which included the novel and unique layout. It would be very interesting to know if any of the Society's members have ever seen a locomotive of any gauge with a similar variant of the Walschaerts valve gear Another unique feature of the two locos is the boiler design. The horizontal barrel has four flue tubes and each flue tube contains ten cross water tubes. Each flue tube has its own propane gas burner which is a very similar to a Bunsen burner in that it has a primary air control very similar to that on a Bunsen burner. The secondary air required to complete combustion is then drawn in between the end of the burner tube which is slightly smaller diameter that the main flue tube. I have seen some Gauge 1 models with a similar type of boiler, but these only have a single flue with a single burner. JJ's model is the first 7 %" gauge model to be seen with this type of multi flue boiler and burners. To start the burners, JJ simply turns on the gas, opens the smokebox door and ignites the gas. With a pop, the burners ali light up. The smokebox is unusual in that it has an open bottom. It was also noted that no blower was needed to raise steam. Whereas NETTIE has an eccentric driven water feed pump driven off the rear axle, ELLAC has an outside crosshead feed pump. JJ normally operates both locomotives as a double header and he sits on a driving truck which contains the two propane tanks. Whilst the driver can reach the regulator on the Train engine the regulator on the Pilot loco is out of reach. On many occasions, particularly in the USA and Canada, I have seen model locomotive drivers driving a train which had more than one non-steam motive power unit. The drivers usually had some sort of hand-held motive power controller which controlied the multiple power units. The motive power units were almost always electrically powered. On very rare occasions I have seen a single engineer driving a double headed steam train, but do not think that I have seen this in 7 %" gauge. The driver has simply had a mechanical rod connected to the regulator on the pilot engine so that he could open and close it. However with JJ's train, the Pilot loco is fitted with a remotely controlied regulator which is electrically actuated and this was the first time that I have ever seen this unique combination. Indeed I believe that this is the first time that I have seen one driver driving a double-headed steam train in 7 Vi" gauge. JJ completed the locos in 2005 after three years of construction and he is clearly a very innovative and talented model engineer.
26 If you're a 7 Society member, you'll love Miniature Railway.
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27 THE RINGSTEAD FOUNDRY - Part One by Michael Coote (KLDSME)
On Tuesday the 10th of June 2008 Noel Shelley brought along his foundry paraphernalia to demonstrate to Kings Lynn & District S.M.E. members, fortunately our meeting was arranged for outside with the track being available for those also wishing to run a loco that evening. Having seen Noel and his "Baby" in action several times at our events, it is still something to gaze in awe at. The Club had attended a Sandringham Fair Weekend a few years ago with a small display of models, our portable track - and Noel with his fire breathing dragon! Some described this demo as "amazing" whilst others were less hospitable and thought that it was bordering on "bl**dy mad"! Everything went smoothly without any problems or mishaps, the demo was entertaining and interesting with several enquiries of "can you make me one of these"? 1 think I recall a Foden lorry emblem being put into a moulding box and soon after a duplicate casting was made "on the spot" as it were. Like all industrial processes it takes experience, the right gear and most of all the confidence to do the job safely. Much is made today of "Health and Safety", however, using well established practice and techniques gained over many years experience is the best yardstick required to perform many of the "old fashioned methods" and ways of doing things. Achieving good results is the whole aim of the exercise. Yes, you can learn from books but nothing beats "hands on" experience. Sadly almost all of the old generation of skilled men of our great industrial institutions have passed on and many of those skills died with them. These old boys instinctively knew what would work and what didn't, so it was perhaps "over-engineered", but it was made "fit for purpose" and tended to last a lifetime. Where is Ringstead? It is a small village just off the A149 near to the village of Heacham and town of Hunstanton. The best way for directions is to take the first right turning after passing the Lavender fields; it is then only a short distance to find your destination. To contact Noel call: 01485 525473. or try e-mailing him: [email protected] Noel explained that it all started 50 years ago, when as a small boy he habitually stood in the doorway of a large steel foundry in North Yorkshire watching all that went on, and being awestruck at the huge ladles of molten steel carried by the overhead cranes, pouring the moulds. The sparks, the flames, the noise. Oh the noise! The carbon arc furnace had carbons the size of telegraph poles and the whole place was humming! Its all still there, cold and dead, in the middle of a housing estate! As a teenager Noel played with lead, melted in a bean tin on a fire in the garden, It must have been a catering size tin as he cast what could pass for a cannon ball. Then his interest lay dormant for many years as he worked in various fields of engineering, and in a bet which some would say he lost, ran a small waste disposal business for twenty years. He went on to say you would never believe the many wonderful things people throw in skips! WELL, he got to thinking, that there must be something more interesting, if not more profitable that could be done with all the brass, bronze & aluminium as well as the lead than simply take it to the local scrap yard.
Having bought and read most of the books on "Foundry Work" that he could find, as well as saving all kinds of bits and pieces that might come in handy to make a furnace, one day Noel got a call telling of a fellow near Norwich who was selling all he needed to get-started in doing his own castings. Noel went over and bought the lot, a modified, propane fuelled Casenit furnace, some steel mould boxes, some moulding sand and various bits and pieces. This first furnace was affectionately christened "Puff', it was a fearsome fire breathing beast fitted with a one horse-power blower and had a voracious appetite for gas. The first attempt was a fairly simple aluminium casting that came out well-then, having bought a range of proper foundry lettering, an aluminium name plate. This was followed by several more name plates in brass and
28 various other small castings for a gunsmith. Having now got the hang of things, well sort of, and after some experiments, one weekend Noël decided to make a "BABY "!! Now, now chaps-don't get too excited! The by-now large collection of bits and pieces (from various places) were arranged in an orderly fashion, that by the evening had become an extremely efficient and fast crucible furnace. The main components had come from a washing machine, a spin drier and a vacuum cleaner. Poor "Puff' fell by the wayside, and although the new "Baby" didn't grow, Ringstead Foundry certainly did! With a range of lettering from to 4" and becomes in several styles, name plates for both scale and full size engines (traction and rail), countless houses, as well as descriptive plaques have been cast. From replica Rolls Royce door handles to very detailed, highly polished items, ail have been cast in Mansfield sand. Those of you who saw the last sériés featuring Fred Dibnah will have seen some of his work. It was a great honour to have cast the brass plate used to show the title of the programme "MADE IN BRITAIN". During his démonstration visit, Noël took time to briefly explain the vast subject that is foundry work and the setting up of a small home made foundry. Basic metallurgy, pattern making, sands and mould making, the melting and casting. And we got to meet "The Baby" at close quarters, which can, from cold have 181bs of brass up to 1050°C for pouring in 15 minutes. Once Noël had got the moulding box ready and laid out, he explained what was about to happen, telling us that "you can't chat over the noise of a jet engine blast" roaring away! To the polite, Noël is a character, to the rest, perhaps bordering on mad (his words), but if given the opportunity to see him speak and demonstrate the craft, judge for yourself? These are a few ofthe images taken during Noel's démonstration.
Noël explains that this moulding box Sprinkling a layer of fine parting powder over could do with being a little longer. the pattern whilst laid on a base board. 29 Adding a layer of fìnely sifted Mansfield Topping off and firmly tamping the sand using foundry sand into the mounding box. both the handle and head of a lump hammer.
The exposed pattern is now rear face up having Locking in the other half of the moulding box been turned over to fit the other sand box. using heavy metal bolting pins.
30 Noel explains the need for another dose of The Mould shows the riser / pouring hole made parting powder (everyone else gets a dusting). in the top half plus the runners are cut in.
