# More smoke from a post-war - a slightly different approach



## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

I've seen some of the impressive results folks are getting with resistors and decided to play around with an old 2018 that's seen lots of use and needs a refurb. 

I decided to try making my own heater out of #30 ni-chrome wire. I did some experimenting with different materials, lengths (resistances) and shapes with some interesting results. For example, I tried 8 ohms of wire wound around fiberglass. It gave off impressive clouds of smoke even at 10 volts, but the smoke fluid actually burst into flames at 20v. It _was_ pretty cool to see a jet of fire roaring out of the smokestack, but probably not the best idea in a children's toy... 

Anyway, here is what I settled on, tested to be safe at 20 volts:

The substrate:










A piece of circuit board. This is "bread board", predrilled with holes normally used for making wire connections, now just a good way to ensure the substrate is permeable. I cut, drilled and notched it by hand to fit snugly in the base of the smoke unit. 

#30 wire is almost exactly 0.01" in diameter. So I carefully notched each edge with an engraving bit every 0.020". Twenty notches on each edge to keep the un-insulated wire separated. If I did the math right, it should end up being 15 ohms resistance. 

I folded a thin piece of fiberglass over the end of the substrate before winding:










No, my eyes are not that good. I had to wear a magnifier while doing this. The copper wire was fed through a hole in the breadboard and back again to anchor it. The ni-chrome was wire-wrapped around the copper. Ni-chrome is notoriously hard to solder! The end result? 14.7 ohms: close enough for government work. 

A thin layer of fiberglass was laid in the bottom of the smoke unit before installing my home-made heater and covering it with another layer of fiberglass: 










I assembled the top and sealed the holes with woodstove gasket adhesive. Should be heat-proof. 

And here we are, running at about 13 volts:


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[video src="http://picturehosting.verhey.org/trains/Smokin/test_run_480x360.flv" width="480" height="360"]
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Hmmm. That didn't work either. Ok, I'm not sure how you insert a video on this forum, so I guess you'll have to go here to judge the results:

http://picturehosting.verhey.org/trains/Smokin/test_run_480x360.html

EDIT: Here's a screen shot from the video:


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Wow, works very well! Good idea, even though most of it was lost on me! Nice layout!


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## rkenney (Aug 10, 2013)

Very nice, I appreciate your tenacity! Now for the specs; how much wire (length)? total resistance? brand of smoke fluid? etc...:appl:


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Clever.


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## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

rkenney said:


> Very nice, I appreciate your tenacity! Now for the specs; how much wire (length)? total resistance? brand of smoke fluid? etc...:appl:


Well, as I said, the total resistance was 14.7 ohms. The wire has a resistance of 6.68Ω per foot so I was trying to squeeze 27" of wire in there without any contact with the metal body of the smoke unit. The board width was approximately 0.675" and the 20 windings are 0.020" apart. 

Based on recommendations by others on this board, that's Mega-steam smoke fluid. Respecting the vintage of the engine, it's the smoke pellet scented version. :laugh:


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## flyernut (Oct 31, 2010)

Nice job..:smilie_daumenpos:


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

That really smokes!:smilie_daumenpos:

Does it pour the smoke out when your going at a slower speed?


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## Kwikster (Feb 22, 2012)

Hmm, based on the apparent speed of that loco I'm guessing a track voltage of around 13-14 volts (it's flying  ). You are getting some good output that's for sure. The original smokers had between 12 and 16 ohms IIRC. One old "trick" to make more smoke was to unwind a turn or two to make them hotter. It could shorten the life a bit, but was worth the effort. The last step improves smoke at lower voltages as well.

Carl


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## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

Kwikster said:


> Hmm, based on the apparent speed of that loco I'm guessing a track voltage of around 13-14 volts (it's flying  ).


Yup, 13 volts. I think I mentioned that in the original post? 

It puffs pretty good at lower speeds too, but the engine doesn't run so well. Needs new brushes, servicing of the e-unit, and a good cleaning. I figured I'd do my experimenting on one that needed work anyway. 

Besides, I think it's more dramatic to see the puffs of smoke streaming back over the cars.


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## erkenbrand (Dec 6, 2010)

That's a really cool approach. I wish you had video of the flames shooting from the stack.


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## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

erkenbrand said:


> That's a really cool approach. I wish you had video of the flames shooting from the stack.


So do I. But not enough to do it again.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

If you add a couple of sets of series diodes to the motor leads, you'll get more smoke at lower speeds.


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## larry g (Oct 8, 2012)

Hey torch:

Great smoking video.
How many MPH when converted to scale??
Land speed record??


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## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

Well, let's see: It's about 30' around the inner loop. In 14 seconds. So that's 2.143 feet per second or 1.461mph. Assuming a scale of 1:48, then that's a scale speed of about 70mph (maybe the engineer's name was Steve Broady?*). 

According to Wikipedia, the world record for a steam loco is 125.88mph -- oddly enough, pulling the same number of cars (a dyno car and 6 coaches). 

So no record, but the Gs pulled in the curves would certainly exceed anything accomplished in full-scale... 


*If you don't catch the reference see this link.


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## callmeIshmael2 (May 28, 2012)

...gasp...choke...wow, that's some smoke! Great thread and thanks for the posting. I have a 2018, too, and I do think that they, for some reason, tend to be good smokers. I installed 3 liquid smoke units (from The Train Tender) in the 2018, a 2046 and a 2035 with varying results - using, of course, Megasteam fluid. The 2018 was far and away the best smoker (thanks for the seminar, Erkenbrand!), and the 2046 and 2035 smoke well... certainly worth the few minutes time, a bit of solder, and the unscrewing and rescrewing of the locos. Satisfaction, unlike the Rolling Stones, is guaranteed. Torch, how long can you run that great little loco without being overcome by the smoke? I can only take my #2018 for about 4 or 5 minutes and I have to get out of my train room...


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## rkenney (Aug 10, 2013)

Great tune! Good film! I just don't understand how it turned into a marriage lesson?

Johnny having problems about that time? hwell:


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## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

rkenney said:


> Great tune! Good film! I just don't understand how it turned into a marriage lesson?
> 
> Johnny having problems about that time? hwell:


He didn't write the song. It was based on a true incident and supposedly written by a relative. Maybe the author had some inside info? If you are bored, there's an interesting Wikipedia article here.


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## rkenney (Aug 10, 2013)

Great read, Thanks.


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## torch (Dec 8, 2014)

I cleaned and lubed the motor so it will run reliably at a slower speed. Here it is after the addition of a couple of diodes. Scale speed works out to 47mph.

http://picturehosting.verhey.org/trains/Smokin/test_2_480x360.html

(I still haven't figured out how to embed video on this forum)


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## icolectto (Nov 28, 2012)

Great Job! Thanks for sharing.


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