12" working railroad

Discuss park gauge trains and large scale miniature railways having track gauges from 8" to 24" gauge and designed at scales of 2" to the foot or greater - whether modeled for personal use, or purpose built for amusement park operation or private railroading.

Moderators: Glenn Brooks, Harold_V

Forum rules
Topics may include: antique park gauge train restoration, preservation, and history; building new grand scale equipment from scratch; large scale miniature railway construction, maintenance, and safe operation; fallen flags; track, gauge, and equipment standards; grand scale vendor offerings; and, compiling an on-line motive power roster.
User avatar
steamin10
Posts: 6712
Joined: Sun Jun 08, 2003 11:52 pm
Location: NW Indiana. Close to Lake Michigan S. tip

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by steamin10 »

Being me, I would run hardlines of 1/4 inch from the auto store. They sell various lengths in straight stock, and they can be bent any way you need to lace them through. Simple. Using straight air you dont need an air storage tank on the car, however keep the spring weak and use a bell crank out the side to release the spring for car movement. A weak spring will retain the car without sliding the wheels. Cutting or shimming the spring for force is easy enough to get what level of braking you want.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
It is not getting caught in the rain, its learning to dance in it. People saying good morning, should have to prove it.
User avatar
NP317
Posts: 4551
Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2014 2:57 pm
Location: Northern Oregon, USA

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by NP317 »

I would use hardlines for the brakes.
I originally used push-fittings and plastic tubing on my equipment, and they eventually leaked.
This past winter I hard-lined all the brakes on my cars and tenders. Even machined joiners and Ts which I silver soldered together.
Much better brakes now, like when they were new.
~RN
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

I actually drew up a brake wheel and mini ratcheting setup in CAD, I'm going to try to have them laser cut when our machine is finally working. The wheel will turn counter-clockwise and pull on a cable that will release the brakes. As far as adjusting the braking power, I'm planning to slot the bar for the linkage and have the end of the spring be able to move up and down the slot, increasing or decreasing the leverage(and braking power) accordingly. This is going to allow me to run heavy loads and have enough braking, yet not lock up the wheels when I'm empty.
I was expecting hard lines would work the best, just thought I'd ask.
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

The riding car is going to be a bit of a strange duck as far as plumbing, because my controls are going to be mounted on it, not on the locomotive. So the compressed air will have to be piped to the riding car first, then delivered back to the locomotive and rolling stock.
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

Well some much needed upgrades took place this weekend. I constructed another 10' long heavy duty work bench, paired it end to end with the other one, and then put track on them such that I have 10' of track and the turnout I've been working on hooked together. This will allow me to assemble my locomotive, riding car, and finish the moving parts of the turnout as parts get made of one thing or another.
User avatar
Steggy
Posts: 1973
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2011 9:19 pm
Location: JB Pritzker’s Hellhole
Contact:

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by Steggy »

rkcarguy wrote: Mon Aug 20, 2018 9:34 pmQuestion for you guys, are push lock fittings and plastic tubing acceptable for the air brake lines, or should I go to the extra effort of running hard lines under my frames? My brakes will be "sprung on", and I'll apply air to release them so it would be safe in case of a line failure.
My recommendation is like the others': steel tubing. A good choice is the 1/4 inch brake line like that sold at most auto parts stores. It's easy to form, easy to flare, has a pressure rating well beyond what you need and its cost won't break the bank. Plastic tubing of any kind is a very poor choice for compressed air systems, especially pneumatic brakes. It can get really exciting to be on a downgrade when a piece of plastic tubing fails and you suddenly find yourself with no brakes.
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Music isn’t at all difficult.  All you gotta do is play the right notes at the right time!  :D
Glenn Brooks
Posts: 2929
Joined: Mon Nov 10, 2014 1:39 pm
Location: Woodinville, Washington

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by Glenn Brooks »

FYI, some guy on Facebook is making and selling printed scale gladhands for air rake connections. They are cheap, as in a few bucks each, and apparently work very well. Also are prototypical looking. I think he makes them in 2.5” scale also.
Moderator - Grand Scale Forum

