THE BRITISH OVERSEAS RAILWAYS HISTORICAL TRUST   A UK Registered Educational Charity

Kevin Jones' Steam Index

Journal Institution of Locomotive Engineers
Volume 10 (1920)

The IMechE virtual library is accessible (full papers, all diagrams, photographs, extensive tables, etc).via SAGE

Journal No. 42 (January to March 1920)

Jackson, G.H. (Paper No. 76)
Testing and treatment of material for the construction of railway rolling stock. 3-34. 10 diagrs. Discussion: 35-59: 311-14.
Meeting in Manchester on 5 December 1919 chaired by F.W. Attock.
Tests listed: tensile and elongation; compression; transverse bar tests; bend tests (hot, cold and quenched); drifting and hammering to a point or edge; fatigue (repeated reversal of stress, according to Wöhler); impact on notched and unnotched bars; torsion tests. drop or falling weight test; hardness, temper and brittleness. Special machines for transverse testing of cast iron bars, automatically measuring deflection made by Denison and Co., Leeds, W. and T. Avery, Birmingham, and Glenfield and Kennedy, of Kilmarnock were usually found in locomotive works. Laboratory testing apparatus attached to the Wicksteed machine for automatically drawing the stress strain diagram of a test piece. Professors Hele-Shaw, Unwin, Kennedy and Messrs. J. Buckton and Co., Leeds, makers of the Wicksteed machine, have devised apparatus for this purpose, and the resulting diagrams show very clearly the elastic limit, yield point, total strain and ultimate breaking stress of the material tested. The stress strain diagram can be readily plotted from any tensile result.
Discussion: J.H. Haigh (LYR, Horwich, 35-8) commented at length on tensile strength testing

Taylor, A.T.  (Paper No. 77)
Some points for discussion in locomotive design. Tail spindles, or extended piston rods. 61-3. Discussion: 63-8.
Meeting in London on 9 December 1919 chaired by J. Clayton.
It appeared to be general practice to fit modern engines with the tail spindle, especially if they are superheated, or the cylinders of large diameter, but there were exceptions: the GWR, LNWR and GNR had many engines running without them. Discussion: Chairman (J. Clayton) Holcroft (67) not in favour of tail rods.

Taylor, A.T. (Paper No. 77a)
Some points for discussion in locomotive design. Tyre fastenings. 69-70. Discussion: 70-7.
Meeting in London on 9 December 1919 chaired by J. Clayton
Considers various means adopted for securing tyres to the wheel centre to supplement shrinking on. Most railway companies had their own tyre shrinkage allowance, but a common practice was to bore the tyre out one thousandth less than the diameter of the wheel. GNR practice was to turn a shallow groove on the tread of the tyre, this being used to measure the circumference with a steel tape before and after shrinking on to the centre: any tyre exceeding the set limits was taken off again. This method prevented the tyre being stressed beyond its elastic limit and eliminates the unknown factor of the “give” in the wheel centre. Fig. 2 shows the type adopted by the GNR, LNWR, Midland and other companies. Screws were placed between each alternate spoke (the Midland placed one between each), and in some cases the screwing is continued into the tyre, and in others the thread is turned off the end of the stud which projects about one inch into a plain hole in the tyre. Fig. 3 shows the retaining ring method adopted by the GWR GER and other railways. The ring is sprung into position and the lip of the tyre hammered over continuously round the wheel, but the LCDR had a ring which varied in section, the tyre only being rivetted over at intervals, and this prevented the tyre turning on the wheel. Fig. 5 is illustrative of the method adopted by the NER and GNSR. The tyre, wheel centre, and retaining ring were rivetted together, the rivets being placed on the centre line of each spoke. Fig. 6 shows GCR practice, and in this case the retaining ring is dispensed with, the tyre and wheel centre being rivetted together. Figs. 4 and 7 show methods adopted by some Continental railways, notably the Belgian State Railway.

