Model Railroading > A simple Live Steamer's workshop !!

Hi Everybody--
In the past, I have run several photos of the beautiful Live Steam locomotives that my late grandfather "Vic Shattock" built from scratch using raw materials.

The following five (5) photos give you an idea how very plain and simple Vic Shattock's shop really was-- yet he built close to thirty(30) of these beautiful models from the ground up to be enjoyed by thousands of visitors.

Photo 1. Drill Press and Lathe area with an array of cutters on the wall nearby.

Photo 2. Vic Shattock "doing what he did best" at his Lathe. A small Atlas 6-inch lathe with an 18-inch bed.
The drill press was also an Atlas model. The lathe also had a vertical milling machine attachment with various cutters. For those interested, the Lathe was their Model 618...
I can remember him as though it was yesterday, standing at that Lathe in a white shirt and vest, usually with his SP watch in the pocket.

Photo 3. Vic is seen working on the wheels for a trailing truck.

Photos courtesy of KRK Archives..

KRK

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I'm impressed by how CLEAN it is.

Brian Ehni

Photo 4. A completed copper boiler, already hydrostatically tested to 150 psi, sits atop a new chassis for a "Mikado" 2-8-2, awaiting the shop crew to "lag" the boiler with asbestos paper and wheat paste... All of Vic's locomotives had a layer of asbestos just like the real thing, before the boiler jacket was put in place.

Photo 5. (circa 1947)... Vic Shattock with some of his creations.. I've run this photo before but it gives you a good idea of what the finished engines looked like.

This layout was filmed by a professional photographer in 1938 and depicts full operations as we once knew them in that old house in Oakland, CA...

And, you might wonder--- What ever happened to those ATLAS products and accs that helped build so many locomotives ??
They were NOT lost to the ages, thank goodness...

Vic left them to his oldest Son, Ron...
However, Ron didn't really have a use for them and told "KRK" to take them...

So the machines that were part of a legacy are preserved by that "little boy" whose early life they were an integral part of... The memories just keep coming, guys !!

KRK

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Whoever coined the term "mad skillz" had no idea...! As always, thanks for sharing your memories, Ken.

Amazing how everyone dressed up in those days - not just these pix but so many that Ken has shared.

These days its T-shirts, shorts and bellies exposed ! And not just at one's workbench :-)

Walt in Sausalito

A true machinist and not just a machine operator. The finished product is the result of skill and ability, not just monitoring the computer. Sadly, most of those skills have left us, along with traits of responsibility, personal appearance and pride of craftsmanship.

wfre Wrote:
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> Amazing how everyone dressed up in those days -
> not just these pix but so many that Ken has
> shared.
>
> These days its T-shirts, shorts and bellies
> exposed ! And not just at one's workbench :-)
>

I was thinking the same thing Walt! At the lathe, and wearing a tie! Delightful series Ken, thanks for sharing!

Elizabeth

Today OSHA probably would not let a person wearing a tie anywhere near a lathe or any other similar piece of machinery.

Dave Potter

David Potter
Other, CA

dave_potter Wrote:
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> Today OSHA probably would not let a person wearing
> a tie anywhere near a lathe or any other similar
> piece of machinery.
>
> Dave Potter


I dunno, that tie is tucked in under a neat vest!

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Ken, thanks for posting the wonderful photos, along with all the others that you share with us. He certainly had a talent and it is so very evident in these photos. I, like a few others here am amazed at the cleanliness of his shop and his own attire as well.
Keep 'em coming!

Virlon

SLOCONDR

dave_potter Wrote:
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> Today OSHA probably would not let a person wearing
> a tie anywhere near a lathe or any other similar
> piece of machinery.
>
> Dave Potter


And for a darn good reason!