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Imaginary Locomotives


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Well I must confess to reading the original as troughs with diesel fuel to be picked up not pickup enabled diesels! I had visions of some rather oily looking trackside workers and equipment and a whole new meaning to trackside fires.

 

No, that's what he meant! Not a good idea on many counts...

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If I had any idea what I was doing and had any use for a British outline model, I might try a similar-ish 4-8-4 rebuilt Bulleid. With a Vanderbilt tender. The Baltic and Berkshire are my other two favourites, which would also look good based on OVSB's finest.

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I do have several Princess bodyshells in the drawer.... 

 

I think the Berkshire is the best one so far. It's got that meaty, powerful look but without being ludicrously long.

 

I'd probably do it as below with inside frame front axle/8 wheel rigid tender/stanier frames but it's just down to aesthetic preference really. What I did notice is that in black on the 4 coupled axle chassis, the middle section looks just like an 8F.

Edited: posted image to save clicking back and forth

post-898-0-70578200-1516641782_thumb.jpg

Edited by Corbs
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Sorry Gents, more thoughts.

 

Now Corbs has made up his list of excellent illustrations, it would have to be an 4-8-2. I can't see a bogie pivot under the firebox, it's just asking for trouble in real life. It would also need oil firing. You're fast approaching the physical limitations on a single fireman.

 

I do like the look of that mixed traffic 2-8-2, BTW.

 

Cheers,

 

Ian.

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My graphic skills are non-existant, but....

 

Great Western Railcar front (later series 22 onwards)

 

47xx 0-8-2 facing rearwards, cab merged to railcar.

 

Hawksworth 8-wheel tender.

 

Oil fired, of course. Copper capped chimney? Wouldn't you?

 

Ian.

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Would Hawksworth have fitted outside walschaerts to this one like with the panniers?

There's no reason why not. Hawksworth was well on the way, regarding this. If you look at the County, there's a lot of 8F in the mix. There is a lot of get-atability, just like the 15xx.

 

Ian.

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 I can't see a bogie pivot under the firebox, it's just asking for trouble in real life. I

I think by this point I'd hope that Sir William, having seen the drawings, would have locked his staff in the office until they'd figured out how to make it work.

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There's no reason why not. Hawksworth was well on the way, regarding this. If you look at the County, there's a lot of 8F in the mix.

The boiler, for a start - which given WAS’s background, would probably count as Great Western enough for Swindon!
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I think by this point I'd hope that Sir William, having seen the drawings, would have locked his staff in the office until they'd figured out how to make it work.

Or bawled them out for wasting time and shareholders’ money.

He was quite hard-headed about such things, as his father. The latter was responsible for scrapping North Star, and his son for clearing all the “junk” out of the paint shop at Derby.

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Sigh... it looks like Hornby is the only manufacturer that really thinks about people like us, by publishing lovely high resolution, side-on photos of their models in perfect lighting. 

 

So if what you want rendered can be made entirely out of Hornby products, that is much easier.

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If you dream up the perfect fast kettle you end up with the mighty Pennsylvania T1. There was never a more glorious way of turning coal into smoke than the mighty T1. Followed by the wonderful NYC Hudsons (I really shouldn't say anything nice about the NYC, me being a Pennsy enthusiast, but I can't help loving their Hudsons).

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A 2-8-2, Top half is all the same as a Duchess but with a 2 cylinder layout, slightly shorter than the pacific.

 

 

Pictured with the others. The goods locos in black.

 

attachicon.gifstanier-misc-4.jpg

Like those, and especially the 2-8-2. Close to the proposed 6P7F

 

post-10140-0-88670700-1516666643_thumb.jpeg

 

Quite the one for a first scratchbuild

 

Iain

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This thread has got me re-reading my Durrant and Wardale books.  Consensus suggests that a small wheeled (well under 5' diameter) 2-10-4 is the optimal arrangement for tractive effort, good starting, steady haulage and a surprisingly high top speed.  The 9F wasn't far off the mark.

 

 

post-238-0-42309500-1516696610.jpg

 

Perhaps a 'miniaturised' C&O Super Power for the UK loading gauge?   More likely would look somewhat like this, the SAR class 21.  It has more 'Britishness' about it I think.

 

post-238-0-65395700-1516700266_thumb.jpg

 

This has 4' 6" diameter drivers, and a 2-8-2 tender!  Built in Glasgow in 1937, so a contender for the LMS in our parallel universe...

 

General arrangement can be quite conventional (no need for 'trickery' like opposing or multiple cylinders) but internal arrangements must be optimised for efficient gas flow, GPCS used to achieve full combustion of coal eliminating smoke, roller bearings on everything that moves, and ease of maintenance access essential.

 

Interestingly, Wardale suggests that a Garratt would have been a better choice instead of the 25NC for his ultimate steam project.  As it turned out, the class 26 could produce more power than the running gear could handle, and the large wheeled 4-8-4 was very slippery.  Same problem afflicted the Chinese QJ - super boiler, atrocious running gear.  This was partly through poor design exacerbated by poor build quality.  

Edited by Dr Gerbil-Fritters
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It's interesting to note the relative sizes. At first glance they look too tall to fit, but it is the width that is the constraint. Or is it? It's 10-15cm extra each side.

 

Do you remember this 4 cylinder Baldwin 'might have been' for the GCR that was very nearly a reality?

 

Image by Robin Barnes

baldwin.jpg

 

Makes me think about making a 'Big Five' at the grouping - if the GCR had combined with some of what in real life became the LNER and the LMS, and possibly the Metropolitan? Then they could continue their existing style and (since they are fictional) possibly buy exotic locos from the British loco manufacturers.
Did the GCR have a large loading gauge?

Edited by Corbs
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I don't think the GCR would have been big enough - but if the grouping had happened earlier before the Midland-LNWR merger the Midland might have remained separate and entered the great race to the north in the '30s from London to Scotland via the Settle-Carlisle-Waverley route.

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I don't think the GCR would have been big enough - but if the grouping had happened earlier before the Midland-LNWR merger the Midland might have remained separate and entered the great race to the north in the '30s from London to Scotland via the Settle-Carlisle-Waverley route.

I mean what if a fifth company had been formed using the GCR as a north-south basis, e.g:

GCR

Met.

L&YR

SMJR

some others

 

Then there is another company to get involved in express trains, plus they have control of Lancashire and Yorkshire.

Edited by Corbs
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