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Post by Doug E on Mar 10, 2005 10:40:12 GMT -5
I am Doug Edwards, and have been in the live steam hobby for over 35 years. I am currently working on lost wax castings for a late model 80 ton class C Climax (piston valves), and a 70 ton Willamette geared locomotive. Both are in 1.6" scale, and follow the prototype closely. I am almost finished with truck castings for both locos, and about half way through the castings for both power units. Current projects include finishing up the last few castings for the Climax truck, and lostwax cylinder castings for both projects. An image of the Climax gear castings can be seen at: www.chaski.com/ubb/showthreaded.php?Cat=&Board=livesteam&Number=13133&page=&view=&sb=5&o=&vc=1I am a self employed machinist, located in No. Idaho, and became a machinist because of my interest in live steam early on. A side interest is manufacturing processes, especially foundry work. I am interested in all recip steam power, with my railroad focus being logging, SP, and PRR steam. |
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Post by GoldenSpike53 on Mar 10, 2005 11:53:49 GMT -5
Well, I guess I've been avoiding this long enough....
I recently started my own group in Yahoo! Groups for builders of Allen Models engines, and have been after everyone to introduce themselves, so I guess I should follow through here, too!
My name is Dale Dennis. (My middle name is Jay, and I always include that when signing, but not usually when I'm being conversational....) I currently live in northern California, a few miles from Sacramento, and I'm a member of the Sacramento Valley Live Steamers. We have a very nice track in Rancho Cordova.
I think I fell in love with steam locomotives when I watched the introduction to "The Adventures of Superman" when I was a kid in the 1950's. The first couple of years that were in black and white showed a close-up of the rods and wheels churning as the announcer said, "More powerful than a locomotive!" When the series went to color, they also went to a diesel locomotive, I suspect to look more modern and up-to-date, but a diesel has never suggested power to me in the way a steamer does.
I am currently building an Allen Models 2-8-0 Consolidation in 1.5" scale. I am in the very early stages. I have a lathe, and I'm hoping to get a milling machine soon. I've learned a lot on this, and other, sites, and from friends locally, both in SVLS and also the Sacramento Locomotive Works, which is a model engineering society.
I work as a television technician in a production studio for a nearby university, so I get to play with expensive toys both on the job and for my hobby!
I've only recently been able to start a live steam project, but it's been my ambition since my late teens when I first saw some 1.5" scale models in the Main Street Station at Disneyland, and started talking to a gentleman there about it. He happened to be a live steamer. I've finally gotten around to it, and am having fun. I have most of the castings, but I'm just getting working on the frame. Slow and sure wins the race....
Wishing you all happy steaming, ;D
Dale Jay Dennis
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Post by gordonfrench on Dec 1, 2006 19:04:55 GMT -5
I'm Gordon French. I've been a member of the Golden Gate Live Steamers (San Francisco Bay Area) for 41 years, and still haven't made life membership. My first boiler certificate for my own "Tich" was issued in 1971. Since then I have been able to fulfill a lifetime dream of having a "Maisie" 4-4-2 Atlantic. I also have an OS "Krause" and and OS "Evening Star" 2-10-0.
Now I'm retired and live in Roseburg Oregon, I can't find one other Oregonian who has 3/4 inch scale equipment, let alone a place to run one. But I have a big backyard and I will follow a Dutch design I saw on the internet that is quick and simple to build. I dont' think I would be happy running on the ground after all this time so I'll be going to an elevated track. I have friends who own 1/2" equipment that run on 2.5 inch gauge and so I will accomodate all three gauges 1/2, 3/4 and 1 inch (@ 4-3/4)
If you plan to visit Roseburg and would like a quick tour of my shop, just message me at gordon-french@netzero.net.
Gordon French
Roseburg, Oregon
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Post by patyoung on Dec 23, 2006 12:38:35 GMT -5
Hi Gordon,
Welcome to the forum. I'm a recently joined member of the Golden Gate Live Steamers
and am having a blast with the regular members. Enjoy going to the club meetings
and the work days every month. Sorry I haven't had a chance to talk to you in person
but you name does come up every so often. Love to hear about your 3/4" modeling
experience.