Taylor, A.T. (Paper No. 78)
Some points for discussion in locomotive design. Facilities for washing.out boilers. 82-5. Discussion: 86-101.
Meeting in London on 10 January 1920 chaired by W.A. Lelean
An important point in boiler design was to provide ample and efficient means for washing out, but there was great diversity in opinion concerning the number and position of plugs and mud doors, but oversupply was better than too few.
Discussion: F. Turner (Mech. Bngrs. Dept., Woolwich Arsenal) : Mr. Taylor stated that with tank engines it was rather difficult to get at the plugs. We had a case (it was, however, only an 18in. gauge locomotive) where we were up against the same difficulty. The designer of the locomotive had put wash-out plugs in the corners of the fireboxes just above the foundation ring, but there was only a space of about Iiin. between the end of the plug and the inside of the tank; as situated it was impossible to get at them, and therefore they were never taken out. We got over that difficulty by cutting an arch in the side of the tank about a foot long, which enabled us to get at the plug and manipulate the washingout apparatus at the plug-hole.
I think Mr. Taylor said that he preferred the mudhol door to the plug, and I am quite in agreement with him there. The possibility has struck me of having a wash-out plug in the centre of the tube area by sacrificing the centre tube. I have never heard of this being done in outslide practice, but it seems quite a feasible scheme. It might be rather difficult to manipulate the washing-out apparatus at the smokebox end owing to the presence of the exhaust pipe, but it is not so necessary at that end and it could be got in at the firebox tube plate. The washer-out would have to get into the firebox, and have the wash-out hose handed in through the door and he could then get a jet of water by means of a bent nozzle into the space between the tubes. With the ordinary arrangement, there is never any pressure of water between the tubes; there is only a dribble off the crown of the firebox. With a plug in the oentre of the firebox tubeplate, there would be much more chance of dislodging some of the scale.
Smith Mannering (L.B. and S.C.R., Brighton Brighton 86) : Have any members had experience of difficulty with boilers owing to the water not showing in the glasses, due to accumulation of dirt and scale round the back end of the box ? We make ample provision for washing out our boilers, but the greatest difficulty that I have experienced with certain old classes has been that just mentioned. I have known one or two cases, for which we had not been able to account, where in starting the engine, when the regulator was opened, the water immediately rushed out of the glasses. On one occasion we had a very searching investigation, and on taking the regulator stuffing-box off, found the back of the boiler choked up with dirt. As soon as that was found out instructions were given that these regulator stuffing-boxes were to be taken off periodically in order to clear away dirt deposits. We experience no other difficulty with washing out. It is a good thing to have a5 many facilities as possible, and most modern boilers are well provided in that way. I do not know that it is very necessary to put plugs in the tubeplate, as was suggested by Mr. Turner. As a rule, after a boiler has been working, say, from twelve to eighteen months, we take out a few tubes, clean the barrel out, and put fresh tubes back in their place. That seems to me to be the best method, as it ensures having the boiler thoroughly washed out between the tubes.
The mud doors, as designed to-day, give every aocess, but we find that the steel plates pit very badly on the water side, and that is a drawback, because it means very extensive repairs, especially in our Atlantic type. T’he boilers have to come into the shop to be patched and a new lmudhole put in the patch.
Wheeler (S.E. and C.R., London Bridge 87: Mr. Kirtley, whose name has been mentioned before, was an old Superintendent of mine for many years, and he greatly objected to letting the water out of a boiler quickly, but would have it cooled out properly. As regards the cleaning out of back plates, he was very strict indeed in having bent nozzles to fit on to the ordinary pipes, which would clear the back plate of any sediment that might be in there, if properly used.

Mannering, S. (Paper No. 79)
Fusible plugs. 102-5. Discussion: 105-9.
Meeting in London on 10 January 1920 chaired by W.A. Lelean

Journal No. 43 (April 1920)

Holcroft, H.  (Paper No.80).
Four-cylinder locomotives. 115-32; 139-64. Discussion: 132-8; 165-77; 186-206. 29 diagrs.
Meeting in Leeds on 12 January 1920 chaired by E. Kitson Clark;  London on 7 February 1920 chaired by H. Kelway Bamber
Theoretical treatise on crank settings.

Discussion on locomotive cylinders and valves. 207-14. (Paper 81)
Meeting in Leeds on 10 February 1920 chaired by H.N. Gresley, but introduced by J.W. Kidd
G.A. Musgrave (GNR, Colwick, 212) noted that in the shops less carbonisation was alnays found with piston valves, and was greatly eliminated when the mechanical lubricator ceased to be used. With mechanical lubricators it was necessary to examine and clean valves every six weeks. With a Detroit they ran two months or longer, and there was not nearly the amount of carbonisation.

Barnes, W.A. (Paper No. 82)
Electric traction for railways. 215-38.
Meeting in Manchester on 5 March 1920 chaired by F.W. Attock

• Increased acceleration and retardation.
• Higher schedule speed.
• hlore frequent service.
• Increased capacity of existing tracks.
• Smaller amount of rolling stock.
• Ease of operation in and out of terminal stations.
• Ease with which the tractive effort can be adjusted
• Cleanliness.

Journal No. 44 (May to July 1920)

Kelway-Bamber, H.  (Paper No. 83)
The waste of locomotive power. 242-60. Discussion: 269-74; 275-9.
Meeting in London on 6 March 1920 chaired by A.D. Jones and in Manchester on 9 April 1920 chaired J.W. Smith, and in Leeds on 27 April 1920 chaired H.N. Gresley
Plea for higher capacity wagons. For about the same gross weight, and for considerably less tractive resistance, 945 tons of coal could have been hauled in 21 bogie wagons of 45-ton capacity for an over-all train length of 985ft. , the earnings for the loaded journey amounting to £449 and the dead-weight ton-mileage to 207,000; an improvement in earnings of 18 per cent. and a reduction in dead-weight ton-mileage of over 20 per cent. for the same, or less, engine power. For the same train length of 1,520ft (that is of one of 80 10-ton wagons) 33 bogie vehicles of 45 tons capacity, carrying 1,485 tons of coal and weighing 2,100 tons behind the tender, could, with double-heading and the use of comparatively low-power engines, be hauled for the same siding accommodation, earning on the journey £700, or 85 per cent. more than the train of 10-ton wagons, the dead-weight for the round trip being only about one-fifth more than that of the 10-ton wagon train. In these and similar directions are to be found the solution of the present traffic difficulties and means for the reducing "Waste of Locomotive Power."
Discussion: H. Holcroft (256-8) noted that GWR find the 20-ton coal wagon very economical to use: the tare weight was only eight tons – those fitted with the vacuum brake were 8½ tons. Holcroft also noted advantages of Instanter couplings..