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31 2009 32 v^nHMBMHHMflMMHHMMMniMMHHHMHRnHHM u John 'Arrowsmitn CjtiL' liftaâ^i i,,.,, ¡pj^ » i m -i'^i ifì i1 i - - • ^ MM.\ I I 100 YEARS OF BEYER GARRATT LOCOMOTIVES The photograph shows Pete Waterman and Joe Lloyd commencing the proceedings with K.1 in the background. The photograph of Richard Stuart's Beyer Garratt on page 15 of the last TA" Gauge News is a timely reminder that this year celebrates 100 years of Beyer Garratt locomotives. The two very first Garratt articulated locomotives built by Beyer Peacock were made in 1909 at Gorton Foundry for the 2-foot gauge Dundas Tramway section of the Tasmanian Government Railway. Beyer Peacock had helped Herbert William Garratt to develop his design and to register the patent, his ideas having been earlier turned down by Kitsons. By September 1908 Garratt and Beyer Peacock had concluded an agreement setting down terms for the licenses, royalties, etc., and the resources of Beyer Peacock were made available to him, with their Samuel Jackson playing a very important rôle in achieving a practical design. The very first Garratt design was novel in that the cylinders were positioned at the in-board ends of the engine units, no other engines had this arrangement, and it was also a compound, a principle to be shared by only one other Garratt built in 1927 for Burma Railways. The second Garratt to be built in 1910 was also for the 2 foot gauge Daijeeling-Himalayan Railway. Perhaps not so commonly known, is that Garratt drew up licensing arrangements also with the Baldwin Locomotive Works, Henschel & Sohn and the Société St. Leonard at Liege, Belgium, but of those only the last mentioned built any at that time and they were rather Strange looking machines. Garratt was dépendent upon the royalties from sales of his patent locomotives and the terms agreed with Beyer Peacock stipulated a payment of £2 per ton on ail Garratts built, with Beyer Peacock having sole manufacturing rights in the UK. It appears that by the end of 1913, the year when Garratt died, advances to him had amounted to £583 for 25 locomotives. 34 PNP Railways Suppliers & Manufacturera of Ready Made Parts for 1 1 IO /.", 7 /4" 5" & V/2" Gauge Model Railways New Products ~ New Products ~ New Products Point Lever Suitable for Standard and Narrow Gauge equipment in TA" & 10y4" due to its adjustable weight facility Available finished—unpainted— £49.99 inc. VAT Track Work Components . Garden & Display Track Kits • Hardwood Point Kits • Buffer Stops . RaiI Benders • Coiour Light Signals • Point Levers Our product range can be viewed and purchased on-line at www.pnp-railways.co.uk Paul Norman Plastics Ltd, Unit S5, Inchbrook Trading Estate, Bath Road, Woodehester, Stroud, Glos, GL5 5EY, Tel: 01453 833388 Fax: 01453 834055 e-mail - [email protected] 35 To celebrate 100 years since the production of the first Beyer Garratt locomotive the Museum of Science & Industry (Manchester) mounted an exhibition of Beyer Garratt engines in varying gauges from 32 mm to 4 ft 8 V2 inches. Naturally the centre of attention was K1, the very first Beyer Garratt Locomotive, now owned by the Ffestiniog Railway Company and operated on The Welsh Highland Railway. As the pictures testify the 7 % inch gauge was well represented. K1 0-4-0+0-4-0 built by Milner Engineering owned by Tony Marris, Length lift, weight 3,400 lbs. based at a private railway. Freelance No. 15 "William Rufus" 2-4-0+0-4-2 built by Narogauge Ltd. owned by Jim Haylock, Length 12ft.8ins. Based around two Horton Chassis. Class 59 E.A.R. "Mount Kilimanjaro" 4-8-2 2-8-4 built by Coleby - Simkins circa 1973 for Brian Hollingsworth sold to Brett Rogers who converted it to coal firing and re- boilered it. The engine is now part of the RN.R Railways collection. Length 19ft.6ins weight 5,040 lbs. in running order, normally runs at Echills Wood Railway. This works out at almost 260 lbs per foot! The locomotive does tour the country and up to date information can be found on the PNP website. Class 59 E.A.R. "Mount Kenya" 4-8-2 2-8-4 build started by William Heller circa 1975, finished for him by Milner Engineering, was going to run at Crystal Palace, (scheme failed) bought by Roger Daltrey of 'The Who' fame, who (sorry about that) sold it to the N.R.M. The engine is still oil-fired and is believed on loan to M.O.S.I. Dimensions and weight as "Mount Kilimanjaro". For further information about Beyer Peacock locomotives visit www.beyerpeacock.co.uk 7 'A inch gauge Beyer Garratt K1 0-4-0 + 0-4-0 owned by Mr A. Marris. 36 In the shadow of 2352 stands the 7 '/" gauge EAR 4-8-2 + 2-8-4 Class 59 " Mount Kenya" owned by the National Railway Museum, York. 7 '/<" gauge "Mount Kilimanjaro" 4-8-2 + 2-8-4 class 59 EAR Beyer Garratt owned by PNP Railways. 37 7 Vt" gauge 0-6-0 + 0-6-0 Beyer Garratt "Myanmar" owned by Mr. N. Allsopp. 7 Vt" gauge 0-4-0 + 0-4-0 Beyer Garratt "William Rufus" owned by Mr. J. Haylock. 38 ill ia i 3B1 Builders of quality miniature railway equipment for the serious enthusiast and commercial operator. We produce steel bodied diesel and electric locomotive and carriage outlines from around the world, all carefully matched to your requirements and powered by either our Diesel/Hydraulic or Petrol/Hydrostatic drive systems. Please contact us at,' Units 2 & 3 Deans factory estate Lambs lane, Rainham, Essex tel: 01708 554618 fbx: 01708 553395 or visit us at our web-site www.mardyke.co.uk fm A Mwnf Otooflte affixsl TtatatM ©ssio^ a^OteM^ l}M 0m ©ffiXal M^sjl jj' i j^Wfcj ^teffMtoaswmmmn rielasena wsxii®^ miniature engineering mmifflto^ 3 KM Mos^psfi^ M! 39 DAYS OF STEAM - A TALE OF TWO SCOTS by John Mills A story describing one member's fascination with steam locomotives both in full-size and in 7% " Gauge from early beginnings to the present day. Early Beginnings I grew up in North Wales close to the London Euston - Crewe - Holyhead main line where we were treated to sights and sounds of all the famous classes of LMS locos such as Princesses, Duchesses, Black Fives, Patriots, Jubilees and the Royal Scots, as well as the new BR Britannias and other 'Standard' engines plus the occasional B1 from the LNER. Trainspotting on summer Saturday mornings in the 1950's was especially good as there was a non-stop procession of fully loaded trains mostly from the northern cities taking holidaymakers to the coast. The four tracks from Chester reduced to two at Shotton and it was here that the cavalcade of steam could best be seen, with trains backed up from Chester on both fast and slow lines. About lunchtime the Down Slow would be cleared and the Irish Mail would come through usually hauled by a Royal Scot. As soon as the loco had gained the Down Fast the regulator would be opened wide and we were treated to a crescendo of sound as the Scot accelerated the heavy train, often made up to as many as 16 coaches, away towards Holyhead. My first steam locomotive was a 3 V2" gauge LBSC Juliet which my father built in about six months around 1948 and which 1 still have. It is called Romeo (just to be different!) and I first learned to drive it when I was 5 years old. It held the club speed record (very naughty!) for the Deeside Model Engineering Society which had a raised 354" and 5" gauge continuous track situated adjacent to Hawarden Bridge Station on land provided by the John Summers & Sons steelworks. The record was achieved by Dad laying on the seat of the normal sit-astride car with his knees on the footboards to keep the C of G low - he was probably thinking he was still on his 500cc Norton motorbike and flying round the Isle of Man TT circuit! He then built a superb Hielan Lassie which was completed in 1953 and which was a joy to drive. It became the workhorse for many fetes which we did using our portable track in the following years. Although Hielan Lassie was our first LNER engine, it was sad that it was modelled on Great Northern - the ungainly Thompson rebuild of Gresley's lovely first Al pacific for the Great Northern Railway. I graduated to 5" gauge when the Deeside MES purchased a GWR-style Pacific, based obviously on The Great Bear (as the GWR only ever had one Pacific), from a gentleman who lived near Oswestry and who had seen the track from the train window as he commuted to Liverpool. He also had a 5" gauge Stirling Single which one of the members (Jimmy James) acquired. The Stirling was a fine engine to drive with its seemingly effortless slow rotation of the large