346Unique parts
2,010Total parts
1Stickers
STEAM TRAMS
Long before the sleek electric tram, trolleys, and streetcars of
today, tramways were run by special little steam locomotives pulling
short trains of equally small carriages. The engines were relatively
quiet, covered with protective panels, and emitted very little smoke
and steam to keep pedestrians, horses, and other vehicles safe while
trains were running along the road.
This particular tram engine is quite special. Although it was
originally built to pull light carriages along tramways, it is also
equipped to run on standard railway lines. It has traditional buffer
couplers like an ordinary locomotive, and is sometimes used to move
passenger and freight cars in the city's main yard. Even so, it is
most at home shuttling commuters around the streets of the city.
INSPIRATION AND DESIGN PROCESS
I chose to make a steam tram because of the lack of large steam
locomotive wheels in the Palette. I was also inspired by a wide
variety of steam trams around the world, mostly in Europe but also a
few from North America and Australia. The engine and carriages are
mostly freelance, although a small 139-year-old steam tram in the
Czech Republic named "Caroline" was a major inspiration for
the engine design.
The simplest parts of the build are probably the tramway base and
the luggage wagon at the end of the train. A lot of SNOT was used to
create the fine details of the other carriages and the engine,
especially the yellow lining on the green carriages and the
"Double Arrow" logo on the engine. The trucks on the green
carriages are also constructed upside-down in order to allow the
carriage floor to be low to the ground like on some real trams vehicles.
BUILD STATS
Tramway Base Stats
- Parts: 374
- Length: 18 studs @ sections, 132
studs max
- Width: 16 studs
- Height:
2 studs
- Consists of 8 bridge sections and 2 end pieces
Engine Stats
- Parts: 381
- Length: 21.1 studs
- Width: Mostly 8 studs, 10 studs @ side rods
- Height: 11.8 studs railhead to roof, 13.6 studs railhead to
chimney minus steam cloud, 14.8 studs overall
- Powered-Up Requirements: 1 Hub + 1 Train Motor
Double-Decker Carriage Stats
- Parts: 486
- Length: 33 studs
- Width: Mostly 8 studs, 10 studs @ marker lights
- Height: 13.4 studs railhead to upper deck seat, 13.8 studs overall
Single-Decker Carriage Stats
- Parts: 390
- Length: 33 studs
- Width: Mostly 8 studs, 10 studs @ marker lights
- Height: 11.6 studs railhead to roof sign, 12 studs overall
Open Carriage Stats
- Parts: 229
- Length: 25 studs
- Width: 8 studs
- Height: 11.4 studs railhead to roof sign, 11.8 studs overall
Luggage Wagon Stats
- Parts: 114
- Length: 17 studs
- Width: 8 studs
- Height: 9.6 studs railhead to roof, 10 studs overall
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