Film Director turns Intrepid Explorer

And other Hand Powered Rail Vehicles
Railway Trike (AUS) Railway Kalamazoo (AUS) Pump Car (US,GB) Velorail (FR,GB)
Hajtany (HU) Railbike (US,GB) Dresinsykling (NO) Handcar (US) Drezina [SI]
Handhebeldraisine (DE) Drezina (RU) Resiina (FI) Drezyny (PL) Skinne cykel (DK)
Draisines (BE) Bicilinha (BR) Dresin (NO) Biciclette Ferroviarie (IT) Spoorvegfiets (BE)
Dressin (SE,NO) Dresina (SP) Schienenvelo (CH) Dreziny (CZ) Railway Jigger (NZ)
Cyclo Draisine (FR) Spoorfiets (NL) Cykeldressin (SE) Ferroviarie Quadriciclo (IT)
No 68 For this free email newsletter, contact: [email protected] Or download from:www.velocipedes.co.uk
2 foot gauge: Statfold Barn Railway, dates for 2016 9th April, 4th June, 10th September. www.statfoldbarnrailway.co.uk.
Film Director turns Intrepid Explorer
Howard, Director of “Velocipede the Movie”, (on the website), visits India in March 2015 and hunts down Hand Power on Rails
Some parts were just like home in Grosmont in the Esk Valley, the livestock particularly
and the Yorkshire water supply.
Only Joking. Ed.
The water carriers homemade rail trolley on old ball races, Darjeeling.
Howard visited the Darjeeling workshops at Tindaria.
(Howard stayed at the Legendary Victorian “Windermere Hotel” on his
visit. -The lucky devil - Ed.)
In the works, it has handles to push it, but what does it carry?
Howard went exploring at Tindaria
Howard photographed the workshop deities
Obviously a new look decor is planned at the North Yorkshire
Moors Railway workshops.
In the boiler shop
This is the only view I had of it. I could poke the lens through a hole
but I couldn't see it myself. It looks quite different from the others,
A Gravity Car, with “management” hand brake and Monsoon Canopy.
with health and safety advice.
.
Keeping the “Gremlins” pacified is universal in Engineering.
The Fabled Darjeeling Gravity Cars
Rear view including the Umbrella Holder.
Front View Trolley No. 57, outside its shed at Kurseong on the DHR.
Mark Twain was lucky enough to be invited to have run down on
one of these.
Side view.
No.57
Has lovely old fashioned simple dimensions.
Overall Length 6 ft, Frame length 5ft, Width 4 ft, Wheel Base 3 ft.
About to Gravity down
Tindahria Works
I think we were most fortunate to see the trolley run from
Tindahria works as it was for a passenger and I am told that is rare,
being strictly invitation only.
Over the road and ready to go
The honoured passenger loaded up
and on his special trip.
The chain ready for action.
Away and down the mountain.
At the works gate. (There appears to be a wire for attaching a chain to
the brake handle on the side of the car). The brake mechanism appears
to be similar to the Ghum Gravity Car on the next page.
Brake shoes and beams.
Pedal return spring.
A fascinating find at Ghum
The derelict trolley is in the small museum at Ghum (pronounced
GOOM) which is the actual summit at 7,400 ft. Darjeeling is the next
station along 600ft lower down.
Front
Back, the brake beam visible, with equaliser and rods.
Kalka Shimla Railway Two-foot six-inch gauge
Nilgiri Railway Metre Gauge
The self-assembly trollies are on the platform at Coonoor station,
which is at the top of the rack section of the Nilgiri Railway.
I was intrigued to see that they have no rack pinion of their own.
The narrow gauge steamer in the station is on the Kalka Shimla railway
at two foot six.
I didn't find any trollies on there, they hid them too well.
View underneath.
I don't know if they are confined to the upper non-rack section, or
whether they rely on the brake there, I wouldn't.
This is just a worn tyre in the works, but it is an example of the perfect
shape for a 3-wheel velocipede wheel. Editor.
Does it mean there are other, pinion fitted trolleys or do they rely
on walking?
Nilgiri Railway
Comes as a self assembly kit.
This machine has springs, a great luxury.
Nilgiri Railway
Where is the pin on a chain to hold the brakes on when the lever is pulled up?
Nilgiri Railway
The trolley on the ground is metre gauge, used in the shed at Coonoor,
which also serves as the works.
See how much things have changed in 100 years on the
next page
The broad gauge trolley on the next page was at Tundla Junction, near
Agrah. I had seen them removing it from its home at the entrance to the
station as we arrived. Most of the large stations had similar sheds,
comprising a row of 4 to 6 brick built and rendered sheds similar in size
to a rail motor hut at right angles to the tracks. Some had short lengths
of rail outside them, also similar to a rail motor hut. If all the sheds are
occupied, then they have a very large number of trolleys.
Broad Gauge Push Car
Tundla Junction 5 foot 6-inch gauge
Classic Indian Railways with the “pushers” walking on the rail head.
Having a rest, the Inspectors seatback (beautifully caned, see the shadow) is folded down and being sat on. The “pushers” are sitting on the “swan neck”
handles. It has pull up lifting handles and a footrest that folds up onto the deck. These machines have hardly changed since the 19th century.
Editor: we would like to build a gravity car to glide down 2-foot gauge slopes in the UK.
The target
Adam Rickett has found us a set of wheels.
We want to see what this group are looking at.
Photo David Wilding
A
Sherlock Holmes Award to the first reader to send in photos of the whole brake mechanism from
very low or below or a working drawing that fits what we know so far, see Ghum on page 7 and below.
We need some help with joining the layout of the back and front brake rigging.
Join these two halves and we can all join Mark Twain.
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Mark Twain describes his flight down the steep mountain of Darjeeling in a gravity car as:
“That was the most enjoyable time I have spent in the earth.
For rousing, tingling, rapturous pleasure there is no holiday trip that approaches the bird-flight down the Himalayas in a handcar.
It has no fault, no blemish, no lack, except that there are only thirty-five miles of it, instead of five hundred”.