The Aster NYC Hudson
Modifications and
Updates to a 20 year old beauty.
by Fred Gandolfi
(with additional pictures and
information supplied by John Garrett)
Background:
A
short while back I had the opportunity to purchase a Aster J-1C Hudson from an
online auction. I’ve loved this style engine since my youth running my Lionel
in the basement. Only hearing little bits of conversations over the years about
this engine didn’t mean much to me since I thought that I would never own one.
I really didn’t know what to expect when I finally got to bring her home.
Since the seller was only 350 miles away, we made plans to meet half way and
make the exchange. Pleased with the initial observation of the engine, I headed
straight to the only friends house that had a track close to large enough
diameter to give it a run. Bob Weltyk was waiting for me to arrive that
afternoon and we went right to work.
A
good oiling, checking the nuts, bolts and other connections that I could see
just to make sure everything looked tight and the way it should be. First I
filled the boiler and tender with water, and the fuel tank with butane. Then I
made the connections from the tender to the engine and got ready to light this
beast up. Drawing from my knowledge base of other engines I’ve had, and
currently do own, I put the flame to the stack and cracked open the fuel valve.
Pop, once. The fire jumped back into the boiler, but didn’t get the burner to
stay lit. Pop, twice, three, four….. finally after many attempts it popped back
and kept lit. Lesson number one. Only did I find out later (when reading the
instructions that came with the engine) that to light the burner I was to pull
the whole housing from the rear of the boiler about an inch, light it, and place
it back into the boiler! (more on this later)
It
seemed like in no time at all the pressure gauge showed 4 bar. I moved the J
bar forward and slowly cracked the regulator. After a hesitation or two she
started to move down the track very slowly. Nice and slowly she crept, but I
soon discovered that the engine didn’t want to stay on the track. Any minor dip
or bump in the track, or taking of a curve, and the front pilot wheels would
jump off. A few times the drivers jumped the rail. It was time to shut her
down and take a closer look.
Did I make a mistake? Is this engine so finicky that it will take all of the
fun out of running her? I must say that the thought ran through my head more
than once in those first few hours.
Since this humble beginning I have learned about and discovered a few
modifications and tricks to this engine. Placing a posting on Steam in the
Garden online I asked for any and all known modifications from other
Hudson owners. I was able to
derive some information, but more importantly I made some connections with other
owners, and that some of them have experienced at least parts of what I was
experiencing. That was good news. But how much work and time is it going to
take to get this thing in tip top running condition?
Well, here I am about six weeks later and many changes and modifications have
been made to my engine. I wish that I was completely done at this point, but I
am still a few projects away from being totally satisfied. The sight glass is
still a major problem that will need to be addressed and I hope to have some
kind of update on this in the future. Overall I have spent many hours working
on the Hudson getting these changes done. Some have been rewarding and
satisfying, while others have been pure frustration. But frustration turns
into joy when the job is finally completed and works as planned!
Below is the list of problems, solutions, and updates I found that needed to be
done to get this engine in good running order again. Of course not all Aster
Hudson’s out there would need all of these, but some listed below are inherent
to the design of the engine and should be addressed. For informational
purposes, this engine was factory built.
Solutions, modifications and updates:
The burner.
A few conversations with John Garrett on the phone, some e-mails flashing back
and forth, and the ideas were coming. The first thing John suggested to me was
to make the poker a radiant style burner, and to flip the whole burner upside
down. It seems that the Aster Hudson and K-4 had a slight problem with the
upper most flue tube being placed too high in the boiler. The sight glass was
so high that it was almost non functional. The change to a radiant style
burner, by turning the burner 180 deg forces the hottest heat to the bottom of
the boiler firebox instead of the top. By keeping the hottest part of the fire
from directly getting to that highest flue helps to divert the potential of a
disaster if the water level ever got too low. And this would not be difficult
to do if relying on the site glass!
The next piece of information given to me by John was to use a suction fan when
lighting the burner. Just as you would an alcohol fired engine. No fooling!
Using these suggestions made a world of difference firing the engine and
bringing her up to steam much faster. Also an added benefit is a longer run
time because of the radiant burner being added.
(Update: Since this was written, John has returned his burner into the normal
position while leaving on the radiant burner. He said that it seemed to make a
difference for him. Since I am making more steam than I can use, I’m leaving
mine rotated 180 deg.)
Front pilot wheels.
