Static grass puffer bottles work by manually charging model grass fibres with static electricity. When the charged...
Cart 0 Product Products (empty)
No products
Free shipping! Shipping
£ 0.00 Total
Product successfully added to your shopping cart
Quantity
Total
There are 0 items in your cart. There is 1 item in your cart.
Total products (tax incl.)
Total shipping (tax excl.) Free shipping!
Total (tax incl.)
Search Tips
Tips categories
Latest Tips
-
How to use a static grass puffer bottleRead more -
What is meant by the term 'Conflat'?Read moreThe term "Conflat" is a contraction of the words "container" and "flat" and refers to a type of container flat wagon...
-
What colour should I use to paint brick walls?Read moreIf you were painting a red brick wall, to get a realistic effect, I would, after the wall had been primed with a...
-
Can Dapol rolling stock couple to Graham Farish rolling stock?Read moreModern Graham Farish and Dapol rolling stock should in theory couple together with little problem. This is thanks to...
-
What is flock as used for scale modelling?Read moreIn scale modelling, "flock" refers to finely ground fibres or particles used to simulate textures such as grass,...
What are vacuum pipes for?
Vacuum pipes can be seen on the front and rear of many older railway locomotives and rolling stock. They are usually located either on or around the buffer beam and are used to provide a 'through' vacuum to operate the train's braking system.
Vacuum brakes were introduced in the 1860s. Before then, trains were braked using a basic handbrake system which was slow to apply and required a member of railway staff per wagon. Needless to say, that setup meant accidents were commonplace and a more sophisticated system was needed.
Using vacuum as the power to operate individual brake cylinders was a natural choice as the ejectors (already used on steam locomotives) can be used to generate vacuum without complicated or moving parts. The vacuum pipes on the ends of locos, wagons and coaches are connected when a train is marshalled to provide a vacuum supply to all of the brakes throughout a train.
Although the new system now gave drivers the ability to apply the brakes to a whole train with the use of a single valve, it still required the locomotive to be attached and operational to operate. That was a problem as coupling breakages were commonplace back then and a runaway section of the train would lose its vacuum supply (and therefore its braking) when the train separated.
To combat the problem, engineers started using the vacuum to hold brakes off as opposed to pulling them on. This method became known as automatic vacuum braking and was advantageous because if a pipe was to separate mid-journey, the vacuum would be lost and the spring-loaded brakes would automatically apply, thus stopping the train.
The system worked and was failsafe, however, it was also expensive and railway companies were reluctant to install it voluntarily. It wasn't until a horrific rail crash at Armagh in 1889 that automatic vacuum brakes became mandatory and remained the standard until air brakes replaced them in the 1970s.
Posted in: Rolling stock
Click here to receive the tips weekly in your mailbox. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Related products
Dean Churchward Vacuum Brake Fittings & pipes
Price: £ 7.50Dean Churchward Vacuum Brake Fittings & pipes
Assorted Vacuum pipes (OO Scale 1/76th)
Price: £ 4.95Assorted Vacuum pipes (OO Scale 1/76th) Assortment of vacuum pipes and speedo...
Related posts
-
How to weight my model so it does not tip?For wargaming figures, a small coin or washer glued to the under side of the base will usually to do the job. This... - Is Bachmann compatible with Hornby?Yes, any OO scale loco, wagon or coach will work on any OO scale track, regardless of brand. Couplings are also...
- What are tension lock couplings?Tension lock couplings are the standard couplings for model trains in the UK. These are the ones we all know from...
- How do I test the width between the wheels of my engines?The best way to check the wheels of your locomotives is to use a tool called a back to back gauge. They are...
- How do I clean the wheels of my engine?One easy way is to get yourself a Peco cleaning kit containing a wire brush, wheel scraper, foam cradle and oil. The...