du-bousquetaire

Hey Bob: I like kitbashing, but that is a way out project! The T1 has a much larger boiler diameter than the hudson I measured 2M25 diameter on the hudson and 2.50 scale meters on the T1 in the cyclopedia (Sorry I only have a scale rule for HO in meters) The difficult part to get right is the Belpair firebox and combustion chamber. + the skyline casing. I would try to takle that in brass as you can solder to it and this helps a good deal especially since the T1 gets to be quite a heavy engine. The rods were lightweight alloy and roller bearing I can send you a drawing which gives the exact profile if you want. I have it in a French book on steam locomotives. There was a huge boss around the bearing and it seems that the rods were quite thin (most manufactureres and Accucraft got that all wrong). The reason the T1 didn't get to do what they had been planned for was the curve at the west end of Pitsburgh terminal the approach to the Allegheny river bridge was so sharp that on some crossovers they derailed. Originally they had been designed to handle Harrisburgh to Chicago trains with one coaling stop en route. I understand that the problematic turnouts were modified and that they could go through that erea after. Well I wish you all the best.

Yes Robert Brown Accucraft Makes a T1 in live steam in 1/32 scale all brass and steel construction. I think they still have some in stock it works very well and is in steam which means it is the real thing. It will negociate an 11' radius curve, I know because I have one and operate on these minimum radius curve. The add though says they do on 10' radius. It runs very well and I get over an hour run on one fill of meth with some water added midway on the fly. It is very powerful and need a horizontal main with above mentioned curves and pointwork. As it has slip excentric valve gear it actually is a pretty good loco to start in live steam with. as it is quite simple to drive. It has a water pump. The only problem with it is that there is no blow down to empty the boiler at the end of a run. Quite heavy to hold upside down over the sink... Photo shows it on the 11' curve. Other photo is a meet with a friends engines.

Thanks for that info Raymond, as it would solve a lot of problems that I have. One of these is as John Carmichael noted, the problem of operating MTH DCS locos with other locos which are not DCS. This problem is becoming very real for me as I have redetailed a Lionel GP7 which now runs fine with North West Short Line wheelsets and is analog, and I would love to latch it up with my F3 A-B-A which is MTH DCS, so that would make a spectacular MU lash up. By the way Jerry congratulations on that F7 it is very nice. If anybody hears about one of those Great trains E units I would be very interested in finding one or two, and I have absolutely no chance of finding one here in France, So if you could let me know about it I would apreciate it. It was the mainstay on the PRR. But thank god I am modeling the PRR in the steam era and can use the PA1 meanwhile.

Well for one thing I would consider things space wise: Unless you intend to model narrow gauge where you do get a bit of leway to do things indoors. The issue is: Have you the possibility to go outdoors? Because if you do then I wouldn't hesitate. Another factor is the climate Pennsylvania seems to be quite close to mine near Paris France, I get from 5 to 7 months of operation outdoors in a year. I know about Pennsy climate because I model the Pennsy in gauge one 1/32 scale. There is a fairly nice choice of equipment in that scale: GG1,F units, GP7-9, Alco PA1, VO1000; in steam you have the Aster K4 which has been produced either live steam or electric, a T1, an E6, a G5 and an M 1 has been announced . In 1/29 scale there is a wide choice of Diesels and a GG1 and a K4 which was also produced. for instance. But the nice thing to keep in mind is that once out in the garden there is no reason to stick with tinplate like short radiusses, it is even undesirable with live steam if manual control is employed. No grades is best for live steam but grades can be dealt with, even in live steam. Your railroad can thus begin to look more like a real railroad rather than an illustration from a 1950's Lionel catalogue and it makes things run much smoother. I run all my trains, in reverse if I want to and they stay on the rails, I even have a French push pull train. The minimum radius is about 10-11 feet that represents radiusses protype railroads used in engine terminals, sidings and some interchange tracks or junctions and were in real life negociated in reduced speeds (due to innertia, we don't have such a big problem in gauge one). If you can go to 14' its even better as then you are within some of the tight curvatures railroads had to contend with in special places (canyons, bridge aproaches etc) on main lines. I sold all my HO and never went back except for a n HOe layout to run something in the winter. I hope this helps you reach a descision.

