I gotta get me one of those…
Yes, that’s pretty spiffy…well done, chapeau to the builder.
Now where can we run this little fella legally and safely?
Just some thoughts.
Adhesion may be an issue? and complying with half range of vision rules, esp on ‘Poor’ Rail = grease, rain, grass.
Two cents worth. Whose name on the Accountability side if it came to Liability? Insurance, Certified with ‘Cab Card’?
Sometimes LUCK is of the Most importance in the Discharge of Duty.
Steam, Scary Stuff.
Thank You.
All good points NDG, all very good points indeed, but…
I still gotta get me one of those!
NOT trying to rain on anyones’ parade, BUT, folks should be aware of the risks!
But, the Power of Steam is enthralling, isn’t it!!
It is a lovely machine! regardless, and who cannot resist the sound of the Whistle.
Thank You.
The boiler appears to be secured to the wooden deck with 4 bolts, but, being vertical it could be unstable in case of derailment. Water is heavy, very heavy. Of course there is a lot to criticize and there is NO way ever of running this legally or safely.
As a professional boiler inspector I tell people that they don’t have to be afraid of steam but they better respect it! But, this thing looks like a whole lot of fun, especially if beer is involved. Yes, I recall the exploding water heater on Mythbusters and damn, that looked like a hoot! those guys are having a hell of a time, aren’t they?
I Just watched the video on a full screen- that looks to be a well made piece of machinery. I want one!
Somehow I don’t think a 5 gallon water jug under the seat is an adequate supply.
It doesn’t look like it goes fast enough to really cause any damage if it derailed, but proper caution is very important.
Remember the wise words of Steve Lee…
“A steam locomotive is as safe as YOU make it!”
Kind of says it all.
I assume that you could make beer as part of this trip in boiling the wort.
Steam power is no more hazardous than any one of about a million other items of technology, as long as it is treated with appropriate respect. That means performing all of the required tests and inspections, operating within sane limits and in accordance with all pertinent laws and rules.
The Mythbusters water heater went airborne at 300psi, the same pressure that was standard for N&W A’s and J’s. THOSE boilers were hydrostatically checked at 700psi, and a failure would have resulted in a splash, not an explosion.
At least a box of split cordwood is unlikely to erupt in a ball of fire. The same cannot be said for some motor vehicles. Does anyone else remember the exploding Pinto?
Chuck
Classic example of how NOT to adapt perfectly good marine architecture to land vehicles. In a launch, the place this design was taken from, it would be fine (cf. the African Queen) but top-heavily bolted to a speeder deck, it’s literally hell on wheels.
This is one of those things, like steam bicycles or English cars, that are cool until you actually have to run them.
Hey, I’ve owned an English car, a 1954 Citroen Light 15, by the way and I never had ANY electrical problems with it. Of course I did rewire it totally and eliminated a lot of odd English doo-dads but it never gave me any trouble and yes, I’ve heard every Lucas joke!
But, I do see your point about it being top-heavy but yes, you could boil some wort and also use it smoke a fine pork roast, couldn’t you? I recommend apple wood.
But that’s a French-engineered car that just happens to have been built in Slough with some English content. The full perfidious-Albion experience is best reserved for cars designed with that unique mixture of arrogance and incompetence that for so many years characterized the English automobile establishment…
A fun toy, but I think the wheels should be redone to track better (and more safely). It looks to me like they are flat rather than tapered, and the flanges are mighty sharp. There is a reason railroad wheels have the profile they do, even the old speeders.
Looks like the old Tom Thumb.
RME- it’s actually a lot of English content. The French built the base of the body and was shipped to the U.K. to be assembled to the sides and roof in Slough. The seats, bumpers, gauges, upholstery, steering wheel, road wheels, paint, all electrical components and wiring and all of the chrome bits, grille, door handles and so forth. They were actually better made than the French built cars and a lot of French customers specified a Slough-built car and yes, they made them with left hand drive. My Light 15 came from a barn in Quebec where it was for 40 years and the chrome on it was almost perfect. Leather seats which French cars never had and wood trim in the interior. All of the English bits were to get around tax laws in effect at the time. I know this is a train forum but it had to be said.
I’m not saying ‘little English content’ nor am I saying the English content in the Light 15 was poor quality. I’m in fact arguing that a Light 15 is NOT typical of a contemporary English-designed car, in that it’s more than a bit of the best of both worlds. I prefer the SM retrofitted with the 4.9 to the Traction Avant, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like TAs…