roundhouse Katie User guide

Owners Handbook
For the Katie Locomotive
KATIE

Operating Instructions
IMPORTANT: Read these instructions carefully before operating
the locomotive
The following items are required for running this engine and are not
included with the model.
Fuel Butane gas. See ’Gas System’ section.
Water See 'Filling the boiler' section.
General Lubricating oil See 'Lubrication' section.
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
This is a working model locomotive using steam under pressure
and highly flammable fuel. Provided it is operated with reasonable
care and attention, no problems should arise.
It is intended for use out of doors and must only be operated in a
well-ventilated area.
Whilst the locomotive is in use, hot gasses are exhausted up the
chimney and excess steam frequently blows off through the safety
valve even when stationary, so operator and spectators should not
bend over the model.
As you will appreciate, this is not a toy and is therefore unsuitable
for young unsupervised children.
Follow manufacturer’s recommendations regarding the safe
storage of Butane gas canisters.
Some areas of the model will get quite hot whilst it is operating, so
a pair of gloves is provided in the tool kit for your protection.
Always have to hand either a fire extinguisher or wet cloth when
operating the model.
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Katie Instruction Booklet
CONTENTS
Tool kit. Page 4
Running in. Page 4
Access to the controls. Page 4
Identification of parts of the locomotive. Page 5
Preparing for operation. Page 6
1. Filling the Gas Tank. Page 6
2. Filling the Boiler. Page 6
3. Lubrication. Page 7
4. Lighting the Burner. Page 8
Running the locomotive. Page 9
Driving the locomotive manually. Page 10
Driving by radio control. Page 11
Storage between operating sessions. Page 12
Altering wheel gauge. Page 13
Trouble shooting & maintenance. Page 13
Steam leaks. Page 13
Regulator not shutting. Page 14
Radio control. Page 14
Gas system. Page 14
Boiler and Gas Tank Certificate, Pages 17 & 18
(EC Declaration Of Conformity).
Identification of gas burner parts. Page 19
Service and parts. Page 20

TOOL KIT
The following items are included with your locomotive.
One 60ml bottle of special steam oil for use in the cylinder
lubricator. One Allen key for cylinder socket cap screws.
One 60ml syringe with plastic tube for filling the boiler with water.
One pair of protective gloves. One cleaning duster.
One wheel setting (back to back) gauge and key.
RUNNING IN
All locomotives are test run before leaving the factory, but will
require several hours of running in, when new, to overcome initial
tightness and allow valves etc. to ‘bed in’ completely. It is
recommended that the model is run with light loads for the first few
hours of operation. Also, the loco will waste a proportion of its
water and steam until ‘run in’ due to leaking slide valves, a
tendency to prime more, and simply overcoming the initial tightness
of the moving parts.
As the model heats up and cools down each time you raise steam,
screws and nuts have a tendency to stretch and loosen a little so
you will also need to make regular checks and ‘nip up’ any that
become loose.
ACCESS TO THE CONTROLS
For normal operation, all controls are accessible without the need
to remove any part of the locomotive, however, to give access to
the gas tank when filling, the cab roof hinges up. Care should be
taken when opening the cab roof. Gently grasp either side of the
roof hinge and firstly lift the hinge vertically upwards. This will lift
the hinge clear of the cab, and allow the roof to then tilt to the side.
The gas regulator is accessible through the rear of the cab, and on
manual control engines, the steam regulator is accessible through
the right hand cab doorway and reversing lever through the left
hand cab doorway.
The radio control receiver and switch are housed in-between the
frames, below the cab floor. The batteries for the radio control
system are housed in a holder beneath the cab roof. Batteries are
not included.
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IDENTIFICATION OF PARTS OF THE LOCOMOTIVE
Radio controlled version illustrated
1) Lubricator drain screw. 2) Lubricator filler cap.
3) Reversing servo (this is a reversing lever on manual models).
4) Pressure gauge. 5) Safety valve 6) Gas regulator.
7) Gas filler valve. 8) Steam regulator.