When I finally had a chance, I went through everything on the engine. Push,
pull, twist and generally inspect everything I could touch and see. This is
when I discovered a few problems that contributed to the engine not holding the
rails in the dips and curves. The front pilot wheels were not turning. Further
inspection reveled that the pilot housing was bent so badly at the point where
the wheel bushings went through the housing that not only were the wheels not
turning, the axles were not floating in the housing. This is one reason any dip
or bump would lift the wheels off of the track. A lot of bending, oil, and
aligning finally got everything moving freely. I knew that this was going to
make a major difference in staying on the rails.
Compensated Drivers.
I also found that the drive wheel compensators were stiff or sticky to move. I
would have to assume that these had not been lubricated in a very long time by
the looks of them. There are three pivot points per side per wheel, and the
axle bushing itself that moves up and down in the frame. A quick cleaning with
some WD 40, then fresh oil loosened everything up and moving freely.
Adding weight to the smoke box.
When the previous two items were completed, it was time to give the engine
another run on Bob’s track to see if there was any improvement. Although there
was some improvement, we now noticed that the rear of the engine had much more
weight distributed to it than the front. We also confirmed that she was going
through steam oil at an alarming rate. More on that issue later. But after I
placed my question on the SitG forum, the first answer I got was from Sam
DiMaggio. He mentioned the addition of weight to the smoke box, as did Jim
Overland. I had all kinds of images in my head as to how I would do this, but
once again Mr. Garrett came to the rescue and took some pictures of what he had
installed in his Hudson.
Finding an acceptable size of brass tubing was the biggest problem
for me. Then there was finding a solid piece of brass for the center fill
piece. Bob Weltyk came through with a piece of solid brass that could be turned
down with a lathe to the right diameter. When I found both pieces that I
needed, I took some measurements, made up a drawing, and using the basic design
John and Larry Herget used, took the parts to work to have one of the machinists
mill out and turn down the pieces as shown.
When I finally got to install the new weights, I found that I had a
fair amount of room between the weight and the smoke box walls. Using some flat
brass strips that I had, I was able to cut them to length and slide them between
the weight and the smoke box walls. Not only did this add an additional 4 oz.
of weight, but it helped to stabilize everything so the weights could not move
during runs or transportation.
The total weight added to the front of my engine was about 48
ounces. This has perfectly balanced the engine weight from front to rear. Now
for that added benefit of making this change.
John Garrett told me that after he
made this improvement he was able to run his Hudson on 13 foot diameter
track! According to Aster, this engine requires 3 meter radius (about 19.5 foot
diameter). So, when I got everything back together, I fired her up and let her
run for over 30 minutes on my track which is 13 foot diameter! Not one
problem. Slow or medium speed, the engine ran true and not once showed any sign
of wanting to jump track. What an amazing change.
Oil consumption.
Mentioned above, it was obvious that this engine was going through steam oil in
massive amounts. Oil was being spit out the stack like a shower, and even a
short run left the lubricator nearly empty. That has always been one of my pet
peeves, when an engine uses too much oil. I realize that oil is cheap. I also
know that too much is better than not enough when it comes to this subject. But
there should be a limit to how much oil ends up on your engine or track, and to
make sure that you do not run out of steam oil during a run.
This was one of the questions that I brought up online, but no one had any
information on improvements. There was acknowledgement that this issue existed
on at least some engines, but any changes would have to be made on my own, or so
I thought. Once again John G. got the jump and was already looking into this
issue. He sent me a picture of changes that he had made, and what he had done
to the lubricator.
I
started to make the same revisions when things went south…… in a hurry. For
John to add the extension pipe, he had to open up the existing tube end enough
to fit in the new tube and solder the two together. Sounds fair. But when I
went to open the end, I went through the wall of the tubing. I obviously wasn’t
going to solder on another piece now!
A
good night’s sleep and lots of thought on the problem came up with a solution.
I have a nice selection of various sizes of needles that you use with syringes
for oil or whatever.
Removing the needle from the sure-loc plastic housing with low heat, I was able
to install the needle into the existing metering hole in the oil line. If you
need to open up the hole some, use a sharp pointed dental pick tool. The tubing
is soft copper and will open up easily. After bending the needle so it will end
near the top of the tank, insert one end of the needle into the existing
metering hole and gently crimp the copper tubing on both sides to seat
the needle in place. This will give you the same look as photo #6, but with a
much smaller tube. I used Teflon tape rolled and wrapped around the tube
as a new packing gasket when assembling the tank back on to the tube. I ended
up using the “yellow” colored housing needle. I had tried the “blue” (even
smaller), but was afraid that there wasn’t enough oil being used. With the
yellow size needle, I use approximately one half tank of oil per full run. No
more mess, and no more worry about running out of steam oil during a run.
