Westlake Publishing Forums

General Category => Cars, Trucks, and Other Vehicles => Topic started by: Giles on July 24, 2019, 01:12:09 AM

Title: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Giles on July 24, 2019, 01:12:09 AM
Hi, I'm new here, and although I certainly can't match the craftsmanship demonstrated in many of the posts here, some may find interest in a few of the things I've built.

About ten years ago, I started converting 7mm scale lorries to radio control - not because I'm particularly 'in to it', but because I have a thing about moving trains and static, non-working vehicles. My idea of a railway is one where the whole enterprise works together - or as much of it as possible! The lorries were intended to move as realistically as possible, with three-point suspension, and good slow-speed characteristics so as to aesthetically blend in as much as they could.

Anyway, the conversions were very successful, and I'm glad to say that other people have started creating their own as well.

I recently thought I would try something a little different, just to see how viable it would be, and bought a white-metal kit for a small traction engine, with a view to doing a conversion. This would involve not only making the wheels go round, but also driving the the motion - so making a working crank-shaft, con rod, eccentrics etc..... Also, because it would need to work on an exhibition layout (Denton Brook) it would need to operate for a full day on one charge (or as near as I could manage, at any rate).

This is the result. It is driven from a 5v 150rpm motor, 10mm x 22mm, mounted transversly in the firebox. All the gears are laser cut from acrylic, and the motion is silver-soldered construction. The wheels are the originl white metal castings, machined up, and with neoprene tyres glued on.

The Lipo battery is mounted under the canopy.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48097753098_d9a6b9d29c_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2gheyi9)TE1 (https://flic.kr/p/2gheyi9) by giles favell (https://www.flickr.com/photos/154226058@N08/), on Flickr

Video here:
http://youtu.be/a6ofQC2ASCo

Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Design-HSB on July 24, 2019, 03:04:09 AM
Welcome Giles,

successful model and also the function I like very much.
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Hauk on July 24, 2019, 03:37:17 AM
Quote from: Giles on July 24, 2019, 01:12:09 AM
Hi, I'm new here, and although I certainly can't match the craftsmanship demonstrated in many of the posts here, some may find interest in a few of the things I've built.

Welcome, Giles!
I have with great interest followed your radio control projects on RMWeb and thtough the pages of difenrent magazines.

Fascinating and inspiring stuff, and I look forward to you posts here!
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Chuck Doan on July 24, 2019, 08:46:08 PM
That is just wonderful! Beautifully made.
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Ray Dunakin on July 24, 2019, 11:16:35 PM
Very cool! Excellent work!
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: SandiaPaul on July 25, 2019, 02:56:24 AM
Wow this is very cool, an excellent model!
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: finescalerr on July 25, 2019, 11:30:54 AM
Has everyone seen the video? If not, watch how the model operates by R/C. -- Russ
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: TRAINS1941 on July 26, 2019, 06:44:48 AM
Beautiful model.  Love the video that is really cool!!

Jerry
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Design-HSB on July 26, 2019, 07:35:06 AM
After i got the inspiration for my Cakebox model on the RM web, I had already seen other contributions from Giles. Here is a link (https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/18108-radio-controlled-traction-engine-mechanical-horse-steam-crane-road-vehicle-gantry-crane-mobile-crane-and-bedford-tk-artic/page/29/) about the great construction of his model, in the RM web.
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Giles on August 01, 2019, 02:44:13 AM
Thank you folks - it's been a fun one to do!

I shall build another one at some stage, incorporating what I've learned on this one - and to that end, I've been experimenting with differentials. I've built two different types, just to see how they went, and how viable they were.
The smaller one is a cluster of four bevel gears (Mod 0.3) and this has an overall size of just over 13mm x 8mm, and the larger one is a spur gear type (also Mod 0.3 gears) with a cage size of 7.3 x 18.3mm diameter. Both work well, but the spur gear type was more trouble to make, and not quite as thin as I should have liked.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48388137062_e0ff8ec54c_b.jpg)
(https://flic.kr/p/2gHTRkd)Differentials 1 and 2 (https://flic.kr/p/2gHTRkd) by giles favell (https://www.flickr.com/photos/154226058@N08/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48386577937_ebedefa939_b.jpg)
(https://flic.kr/p/2gHKRRK)Differential 2 (https://flic.kr/p/2gHKRRK) by giles favell (https://www.flickr.com/photos/154226058@N08/), on Flickr
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: finescalerr on August 01, 2019, 11:43:30 AM
Your photos are linked rather than uploaded to this site. Eventually those links will break and the thread will have no photos and that will frustrate thousands of people. Please upload rather than link your photos. -- Russ
Title: Re: 1:43 radio Controlled Traction Engine
Post by: Ray Dunakin on August 04, 2019, 08:57:07 PM
Wow, nice work!