Dow, J.W.  (Paper No. 84)
Lubrication. 261-6. Discussion: 266-8; 281-95.
Meeting in Leeds on 9 March 1920 chaired by F.W. Kidd, and in London on 4 May 1920 chaired H. Kelway Bamber
W.P. Durtnall (283-5) mentioned Hoffmann ball bearings and Hyatt bearings.
J. Maxwell Diinn (289-91) notes on the methods adopted on the LNWR: the axleboxes of the older and smaller engines of Webb's regime were packed with pieces of sponge carried in shallow tin trays which were supported in the keep by light spiral springs. The top of the box was provided with a well to contain the oil, which was fed to the bearing by means of tail trimmings. This method answers very well, and a hot box was a rarity even in districts like that of South Wales, where long grades of I in 37-50 and sharp curves abound. The trailing axles of these engines, however, were fed from oilboxes on the footplate through flexible metallic tubing of either the woven wire or armoured types, of which he preferred the latter, the former giving more trouble through breakage. The larger engines were fitted with spring pads in the keeps, but my experience is that they soon become glazed and hard, and hence almost, if not entirely, useless. Until recently all these boxes were fed from oilboxes placed at the top of the framing through copper pipes of small bore, but as trouble was encountered in keeping the pipes clear and in good order, oilboxes were now being fitted on the hornblocks so that the oil has not more than about 6in. to go before it reaches the bearing and has an entirely vertical drop which is desirable in endeavouring to keep the path clear. Wakefield mechanical lubricators have been fitted, to a number of 0-8-0 goods engines for supplying oil under pressure to the axleboxes with excellent results, both as regards freedom from hot boxes, which give trouble on these engines, and economy in oil consumption. Cylinders and valve chests on non-superheated engines are fed by means of a Wakefield sight-feed lubricator placed on the footplate, and on superheated engines by either a Wakefield, Trusty or Bosch mechanical lubricator, the Wakefield type predominating. There is, however, a drawback in the use of mechanical lubricators,,for as long as the oil disappears from the reservoir in the course of a trip, some drivers think everything is satisfactory and do not examine the pipes, regardless of the fact that the oil having left the reservoir need not necessarily arrive at its proper destination. In sheds dealing with a large number of engines fitted with mechanical lubricators it is advisable to have a man specially detailed off to attend to them and keep a record of any adjustments he may make so that after a few trial runs he may be able to get all his lubricators working to a nicety, using neither too much nor too little oil. If this is not done and it is nobody's business in particular, haphazard and careless adjustments will be made, and the full benefits obtainable from the use of mechanical lubricators will be lost. The economy arising from skilful attention by a man who knows and is interested in his work will, in the course of a week or two, more than pay his wages. Another cause of trouble with mechanical lubricators lies in the practice which often obtains in running sheds of the staff washing their hands, more often than not covered in grit, etc., in the oil of the reservoirs, and then they wonder why thc luliricators refuse to work and pipes become choked In regard to the lubrication of revolving and reciprocating parts, wire trimmings are used in some districts and worsted plug trimming in others. Some years ago in a running district on the L.NWR the oil consumption was reduced by about 50% by the wholesale and skilful substitution of worsted plugs for wire trimmings in these parts.

Visit of the Institution of Locomotive Engineers to the Great Central Railway Company's Locomotive Works at Gorton, 8th June, 1920. 300-2. illus., plan

Visit to the North-Eastern Railway Carriage and Wagon Works at York, 13th July, 1920. 308-10. plan,

Journal No. 45 (August-October 1920)

Visit to the Great Eastern Railway Works at Stratford, 23rd September, 1920. 325-32 + illustration and plan
Includes group photograph with names (but group before and on 1500 class 4-6-0)

Pickersgill, W. [Paper No. 85]
Presidential Address. 335-48. Discussion: 348-50.
Began with noting that he had served seven years at Stratford and the sterling work performed there during WW1 under A.J. Hill . Locomotive development on the Caledonian Railway is described in general terms from the time of Alexander Allen through to the "present day". He noted that Allen employed outside cylinders and steel fireboxes. He described Benjamin Connor as a "very celebrated engineer". George Brittain introduced bogie engines and the Westinghouse brake: at this point he noted that McInnes, an engine driver, had also invented an air brake which was tested at the Newark brake trials and that McInnes ultimately became a brake inspector on the CR. Drummond developed the inside cylinder type and Carbrook was exhibited at the Edinburgh Exhibition of 1890. McIntosh developed larger boilers and sought higher tractive efforts. He then mentioned oil-firing using the Holden and Scarab systems, and the potential of the internal combustion engine and electric traction, and the advantage of regenerative braking with the latter..

