Hello from a Kiwi girl.

[Annie]

Hello everyone, I've never been a member of a model engineering forum before so I'm looking forward to seeing what forum members are building and also to learn more about this great hobby.

My interests have always centred around railways, interesting elderly motorcars and bicycles. Growing up with my Dad and my brothers being in the metal trades meant that I ended up being taught all manner of skills that most women don't get a chance to learn and these have served me well over the years.
While I have a nice workshop area with a Myford lathe, drill press, hydraulic press, bench grinder, MIG and arc welders as well as the usual collection of hand tools I haven't done anything for a while due to having being ill. So as my health returns I'm looking forward to having a project or two to work on again. I'd really like to build a small live steam loco and perhaps a Stirling engine, but for the meantime I'm going to have enough to do with giving my workspace a good clearout and setting everything to rights again.

 

[larry1]

Well, Annie, Welcome to our forum. What scale are you thinking of using. larry

 

[dsquire]

Annie

Hi and welcome to HMEM. I see that you have a varied interest so should have no trouble finding projects. I sounds like you have a pretty good selection of tools to work with and know how to use them

Hopefully your health will return and allow you more active shop time to get on with the projects that you desire. A good cleanup and possible rearrangement of the shop can also be good therapy to get you back in the groove again.

If you have any questions just ask as there is always someone around to answer or at least give an opinion. We look forward to your participation in these forums as you have the time.

Cheers

Don

 

[Brian Rupnow]

Annie--Welcome from the far side of the world, Canada. Stick around. We have some very interesting builds going on here, and a lot of nice folks. Glad that you have joined us.---Brian

 

[vcutajar]

Hi Annie and wEc1. Keep well.

Vince

 

[Cogsy]

Welcome Annie. Good luck with your projects!

 

[Herbiev]

Hi Annie and welcome to the forum. We look forward to following whatever you choose to build. Lots of pictures please

 

[rhitee93]

Hi there Annie, One of my daughters has been building her own steam engine. She is only 14, but she'll still be excited to hear that another gal is on the forum

 

[Annie]

Thanks for the great welcome everyone

With my railway models I'm mostly keen on '0' gauge and 16mm scale narrow gauge on 45mm gauge trackwork. There is a small gauge railway society over in the next town, but they only have 5 inch and 7 inch gauge ground level tracks which is much larger than I would want to work to. It's a pity really because their trackwork covers several kilometers and is beautifully maintained. I was hoping they had 3 1/2 inch gauge track because I could see myself building a loco in that gauge.

Otherwise I'm keen on old bicycles and their repair and maintenance, and lightweight cyclecars from the circa 1920s have always fascinated me and it would be fun to build a replica using similar materials and methods as the small makers of these vehicles did back then

Brian, you are plainly bringing up your daughter in a good and proper fashion, - I very much approve

 

[jthulin]

Hi Annie, welcome once again from Canada!

I think you might find these sites interesting- Paul Brodie became very well known building "Brodie" bicycles, but now is into a variety of things like vintage bicycles and motorcycles. These are not models but full scale, working replicas. He recently completed a replica whippet bicycle from 1888. Enjoy

http://www.flashbackfab.com/

http://www.cycleexif.com/paul-brodie-and-the-whippet

 

[Annie]

Hi Annie, welcome once again from Canada!

I think you might find these sites interesting- Paul Brodie became very well known building "Brodie" bicycles, but now is into a variety of things like vintage bicycles and motorcycles. These are not models but full scale, working replicas. He recently completed a replica whippet bicycle from 1888. Enjoy

http://www.flashbackfab.com/

http://www.cycleexif.com/paul-brodie-and-the-whippet

Thankyou very much for these links Jeff. It would great fun to build full sized replicas of early bicycles and motorcycles and I'd only need to do a pre-1910 search on Google patents to find more potential projects than I could shake a stick at.

 

[Tin Falcon]

welcome to the forum. I think you will find this a friendly helpful place to hang out.

you may want to check out the one or more of the Kozo books.
http://www.craftsmanshipmuseum.com/Hiraoka.htm
Tin

 

[AussieJimG]

Hi Annie, welcome to the forum. I hope you enjoy this site as much as I do.
Jim

 

[Annie]

Thanks for the welcome Jim From what I've seen so far this forum is a wonderful and inspiring place to be.