Happy Holidays,
Pat Young
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Post by gordonfrench on Dec 23, 2006 14:08:42 GMT -5
Hello Pat,
I have just finished shopping my little 0-4-0 in 3/4 inch and the experience has come in handy. I have all the assembly/disassembly tools to make the job do-able. Funny thing is that I now feel no time constraint to get done so I can "get up to the track Sunday" It does make a difference!
I too, am sorry we've never met, but I've posted a couple of pictures under the Kozo - who big is 3/4 inch that were taken of me at the Golden Gate Live Steamer track. The other guy in one of the pictures is an old friend Don Kepfer. Kepfer has what I believe is the largest collection of Stuart Turner engines. I know that when he an I went to Cole's Power models a few years back that Betty Cole bowed and scraped to him because of all the engine casting kits he had bought over the years.
Some day we may meet.
Gordon
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Post by patyoung on Dec 25, 2006 13:19:48 GMT -5
Hello Gordon,
Perhaps you can pass some tips to us newcomers about your experience with
your 0-4-0. I sure would like to avoid any pitfalls.
And I hope we will meet someday...
Regards,
Pat Young
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Post by gordonfrench on Dec 26, 2006 9:15:51 GMT -5
Pat,
First a little background... In about 1965 I first saw a Model Engineer Magazine. I saw that common people were actually building steam model locomotives that could burn coal and pull people and that they had tracks all over England where people had been doing that for years. You can't imagine how much I wanted to do that!
I would that somebody called LBSC had designed and built dozens of locomotives that all kinds of people world wide had build and were successfully running. My problem was that I only had a rather complete Unimat SL-100 and It was pretty small and could only machine very light materials. But this LBSC had written a serial about a simple locomotive in 3/4 inch scale called "Tich" and I could get my hands on all of the instructions on how to build one. I bought castings, materials and bigger machine tools including an old jig drill and a 10" Atlas lathe. Over a few years I had built the "Tich" found a few new friends and had with considerable help, learned to fire a very small coal fire.
I'd joined the Golden Gate Live Steamers who had a track for running 3.5 inch gage locomotives and I had a ball running and working at the track. I made some lifetime friends.
Fast forward to 2002 when a good friend died and left me (among other things) 1 box, 2 open drawers, 1 basket, 2 bags, 2 cans, and 2 piles of loose parts comprising all the pieces of an 0-4-0 tank type locomotive in 3.5 inch gage that had previously been owned by another mutual but departed "Friend" It took me about six months to figure it all out and put it back together. I ran it for one season at GGLS and then moved to Oregon. I've spent a whole lot of time looking for a 3.5 inch track here but alas none exists. So this fall I decided to fix a "few" things that needed fixing.
More later because this is getting a little long.
Gordon
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Post by gordonfrench on Dec 26, 2006 22:29:06 GMT -5
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Post by patyoung on Jan 4, 2007 12:18:45 GMT -5
Hello Gordon,
Thank you for the link.
Happy New Year.
Pat Y.
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Post by gordonfrench on Jan 4, 2007 15:01:46 GMT -5
Back to the shopping of the 0-4-0...
I have accumulated some special tools for working on the little ones. I noticed that I had a slip-joint (channel-lock type) pliers made by Williams that is 3.5 inches long. They are forged and chrome plated and just a little heavier than the new blue handle ones now available. I also have about 4 sets of ignition wrenches both English and Metric. Some are open/box combo and some are open end 2 angle. Pipe stem cleaners, six sizes of tubing including rubber plastic and brass, tweezers of about 3 different kinds and hemostats in several lengths and angles, Jewelers scissors, 5 sets of allen wrenches some sets ball some plain but with a couple bent at right angles about 1/2 inch from the tip.
The steam thingys (won't let me say c_cks|) were the most fidget thing finally going in with the locomotive hanging out over the bench and the thingy (again) lodged in the end of a piece of tubing.
