HUNSLET QUARRY ENGINE BUILD

[Steve Goodbody]

Hello Fred,

I've copied the information from Alan Stepney's website below, verbatim. You can find it at alanstepney.info/page44.html. I believe you're aware that the 7.25" Milner Hunslet and the 5" Don Young Hunslet share a similar design, albeit at different scales, and some of the following may be specific to the smaller loco - I don't know I'm afraid.

Your loco looks great by the way - you've reached a stage in less than a year that it took me over 20 years to reach - very well done and congratulations.

You may also want to keep an eye on the 7 1/4" society's webpage and the Model Engineering magazine website - their message boards sometime have information and questions relevant to the Miner Hunslet.

Best regards
Steve Goodbody


"Hunslet. 0-4-0 in 5" (and 7 ¼") gauge by Don Young.

1. The rear (de-railing safety) bar needs to be moved further back (say 0.25"). In its designed position there is a potential for it to foul the grate/ash-pan. OK under normal circumstances but could mean a few extra
seconds if one had to drop the fire in a hurry.

2. It looks as if the tops of the spring hangers are going to be very close to the boiler cleading - But at this stage I still don't know whether they will be too close.

3. The brake gear will foul the underside of the horn keeps if the driving wheels are slightly under size
(OK not a drawing error but something that needs to be watched).

4. It may be advisable to move the feed pump to the inside motion frame stay plate and drive it from the rear axle.

5. Don's drawing shows the reverser-arm located on the weigh-shaft by means of a roll-pin. Bearing in mind how critical things are in that area I have not had the courage to do that and have made a temporary arm that clamps onto the weigh-shaft. This temporary arm is adjustable for length as is a temporary reach rod. I shall not commit these to solid metal until I have the beast running on air. I think that even when I reach
that stage the reverser-arm will still be a version that clamps to the weigh-shaft. The clamp will be hidden under the running board so I don't think that it will detract from the appearance.

6.Lugs on the sides of the fire-box rest on the tops of the frames. As drawn by Don, there is nothing to retain the fire-box end of the boiler from leaving the top edge of the frames in the event of a heavy accident. I have attached a square section strip to the back of the reversing lever bracket and an inverted 'J' section
strip to the LH side of the frames. The intention is to allow for horizontal movement (expansion) but
restrain vertical movement.

(From Mike Hopkins, UK)

There are several versions of the Hunslet design.
Don Young's 1/5 scale (5" gauge) design. When Don did the building series in LLAS (Locomotives Large and Small), he wrote it in parallel with the John Milner's design (3/8 scale, 7 1/4" gauge).
The picture then gets even further muddied by the existence of Alan Ruston's 1/3 scale 'Elidir' (also 7 1/4"gauge). All three are in Reeves catalogue plus, of course, Don Young's 'Hunslette' (1/7 scale, 3 1/2" gauge)."

[Fred_V]

Thanks Steve. I guess I get more shop time; I'm out there 6 to 7 days a week.
Looks like most of those comments relate to the Don Young design.

Where are you located?
Fred

[marshall5]

Hello Fred,

I've copied the information from Alan Stepney's website below, verbatim. You can find it at alanstepney.info/page44.html. I believe you're aware that the 7.25" Milner Hunslet and the 5" Don Young Hunslet share a similar design, albeit at different scales, and some of the following may be specific to the smaller loco - I don't know I'm afraid.

There are several versions of the Hunslet design.
Don Young's 1/5 scale (5" gauge) design. When Don did the building series in LLAS (Locomotives Large and Small), he wrote it in parallel with the John Milner's design (3/8 scale, 7 1/4" gauge).
The picture then gets even further muddied by the existence of Alan Ruston's 1/3 scale 'Elidir' (also 7 1/4"gauge). All three are in Reeves catalogue plus, of course, Don Young's 'Hunslette' (1/7 scale, 3 1/2" gauge)."

I'm sorry but there is a lot of incorrect information in the above:
John Milner's Hunslet design is not 3/8 scale it is 1/3 scale
Alan Rushton's is not 1/3 scale it is 1/4 scale.
I think the original writer is making a big assumption in saying "the 7.25" Milner Hunslet and the 5" Don Young Hunslet share a similar design....." Other than both being 'based' on the same full-size loco the models don't have a lot in common and I don't think many of the problems with the Don Young design outlined above can really be applied to the Milner Hunslet - I'm pretty sure it doesn't have a pump or re-railing bars as designed, for example. Perhaps, in view of the confusion over scales, the original writer is confusing Alan Rushton's 'Elidir' with Milner's design.
Happy to be proved wrong though!
Cheers,
Ray.
P.S.
Having done a bit of 'Googling' I think I've found how the confusion may have occurred. Apparently, starting in the first issue of Locos Large and Small in 1979, Don Young attempted to cover both his own 5"g. design and John Milner's 7 1/4"g. Hunslet. However the Milner Hunslet design goes back much further than this as John had already designed, built, and sold the first one by 1973 so I don't think Don Young could have any input into the design.

[Steve Goodbody]

I'm up in NJ Fred, and am envious at your 6-7 days per week! A three hour daily commute during the week and a major house remodeling project on nights and weekends mean that I haven't done anything on the engine since May. My hope was to be in steam this year - its 30th anniversary in construction - but maybe next year will be the one. In the meantime I'm very much looking forward to seeing a video of yours in action - please keep posting!

Best regards
Steve

[Fred_V]

Thanks for the corrections Ray. I caught some of those too. We all get lapses of memory at times.

Steve, don't feel bad; this is usually a retirement hobby and I have great sympathy for those who try to build one of these and keep a job, wife, kids and sanity.
Stay with it and one day it will all come together.

[Pontiacguy1]

I have a job, wife, 3 small kids, no sanity, and try to work on or build locomotives when I can. I find that I typically get about 3 or 4 hours of work in the average week. Of course that doesn't come steadily... I might work on something for 7 or 8 hours one week, then not get to touch it again for 2 weeks after that.

As long as you are making progress, you'll get there. Even if it is only 2 hours every couple of weeks or so, you're still keeping it going.

[Pipescs]

I find that I typically get about 3 or 4 hours of work in the average week. Of course that doesn't come steadily... I might work on something for 7 or 8 hours one week, then not get to touch it again for 2 weeks after that.

Amen to the above.

[Fender]

Uh-oh. Nobody told me that sanity was a requirement....

[Fred_V]

Uh-oh. Nobody told me that sanity was a requirement....

It's called "being in a state sanity" or in other words "insanity"

[steamin10]

Time management is part of the Zen of building. I have to be in that frame of mind to be effective, without worries or major distractions. (Kids asking questions and fingering things in process). I find it hard to find my quiet time for building toys.

[Benjamin Maggi]

Fred, could you describe your throttle a bit more? My Sweet Pea calls for a rotary throttle but I have been advised to use a simpler ball valve throttle. Is your throttle in the smokebox (I assume it is)? Anything special you had to do for your engine to use the valve?

[Fred_V]

The smokebox is now finished. Being pieced together the fit of the parts is not a tight fit. I need to seal the edges somehow.
Any ideas are welcome.