Tin, - The Kozo books are amazing, but the only design I think I'd have half a chance at would be the A3 Switcher. As much as I love geared logging locos I think I'd have a very small chance of actually being able to make their transmission parts let alone get them to work!
I have copies of the general arrangement drawings for the Price geared locos built here in New Zealand for the local timber industry and I'm pretty darn sure I can't build those either.

 

[Brian Rupnow]

Kiwi Girl---If you are interested in machinery used in the logging industry, have a look at the one in the link at the end of this message. I built it over the course of last winter. My father was a lumberjack in northern Ontario, Canada, where I grew up. The steam Donkey winches were from an even earlier era than my childhood. Mechanized logging (using "skid-steers") was just becoming popular in the late 1950's, but my dad and my uncles still worked the bush with chainsaws and teams of horses.---Brian
http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/threads/52188-Model-Steam-Donkey-Engine?highlight=ball+valve

 

[rkepler]

Tin, - The Kozo books are amazing, but the only design I think I'd have half a chance at would be the A3 Switcher. As much as I love geared logging locos I think I'd have a very small chance of actually being able to make their transmission parts let alone get them to work!

Any project of size can be done if you break it down into small enough pieces. Something like a Shay breaks down to trucks, geartrain, engine, frame, boiler, pumps, etc. Something like a truck breaks down into wheels, axles, gears, etc. Eventually you get to a "I can do that!" bit so you do it, then the next and the following and after a bit it's all together. If something doesn't turn out how you planned you make it again. Here's mine:

It was running "in the white" about 3 years after starting, jacketed and painted a year after that, I added the headlamp and whistle this year. All doable if you can make a steam engine.

I have copies of the general arrangement drawings for the Price geared locos built here in New Zealand for the local timber industry and I'm pretty darn sure I can't build those either.

If you have those in some electronic form I'd love to see them. I've never heard of that engine. Here in the US we have Shay, Heisler and Climax engines for the gearhead steam enthusiasts.

 

[Tin Falcon]

Annie: The one kozo book I have is for the A-3. Lots of good stuff . I have yet to start . Maybe some day . a long term project indeed.
until you decide on something doable long term , do s simple engine or two to get the skills honed.
Remember those who say they can and those who say they can not are right.
Tin

 

[Annie]

Thanks for the encouragement guys

Brian, - steam donkeys were used on the timber tramways here in New Zealand too. Some of them even had rail wheels put under them with a basic chain drive so they could move themselves around
Thank you very much for the link to the donkey engine thread, there's a great deal of useful information there that I'm going to enjoy reading through.

rkepler, - your Shay is a beautiful loco, but I still have my doubts whether I could build one. Some of the smaller home grown geared locos made by engineering firms here in New Zealand were built around standard parts for other machinery they made such as marine winches and stationary engines. This is a Johnston 'B' which is a bush lokey design I like a lot and I plan on making a small one for 45mm gauge, but it would be lovely to make a 5 inch gauge one once I got my confidence back together again.

The area where I live is right in the heart of what was historic timber tramway country so for that reason alone it would be good to be building models of home grown bush tram lokeys.
With the Price loco drawings I only have sizeable paper copies of the general arrangement drawings taken from the linen originals. They are things of beauty because this kind of draughtsmanship is now a lost art. I wouldn't know where to begin with trying to get them into electronic form, but if I do find electronic copies anywhere I'll pass them on.

Tin, - I agree, - something nice and simple like an 0-4-0. This is the very first loco Price Engineering built in 1885, - they only built one, - and this is the only drawing I know of for it (Prices no longer have the original drawings). But it would be simple to build and a good way to get my hand in again.

 

[Annie]

Not the best Price 16 wheeler drawing I could find, but you can still get the general idea from it.

 

[compspecial]

Hello Annie, and a warm welcome to the forum, I hope you will be fighting fit again soon and enjoying working on your first project!
Stew