Happiness

Is a parcel from Brian Wisemann of essential trolley parts that I need to be able to make the trolley poles for my GE Steeplecabs.

Improving Trolley Poles: Part 2

Just a quick update really on the progress I'm making in rebuilding the PSC trolley pole that I showed last time. The first thing I did was to remove the springs and unsolder the two parts, which shows how I did the initial conversion.



I then rebuilt the main body casting and shortened the pole, which I had made too long (note to self this is 3.5mm to the foot modelling, not 4mm) as so, and here are the two rebuilt parts together.

Here is a picture with a Suydam pole for size comparison. As you can see this is quite tiny.

Finally I reassemble the pivot joint. Had a problem with soldering it solid, so a bit of a panic to disassemble, clean up the excess solder,  and then reassemble using Loctite to secure the pivot points.

And finally with three of the other poles I showed before, for a size comparison. Left to right; Suydam original, Eaton Custom Engineering PCC pole, MTS Imports pole and my rebuilt PSC/Kemtron pole.

All I have to do now is make another five of these. Well first off just make another and see how they work as a pair with both poles tied off on one end, which is the purpose of this exercise after all. Pole still looks a little bit long here, but it measures between the furniture at both ends as the same as the MTS pole.

As a Note. I found out that the GE steeple cabs never operated with two poles up as such. Anytime you see one with two poles up it is suggestive that the crew are doing some switching manoeuvre that requires a change of poles. So for instance when switching back and forth at low speed a wheel is more convenient for the crew, or when going from a main line to a spur line where you don't want to stall if the pole comes off on the frog, or to prevent arcing as one pole is taken down and the other put up.

Fascinating what you can find out on the web.

Improving Trolley Poles: Part 1

As you have probably all gathered by now my intention is to model an electric freight line inspired by the North Shore Line. This inspiration came from reading a couple of books. The first, Not Only Passengers: How the Electric Railways Carried Freight, Express and Baggage by Roy G. Benedict and James R. McFarlane, published by the Central Electric Railfans' Association, as Bulletin 129. The second, North Shore Line Interurban Freight by Edward M. DeRouin, by Pixel Publishing as part of Midwestern Rail Series Number Two.

As a result I want to run freight motors, and the North Shore had a few unique freight motors, which make nice signature locomotives for my layout. However, the North Shore freight train crews also had the habit of running with both poles up; done I understand to reduce the strain on the overhead when drawing large amounts of power when starting heavy freight trains. They also had the habit of swinging both poles to hang over the same end of their four GE freight motors #452, 453, 454 & 457.

This causes a problem when trying to replicate this on the models. So the first picture show a CNS&M Steeple Cab Imported by MTS Imports, Inc. I've replace the MTS poles with Eatman Custom Engineering poles I got off eBay. These are effectively a modern version of the Suydam poles, with better wheels/sliders.

 As you can see when down there is plenty of room between the two poles when down.



The second picture show a CNS&M Steeple Cab Imported by The Car Works with MTS poles showing that they too can be run with twin poles collecting current.



However, when down these poles foul each other as can be seen here. Not so good.

They also foul each other when both up facing in opposite directions. An unlikely situation, but I show it just the same.

Here is an over head view showing the biggest problem of all, which is that one can't stow both the the poles down on one end, a typical North Shore Line practice by the train crews of the freight locomotives.

The poles I have to hand are  as follows from left to right; a Suydam original, an Eatman Custom Engineering pole, a Car Works pole, two MTS poles (one modified to two springs), and finally a PSC pole that I have modified by shortening it and replacing the pole with a scale thickness guitar wire.

Order reversed for the top view.

Both of the modified poles to the left of the picture are still too wide to do the whole both poles pulled down on one end thing that the North Shore Line freight train crews did. The rather lovely Car Works poll suffers from being too long, which prevents the prototypical functioning I require, and for those of an inclination to such matters, still scales at about twice the length of the prototype..

Plan at this point is to go back and rebuild the PSC kit again. I've already cut it in half to shorten it, but I reckon I can take another couple of millimetres off its length, and more importantly I plan to narrow the width of the end. Hopefully, this will allow two poles to be pulled down on one end.

Oh yes. Made my replacement pole too long, forgot I was working in 3.5mm to the foot, not 4mm. Oops.
  
Edited Jan 10th for clarification.