Deadleg Lubricators
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We made some for our donkeys. However, they are not metered. See here:
http://wegmuller.org/logging/Sheet16.pdf
Regards
http://wegmuller.org/logging/Sheet16.pdf
Regards
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Hi Howard: Here is a metered, deadleg lubricator with a drain. It is a side view of an LBSC design. The tank fits between the frames of one of his UK type engines, so it is 1 5/16" long. I bet you can alter the tank to suit your set-up. The valve assembly is the main part.
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Your Climax looks great, coming along very well. Looking forward to your next.
Bob
Your Climax looks great, coming along very well. Looking forward to your next.
Bob
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316 Posts
Thanks Bob and Henner. Your drawings will be very useful. In the meantime, I was also able to find the drawing shown below using a Google search which led me to a Yahoo group and lo and behold after jumping two additonal links from there I ended up back here on MLS in a message thread started by Dwight a few years back. In that thread, Harry Wade showed a metered, dead leg lubricator w/drain. Small world!!
Why I couldn't find it with a search here on MLS, I don't know.
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Bob, in your drawing, I assume the 1/8" or 3/32" pipe at the bottom is the drain pipe at the end of which is a valve (not shown)...right:?
BTW.....I'm considering making the body of the lubricator out of glass tubing, assembled between a top metering brass valve/filler plug sub-assembly and a bottom drain valve sub-assembly. Each sub-assembly will have a flange with 4 matching holes for bolts to span the glass tube. Each end of the glass tube will seat in a matching flange groove containing an o-ring. Probably an overkill, but I'd like to see if I could do it and primarily to see the amount of water gathering at the bottom of the lubricator during a run. I believe this would help in adjusting the metering valve.
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Why I couldn't find it with a search here on MLS, I don't know.
Bob, in your drawing, I assume the 1/8" or 3/32" pipe at the bottom is the drain pipe at the end of which is a valve (not shown)...right:?
BTW.....I'm considering making the body of the lubricator out of glass tubing, assembled between a top metering brass valve/filler plug sub-assembly and a bottom drain valve sub-assembly. Each sub-assembly will have a flange with 4 matching holes for bolts to span the glass tube. Each end of the glass tube will seat in a matching flange groove containing an o-ring. Probably an overkill, but I'd like to see if I could do it and primarily to see the amount of water gathering at the bottom of the lubricator during a run. I believe this would help in adjusting the metering valve.
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Howard: You are correct. The tube at the bottom is the drain. LBSC used a curved drain tube and ran it out the front of the loco with a cap on the end.
I like your design idea for the glass tube. It will work fine.
These designs call for a 7BA thread. Use 3 x 48 instead of 7BA.
Bob
I like your design idea for the glass tube. It will work fine.
These designs call for a 7BA thread. Use 3 x 48 instead of 7BA.
Bob
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I received the glass tubing (pyrex) needed for my lubricator. Even bought a glass tube cutter. But I've not been succesful in scoring the pyrex tube's surface. Any suggestions on how to cut pyrex tubing??Aaaany ny suggestions on cutting pyrex tubing??
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The method I have always seen described is to file a crossways notch with a triangular file at the cut point, then place the thumbs on the opposite side of the tube, gripping with the fingers on each side and "bend" the tube, and it will break. I have never tried it as I have always feared the tubing shattering. But I am going to have to try it someday... let me know if it works for you to bolster my confidence!!!
What does your glass tube cutter look like.
Oh, I just thought of another method I have heard of for cutting the top off a glass bottle... fill the bottle to the level you want to cut off and then pour a small quantity of oil on it. Then plunge a red hot iron into the oil. The shockwave propagating through the oil will break the glass. I wonder if it could also break the tube if it was as deep into the water as you want the tube length to be.
What does your glass tube cutter look like.
Oh, I just thought of another method I have heard of for cutting the top off a glass bottle... fill the bottle to the level you want to cut off and then pour a small quantity of oil on it. Then plunge a red hot iron into the oil. The shockwave propagating through the oil will break the glass. I wonder if it could also break the tube if it was as deep into the water as you want the tube length to be.
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I ended up back here on MLS in a message thread started by Dwight a few years back.
