Marlin338MX
Well-Known Member
Great attention to detail, very nice!
Kriegsloks building shops
- Thread starter KriegslokBR52
- Start date
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Yesterday a large train show at Timonium, MD, and found this really old B&O Mantua hopper:
Interesting since mostly made out of metal and the sides are some kind of card board already detailed with rivets, signs and glued to the body.
Nicely done grab irons and that was what cought my attention. $5 with Kadee couplers already installed, but the wheels are horrible and create a lot of drag. I'll have to replace those with metal wheels.
Today work continues on the Pennsy I1. Installed markers on the smokebox, whistle with its shield, put the handrails in the stantions and did more piping, mainly on the back of the boiler:
This partly hidden piping right in front of the cab was a little tricky, as i can't see the injector.
I'm guessing the injector on engineers side was in the cab, or this tiny junction of piping is the injector.
Either way i decided to do what i see in the pictures:
The front pipe goes over the boiler right in front of the turret. On the other side it makes a 90 degree curve and it goes into the boiler right above the water heater, so that's got to be the cold water pipe into the boiler.
Interesting since mostly made out of metal and the sides are some kind of card board already detailed with rivets, signs and glued to the body.
Nicely done grab irons and that was what cought my attention. $5 with Kadee couplers already installed, but the wheels are horrible and create a lot of drag. I'll have to replace those with metal wheels.
Today work continues on the Pennsy I1. Installed markers on the smokebox, whistle with its shield, put the handrails in the stantions and did more piping, mainly on the back of the boiler:
This partly hidden piping right in front of the cab was a little tricky, as i can't see the injector.
I'm guessing the injector on engineers side was in the cab, or this tiny junction of piping is the injector.
Either way i decided to do what i see in the pictures:
The front pipe goes over the boiler right in front of the turret. On the other side it makes a 90 degree curve and it goes into the boiler right above the water heater, so that's got to be the cold water pipe into the boiler.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
A few of the front end so far:
I'd like to do a working headlight on the Hippo and still trying to figure out how to hide the wires coming from the back of reflector.
Those cast together with the pipe air tanks will be replaced with more airy ones.
I'd like to do a working headlight on the Hippo and still trying to figure out how to hide the wires coming from the back of reflector.
Those cast together with the pipe air tanks will be replaced with more airy ones.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Taking it easy this weekend and no work on detailing the decapod. Instead i took the Bachmann 2-10-4 into hobby table and began to fix what was busted as a result of it taking a dive onto the floor. Amazingly i did not see any cracks in the shell, or details on the boiler. The main problem was the disconnected crosshead and main rod on the right side. Since there was no chance of finding the pin which connects those with the combination link, i used a tiny 00-90 flathead screw to connect everything together. This only required threading the main rod as it was the last thing on the screw. I have also taken the bottom plate off to lubricate the axles and the gears. One more damage was the front guiding truck. I dumped the original guiding wheelset and made a new one out of Athearn BB diesel wheels with the axle ends shaved off. Those 5000 class Santa Fe "Texans" had 42" wheels up front and Athearn wheels look a lot nicer on it since they represent 42" wheels as used on Diesels. One modification i'll have to make is to rebuild that guiding truck to move the wheelset back a solid millimeter. It is way too far in the front as of now, and since my curves are pretty wide i don't worry about the guiding wheels hitting the cylinder blocks. I got the locomotive without tender, so the shell from i don't know what with Pennsylvania spelled out on it became a temporary tender for the Texas.
A little noisy but runs pretty good considering it's a 80-90s Bachmann:
Towards the end i wound up running two steamers on the same throttle, one on the mainline, one on the secondary mountain route.
A little noisy but runs pretty good considering it's a 80-90s Bachmann:
Towards the end i wound up running two steamers on the same throttle, one on the mainline, one on the secondary mountain route.
kbkchooch
"retired" conductor
After reviewing the last 7 pages this morning, I can see that you are truly gifted and a great fan of steam! Keep up the good work! I have built, detailed and repowered several Bowser and Mantua kits in my time, nothing on the scale you are pursuing here.
BTW my current profile pic is my WM I-2 Decapod, the almost twin to your scratchbuilt unit. I must admit, I was weak and went brass.
BTW my current profile pic is my WM I-2 Decapod, the almost twin to your scratchbuilt unit. I must admit, I was weak and went brass.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
That brass 2-10-0 is my first brass scratch building project, and damn that boiler with Wooten firebox was a nightmare. In the end it worked out and i can still make this into Wild Marry I-2 since i didn't put railroad specific details yet. Too bad none were saved. How much did you have to shell out on yours? I know they are expensive.
kbkchooch
"retired" conductor
If I remember correctly, It was $675 plus shipping on fleabay. Once I got it home I added DCC and sound to it so it sounded as good as my Potomac and my WM Pacific. I also have 5 WM H9 2-8-0s in various states of disrepair that I need to get back on, but building the new layout has kinda sidelined these. Once I get the mainline up and running, I'll start back on them.
