Eastern Tn logging on the DG CC & W RR 1928
- Thread starter Bill Nelson
- Start date
The Bogie is nice. Very interesting linkage just below the bell? Is that a reversing lever????
Doc Tom
Doc Tom
That is quite possibly an extremely convoluted reversing lever as it plugs into the valve gear. since the drive wheels are articulated under the boiler, and this lever comes in close to the pivot point, I guess they had to do something like that.
OK, I know nothing about trains but, I know how to 
research... so this is what I found
Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn #6, an 1886 product of Mason Machine Works
Mason's idea was to remove what American railroad men saw as the biggest disadvantages of the Fairlie - its cramped space for fuel and water caused by its double ended design (not very useful on American railroads where there was always ample room for a turntable, it's cramped cab caused by the joined double boilers, and to some degree its poor riding.
He did this by removing one boiler of the double Fairlie and retaining only one power truck at the front. A much larger cab was fitted, and a fuel bunker and water tank behind the cab, supported by a trailing truck. The advantages of the Fairlie design were kept; the swivelling driven truck for a greater ability to negotiate curves, and the large open space between the trucks to fit a large firebox unrestricted by the wheels.
The Mason Bogie was still, though, plagued by one of the biggest problems of the Fairlie - the jointed steam pipes to the driven truck leaked far too much steam. Mason eventually changed to a different scheme, in which the pivot point for the leading truck became a hollow ball joint through which the live steam for the cylinders passed. Mason also developed a sliding seal for the exhaust from the moving cylinder saddle into the smoke box. Although better, Mason's improvements took up much valuable space in between the driving wheels, forcing Mason to use an outside valve gear, generally the Walschaerts valve gear. Additionally, the reversing shaft had to be mounted atop the boiler, with a long lifting link dropping down to the radius rod, a feature unique to Mason Bogies (this was necessary because the lifting link would swing to the side as the truck pivoted, lifting the radius rod and changing the valve setting. Lengthening the link, and thus increasing the radius of its swing, minimized the amount of change). The Mason Bogie, a modified Fairlie locomotive of 1874, was the first to use the Walschaerts gear in North America.
Oh, ,,,The Walschaerts valve gear is a type of valve invented by railway mechanical engineer Egide Walschaerts in 1844 used to regulate the flow of steam to the pistons in steam engines. It was extensively used from the late 19th century until the end of the steam era. The Walschaerts valve gear was slow to gain popularity. The Stephenson valve gear remained the most commonly used on 19th-century locomotives. However, the Walschaerts valve gear had the advantage that it could be mounted entirely on the outside of the locomotives, leaving the space between the frames clear; which resulted in it being adopted in some articulated locomotives. ..and that ends the history lesson for today... ( got a bit carried away... guess I do miss teaching , and I never said that!)
research... so this is what I foundBoston, Revere Beach & Lynn #6, an 1886 product of Mason Machine Works
Mason's idea was to remove what American railroad men saw as the biggest disadvantages of the Fairlie - its cramped space for fuel and water caused by its double ended design (not very useful on American railroads where there was always ample room for a turntable, it's cramped cab caused by the joined double boilers, and to some degree its poor riding.
He did this by removing one boiler of the double Fairlie and retaining only one power truck at the front. A much larger cab was fitted, and a fuel bunker and water tank behind the cab, supported by a trailing truck. The advantages of the Fairlie design were kept; the swivelling driven truck for a greater ability to negotiate curves, and the large open space between the trucks to fit a large firebox unrestricted by the wheels.
The Mason Bogie was still, though, plagued by one of the biggest problems of the Fairlie - the jointed steam pipes to the driven truck leaked far too much steam. Mason eventually changed to a different scheme, in which the pivot point for the leading truck became a hollow ball joint through which the live steam for the cylinders passed. Mason also developed a sliding seal for the exhaust from the moving cylinder saddle into the smoke box. Although better, Mason's improvements took up much valuable space in between the driving wheels, forcing Mason to use an outside valve gear, generally the Walschaerts valve gear. Additionally, the reversing shaft had to be mounted atop the boiler, with a long lifting link dropping down to the radius rod, a feature unique to Mason Bogies (this was necessary because the lifting link would swing to the side as the truck pivoted, lifting the radius rod and changing the valve setting. Lengthening the link, and thus increasing the radius of its swing, minimized the amount of change). The Mason Bogie, a modified Fairlie locomotive of 1874, was the first to use the Walschaerts gear in North America.
