This is my favourite series on UA-cam at the moment - so much "farmer ingenuity" combining to build something that really feels alive. Can't wait to see her puffing a load of chips up into the drying tunnel!
I really enjoyed the clunking and clanking sounds during the slow motion replay at the end!... Well I really enjoyed the whole video... but those sounds in the last part were supurb.
SEAT? You are selling your soul for an office job? (grin) Congratulations Tim, and Sandra-who-looks-after-Tim. This is, indeed, coming together. (later) 11:43 ... and then you had your FIRST derailment - and no bystanders were injured! Well done!
Your front is absolutely correct. All the steam locomotives have the working parts up front and the engineer in the rear, so you are doing it right. (I like to forget all about those backwards diesel engines we have nowadays)
I worked on a rototiller the other day that had a very simple reversing mechanism. The engine shaft had a V-belt pulley and a tire, and the gearbox had a V-belt pulley and a smooth drum. The forward/reverse lever moved the engine up and down. Lifting the engine tensioned the belt and drove the gearbox one way. Lowering the engine slackened the belt and held the tire against the drum, driving the gearbox the other way. I imagine you could come up with a similar arrangement on a jackshaft and save yourself some complexity and belts rubbing against themselves.
The other thought I had was a snowblower drive. The Plymouth Locomotive company made a series of "friction drive" small railroad locos from 1914 to 1936 the AL, BL, and CL types. They used a friction drive that was a large version of the drive that a lot of snowblowers use now.
Some low capacity petrol motors developed for bicycles in the 1950's had a small rubber roller driving directly onto the bicycle's front tyre. For neutral, the whole motor was raised up an inch off the tyre. You'd zoom forwards by lowering the weight of the motor onto the tyre again. As described by others here, a pulley would drive a wheel in reverse.
I uttered "WOW" aloud at least 5 times during this video, Tim. The video jump cuts between stages make it look easy, but I can't imagine how many hours of sketches, measurements, math, design, and experimenting happens between them. Bravo, sir. You 100% earned that slo-mo moment of celebration at the end!
Absolutely loving this build - it's fascinating but Will is "blink" welding at about 1:30, it's a recipe for blindness, don't risk it man it's just not worth it!!
@@MegaApenstaartje it's pretty obvious how little protection eyelids give from light when you close your eyes and look at the sun. there is nothing manly or cool about not being safe.
Cracking job, this "locomotive" needs a driver wearing a top hat and a man with a red flag walking in front, I love you inventiveness, I am always full of anticipation when I see a new video, thank you, regarding driver position, the ideal is to use your full body weight to help with the tractive effort, however there is not much room left on your loco so a suggestion is to use a single axle under a seat like the old sit & ride lawnmowers and make the coupling to the loco somewhere near the middle so it transfers some of your body weight to the loco.
Was just to comment on that. Is the gearing not a bit to aggressive? I mean he said in the video that he was not running the pistons at full pressure and it looks to go quite fast. And when he did it by hand it looked like the gearing was really high! Look when he runs it under air power how hard it has to work to keep the flywheel moving! It slows down after every crank yet go at a decent speed. Looks underpowerd even just moving under it's own weight. Even when a steam engine is about to stall the pistons still manages to keep the rhythm close to intact for a reason. POWER! A tractor or train flywheel are meant to be going in a steady speed and not like it was in the video. No? Have no clue but just what I think as a bystander. I love to see how it turns out! Good call to make it out of wood fist. I expected it needs to be allot slower but in turn it will be plenty enough torque even at low pressure. I mean the slower it can go the better for the clutch action to avoid slipping wearing it out. It is meant to pull stuff and it just looks to fast! Or rather the pistons are going to work way to much agents the gearing when pulling a load and so will only slip or stall. :c Such a cool machine! The railway is awesome enough! But this thing is more interesting then people making talking moving robots!
I've watched this entire series from your first railway track all the way up to now and I'm amazed by your ingenuity! This contraption of a locomotive of yours is just incredible! I've started using your methods to make a similar 15 inch gauge railway of my own for hauling firewood on my property around and it's working wonders for me so far! Keep up the amazing work!
Excellent. Some rototillers use a belt/twisted belt reverse, usually a lever pulling the twisted belt for reverse, sliding through neutral, and then push forward to tighten the other belt using two moveable pulleys. Make it easier, just hook it up with everything on both the "intake" and "exhaust" ports, add some extra plumbing, and viola, you can put the air (steam💙) in either side, letting you go in reverse. Good luck. 💙 T.E.N.