That thread is available in PDF format via the Informative Threads Index.
That thread is available in PDF format via the Informative Threads Index.
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I used the triangular file method several times in a chemistry class and had good results. As I recall, you just needed to file a small notch and then use the file as a pressure point to break the tube at the score mark.
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Posted By Semper Vaporo on 03/19/2008 10:04 PM
The method I have always seen described is to file a crossways notch with a triangular file at the cut point, then place the thumbs on the opposite side of the tube, gripping with the fingers on each side and "bend" the tube, and it will break. I have never tried it as I have always feared the tubing shattering. But I am going to have to try it someday... let me know if it works for you to bolster my confidence!!!
What does your glass tube cutter look like.
Oh, I just thought of another method I have heard of for cutting the top off a glass bottle... fill the bottle to the level you want to cut off and then pour a small quantity of oil on it. Then plunge a red hot iron into the oil. The shockwave propagating through the oil will break the glass. I wonder if it could also break the tube if it was as deep into the water as you want the tube length to be.
Thanks for the ideas....I'll give them a try. I can see using the triangular file scoring method on a small diameter, thick wall tube, but what I'm trying to cut is 1/2" diameter with only about a 1/16" thick wall.
Here's a picture of the glass tube cutter I bought.
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The method I have always seen described is to file a crossways notch with a triangular file at the cut point, then place the thumbs on the opposite side of the tube, gripping with the fingers on each side and "bend" the tube, and it will break. I have never tried it as I have always feared the tubing shattering. But I am going to have to try it someday... let me know if it works for you to bolster my confidence!!!
What does your glass tube cutter look like.
Oh, I just thought of another method I have heard of for cutting the top off a glass bottle... fill the bottle to the level you want to cut off and then pour a small quantity of oil on it. Then plunge a red hot iron into the oil. The shockwave propagating through the oil will break the glass. I wonder if it could also break the tube if it was as deep into the water as you want the tube length to be.
Thanks for the ideas....I'll give them a try. I can see using the triangular file scoring method on a small diameter, thick wall tube, but what I'm trying to cut is 1/2" diameter with only about a 1/16" thick wall.
Here's a picture of the glass tube cutter I bought.
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Is it too long to chuck up in your lathe? You could easily score it all around that way (with the file or a pointed tool).
My motto: Never use muscle when there's an electric motor that will do the same job.
My motto: Never use muscle when there's an electric motor that will do the same job.
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Howard,
Take your triangular file and score a line all the way around the glass tube...tedious, but it has a higher percent of not breaking the tube when compared to using that harbor freight cutter or putting it in a lathe ( I shudder at the last one, the chuck or collet would probably end up shattering the tube.) I've cut tubing the same diameter as you have, same wall thickness too, with no breakage using the score and snap method. It just takes a little bit more time to do this way, but it's fool proof. Don't forget to heat the ends of the glass to a dull red after you cut it to avoid cracks in the tube (in other words, glaze over the ends).
Take your triangular file and score a line all the way around the glass tube...tedious, but it has a higher percent of not breaking the tube when compared to using that harbor freight cutter or putting it in a lathe ( I shudder at the last one, the chuck or collet would probably end up shattering the tube.) I've cut tubing the same diameter as you have, same wall thickness too, with no breakage using the score and snap method. It just takes a little bit more time to do this way, but it's fool proof. Don't forget to heat the ends of the glass to a dull red after you cut it to avoid cracks in the tube (in other words, glaze over the ends).
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Howard,
I got good results by chucking the tube loosely in the lathe with some cardboard packing and then making the notch all around with a Dremel cutoff wheel. For breaking it, I wrap a cloth around the tube. And yes, you should glaze over the ends.
Regards
I got good results by chucking the tube loosely in the lathe with some cardboard packing and then making the notch all around with a Dremel cutoff wheel. For breaking it, I wrap a cloth around the tube. And yes, you should glaze over the ends.
Regards
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316 Posts
Posted By Semper Vaporo on 03/19/2008 10:04 PM
Oh, I just thought of another method I have heard of for cutting the top off a glass bottle... fill the bottle to the level you want to cut off and then pour a small quantity of oil on it. Then plunge a red hot iron into the oil. The shockwave propagating through the oil will break the glass. I wonder if it could also break the tube if it was as deep into the water as you want the tube length to be.
