Victoria BC: Tutorial - Running an antique live steam O gauge Bassett-Lowke 2-6-0 (Please subscribe) 

@@TwistedMacGyversTrains thanks Frank. ☺️

@@NormanAllen-ps9ju ha! Well, he tries to be a decent chap. 😊

Absolutely wonderful to hear this! If you have any questions please feel free to ask. Whereabouts are you?

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi Thanks and will do! :) I'm living out of Southern Ontario (a bit of a ways from Victoria haha) And while my facilities aren't quite rated for O gauge yet (My area of the hobby has always been in old British OO) my local club has a sizable outdoor O scale layout so hopefully when the loco is sufficiently up to snuff I might take it for a run there (Though with how nice the paint is I admit I am a bit weary to run it haha) By the way I found your use of the Lionel Hogwarts Express's tender to hook up with North American 3 rail stock to be an incredibly clever way to retrofit while keeping it all original! I think I might try that myself and see if my friend will let me run it on his prewar O layout haha, Any who I appreciate the reply! And thanks again for putting content on this kinda stuff out there, really helps us young guys learn the ropes and keep this area of the hobby alive, Cheers!

@@dustymodels well, sir, you are digging around in my older videos. Lol. The Victoria BC byline in the title has been replaced with Casselman ON in my latest videos! I also model British OO but have not introduced that on the channel (yet).

@@dustymodels that looks like a Grumman Goose in your banner. Am I close? When I was a kid we’d go to our relative’s cabin on a lake and a forest service Goose was parked and fuelled on the beach right next door. They had that WWII American temp landing strip large metal plates down the beach into the water. I loved watching that plane rev up to get up the beach.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi That's right, it's a goose alright, I have always had a novel interest in sea planes! I've never seen a Goose in Person myself, but I have seen a few Catalina's here and there, hope to one day venture over to BC and visit the Martin Mars one of these days. Getting to Casselman from BC must of been one hell of a drive! Last summer me and a buddy drove from Regina to Southern Ontario to bring a car back and that alone felt like an eternity.

Thanks Hunter. ☺️

Thanks so much! The engine was built to be run. I run it in all weather. There is a vid on my channel of it in snow and another in the rain. The fact it has evidence of being in the initial production making it about 94 years old may alarm some people. However, the very elderly lady that lives behind us (she is close to the same age as the engine) grew up in the UK and the first time she saw this engine run it brought her back to her garden growing up and her dad and brothers running similar Basset-Lowke engines. Sometimes she ambles up to the fence, leans against it and chats while the engine runs. If that brings her a flood of warm memories in the very autumn years of her life then running the engine outside was more than worth it. Sitting it behind glass to be admired isn’t for me. The current paint job is mine. It is already showing it’s wear. So like a real full size engine I’ll overhaul, shop it and paint it again. And again. And again until I can’t anymore and the next owner will have the privilege. I am really just it’s current care-taker.

@@NormanAllen-ps9ju thanks! ☺️

My engine was not so unworn. I had to lap the reverser and do other work. It was a mess when I got it and had a few fine steam leaks I could only find with a little piece of glass as the leaking steam condensed on it. Lol. This loco became a labour of love. It was worth it. Someone had also slopped the wrong green in what I suspect was exterior household paint all over it. I stripped that and decided on black. That’s a great suggestion about the fuel vent. I’m going to do that. I had a cab fire I discovered quickly only because I decided at that moment to touch the reversing lever and instantly singed my fingers. I instantly smelled the hot metal and paint. I must have missed the solder melting by seconds! I threw the wet towel over it. Cotton towel of course. I can be clumsy so distrust spraying water in case I actually use the water to blast burning meths all over. The wet towel starves the fire almost instantly. I’ve never heard of TUW. Where do you source it from here in Canada? I’ll have to do an internet search.

Oh, and I also love the hot steam below the plume. I so love live steam. I’m often proud to walk around with burns on fingers. Before COVID my colleagues would know I had a good weekend if i had a bandage or two. 😊

I bench tested my loco initially and it ran freely. It was only when I placed it on the track and it had to actually move its own weight along that I noticed it was losing pressure.

However, enjoy learning your engine on the bench! Have a small mirror at hand. Move it around the boiler, and bits to see if tiny bits of steam are coming out anywhere. Even if a small leak is too small to see it will condense on the glass of the mirror.

Have you tried your engine yet? My firsts tests included some rather poor runs and problems. Lol

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi My first run (bench test) went flawlessly followed your instructions as well as an article I found online. For the second run a decent bit of carbon was on the pilot wick so the main body didn’t want to light so I had to play with that. I’ll likely switch out for steel wool like you have done. ALSO I found out for everyone’s information 0-48 curves are too small of a radius haha. But overall I’ve had a good experience running!

@@Stoker58 excellent! You can also use ceramic wick. It lasts longer than steel wool, but 0000 steel wool does work fine. Ceramic wick is a magic voodoo sort of thing. Lol. Ceramic fibres woven into what looks much like a fine cotton wick.

There is nothing better, especially for alcohol burning engines, than a wet towel. Mine over primed until I heard of others not filling the boiler or oil to the amount original instructions suggested.

Hi Torsten. The locos are all mine. I have to scrape every penny for them. I appreciated your very kind words. I started my channel to help encourage people thinking about getting into live steam. I dreamed of having a live steam loco since I was a boy. I got my first one (an old and inexpensive used Mamod) after my University debt was paid off in my thirties. Cheers, Terry

Hi Tree Find. I have watched almost all of your videos. I never see trains like yours at train shows over here on the coast of the Pacific Ocean. I’m a bit jealous! Lol I’d love to have an Enterprise. I am reluctant to get one from the UK sight unseen. I like the look of them.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi if you are interested, I have an original 50's B-L mogul kit ,unmade with original book of words etc for sale here in Scotland. I can upload a video if wanted.I reckon £800 plus postage at cost would be fair .All original as found condition.