P.S. I used two drill press pulleys on my go-kart, four different sizes on each pulley, four different belts, one twisted, and four tightening pulleys hooked to four pedals. Push and hold any one pedal, so I had three "gears" forward and one "gear" in reverse. It worked pretty well, but if the belts got wet, the unused belts got an attitude, and also the wear was pretty severe, especially on and between the first gear belt and the the twisted reverse belt. 💙 T.E.N.
The "low" and "reverse" belts rubbed each other. I should have used a deep pulley to help keep them in line, but the local store only had flat idler pulleys. However, on the second and third "gears" I had minimal issues. 💙 T.E.N.
Not really experimental. It is really old and proven mechanics. Only thing odd here being that it is running on compressed air and moving under it's own power. But it sure makes it be close to a steam engine without the heavy bulky steam parts! Makes a awesome sounds and really if only to be fun and cool it gets a 10/10. It should be a fun way to get stuff done.
@@TheDiner50 I didnt really mean it as it being a "new technology", but instead that its experimental to him, like it was with trevithicks train(s) and steam powered vehicles
Bravo, Tim! It's almost like a re-creation of some of the very earliest steam engines, in style, speed and noises. I'm impressed with the apparent power of the air engine.
Wow you've outdone yourself on this build. What a contraption! It's clearly living and breathing, and you've just called it a "she", so perhaps she'll get a name soon?... and maybe even a smiley face on the um... front?
swapping the airlines from the two pneumatic cylinders would put it in reverse. They even make simple valves to do that. probably cheaper than the steel you cut up for the pulleys.
Great idea, that would even allow for regenerative braking, if you switch to reverse while rolling forward, the cylinders will pump air into the air tank. Ok, I'm pretty sure there is too much empty space in the hydraulic cylinders, so it won't reach enough pressure to fill the tank. You need to make a plastic spacer which fills the remaining space in the bottom of the cylinder when it is all the way in, that makes the whole engine way more efficient and also allows for regenerative braking
@@chalichaligha3234 ah. Swapping the inlet and exhaust of exhaust of each valve set. Yes, that would do it. The other thing with my way of cross connecting cylinders, is that by attaching the rod side with the non rod side of the opposite cylinder he already had the appropriate valve setup and gets more power out of it, but at the cost of using more air. Maybe thats a option for when he has a heavy load
Watching you build your drive train, no pun intended, reminds me of a lot of what I've read over the years about early loco builders in the UK and their by gosh, by golly engineering. Well done!!
I bet you could rig up a single lever so that one direction pulls one pulley tight and the other pulls the other, backwards and forwards on a single lever - also meaning you can't engage both at the same time!
This is the single most brilliant thing on UA-cam. Thank you for keeping us all up to date on it! What kind of thing are you planning in the way of brakes for your beautiful contraption? And does she need a name yet?
@@wayoutwest-workshopstuff6299 I like the idea of calling her 'Tenacity'. It suits your approach to building both this engine and the whole railway very well.
I think a rear articulated wagon is in order for the seat, plus you could keep tools there too. Once again you astound me, with a transmission much simpler than what I could come up with!
@@burdizdawurd1516Official In his previous illustrations he stuck the air tank under the frame of the flywheel I suppose the "tender" would be the next best location if it doesn't fit
Super job! I could see both control levers attached to opposite sides of the same oblongish cam lobe on a single upright lever. As one relaxes the other tensions. the lobe itself is adjustable up and down the common lever for tensioning.
I did a similar reverse drive when I put a large induction motor on my old drill because it was spinning the ring way. However I added a bearing spindle were the v belt crosses so it didn't wear out the belt from rubbing against itself.
Oh how I wish I had a large enough plot of land, like a whole farm 😂, just so I could have a field railway. Oh well I can still dream I spose. I must say tho I love these videos
A recommendation I have is adding side rods to the wheels. This allows the loco's engine to distribute its pulling power in all 4 wheels rather than just two
Good idea in principle, but with the pulley/belt drives, you’d have to have one side rod outboard of the drive pulleys, which would then make it tricky to change belts when needed. Could have a chain and sprockets or another belt drive on the opposite side, though.
Just love watching Tim with his inventions we love Ireland 🇮🇪 Will be watching on later after a stressful day.We would love to live in Ireland 🇮🇪 Irelands.Good luck 🍀
You did it!! The function is basically done! All it needs now is some form; a place to sit and better levers!! That's so amazing, great job!! I can't wait to see some more!!
Found your channel about a week ago, such brilliant stuff! Almost makes me want to build my own railway, though it's not feasible lol. Keep up the great content! I'd love to see this little railway in action!
