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Vulcan Duplex DCC Conversion
Vulcan Duplex DCC Conversion
The Vulcan Iron Works was a foundry active in America from the mid 19th century through the mid 20th century. Their primary production was railroad locomotives, and they designed and built a catalog focused on industrial movers. Although they are particularly noted for their small industrial diesels, they did foray into steam power as well. One particularly interesting and unique design they put together was their duplex steam engine. Unlike the more traditional and ubiquitous steam locomotive design which has two steam cylinders powering one set of driving wheels, a "duplex" locomotive generally has two individual smaller sets of drive wheels each powered by their own pair of steam cylinders. This is the same concept used in larger articulated locomotives like the Kitson-Meyer, Beyer-Peacock Garratt, and the notable Pennsylvania T-1s and Union Pacific "Big Boy". The advantages of this more complicated to engineer design are numerous: it spreads the weight of the locomotive more evenly upon the rails, it can result in a greater tractive effort meaning a more powerful locomotive, it allows the locomotive to negotiate tighter track radii, and it saves wear on the track by reducing the "hammering" effect produced by single driver rods rhythmically slamming up and down.
Vulcan produced their duplex locomotive (which is quite small by the traditional image of articulated locomotives) during the early 1930s. The company was seeking to produce a locomotive to compete with the powerful and successful geared steam locomotives designed by Ephriam Shay, Charles Heisler, and Rush Battles (Climax), which were widely and effectively used in logging and mining operations nation wide. Vulcan's design, however, never really caught on, and may have been a case of "too little, too late" in the minds of their target clients. Although records are scant, it appears Vulcan produced less than 10 of their prototype, each of which was a little different, and the design never caught on or saw wide use.
As a geared steam and narrow gauge enthusiast always captivated by the unusual, the Vulcan Duplex was an irresistible prototype. The Japanese brass locomotive producer Pacific Fast Mail did a very limited run of the prototype in 1976 with less than 450 models produced, and one or two smaller runs in the years to follow. Needless to say then, this is a sought after and fairly rare model, not often appearing on the market and often commanding highly inflated prices.
I was very fortunate to acquire my locomotive at a very reasonable price from a gentleman who was the original purchaser. The locomotive was never run, only packed away and safely stored since the 70's. This being the case, the model is in mint original condition, still protected by its factory lacquer.
Besides lubricating the mechanisms, the only work I did on this beautiful locomotive was to add a DCC chip to the large, open frame Pittman motor (a dinosaur by today's standards). The installation was fairly straight forward, if a little nerve wracking because of it. Pulling apart an immaculate old brass (the locomotive is nearly 100% brass construction) model is a little harrowing, especially as there are absolutly no replacement parts available. However, not to do so would have severely limited the running capacity and opportunity for this locomotive, and I felt it a worth while endeavor with more pros than cons.
I have documented the installation below, for others who may have similar models and are looking to do a similar DCC conversion; PFM models are, in my experience, very similar "under the hood".
The Vulcan Iron Works was a foundry active in America from the mid 19th century through the mid 20th century. Their primary production was railroad locomotives, and they designed and built a catalog focused on industrial movers. Although they are particularly noted for their small industrial diesels, they did foray into steam power as well. One particularly interesting and unique design they put together was their duplex steam engine. Unlike the more traditional and ubiquitous steam locomotive design which has two steam cylinders powering one set of driving wheels, a "duplex" locomotive generally has two individual smaller sets of drive wheels each powered by their own pair of steam cylinders. This is the same concept used in larger articulated locomotives like the Kitson-Meyer, Beyer-Peacock Garratt, and the notable Pennsylvania T-1s and Union Pacific "Big Boy". The advantages of this more complicated to engineer design are numerous: it spreads the weight of the locomotive more evenly upon the rails, it can result in a greater tractive effort meaning a more powerful locomotive, it allows the locomotive to negotiate tighter track radii, and it saves wear on the track by reducing the "hammering" effect produced by single driver rods rhythmically slamming up and down.
Vulcan produced their duplex locomotive (which is quite small by the traditional image of articulated locomotives) during the early 1930s. The company was seeking to produce a locomotive to compete with the powerful and successful geared steam locomotives designed by Ephriam Shay, Charles Heisler, and Rush Battles (Climax), which were widely and effectively used in logging and mining operations nation wide. Vulcan's design, however, never really caught on, and may have been a case of "too little, too late" in the minds of their target clients. Although records are scant, it appears Vulcan produced less than 10 of their prototype, each of which was a little different, and the design never caught on or saw wide use.
As a geared steam and narrow gauge enthusiast always captivated by the unusual, the Vulcan Duplex was an irresistible prototype. The Japanese brass locomotive producer Pacific Fast Mail did a very limited run of the prototype in 1976 with less than 450 models produced, and one or two smaller runs in the years to follow. Needless to say then, this is a sought after and fairly rare model, not often appearing on the market and often commanding highly inflated prices.
I was very fortunate to acquire my locomotive at a very reasonable price from a gentleman who was the original purchaser. The locomotive was never run, only packed away and safely stored since the 70's. This being the case, the model is in mint original condition, still protected by its factory lacquer.
Besides lubricating the mechanisms, the only work I did on this beautiful locomotive was to add a DCC chip to the large, open frame Pittman motor (a dinosaur by today's standards). The installation was fairly straight forward, if a little nerve wracking because of it. Pulling apart an immaculate old brass (the locomotive is nearly 100% brass construction) model is a little harrowing, especially as there are absolutly no replacement parts available. However, not to do so would have severely limited the running capacity and opportunity for this locomotive, and I felt it a worth while endeavor with more pros than cons.
I have documented the installation below, for others who may have similar models and are looking to do a similar DCC conversion; PFM models are, in my experience, very similar "under the hood".
Click picture for more detail
Click picture for more detail
Click picture for more detail
Click picture for more detail
The following gallery is of the DCC chipped duplex running on the mainline of the Elmhurst Model Railroad Club's layout, my usual haunt. This was essentially an inaugural run, and the locomotive is, at the time of writing, still breaking in. The action is smoothing out, and there is not too much motor and mechanism noise.
The following gallery is of the DCC chipped duplex running on the mainline of the Elmhurst Model Railroad Club's layout, my usual haunt. This was essentially an inaugural run, and the locomotive is, at the time of writing, still breaking in. The action is smoothing out, and there is not too much motor and mechanism noise.
Finally, here are two brief videos of the locomotive in action. This locomotive is, as so many models are, beautiful to see static, but its true charm is really turned on when observed in motion. There will surely be more videos to come, posted on my YouTube channel.
Finally, here are two brief videos of the locomotive in action. This locomotive is, as so many models are, beautiful to see static, but its true charm is really turned on when observed in motion. There will surely be more videos to come, posted on my YouTube channel.