The best thing that I bought this year is a great big lazy Susan from Costco. It is about 24 inches in diameter and has a deep groove just an inch from the edge. The locomotive twirls around and around while I look on one side then the other side. And If I drop something, the thing (nut, washer, bolt, whatever) falls safely into the grove at the edge. I haven't figured out a simple way to flip the locomotive over because I can't figure out how to drain the lubricator FIRST! Oil all down the front of a locomotive is the rats to clean up. If anyone knows a zippy way to uninstall a lubricator in a few seconds, please let me know, but mine are always hidden behind and under where you can't easily reach anything and the fittings are the pits to get back on.
More later. It doesn't get any better, but it is longer.
Gordon
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Post by rgardner on Apr 23, 2007 21:08:03 GMT -5
Hey everyone,
I'm Rob Gardner. A few of you may recognize my name from other discussion forums around the internet. I'm a live steamer/civil engineer/HO modeler here in NE Ohio. I've been doing professional trackwork for a living all over the eastern US for about 12 years now.
I've had an interest in trains and railroading since I was knee-high to a grasshopper I think. The D&RGW has been my favorite RR since I was a kid. Nothing like the Moffat Route west of Denver heading up to the Moffat Tunnel! I have an extensive HO collection including a lot of D&RGW equipment. I have a layout underway in the basement. Nothing spectacular but a place to show off the D&RGW stuff and some C&O steam, too.
The C&O is my next favorite railroad. I'm building a C&O J-3a Greenbrier in 1.6" scale. I started it back in 1989 when Larry Goldsby from Detroit cast the drive wheels for me. I've got the drivers, axles, axle boxes and main frames pretty well complete. Working on frame spreaders right now. I've got a set of erection drawings from which I'm drawing the engine to scale in Autocad. My shop consists of a Bridgeport with DRO and a 14" Southbend lathe and not enough tooling! I took quite a few years off with college and starting my career but I'm getting back into it slowly but surely. It will be a larger fabricated locomotive.
Basically, I love to see any steam engines I can, but the bigger the better. Next to Lima Superpower, the big engines that the D&RGW used to conquer the Rocky Mountains are my favorite.
I hang out at Larry Volzer's home track (the G.N.O. & M.E. - Great Northern Ohio and Massillon Eastern) here in Massillon and Dick McCloy's Mill Creek Central in Coshocton though not as often as I'd like to. If anyone's traveling through Cleveland/Akron/Canton and want to visit a fellow livesteamer/railroader, the door's always open.
Sincerely,
Rob Gardner
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Post by Harlock on Apr 24, 2007 1:03:22 GMT -5
Welcome! My father's family is from Akron, they had a farm there. Never been there myself.
Several times they took the Super Chief from California to visit remaining relatives out there. What a ride that must have been.
So are you involved with the big track renewal machines? Those are facinating to watch.
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Post by rgardner on Apr 24, 2007 20:42:17 GMT -5
Harlock,
Most of our work is done with backhoes, loaders and excavators. As far as on-track equipment, we have a hi-rail grapple/Prentice loader, ballast regulator from 1975, about three small utility tampers and a brand new automatic gauging spiker. We're supposed to get one of the company's older production tampers transferred to our division. It's a Pandrol Jackson 6700. They're great when they work and worthless when they don't and the older they get the more maintenance they require. We just picked up a ballast consolidator from our St.Louis office. We have to use it on a major project in NY this summer where we're building about 6 miles of new track for a new yard.
Unfortunately, the complete track renewal machines are pretty few and far between. I think Harsco has a small fleet and I think Herzog Contracting probably has one or two. The Class I's I would imagine have a couple as well.
Rob Gardner
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Post by Harlock on May 7, 2007 23:23:22 GMT -5
Well I know who I'm gonna bug when I have track laying questions!  |
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Post by Harlock on May 7, 2007 23:56:54 GMT -5
Oh, and now I know why your name sounds familiar. You gave the long description of MacAllister's Mallet that's still for sale on Discover Live Steam. I passed that on to another board where I posted the for sale link.
I hope one day to see that thing running. Somehow. Somewhere.
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