I turned the heater off in my BLI Connie. No interest in what looks to me like it's drifting off of a lit cigarette left in an ashtray in a hotel lobby.
-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.
rrinker It's the volume - the old smokers were just heaters, we had a couple on some buildings in our old west town. Didn't turn it on very often. The new ones with the synchronized chuffs have a fan in there and bklow out huge plumes of smoke. But the smoke fluid is mostly the same thing - it's in the past always been mineral oil. That is very strange the BLI smokers cooked themselves. Not sure how they got power with the slide switch turned off. The extra wires are for the fan drive, in addition to the heater wires for the smoke. Back in the 80's I think it was, there used to be full page ads in MR for all sorts of sceneted smoke fluid from "Aromatic Airs". Some made sense - coal smoke, pine wood, etc. But they had some really wild ones as well - some I don't think would be terribly welcome in the train room, or are readily avaialble through other forms when you have typical model railroaders as visitors. --Randy
It's the volume - the old smokers were just heaters, we had a couple on some buildings in our old west town. Didn't turn it on very often. The new ones with the synchronized chuffs have a fan in there and bklow out huge plumes of smoke. But the smoke fluid is mostly the same thing - it's in the past always been mineral oil.
That is very strange the BLI smokers cooked themselves. Not sure how they got power with the slide switch turned off. The extra wires are for the fan drive, in addition to the heater wires for the smoke.
Back in the 80's I think it was, there used to be full page ads in MR for all sorts of sceneted smoke fluid from "Aromatic Airs". Some made sense - coal smoke, pine wood, etc. But they had some really wild ones as well - some I don't think would be terribly welcome in the train room, or are readily avaialble through other forms when you have typical model railroaders as visitors.
--Randy
Those aromatic airs were actually intended for use on an an absorbent block that was put inside a building not in an engine. I remember they had several chemical smells and a (guess this was everyone's favorite ) stock yard smell. Mikros that made them made a wireless brake man figure and a mine cutaway and that was about it besides the scents. They sure did not last long.
I tried to reply to you via PM, but it's just one of the functions on this site that doesn't work, at least not for me. Randy passed away 16 months ago or so.
North Dakota does not permit smoking inside of buildings.
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
Well this was a interesting read.
I have no less then 4 BLI smokers (HO), all freight of course and do enjoy the smoke and stink for about one hour. No oil residue yet on the ROW, just some oil residue around the stack. When the loco. sits still the smoke just slowly rises out of the stack and when the loco. is 'working' the smoke puffing out of the stack is synchronized with the 'chuff'. Most of the time the smoke unit is turned off, I hope. I have tried the oil that is supposed to smell like 'burning coal'. Can you see me laughing yet? I only have the Loco. I am 'working' set to smoke at that time.
Oh, and I have a 'smoking' 40' livestock car compleat with a DCC decoder to turn on and off a smoke generator. Of course there is no livestock in the car only 'straw'. But the Train will need to go into the next siding with a access road and hope the Dispatcher called the local Fire Dept.
I picked up two very cool books at the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter Thrift Store for like $2.00 each. And to think I picked them each up two times and sat them back down and walked away. Think Black and White photos some clear and some not so clear. One book (Pennsy Steam and semaphores by Fred Westing) of course is all Steam. In this book I counted 135 locos. working and non-working with no steam coming from the stack and 145 locos. working and non-working with light to heavy smoke coming from their stacks.
The second book is black and white photos also (Rails to Pittsburg, by W. A. Feibelman)
I going down to train room and Stoke the fires.
No smoking steamers or diesels for me.
I can not tolerate it.
(Some with asthma it does bother, myself included.)
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
I only have a few HO scale steamers with smoke capability, but I have never used it. As a kid, my American Flyer loomotive did have smoke capability, and I used to spend a good portion of my allowance on those smoke capsules. About 10 years ago, I hauled out my American Flyer from storage and rehabbed it. I bought a small bottle of smoke fluid and had that sucker belching a ton of thick smoke. LOL.
Rich
Alton Junction
Smoke is one of those things that non-railroading visitors love to see. It does add something to the RR experience. When it's just me or my operators, we don't run smoke because it tends to leave an oily residue on objects close to the tracks.
JJF
Prototypically modeling the Great Northern in Minnesota with just a hint of freelancing.
Yesterday is History.
Tomorrow is a Mystery.
But today is a Gift, that is why it is called the Present.
There is an 'Indoor G scale Hudson' on youtube that would probably answer your question for you. Would love to see it in HO.
PMR
PMR's referenced video (one of a couple out there)
Mike
Water Level Route PMR's referenced video (one of a couple out there)
Looks pretty good to me.