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River esk's steam tender
Topic Started: 24 Apr 2009, 09:12 PM (2,121 Views)
Jordan Leeds
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does anyone know much about river esks steam tender and why and what it did i know it sounds daft but it sounds a good idea in principle
JORDAN ASHLEY LEEDS

Trains go into tunnels and come out but locos can go in sheds and never come out
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laalratty
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Erm, not too much, basically I think it worked with alterations made to the front set of valve geat, which reduced the cut off to 50%. This provided some slurpus steam which was fed to the tender power unit. As it happens, the short cut off (modified to 65%) is something that lingered in all of the R&ER walchearts fitted engines untill the 1990's, including the new builds. As it happens I think the short cut off was one of the problems with the unit.
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Andrew
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CME, Stackton Tressel Light Railway.
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RIVER ESK
You can see the steam tender clearly.
Quite where it drew its steam from, I'm not so sure.
It would have suffered from the steam cooling on the way to the cylinders as did all 'Poultney Steam Chassis'.
As far as I understand, the chassis latter became the building blocks for River Mite (2).

From an old R&ER post card.
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Andrew.
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glastonrail
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The steam tender was a vain attempt at "articulating" the loco - the second such attempt by the R&ER at producing such a loco (the first being the combination of Sans Pereil, Colossus and Sir Aubrey Brocklebank to produce the first River Mite).

The tender suffered, as Andrew rightly explains, from condensing steam, and the desired advantages of such a system (increased power output for the stone/ore trains) was not fully achieved. One wonders if the cylinders were at the cab end (therefore with shorter passages) whether it would've been more successful.

The tender was converted back to normal and the frames, cylinders, wheels and motion lay in Ravenglass until about 1962 when they were sent off to Clarkson's of York for modifying and building into the Mite we know today. I'm not sure how much of it was used (perhaps just the frames as Andrew says?? Perhaps all?? :unsure: ).

However, unlike the Ffestiniog and Taliesin, this is still classed as a new build!! :)

Cheers,

Dom Greenop
DMR
"There's no such thing as sanity, and that's the sanest fact" M. Knopfler, 1985
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Andrew
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CME, Stackton Tressel Light Railway.
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Quote:
 
I'm not sure how much of it was used (perhaps just the frames as Andrew says?? Perhaps all?? :unsure: ).


Studying various images of River Esk and River Mite, I think that the wheels and motion was reused.
Also the boxes and springs, possibly the frames.
However, I'm fairly certain that the cylinders were not reused.
Andrew.
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glastonrail
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Dommo
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Andrew
24 Apr 2009, 10:18 PM
Quote:
 
I'm not sure how much of it was used (perhaps just the frames as Andrew says?? Perhaps all?? :unsure: ).


Studying various images of River Esk and River Mite, I think that the wheels and motion was reused.
Also the boxes and springs, possibly the frames.
However, I'm fairly certain that the cylinders were not reused.
I don't have mine to hand, otherwise I'd otherwise be able to give a definitive answer. :(

Dom
"There's no such thing as sanity, and that's the sanest fact" M. Knopfler, 1985
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Andrew
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CME, Stackton Tressel Light Railway.
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I'm not sure whether moving the cylinders on the tender closer to the cab would have that much effect. The steam would almost certainly be drawn from the steam pipes in the smokebox and have to travel the length of the loco before reaching the tender.

Again, as far as I'm aware, the tender was converted when the loco had the Lentz poppet valves removed and Walschaerts valve gear fitted. This in itself was no small thing requiring new cylinders, steam chests and motion.
I believe the Yorkshire Engine Company did all this work?
Andrew.
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laalratty
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Yep, the rebuild was done by the Yorkshire Engine company, indeed it was their idea to fit the steam tender. As for River Mite, I belive that the frames and wheels, along with some of the motion was used from Esk's power tender. The cylinders were new. Of course, a new wheelset was cast at the last overhaul by TMA
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John Nicholson
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As far as I can remember the whole chassis was sent to Clarksons of York for the start of the build of River Mite. I was a regular volunteer at this time and was fortunate to ride on the inaugural train. River mite was actually purchased by the preservation Society and hired to the railway at a pepercorn rent.

John
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