Scale Lubricator pipe sizes

[Deleted]

Evening all


A question mainly for those who build to scale but open for everyone in an attempt to get as many views as possible. What's the smallest pipe sizes for mechanical lubricators that you have used/tried and how did it perform? Did you experiment with different sizes and note their affects. It might also be worth noting cylinder sizes/stroke and piston ring material.

Thanks in advance...

Pete

[chris vine]

Hi Pete,

on Bongo, 7.25" gauge, I used 1/16" od copper pipe for all the lubrication. That is both pressure from pumps and dripping down the tube.

it works fine. The hole down the middle is tiny!

for the pumped part, oil will go down any size tiny hole as the volume rate is also tiny.
for the gravity feeds, it seems to work fine. I didn't use wicks (but some people say I should have tried it!).

Hope that helps
Chris.

[Deleted]

Thanks Chris, that's very informative...did you use the same oil for pump and gravity ir did you find you needed a thinner oil for gravity?

Cheers

Pete

[builder01]

1/16" copper pipe works fine for both pumped, and gravity drip. For the gravity type, if you place a piece of felt in the bottom of the oil cup, this keeps all of the oil from dripping out of the pipe. When the oil level reaches the top of the felt, it mostly stops dripping out from the other end of the pipe. Probably capillary action causes this, seems to work well for me.

As for the viscosity of the oil, the most heavy of oil can be pumped. For my gravity feeds, I use a pin/bearing/journal oil that is ISO 220.

David

[Deleted]

Thank's David, that makes sense...I may try your suggestion of felt on the axles that have oil cups. All loco and tender have pads below the axles a mixture of oil trays with pads for tender and cartazzi axles and felt pads in the keeps for bogies and main axles. All gravity fed except main axles which fed from the rear lubricator, drips into a reservoir in the top of the axlebox which then goes through holes to axle and horns. I will try felt in the bogie oil cups which I added to the design. Not sure about the main axles though in case it might block the tiny oil ways.

Cheers

Pete

[builder01]

I have felt in the bottom of the oil cups for my main axles. I fill the oil cups, the oil soaks through the felt in the bottom of the cup and into the pipe, and then from the other end of the pipe it drips into the top of the axle box. The oil holes on the axles boxes are very small. The oil gets through no problem. My loco is not a "scale" model and what I have done may not be appropriate for what you need.  With the felt in the bottom of the cup, oil remains in the pipe and does not all run out. These photos are with the boiler off the frame.

DSCN1810 by Builder16, on Flickr

DSCN1808 by Builder16, on Flickr

[builder01]

When checking to see what will work, what I did first, was to experiment to see of the oil I was going to use would actually "flow" down the pipe I was going to use. I made a small cup, connected to my pipe on one end, and filled it with oil. Before long, there was a puddle of oil at the other end and the cup was empty! If I put felt in the bottom of the cup, the pipe remained full of oil. Without the felt, it all eventually all ran out. You can do the same thing to witness the oil flow through the small holes in axle boxes.

[Deleted]

Jun 18, 2019 22:36:45 GMT builder01 said:

When checking to see what will work, what I did first, was to experiment to see of the oil I was going to use would actually "flow" down the pipe I was going to use. I made a small cup, connected to my pipe on one end, and filled it with oil. Before long, there was a puddle of oil at the other end and the cup was empty! If I put felt in the bottom of the cup, the pipe remained full of oil. Without the felt, it all eventually all ran out. You can do the same thing to witness the oil flow through the small holes in axle boxes.

Thanks, David, that makes sense...

cheers

Pete

[mbrown]

I used 1/16" OD pipes for the runs from my sight feeds to the cylinders. They work fine. I would imagine the pressure differential between a mechanical lubricator and the cylinders is sometimes greater than in a hydrostatic system, so even less of a problem.

My query on this was the subject of my first post on the forum some years ago and I got helpful (though not definitive) advice from Julian and some others which gave me the confidence to go ahead.

Good luck!

Malcolm

[Deleted]

Guy's could you mic the 1/16 pipes please, I ask as I have two sizes to hand that I bought when looking at the draincock bowden cable sleeving and they measure 1.58 which is 1/16 and the other is 1.8 which doesn't have a fraction measurement so could possibly be classed as 1/16, the bore size is different, hence my request.

Cheers

Pete

[builder01]

Okay Pete,

As you have asked, I actually measured my oil pipes. They are about .093" on the outside, which is really more like 3/32" (not 1/16"). The inside is about .063", which is about 1/16". This gives a wall thickness of about .015". This pipe is probably a little larger on the outside than you were hoping. If you use smaller piping, just do the flow experiment and see what works best for you.

I have used this size for both my gravity feed and forced lubrication systems.

David

[Roger]

This thread is Gold Dust, I've been making notes!

[92220]

I bought 0.054 O/D x 30swg copper pipe from Doug Hewson, some years ago. The Steam Workshop catalogue says it's out of stock though. I will contact them and see if they intend re-stocking it.

Bob.