Motive power : 1902 A.S.Campbell 4-4-0 American - 12 5/8" gauge, 1955 Ottaway 4-4-0 American 12" gauge

Ahaha, Retirement: the good life - drifting endlessly on a Sea of projects....
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

BigDumbDinosaur wrote: Tue Sep 04, 2018 12:42 pm
rkcarguy wrote: Mon Aug 20, 2018 9:34 pmQuestion for you guys, are push lock fittings and plastic tubing acceptable for the air brake lines, or should I go to the extra effort of running hard lines under my frames? My brakes will be "sprung on", and I'll apply air to release them so it would be safe in case of a line failure.
My recommendation is like the others': steel tubing. A good choice is the 1/4 inch brake line like that sold at most auto parts stores. It's easy to form, easy to flare, has a pressure rating well beyond what you need and its cost won't break the bank. Plastic tubing of any kind is a very poor choice for compressed air systems, especially pneumatic brakes. It can get really exciting to be on a downgrade when a piece of plastic tubing fails and you suddenly find yourself with no brakes.
BDD, I am using air to pull the brakes off the wheels, and springs on an adjustable fulcrum will apply brake pressure when the air is vented and allow adjustment for heavier loads. So if there is a leak, I come to a stop. Basically my brake handle is a ball valve that is vented, so when the valve is closed the downstream side vents the pressure out and the train stops. However, I don't want to be stopped all the time messing with leaky plastic hoses either, so I'm planning on metal tubing, probably go soft soldered on this with a copper or stainless tube.
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

I finally found a horn, for the looks part at least. Amazon had a squeeze bulb bicycle horn for $4.95 that is almost the perfect size once I hack the bulb and bracket portion off the end of it.
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

I was having a little brainstorm today, regarding my air plumbing and 12v air compressor location. As it was, I'll need to run the air from the locomotive to the riding car, then from the brake control back to the locomotive and rolling stock. This meant a second air hose between the loco and riding car. While the compressor would be inside the locomotive and somewhat muffled, it would be subject to the heat of the engine, exhaust, and hydraulics, and crowded in there with all the same.
I'm contemplating mounting it on the end of my riding car, it would be in the place under the end where the big air cylinder typically goes and it would provide "control air" in either direction to the locomotive and rolling stock with only a single hose. I am already running power to my riding car's controls, so running power back to the compressor is a no brainer. Hopefully I can make some sort of cover to quiet it up a bit with it being out in the open.
User avatar
Steggy
Posts: 1973
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2011 9:19 pm
Location: JB Pritzker’s Hellhole
Contact:

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by Steggy »

rkcarguy wrote: Thu Sep 06, 2018 7:01 pm I was having a little brainstorm today, regarding my air plumbing and 12v air compressor location. As it was, I'll need to run the air from the locomotive to the riding car, then from the brake control back to the locomotive and rolling stock. This meant a second air hose between the loco and riding car. While the compressor would be inside the locomotive and somewhat muffled, it would be subject to the heat of the engine, exhaust, and hydraulics, and crowded in there with all the same.
I'm contemplating mounting it on the end of my riding car, it would be in the place under the end where the big air cylinder typically goes and it would provide "control air" in either direction to the locomotive and rolling stock with only a single hose. I am already running power to my riding car's controls, so running power back to the compressor is a no brainer. Hopefully I can make some sort of cover to quiet it up a bit with it being out in the open.
12 volt air compressors are not very tolerant of heat. I'd keep it well away from the locomotive's heat-producing machinery.
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Music isn’t at all difficult.  All you gotta do is play the right notes at the right time!  :D
rkcarguy
Posts: 1730
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2017 10:33 am
Location: Wa State

Re: 12" working railroad

Post by rkcarguy »

If I was going to mount it in the locomotive, I was going to mount it up front behind the grille so it got good airflow. I think if I flip it upside down and mount it in the end of the hopper riding car with an air reservoir cover over the top it should see adequate cooling and not be too much noisier.
Post Reply