Recent content by darwins

I am trying to find out a little more about steam locomotives fitted with condensing equipment for working over the underground lines in London or Glasgow. (Metropolitan / GWR / MR / GNR / Caledonian) Does anyone know approximately how much of the exhaust steam was returned to the water tanks...

A booklet on "The Vacuum Automatic Brake" published by LPC in 1921 describes a twin pipe vacuum brake system for electric trains, manufactured by the Consolidated Brake and Engineering Company of Slough. It is basically the same idea as the later Gresham and Craven system used on first...

A Westinghouse Document from 1904 describes a storage brake system: https://archive.org/details/instructionpamp00compgoog/page/n225/mode/2up?view=theater (This particular example was intended for straight air brakes rather than automatic air brakes.) Motor cars were not fitted with compressors...

Looking up a 1960 WR document on stopping distances that I found in the NRM, I have found an answer to one of my questions. Diesel Pullman Multiple Unit (air brakes). Power Cars both bogies 41/41. Aux. Power Cars motor bogies 48/48. Aux. Power Cars trailer bogies 70/50. All other Cars both...

The driver's instructions for the Blue Pullman describe an EP brake system that provides a higher brake force (higher brake cylinder pressure) when speed rises above 40 mph and until speed falls below 30 mph. At lower speeds the brake cylinder pressure would be the 45-50 psi normally obtained...

I can not say it is the 'norm', but I have observed two cases of tourists being bullied into paying penalty fares for travelling on the "wrong" train. From memory, which may be failing as I am recalling incidents from between 4 and 10 years ago, these were on the ECML, so most likely Virgin or...

As said above, ticketing was simpler and there were fewer holes to fall through. You could board any train at an unstaffed station (or even at some staffed stations) and simply go to the guard and buy a ticket. If you changed your plans you could go and visit the guard and ask for an excess fare...

The drivers' manual for the Blue Pullmans (February 1962) states that the WR sets had AWS including an "AWS Indicator" listed with gauges and indicators. Given that they ran mostly in the 1960s and until the early 70s, I was wondering if this would have been for the GWR ATC system rather than...

I am trying to find out more about power reversers used on steam locomotives in UK, if anyone can point towards diagrams and explanations, particularly of how the controls were operated by the driver, I would be grateful. So far I have been made aware of three main variations, two of which are...

Hello, Can anyone please link me to a source describing how the load compensation system on modern rail vehicles is able to vary the brake force?

Just reading here about the ETHeLs https://derbysulzers.com/97250.html Does anyone know how much electrical power they were allowed to provide (ETH number or kW) and what diesel engine speed (rpm) was used to provide that?

That does surprise me. Shops in provincial towns worked five and half days, with every town having an "early closing day" between Monday and Friday so that the shops could stay open on Saturday afternoon. Although they lasted longer, it seems that early closing days are now also disappearing...

Yes. I am referring to the frequency supplied to the motors.

I have some questions about transmission with 3-phase motors and variable frequency supply. The basic principle says as the supply frequency increases the speed of the motor(s) increases. So you accelerate by increasing the supply frequency. The supply frequency also sets a "maximum" speed in...

There is a post here that gives a very good idea of how and why air flow indicators are in modern locomotive cabs. https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/brake-fade.60082/post-996159 In pictures these gauges appear to have two pointers, red and white. Why?