O'Brien, H.E.  (Paper No. 86)
The management of the locomotive repair shop. 371-403. Discussion: 463-82; 499-511; 565-73.
Presented in London on 20 October 1920 (459) chaired A.D. Jones and Manchester on 5 November 1920 chaired by J.W. Smith and at First Ordinary General Meeting (1920-192 I Session) of the Scottish Centre held at the Royal TechnicaI College, Glasgow, oa the 26 November 1920, at 7.30 p.m., R.H. Whitelegg, Chairman of the Centre, presiding.
The work of repairing locomotives is a highly specialised branch of mechanical engineering, though in general it does riot demand quite the same accuracy of work or refinementh ,of method demanded in such branches of engineering as the machine tool or motor car manufacturing trades. Each railway company’s method is founded on the practical experi- .ence of many years, and Lvhile these methods do not vary much in general principles, there is much variation in detail on the design of the locomotil-es and on the shop *equipment depending on the method of organisation adopted. The following notes first describe the general principles applicable to the problem of locomotive repairs, and these notes have been amplified by a more detailed description of ,the methods adopted by the L. and Y. lily. Co. at Horwich. It should be noted at the outset that the main objective #of the management ol a railway locomotive workshop is essentially different from that of a commercial manufacturing works ; the engineering management of a commercial engineering works desire to see a constant expansion of their .shops, while in the case of the railway managem.ent their desire should be to s’ee a constant shrinkage of the shops brought about by
(1) Improved methods of manufacture.
(2) Improved organisation.
(3) Rectification of errors in design and material with the object of reducing renewals and repairs to a minimum
Discussion: . B.K. Field (L.B. and S.C. My., Brighton 465): I may say at once that one can hardly compare the works which I represent-Brighton-with Horwich at all, because although system as practised there is virtually the same, yet it differs essentially in the fact that many of the records kept at Horwich are not kept at all at Brighton, not because their value is not recognised, but, I think, simply because the clerital staff is not big enough ; and, in spite of constant building (we have to expand upwards because we cannot develop in any other direction), the offices are really overcrowded with clerks engaged on the new bonus system and the various ramifications of the present system of computing wages, and there is very little room for further staff to keep records of costs in that direction. But Horwich, I believe, is almost unique (or it was unique, at any rate) in the fact that it was a works which was instituted de novo, and thus had a good start at a time when other works were struggling with various kinds of alterations and trying to make old shops into new. Horwich, I believe, was laid down by Mr. john Ramsbottom 30 or 40 years ago in a place where there was plenty of room for expansion. Brighton Works were put down in, I believe, 1840 or 1841,in a little snug corner by the side of the station, partly on the side of a chalk down, and partly in an excavation from the same. Ashford, of which I had fifteen years’ experience, and was, I believe, contemporary, is similarly situated, but with rather more room for expansion. Both Ashford and Brighton have suffered all the time from the contiguity of main, goods, and branch lines, which in the case of Ashford run to Dover and Hastings, and in ours run all round us, while the main London road runs below us, so that part of our works is actually on pedestals 70 feet high, while other parts are placed in this excavation from the down. Our ambition, therefore, is not to contract our works, but always to expand ; we are like champagne in a bottle, always wanting to get outside, with a view to displaying our energies and effervescence. These are, at the present time, largely occupied in moving stuff about from place ta phce to make room for other things. No enlargement of the works. is possible without moving something somewhere else,. and generally upwards. The oldest part of the works has now two storeys where there used to be one, and the only other thing we can do is to build enormously expensive platforms to accommodate any further shop room.
This alone, of course, makes for considerably increased expenditure in the actual outlay on repairing locomotives. But by a curious chance, two days ago I picked up a paper that I extracted from the December railway half-year of 1912, in which the following rather remarkable facts appear. We had at that time 535 engines, and the Lancashire and Yorkshire 1,240, or something lrke that. Now Brighton is essentially, of course, one of the most expensive places you could have for repairing locomotives in. At that time our wages were as high as, and in most cases higher than, any in the Kingdom, because Brighton is an enpensive town to live in-a pleasure town. Next, as regards coal, we are further from the collieries than anybody; and the same remark applies as to the carriage of material from the great 'manufacturing centres. But in spite of that, the repairs per locomotive per half year were E137, and for the Lancashire and Yorkshire £113, a difference of only £24. The South-Eastern, whom I put in for comparison on this particular item, were £105; but at that time the South-Eastern were paying the lowest rate of railway workshop wages in the whole of the Kingdom. The train miles per engine and this is where the remarkable thing comes in-were 13,102 for the Brighton, and only 6,161 for the Lancashire and Yorkshire; and the train miles per £ expended on repairs were 95.6 for the Brighton, 54.2 for the Lancashire and Yorkshire. The earnings per spent on repairs were £25.6 for the Brightan, £19.4 for the Lancashire and Yorkshire ; and the expenses per ceni. of receipts were £13.81 for the Brighton (and here the Lancashire and Yorkshire scored, being £12.36, that being, of course, because locomotive coal, and running expenses consequently, were very much higher in the case of the Brighton engines). However, this is by the way, but is put forward as a possibility that a better repair is given at Brighton for the money.
What the Lancashire and Yorkshire particularly are blessed with is standardisation to a degree which is probably lower on any other railway except, perhaps, the London and North-Western. We are cursed with legacies from previous administrations because, although most of our previous locomotive engineers have been apostles of standardisation, yet the stzndards are on investigation whited sepulchre not standards at all. While in the main design there is standardisation, yet in the hundred and one small details which go to the creation of expense and trouble in the shop, standaidisation is absent. For a single and simple instance -change in the makers of a standard type of injector-one possibly provides say, 12 threads to an inch in the internals and another 11, slightly different length of cone, and a different type of flap valve-at once duplicating stock an& duplicating repairs in the brass and fitting shops. The use of the-alleged-same cylinders in several classes of engines, such differences actually existing that different patterns must be made and used for each class, boilers of the same type but with different arrangements of expansion brackets, smokebox, tubeplates, and mountings, and many similar cases, can be cited.
Mr. Stroudley was, of course, one of the earliest pioneers of standardisation, and certainly in broad principles the standardisation was very good, but in his particular engines we found—I was Chief Draughtsman with the Brighton Company in the early part of my career therethat as soon as we attempted to rely upon those standards, we found we were likely to be anything up to ¾in. out. Furthermore, I have heard that Mr. Stroudley himself was prone to that very tempting practice of drawing things with chalk on a piece of board, or with the point of his umbrella in the dust, to explain in the shops what he wanted if an alteration occurred to him, so that the office drawings differed in many essentials from thle shop productions. With regard to the system of piecework, which Col. O’Brien said was, practically speaking, exercised throughout the Horwich Works, I should like to ask him whether piecework is worked in the Tool Room, in the Pattern Shop, and with the Millwrights, as those three points are exercising us at the present time, owing to the arising of certain questions in connection with the very much enhanced rate which pieceworkers get over day-workers, and which is hardly to be compensated for by giving either the tool room men, the patternmakers or the millwrights simply an advanced rate, unless you make the advance a very large one ; and then the tendency is for the man to sit on his work, there being no inducement to speed, while the special nature of the work may be made a convenient excuse for the slow progress of the job.
