A 7 1/4" gauge porter

steam4ian · Post by **steam4ian** » Sat Jan 21, 2017 8:13 am

Belated congratulations.
There is nothing like owning and driving a 71/4" gauge loco.
I have Simplex which was scaled up to 71/4". At my former club I could regularly pull two bogies trucks for a total pax load of 16 adults.
I have moved to the country and I am still getting the hang of the local track which is less than 1km from our new property. The passenger demand is not quite as high so there is much waiting around which does not suit anthracite; the fire goes cold quickly. We now have Australian steaming coal is used by the big boys, it makes some smoke, but seems like it will be OK.

I trust you get as much fun and frustration as I do.

:-)

tom_tom_go · Post by **tom_tom_go** » Sat Feb 04, 2017 11:54 pm

Any updates on this one?

I often think about wanting a loco of this size, these guys do regular YouTube uploads:

http://www.stationroadsteam.co.uk

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 9:26 am

Not entirely happy with the new cab, it looks a bit bland:

Much better for actually driving though:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 9:32 am

I had a really successful run at home the other day, the extra weight from the new buffer beam and steel cab has really helped adhesion, which means the loco can be worked harder, which makes more draft, which makes more steam!

It is amazing how much better the loco runs when it is given some work to do. Pulling me and the wagons in the picture above was a good train for it, not so heavy as to be struggling, but enough drag on the curves to open the regulator up a bit.

I have also found that it steams perfectly well with no ashpan fitted, which prevents the airflow getting cut off by ash buildup (I have just been letting it fall on the ballast instead).

I think I will build a new wooden cab at some point (using the new steel roof). It should return some more character to the engine.

I might also build a new tender, the one it has is (i think) really meant for a standard gauge engine. The size and style don't really match. Something wooden and 4 wheeled might be better (and lighter to carry!)

laurence703 · Post by **laurence703** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 11:03 am

Why not Clad the steel cab with wood? Keeps the weight then and gives a better look?

Tender wise the design for that particular loco was a small 4 wheeled tender... it's fullsize brethren had 4 Wheel ones as well.

As per:
http://www.kitnkai.com/images/pcrr_2.jpg - it's a photo

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 1:10 pm

I quite like the wooden tenders that the maxwell hemmens porters came with:

Or the type that the statfold davenport runs with:

tom_tom_go · Post by **tom_tom_go** » Wed Feb 22, 2017 7:28 pm

I think it all looks alright as it is mate!

Do you have a video of it running with all the rolling stock?

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Thu Feb 23, 2017 7:38 am

A driver's eye view:

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A 7 1/4" gauge porter

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