Friday, August 15, 2014

Holiday Pics: Steamplex

Steamplex

How about this for a model engineering project?

Take an old Simplex diesel, strip off the internal combustion bits and add some steam ones on top. Result: the world's first SteamPlex!

It's a fun little engine. Not desperately practical as far as I can tell being powerful but not as easy to use as a more conventional engine. Listening to it thrashing away at the head of a train, it happily coped with a heavy load with only a hint of help from electric Polar Bear.

As I understand it, the single cylinder steam engine runs at one speed and the gearing left over from the original diesel handles the speed control. Whatever, this is a very entertaining loco to watch. Brilliant fun.

Steamplex

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