I do not know whether it is the practice in Horwich Works, or whether we are singular in that respect, but ‘n the Erecting Shop-and the principle has recently been extended to the Boiler Shop-we work what is called the pooling system. This pooling system has been the direct means of increasing our weekly output by from one to oneand- a-half engines per week. (When I was actually working in Ashford Shops, we had perhaps one fitter and two or three apprentices to an engine and had no share in any other. Frequently, when the engine was laid up for some little time waithg for its boiler, but not long enough for it to be put outside, owing to the very simple character of Mr. Stirling’s engines in those days the engine work was soon finished and we were compelled to hide ourselves when the foreman came along so that he shoul’d not see that we were doing nothing.) Well, knowing, as Works Manager of the Brighton Works, the peculiarities of the case, and on tackling various fitters and boys for idling time having received the explanation “ Please, sir, they told me to hide myself because there wasn’t anything for me to do,” I called up the shop people, some two years ago now, and, among other matters, put it to them that this was pure waste of time on their part, and that a gain was to be achieved in all directions by the pooling of the whole of the engines in the particular gang. Each chargehand erector works six engines, and all these six engines were to he pooled, and each fitter was to be as much interested in one engine as another, the apprentices and labourers also. So when men had nothing to do on one engine they could always concentrate on another, the pool for the six being eventually put in and payment made accordingly. I may say that part of the system is the payment directly, each week, of 25 per cent., and what is remaining when the pool is declared-the dividend on the contract minus the 25 per cent.-is distributed at the end of the pool of six engines. The difficulty might be raised, as of course it appeared to us, that the cranemen and lifters in the shop would say at once, “ Well, we are out of this ; it does not matter if we lift half a dozen engines or one, we don’t get paid any more.’’ We overcame that by paying them the average balance of what was earned on the whole of the engines ; an,d this works out very satisfactorily, so much so that the craneinen are eager to get from one end to the other to lift an engine or transport material. It is only in this year that we have extended that particular phase to the boiler shop, and it is already beginning to bear fruit in the way that we expected it would, and the output of repaired boilers is beginning to keep pace with what the erecting shop demands are for it; consequently output is going up dl round.
With regard to Col. O’Brien’s remarks about welding, we have pushed welding, both acetylene and electric, particularly the latter, to such a pitch as I believe has not been adopted in many other places; in fact, we have tried some rather bold experiments, and they have mostly been successful, I am pleased to say. The case was mentioned just now of a crosshead losing its cone fit-it was put on one side, and the next batch of crossheads that came through, one would be turned somewhat smaller and made to fit the cone end of the piston rod; and vice versa with the piston rods. In our case, we simply skim down the cone, for piston or crosshead, electrically poultice-weld it all over, and re-turn to standard size. The same is done to the screwed end of the piston rods-we fill up the thread completely and slightly larger than the original diameter, and re-cut it to the standard size. We have saved a lot in the way of scrapping piston rods, particularly in most of the Stroudley engines, which are fitted with a steeple or sharply coned piston, the crosshead being solid with the piston rod, making a very expensive piston rod and one that necessitates taking the nut off each time examination of the piston is required. The consequent wear on the threads is very great, leading to their rapid destruction and, formerly, to the scrapping of the piston rod. That has been avoided’by the use of welding.
Again, with regard to the elimination of flaws, you get a great man> flaws, as most locomotive engineers are aware, in the slot corners of the quadrants of link motions. The qiiadrant link being an expensive piece of work to produce, these flaws were cut out and welded, with some misgiving at first. When the flaw has been cut out we use a microscope ,with an incandescent lamp attached to the bottom so that the lens may be put close to the work and the material is thus very closely inspected to see that the flaw has been entirely removed before filling up. This has been very successful. I am not going to say there have been no failures; we, have had one or two quadrant links. fail, but with at least an extra five years’ life to the credit of the weld.
The same with flaws in connecting rod small-end butts, fractured motion plates, and other steel work of the same sort, we have adopted welding wherever possible and justified, I am glad to say, with success. Another feature that makes for economy is the extended use of flanging operations instead of the angle iron smith. As a matter of [act, we have only one angle iron smith because of the great extension of flanging to all corner plates, gussets and buffer beam angle stiffeners-these being all flanged plates on our modern locomotives, the different sizes being obtained by pressing them in the form of trays and then sawing through according to the angle required, whatever it may be. Many large constructional works in the way of bridges, station roof columns, platq girders, and so forth, may be seen to have hundreds of most expensive angle knees, boxes, and other expensive work, the cost of which could be reduced by 50 per cent. were flangings economically worked out by the drawing office and used. This is both a rub and a wrinkle for the Civil Engineer’s Department. When I was on the North Staffordshire I introduced a series of locomotives there and put in flanged tops and bottoms to the tanks and bunkers, which was a considerable saving both in renewals and in the first cost. I was particularly struck with one expression in Col. O’Brien’s paper, and that was with regard to the engineering of human nature. This is now a big question in all works, where the works manager is the target for all sorts of complaints from all directions, or the dtiniate target, at any rate. Tl’is, matter is, perhaps, greater than anybody has any idea oi who is not in that unfortunate position, which is rather more that of a political officer than an operating engineer. Not only has the works manager to use the tact which is necessary nowadays in keeping the peace among d l grades of men and boys, but very often he has to be the grease that helps to keep the intermeshing wheels of the works operating officers working smoothly. As we know, however much esprit de corps there may be among the various heads of the working staff in the shops, there are always (for engineers are usually human, and perhaps more human in some respects than other types) small jealousies arising with impeding friction from these causes, and the works manager particularly has to see that these are not allowed to interfere in any way with the progress of the work in the shops.
These are just a few notes that occurred to me in reading through Col. O’Brien’s paper, which I thought might be of interest and information to those here to-night. In thanking Col. O’Brien for his paper, I may say that I hope in time to make such use of the information he has given in the way of costing and scheduling and general works information of that sort as to enable me and others also to reap advantage from the excellent paper he has read to us to-night.

