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Choochoowilly

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Posts posted by Choochoowilly
 
 
  1. Cool evening and dryer day means I got a little work and painting done, fitted the tender section of the heisler with grab rails, the brass ones put Jax pewter black and the plastic ones will get a little brass paint to look the same. The top slanted section I made removable in order to access the interior for something to be determined later, just seemed like a wasted space to cover and not use. It's not too large and could probably get my G scale graphics receiver in it but not much room left for a battery or sound unit. Made it removable by using magnetic tape and can always put weight in there for traction. Painted it a flat black and secured the water hatch cover, still to do is mount it and weather it, I think I'm opting for a battery/sound car behind the engine as at the moment I have 4 small engines that are all track powered and no layout but friends with layouts but no track power. Think it would be great to be able to run all these engines. So I have a nice wood sided Kalamazoo box car that already has the bottom hole drilled for sound and being as my passenger train is the Mason Bogie I think the box car would function for all of them, it would be nice to see my fruits of my labor in action. More to come, Bill

    mini heisler tender painted.JPG

  2. With the combine car finished and only minor detail to complete the build I thought it would be a good idea to see if it ran, had test run it on a set of rollers and it preformed fine but hadn't seen any track time or curves yet and was anxious to see if the articulation design that I had com up with worked. So with 3 cars and the mason bogie and freshly charged battery  in toe I journeyed to a near by friends house to give it a try. Jimmy had just completed his outdoor layout and still has no battery powered engines and wanted to test his design so it was a win win for both of us. Train along with his layout ran flawlessly in a clock wise direction and after several circuits decided to run the opposite direction and that is when we found a problem. In a short section Just before his bridge he had snuck in a short piece of 1100 track, about 4" long and my engine didn't like it, seems like the rear bogie was built too tight for the brand wheels that i used and there was no slop in the truck left to right causing the front wheel of the 3 axle bogie to want to rid up the rail and derail the truck. Really have no Idea why it only affected the engine i 1 direction and not the other and will have to look into that at a later date. Haven't returned with what I believe will be the cure, different wheels that are loose in the truck, but just pushing it around can tell that it no longers binds. All and all very fun time for both of us, Bill view 

     

  3. After much fitting, looking and soul searching, I have finally decided on which cab to use on my mini heisler and have picked the aristo craft 2-4-2 Rogers and the basic reason was it fit better. It was larger than the one from the LGB 2015 and will require less cutting and piecing hopefully making it closer to 1:20 scale. The cab required me to cut the 2 tabs off the back where the rear pilot was fitted and also 2 locating points under the windows but other than that not much else. The cab steps up on both the sides of the front corners and the front left to right in the center where the boiler is because of the Rogers design but that will be a simple fix using flat plate styrene cut to accept the boiler on the front section and the sides I found hatch covers from the top of stanza tanks that just fit the opening and will add detail to the side of the cab. While fitting the cab I discovered that the drive gearing mechanism isn't set back far enough for me to add detail and rather than tearing everything apart I figured that it wouldn't show up anyways so I'm just going to leave it alone. Now looking at mounting the cab along with wiring, lights and details so there will be more to come, Bill  

    mini heisler with new cab.JPG

  4. Got a little more done on the mini heisler, was able to secure the rear of the boiler by adding some "L" shaped supports to either side of the fire box securing them down to the deck using 2/56 screws and then threading them into the fire box with the same size screws. Secured the front using 1  # 2/56 screw that passes from under the deck into the front boiler support. I then added diamond non skid plate detail using hex net mesh fabric glued to the deck and then painted. Still have some minor detailing to do to the chassis but it is getting there, More to come, Bill

