Thanks - Its so difficult to get suitable music which does not detract from the beauty of the natural exhaust sound. My preference is for them to speak for themselves - glad you also agree.
Coal firing in O gauge is pretty sick!, but that Atlantic runs beautiful and is quite powerfull pulling that long rake of brass Gresley coaches. The single at the end was very nice a well.
The prototype with a wide firebox helps in O gauge. As does John's experience in firing from 1:1 down to 1:45 and everything in between. At dusk, the real coal fire is magical. See the end of my video from Crewchester in 2018 ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-uLxp8IVzTho.html.
T'is amazing that such small scaled live steam locos can work. That goes to the smaller Dave's Q6 tank engine which is pulling a long rake of wagons. Questions: 1. What fractional scale are these models (00, 1/43, 1/48, ...) 2. What 0-gauge track is it (e.g., 1 1/4 inch) 3. Which Fuel is used. Would alcohol, butane, tablets, ... work? I dink butane should be the best due to higher heat content than the Vino and EZr to operate w less hazard than the invisible Vino flames when spilled 4. Who can convert 1/48th scaled brass US electric motor (2 rail) loco model to live steam? Boiler/Firebox maker? 5. Can anyone make #4 above to fully working Walschearts valve gr? Are those locos in the video all Eccentric valves (can't go bkwrds from the cab, must b pushed by a hand to go bckwrds/frwrds). Though here in the US, the '0-scale' scale is smaller than in the UK (1/43), the models here is still bigger so changing the Micky Mouse ornamental Walsch. gear s/b much EZr.
Lots of questions - Here are some answers I hope they help 1) These are (mainly) to Gauge O Guild fine standard running on 32mm gauge track and nominally to 7 mm to ft. Of course 7mm/ft should be 32.76mm gauge 2) 1 1/4 inch is 31.75 mm - Actually the original design for my Netta by LBSC was for 1 1/4 gauge track. 3) Most of the locos in my videos use meths (alcohol). With the forced draft, they can create sufficient heat to generate steam at 50+ psi even when refreshing the water 4) Its probably not worth converting an existing electric logo as too much will need to be replaced. 5) Working valve gear is possible including outside Walschearts. Slip eccentric is easy to make and if you are manually controlling, then pushing the loco half turn of wheel in the proposed direction is no issue.
Good question. The Gauge O Guild Live Steam book tells you how to make a live steamer. The Henshaw article in GOG Gazette May 2013 (in GOG archive) details a simpler solution using oscillators. The engines in this video are all high pressure most with axle pumps and super heaters. My RU-vid video on how to operate high pressure live steamers gives guidance on running them. The rest is practice. But don't be afraid to start even with a simple pot boiler. We will be at the GOG spring show in Kettering first sat in March demonstrating live steam. Happy to answer any questions face to face
These are scaled down steam locomotives with water converted to steam in a boiler. Most of the engines in these videos are meths (alcohol) fired. The thumbnail picture ( GNR Atlantic made by John Shawe) is coal fired - hence the miniature fire irons being used. Steam is fed to the cylinders as per the full size. The regulator is usually manual - so you have to walk along beside them to control the speed. As you see, they are capable of pulling long trains and at realistic speeds.
BTW most tracks are level or close to level. This means the regulator can be set and the engine / train proceeds as a near constant speed. An exception in Andrews track ( ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--fqYZzT-vHA.html )which as a 1 in 75 gradient - you have to drive the engines
Are these trains remote controlled in any way? If not how long can they run before refueling water and fuel and mostly how many times do they need oil for the moving parts?
Hi John thanks for your questions. Most of the engines are manual controlled. So if the track is level, then you can set the regulator and it will run with little intervention. With an axle pump to replenish the water in the boiler, you can get run of 20-30 minutes - limited by the amount of fuel. A displacement lubricator the valves and piston get oiled. The other moving parts are oiled before the run and do not need any additional attention.
What kind of boilers are used in live steam? I assume that most are pot boilers fired with alcohol, but it seems that butane-fired center flue boilers would also work at this scale. Does anyone currently produce O-scale live steamers or are they just available on the secondary market?
+ChainsawCHARL1E Most of the live steamers in this video are meths (alcohol) fired - exception is John Shawe's coal fired Atlantic. They are all internal fired with one or more fire tubes. Most have cross water tubes to increase the heating surface area as well as improve water circulation. Internal firing makes the engines less susceptible to wind when running out of doors. There are some examples of gas firing and of course several members have Bassett Lowke and Leech, which are external fired pot boilers in my other videos. Often the wheel profile has been adjusted to GOG standard gauge (29mm back to back) If you are interested, GLR Model Engineer Supplies has several 'kits' for O gauge live streamers. These include frames, castings for cylinder, eccentrics, wheels.
