Roundhouse Fowler

[Anonymous]

Tis the Goring fellow again; now having resolved the burner problem with the help of you good folk I then found in spite of the burner burning there was a distinct lack of umph. Coercing the brain cell into some sort of activity I discovered that although the safety valve was lifting the pressure gauge
was showing only 10 psi. I feel that this could be the cause of the lack of go, is it feasible to alter the settings of the Roundhouse valves or does it come more expensive than that? Thanks for any comments Brian

[kstrong]

The Roundhouse safety valve can be set to a higher pressure. You'll notice some small slots/holes in the top of the safety valve. Not only are these the outlets for the escaping steam, but they allow you to set the pressure, too. Fire the loco, and wait for the safety to blow. Once it lets off its steam, take a small pair of fine-tipped needlenose pliers, inserting the tips into two of the slots. Rotate clockwise a bit, and let the pressure build up again. See where the needle reads when the pressure blows off again. It should be slightly higher. Repeat this procedure until the safety pops off at around 40 psi. How much each turn translates into increased pressure is dependent on the spring inside the valve, so I'd take things in quarter-turn steps until you get a feel for how much each turn will increase your pressure.

Later,

K

[Anonymous]

Thanks a lot Kevin your help is much appreciated but lying in bed and reflecting upon the various problems besetting the world at this time I did a flashback thing (very popular with modern movies) and recalled that in fact the safety valve had been spitting and emitting water once it had started to boil. Which in hindsight tends to make me think that perhaps the problem lies with the valve seat. No I don't think that the same gunge bfrom the burner has made it's way into the valve seating or has it ? It does begin to look like a serious dismantling job, perhaps next week!