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tetters Wrote:The ball at the top is decorative for lack of a better term.
I wonder if the ball at the top was the insulator for a lightning rod. Many older structures dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s, especially barns and homes, had lighting rods.
Here's an example on a Victorian farmhouse not far from my home:
[albumimg]4174[/albumimg]
Link to google street view:
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Andrew
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secondhandmodeler Wrote:I'm new to this forum but am quickly seeing a pattern here. I click on a thread, then am blown away by the craftsmanship going into a project! Nice work on the tower.
I couldn't agree more with this observation. That and the fact that everyone shows respect to each other is the reason I love this place. Occasionally, there's heated disagreement, but it is typically rare unlike other MRR forums. Keep up the great work Big Blue Community!
Now back to your regularly scheduled thread...
 Great Work Tetters!
Mark
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I know nothing of scratch building, and I'm also impressed not by the craftsmanship but by the ingenuity - cereal boxes for a tower.
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Scifi fan Wrote:I know nothing of scratch building, and I'm also impressed not by the craftsmanship but by the ingenuity - cereal boxes for a tower.
This is what can happen, and all it takes is "the first train set"!!!
We always learn far more from our own mistakes, than we will ever learn from another's advice.
The greatest place to live life, is on the sharp leading edge of a learning curve.
Lead me not into temptation.....I can find it myself!
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MasonJar Wrote:tetters Wrote:The ball at the top is decorative for lack of a better term.
I wonder if the ball at the top was the insulator for a lightning rod. Many older structures dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s, especially barns and homes, had lighting rods.
Andrew
This makes a lot of sense. I now remember that the place I used to work at had preserved a large mast with a copper ball that was on top of the building's cupola. It was about 1 foot across and it was a lightening rod. It was also pretty mis-shapen (sp?) and dented all to heck... 
Thanks for the compliments too. 
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Beautiful job, Tetters. I've never seen an enclosed tank. Somehow, the weather wasn't an issue in So Cal. It may have been in the mountains, but the highest points in So Cal for railroads are only 3000 feet for Cajon Pass, and I think about the same for Tehachapi. I don't know what the S.P. used over Donner up north. I was wondering though, if there should be handrails for the steps that you installed?
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Russ Bellinis Wrote:Beautiful job, Tetters. I've never seen an enclosed tank. Somehow, the weather wasn't an issue in So Cal. It may have been in the mountains, but the highest points in So Cal for railroads are only 3000 feet for Cajon Pass, and I think about the same for Tehachapi. I don't know what the S.P. used over Donner up north. I was wondering though, if there should be handrails for the steps that you installed?
Thanks Russ. Yes. I agree about the handrails. 
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Tetters---beautiful work on your water tower .Here's a picture posted on the "canadianrailwayobservations" website I thought you might like
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cn nutbar Wrote:Tetters---beautiful work on your water tower .Here's a picture posted on the "canadianrailwayobservations" website I thought you might like
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Oh that is very cool! I wish I had seen that picture earlier. I probably would have painted my trim boards the same color as well. It really set off the building color.
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tetters Wrote:Oh that is very cool! I wish I had seen that picture earlier. I probably would have painted my trim boards the same color as well. It really set off the building color.
Yeah, but the spout on yours looks wa-a-a-y better.
Wayne
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tetters Wrote:I wonder if the ball at the top was the insulator for a lightning rod. Many older structures dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s, especially barns and homes, had lighting rods.
I often survey heritage buildings and balls on lighting rods are a common sight. However, I always heard balls on water tanks were visual water level indicator. They are much more larger (about 2 feet) than lighting rod balls and the mast is too high for that purpose (old model are about 2-3 feet high steel rod with ornamental brackets). I don't deny the decorative purpose as many utilitarian things were few decades ago. However, the large ball and rod height would make the "gauge" purpose believable. In this respect, these kind of elements would quickly rot in Canadian weather condition. As many victorian era decorations, they would be taken down and not replaced. However, as far as I can remember, every tower I've seen kept them until the end of their utility life.
Decorative cupolas are an other thing as they serve both as lighting rod devices and decorative elements. They also are often reworked over the time and may change significantly in visual appearance over a century. I often find out evidence of steeples that were toppled after storms or modified after they were struck by lightnings. When you are standing in these structure, often somewhere between 120' to 180', you find out weather is completely difference from the ground.
For water tank, I think the rod was multipurpose and the ball was a gauge. Except that, enclosed water tank following your prototype don't have any othe means to know the water level. Sorry about my bad spelling, I'm quite tired and my English goes don't the drain under such circumstances!!! 
Maybe I'm wrong.
By the way, be cautious about recent historic building repainting. They are not always prototypical. Thought, red walls with cream trims were a staple on CNR and CPR stations.
Matt
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I thought you might enjoy knowing I sent the author of the CP water tower article this link here of your construction, he was appreciative of having a link to some one who had found his article useful. He lives in the Greater Vancouver area as I do and I occasionally operate on his layout.
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rsn48 Wrote:I thought you might enjoy knowing I sent the author of the CP water tower article this link here of your construction, he was appreciative of having a link to some one who had found his article useful. He lives in the Greater Vancouver area as I do and I occasionally operate on his layout.
Thank you. I feel honored. I hope he enjoyed this thread as much as I enjoyed his article. 
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This water tower turned out really convincing! Cereal boxes are underrated!!!
secondhandmodeler Wrote:I'm new to this forum but am quickly seeing a pattern here. I click on a thread, then am blown away by the craftsmanship going into a project! Nice work on the tower.
Yep, it happend all the time, and someday, your head gets full of ideas and you start a billion projects!!! 
Matt
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