Very enjoyable as are all your videos. Question: Is there someone experienced with firing a Felix Spring, Gauge 0 BB Br 18.5 (Bavarian S3/6) who would be willing to assist me in doing so? I have as yet to so much as make an attempt! Thank you.
+Paul Lubliner Lucky you in having a Felix Spring model. Did you get it as a working model or is some renovation expected? I would recommend you get a copy of the Gauge O Guild 'Live Steam' book. This takes you through the steps necessary to raise steam and run a live steam locomotive. Its more complex than just putting on the track and turning on the power. But very rewarding. Some immediate steps 1) check the wheels and motion are free when pushed on the track. May need oiling. Best use steam oil which can be bought from garden railway suppliers 2) Check runs on air. You can probably use a car foot pump if you do not have a small compressor. One used for air brush painting is sufficient. 3) Get your boiler hydraulically tested unless the model came with a boiler test certificate. 4) Fill up boiler with water (distilled) to cover the crown of the firebox but leave some space at the top. 5) Put steam oil in the lubricator 6) Put fuel in 7) Ignite !! - if meths you will need an external blower to get up steam , if gas usual trick is to open the gas valve a little and put a lighter at the chimney - best use those poker type. The flame should flash back to the burner. 8) Wait until pressure is about 20-25 psi and open the locos own blower while removing the external blower. If all is well, pressure should rise. BTW Where are you based?
Actually the locos are mainly meths fired with John's Atlantic being coal fired. There are some gas fired locos in my other videos. Part of the attraction of meths or coal is the need for the blast to draw the fire. The harder the engine works, the hotter the fire.BTW at 3:30 into the video, you can see John tending the coal fire.
I don't think they still make em. Been trying to find out more about these O gauge live steam beauties but I can't find a single one still in production. 1/32 scale is the smallest that seems to have manufacturers I can find.
Doctor Dirk - where are you based? Most of us are in the Gauge O Guild. We will be at the Kettering Spring show 7th March so com alone. Plans are available - start by getting the GoG Live Steam Book. Some of LBSC designs are available including BAT (4-4-0 tender based on Southern Schools Class) and Owl (based on NER internal cylinder 0-6-0). Both can be adapted to your preferred prototype. BTW if you decide on using LBSC , please use 29mm back -to-back wheels rather than the coarse scale 28mm back to back.
@@DrDave_63395 Thank you for replying. I'd better pop along to Kettering for a chat and a closer look. When I looked at the 0-6-0 tender loco I did wonder if it would make the basis of a 'Dean goods'.
Most of the locos in these videos are scratch build. But Jack Shawe is planning an batch of O gauge live steamers. There are also some pot boilers available on the Internet auction sites
BTW the astute will note that 32mm is too narrow for 7mm/ft. And you may notice that some of Rafe's engines appear too small. This is to make them correct scale for 32mm track (1:45 rather than 1:43.5) :-)
+Jared Abbate The engines in my videos are all 29mm back-to-back wheel spacing for GOG standard. Not sure if Lionel uses 28mm or 29 mm back to back. You can generally run 29mm stock through points designed for 28mm. They just rattle a little
No. O Gauge as display here is 7mm/ft scale (1:43.5) on 32 mm gauge track. So the prototypes are all standard gauge engines. G scale is 1:22.5 scale on 45 mm gauge track. And prototypes are narrow gauge. LGB is G scale.
Not sure of the details of Lionel MTH O gauge track. However engines in my videos are all 29mm back-to-back wheel spacing for GOG standard. Not sure if Lionel uses 28mm or 29 mm back to back. You can generally run 29mm stock through points designed for 28mm. They just rattle a little. Indeed when I pressure tested my loco. it ran through SM32 points (facing and trailing) without trouble. FYI SM32 is the spec usually used for narrow gauge stock on 32 mm gauge track.
Lionel is tinplate track and therefore back-to-back is irelevant as it does not have check rails. 29mm b-b should run ok on Lionel track if it is well laid and the curves are not too small radius for the loco.
However.... The curves on Lionel track are probably too sharp for these locos. Most finescale locos are only happy on curves of radius greater than 6ft.
Why can't we see a video of each loco pulling their cars the full length of the track without a bunch of editing. I love these videos. Only thing is nothing's worse than watching a loco starting to pull a hill then switch to another scene and another then another. So I love the content but hate the editing. GOD bless you brother!
Daniel, - thanks for your comments. I''ll them them onboard for the videos I make and edit in 2020. Perhaps holding the camera still and letting the train pass in front. BTW with the exception of Andrews track in Essex most are flat or intended to be flat - subsidence over the years changes things. Andrew's track is a challenge to open the regulator at the bottom of the hill and shut off at the top :-)
