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Pneumatic ROCKET Locomotive & Variants |
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After seeing the picture of the Rocket steam locomotive at Dr Rikvold's site,
I just had to build my own Lego version, with working pneumatics. So here's my rendition of George Stephenson's first steam locomotive, the ROCKET. This engine dates from ca. 1829 so it's kinda old tech stuff. But that thing topping the smoke stack, looks like a scrap from a space shuttle, no? |
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| Unlike my earlier 2-cylinder engine where the pneumatic cylinder oscillates about the pivot point, the pneumatic cylinder in this design is fixed. The piston drives the cam through a connecting rod represented by two 1x7 halfbeams. This linkage is geometrically correct so it will turn the cam round without much effort. | |
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| Note how the cam is oriented on the other side to give 90 degree offset. | The connecting rods linking the pneumatic valves should be 1x6 half-beams. But I have lots of the 1x7 half beams, so I used them instead. |
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The boiler and the smoke stack are easily detached to reveal the pneumatic valve mechanism. As you can see, the early ROCKET is driven by the low-tech but highly effective hand-pump. |
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| A new version of Stephenson's Rocket is under construction. Here's a preview. |
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| Definitive Stephenson's ROCKET | |
| Here's my definitive Stephenson's Rocket complete with tender vehicle. The original Rocket was mostly black with yellow trim which coincidentally are the Lego pneumatic colors. | |
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| The side plate carries the distinctive Rocket label. | There's coal and there's water. |
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| While stoking up the fire, the engine driver keeps an eye on the tachometer and other gauges. | The innards that makes the wheels go round. Notice I got the right length of half beams here. |
| Variations on the ROCKET Theme | |
Fast forward to the 21st century and what do we have, why, the high-tech RCX Controlled version, no less. Note that the boiler has been replaced by a newer energy source, namely batteries, carried in the RCX brick. Actually, the RCX itself doesn't have much to do except turn the pump motor on and off. Maybe I gotta add some sensors stuff to justify the RCX being there. |
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| Well, the driver sure looks like he needs the crash helmet
which he didn't require back in 1829 when his maximum speed was only 24 mph. This
version is powered by Ralph's double-acting
compressor sited at the rear. Looking like twin turbo jets, it sure gives it the
high-tech touch! |
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| Here's the souped-up version fitted with tyres to run on the road instead of rails. | |
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| Using wheels with tyres requires a larger spacing between the piston and the cam and a longer connecting rod. Although it works, the linkage using the 1x10 beam does not appear to be geometrically exact, so it needs some effort to make it turn the cam round. | |
| And finally, here's a version of the original Rocket fitted with tyres. I wonder if George Stephenson would have approved this design. | |
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