GWR smoke box darts

[Hal Nail]

I'm sure this will have been covered before but was the inner dart fixed or was it just a regulation/tradition that it should point straight down?

 

Ta!

 

 

[Steamport Southport]

Not fixed.

 

But the way they worked was that you used the inner one to locate the dart in the slot and you tightened the outer "nut" to seal the door.

 

It can only point up or down if it's properly sealed. It was considered bad workmanship for it to point up.

 

 

 

Jason

[Hal Nail]

34 minutes ago, Steamport Southport said:

Not fixed.

 

But the way they worked was that you used the inner one to locate the dart in the slot and you tightened the outer "nut" to seal the door.

 

It can only point up or down if it's properly sealed. It was considered bad workmanship for it to point up.

 

Jason

Thanks for that 

 

Dapol have started glueing them off centre on their 7mm locos and it's trickier than you'd think to drill/pop them out to re fix so good to know it was worth all the swearing!

[Graham456]

On 21/08/2020 at 23:09, Steamport Southport said:

Not fixed.

 

But the way they worked was that you used the inner one to locate the dart in the slot and you tightened the outer "nut" to seal the door.

 

It can only point up or down if it's properly sealed. It was considered bad workmanship for it to point up.

 

 

 

Jason

I second that but wish to add more

inside the smokebox door is a iron bar with a horizontal slot in the centre of the doorway, through which the dart because the inner part of the handle is like a arrow headed dart which with the inner handle at either the 3'o clock or 9'o clock position will go through the slot, when this inner handle is turned to up or down, the backs of the barbs on the arrowhead engage on the sides of the slot in the bar, the turning of the outer handle being on a screw thread pull the barbs tight on to the cross bar tight and the door then seals around the edges

up isn't used not just for looks but also the weight of the handle might encourage it to rattle around to open if not tight enough on the screw thread,also you would have to hold it in the upright position whilst tightening the outer handle where as gravity will do that in the down position.