@@associatedblacksheepandmisfits that would be awesome but I just reserved one of Accucraft’s live steam shay’s coming out this year. Thus I can’t afford it. :(

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi no worries. I'll have to upload a video later anyways, got a 3 1/2" gauge tank loco to go too.

@@associatedblacksheepandmisfits it’s funny, but 3.5 inch gauge doesn’t seem to be a thing over here. Yet, in Japan they run them on the ground and pull people.

Hi Martin. They are not too common outside of the UK. Happy looking!

I should add that the problem with them being much more common in the UK is that I like to check out antique trains before buying them.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi that way you know what your getting into

@@canadiansteam indeed. Even though I got my engine in Canada and in my province, it was still somewhat distant and I still had to get it sight unseen. But I felt I could trust the fellow. Even if he had steamed it he may not have noticed a few tiny leaks it had. It was still work to get everything right. Ideally I would see the thing under pressure and use a very small picture frame glass, glass telescope slide, or small makeup mirror to move around and pick up any tiny leaks. Condensing steam on glass never lies.

@@canadiansteam Shameless plug I bought two of these unfired and put the other one up on eBay. I’m stateside but I bit the bullet and brought them over from the UK. Thanks to Terry’s awesome video I’ve been running the wheels of the one I’m keeping.

Too funny! Well, I drink my tap water. But tap water is bad for miniature live steam engines.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi true

@@tyfudeyou’re welcome! If you find issues running it or whatnot don’t hesitate to contact me. I don’t remember where I got the valve. I’ll go have a look…

@@tyfude sorry. Can’t find anything. Try places like O gauge live steam Facebook groups. Ask there??

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi thank you!

@@tyfude not a problem

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi one thing, do you know about what the PSI pop off pressure of the boiler might be and the thread size? That way I might be able to find a valve that works, or have one made. Thanks!

Just be patient.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi Doesn't help You can't get these things in south Africa Heck im lucky i got the D45

@@laaity yeah. You’d have to source one online.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi Ja but shipping to hear us rare You can get brand new stuff from welisco Im actually saving up money for a steam tractor

@@laaity a steam tractor would be cool.

I’m sure there are a few places but if there are I can’t find them online. I’ve gotten mine from here. They are in Ontario. I have ordered from them numerous times. Always a good experience. wgrr.ca/AP28-203-Steam-Oil-67-oz-bottle_p_3278.html

You’re welcome. While not fine scale or is somewhere about 1:48. O gauge.

Is silver soldering required?

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi have put a wee video on my channel for you.👍🇨🇦🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿☯️

@@associatedblacksheepandmisfits to think that kit has been around all this time. I have never tried anything like that before and it may be too much for me too. How much are you asking?

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi If you paid the postage its yours.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi if interested email me.

Between 93 and 94 years old.

It came out as a toy as the real B1 LNER engine hit the rails. So the equivalent in its day as is buying a GE ES44AC now. Lol

Damn! I never realized that they had live steam models back in the day. So I guess the men had their toys back then as well, because I wouldn't think that it would have been marketed as a kids toy train. A little too complex for kids to play with!

@@mikek8089 they were marketed to boys to learn mechanics. They didn’t coddle kids like we do now. Men were in the hobby too. You could get model live steam engines in the 1890s.

Here ya go kid....just don't blow it up!😂

I am not sure of the actual minimum but suspect one. I run mine outdoors on 2.5 foot radius track. I do also run mine on 0-31 Lionel track. When I do so I remove the pilot wheels. It looks a bit odd but works. Given the speed can be difficult to control I added super-elevation to my 0-31 track and made sure the loco was slowed with a few railcars behind it. 0-31 is tight and the risk of flying off the curve with a lit alcohol burner is there. Make sure you have a wet towel handy always to throw over the loco. As to a hint of the minimum radius it can handle, I have tried it on Lionel 036 Fastrack and it cal ‘almost’ manage it. The pilot wheels run up against the cylinder chests. I imagine that it would run on 38 diametre track without this issue. I have heard of people experimenting with home made pilots with smaller wheels for use on tighter radius track. Anyway, 072 would be good and would lessen the risk of a topple. I hope this helps.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi Thank you.

@@Alcofoamer np

Some people completely empty the boiler, then fill it all the way and draw some back out. I use a large syringe. I have enough experience and confidence with the loco that I can peer in and by flicking my iPhone light back and forth over the hole to see the reflection off the water know by sight what is about right. These old engines are learning partly by trial and error. Great fun.

I could. Lol.

That would be an awesome project! I have been contemplating such a thing as something to do when I retire one day.

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi o What class are you planing to build? Bdw do you have coal fired locomotives

@@laaity I do not have coal fired engines. I am sometimes tempted too. But when I watch people run small engines with coal the balance of simply enjoying the train run vs. How much work it is to keep them running makes me realize I like tinkering on the bench, but when running I like stepping back and watching quite a bit. I have an old Aster that requires operating a blower to keep draught to the fire. Just that element causes more work. I actually like to shunt cars around with my larger G scale Accucraft engine. It doesn’t need a blower. One just adjusts doesn’t the gas flow when waiting. I like the hands on operation. However, shunting cars with the addition of balancing a blower makes it more challenging and less enjoyable for me. Add coal to the mix and it becomes a little too much. But if I have a steamer in a ride on/behind scale in years to come I want coal firing for sure!

@@Terrys-Steam-and-Cobi o but in case your interested On ebay there is a k28 i think that is coal fired And go to gandy dancer productions He made his own coal fired locomotives

@@laaity I’ll check it out