Building a Bulleid - 'Down Under' - Part 3
Update and photos by Roger Lainson.
Casing, Backhead and Footplate
In due course, the casing got painted and lined.
It looks ok, although there are small gaps between the three sections (front, middle and cab).
Sheet metal is not my forte!
The cab section is easily removable, for example when dumping the fire after a run (see below), and this has worked well.
The "Royal Mail" plates set it off nicely.
I had the plates milled out by an Australian company (at some expense!), and painted them myself.
The flag is printed on photo paper and sealed into the plate with ultra-clear epoxy.
The red background on the smokebox roundel went brown after a while, due to the heat – I repainted it with red brake caliper paint from an automotive accessory shop, and this has lasted quite well.
The backhead simply evolved itself, with the main problem being the very tight clearance under the casing (perhaps I should have made the boiler just a little bit smaller!).
The steam turret across the top is connected to the boiler by banjo unions, which just (and only just) fit under the cab roof.
The layout is nothing like prototypical, but it's pretty handy for driving.
I moved the regulator handle to the centre, to avoid the operating shaft (as per KW) from crossing in front of the water gauges exactly at water level!
The valve gear control (the reach rod) slips just past the firebox to a simple lever control (which Americans would call a Johnson bar, I think).
There is also a small locking lever (if left unlocked, the control lever bounces around a bit while steaming).
My valve gear (see Part 1) needs a longer travel than is convenient with a simple lever, so I conceived the mildly crazy scheme of having a different travel for going astern – that is, from mid-gear (valve control lever fully back), the reach rod is manually lifted up, the control lever moved forward, and a second notch in the reach rod slipped onto a peg on the lever.
The control lever can then be moved back again, pulling the reach rod even further back than in mid gear.
The footplate also bears the hand-brake tower, and a simple vacuum brake valve (again, nothing like prototypical, but easy to use).
Grate
The grate is simple a 10mm steel plate, drilled all over with 5 mm holes at 8 mm spacing (giving about 30% air).
After removing the cab (see Part 2), the grate can be slid in from the port side.
Guides built into the ashpan lift the leading edge up into the firebox, and the trailing edge is then lifted up (with an old screwdriver) and propped into place with a length of stainless angle, secured with R-clips.
The grate can be removed fairly easily (provided there isn't too much clinker on it!) by pulling it out with pliers.
This all works well.
Lubrication
The centre big end, the 3 eccentrics and the centre slide bars are lubricated via pipes from cups, which are concealed under the hatch meant for the steam turret valve on the port side.
Incidentally, I read somewhere (but now can't find it) that on the very early engines the covers were hinged; predictably, someone left one open, and it got wiped out on a bridge, whereupon they were changed to sliding covers.
Mine's an early engine, so I made the covers hinged.
As with Kevin's engine, it is necessary to have the motion in the right place before putting oil down the pipes – in my case the oil holes are slots so it's sufficiently accurate to move the engine so that the starboard cylinder is on back dead centre.
Cylinder lubrication is from 3 separate commercial oil pumps located between the frames below the smokebox door.
Obviously, a little care is needed to keep them clean, but this works ok.
Three tanks are useful so that if a piston starts squeaking, one can see which lubricator is not feeding.
I find that the one-way clutches in these lubricators do need occasional cleaning, otherwise they slip both ways.
The pumps can be removed fairly easily as a single assembly.
Tender
The tender tank came together quite well (for me – sheet metal blues!), and looks ok when painted and lined.
It still needs the "Southern" label (coming soon).
The tender was basically flat plates, lightly rolled sides, and small brass angle, all put together with small brass screws and then caulked with soft solder.
The last plate (the front) was caulked with black silicone.
I modelled the coal hopper in a free online 3D CAD program and then "unfolded" it, to then be cut from brass sheet and folded back up.
For driving, I made a small padded seat which sits on top of the water filler area after removing the dummy air cylinders (not actually made yet).
Footrests screw into the very front of the tender, using a reasonably inconspicuous support bar just below the buffer beam.
This is all fairly comfortable for driving.
I'm not very light, so it was necessary to beef up the KW-specified leaf springs a little – I bolted a simple spring pocket above each axle box and added coil springs bearing directly on the top of each axle box.
The passenger cars at my club need vacuum for brakes (actually, vacuum to release the brakes).
This could be from a steam ejector, but at least for now, I've opted to pull a separate guard's van (GNR teak style, as it happens), containing a battery, vacuum pump, reservoir and pressure switch (plus tools and raincoat).
Running experience
Firing up works well, using compressed air into an extra valve and tee built into the blower line, and hidden just under the edge of the casing.
When running, the engine seems happiest at about 35% cutoff, so I usually stick to this and drive on the throttle.
Throttle openings are always quite small (unless I've lost pressure due to bad firing or poor fuel).
Running is a bit rough when going astern … but this was expected from the simulations during the valve gear design.
Since the only reason for going astern is to back up to our loco depot, this is not a problem.
The blast jets drawn by KW (5 @ 1/4” diameter) were too big (as others have remarked).
I reduced the jets to 7/32", but they are still a little too big – I need the blower cracked even when powering up the hill.
I'm about to remake them, and will try 3/16" diameter.
The engine has a tendency to slip (like the prototype!).
This is partly due to some intermittent leakage from the cylinder oil pipelines, so that oil can get quite well distributed all over the front end.
But I think it may also be characteristic of cast-iron wheels on track that is lightly lubricated by other engines (we all blame each other!).
Maybe one day I will fit steel tyres.
I have improved things a little by adding extra weight in the form of sheet lead boiler "lagging" (probably not too effective against heat loss), and being careful about balancing the weight distribution between driving and carrying wheels.
A light hand on the throttle is often needed.
Overall, I am very pleased with my engine – it's rewarding to drive, hauls passengers easily if the track isn't too slippery, and gets many admirers.
Worth all those years of effort!
Thanks to all those on this site and elsewhere who have given helpful advice and encouragement over the years!