    mini heisler diamond plate deck surface.JPG

  5. Been working on a bizarre looking small steam engine which for the lack of better words I call it a mini heisler and I am building it with old parts and pieces from previous builds in G scale. Found the picture on Pinterest and found it to be quite unusual as it carries the cylinders of a heisler but has no side rods and the V cylinders are in the front rather than the rear. Credit is given to it being from the livery of Rio Allosius Mining & company but believe it to be an ON3 model and I am building it in loose G scale using a LGB 2017 powered tender chassis cab selection is still up in the air but have been using a LGB2015 cab for fitting and will probably use 1 from a aristo 2-4-2 Rogers as it will up the scale a bit. Support structures came from a plastruct styrene and wheel bearing and journals came from ectez tender chassis. Smoke stack is from Bachmann along with the bell and believe the generator is an LGB, sand a steam domes are from a Lionel 0-6-0 gold rush engine. Cylinders are from an old LGB stanza. The yet to be built tender section is being built from a old scientific tender cut down, Boiler bands is evergreen styrene strip and rivets are 1/2 sided 2mm beads, more to come, would like to thank Screwy Nick for his assistance in location of the generator,Bill

    mini left.jpg

    mini heisler V cylingers from the side.JPG

    mini heisler RS chassis with support rod.JPG

    mini heisler ember screen.JPG

    mini heisler with generator in the front.JPG

  6.    Before starting on a new major project I decided I would finish up my passenger train that will be pulled by the mason bogie. Had an LGB PRR combine and that would give me a 3 car train and with the engine being 2' long made it just about right length. The light green paint color is no longer made but I found one that is pretty close, also the dark green although it says it's the same color it was a little off, and I cured that by painting over the sides of my existing cars and leaving the ends the same, simple fix. Had yellow left over and just barely enough, orange stripe had same problem as the dark green but again close enough. Painted the interior a light putty color and made the seats more brown. Painted the window frames to match the existing cars and tinted the curtains using a orange high lighter which gives color but remains see thru. Removed the curtains in the freight area figured they probably wouldn't have frilly stuff in there. Left to do is paint the trucks and roof and add lights like I did in the others, more to come, Bill

    CFR combine side.JPG

    CFR combine interior.JPG

    CFR combine window curtains.JPG

  7.    Old Joe, with the MIK challenge finish I have returned to unfinished projects and being as the least amount of work required was on Old Joe I worked on him. Got the number plate finished along with the whistle, wired up both lights and secured all the screws then tested and it works, fun build, now I have a small industrial steam switch made out of old scrap parts.

    Had a question on what I built it from and that was all covered in the build but so one doesn't have to read it all over her is the short version

      He is a combination of parts left from previous builds. Cab is 2 rear sections of Lionel 0-6-0 gold rush special which were left over from my Mason Bogie build, along with the roof and fuel bunker, boiler is PVC fittings, side tanks came from a cut down LGB 2017 that were left from "Rosy's" saddle tanker build, lights came from a LGB 2010 that I built into a Forney, steam dome is a PVC pipe cap, whistle is parts from a electrical connector, left over bell, smoke stack was made from brass 1/4" pipe, firebox is left from my Spreewalt that was the chassis donor for my Mason Bogie build, cab steps were from an old LGB European low side gondola, water fill hatch off a Bachmann 4-6-0 tender from my 2-6-2 prairie build, the chassis and Kadee couplers are new and the bolsters are front is from the rear of the 4-6-0 tender and the rear came from the back on a aristo sloped back tender, Fun build

    old joe done front.jpg

    old joe done lfr-side.jpg

    old joe done rh side.jpg

    old joe done rear.jpg

  8. Well with the MIK challenge finished I think it's time to turn my attention back to unfinished projects, still on the burners is "old Joe" and my Mason Bogie. Before the MIK I was able to temporally install the R/C system which I'm using a gscale graphics unit, took it to a friends house who has a standup railroad and ran it, wow was I pleased it ran perfectly and the articulation worked better than I hoped, even negotiated 1100 S curves and switches, only down side was 1 turn it showed a little wheel slippage but think it was because of un even track and tight curve but I've added additional weight any ways, also looking for another traction tire wheel for the other side. Have managed to cram all the electronics into the tender area and left now is just cleaning up the wiring, after Old Joe is finished, Just headlight wiring to do, I think I will paint up a combine car for the Mason and that will give me a 3 car train and with the engine being 2' long that's going to be enough, More to come, Bill   
    1396939082_MBcomplete2.thumb.jpg.6068fa14638c978ee5aa41655b52e2b2.jpg

