rbrown7713

I am also modeling ATSF, locos and cars. When I started, no one made 1:32, so, I made my own molds. If I were you, I would kitbash the MTH cars, they are a good start, good details and you don't have to make the trucks, just stretch out and change the windows. The dome care was a little tough to model, but it can be done. Here is what I am working on now, an observation car made for the Texas Special and also used on ATSF.

Thanks again for your kudos guys, I appreciate it. Sometime in the future, I will build another E8 and E7, haven't done the tooling yet on the E7, with a more correct cab that I have, should look even better, that is my dream. I am now putting together a 1947 Pullman Standard observation car originally built for a one railroad that never bought it and then was used as a Texas Special observation car. Since I do ATSF, I won't paint it in the Texas Special color of red and stainless, I am going to use it as an ATSF observation car that was purchased by ATSF, it was the same car, but had a smaller red light in the rear. I might decrease the size of the light, I don't know, then it would be correct. If I don't, don't tell anyone OK? Bob.

Since Chuck asked for a video in this thread, here is a video of the E8 running on battery power.

After explaining the gear ratios above, here is what happened. I have a 34 foot test track, and without going to a full page of math, I came to the figure of 1.833 feet per second at a 1:32 scale speed of 40mph. It should take 18.5 seconds to travel the 34 feet. With 20 spaces, 10 white and 10 black, it worked out to be 33.6 mph, so I decreased again to 16 spaces, 8 white and 8 black and at 40 mph readout, it took 18 seconds to travel the 34 feet, pretty close to the correct time. Actually when you do the math, it should take 18.5 seconds, so the actual scale speed is probably 41 mph, close enough for the girls I go with. There are no doubt some errors in measuring the 34 ft. of track and the timing, so it could be that it is dead nuts on. 8 black and 8 white stripes is the closest that I could actually put on the flywheel. Now the original number of stripes that I came up with was something like 17.4 or something like that. I don't know, if the O gauge soundset figures in the factor of scale, O, as opposed to 1:32, I personally think that it is adjusted with the number of stripes on the flywheel, but I don't know that for a fact. Here is the setup for the 1:32 E8, 1:32 3 axle NWSL trucks, 16 spaces on the flywheel, white and black, Proto2 O gauge E8 soundset. The speed reads correctly and the sounds are fantastic. Robert Brown.

I recently changed soundsets on my E8 1:32 loco from an F7 to 0 scale Proto2 AA Santa Fe E8 with 4.3 and the 2.3 program and had no problems. Of course, I am not worried about lashups. Robert Brown. BTW, the sounds are fantastic.

I have 3 sets of six batteries, around 21 volts and each is 5000 milliamp and according to Gary Raymond, they should last about 2 hours or more. I have an additional set also, so I can change over and have another two hours. The only loco pulling is the A unit. It got away from me the other day and I had to hold it back, it went to full power, and it felt like it would pull at least 10 cars easily, we shall see. Bob.

Well I finally got it running, no issues. Here is a video.

I just looked up and EMD built 427 E7's and 500 E8's and 48 E8 b units, Santa Fe bought 8 A's and 5 b's. I have seen 3 A's in a train and mostly an A and a B. I have seen as many as 2 F A's with 5 B's pulling freight. Amtrak used them for awhile into the 60's. Bob.

The E series, with an A and B unit took the place, power wise, of an ABBA of the F series, two motors each in the E8 a and b. Way more power than the F. The bell and horn sounds quite a bit better also. Bob.

The sound file is from an O gauge E8 AA santa fe . I am going to set up a temporary track to test. Thanks Bob.

Here is a short video of the E8 with new downloaded sounds.

Picture updates, added air tanks, grilles, decals. Tomorrow I will add the hand rails. Bob.

Here is a Pullman standard smoothie in Union Pacific colors. The windows are glass.

Regardless, it still looks good. Whenever that I can use a part, I will do it, I am not proud, most of my molds were made prior to anyone making much in 1:32, but now, wow, there is lots of 1:32 for me to kitbash. Bob.

Nice dome car Jerry, you picked the hardest one with the curved glass. I am afraid of that one. Good job, Robert Brown.

Thank you, these are techniques that I have developed over the years, some good, some not so good, but they get the job done. I will, in the future, explain how I make my molds on the Bridgeport mill, so maybe some will take that hobby up. I have some procedures that are fairly straight forward and not difficult at all. Also, just about every thing that I have done on the mill, as far as making sides, can be made, with a little care, with a router. Some of the sides that I have made were made with a router. The 1945 Pullman observation car pattern was entirely made with nominal tools, a jig, and a router. It's a lot easier on the mill. Robert Brown.

A short slide video of how I made my flush number boards for an E or F series loco.

Hi Jerry, I used an air brush and the only color that I had to thin was silver, about 25 %. Do not use Badger paints. I bought about 70.00 worth and the paint is useless, might as well have been spraying water. The best is Polly Scale, but I had to hunt for them because I think they are going out of business. You can still find some on Ebay. Bob.

There are still a few things to install, but I am almost there. I am charging the batteries and it does function on aux power, so I think everything is alright. The cab is MTH, the sides, roof and ends are my own, machined on a Bridgeport mill. The electronics are MTH, sound, lights, everything. I am using NWSL truck and adapted the speed sensor. The B unit houses the batteries, the baggage car houses the TIU. I will be showing a video shortly of it running. I sure like the mars light and the number boards show up real bright. Does anyone know if Protosound 2 has brake squeal sounds? OK here are some pics.

Thank you very much Bart, I feel it is my duty to show people what some of my procedures are, to help someone, and I realize that there are many ways to do what I do, and my mind is open for suggestions. I am self taught with the respect of making molds, so not all of my procedures are, to some, correct, but I get the job done. Thanks again.

:(I am powering NWSL trucks 12 volts, with MTH power 24 volts. I thought by running them in series would work, but it did not. The motors ran erratically. sometimes one would start and the other would not, and also the other way around, so I went back to the parallel configuration and they ran without issue. I just thought I would share this failure. Robert Brown.

I thought I would share a problem installing NWSL trucks on my E8. By the time I made bushings for ride height and the bearing for the truck, there was not enough stem length to install the one-way washer that they provide. I don't like the one way washer because you put it on once and to remove it you destroy the motor block stem. So, here is what I did and I am following up with pictures. I drilled two holes in the top of the motor block for the wires, made a slot in the frame floor of the loco for the wires and that allowed the hole in the stem to be used for a screw and washer. This installation also allows you to remove the truck without damaging the truck. Again, any questions, I will gladly answer them, Bob.

The main reason that I do it this way is because the mold is flexible and by providing a flat surface to sit on, the parts come out the same every time. The other nice thing is the cover keeps all of the dirt off of the mold, and since I use Pam as my parting agent, it is greasy and it keeps the dust out of the area, plus the flashing is usually very thin, makes the part easy to trim. There are a 100 ways to make a mold, but this is the way I do mine.

Here is a slide video, I hope on how I make some of my molds.

Hello, this is Robert Brown, I think it would work on parts that detail is not important, but if resolution and detail is important, I have my questions. I have never tried it, so I don't know, but I do know this when making a pattern for reproduction, crispness and resolution is very important, so that is my two cents worth. I am attempting to place another slide video about how to make a mold, my method.