driving wheels. It was, however, a bit tall (probably something to do with getting a decent sized boiler between the driving wheels) and was soon nicknamed Rock 'n Roll to both describe its antics on the track and to show that we were in touch with the new world of pop music! It was quite a stretch for me (at the age of ten) to drive The Great Bear with its long bogie tender from the sit-astride passenger cars, so sitting on the tender amongst the coal with my legs dangling down the sides whilst perched up on the raised track was accepted as the best solution - good job the H&S brigade were not around in those days! I'm still sitting on the tenders but fortunately these are on the ground these days and they actually have seats and footrests! Steam-up at the track took place on most Sundays in the Summer and some of the crew from waiting freight locos (full-size ones which had arrived at the 40 Peter's Railway and the Forgotten Engine Book Three in the series is out now. The Yockletts Village extension and the Great Railway Race, how-it-works and more.... To Order: Please send £13.49 to C Vine, PO Box 9246 (7), Bridge of Weir, PA11 3WD, UK or visit www.petersrailway.com to buy on-line. Books 1 & 2 same price. or get them at most preserved railways or good bookshops. Fab Prizes - Don't miss the PR Christmas Prize Draw - www.petersrailway.com to enter. SlEAMDAYS—m I am a small independent business buying and selling live steam models. I am always looking to purchase models and can travel to all parts of the UK to see and collect models that you have for I have been involved with steam models for many years and have an excellent repution for fair trading. For a friendly and personal service please contact- www.steamdays.co.uk [email protected] Tel: 0151 549 0702 / 07772 861 504 steelworks with iron ore etc and waiting to leave for home having taken water at the nearby water column) would occasionally come down the embankment for a quick drive in return for a few lumps of best steam coal and a milk bottle full of steam oil! Oh, and a cup of tea, of course! I fancied driving their engines in exchange but I had to wait a few years before this could happen. It all came to an abrupt end in 1957 when a new road was built where the track was and it was never re-laid. The Great Bear went off to a MES on the Wirral, after spending quite a long time hiding in my bedroom at home. I wonder where it is now? Jimmy James then built a 5'77'/4"gauge ground-level track around his garden in a village near Chester and acquired an LNER Pacific - an A1 or an A3. Driving this was the next best thing to full-size. And dear old Rock 'n Roll seemed so much more at home on the ground! By the late 50's I was fortunate to spend each summer school holiday working on British Railways as a relief porter on the Wrexham - Shotton (High Level) - Chester/ Birkenhead line. Although passenger services were by now run by DMUs, instead of the lovely old Robinson Great Central 4-4-2 C13 tank engines from 1903 which had given me my first footplate trip some years before and which had provided a daily distraction from lessons, as our school was right next to the line. The iron ore trains were now hauled by 9F 2-10-0s shedded at Birkenhead. This line was originally part of the Cheshire Lines system and became part of the Great Central and then the LNER - a bit odd having the LNER in the town where 1 lived in North Wales! Even the GWR had a presence not far away in Chester, with through trains from Birkenhead to London via Shrewsbury and Birmingham Snow Hill, so only the Southern never made it to North Wales! Because it was part of the LNER, there began a fascination with that railway (as well as the LMS) that was to lead to my first 7%" gauge loco eventually, even though we were a long way from the East Coast Main Line and the superb A3 and A4 Pacifics. One of 'my stations' was Upton (near Birkenhead) where the booking office spanned the tracks. A 9F working hard with a fully loaded 800 ton iron ore train of hopper wagons was a sight to see (and hear) as it blasted up from Birkenhead Docks towards Hawarden Bridge steelworks. The passing 9F would shake a whole lot of tickets out of the ticket racks as it passed beneath the booking office - and you might just get them all back in their correct places again before the next 9F came through! I also worked at Shotton Low Level which was on the North Wales Coast main line and close to the place where that early train-spotting had been done. On one occasion I was cleaning and re-filling the lamps on the top of the Shotton Up Main Home signal (usual weekly job for the iate' porter carried out on overtime on a Wednesday morning) when an Up express came through hauled by a Scot - it looked fine from such a lofty vantage point even if you got a face full of exhaust from a hard-working engine! A footplate trip on a Scot on a day off from portering with a hand on the regulator for a short time and on the shovel for a lot longer really got me hooked on these famous workhorses - I knew I had to own one some day! Mind you, an A3 or a 9F would have been all right too! The Start of 7 %" Gauge In late 1962 I joined Associated Electrical Industries in Trafford Park in Manchester and was the apprentice in the Railway Traction Department on the fateful day early the following year when Dr Beeching announced his closure plans. The choice of a career related to railways (albeit producing full-size electric locos for the then current West Coast Main Line electrification) did not seem such a good idea if the railway as we knew it was to shrink to a fraction of its former self and, as seemed likely, be killed off by the private car. So, for no particularly good reason, I moved on to the Radar Systems Department. I was posted to the Radar Receiver Laboratory which happened to be 42 WESTERN NARROW GAUCE MANUFACTURER OF STEAM LOCOS 7%w & lOVi" G AUGES WHEEL & CYLINDER MACHINING COMPLETE CHASSIS SUPPLIED RESTORATION, REPAIRS & REBUILDS UNDERTAKEN TEL : 0033-233904987 EMAIL : [email protected] www.steamplates.co.uk DROITWICH Tel. 01905 759874 - 07811 269186 Mauers of the fine st quaCity Locomotive Name 43 outside the main works and alongside part of the Manchester Ship Canal railway system. It was also a stone's throw from the Manchester United football ground but that's another story. So began a regulär lunchtime driving date with some of the crews of the lovely little 0-6-0Ts the Ship Canal railway used to operate - much to the envy - of the boss who was a silent railway enthusiast and who never came to terms with the apprentice's antics! These included causing chaos to road traffic one day when I learned that a loco steam brake on an unfitted train of loose coupled wagons was somewhat harsher than the nice smooth vacuum brakes fitted to mainline passenger trains! I managed to stop rather abruptly with the back of the train blocking a level crossing causing much annoyance to passing traffic - to say nothing about the noise of ail those clanking wagons! After three years of University in Birmingham (close to the venue of the famous 7 Vi" Gauge Inaugural Meeting) studying Electrical & Electronic Engineering, I returned to AEI and the world of Radar and took a 4 year secondment to Saudi Arabia to build their Air Defence system. Düring this period, Dad had commenced building a 5" gauge model of one of the Indian Nilgiri engines - he had attended Lovedale School in the Nilgiri Hills when he was young. These engines are 0-8-2 metre gauge, 4-cylinder rack/ adhésion tank engines weighing over 50 tons and they stili run to this day in southern India from Mettupalayam to Conoor on the line up to Ooty. He also had moved to a bungalow in North Wales and announced plans for a 5" gauge railway in the extensive garden. I persuaded him to go to IV", as the Nilgiri engine was a long way off being finished, despite a trip to see the real ones in 1969 and anyway I had seen Duchess of Brighouse in the Model Engineer. We also had fond memories of Jimmy James' LNER Pacific and thought that 7Vi" would definitely be the best gauge! So, it was agreed that the track would be just 7Vi" and the 5" rail could be added afterwards. In the event it never was. Dad then switched his attention to building a pair of Bridgets and we set off to Oakhill Manor, in Somerset, to purchase some aluminium rail section for our track. If you were fortunate enough to have visited Oakhill Manor around 1971 whilst the 10/4" gauge