  9.    Time to get back to work on Old Joe. With the Christmas crowd gone and the stuff put away figured it was time to get back to the construction of Old Joe. Never really stopped work but had only been piddling with guests here and medical issues, I had painted the engineer/fireman, and weathered the engine a little. Got tied up with the LSC MIK challenge but think I can do both just have to do a little juggling. Yesterday I got the new motor installed in the motor block and got the block reinstalled in the chassis which allowed me to start assembly of the boiler, side tanks and cab with wood chute. At the same time I ran wiring from the front head light back to the rear along with the motor wires. When I got done I powered it up on the roller bearings and it runs like a champ. The firewood bunker is real neat as it just slides on to the back of the cab and is all hollow back there leaving enough room to make up the wiring which I still have to do. Placed the engineer/fireman in the cab and he looks great, more to come, Bill

    old joe left rear with engineer.JPG

    old joe lect front.JPG

    old joe left side with engineer.JPG

    old joe right side with engineer.JPG

    old joe right side front.JPG

  10. While looking for a figure to be Old Joe's engineer and fireman, thought the engine was small enough that 1 person could preform both jobs, I came across is figure from American diorama which seemed to fit the bill, pot bellied, standing and aged looking, only problem was he was carrying a took box and a wrench that was necessary for his job as an engineer/fireman. so I changed the toolbox to a log and removed the wrench also reformed his hat and dirtied him up a little.

    e-f new.JPG

    e-f front.JPG

    e-f back.JPG

    e-f side.JPG

  11. Got a little more done today been tuff cause I'm taking meds for a lung infection and so now I shake more than usual, the Kadee springs were a blast to do. Used my last beam of cut down PVC board from the pillars of my water tower for the rear beam, found a step in my junk collection off a aristo slope back tender and a new Kadee #779 coupler. Being as there is no rear section left on the engine deck, cut it off some time ago, I mounted the beam, coupler assy to the motor block using 2/56 screws taped into the housing and secured with lock tight. Hopefully the meds will be over soon and I can get to some finish assy and wiring, now looking for a usable motor to make it run, more to come , Bill 

    old joe rear coupler from side.JPG

    old joe rear coupler from rear.JPG

  12. Finally decided on a headlight for Old Joe, had a selection of Bachmann, toy train and stanza, and I selected stanza basically because of size and style, but I did cut down the stanza one, removed the side board on the stock one so that the head light stood alone without a back board. Mounted it to the boiler using 2/56 black Allen head screws that are taped into the boiler,  painted the one for the front to match the machine yellow that the tank is painted in, just because I waned it to show up more than a drab black or plain one, have a matching vertical one for the rear of the wood tender vertical back but painted that one silver for the same reason as I didn't want it to disappear into the back ground., also modified it in the same manner removing the back board behind the stanza light, think I will paint the reflector bright silver instead of leaving it factory white. more to come, Bill, PS thanks Nick for your suggestions!!!

     

    old joe new head lite.JPG

  13. Adding details to engine, got air piping along with the air compressor attached to the starboard side water tank + a bell attached to the vertical front of the engine cab and on the port side a air tank, tied the air piping and the air tank together with a pine made from metal wire covered vinyl, also added some hand rails on top of the water tanks for workers that came off and old aristo 0-4-0. Ran across a couple of head lights that I could incorporate into the engine but initially I was not going to put any headlights because it was thought engine only worked during the day, still thinking about that. Also started weathering the engine but a lot left to do, more to come, Bill. Since originally posting I have come to understand that by law the must have a head light so I guess I just have to pick a style.

    old joe port side air tank.JPG

    old joe starboard side air cooling piping.JPG

  14. After several good suggestions from several readers, I found some material that my wife had that had a nice weave and was thin enough to show the groves that I had scribed in the top. Selecting a suitable sized piece I glued it with some titebond glue and allowed to dry. I was going to dye the material with coffee or tea but it had a print on it so I wound up painting it and will probably put some tar patches on it where a ember from the stack landed and caused a burn hole. still more to come, Bill

    old joe canvas roof with wood box.JPG

    old joe canvas roof.JPG

 
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