Well although I am very happy that MTH came out with a new catalogue and did come out with another steam loco; I do wish we could see that small steamer they seemed to talk about a couple of years ago. Also the price increase is mind blowing, this isn't brass or hand made models. One of these days this will kill the hobby, how can a youngster get interested in trains with these kinds of prices for mass produced products?

I agree fully in regards to Ray's in depth analysis and in particular of his taking the time to make correct ananlysis. It has saved many of my engines from destruction and has helped me make my DCS operation viable over here in a country where there is no DCS service at all whatsoever. One question comes to my mind though and it is this: Can one use say the newer generation Aristocraft train engeneer with the switch set to linear power fed by a Bridgewerks power supply to run MTH DCS engines in analogue mode without harming them? This is interesting to me because I am an older generation and am used to analogue, and also because I have a lot of European equipment which runs on analogue and this would save me the hastle of switching from DCS to analogue every time I want to use one or the other. Yet I enjoy DCS scope to operation (maily the possibility of switching cars onto a train stopped on the main with a switcher or changing engines without needing any cab control, which is unpractical outdoors) and wish to keep the option to operate on DCS when I want to.

Nice find Jerry! I got the Wilson car lines and the Raskin reefer a couple of years ago for the same reason. It's too bad though that MTH put these pug doors on them instead of standard reefer doors. Ii have photos of the prototype with standard reefer doors but without the pug ones. Its not unlikely that they eventually got them though... But as I run pre WW 2 to 1957 era trains I would prefer standard reefer doors. Its the same with their boxcar doors why did they choose such an unusual door? There are some things at MTH that really make me go up the wall. If the wheels are brass you can turn down the flanges pretty easely. not with the strange and very tough greyish alloy though. Best wishes for the new year.

It has been a long time since MTH has bought out any really new stuff in gauge one it would be nice if they started to produce some new engines and cars again. I don't consider the 2013 or the 2015 catalogue as any new stuff it's just "play it safe" redecoration of older items or reruns. Its about time MTH did some new investment in this very nice line of rolling stock to develop the desire for people to get involved. Also doing engines that are representative of what actually ran on railroads instead of the five footeds sheep like the Triplex would be most useful. I don't think that they should base ther strategy on what works in the tinplate Lionel sector of the hobby but more on the scale model railroader and live steam markets. When I think of all the potential sales they lost, among the live steam comunity, because their passenger cars were not scale length it leaves me bewildered. But in any case some real news would be most encouraging to us gauge one adepts.

Hi there: I was just wondering why on earth change the power trucks as I understand that the NWSL power trucks aren't worth much power wise and knowing from experience that the MTH ones are very good mechanically? Powerfull, smooth, with brass gears and bearings what could you want more? I personnaly have fitted NWSL wheelsets to my Lionel GP7 to equip it with scale wheels and also to improve power pick up as it does not have pick up shoes. On my MTH PRR F3 I dismantled the wheelsets and turned down the flanges on my lathe to scale size or at least RP25 type profile so that it looks better and works well on my layout but I would never throw out that good a power truck. I have no personnal experience with NWSL power trucks but a good friend of mine did away with all the ones he had , after stripping the gears and burning out motors... As for the forked tube in the bodywork I wonder if it isn't designed to drain any oily residue condensate from the smoke generator. I have cut out mine as I don't go for that kind of gadget myself. If you have seen what real diesel smoke looks like and what smoke units produce, It's not desirable. This of course is only worth my personal opinion. As I burned out my boards for the second time in three years, I actualy run my F3 in analog and both are now independent. both the slave A and the lead A, I also can MU with my GP7. But I may yet refit them with new boards as I like the advantages that DCS gives outdoor operators....

Actually after many failures on MTH tires; by sheer luck I happened to have some rubber bycicle inner tubes that was just the right size (I keep these as sometimes it can be handy to make a seal for some live steam locos I have) I carefully cut as straight as I could and presto after having spoiled a few, a serviceable tire came out. I fitted it to the GG1 and it has been running ever since beautifully and as it doesn't come off as easely as the MTH ones do after a while, i shall keep on using them. Whenever one blows I just make a new one. Here in France I can't get the parts, besides MTH sells them at much too inflated prices, I think. Iwish some new rolling stock would come out in the gauge one line at MTH nothing I am interested in since years now...

