Author Topic: Finishing off a 5" Gauge Simplex Loco (Read 96572 times)

sbwhart · « **on:** June 17, 2012, 11:32:50 AM »

I decided some time ago that the mabel loco I'm building would not suite my needs so thats bin put under the bench to be finished off some other time. I started to look arround for a completed or a nearly running 5" loco to buy, and came across this one.

Its a Aupper Simplex to Nigel Evans design with a Belper Boiler its a very popular loco simple to build with a good performance, ther's about 5 that run regularly at our club.

Don't you Tim. I know your lerking

Its about 90% complete but what sealed it was it has a boiler cirtificate tested to 200 psi for running at 100 psi, it was built by a guy who unable to complete it due to ill health, the price was right so i took it on.

Briefly it needs most of the plumbing work doing, including a boiler feed pump, a lubricator, and a good tidy up, I wan't to try and get it in steam for the boiler steaming test by the end of summer if i can, then I'll do the tidying up work including a repaint through the winter.

First job is to make the feed pump. you can get a casting for it but I dropped on a chunk of bronze so first job was to square it up and mark the key holes out.

Then centre it up under the mill zero the DRO and set the vice stop, then rough drill out for the bore and finish off with a 14mm reamer, drill the cover holes and the bypass hole.

Flip it round in the vice and drill the cover holes at the other end.

Put it on its side and drill and tap for a plug and the outlet hole.

Onto the other side and drill and tap for the inlet hole, the bottom of the hole has four 2mm holes drilled on a pitch circle in the bottom.

Then over onto the the tapping stand to thread the rest of the holes.

Now to check out where it fits

the streacher it fits on should be 1 1/8" wide for some reason the guy made it 1 1/2" wide and no holes are drilled, its a complete strip down to get the streacher out nothing for it but to change the fixing.

but thats for another day.

Stew

NickG · « **Reply #1 on:** June 18, 2012, 01:06:36 AM »

Hi Stew, looks a nice model - I always thought the same about Mabel, it may lack power, boiler capacity and traction. Really want to get mine sorted one day but it seems a million miles away at the moment, just don't seem to have the time or will do do anything!

Simplex on the other hand is a well proven passenger hauler - the ones i've driven have been very powerful and steamed very well.

Nick

engjas · « **Reply #2 on:** June 18, 2012, 05:33:50 AM »

Hello Stuart

Good work on the pump.

For the sake of others who may be searching for the Super Simplex locomotive design I've just rechecked my aged memory with the index for "Model Engineer" and find that it was designed and described by Martin Evans who was at one time Editor of "Model Engineer" rather than Neville Evens as you credited in an earlier post.

An easy (Freudian?) slip to make particularly as Neville Evans also a designed and described a number of miniature Locomotives in Model Engineer.

best wishes for the successful completion of Super Simplex.

John

Rob.Wilson · « **Reply #3 on:** June 18, 2012, 04:30:06 PM »

Stew ,she Looks a well built loco

I will be taking notes

Rob

sbwhart · « **Reply #4 on:** June 18, 2012, 04:45:38 PM »

Quote from: engjas on June 18, 2012, 05:33:50 AM

Hello Stuart

Good work on the pump.

For the sake of others who may be searching for the Super Simplex locomotive design I've just rechecked my aged memory with the index for "Model Engineer" and find that it was designed and described by Martin Evans who was at one time Editor of "Model Engineer" rather than Neville Evens as you credited in an earlier post.

An easy (Freudian?) slip to make particularly as Neville Evans also a designed and described a number of miniature Locomotives in Model Engineer.

best wishes for the successful completion of Super Simplex.

John

Hi John

yes you're correct it should be Martin Evans don't know were i got the Neville from

Stew

Stilldrillin · « **Reply #5 on:** June 18, 2012, 06:00:51 PM »

Hi Stew.
Just clocked in. Brought me flask and sandwiches.

I'll try to keep quiet, and out of the way.........

Defor.

sbwhart · « **Reply #6 on:** June 20, 2012, 07:29:35 AM »

I was trying to avoid stripping the engine down untill i'd had the steam test done, but after a study I think fitting the pump in arriund the wrong streacher would only lead to more complications, so decided to strip it down gald i did as one or two other areas I'm not happy with showed up, far better to get it right than try and limp allong.

Her's a few pics of the stripped down loco.

The linkage is comming out as well, but that will be in a couple of weeks.

And the boiler and supper heater.

