Railway and quarry truck, c 1730. Model (sc

Railway and quarry truck, c 1730. Model (scale 1:10). This timber truck, which was carried on four cast-iron wheels, was used by Ralph Allen around 1730 at his quarry near Bath in Avon. The loaded trucks descended by gravity and were controlled by a brakesman walking behind them, who was able to retard all four wheels separately. The return journey was usually made by two horses hauling the empty wagons up the hill. The maximum carrying load was about four tons and the cost of building the original wagon was about 30 pounds.