I just remember my dad cutting off the top of large bottles using a length of butcher string dipped in alcohol. Once he'd wrapped it around the bottle at the cut line, he then lit the string with a match and after the flame went out, he'd dunk the bottle in cold water and the top of the bottle would snap off right at the heated string.
Oh, I just thought of another method I have heard of for cutting the top off a glass bottle... fill the bottle to the level you want to cut off and then pour a small quantity of oil on it. Then plunge a red hot iron into the oil. The shockwave propagating through the oil will break the glass. I wonder if it could also break the tube if it was as deep into the water as you want the tube length to be.
I just remember my dad cutting off the top of large bottles using a length of butcher string dipped in alcohol. Once he'd wrapped it around the bottle at the cut line, he then lit the string with a match and after the flame went out, he'd dunk the bottle in cold water and the top of the bottle would snap off right at the heated string.
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Hi Howard: I have discovered that the ends of glass tube are fairly easy to grind. Drill a hole in a piece of wood very slightly over sized of the glass, slip the glass tube in the hole, lay that down on a sheet of 320 or 400 grit oiled black (silcon carbide) sand paper. Hold the block by hand and apply slight downward pressure with a finger. This makes a good, square clean end and helps shorten a piece that may be a "TT" too long. Takes a little while but the result is good
Bob
Bob
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316 Posts
I just started using Google's SketchUp to make 3D representations. Here's what I've done so far on the Dead Leg Lubricator. The metering valve, drain valve, and filler plug are yet to go.
Anyone else using SketchUp?
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406203.jpg
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406200.jpg
Images exceed 640 pixel max. width - converted to links. Mod.
Anyone else using SketchUp?
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406203.jpg
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406200.jpg
Images exceed 640 pixel max. width - converted to links. Mod.
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243 Posts
Hi Howard,
Here is a picture of the lubricator installed on the EDHL donkey engine prior to paint. You can see that we used Coles superscale pipe fittings threaded to 5/32 MTP. These lubricators work well. The meteing feature is nice but we were very careful to drill the steam hole inside the lubricator VERY SMALL. We knew that it could be made larger if necessary. They do not over oil. so we ended up being satisfied with the hole size that we chose. The cool thing about these is that the position of the drain handle is fully adjustable so we can make sure that it is accessible amongst the network of pipes on the donkey engine.
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Here is a picture of the lubricator after paint and the installation of the twin exhaust stacks:
![]()
As you can see the lubricator blends in well with the various fittings on the donkey.
Regards,
Here is a picture of the lubricator installed on the EDHL donkey engine prior to paint. You can see that we used Coles superscale pipe fittings threaded to 5/32 MTP. These lubricators work well. The meteing feature is nice but we were very careful to drill the steam hole inside the lubricator VERY SMALL. We knew that it could be made larger if necessary. They do not over oil. so we ended up being satisfied with the hole size that we chose. The cool thing about these is that the position of the drain handle is fully adjustable so we can make sure that it is accessible amongst the network of pipes on the donkey engine.
Here is a picture of the lubricator after paint and the installation of the twin exhaust stacks:
As you can see the lubricator blends in well with the various fittings on the donkey.
Regards,
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5,510 Posts
Posted By maculsay on 03/20/2008 5:23 PM
I just started using Google's SketchUp to make 3D representations. Here's what I've done so far on the Dead Leg Lubricator. The metering valve, drain valve, and filler plug are yet to go.
Anyone else using SketchUp?
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406203.jpg
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406200.jpg
Images exceed 640 pixel max. width - converted to links. Mod.
Yes, SketchUp is GRAND! I have used it for many drawings. Makes it a whole lot easier to visualize some things!
Your drawings are very nice. Ain't it FUN to use and easy to do (well, most of the time!)
Download the "Locomotive Tour" from the 3-D Warehouse (I assume it is still there). You can let the animation run through the "tour" or step though the images one at a time. The "tour" skips the last 4 or 5 slides, so you can only get to them manually; they are a comparison of the Accucraft "Ruby" style valves to a standard slide valve setup. I did this for a "tech talk" at a Cedar Valley Garden Railway Society meeting last year. I had SketchUp make a movie of the animation but the rendering got really blotchy and it is not very good.