Stew

Stew

sbwhart · « **Reply #7 on:** July 07, 2012, 02:47:24 PM »

Finished of the pump piston

Then whilst I waited delivery of a 5/8"*26 BSB tap and die decided to strip out the streachers for modifying, and uncovered a load of problems, the linkage has bin made as rough as a bears arse, not only is the finish crap, loads of things have been bodged to fit, the coupling rods should articluate but they are locked solid, screws missing etc etc etc, its such a bag of crap that I decided the only thing to do was to strip it down and build it back up fixing things as I go, it looks like I'll have to remake/rework lots of parts.

This is it stripped down.

I've got more to do to get it running than I thought

Stew

Rob.Wilson · « **Reply #8 on:** July 07, 2012, 03:14:30 PM »

Dam shame Stew ,,,,,,,,,,, well at least it will be done correctly and run allot better by the time you have finished

Rob

Stilldrillin · « **Reply #9 on:** July 07, 2012, 03:53:35 PM »

Stew.

So sorry to learn it's not as good as hoped.

Why does nobody do anything correctly, as we would like it to be?

David D

Rob.Wilson · « **Reply #10 on:** July 07, 2012, 03:59:17 PM »

Quote from: Stilldrillin on July 07, 2012, 03:53:35 PM

Why does nobody do anything correctly, as we would like it to be?

David D

if they did David ,you would have nothing to do

Rob

Stilldrillin · « **Reply #11 on:** July 07, 2012, 05:23:45 PM »

Quote from: RobWilson on July 07, 2012, 03:59:17 PM

Quote from: Stilldrillin on July 07, 2012, 03:53:35 PM

Why does nobody do anything correctly, as we would like it to be?

David D

if they did David ,you would have nothing to do

Rob

You're right there Rob!

How boring would that be? Nowt to grumble about, and everything working perfectly........

David.

Rob.Wilson · « **Reply #12 on:** July 07, 2012, 05:26:27 PM »

Quote from: Stilldrillin on July 07, 2012, 05:23:45 PM

Quote from: RobWilson on July 07, 2012, 03:59:17 PM
Quote from: Stilldrillin on July 07, 2012, 03:53:35 PM

Why does nobody do anything correctly, as we would like it to be?

David D

if they did David ,you would have nothing to do

Rob

You're right there Rob!

How boring would that be? Nowt to grumble about, and everything working perfectly........

David.

thought as much David

And we would be deprived of your orphan builds

Rob

gabrielsmith · « **Reply #13 on:** July 10, 2012, 05:06:10 PM »

Take heart Stew, its only taken me 12 months to sort out my Simplex!!!
will watch with interest, lurking Tim?
live long ,and prosper.
stardate 10/7/12

gabriel smith

sbwhart · « **Reply #14 on:** July 11, 2012, 01:40:07 AM »

Welcome Tim pleased you broke cover, I'm sure the chaps would like to see some pics of you're Simplex

Bit of an update on the loco found out its not as Supper Simplex as bought, its just a plain simplex with a belpher boiler, wheel centres 7 1/8" cylinder 1 1/2" bore, still supper or just plain Simplex i would have bought it and I knew it was a bit rough but underestimated just how rough

Stew

Stilldrillin · « **Reply #15 on:** July 11, 2012, 02:23:11 AM »

Some more areas, not as you thought Stew?

But, ok with it, still.

Hmmm...... Eternal optimism!
Another orphan arrives here today. Fingers crossed......

David D

Rob.Wilson · « **Reply #16 on:** July 11, 2012, 12:21:58 PM »

every confidence you will sort it Stew

Whats the specs on a Super Simplex ? is there much between them .

Rob

sbwhart · « **Reply #17 on:** July 11, 2012, 12:36:53 PM »

Hi Rob

The supper has a slightly longer boiler with extra supperheater eliments, cylinder are a 1/16" bigger, the wheel base is longer by about 3/4" and the coupling rods have a different articulation method, and the boiler feed pump is of an improved design.

Apparently the supper is supposed to have improve efficiency, but from what I can find out ther's not much difference.

I wasn't aware of any of this until it was to late

sbwhart · « **Reply #18 on:** July 12, 2012, 05:52:59 AM »

A bit more progress I seem to swapping about on this I like to work a bit more methodical, but I keep having to put parts aside whilst I wait delivery of something, I've tried planning ahead but my plans keep comming unstuck.

Cut a sqaure in the streacher that covers the feed pump eccentric so that it can be lubricated.

Then the 1/4 dia s/steel balls arived so back onto the feed pump.

Made the front cover and gland this calls for an odd thread size 5/8 * 26 BS Brass, luckily I was able to borrow a tap and die from a club member.

