Garden Railway Forum

Posted: **Sat Jul 25, 2015 11:42 pm**

As I mentioned in my DVLR thread I have been quite busy working on "Project Raspberry". I've been keeping it quiet for a little while as I wasn't sure how successful it was going to be but I've had a few encouraging results so am ready to share. Plenty of tyro metal bashing involved here - I am a novice metal worker so there are lots of mistakes and ugly bits but I am a big believer in paint hiding a multitude of sins...

First of all we will need one of these... Any guesses?
(I am going to tidy this one up with a file tomorrow hence the ugly joins and flanges...)

Just made from a pluming joint, some brass plate from the scrap box which was filed to shape from the end. the copper pipe was just soldered in and the drain plug and drain bush was turned from some brass 1/4 inch hex, the whole lot it soft soldered together.

Posted: **Sat Jul 25, 2015 11:46 pm**

Steam powered smoothie maker.

Posted: **Sat Jul 25, 2015 11:53 pm**

It's a Gangnam whistle...

Posted: **Sun Jul 26, 2015 4:27 am**

Moonshine! I'll take 2 bottles!

Posted: **Sun Jul 26, 2015 10:21 am**

Smoke generator?

Posted: **Sun Jul 26, 2015 11:39 am**

A high pressure rail cleaner?

Posted: **Sun Jul 26, 2015 8:30 pm**

Interesting ideas but no.
Here is the thing cleaned up and on the loco...

Also

Posted: **Sun Jul 26, 2015 8:39 pm**

Ooooh.. you are a teaseee!!!

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 4:17 am**

Sander???

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 7:43 am**

I'd have said 'dummy cylinder' but it's the wrong end of the loco. The on/off switch is intriguing. I wonder if the project name is significant. Sounds very Goon Show.

Rik

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:48 am**

Does this help?

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 11:27 am**

Working vacuum brakes?

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 5:11 pm**

..........or air brakes.

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 6:24 pm**

Steam heating!!

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 7:38 pm**

From its location I wonder if it has anything to do with spreading de-icer on the track? But why the brake hose, unless that is the filler tube?

Posted: **Mon Jul 27, 2015 7:44 pm**

The final part of the puzzle

Well done to invicta280 for correctly guessing. I am re-visiting my experiments with air brakes by fitting up River Deben for air brake opperation.

The tank is an air reservoir, the valve is the train brake valve (On, Off and lap - off connects the reservoir to the train brakes, on lets the air out of the train brakes), the hoses are for the air brakes and the westinghouse pump works (although not terribly reliably at the moment), I have yet to test the pump on steam yet but it runs well on 30-15psi compressed air so things are looking hopeful!

Posted: **Tue Jul 28, 2015 2:02 pm**

Bit late replying to this one, however, surely it is a replica model pipe as smoked by the fisherman dude in the game Monkey Island II and all the other pictures are just 'red herrings'?

Looking forward to seeing this in operation Zach.

Posted: **Thu Jul 30, 2015 10:59 pm**

The final bit - getting the pump to work. A very rough video of the moment I stumbled upon the working configuration. Please excuse the video - I was quite excited!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uo0JGLTi7zI

Posted: **Thu Jul 30, 2015 11:14 pm**

You have put a lot of effort into that and it looks promising... looking forward to seeing it in action now!

Posted: **Fri Jul 15, 2016 7:37 pm**

A little time has elapsed to say the least! Mainly because I managed to loose the pump! I was rather angry with myself for loosing it - it must have fallen down as it was found in the soil of a ground level flowerbed by the Mother 8 months later
I've overhauled it and changed the arrangement of the NRVs so that it doesn't leak back anymore. The compressor can raise 10psi in the res and can then be switched off without the res pressure decreasing (to save steam). The brakes can be taken off about 3 times (depending on the length of the train) with 10psi so that's enough for me!
Just need a few final bits now. Another gauge (so I can have one for the brakes and one for the Res which will looks really good when you do a brake application and all the needles move)

Also I am waiting for a steam valve from Macc models. I need to make up a manifold for River Deben (so I can put loads more valves and whatnots on in the future)