Really nice design. Great form of rods and pistons with unique drive sequence. For track use, could use a small tender with an air compressor for continueous operation and a seat to ride on
My uncle had a narrow gauge railway before he died, he had some genius devices for it too, and I'll pass one of them on; place two levers at the end of the line, one off the end, one nestling between the rails, each with a prop stick, ideally attached. The car is place as close as possible to the end of the rails, with chocks placed behind the wheels, the lever between the rails is used to lift the front of the car, the prop stick is lowered to keep the car lifted and the car is pushed forward, the chocks are then moved forward, the front lever is lowered; the rear is lifted, the car usually slid forward from gravity but may need a bit of help, if it does make sure to prop up the lever, you only make that mistake once, and your car is now on the rails, with ease. Also, the forward and reverse thing, we called "maker's word" aka it was what the maker said it was.
I am constantly amazed at the solutions you come up with. It's a good kind of madness, really in the spirit if "steam punk" design. In this case, I guess it would have to be called "air punk." Brilliant stuff!
Historically, the simplest form of pistons is the oscillating cylinder. Looking into it a little, I think this kind of piston/valve design could deffinately solve a lot of your problems. Perhaps if you plan to build a seperate steam engine, this would be a good way to go.
@@dakotaleker2885 Also because it's a "fixed cutoff" design, which means you can't change the relative timing and duration of steam admission on the fly. No problem for situations where the load is near constant, but for locomotives it's very inefficient.
@@cooperised Actually you can. The main problem with oscillating piston engines is they are limited to 40 psi otherwise the pressure blows the cylinder off the port. The ones used on ships actually had a slide valve mounted on the cylinder (which made for a steam pipe that required constant attention to keep sealed) The main reason they were used was they are much more compact than a conventional steam engine.
@@pvtimberfaller That's interesting, I've never come across a variable cutoff oscillating design. If a separate cutoff slide valve was required in addition to the oscillating ports, did that eat into the size advantage? Can you direct me to a drawing of one?
The issue with oscillating engines is because there isn't a valve, the piston is only powered on the extend stroke instead of the extend and retract. They are much less powerful than regular steam engines.
A year? He's already got a mostly working steam boiler design and his engine clearly works, even if it could always be improved further. I'd say half a year at most
You should be able to devise a single lever system, pull one way for forward, the other for reverse. A simple rocker system for the idler pulleys. Thanks for the video. Jon
One of your older videos had a comment on it that said you were taking your tiny corner of rural Ireland through the industrial revolution and it's just...true...
I think you have the right idea about the front of the engine, you'll want to sit behind the engine to check on it more easily and the space you've given yourself is also good for putting the compressed air source eventually, which you'll want next to the seat for easy access to the controls. Looking amazing, surprisingly pretty for such a thrifty machine!
I love your solution! At first I thought "build a transmission, man, you know you want to!", but when you added the lever and then one more, I don't need no damn transmission! Lovely. And the sounds she makes, a machine goddess! Maybe Goddess should be her name? Nah, too much :^)
it's looking good! love seeing all the trials and errors! always interesting! I might mention being quite safety cautious about things 1:38 Wear your protective gear! its a recipe to disaster and not worth risking. So Wear the PPE don't take that risk. anyways great video as always and can't wait to see this on the iron road eventually!
Try adding a headlight and a bell in the front for safety. You can in theory use a doorbell connected to a battery and a switch/button. Can’t wait to see it fully running.
Had a rototiller (rotovator?) when I was a kid that had the same sort of set up for reversing the tines, though the "revers" side was never hooked up properly, so when rocks and stuff got stuck in it... well you just took a hammer along with you.
This is so beautiful. Thank you, thank you! You made my day! Now just 24 or so episodes onwards, and we will see you ride a proper air locomotive with 6 driven axles :-)
Brilliant stuff. I am absolutely fascinated to see where this ends up, but anything that can re-rail itself must have a fair amount of power in it. I predict a success.
I love the belt drive arrangement. Can't help thinking that some kind of valve reverse would end up simpler in the end though, as well as more compact. Steam engines shouldn't need clutches!
Steam engines have almost always had clutches tho? That way you don't need to kill all your power just because you are in a station, or when firing up an engine it's easier to speed up just the engine before trying to get it to power anything. Some high power mountain trains have an entire heavy duty gear box between the engine and the wheels
@@mickys8065 No types of steam railway locomotives that I can think of (and I can think of a good few!) ever had clutches. That's not to say that there wasn't one somewhere, of course. But steam engines generate full torque from zero speed so you just don't need clutches. Conventional locomotives (whether standard gauge, narrow gauge, miniature, or whatever) connect the pistons direct to the wheels via rods. There have been various geared steam loco designs like the Shay, the Climax, and a small number of UK shunting locomotives and railcars - but still none with clutches to my knowledge. It's just unnecessary complexity.