railway was being built, you would have seen the vast numbers of steam locomotive models that Walter Harper had collected under his Flying Dutchman label. On our first visit, whilst we were loading up the rail, I saw two 7 Vi" gauge LNER A3 s as well as a Duchess among the many other 7Vi"gauge locos he had there which caught my eye. One of the A3s was not quite completed and had 3 cylinders whilst the other was a fully operational 2-cylinder loco, previously owned by a Mr Stan Hills of Colchester. As I had to return to Saudi and didn't have much time, I decided to buy the completed engine. Fortunately, working in Saudi Arabia provided a good salary and, although the asking price of £1700 seems modest today, this was a large sum in those days but it was affordable! So, a week later 1 was the proud owner of my own A3, immediately christened Flying Scotsman, of course, in récognition of the only full-size steam loco allowed to operate on BR metals at that time. We transported it back to North Wales in Dad's Vauxhall Victor -1 don't think the rear springs ever recovered! Woodlands Light Railway The railway around the bungalow quickly took shape. Construction was based on a concrete raft on which the track was laid and ballasted. It was a simple continuous track 600feet in length with a passing loop and sidings with a turntable, generally fiat and with a nice girder bridge over a small pond. An early visitor to the railway was John Milner who had his locomotive works a few miles away in Kinnerton. It was during one of John's visits that he told me about the upcoming inaugural meeting of the 7Vi" Gauge Society in Birmingham, so in due course I made the trip to that now famous meeting on 44 20th October 1973. The railway hosted trial runs for several of John's Hunslets, including Moel Fammau - a picture of which appeared in TV" News #7 alongside my A3 - and Pendle Witch bought by Eric Doyle. Another regular visitor was George Peers who subsequently bought a house a couple of doors away with the faint possibility of extending our track to his house. I don't think he had taken the views of the neighbour between us into account and so it was never built! He had a TV" Tich which seemed to want to emulate little Romeo and attempt world speed records! Sadly Dad died prematurely in 1979 and the bungalow had to be sold, though the remains of the railway can still be seen. Flying Scotsman By now I was married and living in Leicester. Winter Tuesday evenings were spent attending a night-class at the Wreake Valley College where Bob Moore (an ex-Derby apprentice and now famous for his lining pens) was a leading participant and mentor. These sessions were really an official way of model engineers being able to use the extensive machine shop at the college and were run by the metalwork teacher, Norman Smedley who built a superb quarter-scale Sentinel Steam Lorry. So the A3 was overhauled and repainted and finally fitted with its Flying Scotsman nameplates - these having been cast to my own pattern by a long-gone brass foundry in the city. 1 had previously acquired another LNER pacific - a Peppercorn called Robert The Devil (better known as Bob The Sod) also from Oakhill Manor which needed some work to bring it up to running standards. But space and funds were now at a premium and so it was sold. The purchaser was Colin Cartwright who is well known to many of you. Colin had his railway in Walsall at this time and so began a friendship with Colin and his family that continues to this day. During a visit to Twycross Zoo, I discovered some old Cromar-White sit-astride coaches lying unwanted following their recent change to 12!4" gauge and these were purchased for the princely sum of £ 10 (for three! ) and refurbished and so I was able to run Flying Scotsman at local fetes in the Leicester area - there were few 7%" gauge tracks nearby at that time. The annual Stoughton Air Show was our biggest annual event where, on one occasion we carried over 1200 passengers in a single day - not bad for just two of us (myself and friend Steve Jordan) considering we had to bring everything with us including water supplies! Trips to the Walsall Steam Railway were made as frequently as possible where the climb up from each of the terminal stations to the top of the bank always seemed to bring the best out of the engines. One of the highlights for me was, of course the 1980 AGM where Flying Scotsman hauled the public service trains and my eldest son (2 years old at the time) proudly sat on board his wooden 0-4-0T made for his first birthday. Arthur Glaze was another regular at Walsall with his Number 7 GWR 2-6-2 tender engine. Arthur built many engines including a fine Castle and a Royal Scot and his son John (who was a regular driver at Walsall) is now a well-known boiler inspector on main-line locos including tornado. Walsall Steam railway was a mecca of standard gauge locos, with Colin's collection including Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Buccleuch, two Black Fives, a 9F and the now completed Peppercorn. The vagaries of the defence industry after the Cold War ended meant a change of job and 1982 saw a move from Leicester to Bembridge on the Isle of Wight to work for Plessey Radar. During the move Flying Scotsman sat outside our new house on my trailer for a few hours while we unloaded the furniture van and was spotted by a chap in the village who said he had an engine too. It turned out that he had a part-built 15" gauge Britannia which he was unable to complete - well there aren't too many of these around and so you will have guessed that in due course Colin acquired the collection 45 Flving Scotsman with the author driving rounding the curve from the extension back towards the original loop at Bentley Central. Plenty of steam, situation normal! of parts and compieteci the magnificent machine to be seen today in Bettws-y-Coed Railway Muséum. There were no 7 %" gauge tracks on the Isle of Wight at that time, so Flying Scotsman quickly settled back into a Summer routine of steaming at local school fetes using my portable track and the Cromar-White coaches. I also built a battery-electric loco at this time, based on a Hymek which was often pressed into service for our children's parties, when a short track was laid in the garden and for the occasionai fete. A further career move in 1991 took us to Sussex and another overhaul for Flying Scotsman. By now 1 had found Bentley Miniature Railway near Uckfield and was grateful for the help given by Geoff Billington in getting the boiler repaired and tested. After the long years of not having a real railway to run on since Walsall, Bentley provided a superb location for Flying Scotsman to 'stretch its legs', especially when the extension to the railway to its current size was completed. As time went by, thoughts began to turn towards building my own steam locomotive. Somehow it didn't seem as though my association with steam could be fulfilled until I had built one myself - but which one should it be? Pretty simple choice really - it had to be a rebuilt Royal Scot! There were quite a lot of original Royal Scot models built, especially by Bassett-Lowke but I don't remember seeing many of the full-size parallel boilered ones - those on the North Wales Coast main-line hauling the Irish Mails by then were mainly the rebuilds. And so the plan began to take shape in 1999 with the acquisition of a GA drawing from the NRM at York of the rebuilt Royal Scots and a set of Highlander drawings for inspiration. A visit to Bressingham to see the preserved Royal Scot provided a lot of photographs which subsequently proved invaluable as the design proceeded. 