BSC River Don Works

[LBRJ]

It is ladies bridge, as the building behind the load is still there, although it has been a carpet shop and a Internet cafe. The photo looks to have been taken from the old brewery buildings. As to the railings, the bridge has been rebuild several times, and has stone centre arch with girder pieces on the outside.

 

It is not Lady's Bridge in Sheffield - It is more likely to be the Irwell on the previously mentioned Salford / Manchester boundary.

 

This is Lady's Bridge in the 1950s

 

http://www.picturesheffield.com/frontend.php?action=zoomWindow&keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;s07494&prevUrl=

 

This is it in the late 60s

http://www.picturesheffield.com/frontend.php?action=zoomWindow&keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;v03248&prevUrl=

 

1910ish?

http://www.picturesheffield.com/frontend.php?action=zoomWindow&keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;y02903&prevUrl=

 

Notice that in all the pictures the bridge sides are not plate steel. The bridge was rebuilt / widened in 1919.

Also notice there is an access lane behind the Hancock and Lant premises adjacent to the river.

 

Sorry for being a way OT here.

[Ruston]

Lovely work Dave. Straight from an ad. in a 1950s Iron & Coal Trades Review.

 

.

Cheers, Arthur.

 

I got the idea of the works yard photo from your own DE 2 build and made a test track especially - http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/125732-a-shelf/

 

The livery on the loco is fictitous but uses elements of various Yorkshire DE 2 locos. The red buffer beams are from those at Round Oak, the logo is ESC's actual logo and the nameplate style is of the Janus locos that worked at Shelton bar. The name choice is all my own; another Egyptian god to match the Barclay Osiris.

 

More photos.

 

 

On test on the rolling road.

 

A question about the casting car buffers - would the buffing surface be metal or some sort of rubber block? I would like to know so I can weather it appropriately.

[Corbs]

It looks great, that 'heavy' yellow/orange hue is striking.

[65179]

It is not Lady's Bridge in Sheffield - It is more likely to be the Irwell on the previously mentioned Salford / Manchester boundary.

 

Sorry for being a way OT here.

Going on Arthur's suggestion, I did a quick trawl of likely Manchester/Salford bridges (and I wonder why I get no modelling done!).

 

My money's on the view in question being of Regent Bridge, Regent Road, Salford.

 

This view has what I think are the riverside buildings in the background of the photo of interest (i.e. behind the lorry/tractor unit) to the right of the bridge on the nearside:

 

http://images.manchester.gov.uk/web/objects/common/webmedia.php?irn=55894&reftable=ecatalogue&refirn=53953

 

I may be wrong!

 

Simon

Edited September 16, 2017 by 65179

[Ruston]

Uncoupling magnets.

Three of five that are ready to go. The price of a DG electromagnet uncoupler is now around £7, which is a bit steep if I may say so. These magnets are from broken Peco point solenoids that have been in a bin, in the loft, for years. I have stripped away the metal and insulating housings and with a 4mm set screw (15p each) stuck in them they will screw straight into the baseboard after a 3.5mm hole has been drilled.

 

Technically these cost me nothing but you can buy a brand new Peco point solenoid for under £7 and break it up to get two magnets for the price of one DG.

 

Take no notice of that. I spent a couple of hours, today, wiring and fitting those to the layout. Then I plugged the transformer in and put a loco and a couple of wagons on the track to test the uncouplers.

 

"What's that smell"? "Oh **** something's burning!". The push buttons that I had used were push to break instead of push to make and three of the coils burnt out and melted the plastic surrounding them before I switched the power off. So, chop up some more cheap second hand point solenoids and spend another hour faffing about and fitting them only to find that they are useless. They will work but only if the iron wire on the Dingham coupling is is extended and is placed right over them, leaving no leeway and requring exact positioning of rolling stock.

 

Looks like I will have to buy some proper uncoupling magnets.

[BG John]

Would these be any use?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Sucked-Electric-Lifting-Magnet-Electromagnet-12VDC-2-5Kg-5-5LB-20x15mm-U4Y3-/172608878249

 

I have a feeling they may be too powerful, but I don't know if they will work on a lower voltage.