To seat the balls you have to give tham a sharp square bash using a drift.

Then carfully measure the depth to the ball.

Then work out the length of the fitting to give the ball a 1/32 lift so that the valve works correctly.

These are the pump bits

Then I had to put this aside whilst I took delivery of some 3/8 steel plate for the mounting steacher.

So on with something else

Stripped the cylinders down to take a look, some good bits some bad, the steam galleries on one cylinder had been quite mangles, the other had just been drilled under size, not much I could do with the mangling the best i could do was to open up the undersize ports in the other cylinder to balance the steam flow a bit better. So set it up in the mill and lined the holes with a drill and a square by Mk 1 eyeball then opened them out to 1/8

Then with swiss files joined the holes up.

The valve boxes had some studds misssing, so made some of these but I had to turn down some 4mm bar to 3.55 (4BA) for this I used this little gadget I've shown this before but it won't harm to show again.

Itys a small moving steady

To use make a bush for the gadget the size of the raw bar.

Then turn a spiggot on the end of the bar the size you want to turn down too, to set the tool in the gadget

Put the bar in the lathe roughly centre the gadget start the end of the bar into the bush and off you go.

Cut the studs of to length and thread job done.

Stew

mzt · « **Reply #19 on:** July 12, 2012, 06:06:04 AM »

Gotta make myself that small dia turning gadget, someday.

Marcello

NickG · « **Reply #20 on:** July 12, 2012, 11:30:57 AM »

That gadget looks a good idea Stew ... nice one with the cylinders.

sbwhart · « **Reply #21 on:** August 24, 2012, 11:58:04 AM »

Its time I updated things on my Simplex Project.

Its not as easy doing a log fpr a rebuild as it is for a engine build as things are far more fragmented any way here we go

Borrowed a quartering jig from the club and checked the cranks had been set correctly at 90 deg, whats important is that all the axles are the same it will stand a deg or tow out, as long as all axles are out the same.

This is the jig

And this is how you use it, you assemble the axles in the same orientation as they will go into the loco frame

You check the crank pin with fealer gauges what you want is for the same measurement under the same left or right hand crank pin.

Mine came out withing 0.005" to each other I think that will be OK when you take into account the play in the system.

Also checked the wheel centres using slip gauges the best I could determine is that the centres between the driving and leading axle is 7 3/16" it should be 7 1/8" and between the trailing and driving axle 7 1/6" again it should be 7 1/8", I've ordered a 12" vernier so will check them again when it arrives, if this is correct I'll have to adjust the coupling rods accordingly.

Taliking about coupling rods I've ordered a complete set of laser cut coupling rods and valve linkages they won't cost much more than buying the material and cutting them out myself.

Whilst waiting for the laser stuff to arive I've also built the oiler. The tank was fabricated from a thick brass plate box that Dek gave me (cheers Dek)

I was trying to follow a drawing for a lubricator that resently apeared in Model Engineer, but the drawings were all over the place so I just did my own thing its off the plunger type.

I could have used a friction clutch but I kind of like to watch the old ratchet type lubricators work so thats what I did, John kindly overed to cut the ratchet on his digital deviding head but I was kicking my heals any way so decided to cut it myself on me manual devider.

I used a little dove tail cutter got from RDG her it is with a couple of blanks i turned up to make the ratchets.

This is the set up for cutting it.

I cut 45 teath which is easy for a 90:1 wheel its just two turns of the handle for each tooth.

And the completed lubricator

Still needs those springs tidying up and some gaskets fitting but its more or less done and the ratchet does its job.

Stew

saw · « **Reply #22 on:** August 24, 2012, 12:25:16 PM »

Well done, it's an intressting project you have here...

Stilldrillin · « **Reply #23 on:** August 25, 2012, 04:44:43 AM »

Hi Stew.
It's nice to see you're moving along again, with this project.

Never a truer word..... "Its not as easy doing a log fpr a rebuild as it is for a engine build as things are far more fragmented".

I also, feel as though I'm wading through treacle at the moment. LIFE's getting in the way, much too much.......

Hope you can get a good run at it, now.

David D

sbwhart · « **Reply #24 on:** August 25, 2012, 08:16:50 AM »

Cheers Dave thanks for you interest.

Life has an habbit of getting in the way of things, just hope and pray that its the nicer side of life

All the best for you and you'rs

Stew

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Author Topic: Finishing off a 5" Gauge Simplex Loco (Read 96572 times)

Rob.Wilson

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