46 Scots Guardsman The GA drawing of the model and the drawing of the main frames were quickly produced, leading to a set of laser-cut frames 6mm thick being obtained shortly afterwards. An early décision was to design the loco in imperiai dimensions but use metric materials and fixings wherever possible, to keep the cost under control. Another considération was to learn the lessons of many years of running Flying Scotsman and to build the loco as heavy as possible whilst not compromising its appearance. Finally, I saw no need for three cylinders as per the real ones and settled on two - after ail this worked well on my Flying Scotsman. Construction of the chassis proceeded slowly with time stili at a premium due to the need for frequent business trips to Europe and the USA. The boiler design however moved quite quickly and was constructed in 2001. It is a steel boiler with a design working pressure of 1 OOpsi, though only pressed at 90psi in practice. The front bogie followed, based on Highlander, using some of the castings for the Black Five and fitted with side control springing as well as working main leaf springs. The smokebox was made from a piece of discarded thick steel central hearing pipe, which turned out to be within a few thou of the required diameter which I spotted when the heating system at our factory was being replaced. Piston valve cylinders were Highlander, nominally 2lA" bore but actually 2.354" to clear a blow hole in one of the castings. Clupet rings were fitted throughout, though the odd size for the pistons caused some delays but, given the lengthy build time of 9 years, this was not really a problemi The piston valves were modified to give Y*" ports and 3/16" lap, to provide a slightly greater cut-off when starting - this meant a re-design of the Highlander valve gear which proceeded well until 1 wanted to work out the backset on the expansion link - here the little book by Don Ashton proved invaluable. Scots Guardsman makes its very first moves at Bentley in May 2009, with plenty of water coming out of the chimney as the new boiler primes nicely. The author looks a little apprehensive, too. 47 I used stainless steel for the firegrate and ashpan and quite a few other areas. The tender had been in my possession for some years in a partly constructed state, having come from Colin as part of a deal to build a signalling system for Walsall and to make the electronic control system for one of his electric locos. The tender was taken completely apart, modifications made, including fitting a large stainless water tank and ali the new parts made and fitted. I decided against working leaf springs for the tender and settled for coil springs which 1 hid within dummy leaf springs - this turned out to be a good solution as the coil springs are easier to specify and obtain than working leaf springs when having to deal with out-of-scale loads (me!). As the loco build progressed, thoughts began to turn to which of the 70 Royal Scots it should be. Royal Scot itself would have been an obvious choice, of course. It also had to have the characteristic smoke deflectors, as that is how I remembered them. Finally, having got one green engine (the Apple Green Flying Scotsman) I thought it would be nice to have a change from green. Research into the Scots quickly showed that only one Scot had ever appeared in LMS days with smoke deflectors - Scots Guardsman in late 1947 was the first of the rebuilds to have them - ali the others followed in BR days and were eventually painted in the BR Brunswick Green as were many express passenger locos. The preserved Royal Scot is painted in Crimson Lake from the days when it sat at a Butlin's holiday camp and Bressingham - incidentally this has continued to the present day as it préparés for its main-line début after an extensive overhaul. Although the original parallel-boilered Scots were painted in Crimson Lake, this is not a livery ever seen on the rebuilt Scots when they were operational in either BR or LMS days. I really wanted an LMS loco to partner my LNER one so the choice of Scots Guardsman was an easy one to make. So finally I have my Royal Scot - the end of the first days steaming at Bentley. A few jobs to do but a good start! 48 There was the added bonus that the real 6115 was preserved and (at the time) awaiting restoration after a few main-line trips back in 1978 wearing the LMS 1946 glossy black livery lined with crimson lake and straw. So that was the decision made. Running Flying Scotsman at Bentley continued to be a joy, albeit only an occasional one as business and family life had to take priority. The railway there was going from strength to strength, supporting the House, Wildfowl Sanctuary, Woodland Walks and the Motor Museum. It also, of course, hosted the AGM held there in 1997, where again I enjoyed hauling some of the passenger service trains. Besides normal operating days, there is a Wood Fair held each year in September where large numbers of people attend to see a huge display of items of all kinds made out of wood. This is far and away the busiest operating weekend and I usually managed to attend with Flying Scotsman for one of the days of the event. By 2007 Flying Scotsman's boiler ticket was due to expire and the long-awaited major overhaul had become necessary, so rather than have two locomotives in pieces at the same time, the decision was taken to concentrate on Scots Guardsman and complete that job before starting the overhaul. So Flying Scotsman sat out-of-ticket under its bench having a rest for a while 36 years after first bringing her back from Oakhill Manor. Fortunately, early retirement became possible and there was now more time to concentrate on Scots Guardsman but a further challenge appeared. The real 6115 had now been acquired by David Smith and was at Carnforth with its overhaul now being carried out quite quickly and so it became my target to complete the IV" gauge model about the same time as the full-size one hit the main-line. In the event, the full-size 6115 beat me by a few weeks and hauled its first trains in Autumn 2008, whilst I finished the model in the November. With winter upon us its first steaming at Bentley finally took place in the spring of 2009 and was interesting. The new boiler primed badly at first (as they often do); the valve gear and timing were well up to my expectations; the engine The full-size Scots Guardsman number 46115 in late 2008 making its first run on the main-line since 1978 - pity about the colour. Mind you, it goes really well! 49 appeared powerful and there were a couple of air leaks in the injector piping which were easily fixed. In addition, both the pressure and vacuum gauges were hard to see when seated on the tender and were changed to smaller ones and moved out from under the cab roof to a more central position. The next couple of outings were much better, with the priming much reduced. There was a problem with the draughting, causing insufficient air getting to the rear of the grate in the shallow section of the ashpan above and behind the rear driving axle - not a problem with the wide firebox of an A3! This section of the ashpan filled up quickly and has since been modified with improvements to the damper and air flows. It is interesting to recali that the real Royal Scots generally never worked through from Euston to Glasgow, mainly because of a similar problem of the ashpan being full by Carlisle! Meanwhile the full-size Scots Guardsman (numbered 46115 and in BR Brunswick Green!) has been putting in some fantastic performances over Shap and the Settle & Carlisle - see reports in Steam Railway magazine. The blast on my Scots Guardsman was still a little too weak causing the fire not to bum brightly enough and steaming not up to expectations. Reference to Henry Greenly's excellent book on miniature loco design showed that I had made the blast nozzles too large, even though they were 0.7 that of Highlander for a double chimney, so new smaller diameter ones have now been made and fitted with a vast improvement in the steaming. The latest outing was excellent with the engine steaming freely and finally ready to enter revenue earning service. Interestingly, Flying Scotsman 's single blast nozzle is exactly in line with Greenly's table of recommended sizes! What's Next? The overhaul of Flying Scotsman has now commenced and is well underway with the tender having been completed first, also with a new stainless water tank of increased capacity. The front bogie finally has side-control springing added. The rest of the engine itself is now in many pieces and remediai work on the rear of the chassis is nearing completion. Jobs still to do include refurbishing the cylinders, rebushing the valve gear and sorting out a troublesome minor leak in the boiler. Coincidently, the full-size 4472 is in the shops at York being overhauled too - I wonder who will finish first this time? Meanwhile plans are afoot to extend the railway at Bentley which will provide a new station and approximately double the present track length. So the additional water capacity built into both tenders may prove to have been a good idea. The Royal Scot had taken nine years to build - somewhat longer than the North British Locomotive Company who took the order in February 1927 and then built and delivered the first 50 Royal Scots for the LMS within a year! Well, I guess they had a few more staff and facilities! My ambition to finally build my own loco had been fulfilled and sixty-plus years after I first saw the Royal Scots pounding along the North Wales coast main-line with the Irish Mail, 1 finally had one of my own! So, that is my Tale of Two Scots, one Flying and one Guarding. But what to do after Flying Scotsman 's overhaul is complete? Hmm, well a 9F would be nice in IV" gauge or perhaps a C13 tank engine. Or maybe the Nilgiri 0-8-2 rack tank engine in IV" gauge! If you wish to visit Bentley Miniature Railway then please see the club website http://www.bentleyrailway.co.uk/ where you can find full détails of the location of the railway (which is within the Bentley Wildfowl and Motor Museum near to Uckfield in East Sussex) as well as the operating days and other interesting information. 