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I turn off the smoke in all my diesels.  Real life diesels don't make white clouds out of their smoke stacks, they make black exhaust!

 

Doesn't it bother anyone here that we use the same mechanism and fluid for 1) steam engine steam 2)steam engine smoke from the firebox and 3) diesel exhaust.

 

Those are three completely different things!

Art,

 

I do not use smoke for the following reasons:

 

1) The fluid messes up the weathering when it spits back out of the stack, whether steam or diesel.

 

2) The fall-out from the "smoke" vapor gets all over the track & scenery, i.e. what goes up, comes down on everything.

 

3) I hava asthma, and similar to cigarette smoke, some of the brands of smoke fluids give me breathing issues.  

Originally Posted by Martin H: 

Doesn't it bother anyone here that we use the same mechanism and fluid for 1) steam engine steam 2)steam engine smoke from the firebox and 3) diesel exhaust.

Which model locomotives are you referring to that have "steam engine smoke from the firebox"?  Rarely does "smoke" ever come out of the "firebox", unless it is an oil burning steam locomotive and the Engineer shuts the throttle off without notifying the Fireman, thus the fire & smoke "woofs" out of the air intakes.  I have not seen any models that exhibit smoke exiting the firebox, yet.

Very interesting replies.  I have a friend that runs smoke all the time on his basement layout and it has developed a stale, unpleasant odor that reminds me of the stale smoke and beer smell of a neighborhood tavern.  He has admitted to smoking cigars in his garage but claims that he never does in the basement.  Does make me wonder? 

 

Hot Water - I particularly enjoyed your well thought out comments.  I never thought about whether it would have any effect on your weathering or track cleanliness.  Both my wife and I have become very sensitive to any air pollution issues and can very much relate to your comment about asthma. 

 

I really enjoy looking at smoke, but am not able to tolerate breathing it much any more.  It makes me feel like a party pooper when I have to leave a run session somewhere because the smoke is getting to me.

 

Great comments.

 

Art

Originally Posted by Hot Water:

Art,

 

I do not use smoke for the following reasons:

 

1) The fluid messes up the weathering when it spits back out of the stack, whether steam or diesel.

 

2) The fall-out from the "smoke" vapor gets all over the track & scenery, i.e. what goes up, comes down on everything.

 

3) I hava asthma, and similar to cigarette smoke, some of the brands of smoke fluids give me breathing issues.  

Ditto X3 on all Hot Water. People need to read and re-read #2. That crud settles on just about everything. You have doubts? Just wait until you want to repaint your train room. You'll need at least two coats of, "Kilz" applied after you wash all the walls.

One more reason why I love my vintage prewar...NO SMOKE...Thank you!

I like smoke from both the diesels as well as steam engines.  (And actually, I have an electric - the Milw BiPolar from MTH, that also smokes.  Supposed to be from the steam generator.)  If I'm by myself and just running a train or two I might not bother to fill the smoke unit and then I'll shut it off, but if I have company, all the more smoke; the better.  Many visitors have never seen as much smoke as modern locomotives produce.  I even installed an exhaust fan in one side of the train room to keep some of the smoke from going upstairs and bothering my wife.

 

Paul Fischer

Joe

 

Are you sure that D&H Alco isn't on fire?

 

I almost always use smoke with steam, far less often with diesels. It's more trouble to keep diesels filled up. Most of them require a funnel, and you've got two or three or four smoke units to keep track of instead of just one. A lot of them have double stacks, which form blockages and you have to blow in the stack to get them smoking again. When I'm operating at the museum, I'm multitasking, keeping an eye on the layout, fixing problems, talking to visitors, etc. Keeping up the smoke on a set of diesels is an extra item that I may or may not have time for. 

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