 

 

Looks like I will have to buy some proper uncoupling magnets.

One of the magnets I linked to arrived recently. I haven't tried it yet, and at 12v it may attract every metal object on the layout, but I'm wondering if it may be OK at a lower voltage. When I can, I'll give it a try.

[Arthur]

A question about the casting car buffers - would the buffing surface be metal or some sort of rubber block? I would like to know so I can weather it appropriately.

Good question Dave. I think that they are a replaceable cast steel block within a fixed frame. I have wondered whether or not they were rubber but have concluded they are metal for two reasons. Durability and resistance to damage by hot metal splashing about. The only advantage of rubber would be a degree of shock absorption and having seen ingot cars shunted about that doesn't seem to be much of a concern.

 

.

Edited September 17, 2017 by Arthur

[Osgood]

What do mean by 'casting car', Dave?   I can't find reference to one here.

 

If you mean something similar to the rectangular dumb buffers fitted on many steelworks locomotives, I have some info on these.

 

Tony

[Arthur]

These Tony, the small 4 wheeled bogies behind this Janus at Appleby Frodingham are casting cars. The buffer to which Dave refers is that central 'block' on the locos buffer beam. A few works, Port Talbot had longer, bogie, casting cars.

 

 

 

Simple but heavy flat topped cars, ingot moulds are stood on them and then the liquid steel is teemed into them from teeming ladles. They steel is allowed to solidly sufficiently for the moulds to be withdrawn and then the ingots either go to storage or into the soaking pits prior to rolling. These cars can be seen moving empty ingot moulds, full moulds or the solidified ingots.

 

They have simple couplings between them, often just a bar and link pins, but tend to operate in fixed rakes. Having said that, they were often involved in accidents with shunters getting caught between cars whilst coupling/uncoupling. The only fatality during my time at Irlam steelworks was such an incident. As a consequence automatic couplings were introduced at some works.

 

Being lower than conventional wagons, locomotives cannot buffer up to them. Either a modified spacer car with a raised buffer beam at one end is used or, more commonly, a casting car buffer is fitted. A single heavy buffing block fitted on the locos buffer beam below the three link coupling. This enables the loco to buffer up against the casting car and it incorporates a bracket to enable the car to be linked to it.

 

They're very much a steelworks only fitting and as traditional ingot casting has long since been superseded by continuous casting, the cars, and the need for such buffers, has gone.

 

.

Edited September 17, 2017 by Arthur

[Osgood]

Thanks Arthur.

 

The buffer is quite possibly mounted in a similar way to the locomotive buffers, which were held within a surrounding frame with rubber cushioning plates behind.

Below is a typical layout, this type as fitted to ESC locos.

The maximum compression/movement was only 1 1/4" but enough to 'soften the blow'!

 

 

 

[Fat Controller]

To add to what Arthur has said above, the ingot mould were really in two parts. The upper part, visible in the photo, sits in a cast base, designed to hold the upright part steady, and to avoid loss of hot metal at the base. Landore works used to make them both. Each steelworks would have a number of different sizes of mould, dependent on the final product; those specialising in bar and section using smaller ones than those that rolled plate.

There was a fascinating BBC film about Shotton (where my Uncle Mac worked) which showed lots of views of the different parts of the casting and rolling process, but it seems to have disappeared from the BBC web-site.

I was the last of many generations of my family to have worked in the steel industry, though in my case it was only a 'holiday' job. My father started with RTB in 1926, working in Cwmfelin rolling mill alongside his grandfather. There were several generations before that.

[Arthur]

 

Yes, the idea of a thick rubber cushioning plate behind steel buffer seems very probable.

 

The castings on which the moulds sat were known as 'stools'. They could be simple heavy 'plates' or complex multi-part assemblies with ceramic lined feed runners. The latter were used when trumpet or bottom up teeming was employed. Teeming was a skilled art, with several techniques used to produce ingots with different qualities and characteristics.

 

.

