general question for live steam guys and girls please

stevedenver

stevedenver

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as of late,
it seems everytime i run either my aster frank s or my SRRL 24-
both over 15, the aster with not that much time or use, and the SRRL seems rather unworn to my eye as well
things fall off, screws unwind, hoses burst, pumps jam and have to be removed and the ball plug freed, jets cleaned, truck frames loosen, ad nauseum etc -not all at once, but it seems theres always something

last time i lost and replaced a screw-which happened while running-just popped out of the main driver dislodging the entire drive assembly and eccentric, i inadvertantly misaligned it, having used lock tite , and thinking the slight 'resistance' i felt was the lock tite setting up and ended up ruining the portion of the axel which takes the screw,
and a complete drill out and re tap with a sleeve insert-alas i digress
its a right PITA

i am really careful, because they are relatively pricey and a pain for me to repair because i only know mechanical and electrical stuff
they are handled carefully, cleaned and put away in padded cases, and are regularly tidied re steam oil and grit
so
ive gone to tightening every little screw and nut each time before i run, careful lube, really a thorough once over

is this common or is this unusual
 
A little unusual I'd say - the odd thing, yes, but not every time out? I recall you buying these, and as they are both of unknown provenance despite being in good apparent condition, there is no way of knowing a previous owner hasn't dismantled some parts of them out of curiosity, and not tightened things up properly! It is of course good practice to periodically check things as you are doing, but I seldom find anything that needs attention.

My locos (6 steamers) run many real miles a year each, and the only failure of any note has been losing an outside crank on an Accucraft loco when the grub screw slackened off, when it was farily new. Maybe one blocked gas jet a year? My new Caledonia has run 10 real miles from new this year...perfectly!
 
The considered opinion's I have read or observed is that a quick check of all screws and moving parts is a part of running small live steam engines like ours! I do and like Neil have not found anything loose in my checks perhaps it's the altitude mate! you should lube every time out anyway so just keep up what your doing and eventually you'll come to a point where things won't fall off or seize up...........................In a perfect world................
 
Steve,
Hope things get better . Have been there myself .
After every run I give my little " chaps" a thorough cleaning with Q-tips and the blue shop towels . During this time I usually check all of the connections and screws for tightness as I go. I plan to spend 30 to 40 minutes on cleaning and re-lubing things before it goes onto the ready track again. If they get a bath , ( yes a bath in the sink ) it can take an hour start to finish. I find this process a good way to finish the day, a cup of " Earl Gray ", a cookie (biscuit ) and to work. I just put myself in the role of engine wipers of the past and enjoy my work .

Charles M
 
thanks to all

charles you think as i do, be it tea and a biscuit, turkish coffee with a twist -or if its days end-a stout at the bench
i too do the bath thing once in a while, as it seems removing steam oil with a qtip or rag just never ends
but im wary too about what it must do to the pipes as it seems as sticky as bacon grease -and how does this affect servos?
ive been remiss about being super thorough in maintenance,
time for religious pre and post flight check

i think sometimes id just want to run, with the convenience of an electric loco
and obviously
this isnt working

so from now on-itll be a bit more ceremonial-and methodical
since i dont have a goodall refill valve on the frank s, and refueling the SRRL while still hot worries me (as the connection between can and butane tank nipple is not as tight, and the tank on mine is right above the burner, and i know it spills a good deal during fueling as i can smell it. i presume roundhose must use a different style nipple than on the Frank-which is quite tight as well nd removed a bit from the burner-i being in the tender. So I stop, ginerly handle the hot llittle monsters, open the boiler and rewater, refuel, relube, re-fill steam oil-so its usually limited to 1-3 runs-not a long time -then theres actually more service time thatn run time)

i have used liquid dish soap with a toothbrush, as well as acetone with a paper towel or clean rag to clean-any ohter tips?
 
Steve ,
Some of our members use Simple Green as a degreaser. Spray the model down with it , wait a few minutes and then hose off.
I found a soft bristle brush used to clean the air conditioner vents on cars , I use this to suds up my models. It works without scratching the paint and gets in all of the small places very well. The sprayer nozzle on the sink works very well to rinse things off , and can be directed underneath to rinse the steam oil out.
I am very careful not to get water near the pressure gauge and the servos when working with the sprayer nozzle. I have had a gauge fog once, a gentle warm up with a hair dryer will remove the fog . Just warm the gauge to the touch and then wait , the fog goes away.

I find that I spend about an hour working on an engine after running. I have seen the videos of the work crews servicing engines and I keep that in mind when I am working on mine. I get more satisfaction running steam than I ever did with electrics. Even if I only run for an hour, that satisfaction still holds. Explaining to folks about live steam and seeing the reaction on their faces is part of what I find enjoyable about the hobby.

Charles M
 
When I go to one of the local steam ups, I usually only have two or three runs. The rest of the time is spent chatting with the other steamers, watching their runs, eating, etc. I've picked up a lot of information this way and have found ways to solve problems I may have. One of the problems that I had with my Accucraft Caradoc was the chopper couplings would sometimes open and drop the following cars. I only have the male, drop chopper on one end of the cars. Well, one of the steamers, Bill Allen, had a small chain with a lead ball attached to the coupling and dropped it over the chopper. Problem solved. And this was prototypical on some of the railways. It looks good and works.

I think that I learn more talking rather than running. :)
 
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