I'm building this Atlas Water tower kit and and had a couple of questions:
https://shop.atlasrr.com/p-4228-ho-water-tower-kit.aspx
It has a lever apparatus on the roof and it's supposed to connect with a chain somehow to the spout or the main chains used to raise and lower the spout with the counterweights.
Questions:What is the purpose of this lever apparatus on the roof? When would it be used?If I connect a chain to the lever, what should the other end be connected to? The instructions show a drawing but it's not clear what I would connect the other end to? The main chains somehow or to the spout directly?
What would the bracket material that holds the spout be made of? Wood or metal? The section where the spout meets would clearly be metal, as would the "eyes" for the chains to be fed through. Would the rest of the main brackets be wood or metal, colors to paint them?Thanks!
I've seen two versions that seem to do the same thing. The chain from the roof lever runs to the same point on the spout as the two chains running to the counterweights or attached to one of two chains. On some towers, the lever moves with the same range of motion as the spout. On others, it is fixed and there's a lot of slack in the chain to account for the spout movement.
Either way, I think that the point of the thing is to help reduce the lateral movement of the spout.
I thought that lever went to a vertical rod that pulled up a valve inside the tank (where it wouldn't easily freeze) when the spout was pulled down. When the counterweights pull the spout back up the weight of the rod reseats the valve without the man on the tender having to reach for some kind of shutoff.
Compare the lever to your tank and flapper valve on your toilet:
Cistern_top-detail by Edmund, on Flickr
Chain (or rope) connected to top lever then another chain and/or rod down to the valve at the bottom of the cistern. Valve is self-closing and the weight of the water makes the seal. Probably a leather (rawhide) seal on the stopper.
At the bottom of that rod:
Cistern_valve-detail by Edmund, on Flickr
— and the whole shebang:
Cistern_fix by Edmund, on Flickr
Good Luck, Ed
ChrisVAIt has a lever apparatus on the roof and it's supposed to connect with a chain somehow to the spout or the main chains used to raise and lower the spout with the counterweights. Questions: What is the purpose of this lever apparatus on the roof? When would it be used? If I connect a chain to the lever, what should the other end be connected to?
As Ed's drawing shows the chain or rope goes to a lever on the roof or in under the eves to a lever inside. Pulling on this, the "flapper" is raised and the water flows. Let the chain or rope go and the valve slams shut. The other end of the chain or rope is attached to the end of the spout or chain near the end so the guy filling the tank can easily grab it.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
OvermodI thought that lever went to a vertical rod that pulled up a valve inside the tank
Yeah, I agree, as I seem to recall a long ago MR article on scratchbuilding a water tower, which mentioned that valve/plug feature, and it's purpose.
Wayne
Brilliant. I love model railroading. As my dad would often say, "you learn something new every day if you're not careful."
-Matt
Returning to model railroading after 40 years and taking unconscionable liberties with the SP&S, Northern Pacific and Great Northern roads in the '40s and '50s.