Oh, ,,,The Walschaerts valve gear is a type of valve invented by railway mechanical engineer Egide Walschaerts in 1844 used to regulate the flow of steam to the pistons in steam engines. It was extensively used from the late 19th century until the end of the steam era. The Walschaerts valve gear was slow to gain popularity. The Stephenson valve gear remained the most commonly used on 19th-century locomotives. However, the Walschaerts valve gear had the advantage that it could be mounted entirely on the outside of the locomotives, leaving the space between the frames clear; which resulted in it being adopted in some articulated locomotives. ..and that ends the history lesson for today... ( got a bit carried away... guess I do miss teaching , and I never said that!)
Got the other narrow gauge track in, may need to move it, some of my HOn3 logcars are wider than standard. Then I put in the rollaway.
I got out one of the Surry-Parkers, and got it set up, and started to set up the camp buildings.
Meanwhile over in the Gizzard, Biscuit Rock got a mini tower. This corner of the Wye is out of visual contact with the other two, and this is a busy area. Handy place to be able to give/get train orders.
This reminant of the old mountain fits right in
I got out one of the Surry-Parkers, and got it set up, and started to set up the camp buildings.
Meanwhile over in the Gizzard, Biscuit Rock got a mini tower. This corner of the Wye is out of visual contact with the other two, and this is a busy area. Handy place to be able to give/get train orders.
This reminant of the old mountain fits right in
The beautiful Surry Parker looks right at home in that nice photo. Your are really making progress. Tom
Hi Bill. Really like seeing the Surry Parker at work again. Also your cables and lines to the machine to the machine are very realistic. What material are you using for the cables?? Doc Tom
Tom, Go to a sewing store, and get button thread. It has been treated in some fashion to keep it smooth and durable, and that treatment prevents it from having any of the fuzz that makes Most thread unacceptable for this use. I used a light gray that seemed to look close enough like cable to get by.
Had some locomotives on the workbench, and #1 was there to be sure they were wired to run in the right direction.
Some of the other locomotives were getting extra electrical pick up on insulated wheels, and I thought #1 would benefit from that as well.
Once the tender shell was off, tough#1 was getting a new motor as well, and some extra weight in the tender to help with the extra electrical pick up.
The 35 year old wood racks on #1 were damaged going into the operation, and the top of the tender shell had to be modified to fit the new motor, doing more damage. I had some very fine plwood boards leftover from a laser kit, that where fine enough to look good, and hopefully stout and flexible enough to survive. So I built new wood racks, and painted the tool box lids red.
Here Is #1’s new look. Need to redo the hand rails, and add some flag holders.
Just started fall break. Have way too much work to do, but hope to clean some stuff up in the RR room, perhaps get to where I can run # 1 from Harlow to State Line.
Had some locomotives on the workbench, and #1 was there to be sure they were wired to run in the right direction.
Some of the other locomotives were getting extra electrical pick up on insulated wheels, and I thought #1 would benefit from that as well.
Once the tender shell was off, tough#1 was getting a new motor as well, and some extra weight in the tender to help with the extra electrical pick up.
The 35 year old wood racks on #1 were damaged going into the operation, and the top of the tender shell had to be modified to fit the new motor, doing more damage. I had some very fine plwood boards leftover from a laser kit, that where fine enough to look good, and hopefully stout and flexible enough to survive. So I built new wood racks, and painted the tool box lids red.
Here Is #1’s new look. Need to redo the hand rails, and add some flag holders.
Just started fall break. Have way too much work to do, but hope to clean some stuff up in the RR room, perhaps get to where I can run # 1 from Harlow to State Line.
