Julius detailed large scale drawings - designed to be used as the basis for models in various scales.

Trevithick’s first steam locomotive design was for a model which he made in 1797. It was in  February 1804, he produced the world's first steam engine to run successfully on rails. The locomotive, with its single vertical cylinder, 8 foot flywheel and long piston-rod, managed to haul ten tons of iron, 70 passengers and five wagons from the ironworks at Pen-y-darren to the Merthyr-Cardiff Canal. During the nine mile journey the Pen-y-darren locomotive reached speeds of up to five miles an hour. Trevithick's locomotive employed the important principle of turning the exhaust steam up the chimney, so producing a draft which drew the hot gases from the fire more powerfully through the boiler. Steam was at high pressure.

The Pen-y-darren locomotive only made three journeys. Each time the seven-ton engine broke the cast iron rails. The iron works came to the conclusion that Trevithick's invention was unlikely to reduce transport costs and decided to abandon the project.

The second engine (the subject of our model) was designed at 4.5tons to be lighter than the Pen-y-darren locomotive in an attempt to avoid the problem with broken rails.

The 1805 loco was built to run on 5 foot gauge tracks. However, it was the track that was also the downfall of this locomotive, which was built for the Wylam Colliery on Tyneside. Laid in 1748, the wooden track was laid for horse drawn wagons, but the Trevithick locomotive was too heavy for the wooden wagonway. Significantly, George Stephenson was impressed with the trials.

Working drawings for a 5” gauge version of this engine can be found here.

Click on drawings to download.

For personal use only.

Although drawings reproduce well on the MEWS website, they are even better as saved downloads.

Do, please, let the editor know if you are building one of these.