50 MEMBERSHIP NOTES By Richard Shaw Firstly I would like to thank ali the members who compieteci the direct débit form included in the last issue. A total of 232 members have taken up this option (13% of the membership) At the time of writing this we are now up to 1754 members which is significantly ahead of the same position last year. It is particularly good given the current economic climate. Once again my shift rota prevented me being able to visit the AGM, at least next year's AGM at the Echills Wood Railway will be closer to home for me. Included in this issue should be the renewal form for those wishing to pay by cheque, there is no need for those on Direct Débit to fili the form in. We will not be sending out new membership cards as we hope the current plastic cards will last for several years, so there is no need to include a S.A.E. We have also included an âge section, we hope you will fili in this section (Honestly!) as we have decided to try and produce an âge profile for the society. Many members have talked about the membership getting older, but is it? Only by carrying out a survey will we know. One thing I can confirm is that we have 46 Junior members and number of those have taken part in our awards scheme, the Barton House Railway and Purbeck Miniature Railway being particularly involved. Once again we shall be able to take renewals at the London exhibition and also at the Karlsruhe (Formally Sinsheim) exhibition. The German Show has moved to a new venue and is readily accessible by tram and train. Looking at some train timings suggest the journey to Karlsruhe could be completed from London with just one change of train in Paris or two, Brüssels and Cologne. Our overseas members are also likely to benefit from the low exchange rate this year! "Robin on 7 '/<" Gauge Wagon" by Richard Shaw 51 HINTS, TIPS AND SNIPPETS A Snippet. Callum Darraugh driving Kim Walton's Erin at Hilton Valley Railway, shunting David Everingham back to the loading ramp with his tram, sometimes affectionately known as "Doyley's Cart" (a reference to a previous owner). A Tip From Akela. ArcEuro Trade supply brass oil cups very cheap and very suitable for our needs, but they are 'simple' oilers not 'wicked', so I decided to modify them. The oil way in the oiler is around 3mm, so I drilled them out to ¡4" I got some brass tube and using Loctite, glued in a short length. Wick of various diameters is available from any candie supplier and the brass tube supplied by model shops will take a 5mm candie wick reasonably easily, but if you have any trouble, lightly wrap the end of the wick in very thin copper wire and pull it through with that. You could also insert the thin copper wire down the centre of the wick if you prefer. I have been told that Frank is wondering how I managed to get stainless steel balls to stick to a magnet, quite simple as not ail stainless steel is non-magnetic and these balls weren't. As regards using Nitrile balls in clacks I'm afraid that it was a question of any port in a storm, as nothing I tried would stop it feeding back and short of a major strip down to remove it and make and fit a new clack, it will have to do, and so far it hasn't been any trouble. Akela. 52 Model Engineering Course Just a quick note to say that Colchester Institute in Essex is running a model engineering evening course starting September. You will have use of the lathes, Bridgeport mills, surface grinder, horizontal mill and cnc etc; you will also have access to an instructor. There are only 18 places and it will cost £960 for 30 x 3hour sessions; for further détails contact Steven Fitzgerald at the Engineering Dept at the Institute. Cheers ali Steve Crees 69 Leymoor Road Longwood Huddersfield West Yorks A BARKER HD3 4SW Engineering Tel: 01484-654421 Manufacturer of Steam Fittings for Model Engineers Supplier of quality steam fittings Water gauges a speciality Email: [email protected] Website: www.rabarker.co.uk MODEL ENGINEERING PRODUCTS (BEXHILL) 71/4" Gauge Diesel outline B/e 17 Sea Road locos, Classes 08, 15, 20, 47 Bexhill on Sea (15/20 chassis/bogies/body East Sussex are ail steel laser eut) Fully machined kits or r-t-r TN401EE Good range of accessories. Braked driving trucks & 01424 223702 trolleys. Mob. 07743 337243 Now available - Class 47 Fibreglass body shell £450 Email - mep1 @btconnect.com Fully machined kit £3,500 www.model-engineering.co.uk including motors & controller. Catalogue £1.75 53 You will recali, (you do don't you?) from my last article, that I volunteered to help Graham Burhouse with the setting up of the IV" Gauge Society's Proficiency Scheme and a very good scheme I said it was as well. Of course once you hold your head above the parapet the 'Native Americans' will see you! I was duly rounded up at Worden Park, whilst enjoying the excellent AGM meet, by Graham and David our esteemed Chairman, with an offer I could not refuse. (They wouldn't let me!). Due to the continuing success of the Proficiency Scheme, the increase in junior membership and the requests from several clubs to hold Junior weekends they have decided to combine ali these tasks, together with the Junior Jottings and appoint a member to become the contact point for ail these matters. They were kind enough to offer me the chance to take on this task and see to its day to day opération, as well as bringing the scheme to fruition by completing the scheme with the introduction of the Gold Award for next season As I am currently (I have taken time off to write this) editing the AGM video for the society, therefore 1 will not be able to apply myself to getting on with this until after Christmas. At the same time as I take over the job of Proficiency Scheme Award organiser I have been asked to take over the post of editor for the 'Junior Jottings' and this is a job I am taking on with a little trépidation. After ali, the jottings were started and run by Roger Greatrex for some years and he will be a hard act follow. I am just very grateful to him for ali his hard work during that time, and would like to take this opportunity to thank him for his hard work for ali 'juniors' of the society. 54 I will officially be dealing with all these matters from January 2010 so please use the détails below for contacting me about the award scheme or 'Junior Jottings' Rex Mounfield 01359 231169 Little Orchard Railway Ixworth Road [email protected] Norton Bury St Edmunds or via the web site at Suffolk IP31 3LE www.littleorchardrailway.co.uk I would love to have plenty of items to put into the magazine under the 'Junior Jottings' heading therefore please send me your articles, questions or ideas (preferably by email). I would especially like to hear from younger members who have attempted their Bronze award about how you got on with the questions and are you starting to learn about the Silver Award yet. With any correspondence don't forget to put in your Name, the Model Engineering Society or Railway Club you belong to, your age and your return email address so I can let you know 1 have received your mail. Rex Mounfield 55 THE GOODS YARD With 'Yardmaster' - Frank Sidebottom Following the AGM at Leyland, an appréciation is due to those 'trade' folk who enhanced the event with their displays - so grateful thanks to Fieldsend Miniature Engineering (castings etc), Walker Midgley (insurance brokers), Cromar White, Engineers Emporium (L A Services), Phoenix Locomotives and Jonathan Clay. For some years Ride on Railways has been offering a range of products mainly for the 5" gauge