Button thread it is then. When I finish the engine house on the backwoods logging outfit I will be installing gin pole loaders and need cables to go to my steam powered donkeys. I really like all the close up photos you are pulling off with your new camera. They are very illustrative and make great teaching pictures. Doc Tom
Finally figured out why the dual gauge area in state line would not work. When I swapped the wires over to hook it up to the new layout, I missed the old common rail wire, which dropped behind the Backdrop at the sawmill, and came out at the passing siding at Murray, to hook up with the old tangle of common wires.The new layout has fewer loops, and so the common rail, and the control rail had swapped positions. I’d have had a dead short, excepting for the gaps in all three rails at the removable section over the attic access home.
So over in downtown State Line GA., I had three common rails, one of them off the old RR’s disorganized common rail spiderweb, and one off of the new layout’s neat common rail bus, heavy stranded wire that circles the entire room.
About the time I figured that out, the rotary switch on the main control panel in the dispatcher’s desk locked up, so I had to set up another one, which was a pain. I used to have some spares pre wired, but this layout has more blocks, so I have used up that supply.
I got the new rotary switch in, and the whole State Line block was shorted. As I was checking cars and locomotives to be sure that everything was on the track, I noticed the switch splitting the narrow gauge off the dual gauge was thrown to the narrow gauge. Throwing the switch to the dual gauge resolved the short, and looking at the wires one of the narrow gauge wires off the frog was hooked up wrong.
Problem corrected!
When Tom closed the old C&S, his stock of log cars went to the Club. When the club moved, and stopped doing logging, steam, narrow gauge, passenger trains, and anything else of any real interest, 12 MDC shorty flats came into the DG, CC, & W RR’s fleet.
Most of these were from Dr. Tom’s C & S, But at least two of them were from John Patterson’s Mud Creek &Eastetn. I could not put These cars into service without a trip to the shops, as I use Magnetic uncoupling, so all of these cars need wheelsets with non magnetic axles.
My August train budget, which I just got around to spending included a box of 100 inter mountain 33 inch metal wheel sets, with non magnetic axles, ( close to $1.00 a piece). At the lake, I started to convert cars. Some of my similar cars, I had cut down the fish belly sides to better resemble a wooden car, but had gotten uneven results.
To do a better job , with less work, I made this gauge out of a piece of scrap wood, and some cardboard glued on the bottom to bring it up to flush with the narrower portion of the frame.
This lets me cut near to flush with The skinner part of the frame, and then sand it flush, and get more consistent results.
Later I will come in and try to make some primitive truss rod .
These cars will be a big help, as I get closer to operations, as with my newer 3.3% ruling grade, 4-5 car log trains will be replaced by 10-12 car log trains.
I have been very pleased with the ease, and the results of this conversion so far. I will have to do this to my unmodified MDC Flats. Steel cars just don’t look right.
Most of these were from Dr. Tom’s C & S, But at least two of them were from John Patterson’s Mud Creek &Eastetn. I could not put These cars into service without a trip to the shops, as I use Magnetic uncoupling, so all of these cars need wheelsets with non magnetic axles.
My August train budget, which I just got around to spending included a box of 100 inter mountain 33 inch metal wheel sets, with non magnetic axles, ( close to $1.00 a piece). At the lake, I started to convert cars. Some of my similar cars, I had cut down the fish belly sides to better resemble a wooden car, but had gotten uneven results.
To do a better job , with less work, I made this gauge out of a piece of scrap wood, and some cardboard glued on the bottom to bring it up to flush with the narrower portion of the frame.
This lets me cut near to flush with The skinner part of the frame, and then sand it flush, and get more consistent results.
Later I will come in and try to make some primitive truss rod .
These cars will be a big help, as I get closer to operations, as with my newer 3.3% ruling grade, 4-5 car log trains will be replaced by 10-12 car log trains.
I have been very pleased with the ease, and the results of this conversion so far. I will have to do this to my unmodified MDC Flats. Steel cars just don’t look right.
OK, I know nothing about trains but, I know how to
View attachment 159539
Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn #6, an 1886 product of Mason Machine Works
Mason's idea was to remove what American railroad men saw as the biggest disadvantages of the Fairlie - its cramped space for fuel and water caused by its double ended design (not very useful on American railroads where there was always ample room for a turntable, it's cramped cab caused by the joined double boilers, and to some degree its poor riding.