Yes Jerry We have been practicing live steam in gauge one since the seventies, we were invited to animate the Aster Europa stand and will be again this week end at Rail Expo in Chartres. Just in case some folks are skeptical about the possibilities of Aster locomotives here is an even more spectacular shot: Just look at that train that the daylight is hauling, 16 cars! And it did that all day with the FEF pitching in. Like I said some where before sure these engines aren't cheap, but you do get what you pay for! We were three to bring our stock on this show. Happy steaming!

Hey great photo Jerry: Talk about the midwest, there ain't too many around in France either. My good friend Jean Guerin had one since about 25 years but didn't have the coaches for it. He just ordered a set of Accucraft which although not exact as per prototype really make a nice train. We ran at Montelirail a big rail show in Montelimar last week and here is what it looked like. It sure made his day. We had trains from three American roads on that event: My Pennsy stuff , another friend with a UP FEF and armour yellow set of accucraft and Jeans Dailight what a show! Enjoy!

I think the hobby is changing, especially in our scale (gauge one) from one where people could find an inventory availble in a catalogue, towards one where manufacturers (large and small) in which if you don't pre order you have very little chance of getting the product you want. This is now the case for Aster,Accucraft, Mth USA trains, and I think Bowande. So thats where we are at now, if things continue to go like that it's OK with me, but if it is just the premices of something worse then we should worry. In France some limited run pacifics made in China in HO run for over 350€! Our age group is not growing and having teached to teen agers for the previous decade, I can assure you that they are more interested in their I phones than model trains. That seems to be the motivation for Mike Wolfe and his firm to find ways to interest this new generation into our hobby. This is positive in a way, if it works! If it doesn't its just making things for us old analogue modelers more complicated than ever... And you will notice that you have to purchase the application... Always more money to dish out, just to get your trains running. Before all this electronic fad there were very few models that resisted my fixing them whatever condition they could come in, now there isn't much I can do, so we have to spend more bucks... That is one of the principal reasons youngsters don't go towards model railroading: Its already too expensive. This is just making it more so. Give you one perfect example: Before I blew both boards on my F3 A-B-A consist for the second time in three years, it had a horn. I found the Pennsy horn code and printed it, so that I could refer to it accordingly and hung it on a window near my track. Well the horn can't make two short beeps in a row, it needs an interval which is not realistic, if I plunge too long on the horn (like at the railroad crossing) it will make a short beep or two just after the - - 0 -, which wasn't called for and anyways, half of the time when I blow the horn, (Bert) it either doesn't blow or gets stuck for a very long blow, not called for. So who needs sound? When we run at exhibitions like last week at Montelirail, the MTH O scale layout gets on our nerves after a full day, not our steamers.

Yes you have to be carefull when you place it on the track that the loop link between the motor trucks are coupled correctly otherwise it lifts one truck off the track. Also if you have grades, like my nearly 2% one, you should check the adhesion tires regularly they tend to come off when the engine is slipping. In which case the engine looses tractive effort very quickly on grades. I lowered the body on mine so that it is nearly the correct distance from the trucks, I also turned down the flanges for a better more scale aspect. It is possible if you use wide radius.

Ivar: I model strictly in 1/32 scale and scalled down the official disance between track centers on the PLM railway of France which works out to 13 cm. I have had no problem with this using very long (scale 85' coaches and large engines such as the PRR T1). Friends bringing in some aristo craft 1/29th scale equipment have been able to run on my track although clearances are tight. Also narrow gauge fans working in 1/24th, 1/22nd and 1/20th scale. It is likely that US roads use a slightly wider spacing as their clearance diagram is a bit more generous especially western roads built much later than eastern ones (They were built later and by that time the knowhow of engineers had adopted wider clearances). Great trestle!

