The Home Machinist!

good luck with penn coal. they are now shipping only by the RR car load, SO IF YOU WANT 20+ tons, you are good to go. Gone are the days of a few bags or pallet load. They WERE our source of Pocahontas coal for decades.... That's too bad. I picked up 20 bags about four years ago. Nice burning stuff ...

7-1/2" gage Pacific weighing about 800lbs. Ball bearings on the lead truck, bronze bushings on the main axles and half bronze bearing on the trailing truck. Lubrication is whatever was there put it in the shop last October. Cylinder cocks open. It's on the stand so I can't move it far. My scale...

Well that was the years ago part. Harry Herder had Caviler coal. There will little aluminum tags in it that said "Consol Caviler". It burnt well but smoke, stink and burn your eyes. There is about 50lbs left I'll burn on some special occasion. Along with the availability of coal I have won...

Coal varies depending on where in the region it's mined. Years ago I had a tour of the Ravensglass and Eskdale Railway. A truck delivered a load of coal from Poland. I asked why they weren't using Welsh coal. They said the coal coming from the Welsh mines had too much slate in it. They expected it t...

For the live steam hobby, a shift from coal would be more symbolic than anything else. The amount of CO2 a model steam locomotive produces pales in comparison to amount generated in daily life and the low hanging fruit available to society. But if you are a tourist operator or preservation society d...

jmpharrington wrote: ↑Fri Mar 29, 2024 10:37 pm though an online search yields no direct replacement.

Check zatfoff.com Their website can be a bit clunky

what is the easiest and simplest step by step procedure to do the boiler wash and what kind of soaps, detergents or chemicals can we use that are safe for boiler washing. as well as what kind of equipment to use to get inside the boiler. CLR is a common chemical used in washing boilers. I use white...

Perhaps it is the limitations thin wall plated tube would impose on modifications.

The record for distance covered by a miniature train in a 24 hour period is 204.9 miles. This is with a coal fired 4-4-0 using Vesconite bushings on the rods. https://www.machinedesign.com/mechanical-motion-systems/article/21838239/polymer-bushings-help-steam-locomotive-set-world-record-for-distance...

Based on the two railroads I run on with signals, 1.5" scale is probably the lower limit of what is easy pick out at a distance. The type of light, lens and how it's aimed have a big effect. There are a few signals that even though I know they are there that are difficult to pick out of the fol...

These are the pulley diameters on my Atlas 6".

That looks like an older 6" lathe. I have one similar to the lathe in this video. https://youtu.be/-3WUTFSSPWk?si=WYqPbQsr8wjecyjM Near the end you get a decent view of the drive set up. I can measure my pulleys when I get back home next week. From the factory the 6" lathe came with a 1/3H...