He did this by removing one boiler of the double Fairlie and retaining only one power truck at the front. A much larger cab was fitted, and a fuel bunker and water tank behind the cab, supported by a trailing truck. The advantages of the Fairlie design were kept; the swivelling driven truck for a greater ability to negotiate curves, and the large open space between the trucks to fit a large firebox unrestricted by the wheels.
The Mason Bogie was still, though, plagued by one of the biggest problems of the Fairlie - the jointed steam pipes to the driven truck leaked far too much steam. Mason eventually changed to a different scheme, in which the pivot point for the leading truck became a hollow ball joint through which the live steam for the cylinders passed. Mason also developed a sliding seal for the exhaust from the moving cylinder saddle into the smoke box. Although better, Mason's improvements took up much valuable space in between the driving wheels, forcing Mason to use an outside valve gear, generally the Walschaerts valve gear. Additionally, the reversing shaft had to be mounted atop the boiler, with a long lifting link dropping down to the radius rod, a feature unique to Mason Bogies (this was necessary because the lifting link would swing to the side as the truck pivoted, lifting the radius rod and changing the valve setting. Lengthening the link, and thus increasing the radius of its swing, minimized the amount of change). The Mason Bogie, a modified Fairlie locomotive of 1874, was the first to use the Walschaerts gear in North America.
Oh, ,,,The Walschaerts valve gear is a type of valve invented by railway mechanical engineer Egide Walschaerts in 1844 used to regulate the flow of steam to the pistons in steam engines. It was extensively used from the late 19th century until the end of the steam era. The Walschaerts valve gear was slow to gain popularity. The Stephenson valve gear remained the most commonly used on 19th-century locomotives. However, the Walschaerts valve gear had the advantage that it could be mounted entirely on the outside of the locomotives, leaving the space between the frames clear; which resulted in it being adopted in some articulated locomotives. ..and that ends the history lesson for today... ( got a bit carried away... guess I do miss teaching , and I never said that!)
This very well written and informative. Thank you for posting. I did not know that the driving wheels pivoted under the frame of this unique steam engine. Thanks for the research.
Doc Tom
There was some room at the stub end of the Harlow yard. With this extension, the rear track will be six feet long, and the front track will be just shy of five feet long; with the middle track somewhere in between.
This yard is all that would fit. I resisted the temptation to extend it to the SE corner of the room, figuring a minimally obstructed view of the lower river crossing was important , as that was the only scenic opportunity on the shelves on the lowest level.
Harlow is in the middle of my RR, and is my interchange with the Southern. Ideally I would have a track for southbound Cars for the Southern. Another for northbound cars for the Southern, A track for eastbound cars on the DG CC &W, a Track for westbound cars on the DG CC &W RR, and lastly, a track for Harlow TN. Local delivery.
So Ideally the Harlow yardmaster would have five tracks, but he is only going to have three, and they will not be long enough.
I recon there will Be eastbound and westbound extras, just to clear the yard.
I have some code 70 flex from Shinohara. I had bought just for this job.
And the joint!
It’s cold in the mountains. The Snow hasn’t melted off the RR room skylight.
The Harlow yard is filled out! I had to come down, and warm my hands.
The cold had kicked my asthma up some also.
If I can get back up there, I want to clean track, and maybe play with #1 which has the big Sagami motor in it again, but has had pick up on the insulated drivers and tender wheels since it had that big Sagami in it last.
Here is the new expended Harlow yard.
This yard is all that would fit. I resisted the temptation to extend it to the SE corner of the room, figuring a minimally obstructed view of the lower river crossing was important , as that was the only scenic opportunity on the shelves on the lowest level.
Harlow is in the middle of my RR, and is my interchange with the Southern. Ideally I would have a track for southbound Cars for the Southern. Another for northbound cars for the Southern, A track for eastbound cars on the DG CC &W, a Track for westbound cars on the DG CC &W RR, and lastly, a track for Harlow TN. Local delivery.
So Ideally the Harlow yardmaster would have five tracks, but he is only going to have three, and they will not be long enough.
I recon there will Be eastbound and westbound extras, just to clear the yard.
I have some code 70 flex from Shinohara. I had bought just for this job.
And the joint!