@@mickys8065 The closest I can think of is roadgoing steam traction engines, which had clutches so that they could use their steam engines to power auxiliary equipment while stationary.
@@cooperised apologies, you are correct with the clutch. I believe I must've gotten confused between an actual clutch and letting the boiler build up steam without directing the steam into the pistons.
Connect both clutches to a single lever, if you push the lever forward, the forward clutch engages, if you push the lever backwards, the reverse clutch engages...
Loved the video, I think maybe a second car behind the engine as place to sit would possibly be a good option as it would allow space for you to make changes to the current locomotive to overcome any challenges with performance and ensure that it is well balanced. I think the pulley system is great, you might lose some performance in comparison to a chain but the added benefit of going back and forward without a gearbox system makes it better.
Wonderful to see this build progress! Depending on the air tank you will use for the loco, you might consider putting it on its own wagon and linking it to the main loco, much like a coal tender but for air instead. That will leave room for a driver seat in between where you had planned for it.
And you could even link up more air tanks on more wagons to give the loco a bigger supply to go faster or farther. Then you don't have to worry about getting one big tank, but can get smaller ones as money becomes available
This is my favourite series on UA-cam at the moment - so much "farmer ingenuity" combining to build something that really feels alive. Can't wait to see her puffing a load of chips up into the drying tunnel!
Yes, Tim and his family have lots of what we call "Cowboy Logic" //ji
I really enjoyed the clunking and clanking sounds during the slow motion replay at the end!...
Well I really enjoyed the whole video... but those sounds in the last part were supurb.
This has to be about the jankiest, most cobbled together contraption I have ever seen and I think it's fabulous !
SEAT? You are selling your soul for an office job? (grin)
Congratulations Tim, and Sandra-who-looks-after-Tim. This is, indeed, coming together.
(later) 11:43 ... and then you had your FIRST derailment - and no bystanders were injured! Well done!
Perhaps try and make it have another cart that is attached that is just a boiler, so you get pressure everywhere you go.
that’s actually not a bad idea, then it could also act as a place to site since the engine itself takes up so much room
Or, alternatively, a vehicle to carry numerous compressed air tanks.
caractacus potts
This is a very very very good idea
I believe that already was the plan, with either a steam engine or a high pressure air tank
Your front is absolutely correct. All the steam locomotives have the working parts up front and the engineer in the rear, so you are doing it right. (I like to forget all about those backwards diesel engines we have nowadays)
Cheap and simple. Your a man after my own heart. Cheers J
I worked on a rototiller the other day that had a very simple reversing mechanism. The engine shaft had a V-belt pulley and a tire, and the gearbox had a V-belt pulley and a smooth drum. The forward/reverse lever moved the engine up and down. Lifting the engine tensioned the belt and drove the gearbox one way. Lowering the engine slackened the belt and held the tire against the drum, driving the gearbox the other way. I imagine you could come up with a similar arrangement on a jackshaft and save yourself some complexity and belts rubbing against themselves.
I couldn't help thinking of those old troy-bilt horse models, too.
@@ignisfatuus I thought of that right away. I have one of those old Troy Bilt tillers, still use it every year for the garden.
The other thought I had was a snowblower drive.
The Plymouth Locomotive company made a series of "friction drive" small railroad locos from 1914 to 1936 the AL, BL, and CL types. They used a friction drive that was a large version of the drive that a lot of snowblowers use now.
Some low capacity petrol motors developed for bicycles in the 1950's had a small rubber roller driving directly onto the bicycle's front tyre. For neutral, the whole motor was raised up an inch off the tyre. You'd zoom forwards by lowering the weight of the motor onto the tyre again. As described by others here, a pulley would drive a wheel in reverse.
With the large fly wheel and the assortment of levers to control it, this engine is looking more and more like one of Trevithick's steam engines.
Yes
i imagine he had a hard time determining which was the "front" end as well, even seeing the Puffing Devil in person, i am still not sure!
I uttered "WOW" aloud at least 5 times during this video, Tim. The video jump cuts between stages make it look easy, but I can't imagine how many hours of sketches, measurements, math, design, and experimenting happens between them. Bravo, sir. You 100% earned that slo-mo moment of celebration at the end!
Absolutely loving this build - it's fascinating but Will is "blink" welding at about 1:30, it's a recipe for blindness, don't risk it man it's just not worth it!!