There are several steam locomotives in the warehouse that people have done, but 98% are outrageously ridiculous! It seems very few people really know what a steam locomotive looks like or how they work.
I just started using Google's SketchUp to make 3D representations. Here's what I've done so far on the Dead Leg Lubricator. The metering valve, drain valve, and filler plug are yet to go.
Anyone else using SketchUp?
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406203.jpg
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL92/797386/16909521/309406200.jpg
Images exceed 640 pixel max. width - converted to links. Mod.
Yes, SketchUp is GRAND! I have used it for many drawings. Makes it a whole lot easier to visualize some things!
Your drawings are very nice. Ain't it FUN to use and easy to do (well, most of the time!)
Download the "Locomotive Tour" from the 3-D Warehouse (I assume it is still there). You can let the animation run through the "tour" or step though the images one at a time. The "tour" skips the last 4 or 5 slides, so you can only get to them manually; they are a comparison of the Accucraft "Ruby" style valves to a standard slide valve setup. I did this for a "tech talk" at a Cedar Valley Garden Railway Society meeting last year. I had SketchUp make a movie of the animation but the rendering got really blotchy and it is not very good.
There are several steam locomotives in the warehouse that people have done, but 98% are outrageously ridiculous! It seems very few people really know what a steam locomotive looks like or how they work.
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316 Posts
Posted By HMeinhold on 02/11/2008 1:43 PM
We made some for our donkeys. However, they are not metered. See here:
http://wegmuller.org/logging/Sheet16.pdf
Posted By Eric M. on 03/20/2008 6:33 PM
The cool thing about these is that the position of the drain handle is fully adjustable so we can make sure that it is accessible amongst the network of pipes on the donkey engine.
![]()
Henner and Eric....thank you for the drawing & picture of your lubricator.
I'm especially interested in the drain valve design shown on your Sheet #16. I'm can't determine how it works. I can see that the sleeve(#162) threads onto the bottom of the Body(#160) and that the Drain valve(#163) threads into the sleeve. I can see where there are 1mm x 1mm notches at right angles across the top of the valve, But, since the 2mm hole through the bottom of the Body appears to continue right on through the valve, what stops the oil/water from coming out the bottom? I assume that rotating the handle on the Sleeve opens/closes the valve, but I don't see how that action restricts the flow of oil/water out ther bottom.
I know it's me, but what am I missing. I really want to try this design because of its simplicity and as Eric stated in his message, "the fully adjustable position of the handle".
Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.
We made some for our donkeys. However, they are not metered. See here:
http://wegmuller.org/logging/Sheet16.pdf
Posted By Eric M. on 03/20/2008 6:33 PM
The cool thing about these is that the position of the drain handle is fully adjustable so we can make sure that it is accessible amongst the network of pipes on the donkey engine.
Henner and Eric....thank you for the drawing & picture of your lubricator.
I'm especially interested in the drain valve design shown on your Sheet #16. I'm can't determine how it works. I can see that the sleeve(#162) threads onto the bottom of the Body(#160) and that the Drain valve(#163) threads into the sleeve. I can see where there are 1mm x 1mm notches at right angles across the top of the valve, But, since the 2mm hole through the bottom of the Body appears to continue right on through the valve, what stops the oil/water from coming out the bottom? I assume that rotating the handle on the Sleeve opens/closes the valve, but I don't see how that action restricts the flow of oil/water out ther bottom.
I know it's me, but what am I missing. I really want to try this design because of its simplicity and as Eric stated in his message, "the fully adjustable position of the handle".
Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.
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316 Posts
Dwight, Ryan, Charles, Bob, Henner, et al....thanks for the glass tube cutting ideas. I'm going to use a scoring method as suggested. I have some wood dowling that I'll fit to inside diameter of the glass tube....kinda like a mandrell...but in this case for only alignment purposes. By mounting the dowel in my lathe chuck I cant get good concentricity/alignment, then using a pointed diamond tool in my Dremel mounted on my crosslide, I can hand rotate the lathe chuck to get a accurate scoring all the way around. I'll let you know the results.
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