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Post by steamer5 on Aug 4, 2020 3:35:50 GMT
Hi Pete, Great addition! Hope all is well down your way & you guys can get out & play trains again. You sound card sounds interesting, I was looking for something to do a bell, & maybe something louder, for Toby, but electronics are a bit of a black art to me
Oh BTW the link in your last post just flips you back to this thread.
Cheers Kerrin
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baldric
E-xcellent poster
Posts: 208
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Post by baldric on Aug 4, 2020 11:08:45 GMT
Just clarifying a few things.
The gong on the end of the coach is used as you would the whistle, to alert others of the presence of the train, I understand that these were added as there had been occasions where people had heard a whistle, seen a coach, and assumed it was going away from them.
There is c chain/wire rope between the coach and loco that allows the driver to sound the loco whistle, if this is still connected when leaving the coach behind it sounds the whistle, before it breaks, don't ask how I know, but it is not un-common.
There is a bell in the loco cab, this is what is used for the driver & fireman to communicate with each-other using the bell codes described. This code changed over the years as well!
I hope this information helps.
Baldric.
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Gary L
Elder Statesman
Posts: 1,208
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Post by Gary L on Aug 4, 2020 16:28:25 GMT
Just clarifying a few things. The gong on the end of the coach is used as you would the whistle, to alert others of the presence of the train, I understand that these were added as there had been occasions where people had heard a whistle, seen a coach, and assumed it was going away from them. There is c chain/wire rope between the coach and loco that allows the driver to sound the loco whistle, if this is still connected when leaving the coach behind it sounds the whistle, before it breaks, don't ask how I know, but it is not un-common. There is a bell in the loco cab, this is what is used for the driver & fireman to communicate with each-other using the bell codes described. This code changed over the years as well! I hope this information helps. Baldric. So to sum up, the driver when in the coach has the following controls: -Regulator handle, very prominent seen through the front window -Vacuum Brake -Whistle chain -Handbrake -Gong For the rest (especially the gear handle) he relies on the fireman, 70 feet in the rear, aided by bell communications and the ATC. This is the reason why the little 14xx were fitted with screw reverse, unusually for GWR tanks. With lever reverse it was usually necessary to close the regulator to alter the cut-off, and the fireman did not have control of the regulator in auto mode. What Baldric says about the Gong is very true. My abiding recollection of these things as a child is the almost total silence of the approach. And children are very sensitive to noise; a Castle or King at the head of an express would make a terrifying, ground-shaking noise, as it hurtled through Ealing Broadway station, a total contrast. Gary PS In your photos of your very evocative models, is that a numberplate attached to the smokebox door of the loco? In GWR days there was no such thing, the loco number was painted on the front buffer beam. In BR days a cast-iron number plate was attached to the door, but it was significantly bigger, and of course the livery was different. Just thought you’d like to know... it’s hard to check these things from the other side of the world!
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baldric
E-xcellent poster
Posts: 208
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Post by baldric on Aug 4, 2020 20:32:57 GMT
You missed sanders off your comprehensive list. Also the brake control only applies the brake, the fireman has to take it off. Baldric.
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Gary L
Elder Statesman
Posts: 1,208
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Post by Gary L on Aug 4, 2020 22:34:32 GMT
You missed sanders off your comprehensive list. Also the brake control only applies the brake, the fireman has to take it off. Baldric. Fascinating, Baldric! I had no idea about sanders. To assist with braking, presumably? Ditto the brake control, obvious when you think about it, but not at first thoughts. Driving these things must have been a fine art of crew coordination. It is a pity there is so little recorded, (AFAIK) when auto-trains were such a staple of WR branch line operations. - Gary
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mbrown
Elder Statesman
Posts: 1,719
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Post by mbrown on Aug 5, 2020 1:57:37 GMT
There is a short account of firing on a 14xx on a GWR Autotrain in one of Harold Gasson's books of reminiscences. The bit I remember is that he kept forgetting to disconnect the whistle chain and had to come to work each day with several spare links of chain in his pocket to make repairs.
There is a more detailed account of running SR autotrains with M7 tanks in Jim Evans's book "Booking Boy to Bullieds". They had a compressed air system for operating the regulator from the driving car, but it was so insensitive that every start was accompanied by violent slipping. So the practice was to run "with the pin out" and the fireman opened and shut the regulator according to the bell or buzzer signals from the driver. They had to get the pin in quickly if an inspector was about, but even they often turned a blind eye.
That's one reason why autotrains were always in a link for senior firemen - not only was there no supervision half the time, they often had to drive and fire simultaneously.
Malcolm
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Post by doubletop on Aug 6, 2020 5:30:47 GMT
Guys
For some reason I’m not getting notifications of new posts s apologies for the tardy reply.
Thanks for a comprehensive list of things to consider. I'm searching for a sound files for the GWR ATC bell and hooter and I'll change from the gong. I'll use the hooter for automatic brakes on and the bell for brakes off. Not quite acting on the distant signal but then GWR didn't have automatic speed control either. Any clues where I could find copies of the sound files online?
I do think auto sanders would be a step to far.
I take the point about the number plate on the door but there are plenty of other issues with the platework. When I started the refurbishment of the loco my intention was to use as much of the original builders work as possible. After I'd replaced just about everything between the frames, including the boiler, that went a bit out of the window as things progressed, except for the platework. I am considering purchasing the complete set of John Smith platework from Polly Model, then more attention will be given to the authenticity of the other ancillary bits and bobs.
Kerrin
I’ve updated to the correct links (now 2)
Pete
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Post by doubletop on Aug 9, 2020 3:38:25 GMT
Much searching on Google failed to find examples of the GWR ATC siren and bell sounds so I used a simple siren and bell audio files until such time that I come across examples of the real thing. Siren for overspeed brakes on bell for all clear.
It probably took me longer to find the files than it did to make the system changes. OK the siren does sound a bit 50's TV cop show but its all I have for now.
You'll also notice the bespoke case for DynoBox control unit. Early days of getting used to my 3D printer.
Pete
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Gary L
Elder Statesman
Posts: 1,208
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Post by Gary L on Aug 9, 2020 22:29:07 GMT
Much searching on Google failed to find examples of the GWR ATC siren and bell sounds so I used a simple siren and bell audio files until such time that I come across examples of the real thing. Siren for overspeed brakes on bell for all clear. It probably took me longer to find the files than it did to make the system changes. OK the siren does sound a bit 50's TV cop show but its all I have for now. You'll also notice the bespoke case for DynoBox control unit. Early days of getting used to my 3D printer. Pete The bell’s pretty good, as I remember it. The siren has the right sort of note, but I remember it being shorter. More of a “whoop” really,.. but it’s hard to be sure of such things nearly 70 years ago. I wonder if Didcot have a recording? After all, it was a claim to fame of the GWR, and they are sure to have the equipment. Gary
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Post by doubletop on Aug 9, 2020 23:36:35 GMT
The bell’s pretty good, as I remember it. The siren has the right sort of note, but I remember it being shorter. More of a “whoop” really,.. but it’s hard to be sure of such things nearly 70 years ago. I wonder if Didcot have a recording? After all, it was a claim to fame of the GWR, and they are sure to have the equipment. Gary Gary Thanks - I can edit the siren sound, shorten it to a second of so and give is a bit of a volume rise at the begining. I did find another thread on this subject on one of the small scale forums from some years back. Somebody from Didcot was going to look into getting some sound samples but as they explained all the ATC equipment had been disabled as it would annoy the crews with it keep going off when they went up and down their short section of track. Unfortunatley nothing seems to have come of it. Pete
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