Journal No. 46 (November-December 1920)

Visit to Airedale Foundry Leeds, 12th October 1920. 408-14.
In 1839, Mr. James Kitson, in partnership with Mr. Laird, undertook the making of machinery and parts of locomotives. Shortly afterwards he associated himself with Mr. Thompson, an iron merchant, and Mr. Hewitson, an engineer. The latter came from Newcastle, and in 1845 we find the firm completing locomotives for the York and North Midland Railway Company, from designs supplied by Messrs. Stephenson, of Newcastle.

Kitson Clark, E. (Paper No. 87)
Articulated locomotives. 413-39. Discussion: 439-58: 1921, 11, 587-90.
The First Ordinary General Meeting (1920-1921 Session) of the Leeds Centre held at the Philosophical Hall, Leeds, on the 12 October 1920, at 7 p.m., Colonel E. Kitson Clark [presiding.
A comparison, with diagrams, is made of Seraing, the Sturrock steam tender, Fairlie, Meyer. Mallet comapound, Johnstome 4-6-0+4-6-0 for Mexican Central Railway, Henderson's compound triple locomotive for the Erie Railroad, the ACN&R Kitson Meyer, Shay, Tasmanian Government Railway's Garratt, the CTR Esslinger locomotive of 1912 and the Stephenon's patent locomotive of 1914 (see Goodall) and discussion (below). Ball and socket joints were discussed. There are considerable details of the Sturrock steam tender. The Horatio Allen double bogie locomotive is mentioned as is the George Stephenson chain driven locomotive of 1815. Cites Theodore West. . In the discussion Gresley (439-41) noted that boosters could be regarded as a form of articulation and noted data on steam tenders which had come from Patrick Stirling. The Kitson Company had  great experience in this field..
C.N. Goodall (441-4) refered to the Heywood locomotive of 1880 which worked on the Duffield Bank Railway and employed the Klein-Lindner principle of flexible axles.
"With regard to the "Duplex" engine designed by myself and shown by the Chairnian in one of his slides, I only have to say this. Expensive engines of a special kind1 are sometimes built for purposes more or less experimental. The conditions may be of a temporary nature lasting only a few years, as a test for final electrification, for example. It is always possible, too, that the special engine may fail to fulfil the requirements, in which case it cannot be used in normal traffic and generally goes to the scrap heap. In such cases the use of two engines of existing normal types seems to offer advantage if brought under proper control as one machine. That is briefly what this " Duplex " engine is. There are no articulated steam pipes ; the parts, and sometimes practically the whole of one unit, will interchange with the owning company's standards. No turntables are required, and no special running shed accommodation. If the services of such an engine are required only for a few years, at the end*of that time the greater part of two useful units are still available for ordinary traffic.
The design has been worked out in a great deal of detail to ensure absolute control from one set of handles to make the units easily detachable and to facilitate repairs, so that the engine may be kept regularly in service with the facilities usually available in dealing with the ordinary types of locomotive. These are the chief points aimed at in thdesign- the way they have been met constitutes the difference between this and other " double " engine designs which have appeared previously, nearly all of which appear to have been. sufficiently incomplete to prejudice their chances of success".

S.J. Lucas (Commuication: 445-): References have been made to the loss of traction, between straight and curved lines, due to the articulations of the Iocomotives described. No tests or experiments appear to record this, nor does it appear possible to obtain an exact comparison from mathematics, in consequence of the number and complexity of the factors involved in producing it. The folloning considerations and approximate calculations are therefore submitted for a few of the principal types.
Loss of traction on curves beyond that on straight lines, is caused by friction created from side pressures between the tyres and rails; for this friction the tractive rorce transmitted from unit to unit is mainly responsible, because it produces the lateral forces met by the rails, whose reaction prevents the units from being pulled into or pushed out of alignment. Relative movement at the articulations, due to angular displacement of the units, and oscillations arising from the unbalanced reciprocating parts of the engines, also produce lateral forces. But in consequence of their variability and small extent, one due to the change of curvature on transition curves, and the other to inertia and change of speed, they are omitted from further consideration. The reactions, i.e., the lateral pressures dexelop wear of flanqes and rails, at a rate depending on their intensity, on the hardness ol their material and the speed of movement ; and a tendency to derailment, proportionate to the maximum flange pressure in relation to the weight carried by its wheel, on the rail.