Actually Jerry code 250 is pretty close to that famous PRR classic 150 lbs rail which is known in model railroad circles to be the heaviest used regularly on mainline class one railroads (although I wouldn't be surprised if the C & O, Virginian and N & W used some too). I use Tenmille on my outer track which is code 225 which I beleive corresponds to 130 lbs rail used on most class one roads. You are right though to explain that scale rail size (and ties also) does a lot in acheiving realism in the garden railroad. As originally I was modeling strictly French prototype, which standardise on 20 tons per axle and therefore use lighter rail (usually on heavy duty mainlines around 50Kg/ meter pretty near 120lbs per yard rail) I used originally a code 215 rail which could be found in France easely. It was so maleable that I opted for concrete sub base road bed. It has worked out fine over the years although my layout is in clayish soil which shifts quite a bit. There is very little maintenance because of this. As some portions of this inner track which is scratchbuilt is now over 38 years old I have started on a tie replacement program to place one tie between two older ones, this in turn makes my tie spacing look very much like US track. I do 7 meters every year, and am 2/3 done.

I have been running mine for 7 years with heavy and heavier trains on a long grades as sharp as 1.80% which is what the prototype grade up the Aleghenies is (around Horseshoe curve) and is just about the most you want to go on a heavy mainline type of operation (I know many went over that but had huge helpers to push the trains over, PRR did that over Horseshoe too). Since three years I have been using it with J & M heavyweight stock which is, as its name implies, heavyweight! And it still climbs that grade which is on a 14 foot radius curve to boot. All that without adding any weight to the loco. I have noticed that the rubber adhesion tires can jump off going up that grade and have replaced them with bicycle inner tube succesfully (Over here gettting spares for MTH is hopeless). So far I have resisted adding extra weight to prevent motor and gear fatigue. It has hauled a twelve all metal coach train around the pike which has 11' radius curves and some 1.2% grades at speed. You should look into battery power for lighting your coaches, those electrical pick up carbon are like disk brakes on a car, which should be as free rolling as possible. Added benefit you can light your coaches with live steam and no blinking; which looks so silly anyways. Now with leds its a sinch. Enjoy your Ge its a beautifull engine and it performs very well.

Hi Jerry : Very nice photos of your pike, I love that small hill volcanic outcrop on the photos with the Aristo Mikado. I built a French tank car (supplied by the USA during WW1 though) model using those nice New Bright tank cars as a bassis too. I will make some pictures of it soon and post it when I can get around to it. I hadn't seen that this was an old post, take care, Simon

Actually that T1 was the one owned by a British friend my own was inside the indoor terminal, as I had guests to take care of that day (and some cooking to do). There are quite a few in Europe and I follow two prototypes: The French Nord railway (Although before that I did model the PLM which is the South East region of the SNCF and actually scratchbuilt A 2-D-2 9100 and a renault railcar), and the PRR since 2010. That Chapelon with an authentic rake of NORD coaches both Rapides and one Express as well as a CIWL diner and a Postal car is mine and two coaches are scrtatch built. (The Express Nord C11 coach with English like doors to every other compartiment and the Postal car). I like running engines with apropriate consists. I sincerly think that it will be the next step in gauge one. Untill now it was pretty difficult because of lack of available coaching stock. I think that now with what is available and a little scratch building we can get there. The NORD did not adhere to the OCEM program and to the end built it's own passenger coaches (under the supervision of Marc De Caso) So NORD passenger trains have a special look to them and those very curvy lines of the C 11 are typical of that look at any 1930 era passenger train of the Nord and you will see these very curvatious lines, Marylin Monroe made coaches! The windows are even arched.

Actually fellows I find live steam easier than electric! Here is the reason why: Sure you have to clean your loco after a run but that takes minutes and is not really painstaking work; you can be confortably sitting at your workbench. Electric and in particular DCS is a lot of work: For one you have to run a large section bus wire all around your track, install circuit boxes every three yards or so and make jumper connections to your track in brass or soldered. Then you have to bond your track or use those awful (visually) rail clamps. Then you must protect your TIU against shorts and install a fuse box with 5 amp fuses which you must buy in bulk orders as you can easely run through three or four fuses in one afternoon running session! After a while running on other power sources you will have to invest in a Bridgewerks power supply. Then you must clean your rails (on all fours in my case as I have a ground level line) in double track (total 100 meters!) and trim the grass, as that can wreck havock with the pick up. I steam once you have tunned your engine made sure all the screws are tight (don't strip the threads though, not too tight), Once you have gotten the wicks right, once your sure that your exhaust is in line, also that your clacks are fine (I empty my boilers after every run for this as this prevents electrolysis from removing the zinc in the brass which after a while becomes porous and brittle). If you have a stuck clack put boiling water into the tender and it should loosen the recalcitrant clack. And friends, I operate four multi cylinder engines! Every once in a while you have a real problem that needs fixing but most you can fix yourself, a fried board you cannot! Try it you will like it. And there is the joy of running with good friends too.