[rockershovel]

I’d forgotten this thread - interesting stuff

[nevilleprimrose]

Lovely model. I am returning to industrial modelling after a break and YE DE2 types have me mesmerised at present. Especially as I came across them in 1982ish withdrawn at Round Oak works - see photo.  They were located at most United Steels plants.  Have seen a variation though in cab design and hoping to identify which locos have which cabs.  - see the difference in 1 and 2. neither of which were like the production run featured in your model! If there are any other photos around that would be appreciated.

Sorry can't figure out how to add a photo !

[Osgood]

At bottom of page when you have opened 'reply to topic' is a section titled Attach Files.

Under this heading is Choose File. Click on this and you'll see your computer files.

Find and click on the file you want to upload and then click 'Open' - the file name will then appear next to Choose File.

Underneath is button Attach Files. Click this and it will upload, then you can click Add to Post button on right. 

Edited February 8, 2018 by Osgood

[Mark Saunders]

Lovely model. I am returning to industrial modelling after a break and YE DE2 types have me mesmerised at present. Especially as I came across them in 1982ish withdrawn at Round Oak works - see photo.  They were located at most United Steels plants.  Have seen a variation though in cab design and hoping to identify which locos have which cabs.  - see the difference in 1 and 2. neither of which were like the production run featured in your model! If there are any other photos around that would be appreciated.

Sorry can't figure out how to add a photo !

Do you have any photos in your collection showing the Internal User wagons that were on site especially the tall U type wagons as the only one I have seen is in a photo of a locomotive and another on Paul Bartlett’s site at Stocksbridge.

 

I have not been able to find drawings for these in the Charles Roberts collection in the NRM but do not know where these were built for or how many!

 

Mark Saunders

[Ruston]

I need space to build my next layout so River Don Works is now under new management and, hopefully, the new owner will continue to update this thread and we'll see more of it here.

 

I have retained all of the locomotives and rolling stock for another steel works-themed railway, sometime in the future.

[Narrow Gauge Jordan]

As the proud new owner of BSC Don Works, I shall be continuing the thread on the layout when I make a start on it, at the moment its awaiting a new controller and some appropriate rolling stock.

[Guest teacupteacup]

Hi Dave, et al,

 

I continue to be ever more impressed with this layout.  Some of the more recent pics remind me of part of the RB Tennent works in Whifflet where there was a very tight run-round/headshunt right next to a public road.

 

My wife    was curious as to why I might be interested in modelling something industrial so I showed her this thread.  As a country/town girl she is not familiar with heavy industry but she now understands why some of us would seek to model it.  Another convert!

 

Regards,

 

Alex.

A very late reply but I live at the opposite end of the Tennants work site at Whifflet, and indeed actually within the old boundary in Carnbroe.  Nothing about to suggest the heritage sadly

 

I found this picture online...

 

Edited to say that it's not actually the Tennants site I live on, but the Calder Factory site - Pattersons?

Edited August 15, 2018 by teacupteacup

[luckymucklebackit]

As the proud new owner of BSC Don Works, I shall be continuing the thread on the layout when I make a start on it, at the moment its awaiting a new controller and some appropriate rolling stock.

 

Glad to see the thread us still going, I am building an Inglenook called "Allenshaw" for which a lot of inspiration has come from this thread.

 

Jim

[Guest teacupteacup]

Glad to see the thread us still going, I am building an Inglenook called "Allenshaw" for which a lot of inspiration has come from this thread.

 

Jim

I have the pen and paper out doodling much the same!

 

Would love to see your progress Jim

[luckymucklebackit]

I have the pen and paper out doodling much the same!

 

Would love to see your progress Jim

 

At the moment it is within my main "Gateside and Northbridge" thread, as the inglenook plank will be part of the "big" layout when at home, but I am hoping to be able to make the plank a module which will then sit in a separate small mobile layout.

 

Jim

[Locksley]

Apologies if I've missed this somewhere, what make is the gantry crane you've used? Could do with something similar for a scrapyard layout in the works. Stunning work btw!

[Ruston]

15 hours ago, Locksley said:

Apologies if I've missed this somewhere, what make is the gantry crane you've used? Could do with something similar for a scrapyard layout in the works. Stunning work btw!

It's a Walthers kit.

[Locksley]

Excellent, thanks!