Given as Paper 87A in Volume 11 S.J. Lucas spoke further

When I received the Secretary’s card announcing this meeting, I was somewhat surprised to find that the small part I had arranged to take in it, that of exhibiting a few small models to show the action of various articulat.:d wheel bases on reverse and non-reverse curves, had been increased to the larger and more dificult one of concluding the discussion on the Chairman’s excellent Paper on Articulated Locomotives.
I would therefore ask for your kind indulgence for my imperfect articulation of the story of the quest for the perfectly Articulated Locomotive. I hope that it may speak for itself through the Paper, a perusal of which I think ,may be aptly expressed by the American euphemism “ as being worth while. ”
Besides the copious illustrated detail given in the Paper there is the most useful history of the development of the articulated idea for locomotives, and I feel that I have neither the ability nor the time to discuss all the points involved.
However, in a communication on the Paper (idem. page 445), I endeavoured to state in an elementary manner, for a few of the principal types, various points which determine the relative value of their efiiciency in traction and ease on the track ; and it has been my privilege to have some models made, to elucidate some of the points in question relative to their wheel bases and curves. They were made somewhat hurriedly to satisfy immediate wants, and therefore do not possess the finish they otherwise would have had They are here for inspection, and I shall have pleasure in explaining them, and the types they represent, to anyone interested in the subject. The curves are purposely made of very small radius to exaggerate the actions, and all parts are made to a scale of 1/48th full size. The radius of the curves in each case is one chain, and the wheel bases represent those of locomotives actually made. It will perhaps be recognised from the models that in the case of the Mallet type there is a point of articulation for non-reverse curves which is correct for all radii. The determination of its position can be solved in a simple graphical manner, as explained in my communication; but for revcrse curves of small radius such as occur in crossovers (without a tangent between the radii) the models show how destructive the Mallet articulation may become to the normal track, and with what ease derailment may occur.
For these conditions the faults can only be alleviated by widening the gauge in the curves, and this possibly in conjunction with considerable slack in the articulated joints, axleboxes and wheel bases. I understand that it has been observed from actual practice in the United States that the engines soon become very slack on the track by wear of rails and tyre flanges, and that the axles quickly develop excessive side play. This perhaps explains the reason why they are able to '' wangle " round the curves of small radius.
One of the first of the large and heavy type Mallet engines built in the States was constructed for the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad in 1904, by the American Locomotke Co., N.Y. It was claimed to be the heaviest locomotive in the world, and was exhibited at the St. Louis Exhibition of that year. In a description of it in one of the American technical journals it was stated that the engine was designed to traverse reverse and non-reverse curves of very small radii. The engine was illustrated in Engineering of 5 August 1904, and a model for this type is shown, and illustrates the points already mentioned.
From further information I have received, it appears that crossovers in the States are laid without tangents between the curves, also that the gauge is not allowed to exceed 4ft.  9½in. even with wear of rails included. This implies that some slackness would probably be provided in the working parts of the engine.
For the Garratt articulation a model is also shown, based on the locomotives for the Congo Railway (see Fig. 14. Articulated locomotives Clark. 589 of Dearberg’s paper on this type, Vol. 6, Paper No. 43, April, 1916). This articulated wheel base traverses curves satisfactorily, but further points regarding ease on track are mentioned in the complete Paper.
The Kitson-Meyer and Fairlie articulations are so much alike that they are both represented by one model. Both types have the utmost flexibility for traversing any curve which ‘the unit wheel base, i.e., the bogie, will pass.
The models represent the end pairs of wheels only in each bogie, as these control the movement round the curves, and in each case the locomotive represented is of the total adhesion type with six wheels coupled units. I have here the leading dimensions of the engines represented by the models, but a mere recital of them would be somewhat tedious and I do not propose to inflict them on you. They could, however, be given to any gentlemen present who may be interested to ask for them, or found from the references given. In the evolution of these locomotives it is interesting to compare their articulations with those to be found in the exhibits of the London Exhibition of 1862, which are illustrated and described in the Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng. of May, 1863. For instance the limiting case of the two units directly coupled together by a joint pin, as in the Mallet type, finds its forerunner in the heavy tank engine Steierdorf, built for the Austrian State Railways; and the other limit, of the two units articulated at the centres of their wheel bases as shown in M. Meyer’s design, is the forerunner of the present day Fairlie and Kitson-Meyer types, the Garratt type being a development between these limits.
The loss of tractive efficiency in articulated locomotives is so very small, and their advantages so great, for work on steep grades or sharp curves, that their extended use for this class of service would appear to be inevitable. This is confirmed by the very large numbers which have been successfully meeting these conditions for many years in all parts of the world, and especially by their very extensive adoption in the United States in recent years. Indeed, since locomotivcs have reached the limits of width and height, the only avenue on which increased traction can be de\:eloped (without increased efficiency in the use of steam) is the one of length; and in this limit the short unit wheel bases of the articulated type gis-e the necessary flexibility for traversing curves of sniall radius.
I trust, Gentlemen, that this short recapitulation of the various points may have given you as much pleasure as it has given me interest; and I cannot.conclude without expressing my thanks to the gentlemen of the technical staff at Airedale Foundry, who have by their kind suggestions assisted me in the consideration of the points in question.

