Large Scale Central

My 30-year old Aster Br01 German Pacific

Electronics Live Steam
#1

with great plumes and loud chuffs…in action on a cool Fall day in Lincolnshire, UK…

I finally got some of the correct grade alcohol to run it on, and boy does it make a difference - 45 minute runs, great steam effects and loud noises from 1:45 to the end.

Turn the sound up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHwjdPaJ6wg

tac

#2

Nice :smiley:

#3

A beautiful locomotive.
30 years old and running strong. Pretty impressive :slight_smile:
Ralph

#4

‘Aster’ be good, eh?

Glajja liked it.

Only Aster loco I have, being a poor old disabled pensioner…kof kof, gack, ack…

tac

#5

Love it Tac. Nice looking engine and runs great.

#6

Right nice there, tac.

#7

Poor loco was built in 1982 by an ardent admirer, who stuck it in a glass case and ‘admired’ it until going to his maker in 2006. Andrew Pullen, boss Aster here in yUK, gave me a head’s up after taking pity on me, and it was sent to our local Aster maven, Geoff Calver, to get checked out. He saved steaming it until we got to his location - Rushford Barn [check out his website for some dribbly-typo steam stuff] and we toddled ff to the track belonging to the Dean of St Edmundsbury Cathedral, the Rt Rev Malcolm Cherry. Like many churchmen, he has a HUGE home and garden, and his wife gave his half of it for his large-scale - Gauge 1] train set.

We steamed it for the very first time on this great track - about 450 feet of double - hauling a bunch of British passenger cars loaded with engineering bricks to give it a load of around 70-80 pounds. It really didn’t notice that much.

Bin running well ever since, and just gets better, IMO, for hard use.

Thanks for the interest, guys, I know that Gauge 1 ‘train-racing’ is not the scene for many of you, but I appreciate your comments and good wishes nonetheless.

tac

#8

Ahhh…these UK churchmen from Bishops down…the place is awash with them as railway nuts!!
They seem to drive…God does the firing…:slight_smile:

Oddly enough there is a woman named Cherry (Christian name) who is one of the best model engineers I have come across- she exhibits at the Model Engineer show, London… Her workmanship is superb.

#9
tac said:
Thanks for the interest, guys, I know that Gauge 1 'train-racing' is not the scene for many of you, but I appreciate your comments and good wishes nonetheless.

tac


tac they are just afraid of breaking there finger nails and getting burnt fingers, wimps :slight_smile: lol. You and few others got me hooked on the live steam so keep the videos and pictures coming.

#10

Very nice video. The sound of a real steam locomotive at speed is very nice indeed. Very impressive!!

Doc Tom

#11

There is something VERY elemental about running a live-steamer, no matter what the size is. Fire and water, and very little else and nothing happens unitl you do a few things in the right order - else nothing happens.

But when it does, and it comes alive! AAaaaaaaah, THAT my friends, is what real live steam is all about.

tac

#12

Cherry Hinds.

…and if you are ever in the Huntingdon UK area, give me a call - we can run some steam!

tac

#13
tac said:
There is something VERY elemental about running a live-steamer, no matter what the size is. Fire and water, and very little else and nothing happens unitl you do a few things in the right order - else nothing happens.

But when it does, and it comes alive! AAaaaaaaah, THAT my friends, is what real live steam is all about.

tac


Couldnt agree with you more tac. The smell of steam oil in the air and the plumes of steam on a cool day. Cant get that with electric or battery.

#14
Shawn said:
Couldnt agree with you more tac. The smell of steam oil in the air and the plumes of steam on a cool day. Cant get that with electric or battery.
You can get that with electric !! When the dum dums try too steal the copper lines on the NE Corridor that are still live at 480 a leg! ;) Oh wait were talking model trains!
#15
tac said:
with great plumes and loud chuffs.....in action on a cool Fall day in Lincolnshire, UK.....

I finally got some of the correct grade alcohol to run it on, and boy does it make a difference - 45 minute runs, great steam effects and loud noises from 1:45 to the end.

Turn the sound up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHwjdPaJ6wg

tac


Hi Tac. I heard you had moved over here. Do you like this better than MLS? On the BR01, I read it doesn’t have an axle pump. Is this a problem and does it cause frequent stops to pump water? I have the BR03 which ran fine until my last run this spring. Now it leaks around the manifold and some other places. I replaced the o-rings on the blower and throttle, but it still has some minor leaks. Did I overheat it or what? I would hate to have to disect the thing to fix them. I would probably have to pay to have it fixed. I plan to run it Wednesday at Steve’s and see if it operates ok. I’ll start reading over here more often since it seems several have moved here. Love the videos. I have the Ruger Blackhawk which I really like. I also have an Old Army cap and ball but seldom fire it. I want to get back into black powder again if I can find the time.
John

#16

Mornin’, John - moved here? I’ve been here for YEARS!!! Look at my post count - THAT doesn’t happen overnight, I tell ya. Anyhow, many of the people I call my own ‘hand-shake’ friends are here on THIS forum, mainly from the various shenanigins we get up to in Ottawa every now and then.

As for an axle pump, well, to tell the truth I don’t need one as we only have scheduled 30-minute runs here for the sake of continuity, else few would get to run their locos on a guest day. Andrew Pullen just happens to have just the one axle-pump kit for the 01 hanging around, but I’ll not bother. It happily hauls seven-eight Marklin cars around for half-an-hour after getting up pressure - I usually refill the boiler as the steam comes up and run it on the [very slight] blower until it comes back to 60psi - it usually stays there for the entire run…

As for your little problem, I’m going to call Geoff Calver right now about it. Geoff [Rushford Barn Models] builds most of the Aster models here in UK and is a good friend as well as a master craftsman. Watch this space for an answer or emial me - you still have that address, eh?

ATB & Graders

tac, ig & The Vista House Boys

PS - I bought MY ROA in 1986, and it has rarely been put away since. Still on ALL the orginal bits after half a zillion rounds down it, too.

#17

It is a great looking loco Terry and sounded superb - even old ears. :wink:

I thought I had made a post about it but looking through the thread it seems I haven’t.

I love watching live steam but am purely a spectator, by choice, not owning any LS locos.

#18

Alan - get on to the rest of the Youtube stuff…about a hundred or so vids on trains and shooting.

ATB

tac, ig & The Neskowin Beach Boys

#19
Alan Lott said:
It is a great looking loco Terry and sounded superb - even old ears. ;)

I thought I had made a post about it but looking through the thread it seems I haven’t.

I love watching live steam but am purely a spectator, by choice, not owning any LS locos.


Alan you should give one a try. You can always build a small portable steam track. Thats what I plan on doing for those rainy/snowy days.

#20
tac said:
As for your little problem, I'm going to call Geoff Calver right now about it. Geoff [Rushford Barn Models] builds most of the Aster models here in UK and is a good friend as well as a master craftsman. Watch this space for an answer or emial me - you still have that address, eh?

PS - I bought MY ROA in 1986, and it has rarely been put away since. Still on ALL the orginal bits after half a zillion rounds down it, too.


Thanks tac. I will look to see if I still have the address. Like I said the engine ran fine until the last time. Now it is a mess.