cog railway

[rogertra]

Jerry-

There are problems at the other end of the model railroader spectrum as well. Lots of long-time hobbyists are noticing that model parts are getting progressively smaller, so they are harder to see, and our fingers are getting larger making it more and more difficult to handle those little parts even when we can see them. Woe is us.                                                                                                                                  -- D

You noticed that as well?  Plus, I went blind in my left eye, which doesn't help with depth perception.  Soldering in particular is a pain so I have another local modeller install DCC and sound for me as I just can't handle the soldering of fine wires anymore.  Everything is so small.

[Jerrys HO]

D and Roger

I know the feeling, starting to get signs of the older generation. That still is no excuse for the young one's today. If they would just start something and finish it I bet they would want to keep going. No matter how tough a model was to build, I still had the satisfaction of getting it done. I even surprised myself at how well my models turned out. Before I started building my O layout I used to build model cars, boats and planes. When I started building houses and such for railroading it sort of made it easier for me.

Jerry

[rogertra]

May I ask why you want to model a rack railway?  Is it for the challenge, which is good?

Operation will be pretty dull.

Push the one car train uphill with engine on the down hill side (They always were and still are)

Come back down hill with one car train with the engine on the down hill side.

No running around the train, nothing.

Unless you are modelling Europe where some narrow gauge railways had adhesion as well as rack sections and the boilers were only slightly raked, if at all.  They ran passenger and freight trains but the inclines were not as steep as Mount Washington, for example.  At a guess say 15% to 20% grades.

[Doneldon]

actually the project is back on but I'm goanna need loads of plans and luck so I already have an idea for my custom engine first a rough version out or cardboard then follow it when it's time for the real deal I am goanna practice my idea on my old engine also I need you guys to track down the name of all the engine except for pepersauce so 2 trough 10 can I trust you guys to pull this off cause I don't have enough time   to track them all down so I trust you guys to do this little task for me and add which name goes to which engine and can you track down the numbers to have the number of each steamer next to the name for that engine

Andrew-

YOU don't have enough time so we guys have to do this for you? Seriously?
Have you had your narcissistic entitlement factor calibrated recently? It seems to be
way out of line.

                                                                                                       -- D

[Belpaire]

I found this topic and thought you might be interested.  

The Mount Washington Cog Railway has always been a special place for me.  I too had been looking for a model of a cog railway with no luck.  So I designed one myself which I had printed out in 3d.  Custom decals were also created.

It's a static model, but I tried to keep it as close to prototypical as possible.



If Bachmann were to consider making a model, I would certainly share my design.  I wouldn't hold my breath though, the model is tiny.

[J3a-614]

I must congratulate Belpaire on his model, which certainly looks good and appears to represent an engine with a new boiler.  And yes, it is tiny, as can be noted by comparing this very attractive model with the HO track under it.

A thought on now to make such a tiny model operational--given the relatively limited operational possibilities compared with some other things, why not animate it with a string, in effect making this a funicular or incline?  This might make the model more in the line of animated scenery than a railroad, but it could answer how to make such a railroad actually move. 

[Ken Clark]

   Having rode the West Coast Wilderness Railway in Tasmania, I am also interested.
As the Rly was built as a common carrier, it was the main connection from the mines at Queenstown to the
wharfs at Strahan. Engines lead the trains both ways, from Halls Creek Siding (start of rack section)with a grade of 6.25 % to the summit at Rinadeena Saddle, down grade is 5% to Dubbil Barril  (Double Barrel). The section from Queenstown to Dubbil Barril is operated by Adhension/Rack steam engines. At Dubbil Barril ( end of rack section) a passing track and turntable allows for switching of power/trains and a diesel takes the train on  to Strahan.
The Rly was shutdown in 1963, rebuilding started in 1989, and the trip is worth taking if you are ever in Tasmania.

