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20051108 Tuesday November 08, 2005

 Full steam ahead!

This weekend, I shall be driving one of these...



These are 1/3 scale model express trains on the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway in Kent. My wife, for christmas, has bought me a 'Steam Driving experience day'. It's going to be incredibly hard work, dirty, smelly and probably cold and wet, but it's one of those 'ambitions' I've always had...

...To drive a Great British Express Train.

Yes, I know the Americans had the biggest steam engines, but they were great ugly brutes. The british had the best steam trains, and we still have the 126 mph steam speed record. Our steam engines were the last word in speed, quality and sophistication. Third class travel in the 1930s was better than first class travel today. Steam trains ran faster, further and more frequently with longer trains that the dull electro multiple units we have now.

If you have any kind of engineering bent you will appreciate that one of these 4-6-2 trains are probably the most beautiful pieces of engineering man has ever made. I missed my generation here, as the last timetabled steam trains ran back in the late 1960s.

This is the next best thing. These little expresses are the real thing, just 1/3 the size. They run at 25mph, a scale speed of 75. It's going to be great, full report next week.

( Nov 08 2005, 02:21:09 PM GMT / Nov 08 2005, 02:19:38 PM GMT ) Permalink Comments [2]
Trackback: http://blogs.sun.com/Drew/entry/full_steam_ahead

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Comments:

"dull electro multiple units"... my pet hate: the horrid little diesel crates which are basically a bus on rails. Yeuch.
I remember in Belgrade in the late 60s there was still an extensive fleet of little black steam locomotives which could be seen in a classic marshalling-yard down by the main station. As a kid, it was like looking behind the scenes of a Thomas the Tank Engine book.
You young kids today, you've no idea... ;^) (scratches beard pensively and lights up a Woodbine....)

Posted by Robin Wilton on November 10, 2005 at 03:58 PM GMT #

send me information about designing a house hold small power generating plant using steam generated from the sun. it should be both using parabolic dishes and solar box cookers

Posted by bwire moses on July 03, 2006 at 06:31 PM BST #

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