Working on the steam tram....

Looks really impressive, Trev!

tramcar trev said:
I’m especially pleased with the smoke effects, so much so I expect the neighbours to complain….
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I've been following those developments with interest. The photos show it gives a really realistic plume. Really like that effect

tramcar trev said:
A clean up may be the big GO! I’m really envious of chaps who can work in sterile conditions, the item I seek can be sitting right in front of me and I still can’t find it…
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Same here! I can put a file down while I do something else and then spend five minutes trying to find it again. And why is it that if I drop a screw or worse still a small nut on to the floor it instantly disappears? Hands and knees job picking up bits of detritus for close scrutiny for ten minutes until eventually it turns up (or sometimes never does!).

Rik
 
ge_rik said:
Looks really impressive, Trev!

tramcar trev said:
I’m especially pleased with the smoke effects, so much so I expect the neighbours to complain….
Click to expand...
I've been following those developments with interest. The photos show it gives a really realistic plume. Really like that effect The trick is to a) have a fan to blow the smoke and to b) have the smoke coming out of the smaller tube on the smoke maker into a larger tube (funnel) so that it mixes and reduces velocity.....

tramcar trev said:
A clean up may be the big GO! I’m really envious of chaps who can work in sterile conditions, the item I seek can be sitting right in front of me and I still can’t find it…
Click to expand...
Same here! I can put a file down while I do something else and then spend five minutes trying to find it again. And why is it that if I drop a screw or worse still a small nut on to the floor it instantly disappears? Hands and knees job picking up bits of detritus for close scrutiny for ten minutes until eventually it turns up (or sometimes never does!).
Murphys first law of "dropped things" is that they will defy physics and go where nothing has ever gone before....
Rik
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Lovely work Trev! Looks great so far!
 
Lifeguards? Do like the smoke (and the rest of it of course). Great work (as we expect of you) Trev:thumbup:
 
trammayo said:
Lifeguards? Do like the smoke (and the rest of it of course). Great work (as we expect of you) Trev:thumbup:
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Yet to come, I'll use the same pattern as I do for the electrics... Although not always fitted on the prototype.....
 
Absolutely spot on, Trev.
Time to dig out my copy of 'Steaming down Argent Street' for a bit of immersion therapy.
 
Where did you get your copy? I even tried at The Hill and could not get it.... All I have are a few pics.... I may be prepared to swap my copy of "The Time of the Trolley"
Funny place, Hyacinth and I are sitting at "Frescos" with some friends who live there and looking at the traffic chaos outside and I'm thinking "why" go 500 metres in any direction and there is ZIP, SFA, ZILCH except red sandy soil and rocks.....
 
Brilliant, Trev! Have you shared anywhere how you achieved the cobble effect with the track? One of next year's projects is a short length of street running, so I'd be happy to learn more.
 
viaEstrecha said:
Brilliant, Trev! Have you shared anywhere how you achieved the cobble effect with the track? One of next year's projects is a short length of street running, so I'd be happy to learn more.
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Yes I have gone into great detail re the stones try searching for "cobble stones" or have a squiz at my blog and do a similar search there. I did go into detail about how I laid the stones and paved the "road" somewhere....
 
Weight is right.
How to add weight? I made up a couple of lead ingots to hide behind the skirts. They came in at 680gms, surely enough to hold the tram on the tracks and pull 2 trailers? I would hope so…
So this was an interesting task, pouring the lead was easy enough but I had made them too thick so had to devise a way of reducing the thickness. I decided to machine them in the mill. Not in all my years had I ever had to do this and I’m now thinking that modern sinkers (which supplied the lead for the project) must be alloyed with something in it to make it machineable…

Anyway there is a picture of my ingots and also a shot under the tram showing the drawbar with wiring for the trailers lighting and the tubes that supply steam to the cylinders….

I’ll give it a run and see what happens….


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Trev, love the Steam Tram, guys in the US would call it a Dummy. In truth it is very different to most of our Steam Trams in the UK as these were well somehow much less like a Passenger Car than the prototype of your Model. There is I believe in NZ a Stream Tram that is more what we are used too. But still love your one, the parts that you have fabricated all being made with obvious loving care.

Now as ever from me a few questions.

I think that you have used a Bachmann Tram as the basis, certainly the chassis is from that stable?

How does the RC run?

I used a Bachmann Chassis, well two actually for a Box Motor with Aristo RC Gear and the running was decidedly Lumpy. I have now converted to USA Chassis and the running is Ok.

Oh Smoke Effect great too.

JonD
 
Dabnabbit ! I can't even get to my copyof the book as Doris has filled our little library with crud ! I'd be prepared to pass on my copy if you can't get one from a bookseller, although mine looks like it came over strapped to the mast of the last grain clipper.
 
Dabnabbit ! I can't even get to my copyof the book as Doris has filled our little library with crud ! I'd be prepared to pass on my copy if you can't get one from a bookseller, although mine looks like it came over strapped to the mast of the last grain clipper.
 
dunnyrail said:
Trev, love the Steam Tram, guys in the US would call it a Dummy. In truth it is very different to most of our Steam Trams in the UK as these were well somehow much less like a Passenger Car than the prototype of your Model. There is I believe in NZ a Stream Tram that is more what we are used too. But still love your one, the parts that you have fabricated all being made with obvious loving care.

Now as ever from me a few questions.

I think that you have used a Bachmann Tram as the basis, certainly the chassis is from that stable?

How does the RC run?

I used a Bachmann Chassis, well two actually for a Box Motor with Aristo RC Gear and the running was decidedly Lumpy. I have now converted to USA Chassis and the running is Ok.

Oh Smoke Effect great too.

JonD
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Yep, the steam tram started out as a Bachmann enclosed tram. The RC is simple, I currently use a 6Ch Hobby King Tx with a receiver bound to it in each tram ( or they will be when I get to doing the conversion) Ch6 controls the smoke via a Turnigy RC switch. I'm not sure about the Bachmann motor block, drive train etc but at the monent its all I have and will have to do, it responds well to the ESC but the question is will it have enough grunt to tow a cuppla trailers? They are typical Chinese C&N, the wheels came off the tyres and I had to glue them back on... Maybe the steam tram in NZ you speak of is another rebuilt Baldwin that was rebuilt from a wreck.... It came form Sydney circa 1910 I have never seen a picture of it towing anything though....
http://ehive.com/account/3031/object/963/Baldwin_steam_tram

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7SMnjQuV4s

Yep European tram motors were more your Toby the Tram engine styles. I'm told the reason ours ended up designed as they were is because there was resistance from "Consumers" who foresaw all the intelligent Aussie Horses getting scared of anything different. I'm not sure but I don't think any Baldwin tram motors of this style ever ran in the place of manufacture....

Anyway I'll make 1 trailer and see what happens, it may not like my sharp bends and doglegs and if that is the case then I have 2 choices 1) build a steam only interurban route ( I can hear Hyacinth now) or 2) I can sell the pair.... I have already had interest, yes you guessed it from Baldwin aficionados...
Thanks too chaps for your inspirational comments....
 
There should be no problem drawing trailers. By itself. it's capable of climbing a 1 in 6.

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Time for a spot of drifting. It looks like Baldwin tram motors were used throughout the US even though you tend to associate them with Australia. Thats probably down to early and widespread electrification. They did cascade down to some odd outfits

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammot...t, so a locomotive boiler wouldn't always do.
 
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