Office of Steam Logo_1

« previous next »
Pages: [1]

Author Topic: Yesterday at the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.  (Read 1213 times)

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 634
  • Tony Bird
  • Location: Cardiff, South Wales, UK
Yesterday at the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.
« on: June 25, 2023, 02:11:57 am »
Hi,

Yesterday, two of us did a bit more work on the new garden railway which is replacing one destroyed by a tree fall.



Today the Society is open to the public which will require a little less effort.

Take care Tony.
Logged

  • Global Moderator
  • Engineer
  • *****
  • Posts: 5153
  • Wherever you go ......... there you are!
  • Location: Eastern Sierra
Re: Yesterday at the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.
« Reply #1 on: June 25, 2023, 08:44:38 am »
Looks like a nice day to get something accomplished.

What's in the nice old oak box in the first image?

Some sort of older leveling scope I'd wager!?!?
Logged
"Information is not knowledge, Knowledge is not wisdom, Wisdom is not truth, Truth is not beauty, Beauty is not love, Love is not music: Music is THE BEST...   
Wisdom is the domain of the Wis (which is extinct). Beauty is a French phonetic corruption of a short cloth neck ornament currently in resurgence..."
F. Zappa ... by way of Mary, the girl from the bus.

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 634
  • Tony Bird
  • Location: Cardiff, South Wales, UK
Re: Yesterday at the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.
« Reply #2 on: June 26, 2023, 02:28:36 am »
Hi Daniel,

What's in the nice old oak box in the first image? Some sort of older levelling scope I'd wager!?!?

I don't know for sure, but I think you are correct.  I inherited what is now used as a tool box from a great friend who passed away 20 years ago.

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

Before he retired Felix was the Chief Engineer and General Manager of Cardiff's transport system.  He was an excellent modeller, of mostly 1" scale electric trams, his collection is now on display in the National Tramway Museum at Crich.  I along with another I helped him create what was called the 'Highfield Electric Tramway', which had about 300 yards of track for which we built three trams.  Our son Dan grew up with the building of these trams which I am sure steered him towards studying Electric & Mechanical engineering at university.

Back to the box.

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

In use with its owner, and the newly made bogies of tram No.3 . The box was used then, as it is now, just to carry a few tools to the job in hand.  The box always had a hammer in it's lid, when asked by a less knowledgeable member of the society why a hammer was always carried?  Felix replied; that if he couldn't fix it with a hammer, it was an electrical problem!   

The origins of the box is lost in time, but it has had a very useful life.

Take care Tony.

Logged

  • Global Moderator
  • Engineer
  • *****
  • Posts: 5153
  • Wherever you go ......... there you are!
  • Location: Eastern Sierra
Re: Yesterday at the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.
« Reply #3 on: June 27, 2023, 12:57:21 pm »
What an incredible backstory, and even though a bit sad in the long ago, and also even though I was wrong with my wager (though possibly correct in the long ago), I'm certainly glad that I asked to bring forth such an interesting aside.

So, with that question answered in the negative, let me ask what do you folks typically use for leveling over the long distances involved around your layout? I suppose a good long bubble level is all that you would really need, doing individual sections at a time, but it would seem a perfect opportunity for some form of old-style optical surveying instrument, or perhaps you just use one of those newish laser levels?!?!
Logged
"Information is not knowledge, Knowledge is not wisdom, Wisdom is not truth, Truth is not beauty, Beauty is not love, Love is not music: Music is THE BEST...   
Wisdom is the domain of the Wis (which is extinct). Beauty is a French phonetic corruption of a short cloth neck ornament currently in resurgence..."
F. Zappa ... by way of Mary, the girl from the bus.

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 634
  • Tony Bird
  • Location: Cardiff, South Wales, UK
Re: Yesterday at the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.
« Reply #4 on: June 28, 2023, 02:26:39 am »
Hi Daniel,

I think you are correct in the origins of the box, certainly an instrument of some sort was housed in it.

A dumpy level was used to originally survey the site but it was found quicker and accurate enough as all the tracks made are level to use a long bubble level for the track work, as we are doing now.

I do/did own a dumpy level which I gave our son when he was working on a house he bought in the Cotswolds, nearly ten years on he is still working on it!

Take care Tony.   
Logged
Pages: [1]
« previous next »