A book, this time
"Diesel Traction - A Manual for Enginemen", found in a workshop my dad was clearing out some time in the late 1970s. On the inside cover is a date stamp that reads "British Railways / Loco Shed Master / 16 APR 1963", and on the flyleaf is my name and where we lived, in my dad's handwriting. It too smells of Old Book, and old machinery. The target audience was engine drivers and crew of steam trains, making the transition to diesel-mechanical, diesel-hydraulic and diesel-electric locomotives. I remember reading it one rather wet weekend when I was a wee proto-geek aged about six or seven (so round about when he gave me it, I suppose), when one of the diagrams - as I recall, of an epicyclic gearbox - just kind of clicked into place. I could see *exactly* how the brake bands stopped the outer ring from turning, how the sun gear would drive the planet gears around the inside and push the planet carrier, and how releasing the brake band and pulling the next one on would change you up to second... and then up to third... and then pop that clutch in and it locks solid, that's you in straight through top - and I knew at that moment not just how a Wilson epicyclic gearbox worked, but how the *whole world* worked.

I just had to find the right book with the diagrams, and I could figure out how to do *anything*.

Almost nothing comes with proper diagrams any more. I've always known how to fix train gearboxes, though.
(edit - at Scrumper's suggestion, a scan of the Deltic engine diagrams. Click for big versions.)

(gordonjcp, Mon 8 Nov 2010, 20:29, 6 replies)

Fantastic
Great thing for a boy to have. Did it feature a diagram of the Napier Deltic engine too? That's up there with epicyclic gears for me, a really baroque and wonderful contrivance with a perfect simplicity once you see it.
( Scrumper, Mon 8 Nov 2010, 21:14, closed)

It does.
Do you know what, I might well scan it in and post it as a reply. Now there's a *fantastic* piece of redundant technology.

I had the pleasure of hearing one go past about two years ago, when I lived near Westerton Station. A Deltic-hauled rail tour was coming back down from the West Highland Line. Brought back a lot of memories of watching them hauling through the straight at Arbroath, that unearthly wail...
(gordonjcp, Mon 8 Nov 2010, 22:33, closed)

Uuurrgghh...
I'm sorry, I've just come. Somewhere on the interwebs (ah, here :http://rowla.dyndns.org/justin/img/piston_deltic640.avi) is the magnificent animation of all 36 pistons and 3 crankshafts thrusting in perfect harmony.
(all my scars face forward possesses 2.5% of a hyperalloy combat chassis, Tue 9 Nov 2010, 9:35, closed)

Please do this!
I'd love to see it if you can scan it.

Can't wait to look at that video when I get back from work tonight either. The wife will find me hunched over the computer, staring at the screen while making odd little satisfied noises as I unravel the motion in my mind. I'll hear her come in and guitily minimise the window out of reflex.

"Aha!" she'll say, "Caught you again, you dirty wanker!"
"But no, my good lady! See?" and I'll show her the mighty Deltic's 36 throbbing pistons. "Look at that! It's mechanical poetry!"

Then she'll look at me with a confused, vaguely sad look on her face and walk off. I'll then sigh a bit and realise that if I actually had been looking at porn then she wouldn't think I was odd and might even have joined in. A slightly awkward dinner will follow, then maybe some perfunctory lovemaking, and in the morning her pillow will still be damp from her silent tears.

All this because she's a huge steam nut. Can't stand diesels.

EDIT: I see that you did scan it already! Thanks very much.
( Scrumper, Tue 9 Nov 2010, 14:51, closed)

Yay for engineering porn!

(Sir Tainley Barking Ezekiel 23:20, Mon 8 Nov 2010, 23:21, closed)

I have this book!
Clicked. Clicked HARD.
(Good old boy just like yer grandma!, Tue 9 Nov 2010, 22:54, closed)