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Electricity + Steam = ?


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ForestPines

 

Do note the word "intended" in what I wrote ......... Because, you are right, maintaining even a few ohms rail-to-rail over the length of a track circuit can be a real challenge, and failure to achieve it is the cause of many a "signal failure".

 

But, solidly earth one of those rails, and hundreds/thousands of amps of traction current will go wandering off all over the place, by every path it can find, looking for other, perhaps accidentally earthed points on the rails, by means of which to "get home" - chewing metal as it goes.

 

Kevin

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Never heard that one...what types were banned because of that reason?

The only locos I've heard of being banned from the third rail system were the early English Electric diesel shunters with 4 foot driving wheels (class 11 and similar). The outside coupling rods got a little too close to the conductor rail. 

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Never heard that one...what types were banned because of that reason?

 

Certain "modern" trains were (are) also banned from SR 3rd rail territory. In particular HST stock fitted with long swing link BT10 bogies. Short swing link stock had to be used when traversing Bournemouth for example.

 

That's particularly why the NMT HST doesn't visit the Southern region - it has long swing link bogies on the intermediate vehicles.

 

Cheers,

Mick

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VERY interesting Mick, I was thinking of (in pure fantasy) running a 125 thru my station - for fun, it'd be too long to stop - but being in the deep south, I suppose even this is too far fetched!? What do you think of my occasional steam service idea though.....? :-)

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VERY interesting Mick, I was thinking of (in pure fantasy) running a 125 thru my station - for fun, it'd be too long to stop - but being in the deep south, I suppose even this is too far fetched!? What do you think of my occasional steam service idea though.....? :-)

 

Doesn't stop you running a HST on 3rd rail. (Rule 1 applies and I certainly won't be checking to see if your modelled coaches are SSL versions.........)

 

Crack on.

 

Cheers,

Mick

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VERY interesting Mick, I was thinking of (in pure fantasy) running a 125 thru my station - for fun, it'd be too long to stop - but being in the deep south, I suppose even this is too far fetched!? What do you think of my occasional steam service idea though.....? :-)

As you said Ray, seeing is believing:

 

Hope this helps. :)

 

Regards,

Matt

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Already been done. Birmingham-Ramsgate regular service

 

Cheers,

Mick

I think it ran beyond Birmingham, perhaps to Manchester, as we used it to return elderly in-laws to Stoke to avoid them having to change trains in London. I recollect we took them to Faversham to board it, and that father-in-law (by then in his 80s and deaf) complaining about people keeping the windows open all the time.

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.

 

I've always wondered about steam locomotive injectors.  To set an injector going a fireman used to run the water through (which ran out through a tube onto the track) and then turned on the steam to (with a bit of luck and skill) get the injector working and stop the stream of water.

 

I've always assumed that the injector pipes must have been angled to avoid the normal position(s) of the third rail ??????

 

Does anyone know for sure ?

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Cheers chaps, all very useful information! I think Phil's got a point, what's to stop the electric current traveling up the jet of water from the injector, and making the whole train live?

FC, do you recollect what year(s) you saw that service to Manchester via Faversham, was it around the same time as Micks picture?

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Cheers chaps, all very useful information! I think Phil's got a point, what's to stop the electric current traveling up the jet of water from the injector, and making the whole train live?

FC, do you recollect what year(s) you saw that service to Manchester via Faversham, was it around the same time as Micks picture?

Water isn't that conductive as to create a short circuit. If it were then rain would be a major problem.

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Cheers chaps, all very useful information! I think Phil's got a point, what's to stop the electric current traveling up the jet of water from the injector, and making the whole train live?

FC, do you recollect what year(s) you saw that service to Manchester via Faversham, was it around the same time as Micks picture?

It was a few years later than the photo, as we didn't move down here until 1991. It was whenever Virgin still had the Cross-Country franchise (just checked Wikipedia, 1997- 2007); the Ramsgate service apparently ran for the last time in September 1999, so it was quite possibly then.

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