Member postings for RobertInOntario

Thanks! But too bad you had to sell it.

Thanks, Dave & Neil. I think I'll continue with my "research" and then start asking around at our club. There are often locos coming up for sale within the club and, as you say, I will also be able to get lots of good feedback from our members. ... I just don't want to get people looking around for me until I'm serious.

Thanks, Julian. I thought as much. Oh well, it doesn't hurt to look into this! Cheers, Rob

I’m a member of a live steam club near Toronto and, recently, had borrowed a small 0-4-0 Tich loco, which my son & I really enjoyed running and tinkering with. We’ve also volunteered and have run trains at our club for several years now, so we are quite bitten by the live steam bug.

Thanks, Paul. Yes, for some reason, everything is working as it should. Cleaning must be part of the solution.

I remember, last summer, how we had trouble lighting the fire and keeping it going, and then feeling frustrated. I think it's just taken some time to get familiar with the loco and how it works.

At any rate, I keep thinking about this. It's been great as it has shown me how the real, full-scale thing works as well. Two years ago, I knew almost nothing about engine blowers and water glasses.

Cheers, Rob

I thought I'd post a quick follow-up note re how my son & I are getting along with our Tich. We've had a lot of success with it recently, especially this month.

Two weekends ago, we had no trouble steaming it up in our backyard. I put it on a table so I could look right inside the firebox to see how the fire was going. We ran it for a good hour.

Then, last weekend, we took it up to our club and again we had no trouble firing it up and running it up and down a siding. I think one of the key issues is to keep cleaning the tubes and firebox thoroughly after each session. A couple months ago, the engine blower was clogged & other guys at the club seemed to have trouble cleaning it. But even that seems to be working now, after using and running it so much.

At any rate, we're making good progress & are very pleased. I now want to be able to get it to complete one circuit of our club's track without having to stop and build up the fire & pressure again, but that might be asking too much!

Thanks again for your feedback here on this forum.

Cheers, Rob

All I know about the coal is that the club is particular about which type of coal they use. They also have stashes of really good coal that works well for small engines. Most of the time, though, I'm burning kerosene-soaked wood charcoal and I only use the coal when it's steaming very well. Thx, Rob

Thanks for your encouragement, John. We had hoped to steam it up this weekend in our driveway, but ran out if time.

So, in order to keep it running continuously, you must have to constantly feed it coal/charcoal, all the while you're checking its water and watching where you're going -- lots of multitasking which can be tough!

I also liked your comment that anything that is easy is not a challenge.

Cheers, Rob

Thanks, John. That's how I remember us fixing this last year. I'll use either my dental pick or a small drill bit to clean the blower.

quick question: for how long can you keep your Tich in steam? As mentioned, mine runs out after a few metres or so, unless we get really good at feeding it charcoal and coal while in motion!

rob

My son & I have recently started to steam up our Tich again. Last summer we had mixed success. As mentioned, we're fairly new to operating live steam & were only able to steam it up with the help of other members at our club.

However, last weekend, we had quite a bit of success on our own. We brought it out to the club and were able to get it fired and running almost totally on our own. Actually, my son (who is almost 12) did most of it using his own judgement, with me just watching & commenting! As before, it would only run a few metres before the fire would go out or the pressure would drop. I think we can improve this with practice.

The loco probably ran so much better because a friend from our club thoroughly cleaned it last winter. Another concern is that the engine blower still seems to be plugged -- that was an ongoing issue last summer as well. Does anyone know if there are any articles -- online or in print -- that provide a very clear, "dumbed-down" description of how to clean a Tich, especially the engine blower? (The latter problem last summer even had some of the seasoned club members stumped.)

Thanks in advance! Rob

Thanks for this feedback, AndyP. Another idea might be to obtain a cheap hair dryer and use that as an extra fan? It could be used to fan the fire from under the loco. Rob

There's an "army store" near where I live -- maybe I should check there?

