LGB Otto Mallett Bash

[CoggesRailway]

When your thumbs better what are you going to do with about the smoke box saddle does an otto have one?

I really really like this. As you can easily do it, fill those tanks with shot so you can take the pootank record!

Ian

 

[Zerogee]

Looking at the work so far (which is excellent!) got me thinking about the geometry of Mallett (or Garratt, or Meyer) articulation, both in Real Life and model form....
Am I right in thinking that if BOTH drive units swivel, then each can be pivoted on or near its own centre point, but if the rear unit is fixed in position then the front unit must be pivoted somewhere BEHIND its own wheelbase, round about the centre point of the overall loco chassis length? As far as I can see, unless this is done it is impossible for all the wheels to follow a curve - or am I missing something?

Jon

 

[stockers]

The Mallet has a rear cylinder/wheel set fixed in the frames and a flexible forward drive assembly. The forward assembly is usually pivoted near the rear axle. This is a fixed pivot (no lateral movement at this point), so the leading axels of this front truck are all that can move sideways. On our typically excessive curves, model manufacturers make both drive units as flexible trucks.

 

[Don Gilham]

Bleddy good Gareth !!

Errr,
I think that was the last adjective I'd have used Don, now that Gareth has 2 left thumbs.... :thumbdown:

Ack I'm all thumbs, Gizz, he can have one of mine

 

[yb281]

Bleddy good Gareth !!

Errr,
I think that was the last adjective I'd have used Don, now that Gareth has 2 left thumbs.... :thumbdown:

Ack I'm all thumbs, Gizz, he can have one of mine

Any Norfolk jokes in a sealed envelope please.

 

[Gizzy]

Bleddy good Gareth !!

Errr,
I think that was the last adjective I'd have used Don, now that Gareth has 2 left thumbs.... :thumbdown:

Ack I'm all thumbs, Gizz, he can have one of mine

Any Norfolk jokes in a sealed envelope please.

Great; give me six Don....

 

[Gizzy]

Should be able to crack on again at the weekend once the stiches have done their work.

Think we've all been in stitches, having heard about your accident mate....

 

[3Valve]

Should be able to crack on again at the weekend once the stiches have done their work.

Think we've all been in stitches, having heard about your accident mate....

Happy to oblige mate.

 

[3Valve]

Re:LGB Otto Mallet Bash

Great prototype Garath. Do you have any history of it?

There are few sites around the net that give a history of specific O&K Mallets. Used quite heavily in Indonesian Sugar Mills apparently. I think that the one in my initial post was an ex Indonesian example that now belongs to the Light Railway Museum Society in Frankfurt. Statfold Barn Railway also has an ex Indonesian example. The Frankfurt Feldbahn Museum site is a cracker. Some lovely piccies of their Mallet, (the one in my opening post) and a downloadable PDF telling the story of it's restoration.

Anyhoo, here's a couple of O&K Mallet Links

http://www.bbr.org.au/o&k_mallet.htm

http://www.statfoldbarnrailway.co.uk/locomotives_Mallet.php

and the Frankfurt Feldbahn Museum if yer German is up to it (or google translate)

http://www.feldbahn-ffm.de/

 

[Alpineandy]

Thanks for all the kind comments on the Otto Mallett bash folks. Work is unfortuantely temporarily suspended due to an incident involving my left thumb a Stanley Knife and a Trip to A&E :bleh: (Still got two thumbs though )

Should be able to crack on again at the weekend once the stiches have done their work.

Obviously you didn'y carry out a thorough risk assesment............and you need the correct protective clothing/gloves etc..............
Lovely model well proportioned.......

PS how to tell a British Astronaut from the rest...........he'll be the one with the hard hat on and High Viz jacket..............:wave:

 

[3Valve]

Oh hang on a minute, this looks slightly familiar. It appears I've accidentally built a Borsig

 

[3Valve]

Wow, doesn't the time fly by? Can't believe that it was November last time I worked on the Otto Mallet bash.

I bit more progress has been made some fo which you can see, some of which is a little more subtle. Here's a few piccies. Been so long since I updated cos I couldn't work out how to mount the boiler, then realised that I was severerly over-engineering it. No-one would see the boiler mounts anyhoo, so I pressed on.

Haven't done the tops of the tanks yet. Want to make em removeable in case I decide to go battery power, or if track powered, to add additinal weight for visiting a certain Ruritanian paradise

So what has been done? New buffer beam fabricated and buffers robbed from one of the donor Otto's. Handrails and cab steps (again from the Otto). Coal rail around the bunker, started to fabricate replacement cylinder covers (reusing the Otto oilers on the front cylinders, rear cylinders will have tank mounted oilers and pipework).

and the stuff you can't see. The body assembly is now properly mounted onto the chassis using the original LGB screws from the Otto. I want to be able to dismantle the whole loco for servicing/chipping as you would be able to do with any LGB loco, so it's taken a while to work out how/where to mount the body.

 

[yb281]

Well worth waiting for mate.

 

[3Valve]

Cheers bud, and I've still got both my thumbs

 

[a98087]

Looking very very tasty, are you able/willing to share how how you have managed the bogie pivots?

I'm only asking as I currently have 2 ottos and want to do a kit bash or some sort and just researching all options

 

[jameshilton]

Definitely looking good

 

[3Valve]

Looking very very tasty, are you able/willing to share how how you have managed the bogie pivots?

I'm only asking as I currently have 2 ottos and want to do a kit bash or some sort and just researching all options

Bogies are temporarily lashed together using brass strip screwed to each chassis block using the original LGB screw and mounting hole.

The permanent solution will be better engineered, and will still use the original mounting holes and screws on each chassis. It's just voices in my head at the mo (very clear voices though). As soon as I've sorted it there'll be piccies mate.

 

[Tizaker]

Wonderful project / great work.

 

[CoggesRailway]

very cool!

 

[3Valve]

A wee bit more progress tonight.
2nd front Cylinder cover made up, rear lamp mounted, tank tops sorted and filler caps fitted.

The loco stripped down to its basic components for maintenance.

Removeable tank lids for installation of batteries, dcc chips or additional weight.

The lip on the back of each lid ensures a good snug and level fit