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  • British steam in the 1960s

  • Discussion about railroad topics everywhere outside of Canada and the United States.
Discussion about railroad topics everywhere outside of Canada and the United States.

Moderators: Komachi, David Benton

 #1302139  by philipmartin
 
The two of us then spent the whole night on our hands and knees in the bunker scratching away at packed-coal dust, then running the stoker until it jammed again, then scratching away some more. Finally, by the time the crew booked on again next morning, we were able to hand them a loco with a working stoker, much to everyone's relief.
What a good post, and what an experience!
Here's an LMS video to illustrate some of what you said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHo860Q66Gw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 #1413069  by philipmartin
 
philipmartin wrote:Snowdrift at Bleath Gill, 1955.
It makes you wonder how they managed in the 1840s when locomotives weren't as powerful as they are now.
This film shows them using cotton waste, soaked in paraphin, to thaw out frozen parts. We used cotton waste to wipe down diesels in the New York Central round house I worked in, in 1956. Basically, it a big ball of threads. So we used the same stuff in New Jersey that you were using in "old" Jersey.
 #1413121  by David Benton
 
When I worked in a factory with steam boilers, the boilerman used to come to the workshop , grab all our dirty rags, throw them in the dirty kerosene bath , then use the whole lot to light the boiler.
The kerosene baths were also used by the oldtimers to treat any cuts or scrapes. no ,matter how dirty the kerosene was, if they cut their finger , they would stick it in the kerosene , and it would never get infected.
 #1413123  by johnthefireman
 
In South Africa we still use cotton waste for lighting up. A thin layer of coal all over the firebox, a pile of old wood, and then we put a piece of paraffin-soaked cotton waste onto the shovel, throw on a match and hoy it into the firebox.

While doing the boiler washout, the boilerman uses a piece of lit paraffin-soaked cotton waste on the end of a long thin metal pole which he sticks inside to see where the sediment is collecting. You can also use it to detect draughts, eg around the edge of the smokebox door, or even to see if the blastpipe is draughting properly up the chimney. And it can be used as a rather smokey source of light if you have no other lamp.
 #1413130  by philipmartin
 
Kerosene for cuts. Thanks for the tip, David. I'll throw out my iodine, hydrogen peroxide, neosporin, etc., stick my cut finger in some kerosene and light it up. That should kill the germs (as well as my finger.) :wink:
(Pardon my warped sense of humor.)
Last edited by philipmartin on Mon Dec 19, 2016 4:59 am, edited 1 time in total.
 #1413131  by philipmartin
 
johnthefireman wrote:
While doing the boiler washout, the boilerman uses a piece of lit paraffin-soaked cotton waste on the end of a long thin metal pole which he sticks inside to see where the sediment is collecting. You can also use it to detect draughts, eg around the edge of the smokebox door, or even to see if the blastpipe is draughting properly up the chimney.
I've seen that on a UK video about maintaining steam locos.
 #1413202  by george matthews
 
johnthefireman wrote:I wouldn't have thought stoker was a quintessentially British term for fireman, although it may have been used occasionally; we normally say fireman, and to be honest I thought stoker was a US term (and it is definitely the Afrikaans term). The word stoker was used on steamships.

We use "driver" where in the USA I believe you use "engineer".
"Stoker" is a marine term for coal handlers on ships but never for trains.
 #1413352  by ExCon90
 
"Stoker" is used on American railroads to denote a mechanical stoker, a power-operated screw device to convey coal through a pipe from the tender to the firebox. I suppose if one jams, someone has to get in there and free it up.
 #1413408  by johnthefireman
 
ExCon90 wrote:I suppose if one jams, someone has to get in there and free it up.
Yep - see my hands-on (or rather, hands in!) description at the bottom of p1 of this topic.
 #1413423  by johnthefireman
 
In South Africa the loco has to have a valid boiler certificate (usually valid for three years) and also has to be signed off by a boiler inspector as well as a fitter as part of the roadworthy exam before each trip (the roadworthy certificate is valid for 48 hours, if I recall correctly). These documents have to be carried on the train, either on the footplate or by the guard. Driver and fireman are both trained to manage a boiler as part of their normal training, and are examined on this as part of their initial certification examination and also their annual recertification.