market. As many of the company's locomotive designs are freelance in concept, a naturai progression to IV" gauge has been possible, by simply re-gauging. The first of the company's locos to receive the re-gauging treatment is the 'Hercules', which has two power bogies. The wheels, to IV" gauge standards and having a wider tread than the 5" gauge version, will be positioned outside the frames. This makes for a comparatively portable loco in 'our' gauge, suitable for both garden and club railways. See the Ride on Railways ad. this issue for contact détails. Prolific author Chris Vine publishes yet another (the third) volume in his populär 'Peter's Raihvay' series! The previous two books have been received very well; this one may well find its potential as a seasonal gift. Hopefully a review will appear in the 'News' in due course, but meanwhile - see ad. this issue. The range of IV" gauge rolling stock from Phoenix Locomotives now includes a China Clay Hood wagon, Confiât wagon, Steam Banana van, and a new Cattle wagon with interior and exterior detailing. Ali rolling stock kits now include appropriate decal sets. The recently-introduced AC traction system will be expanded in 2010 with a new 400w motor suitable for the smaller locomotive or tram. Also available is the new Soundtrack digital sound system offering 16-bit CD-quality (interchangeable) sounds via its built-in amplifier. Able to run on 12 or 24 volts, the easily-installed system is compatible with all populär motor speed Controllers. Members visiting the recent Midlands Model Engineering Exhibition will have noticed the Hunslet loco 'Linda ' on the Engineers Emporium (L A Services) stand; this loco has been under development for some time, and has indeed been on exhibition display previously. The loco is now available to the market - see ad. this issue for more information. Also officially launched at the Midlands exhibition was the Bagnali loco 'Staffarci' from Station Road Steam - check their website for further détails plus video clip. Within our Society, the 'season of goodwill' extends far beyond that of established tradition. The 'feel-good' mood of the AGM pervaded the Monday coach excursion Charity Raffle, which raised £269.25 for Blackpool Transporté nominated Charity - Donna's Dream House - www.donnasdreamhouse.co.uk - a most worthy cause which enables terminally-ill children and their families to enjoy some 'quality time' in Blackpool. The Chairman of the charity Trustees, writing in acknowledgement of our contribution, included the quote "People likeyou are very special". Thanks also to the Society members who generously donated the raffle prizes - including a special framed Jonathan Clay print of a Blackpool tram - ali eagerly claimed by the lucky winners! Best wishes to ali for a happy festive season - from The Goods Yard. 56 CASTLE MINIATURE RAILWAYS SECOND-HAND STOCK Tinkerbell recently refurbished with re-tube, 2-6-2T Yeo Fully re-built & re-tubed new boiler certificate £12,750 £26,500 Class 47 Mardyke Diesel—recent engine & overhaul With two MK3 earriages—£14,500. Would seil separately Complété with armchairs, table light and ut Class Carriage—£1750 Bells Whisky bottles ride in luxury Large stock of second-hand carnages and trucks Track and points: Large quantifies of différent types CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANTS MORE STOCK URGENTLY REQUIRED We will buy your «hole railway, lock, stock & barrel for cash. Immediate offers. PART EXCHANGE WELCOME Visit our website for latest availability CASTLE MINIATURE RAILWAYS Bolebroke Castle, Hartfield, E Sussex TN7 4JJ. Tel 01892 770061 Fax 01892 771041 www.bolebrokecastle.co.uk 57 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Dear David The attached photo is of the first train to pass through the 72 foot long Wren's Tunnel on the 7 V" Gauge Echills Wood Railway at Kingsbury in Warwickshire. The tunnel was officially opened on Saturday 12th September 2009 by representatives from Waste Recycling Environmental Ltd, the Landfill Communities Fund and Warwickshire County Council. First Train through Wren's Tunnel The opening of the tunnel is another milestone in the construction of the new extension to Far Leys which is expected to open in 2010. This new extension will give a total trip of approximately 2 km. Regards Alain Foote Dear David May I, through the pages of the News, please express my gratitude to all those involved with the organisation of the recent AGM at Worden Park, Leyland. I have attended many AGM's over the years and all have been unique and special, but for me the latest just last weekend in Lancashire exceeded anything I have experienced previously. The professionalism and organisation of everything from the initial meeting at the car park entrance to leaving site on the Monday morning was first rate. 58 As a locomotive owner I am especially grateful to the loading and unloading team for their assistance and patience, but equally the catering, track management and general well-being of the members was of a very high standard-thank you. As a way of rounding off the season I can think of nothing better than renewing oíd friendships and talking trains with new ones! Of course the fact that my locomotive was still rurming after the weekend is a major plus point (not always the case) and I hope to provide an árdele on this in due course. Yours faithfully Ivan Hewlett Hi David, Here are a couple of photos taken at the Eastleigh Lakeside Railway Summer Gala. The first is of Garratt 0-4-0+0-4-0 Al Saint Leonard at the front driven by owner Mike Marshall and L&B Taw driven by owner Ian Heys on the rear of the shuttle train approaching Monks Brook Station. Both are 7% locos the stock is 10M. Al Saint Leonard The other is of Taw on shed at the start of the day with two 10M locos in the background. Lord Nelson and Rob Roy. Best regards Dave Hillier 1285 Taw on shed 59 Dear David I believe I have forgotten to renew my subscription to the 7 % gauge Society this year, but I had to write to try and put right information that seems to be circulating about Eaton Gearboxes and their use, and in the absence of a better forum, I hope you will publish it.. These excellent gearboxes are in wide use throughout our hobby, but, sad to say, some of the installations that 1 have seen are poor. It is in the hope that I can persuade any new builders to properly use the gearbox that I write this. Of the Eaton Hydraulic Combined Pump and Motors the Number 6 or 7 unit is more than adequate for our needs is designed to run with a constant speed input of 3,600 rpm. The output shaft then will move in either direction from 0 to 2150 rpm. 1t is not designed to be controlied willy nilly from a motor throttle. I enclose a paragraph taken directly from the operating instructions for these units, which is freely available on the internet, for anybody who would want to check this information. Operation For optimum control and power, the transmissions should be operated at constant input speeds. When operating the unit under varying load conditions there can be noticeable changes in the output speed. If the output speed decreases due to increased load, the shift lever should be directed toward neutral position to increase the output torque. This produces the same resuit as shifting down to a lower gear with a typical mechanical transmission. From my own point of view this is clear enough, and my own engine (a Honda 5hp electric start) is geared up to the gearbox (a 5 inch pulley driving a 3 inch pulley) and the motor has been set to 2160 rpm output with a tachometer. The motor throttle has three positions. Idle - Fast Idle - Run. Run gives the required 3600 rpm input at the gearbox. The output from the gearbox is then geared down from 2150 rpm - its maximum output speed, to give a maximum 7 mph running speed at the track. (Being hydraulic, the gearbox will work at lower speeds, and appear to work correctly, but not as advised.) Only two days ago, I heard a colleague giving advice to someone enquiring how to use these units. Connect a petrol engine with a 1 to 1 connection and then use the throttle to control it. The obvious problem is, do you want a Honda engine screaming away at 3600 rpm to get maximum speed out of your unit, as well as producing masses of heat. I think not, and neither do the customers. However, operating the gearbox at a lower speed will mean that to get speed out by altering the final drive gearing, the internal pressure in the gearbox will increase enormously. In these days of Health and Safety, it is beholding on everyone building anything the public is going to ride one (and we all hope they will continue to ride), to use materials and parts WITHIN SPECIFICATION and as is advised in literature available. It is no good blaming Eaton for premature failure of your unit, with whatever complications that might have arisen, if you are ignoring their advice which is there for ail to see. I have no connection with Eaton Hydraulics other than being a satisfied customer. Yours faithfully J.S. Pinder 60 Dear David Please fmd attached a couple of digital pictures of our recently completed Crâne. It is built to a freelance design with a lean towards a Cowan's Sheldon 45 Ton Diesel breakdown crâne. It is capable of lifting a good sized loco as per one of the pictures where it is lifting a petrol-hydraulic 0-4-0. It has an articulated jib foot to allow it to negotiate curves down to 20 ft radius and has a bogie jib carrier. We have a number of pictures during its construction and would be happy to do an article for the 7K" Gauge News if this is of interest. Dixon & Scott Thomas Maiden Law Light Railway. 