Thanks, Rob

I just thought I'd post a quick update of how we're getting on with our Tich. After a couple failed attempts at home, I took it to our club yesterday where my friends got it into steam. It did take some effort to get the fire going, but once that was started, it was fairly easy to keep it in steam for about 1-1/2 hours. I practiced going back & forth on a siding, keeping the fire going, making sure it had enough water, etc., until I got the hang of it. That 1.5 hours went by very fast and it really was a lot of fun -- very addictive!

We also got it steaming at home tonight, again with the help from one of the club members. It seems that the fan (that came with the Tich) may be too weak or low-powered. We might try it out again at the club this weekend.

Thanks again for your help on this forum, as this has helped a lot too.

Rob

Thanks, John! I have a few questions & comments:

-- My next plan is to try to remove as much of the previous charcoal as I can and replace it with some charcoal that is now thoroughly soaked in kerosene (been a few days now). Maybe my previous charcoal had not been soaked enough in the kerosene (it was only a few hours)?

-- I'm having trouble seeing or looking under the loco -- what's the easiest / best way to drop the grate and clean out the ashes?

-- regarding the water: we filled up the tank pretty much to the top of the tank -- was that too much?

-- yes, the firebox door is tiny and the chunks of wood charcoal are quite large. It's a messy job to break them down but I guess it has to be done. I'll get some coal the next time I'm able to make it to the club, but that might not be until July.

-- after I've replaced as much of the charcoal as I can with "really kerosene-soaked" kind and checked the water level in the tank, we'll try lighting it up again. We'll also make sure that the brake is not applied (on the wheels on the display stand) so that when we apply the throttle, the wheels will move!

-- as mentioned, previously we were able to see water bouncing in the glass. The loco's boiler was hot and it made a steady hissing noise but was definitely not noisy. I think the fire kept going out. Also, the pressure gauge seemed to indicate only a little pressure and the whistle made a faint sound when we pulled it. So I guess we're on the right track but obviously not quite there yet.

Will keep you posted -- thanks for this feedback.

Rob

Edited By RobertInOntario on 24/06/2014 23:32:02

Edited By RobertInOntario on 24/06/2014 23:33:05

Thanks, Julian & Neil. I'll try to clean up the loco this evening! Rob

My son & I only got so far in firing the Tich today. We filled it with water and then inserted some kerosene-soaked bits of charcoal. We got the fire going, although it seemed to keep going out. Using the blower, we got some steam pressure up and saw the water bouncing in the glass.

The loco was mounted on a display stand where the loco's wheels engage with some wheels in the stand so you can run it stationary, so to speak. We let the pressure build for 30-40 minutes -- the boiler was hot, there was water in the glass but the pressure gauge had only moved slightly. We tried the whistle but it only made a faint "peep". We tried the throttle but nothing happened.

After trying for well over an hour from the initial set up time, we had to stop as we needed to go out. Then my son realized that the brake was in the "on" position, i.e. locking the display stand's wheels!!

At any rate, the loco is now cooling off & we'll try again. Is there any harm in leaving the charcoal (that didn't get used up) inside the firebox as well as the unused water -- or should I try to remove these?

Thanks, Rob

I've just bought some wood charcoal and kerosene, so we hope to have a go this weekend. If the kerosene is too stinky, then I'll try the BBQ lighter fluid.

Also just wondering what are the best books that could help us, or other magazine articles? Remember, these would need to be fairly simple at this point!

I found this book on eBay as well as on Amazon --

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/SIMPLE-MODEL-LOCOMOTIVE-BUILDING-INTRODUCING-LBSC-S-TICH-EVANS-/380919684822?pt=Non_Fiction&hash=item58b0951ed6

Thanks again,

Rob

Edited By RobertInOntario on 20/06/2014 18:29:39

Thanks, Julian! I'll see how this works out ... I'll try to get over to Canadian Tire or Home Depot, hopefully tomorrow.

Thanks, John -- this info is very helpful! I just sent you a PM as well. Cheers, Rob