The handrail conundrum

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Greg_Lewis
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The handrail conundrum

Post by Greg_Lewis »

Here’s a puzzle for you. Take a look at the first photo below. Note that the handrail is bent between stanchions. Also note that there is only one connector, at the extreme right. The handrail looks to be a single piece as it is bent to go over the sander pipe and to accommodate the tapered boiler course.

Now I presume that the handrail stanchions are screwed onto studs. If that’s the case, how did they assemble this? If the stanchions are not screwed onto studs in the boiler, they would have to have been put onto the handrail before it was bent, and there would have to be some sort of setscrew to hold them onto the stud. But I see no evidence of any sort of setscrew. Note the photos of a similar locomotive with a better look at the stanchions. No setscrew visible (unless it's on the top side).

So how did they do that?
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Greg Lewis, Prop.
Eyeball Engineering — Home of the dull toolbit.
Our motto: "That looks about right."
Celebrating 35 years of turning perfectly good metal into bits of useless scrap.
Glenn Brooks
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Glenn Brooks »

Greg,
My guess is the stanchions are actually screwed into the sheet metal boiler wrap. then the handrails are inserted before the wrap is installed and everything is sort of kludged together around the boiler. My Ottaway has the handrails attached in this manner, directly to the sheet metal, not to an underlying fixture. Yet they look and act quite solid.

If the handrails are attached to a solid frame underneath, then it must be possible to insert the handrail from one end and twisted to and fro in some way, to worm its way through all the angles, to come out the other end.

Glenn
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Motive power : 1902 A.S.Campbell 4-4-0 American - 12 5/8" gauge, 1955 Ottaway 4-4-0 American 12" gauge

Ahaha, Retirement: the good life - drifting endlessly on a Sea of projects....
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NP317
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by NP317 »

This is what smoke and mirrors are for...
RussN
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Greg_Lewis »

NP317 wrote: Thu Mar 25, 2021 6:43 pm This is what smoke and mirrors are for...
RussN

Ah ha! I'll see if any of our vendors stock that.
Greg Lewis, Prop.
Eyeball Engineering — Home of the dull toolbit.
Our motto: "That looks about right."
Celebrating 35 years of turning perfectly good metal into bits of useless scrap.
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gwrdriver
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by gwrdriver »

While on the subject of handrails (and posts) can anyone point me to drawing of a well proportioned ball head, tapered shank (etc) post? I'll be looking for something I can use to take proportions from, not necessarily dimensions.
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Steve Goodbody
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Steve Goodbody »

gwrdriver:

Not wanting to hijack Greg's thread, but if you consider the stanchion below to be well-proportioned (and suitable) then I'm happy to PM you the dimensions. Let me know.
26.jpg
Best regards
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gwrdriver
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by gwrdriver »

PM sent
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Dick_Morris
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Dick_Morris »

These are the drawings for the War Department Consolidations.
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Greg_Lewis »

That's great, Dick. I'm going to start a new thread with details on how I made my columns.
Greg Lewis, Prop.
Eyeball Engineering — Home of the dull toolbit.
Our motto: "That looks about right."
Celebrating 35 years of turning perfectly good metal into bits of useless scrap.
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NP317
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by NP317 »

'Sounds to me like a threat...
:lol:
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Bill Shields
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Bill Shields »

From a manufacturing practicality standpoint=> I would make the handrail in sections..bent to fit.

Ends drilled (or it is pipe to begin with) with internal sleeves to provide alignment..with the joints directly under the balls...or the joints are there in plain sight covered in paint and rust.
Last edited by Bill Shields on Fri Mar 26, 2021 9:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Too many things going on to bother listing them.
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: The handrail conundrum

Post by Greg_Lewis »

NP317 wrote: Fri Mar 26, 2021 7:12 pm 'Sounds to me like a threat...
:lol:
RussN

I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse... :twisted:
Greg Lewis, Prop.
Eyeball Engineering — Home of the dull toolbit.
Our motto: "That looks about right."
Celebrating 35 years of turning perfectly good metal into bits of useless scrap.
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