61 Dear David, I hear so many variations on accurately machining crank pin centres. The enclosed photos show how I get accurate repeats, even years later. A photo speaks more than many words! Regards, Frank Birchall Dear David I would like to thank all at Leyland for a superb AGM weekend. I had a very enjoyable four days in Leyland. Good facilities with good catering and a superb dinner after the AGM. The whole organisation of the event went very smoothly and pleasantly, the sign of a well oiled machine. The visit on Monday was very interesting. It brought back memories for me of the first AGM I ever attended at the Vicarage, Knott End on Sea, near Fleetwood in 1978. To the best of my knowledge there were only 4 members that attended both 1978 and 2009 AGM's and these were the Rev. Bob Jackson (our host), Doug Kempton (who became treasurer that day), David Nicholson (our new editor) and myself. In those early days of our Society there were no formal dinner arrangements after the AGM meeting. The day outside, having heard the chat about steam engines, laying track and contemplating railways in general; left many members feeling hungry so it was decided to travel into Blackpool to look for an evening meal. The ferry service from Knott End to Fleetwood was running - we climbed aboard the small ferry in very windy, rainy weather to reach the tram stop in Fleetwood to take us into Blackpool and food. Naturally everybody wanted to sit on the top deck of the tram, to see the best view of the illuminations; they had in those days a conductor and a driver on every vehicle. I recall one of our members had an American chime whistle, which he had imported, in his pocket. He did try to blow it! We all had a great time, and a good laugh! We still do! The atmosphere, the camaraderie, the friendship, the exchanging of ideas, has not changed over the years-it just becomes better and better. I must just add the return journey was made 62 by conventional motorbus back to Knott End and our cars. Well done to all at the Leyland Society. John Nicholson - Membership Number 254 ***** Hello David, Thanks for your Email, what a great AGM. The loco is named Marie and Brian's wife is Kathleen. Since returning from Leyland the loco has run at my club (Chingford) on a charity day for Great Ormond Street Hospital and Haven Hospice combined. It was a lovely day weather-wise and so many people turned up they had to wait 1 '/i hours for a ride at the height of the afternoon. We should have stopped at 5pm but carried the last passengers at 6.15pm. Since this last run, the loco is now in my workshop. I have removed all the lining and taken the handrails off as they are in the wrong position. Its next outing will be to Alexandra Palace in January (new lining etc) and Harrogate later. I hope to visit a few different lines next year before coming to Echills Wood. Hopefully I can get some realistic sounds for her and a better horn. Brian sent me a nice letter regarding his run which he obviously enjoyed as he went round twice. I just thought it was the least I could do for someone for whom the Society means so much. I hope it won't be a year before we meet up again. Best wishes, Bill Dadswell This letter refers to the picture on the rear cover. ( Ed.) Being kept in the dark about Leicester: 01455 283443 Our technical team batteries? Norwich: 01603484471 can provide batteries Evesham: 01386 429100 to suit all your www.multicell.co.uk requirements. Northern Distributor: Phoenix Locomotives Ltd 1 Colchester Road b tTfr Kew Southport PR8 6XJ Tel: 01704 546957 Mob: 07973207014 Contact: Keith McDonald Call in at one of our Southern Distributor: depots in Leicester, Let us show you the ligm at the The Strawberry Line Evesham or Nor- end of the tunnel!, Avon Valley Country Park wich, give us a call, Bristol BS311TS check out our web- Tel: 01179860124 site or contact one of MULTI Mob: 07960 151286 our Distributors. Contact: Mike Bass 63 fr GREASE W TOPS Engine Driver's 'Grease Tops' now available Sizes 63/4 to 73/í Price only £21.00 ¡ncluding UK postage (£25.00 including postage to Europe) MI Yorkshire Bank Walker Mid^ey Chambers, " = Insurance Brokers Fargate, Sheffield S1 2HD Tel 0114 250 2770 Fax 0114 2 50 2777 www.walkermidgley.co.uk Please complete the Order Form below (photocopy acceptable) Your Name Your Address Post Code Telephone No. Email Address Please enter below the number and sizes of How to correctly measure for your hat size Hat Size Head Number Metrie UK Measurement (inches) Required To find your hat size measure around your head 55 6.3/4 21.1/2 the way you will wear the hat. Most people wear hats about 1/2"above the ear. If you wear your hat 56 6.7/8 21.7/8 difterently measure your hat size that way. Pulì 57 7 22.1/4 the tape measure around your head, but not too 58 7.1/8 22.5/8 tight. Pick the hat size whlch corresponds closest 59 7.1/4 23 to your head measurement eg 22.5/8" head 60 7.3/8 23.1/2 measurement corresponds to hat size 7.1/8" - 61 7.1/2 23.7/8 remember the Grease Top should fit snugly so 62 7.5/8 24.1/4 that it won't fall off when you bend over. 63 7.3/4 24.5/8 Total number required ì £21.00 each = Total Cost £ Payment I enclose cheque/postal order for total cost of £ (please make payable to 'Walker Midgley') Or téléphoné 0114 250 2777 to pay by debit/credit card. Send to Walker Midgley Insurance Brokers Ltd, Yorkshire Bank Chambers, Fargate, Sheffield S1 2HD 64 ITEM DESCRIPTION PRICE p&p Waterproof Jackets Navy with the logo printed on the back £14.00 £3.00 Body-warmer Colours Various, £21.00 £4.00 Please ring to confirm Polar Fleece with Black/ Royal Blue/ Navy/ Burgundy/ £17.00 £4.00 embroidered logo Red/ Bottle Green and Grey. Sweatshirt with Black/ Royal Blue/ Pale blue/ £15.00 £2.50 embroidered logo Red/ Turquoise/ Green, and Orange Short sleeved polo shirt Black/ Royal Blue/ Pale blue/ £14.00 £2.50 with embroidered logo Red/ Turquoise/ Green, and Orange T. Shirt with Black/ Royal Blue/ Pale blue/ £9.00 £2.00 embroidered logo Red/ Turquoise/ Green, and Orange Sizes M (38"), L. (40"), XL (44"), XXL (50") The above clothing is available personalised with your name, or railway, or both, to special order. Ring or email for a quote. Baseball Caps Navy Blue £6.00 £1.50 with embroidered logo Pull-on Woollen hat Navy Blue £7.00 £1.50 Car Stickers Inside - 3ln. dia £0.50 £0.50 Badges for riding cars 6" £6.00 £0.50 9" £7.00 £0.50 Lapel Badges Blue Enamel -1 in dia. £3.50 £0.50 Sew on Badges Navy with embroidered logo £6.00 £0.50 Tote Bags Canvas with logo £6.00 £1.50 Binders with gold logo Holds 10/12 issues of the News £9.00 per pair £2.50 N.B. Also sold slngly at £4.50 each if collected at A.G.M., exhibitions or events. Commission Sales: Solid Silver Hallmarked Engineman's Cap Badges, replicas taken from Originals, at the moment offering L.N.E.R, L.M.S, G.C.R and G.W.R. Price £30 plus postage - please check. Orders, with cheques payable to "The 7%" Gauge Society Ltd.," should be sent to: Mrs Valerie Westby, 4 Louise Avenue, Gedling, NOTTINGHAM. NG4 2ND. Enquire if in stock on 0115 9114273 (anytime) or by email: [email protected] Please note we have no facilities for credit/debit cards. A Publication of the TA" Gauge Society Ltd ' Production & distribution by IMPRINT, New Road, Newtown, Powys SV16 1BD