It totally isn't a recipe for blindness, unless uv penetrates the eyelid which im not sure it does.
@@MegaApenstaartje Why risk it, just wear the damn protection.
@@MegaApenstaartje it's pretty obvious how little protection eyelids give from light when you close your eyes and look at the sun.
there is nothing manly or cool about not being safe.
Yes!
@@MegaApenstaartje It's a recipe for horrible sunburn.
the design is pretty smart serving both reverse and clutch functions
Cracking job, this "locomotive" needs a driver wearing a top hat and a man with a red flag walking in front, I love you inventiveness, I am always full of anticipation when I see a new video, thank you, regarding driver position, the ideal is to use your full body weight to help with the tractive effort, however there is not much room left on your loco so a suggestion is to use a single axle under a seat like the old sit & ride lawnmowers and make the coupling to the loco somewhere near the middle so it transfers some of your body weight to the loco.
Interesting idea. Thanks
Ju can just let the seat hang out behind the rear wheels of the loco, as long as the loco has enough weight so it doesn't tip over.
This is such a wonderfully outlandish machine. I love it.
4.38: good use of a medium sized finger-pulley there, although can be limited in high speed applications.
Marvellous stuff!
I don’t think he needs to go very fast! Going over those points quickly would be nerve-wracking
Was just to comment on that. Is the gearing not a bit to aggressive? I mean he said in the video that he was not running the pistons at full pressure and it looks to go quite fast. And when he did it by hand it looked like the gearing was really high! Look when he runs it under air power how hard it has to work to keep the flywheel moving! It slows down after every crank yet go at a decent speed. Looks underpowerd even just moving under it's own weight. Even when a steam engine is about to stall the pistons still manages to keep the rhythm close to intact for a reason. POWER! A tractor or train flywheel are meant to be going in a steady speed and not like it was in the video. No?
Have no clue but just what I think as a bystander. I love to see how it turns out! Good call to make it out of wood fist. I expected it needs to be allot slower but in turn it will be plenty enough torque even at low pressure. I mean the slower it can go the better for the clutch action to avoid slipping wearing it out. It is meant to pull stuff and it just looks to fast! Or rather the pistons are going to work way to much agents the gearing when pulling a load and so will only slip or stall. :c
Such a cool machine! The railway is awesome enough! But this thing is more interesting then people making talking moving robots!
I've watched this entire series from your first railway track all the way up to now and I'm amazed by your ingenuity! This contraption of a locomotive of yours is just incredible! I've started using your methods to make a similar 15 inch gauge railway of my own for hauling firewood on my property around and it's working wonders for me so far! Keep up the amazing work!
Oh, well done! Addictive though, isn't it?!
@@wayoutwest-workshopstuff6299 Very! Experimenting is always a good way to spend an afternoon!
Excellent. Some rototillers use a belt/twisted belt reverse, usually a lever pulling the twisted belt for reverse, sliding through neutral, and then push forward to tighten the other belt using two moveable pulleys. Make it easier, just hook it up with everything on both the "intake" and "exhaust" ports, add some extra plumbing, and viola, you can put the air (steam💙) in either side, letting you go in reverse. Good luck. 💙 T.E.N.
P.S. I used two drill press pulleys on my go-kart, four different sizes on each pulley, four different belts, one twisted, and four tightening pulleys hooked to four pedals. Push and hold any one pedal, so I had three "gears" forward and one "gear" in reverse. It worked pretty well, but if the belts got wet, the unused belts got an attitude, and also the wear was pretty severe, especially on and between the first gear belt and the the twisted reverse belt. 💙 T.E.N.
That sounds spectacular - well done. Do you think my belts will wear out too then? Or were yours rubbing more?
The "low" and "reverse" belts rubbed each other. I should have used a deep pulley to help keep them in line, but the local store only had flat idler pulleys. However, on the second and third "gears" I had minimal issues. 💙 T.E.N.
The monster lives and breathes. Great work.
Giant flywheel, lots of levers to control direction, Experimental technology....
Yes, Richard Trevithick would be proud!
Not really experimental. It is really old and proven mechanics. Only thing odd here being that it is running on compressed air and moving under it's own power. But it sure makes it be close to a steam engine without the heavy bulky steam parts! Makes a awesome sounds and really if only to be fun and cool it gets a 10/10. It should be a fun way to get stuff done.
@@TheDiner50 I didnt really mean it as it being a "new technology", but instead that its experimental to him, like it was with trevithicks train(s) and steam powered vehicles
only recently found your channel. I have to say im loving the content.
I only wish I lived in your neighborhood. I love the way your team pushes threw each project. Keep up the great work.