  Ken Clark
   GWN

[jonathan]

Nice model!  It seemed only a matter of time before we started seeing what can be accomplished with 3D printing.  I wonder about the possibilities of purchasing working mechanisms and simply printing the superstructures to create whatever model we wish.  Interesting.  Thanks for sharing your project.

Regards,

Jonathan

[Belpaire]

I have, of course, contemplated ways to make it operable but haven't come up with any solutions that would work while keeping it looking right.  One big problem is that it would need to have operating cog gears in the middle if it is to work like the real thing.  The string idea would work when viewed from a distance but I would want something more like the prototype.

[J3a-614]

I have, of course, contemplated ways to make it operable but haven't come up with any solutions that would work while keeping it looking right.  One big problem is that it would need to have operating cog gears in the middle if it is to work like the real thing.  The string idea would work when viewed from a distance but I would want something more like the prototype.

The whole problem as I see it revolves aroung the very small size of this locomotive.  It is tiny!  That is a challenge both for a working rack system and also for powering the locomotive itself; I think it's actually a good deal smaller than a Trackmobile model that's available, and much more of it is open.

You may have already considered this, but an alternative idea that kind of gets away from the primitive string arrangement would be to keep this locomotive a "dummy," and power the passenger car that would be going up the hill with it.  That would gain the advantage of a body that's of decent size to enclose a mechanism, and the prototype does have cog wheels to engage the rack for braking.  The locomotive still can't move by itself, and the coupling between engine and coach will have to be inconspicuous (the prototype doesn't even have couplers, but instead a pair of rollers that act as a type of buffer, working in compression only), but it would be a lot easier to cobble up a mechanism that could fit and even be hidden  in the coach than doing the same for this locomotive.

[Belpaire]

Funny you should mention powered coach.  This is from a 1954 RMC article.

[Skarloey Railway]

May I ask why you want to model a rack railway?  Is it for the challenge, which is good?

Operation will be pretty dull.

Push the one car train uphill with engine on the down hill side (They always were and still are)

Come back down hill with one car train with the engine on the down hill side.

No running around the train, nothing.

Unless you are modelling Europe where some narrow gauge railways had adhesion as well as rack sections and the boilers were only slightly raked, if at all.  They ran passenger and freight trains but the inclines were not as steep as Mount Washington, for example.  At a guess say 15% to 20% grades.

Yeah, so dull:   Kitson-Meyer of the Trans-Andean railway between Chile and Argentina. The inclined cylinders drove the cog.

Hope Bachmann forgives the link but as they will never be making rack locos they should be tolerant!
HO scale. 9mm gauge. Site is German Language but we can all read pictures.http://shop.ferro-train.com/ferrotrainshop/Category/100004/3.aspx

[J3a-614]

Funny you should mention powered coach.  This is from a 1954 RMC article.

Great minds think alike!    

Actually that model work from the 1950s still looks good, and it's interesting to look at that inconspicuous (and primitive but effective!) "coupling" between a dummy locomotive and powered coach!  

That in turn has me wondering what became of a lot of the scratchbuilt models made back then.  Some were real beauties, often of prototypes that were never offered commercially, not even in brass.  Some steam models in larger scales such as O would feature valve gear that had a driving motor to put the gear into forward or reverse position as was appropriate for the model's movement.  One fellow in England built a live steam version of the Virginian AE (2-10-10-2) in HO in the 1960s; it looked good and supposedly ran well.

There were published photographs of a model railroad in O scale that had multiple live steam models, may even have been operated entirely with them.  The models in the photograph were of Southern Pacific prototypes, and included a Daylight and a cab-forward. 

I might mention there was a live steam model company, Little Engines, that offered parts for engines in this size as late as the 1970s, and for all I know may still offer some of that today. 

One would hope these models and others found good homes later.  

[RAM]

Go to littleengines.com.

[WTierce1]

I saw someone mention the Ferro Train Line, Reynaulds actually sells is now if anyone is interested: http://www.reynaulds.com/catalog/dept_1726.aspx That is just the starter sets, they have other stuff like passenger cars, track, including switches, and locos.