Manual Labour? (2)

Since the last article on 'Manual Labouring', I've now got to about page 20 - some transcription can be very tedious and the worst of all is reproducing the tables in MSWord.

The Optical Character Recognition's version of gobbledygook is particularly ripe when it comes to reading the lines across a page instead of extracting the text required from each table cell in turn; the result is something that would not look out of place with other output from an Enigma machine!

So I've given up that as a bad job and just inserted some original typewritten tables as scanned jpeg images.

For example - Fuels of various types:

(Historically this is an eye opener as I doubt that many of these fuels are available today due to the closure of the UK's mining industry).

Coals for a 200HP Sentinel:

Notes
(a) Groups 1 and 2 Bitumineous Coals are mainly free burning non-caking to slightly caking and swelling. Calorific values of between 13,500 – 14,670 B.T.U.s/lb.

(b) South Wales Groups specified are similar in burning but are less volatile and contain 92 – 94% carbon, requiring a somewhat more intense draught. Calorific values of between 15,250 – 15,200 B.T.U.s/lb.

Cokes for a 200HP Sentinel:

 Manufactured Fuels for a 200HP Sentinel:

Notes:
(a) With these patent fuels, it is usually found desirable to use a 1” or 7/8” blast nozzle in place of the standard 1.1/8” - 1¼” dia. nozzles.

(b) Standard fire bars are however, quite suitable.

(c) These fuels should not be stored in an open heap as they ‘weather’ and deteriorate in composition.

I'd be glad to hear from anyone who knows the present day equivalents of these fuels.

Manual Labour?

Lately I've been wondering why I've been struggling to write various outstanding 'blog posts. I've been pretty busy tending the 28 ton mistress, particularly to do with security issues amongst other things but no 'blog inspiration. Then it occurred to me what was getting in the way - writing itself!

Much of the enjoyment in restoration work is seeing the result taking shape but there is a more serious side when the result will be a working steam locomotive - convincing a boiler inspector and others that a competent, professional job has been done in the process. This has always been one reason underpinning Sentinel 7109's 'blog.

Sentinel Manual Front Cover (used!)

Recently Richard Nixon, drawings' custodian from the Sentinel Drivers' Club, kindly loaned me a 65 page Sentinel document entitled "200 HP Sentinel Steam Locomotives - Instruction Manual". The manual was obviously typed on a manual typewriter judging from the layout and I would guess around 1950. Despite being written for a much later twin engined loco with double gears, the usefulness of the document is not lost on me as a basis for Sentinel 7109's own instruction manual.

So, laboriously, I've scanned the whole manual with an Optical Character Recogniser to produce 65 pages of complete gobbledygook which I am now trans-scribing back into a useful form. After about four days dipping in and out of it, I've reached page 12 - no wonder my 'blog writing is taking a back seat! Normal service will hopefully be resumed shortly!

As a sample, page 1 of the manual is shown below (click it to enlarge).

Page 1

It cordially invites the reader to write in and hence become part of a fraternity of Sentinel operators. Nowadays we'd probably refer to this as a social network!

It also refers to keeping the manual to "reasonable proportions so that it can be carried readily in the pocket". Bearing in mind that it is on foolscap paper, all I can say is that, in those days, people must have had very large pockets!

The importance of the manual becomes obvious as it is written for new owners taking the loco out of its box for the first time to set it to work. It's a good read to the right person!