It’s cold in the mountains. The Snow hasn’t melted off the RR room skylight.
The Harlow yard is filled out! I had to come down, and warm my hands.
The cold had kicked my asthma up some also.
If I can get back up there, I want to clean track, and maybe play with #1 which has the big Sagami motor in it again, but has had pick up on the insulated drivers and tender wheels since it had that big Sagami in it last.
Here is the new expended Harlow yard.
Bitter cold has made modelling difficult. Have to warm my RR "shed" out in the backyard for 1-2 hours before starting on projects. My paint brush rinse bottle was frozen solid. Tom
I got the wires hooked up to the lowest level on the east wall, which was going to be Sander's switch, but I'm thinking about calling the new mine area on the narrow gauge Sander's ridge, so I may need to come up with a new name for this long nine inch deep shelf, but it is wired up. and I have run trains over the lower crossing of Crooked Creek , and should be cleaning tracks down the lowest level on the east wall. with a very long passing siding, and a very long siding, I can use this as a staging area for until the lower level of the central penisuala gets done.
The cave Cove Bridge, near Terrapin was one of the most distinctive scenes on my old central peninsula. I had packed it up carefully, as I “intend to use it on the lowest level of my new Central peninsula.
Getting the box out of storage, it was obvious that the box had had a corner crushed. The main span was OK, and there was little damage to the taller set of pilings, but one side of the shorter set of pilings was stoved in, with broken cross and sway braces.
I had NBW castings on each side of the pilings, where a cross or sway brace attached, so the broken pieces would only fit correctly in the exact original place, making it a real puzzle.
With so much going on on my RR, and the intricate, and distressing nature of the repair, I had put it off, but the subroadbed on the lowest level extends all the way to where the bridge will go.
It’s appearance will change considerably, as it will be on Dead flat track, so the odd trestle bents that provides for the grade will be gone. It will also be flipped, as it was on an outside curve, and now it will be on an inside curve.
We have not been at the lake much, as we had a lot of ugly weather. But we went to the lake this weekend. I had not planned projects in advance, so I grabbed the partly smashed bridge pier assembly , and some of the biggest pieces , to start putting the pieces together.
Massive frustration, but have made serious progress. I brought one piece that must belong to the other tower, and an short some tiny prices, that are should be in the box still. However, I have it together enough that I know it will be salvageable, a good thing considering all the tile I spent drilling holes and gluing in all those NBW castings that push these over the top, Need to do similar with the arched truss. A shame this will be closer to knee level than to eye level.
A close up of the area still needing the most work, shows both the kind of damage and the level of detail. At this point the assembly could be oriented so the other side showed, and likely no one would notice , not 18 inches off the floor anyway.
Not my only source of frustration this weekend. Last time we were at the lake it was super cold, and the pipe we drain the pipes with froze. It broke. Which is not surprising, but one of the pipes to the tub froze too. I fixed the first one, but I’m going to have to remove Sheetrock in a closet to fix the tub pipe,so I capped off that pipe, and I’ll bring tools next time I come to the lake to remove Sheetrock, and make a access door.
On the layout I I have the new block wired on the lowest level Against the Eastern Wall, toward the riverbottoms, where there is a long passing siding, and a very long siding, that can serve as a staging area until the lowest level of the central peninsula is ready for action.
I was planning on calling that area Sanders’ Switch, but will need anotherblock on the narrow gauge at the first mining area, and am thinking it will be Sanders’ ridge.
So I got to come up with a name for block, Possibilities on the radar so far are Midway, and Gilroy.
Good to see that bridge again. Nice rehab job Bill. Sorry about all the frozen pipes out at your lake house. Tom
Fixing this pier has been easier than I thought so far. that could change if I can't find the rest of the pieces, or some of the original material, and have to try to match it. the subroadbed makes it all the way to the Eastern side of this bridge, but, likely I'll be working on the Southern Staging before I push the tacks onto the central peninsula. Still undecided on whether Montgomery Furnace will be on the back side of the central peninsula, or if that would be flea Creek . have plans I like both ways. The biggest impact will be visual, what is the scene you can see on the lowest level, as you walk in. a log camp, or an iron works.