Inaugural Meeting of the Scottish Centre of the Institution of Locomotive Engineers (London) was held in the Societies’ Room, Royal Technical College, George Street, Glasgow, on Friday, 29 October, 1920. 483
The Inaugural Meeting of the Scottish Centre of the Institution of Locomotive Engineers (London) was held in the Societies’ Room, Royal Technical College, George Street, Glasgow, on Friday, 29th October, 1920, at 8 p.m. At the outset the President of the Institution, Mr. William Pickersgill, Chief Mechanical Engineer, Caledonian Railway, presided, and he was accompanied on the platform by Mr. Robert H. Whitelegg, Chief Mechanical Engineer, Glasgow and South-Western Railway ; Mr. Walter Chalmers, Chief Mechanical Engineer, North British Railway; Mr. Hugh Reid, Chief Managing Director, the North British Locomotive Company, Ltd. ; Mr. G. W. Chalmers, Managing Director, Hurst, Nelson and Company, Ltd. ; Mr. W.H. Moodie, Chief Draughtsman, Caledonian Railway ; Mr. J. Keyden, District Locomotive Superintendent, Caledonian Railway ; and Mr. Frank Burtt, General Secretary of the Institution.
The Chairman: The next item on our programme is to propose the Committee of Management, and I will submit the following names for your approval: Mr. Hugh Reid, Chief Managing Director, The North British Locomotive Company, Limited ; Mr. Irvine Kempt, Assistant Locomotive Superintendent, Caledonian Railway ; Mr. J. P. Grassick, Running Superintendent, North British Railway ; Mr G.W. Chalmers, Managing Director, Hurst Nelson and Company, Limited ; Mr. J. Steele, Jr., Works Manager, R.Y. Pickering and Company ; Mr. A. Campbell, Chief Draughtsman, North British Railway; Mr. W.H. Moodie, Chief Draughtsman, Caledonian Railway; Mr. David Smith, Chief Draughtsman, Glasgow and South-Western Railway ; Mr. J. Keyden, District Locomotive Superintendent, Caledonian Railway; and Mr. C. Fawcett, Messrs. Beardmore and Company, Limited. Information repeated in Locomotive Mag., 1920, 26, 260

Musgrave, G.A. (Paper No. 88)
Locomotive running shed practice. 512-25. Discussion: 525-36.
Second Ordinary General Meeting (1920-1921 Session) of the Leeds Centre held at the Philosophical. Hall, Leeds, on the 9 November, 1920, at 7 p.m., Lieut.-Col. E. Kitson Clark, Chairman of the Centre, presiding.
GNR practice: author was at Colwick locomotive depot. Examinations and failures.

Rawlings, H.V.  (Paper No. 89)
Brake efficiency. 537-64.
Third Ordinary General Meeting (1920-1921 Session) held at Caxton Hall, Westminster, on 17 November, 1920, at. 7.15 p.m., Mr. W.A. Lelean, Member of Council, presiding.
Includes Pennsylvania Railway Brake Tests of 1913, and Captain Douglas Galton's earlier Newark Brake Trials. Considers brake apparatus and how to determine performance.
The scope of the Pennsylvania Railway Brake Tests of 1913 were of a very extensive nature, and in addition to dealing with the air brake apparatus itself, the trials very thoroughly dealt with the subject of the efficiency of brake blocks of different types, brake rigging, coefficient d friction, wheel sliding, condition of rail surface, the relative performance of double and single blocking and its effect upon journals and bearings, etc.
As an indication of the thoroughness with which the trials were carried out, it is interesting to note that 160 observations were recorded for each regular test run, for which purpose 44 observers were necessary. In all 691 tests were made covering a period of 61 working days.

Haigh, J.A. (Paper No. 90)
The locomotive as a vehicle. 574-83. Discussion: 583-8.
Third Ordinary General Meeting (1920-1921 session) of the Manchester Centre held at the College of Technology, Manchester, on 3 December, 1920, at 7.0 p.m., Mr. J.W. Smith, Chairman of the Centre, presiding.
Argued that bogie must be considered as a separate vehicle. Discusses the dimensions of flanges, diamond crossings, side play, pony trucks, hammer blow and driving wheel diameters.
As an engine moves forward the track gives way to some extent, firstly under the leading wheels and causes a wave to be set up in the track which produces a continuous artificial incline, up which the leading wheels must climb. This continuous climb throws more weight on to these wheels when in movement, and it would be found if weights could be taken that the leading wheels carried more when moving than when stationary. On this consideration alone, then, the horizontal centre of gravity should be kept sufficiently far back to keep the weight on the leading end as low as possible consktent with safety at junctions and effective steering. It must not, however, be so centred that very unequal weights are thrown on to the driving wheels, particularly when four coupled or pitching may be set up to such an extent that violently varying loads are thrown on the end wheels of the base.and more than its due share of work will be extracted from one pair of the drivers.
An ideal locomotive should be capable of running at any economic speed on straight or curved track with heavy or light load, or even by itself, with perfect safety, and a suggestion is here put forward for criticism. A water tube steam generator slung between two four-wheeled long-base bogies with rotary engine drive through friction or elastic clutches to two right or left-hand wheels on each bogie independently.
This suggested ideal resembles the Garrett engine but embodies what has not yet been accomplished, individual freedom of the wheels and the rotary engine giving maximum torque at all speeds.