With the low traction of steel wheels on steel rails you should use the chain drive to tie both axles together.
It is so much fun to watch this project develop. Thank you Tim for sharing this with us!
Bravo, Tim! It's almost like a re-creation of some of the very earliest steam engines, in style, speed and noises. I'm impressed with the apparent power of the air engine.
It's refreshing to watch you build things.
'low tech / easy to explain-understand
Wow you've outdone yourself on this build. What a contraption! It's clearly living and breathing, and you've just called it a "she", so perhaps she'll get a name soon?... and maybe even a smiley face on the um... front?
swapping the airlines from the two pneumatic cylinders would put it in reverse. They even make simple valves to do that. probably cheaper than the steel you cut up for the pulleys.
Great idea, that would even allow for regenerative braking, if you switch to reverse while rolling forward, the cylinders will pump air into the air tank. Ok, I'm pretty sure there is too much empty space in the hydraulic cylinders, so it won't reach enough pressure to fill the tank. You need to make a plastic spacer which fills the remaining space in the bottom of the cylinder when it is all the way in, that makes the whole engine way more efficient and also allows for regenerative braking
@@chalichaligha3234 less power in reverse that way. Due to less square inch on that side of the cylinder
@@chalichaligha3234 ah. Swapping the inlet and exhaust of exhaust of each valve set. Yes, that would do it. The other thing with my way of cross connecting cylinders, is that by attaching the rod side with the non rod side of the opposite cylinder he already had the appropriate valve setup and gets more power out of it, but at the cost of using more air. Maybe thats a option for when he has a heavy load
Watching you build your drive train, no pun intended, reminds me of a lot of what I've read over the years about early loco builders in the UK and their by gosh, by golly engineering. Well done!!
Hi Tim, it’s really refreshing to watch something so unique on UA-cam, keep it up, love to you and Sandra
I bet you could rig up a single lever so that one direction pulls one pulley tight and the other pulls the other, backwards and forwards on a single lever - also meaning you can't engage both at the same time!
This is the single most brilliant thing on UA-cam. Thank you for keeping us all up to date on it! What kind of thing are you planning in the way of brakes for your beautiful contraption? And does she need a name yet?
Thanks, Chris - any suggestions?
@@wayoutwest-workshopstuff6299 I like the idea of calling her 'Tenacity'. It suits your approach to building both this engine and the whole railway very well.
Ivor the engine
Larry the Loco
@@wayoutwest-workshopstuff6299 La Vida Loco
The brilliancy is all these things work at the end ! If Tim gets good milling and lathe machines , he might launch a ship to the space soon
I think a rear articulated wagon is in order for the seat, plus you could keep tools there too. Once again you astound me, with a transmission much simpler than what I could come up with!
That's where the air tank should go, too
@@burdizdawurd1516Official In his previous illustrations he stuck the air tank under the frame of the flywheel
I suppose the "tender" would be the next best location if it doesn't fit
Hello from Detroit Michigan USA Great video Brother thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise
what fun..great build
Absolutely brilliant, bonkers but i can't not be impressed with your creativity. Well done and I can't wait to see it finished and working.
A parking brake and a seat and you've got yourself a fully-featured narrow-gauge locomotive right there! Very nice. Looking forward to the next video.
Why does this give me the vibe of an engine from the Rainhill trials
Super job! I could see both control levers attached to opposite sides of the same oblongish cam lobe on a single upright lever. As one relaxes the other tensions. the lobe itself is adjustable up and down the common lever for tensioning.
You are so clever! Can’t wait to see the finished project!
I did a similar reverse drive when I put a large induction motor on my old drill because it was spinning the ring way. However I added a bearing spindle were the v belt crosses so it didn't wear out the belt from rubbing against itself.
Oh how I wish I had a large enough plot of land, like a whole farm 😂, just so I could have a field railway. Oh well I can still dream I spose. I must say tho I love these videos
A recommendation I have is adding side rods to the wheels. This allows the loco's engine to distribute its pulling power in all 4 wheels rather than just two
Good idea in principle, but with the pulley/belt drives, you’d have to have one side rod outboard of the drive pulleys, which would then make it tricky to change belts when needed. Could have a chain and sprockets or another belt drive on the opposite side, though.
@@emmajacobs5575 true. But what if there was a way to relocate the drive belt to the inner side of the axil?
Just love watching Tim with his inventions we love Ireland 🇮🇪 Will be watching on later after a stressful day.We would love to live in Ireland 🇮🇪 Irelands.Good luck 🍀
Trevethick would be very proud of you
It's a fun experiment Tim. Nice to see it rolling along the rails. Well done
A real milestone Tim! Congratulations.
