Darn you NER

[rabid]

...set the dampers at a sensible level ( which you have to do with auto firing anyway )...

(ahem) I have erm... never actually used the dampers!

I guess I really need to look around for a Manual Firing for Dummies guide.

David.

[Kariban]

You can think of them as a gearbox for the fire - the draught ( which is directly related to how much steam you use ) is the throttle to make the fire burn harder, the dampers control how much air you let in so act as a multiplier to the draught. And well, hotter fire = more steam production = bigger cutoffs = more power. There's a reason boilers have horsepower ratings.

[alexnick]

One thing which may interest you is the GWR's electification proposal drafted in the Collett era. It's only now, however, that we're seeing anything of it. Whether this was anything more than a negotiating ploy with their coal suppliers is another matter though. The real success of Collett's engineering, I feel, was in his use of standardised parts in different designs, which in railway economic terms, was a substantial efficiency gain, and allowed smaller specialised classes to be maintained at a lower cost.

However, my real reason for responding was that I agree that the NER is one of the more interesting pre-grouping railways, and certainly my favourite constituent of the LNER. I particularly like Raven's freight locomotives, such as the Q6 (and an excellent survivor in preservation) and the high-sided coal and iron hoppers which they hauled. Another NER feat was the Tyne docks line, which was electrified very early with those nice steeple-cab locos (one is preserved at Shildon).

However, Railworks is always good for making you look into new bits of railway history. For instance, I only started looking at the S&D after RW came out.

AN

[Thugsy]

I'm going to visit the Horseshoe Curve next month for real. As somebody who was only ever interested in UK and European rail beforehand that shows you how much Railworks has influenced my thinking.