Birmingham Dribbler
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A Birmingham Dribbler, or a carpet railway describes a type of very early model railway. It is a bit of a misnomer, as the railway featured a miniature scale model live steam railway locomotive, but h
A 'Birmingham Dribbler', Stevens's Model Dockyard, England, around 1890
A modern (c1978?) reproduction of a "Birmingham Dribbler" steam engine, made by Maxwell Hemmens.
An oscillating cylinder steam engine is a simple steam-engine design that requires no valve gear. Instead the cylinder rocks, or oscillates, as the crank moves the piston, pivoting in the mounting tru
Birmingham Dribbler
…in the latter part of the 19th through to the early 20th century. The steam locomotives were very simple, usually made in brass, with a pair of simple oscillating cylinders driving the main wheels. They were basically a boiler mounted on wheels, although simple decoration (usually bands of lacquer) was sometimes applied…
A simple oscillating cylinder engine, part of a Mamod SE2 working steam model
A reversible oscillating cylinder on a toy steam engine. The trunnion is shifted by an eccentric on the lever.
A typical small stationary oscillating cylinder engine
Model of a marine oscillating steam engine designed by Joseph Maudslay, clearly showing how the cylinders pivot on the trunnions, through which the steam is passed.