Sulphur Springs carries a variety of syringe needle sizes. Just make sure you
get the long needle (just over an inch in length).
This photo shows how small the needle is when installed in the lubricator tank.
You can see it crossing the opening.
Gas control valve.
One of the first things noticed on the maiden run was the touchy gas valve.
This question was also asked online without any help other than replacing
everything with a Roundhouse tank and valving.. Reading past issues of Steam in
the Garden showed me modifications that Kevin O’Connor had made and discussed in
a article he had written. Not having a lathe to re-machine the valve, my only
other option was to remove the valve and old O-ring and try replacing the O-ring
with a new Viton ring. Applying a touch of oil to the ring before installing it
on the valve, and more oil before placing the valve in the housing gave
acceptable results. Even though the flow control is still rather course, there
is no longer “rebound” from the O-ring. Fine adjustments are now possible, and
with the radiant burner installed, getting the gas flow to a minimum.
Burner Howl.
The engine had a tremendous howl when first received. The air inlet adjustment
ring that fits on the burner housing was not installed, but was in a bag of
parts that came with the engine. The addition of this ring took away most, but
not all of the howl. Since the addition of the radiant burner, the howl is
intermittent. Seems that there is more than one variable whether the extra
noise will be there or not. I am still trying different settings, but so far
have not come up with a sure fix for this. The radiant burner did eliminate
about 90% of the noise.
Whistle valve ball
(nitril). A change to add a nitril ball (available from Sulphur Springs)
in place of the existing metal ball stopped the steam leak that was coming from
the whistle valve. To do this you need to remove the cab, then remove the
regulator. Unscrew the ‘T’ from the housing and replace the stainless steel
ball. Use the middle size ball sold from Sulphur Springs.
Johnson Bar.
Moving the Johnson Bar while the engine was under steam usually resulted in a
burnt finger or two. The addition of a bracket with a threaded bar attached
resulted in a much easier, and no more burnt fingers update. Bending a small
piece of thick brass plate unto a “U”, soldering on a small piece of brass
tubing, drilling and taping a hole for the locking bar is all that’s required.
Now a quick twist of the threaded bar to hold in the handle lock and you can
move the J bar with ease into the desired location. Another quick turn to
release and set the handle lock and your done. Much faster, much easier, and a
lot safer for your fingers. .
Gas Line Quick Disconnect.
Whenever the tender was disconnected, there was the problem of the gas line
being attached to the jet and housing. This would usually mean removing a very
hot burner and housing, or waiting for everything to cool down enough to get a
wrench on the line and unscrew it. Neither are good choices. The addition of a
quick disconnect to the gas line solved that problem. The disconnect also has a
positive check on one end. This end should be connected to the tank side of the
line. If the line were to become disconnected for any reason, the check does
not allow gas to continue to flow. I can now disconnect the tender from the
engine directly after shutdown without any problems from heat or removing the
burner.
Coal Load.
The coal load was an update to the pretty much non existent original load. Some
pieces of coal that were in a film container were about all that was left.
Since I didn’t know what the original load looked like, I made my own using the
same technique as my Mikado.
In Conclusion:
I am happy to report that the engine is running very nicely.
I’m sure that there are still more
modifications and updates that have been done over the years to the Hudson’s.
This list is a compilation of information gathered from John Garrett, and myself
that accomplished what my original goal was. “To get this engine in good
running order again”, and it has . There were other “normal
maintenance” type items that were done also. Changing the rubber tubing lines
for the axle pump is one good example. Twenty year old rubber didn’t stand up
to the task any longer and a hole soon appeared in the feed line from the pump
to the boiler. Items like this were not addressed here because I did not
consider these types of issues as updates or improvements.
This article originally
appeared in Issue No. 78 (Vol. 14. No. 6) of Steam in the Garden.
Appreciation for permission to reproduce it on SouthernSteamTrains.com is
expressed to Fred Gandolfi, author; and to Ron Brown, Publisher / Editor of
Steam in the Garden.