9) Steam regulator servo and linkage (not on manual versions).
10) Gas burner.
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PREPARING FOR OPERATION
The locomotive must be serviced before being operated. It is
important to perform all the following operations.
1) FILLING THE GAS TANK
The filling of the gas tank should only be carried out in a well-
ventilated area, where there are no naked lights or other lighted
locomotives close by. Ordinary Butane or Iso-butane gas (as used
in gas cigarette lighters) is the preferred fuel, though for economy,
the larger canisters as used for blowlamps or camping stoves etc.
are better. The larger canisters have an EN417 threaded self
sealing valve on top and require a special adapter to couple up to
the filler valve on the locomotive. A special brass gas filler adapter
is obtainable from your local garden railway supplier or direct from
ROUNDHOUSE.
Mixed gasses are also available and may be used if ordinary
butane or iso-butane are not available, but see the ‘Gas System’
section. Before attempting to fill the gas tank, make sure that the
gas control valve is closed by turning it clockwise.
The filler valve for the gas tank is on top of the tank under the cab
roof. Invert the gas canister and place its nozzle over the gas filler
valve. Support the tank from underneath and press the canister
down. The gas will be heard hissing as it enters the tank and a
small amount will escape around the valve. This is quite normal
and is the tank venting as the liquid enters. After about 20 to 30
seconds, liquid gas will emerge from the valve showing that the
tank is full. Remove the canister immediately.
2) FILLING THE BOILER
A syringe and plastic pipe are supplied for filling of the boiler.
The boiler is filled with water through the safety valve bush, housed
inside the brass dome on top of the boiler. The brass dome is a
substantial and heavy item, being turned from solid brass. Care is
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needed when removing the dome, especially when the engine is
hot, as the dome itself will be hot. Take care not to drop the dome
onto the locomotive, as the weight of it may damage the model. Lift
off the brass dome then remove the safety valve by unscrewing the
large knurled plug into which it is fitted. Fill the boiler right to the top
with clean water. Distilled water is recommended if available. As an
alternative to distilled water if this is unavailable, clean tap water
can be used in soft water areas. Also, rain water or water from a
dehumidifier can be used provided that it is adequately filtered. Do
not use deionised water as this type of water may cause long term
damage to the boiler and fittings.
There has to be a space above the water to allow steam to be
raised so, insert the end of the plastic pipe into the boiler and
withdraw 30ml of water with the syringe. Replace the safety valve
finger tight.
3) LUBRICATION
Regular lubrication of all working parts is important and should be
carried out before each operating session. There are two types of
lubrication required: The external moving linkages and bearings are
lubricated with a medium oil such as motor engine oil, and the
internal steam mechanisms such as cylinders, pistons and valves
are lubricated with a special steam oil that is mixed with the steam.
Infrequent external lubrication will allow parts to run dry, and over
oiling can form pools around operating parts that attract dirt and
grit. If too thin an oil is used it will evaporate very quickly as the
loco gets hot –leading to dry running. We recommend the use of a
20-50 motor oil for external lubrication.
Internal lubrication is achieved by steam oil that is mixed with the
steam in the displacement lubricator, housed in the left-hand side
of the cab. Remove the knurled cap from the top and slacken the
drain screw two or three turns at the bottom but do not remove it.
Any water in the lubricator will run out through the drain screw.

Tighten the drain screw and refill with the steam oil supplied, then
replace the cap. Take time filling the lubricator, especially when
cold, as the oil takes time to run down and may trap an air bubble.
Both cap and drain screw are fitted with ‘0’ rings and need only be
closed finger tight.
NOTE: Only special steam oil as supplied should be used in the
lubricator and under no circumstances should ordinary oil be
substituted, or damage may result. The gas and steam regulators
will require periodic lubrication –see the troubleshooting section
for details.
4) LIGHTING THE BURNER
WARNING: Before lighting read the section on gas system
troubleshooting (page 13) and be aware of potential problems. If
the gas system is not operating correctly, shut it off immediately
or damage may result.