She has an absolutely glorious clatter about her. And thank you for being one of the few on UA-cam using the word palaver.
Thanks, Bernard : - )
You did it!! The function is basically done! All it needs now is some form; a place to sit and better levers!!
That's so amazing, great job!! I can't wait to see some more!!
Found your channel about a week ago, such brilliant stuff! Almost makes me want to build my own railway, though it's not feasible lol. Keep up the great content! I'd love to see this little railway in action!
I absolutely salute you for sterling efforts,with all you do and schieve👍
Thank you : - )
Amazing! I love the noise it makes under power.
love this channel. My wife will be calling to complain about the ideas you are putting into my head.
this looks just like a very old steam engine, and i imagine built and tinkered together just like they were too, i love it, and this series
Really nice design. Great form of rods and pistons with unique drive sequence. For track use, could use a small tender with an air compressor for continueous operation and a seat to ride on
This reminds me of Richard Trevithick 1802 Coalbrookdale locomotive!
That capstan on the Range Rover is awesome! I’ve never seen that before
My uncle had a narrow gauge railway before he died, he had some genius devices for it too, and I'll pass one of them on; place two levers at the end of the line, one off the end, one nestling between the rails, each with a prop stick, ideally attached. The car is place as close as possible to the end of the rails, with chocks placed behind the wheels, the lever between the rails is used to lift the front of the car, the prop stick is lowered to keep the car lifted and the car is pushed forward, the chocks are then moved forward, the front lever is lowered; the rear is lifted, the car usually slid forward from gravity but may need a bit of help, if it does make sure to prop up the lever, you only make that mistake once, and your car is now on the rails, with ease.
Also, the forward and reverse thing, we called "maker's word" aka it was what the maker said it was.
I am constantly amazed at the solutions you come up with. It's a good kind of madness, really in the spirit if "steam punk" design. In this case, I guess it would have to be called "air punk." Brilliant stuff!
i cheked abaut every 30 minutes and finaly its there !
WELL DONE. REGARDS RICHARD.
Historically, the simplest form of pistons is the oscillating cylinder. Looking into it a little, I think this kind of piston/valve design could deffinately solve a lot of your problems. Perhaps if you plan to build a seperate steam engine, this would be a good way to go.
The reason this oscillating piston system wasnt done on steam locomotives is because of extreme vibration, but it was used extensively on steamships.
@@dakotaleker2885 Also because it's a "fixed cutoff" design, which means you can't change the relative timing and duration of steam admission on the fly. No problem for situations where the load is near constant, but for locomotives it's very inefficient.
@@cooperised Actually you can.
The main problem with oscillating piston engines is they are limited to 40 psi otherwise the pressure blows the cylinder off the port.
The ones used on ships actually had a slide valve mounted on the cylinder (which made for a steam pipe that required constant attention to keep sealed)
The main reason they were used was they are much more compact than a conventional steam engine.
@@pvtimberfaller That's interesting, I've never come across a variable cutoff oscillating design. If a separate cutoff slide valve was required in addition to the oscillating ports, did that eat into the size advantage? Can you direct me to a drawing of one?
The issue with oscillating engines is because there isn't a valve, the piston is only powered on the extend stroke instead of the extend and retract. They are much less powerful than regular steam engines.
Remember my words: in a year this guy would have his own built steam locomotive!
A year? He's already got a mostly working steam boiler design and his engine clearly works, even if it could always be improved further. I'd say half a year at most
Looks like W.o.W. No. 1's coming along nicely!
this is so wholesome, its now one of my favorite channels.
George Stephenson would have been proud of that. Great work.
Looking good Tim
What a great series! So cool to follow the development. 👍
You should be able to devise a single lever system, pull one way for forward, the other for reverse. A simple rocker system for the idler pulleys. Thanks for the video. Jon
These video’s remind me of one of my childhood books. I’m going to try to find a copy
Looks like we have a late entry to the Rainhill trials. Is compressed airpunk a thing? Awesome job!
I love watching your videos Tim. I'm always amazed with the ideas and solutions you come up with.
One of your older videos had a comment on it that said you were taking your tiny corner of rural Ireland through the industrial revolution and it's just...true...
I think you have the right idea about the front of the engine, you'll want to sit behind the engine to check on it more easily and the space you've given yourself is also good for putting the compressed air source eventually, which you'll want next to the seat for easy access to the controls. Looking amazing, surprisingly pretty for such a thrifty machine!