Sure you can your cars and E units are tops!

Hi Robert: There is a good photo of it in the Locomotive forum in the section: Show us your engines on page 9 (just before you showed us your beautiful work on the E units and the LW cars). It is built of aluminum except for the roof which is from an old stock of J&M roofs I was able to purchase, with a plywood floor and runs on David Leech trucks. (which are not accurate for this car actually they had the cast type of trucks with the equalisers hidden in the cast frame). I described its construction fully in an article fort Steam in the Garden a couple of years ago. It makes for a very sturdy yet lightweight car. For the wheels I couldn't say you should check the diameter it should be for passenger trains 36 scale inches in diameter. Freight wheels would be 33" diameter. The flanges are bretty big, otherrwise the wheels look good, it is often a sinch to reduce the flanges, if you have a lathe and a press.

Very nice Jerry, I had contemplated doing something like this. here is a photo of the last few Santa Fe ones still around in New Mexico taken a month and a half ago.

Just a note for those who might be tempted to follow this kitbashing recipe. It is OK in a train but not really good for an isolated car the reason is: That the width of these cars is greater than the width of standard AAR reefers and when I shortened the height it shortened the ends which are near square in proportion where they should be a rectangle higher than the width. So from the ends the cars look a bit odd. Well now they are rolling before they were sitting around taking space and not being used. The better bet is to lengthen the box cars these should be accurate and a lot less work. Someone did a post on that in another forum... I just wanted to say this, as I don't want to encourage folks to do all this work and be disapointed after with the results... happy steaming, Simon

Well in short most sleepers, parlors and club cars on limiteds (That meant limited to those who paid extra fare and Pullman fees) were run by the Pullman company an important manufacturer of cars that sold the concept of the sleeping car in the US, Canada and Mexico, and operated these cars for the railroads. That is they built the cars, maintained them, equiped them with bedding and linen, and manned them with the famous Pullman porters which represented an important step in the emancipation of american colored people at the time (For many their first real job...). in 1947 some companies that wanted to run their own sleeper services, attacked the Pullman company in the anti trust courts and won. The pullman company was forced to divest itself either of the operation of the cars or the construction of railroad cars. It chose to divest itself of the operation which was taken over by the companies where these cars operated on (Pennsy, NYC, Santa Fe etc.) but provided the crews as a service for these companies. However what most people don't understand was that each railroad provided its own baggage, RPOs diners and even coaches, if the trains had coaches in their consists. There was feirce competition between them and although diners were run at a loss, it was good PR for the companies, like the B&O competed with the PRR between New York, Philly, Baltimore and Washington and the mid west (and with the Erie the NYC the Lackawana-NKP route etc) The B & O couldn't compete with the PRR on speed but it's dining cars were renown for their excellent cuisine, so it was an argument in the case of a more leisurly trip. What that means was that sleepers and pullmans had pullman writen on the facia board whereas all the company cars had written PRR, NYC or AT&SF etc., there. They also built their own cars often very different from those of another company. A good example of this is the Osgood Bradley "American Flyer" cars that the New Haven and a handfull of other roads operated. A very different coach from those of neigbour NYC or partner PRR. The D 78 is an accurate series of PRR diners which the J&M is not (it's a NYC design...) As I am a sobbing, slobery Pennsy freak I try to make it as accurate as I possibly can (Actually I love many other US roads, notwithstanding the AT&SF, the C&O and Virginian and N&W, the B&M and many others, but to simplify things I tend to stick to one prototype to get an atmosphere of a company going on my pike and to reduce my spending. If I could I would buy UP FEF chalengers, N&W 611 NKP berkshire and so on but I would soon be living in the steets...). Passenger trains are a fascinating world...