Move the locomotive to another location before lighting. Butane is
heavier than air and small pockets of gas can collect around the
locomotive during filling. To light the burner, hold a lighted match or
cigarette lighter over the top of the chimney and slowly open the
gas regulator by turning it anti-clockwise. The gas should ignite
almost immediately with a pop as the flame travels down the
chimney and into the boiler tube. The burner should be audible but
not too loud.
NOTE as stated above, the gas regulator should be opened slowly
until the burner ignites. If opened too quickly, particularly when the
engine is cold or if the gas tank has just been filled, it is possible
that the flame may not travel back into the boiler flue but stay in the
smokebox. If this should happen, the burner will sound quite
different to normal and the blue flame will be visible in the
smokebox if viewed down the chimney from a safe height. Should
this happen, turn off the gas immediately or damage may result
and then re-light it. If the problem persists and it is not possible to
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ignite the burner correctly, then a dirty jet should be suspected and
cleaned as detailed in the ‘troubleshooting’ scetion.
For the first couple of minutes keep the burner on low. This is
important, as until it warms up, the flame will be a little unstable
and turning it up too much could cause it to go out. Also, with a
completely full tank, liquid gas could be drawn off instead of
vaporized gas, which can also extinguish the flame.
After a couple of minutes, the gas control valve can be opened
more to speed up steam raising. Open the gas regulator slowly to
about one full turn. The full range of adjustment (closed to fully
open) is achieved within the first full rotation of the gas regulator
knob any more is unnecessary.
RUNNING THE LOCOMOTIVE
When full working pressure has been reached (about 40psi), the
safety valve will start to blow off steam. Steam generation can be
controlled by the gas valve in the cab. If the safety valve blows off
frequently during running, then too much steam is being produced,
which wastes water and gas. Turning down the burner will
decrease the amount of steam created. Conversely, if steam
pressure is not maintained during a run, then the burner should be
turned up. After a few minutes of running it may be noticed that the
gas pressure through the burner has increased. This is due to the
gas tank becoming warmer and so increasing the gas pressure.
Simply turn the gas down –this may need to be performed several
times during a run. The art of balancing steam generation to the
operational requirement by the adjustment of the gas control valve
will quickly be learned.
The gas tank has a duration of about 25 minutes, though this will
vary a little depending on gas valve setting. The boiler should not
be allowed to run dry, and the gas tank capacity is such that the
gas should run out before the water. When the gas is fully used up,
the steam pressure in the boiler will be seen to gradually drop until
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the loco comes to a halt. Should the water expire before the gas is
fully used, the pressure will drop rapidly and the loco will stop.
Check the pressure gauge –if this is zero turn off the gas. No
damage will result if the gas is turned off immediately.
DRIVING THE LOCOMOTIVE MANUALLY
On manually controlled locomotives, there are three main controls,
all of which are housed in the cab.
1) The gas regulator, which should be used to control steam
generation as described earlier.
2) The reversing lever. This is in the left-hand side of the cab and is
moved fully forward for running in a forward direction and full back
to run in the reverse direction. It should be parked in the centre
(mid gear) when the locomotive is stationary for any length of time.
When in mid gear position, the valve gear is effectively in neutral
and the engine will not move under steam power.
3) The regulator. This is the main steam control valve and
regulates the speed at which the engine will run. The regulator
handle is situated in the right hand cab doorway and is moved anti-
clockwise to open and clockwise to close.
Using the reversing lever, select the desired direction of travel and
open the regulator a little. Initially, there will be a certain amount of
water in the pipes and cylinders, which will exhaust through the
chimney and, after a few moments, the engine will move jerkily,
until this clears. Once the parts have warmed up, the engine will
move off steadily and its speed can be controlled with the regulator.
Subsequent starts will be quite smooth once the cylinders etc. have
reached their normal operating temperature. To reverse the
locomotive, close the regulator to bring it to a halt, move the
reversing lever over and open the regulator again.
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