Love this build! Can’t wait to see more. But please use eye protection and gloves while welding! Set a good example for the kids. :)
I love your solution! At first I thought "build a transmission, man, you know you want to!", but when you added the lever and then one more, I don't need no damn transmission! Lovely. And the sounds she makes, a machine goddess! Maybe Goddess should be her name? Nah, too much :^)
it's looking good! love seeing all the trials and errors! always interesting! I might mention being quite safety cautious about things 1:38 Wear your protective gear! its a recipe to disaster and not worth risking. So Wear the PPE don't take that risk. anyways great video as always and can't wait to see this on the iron road eventually!
Try adding a headlight and a bell in the front for safety. You can in theory use a doorbell connected to a battery and a switch/button.
Can’t wait to see it fully running.
You’ve came a long ways good job 👍🏻
Enjoy watching your journey of ideas 💡 ✨️
Loving your engine. It looks very George Stephenson. I am reminded of the Rainhill Trials.
Had a rototiller (rotovator?) when I was a kid that had the same sort of set up for reversing the tines, though the "revers" side was never hooked up properly, so when rocks and stuff got stuck in it... well you just took a hammer along with you.
Super cool Tim. It is coming along quite well!
This is craziness of a particularly high order. But do carry on you magnificent bastard.
Magically starts a railway after great success with the locomotive
This is so beautiful. Thank you, thank you! You made my day!
Now just 24 or so episodes onwards, and we will see you ride a proper air locomotive with 6 driven axles :-)
Brilliant stuff. I am absolutely fascinated to see where this ends up, but anything that can re-rail itself must have a fair amount of power in it. I predict a success.
Inspirational , well done Tim.
Tim welding without safety gear could get your vids flagged by UA-cam. All it takes is one viewer flagging one vid. Please be careful 😀 Eric.
They snitches for that, and you know what they say about snitches.
@@Machodave2020 They get flash burn from welding without a helmet? Lol
@@jeffreycutler7364 you know what, yeah, that's exactly what they get 😂
@@Machodave2020 …they never get caught because UA-cam reports are anonymous. Good advice from OP
@@RMphy89 that makes sense actually.
I love the belt drive arrangement. Can't help thinking that some kind of valve reverse would end up simpler in the end though, as well as more compact. Steam engines shouldn't need clutches!
Steam engines have almost always had clutches tho? That way you don't need to kill all your power just because you are in a station, or when firing up an engine it's easier to speed up just the engine before trying to get it to power anything. Some high power mountain trains have an entire heavy duty gear box between the engine and the wheels
@@mickys8065 No types of steam railway locomotives that I can think of (and I can think of a good few!) ever had clutches. That's not to say that there wasn't one somewhere, of course. But steam engines generate full torque from zero speed so you just don't need clutches. Conventional locomotives (whether standard gauge, narrow gauge, miniature, or whatever) connect the pistons direct to the wheels via rods. There have been various geared steam loco designs like the Shay, the Climax, and a small number of UK shunting locomotives and railcars - but still none with clutches to my knowledge. It's just unnecessary complexity.
@@mickys8065 The closest I can think of is roadgoing steam traction engines, which had clutches so that they could use their steam engines to power auxiliary equipment while stationary.
@@cooperised apologies, you are correct with the clutch. I believe I must've gotten confused between an actual clutch and letting the boiler build up steam without directing the steam into the pistons.
Connect both clutches to a single lever, if you push the lever forward, the forward clutch engages, if you push the lever backwards, the reverse clutch engages...
that is an absolutely beautiful machine
Tim, this is all very impressive. I can already imagine it pushing a load along the tracks.
I am pleased you are using compressed air and not steam.
Steam has been done to death.
Compressed air seems more original.
☮
Loved the video, I think maybe a second car behind the engine as place to sit would possibly be a good option as it would allow space for you to make changes to the current locomotive to overcome any challenges with performance and ensure that it is well balanced. I think the pulley system is great, you might lose some performance in comparison to a chain but the added benefit of going back and forward without a gearbox system makes it better.
This looks amassing Tim 👍
Wonderful to see this build progress! Depending on the air tank you will use for the loco, you might consider putting it on its own wagon and linking it to the main loco, much like a coal tender but for air instead. That will leave room for a driver seat in between where you had planned for it.
And you could even link up more air tanks on more wagons to give the loco a bigger supply to go faster or farther. Then you don't have to worry about getting one big tank, but can get smaller ones as money becomes available
Done a very good job mate, well done. I have helped in the past with starting steam locomotives and they are difficult to keep up with.
Lovely contraption! Also makes me think of Trevithick's design.
This is coming together nicely!