Brakes..?

[Ron LadenParticipant @ronladen17547]

Morning guys.

Could you tell me what is a good material for brakes shoes..? I am designing and scratch building a 5 inch electric 0-4-0 shunter type loco. I was thinking of a simple lever system for the brakes with the brake lever in the cab.

Would delrin work ok for the shoes..? Also could I get by with just two shoes working on the rear wheels..?

Many thanks

Regards

Ron

 

Edited By Ron Laden on 07/05/2018 08:19:26

Edited By Ron Laden on 07/05/2018 08:20:44

Edited By Ron Laden on 07/05/2018 08:21:38

Edited By Ron Laden on 07/05/2018 08:22:12

[Ron LadenParticipant @ronladen17547]

[Trevor Drabble 1Participant @trevordrabble1]

In the past I have found Mashlin Friction of Sheffield very helpful . I have no connection with the company .

Trevor.

[richardandtracyParticipant @richardandtracy]

I doubt if Delrin would be great. It's soft with a lowish melting point, so will wear fast and may melt. I always remember a time when my dad melted his bicycle brake blocks on a long hill – the old fashioned rubber on rim type – so am always wary of low melting point brakes.

Many early locos used timber as the pad. Could a little bit of beech do you? Does the kitchen chopping board need changing – the boss may be pleased with a new one.

Regards

Richard.

[Russell EberhardtParticipant @russelleberhardt48058]

Usual material on model steam locos is cast iron. The brakes are mainly used for parking.

Russell

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Brakes on a loco are for show and stopping it rolling off the stand at exhibitions.

For stopping the train the brakes are on the driving trolley and typically cast iron but some people use bicycle brakes also sometimes on a disc instead of the wheels. If you are into modern mountain bikes you might know some hydraulic system you can adapt.

Depending on your controller the electric drive will provide all the braking the grip of the wheels can use.

As with full sized you must avoid locking the wheels at all costs.

Edited By Bazyle on 07/05/2018 10:44:22

Edited By Bazyle on 07/05/2018 10:46:56

[Ron LadenParticipant @ronladen17547]

Thanks guys.

I have a lot to learn as you can see.. Thanks Bazyle it sounds as if I will be ok with the braking from the controller.

Cheers

Ron

[John PurdyParticipant @johnpurdy78347]

Ron

I know the purists will frown but I made the brake blocks on my riding trolley of aluminum. All eight wheels are braked using compensating rigging and require only light finger pressure on the lever to come to a rapid stop. I had reservations about how long they would last but there is minimum wear after 20+ years. I made a wood pattern as per the photo and cast a ring of 8 shoes in aluminum. Machined all 8 together them cut the individual shoes apart.

John

[Ron LadenParticipant @ronladen17547]

Hi John,

At some point I will be building a riding trolley and will be needing brakes for that. I never gave aluminium a thought but I can see how it would work and its good to know that your experience shows very little wear. Similar to your pattern I was thinking of a machined ring of material and cutting/shaping them from that. Your casting is a great idea though as you have the full shape of the eight shoes built in and it just needs cutting into individual shoes…very good.

Regards

Ron

 

 

 

Edited By Ron Laden on 07/05/2018 19:01:48

[John PurdyParticipant @johnpurdy78347]

Ron

I machined the ring by holding in the 3 jaw and facing the back then the front to final thickness and tapering the inner surface to match the wheel tread. Transferred to the mill and cut the slots for the hangers with a 1/8" slitting saw, drilled the holes for the pins, hacks-sawed them apart and cleaned up the ends. Eight brake blocks in less than an hour.

As an added bonus they squeal prototypically when applied.

John

 

Edited By John Purdy on 07/05/2018 19:57:39

[Author]

Posts