BTW, one of your pics had a Dinkelacker beer car , that was the 1st beer my father ever gave me to drink, 14 years old at an Octoberfest in Barnesville PA.
BTW, one of your pics had a Dinkelacker beer car , that was the 1st beer my father ever gave me to drink, 14 years old at an Octoberfest in Barnesville PA.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Playing hard ball with brass today. I started on the cylinder blocks for the F-1 L&NE decapod, since those tiny Varney ones are just not doing this giant a justice in looks department.
And the basic shape of end walls is done:
A little bit of filing will have to be done
I will solder pieces of brass tubes for the valve and piston guides first and after that the outside wrap/panels will have to be cut and shaped.
And the basic shape of end walls is done:
A little bit of filing will have to be done
I will solder pieces of brass tubes for the valve and piston guides first and after that the outside wrap/panels will have to be cut and shaped.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
I'm guessing that is Alco brass (?), i noticed that Overland is richer in details...and price.
That Dinkelacker is 1 Gauge Märklin, got it for only about $20 at some train show. Never had that beer though.
kbkchooch
"retired" conductor
I could not remember the brand on the I2, had to go find the box. It's a NJ Custom Brass imported model built by Daiyoung in Korea.
Good luck on building the steam chests, looks like fun!
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
More progress on the cylinder blocks:
Before i started to wrap everything up, i soldered in this rectangular tube to give everything strength.
Could have been better, but for a first time...:
Now for smaller details like end plates and steam equalizer mechanizm on top, also steam exhaust pipes.
Before i started to wrap everything up, i soldered in this rectangular tube to give everything strength.
Could have been better, but for a first time...:
Now for smaller details like end plates and steam equalizer mechanizm on top, also steam exhaust pipes.
kbkchooch
"retired" conductor
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Nice, worlds heaviest decapods. I like the subtle weathering.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
I'm done for today, got the plates soldered for the most part, except the rear ones for the valve stem.
I'm not going to get the shape exactly right, at least not with the method i used to make the plates. Little cleaning in brake fluid to get the flux out of the crevices and a warm soapy bath:
Looks like i'll have a few spots to fill out with solder, but for the most part it came out allright. The size difference is obvious, the cylinder blocks are next to eachother:
Time for dinner and to chill out.
I'm not going to get the shape exactly right, at least not with the method i used to make the plates. Little cleaning in brake fluid to get the flux out of the crevices and a warm soapy bath:
Looks like i'll have a few spots to fill out with solder, but for the most part it came out allright. The size difference is obvious, the cylinder blocks are next to eachother:
Time for dinner and to chill out.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Thank you
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Picked this up at Timonium train show few weeks ago:
It has the "poor mans exhaust water heater" and what's unusual is how the "in" pipe runs into the boiler. Most had that pipe run alongside the walkway and then it turned straight up towards the check valve.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Today continuation on the cylinders for the F-1 decapod. I have cut, shaped and finally soldered the exhaust pipes on top of cylinder blocks;
Quite a bit of filing was needed on top of those, as well as the bottom plate of the boiler. But the cylinder block is actually screwed into the boiler now as a trial:
It's pretty well centered;
I still have to cut and solder the rear valve guide plate, and the steam equalizer mechanism on top of the blocks.
Quite a bit of filing was needed on top of those, as well as the bottom plate of the boiler. But the cylinder block is actually screwed into the boiler now as a trial:
It's pretty well centered;
I still have to cut and solder the rear valve guide plate, and the steam equalizer mechanism on top of the blocks.
KriegslokBR52
Well-Known Member
Work is continuing on those cylinder blocks for F-1 decapod, and today i cut, shaped and soldered in the steam safety valves on top of the cylinder blocks. Those are number specific as they were only on #401 and 402, and that narrows down my choice between those two specific locomotives.
This beautiful roster shot of 402 shows this type of valves:
Picture taken by Bob Collins, from a book "LEHIGH AND NEW ENGLAND". Numbers 403 and 404 delivered to L&NE few years later had different valves. While at it, i also soldered in simplified blow off cocks and rods on the bottom of cylinder blocks. Those are barely visible on models like this, but i just had to have them
Now time to take apart that Varney cylinder set and try to fit in the new one:
This beautiful roster shot of 402 shows this type of valves:
Now time to take apart that Varney cylinder set and try to fit in the new one:
