Guys, I have an undecorated Athearn Snow Blower. I know in listing this on flyers and all and on the box itself it states its a diesel powered Snow Blower! However, this is wrong, if it were diesel powered their would not be a steam boiler front on the rear of the body! With a Smoke stack right above the smokebox front on the rear of the car body. So this much of it is clear to us all. However my question is, what make is it? Like the one Walthers made for their "Trainline" department is a ALCO/Leslie rotary Snow Blower... What model did Athearn model their Snow Blower after??? Being its not actually a full Snow Blower, being its advertised as a diesel powered one they didn't include a tender for it, but in reality, it should have a tender, being Athearn put a boiler front from a steam boiler on the rear of the car body with a smoke stack molded in the car body as well on the rear for the top of the car body. Which it should be advertised as a partial Snow Blower. Thing is, to model it, I'd like to see pictures or any information on it after I find out what make or manufacturer Athearn made it to follow. Anyone know what manufacturer they followed to model it after???? And then once thats acomplished, I'd like to find some information on it as well as some pictures of the real thing that its supposed to be. To add some super detailing effects. Anyone know anything on this ???? In any event... TIA [ 07. October 2002, 06:49: Message edited by: 7600EM_1 ]
Yes Jim, its the exact same thing you posted a link too. Just the one I have is all black plastic "undecorated" same body, port holes, same everything. Just mine is not painted... What manufacturer type did Athearn follow to make their HO scale version????
Don't know yet . Most all of them have steam generators to supply heat and ice removal. If it has diesel type trucks, it has traction motors but no engine in it. The power for these comes from a "B" unit behind it through jumpers. The B unit may also not have traction motors. No two of the darn things are alike.
Jim, Its forsure steam powered, its the same as the one you posted, the front truck towards the blower housing/blades is from the steam era... As for the rear truck, its an old (er) 3 axle truck. Looks to me to be from the steam to diesel transition era. As for the car body, it has the port hole windows same as the one in the link you posted that looks to be from a F or E unit (for example) and then on the rear of it, it has a boiler front, from what looks to be a Mikado or some medium steam loco. And then right above that on the roof, it has a smoke stack! Their are no louvers of any kind on it no where. So I wouldn't assume its diesel powered. Its got me confused being its listed to be a diesel powered snow blower with the remains of steam on it.... But no tender! Go look at a Athearn Snow Blower, and you've got the exact thing I have. I'm trying to make it a complete snow blower and prototypical to whatever the manufacturer is. And then try to find pictures of one like it thats real to model from to add my own super detailing parts. Being I have went through the northeast. railfan site listings of snow blowers and they have none that resembles it to the body style closely. Some things are the same in looks but not near enough to say what the make is is on it or what Athearn followed to model it. Then to find pictures of it. maybe even a year to tell what era it was in or came from....
The old steam rotary snow blowers did indeed have a small box type tender, but were not able to move along the track. They had to be moved by a regular engine, sometimes three or four, depending on how deep the snow was, and how densly packed it was. The steam rigs could blow snow as far as 100 to 150 feet off to either side. Those were equipped with 4 wheel trucks on both ends. These trucks were unique in having solid skirts to prevent ice from packing in around the wheels and springs and derailing the rig. In later years when the old steam rotaries were converted to diesel power, a prime mover and generator was mounted in place of the boiler and cylinders. Diesel exhaust was sometimes run up through the old steam stack. The "advantage" of this conversion was expected to allow the one diesel engine to power both the snow fan, as well as now make it possible for the unit to move under its own power, since the generator could produce enough "juice" to run several motors. That is where the 6wheel rear truck came in. One motor turned the fan, and the truck motors were supposed to propel the rig along. These diesel snow blowers had no steam provision, but did have large fuel tanks. As it turned out, most of these conversions were able to throw snow 50 to 85 feet continuously, but they still had to have additional "push" supplied by other engines. There was not enough weight to provide traction on the icy rails under heavy snow loading. They could blow and self-propel only on light snow fall work. If you notice, the Athearn model (in HO) has the correct (and impossible to find now) 4 wheel flat skirted truck in front by the fan, and a 6 wheel truck in the rear, to simulate the diesel conversion. Did you also notice the whole machine tilts down hill ? The scale front 4 wheel truck's bolster is not as tall as the 6 wheel (passenger) truck in the rear. The lower edge of the scoop is only 3" off the rail head, but the model will drag and catch on rail joints, unless you do some serious surgery on that passenger car truck. (It isn't an engine truck). At least the three Athearn Rotaries I have are all alike, two still new. I have tried to order the 4 wheel truck, but they tell me this truck is not available separately. The real machines were of course level, and the 6 wheel truck was off one of the F units that were handy and did have motors on the axels! Modern diesel snow blowers were designed for diesel power, so do look different, and are also longer with 6 wheel trucks on both ends and more modern looking too. This information was partly from videos "Challenging Donner Pass in Winter", "Historic Rotary Snow Plows", and some books about these machines. It was a thrill to watch the steam rotaries blowing a huge plume of snow off the side of a cliff across a canyon wall, and hear the whistle signals as they backed up, and charged into the snow banks again and again! Those were the days back in 1937! [ 07. October 2002, 15:39: Message edited by: watash ]
Oddly strange, this all is making some sence to being said to be a diesel powered snow blower. The thing thats got me is, it still has the boiler front from the boiler inside! This is what has me confused The boiler front is their, the smoke stack is their, which means it would have a boiler inside! BUT it has the 3 axled rear truck! from a Athearn passenger car! Just like the picture! However, I've taken the rear 3 axle truck off and replaced it with a 2 axle truck, being I had needed the truch for a used passenger car I had and wanted to put the passenger car in service! So, I got a snowblower thats steam powered. I just got to looking at another feature on this too, look at the longest walkway that goes out across the roof... its got a round spot in the walkway where the top of a steam dome comes through the roof! Is this another sign that its possibly a steam powered blower ?????
John, I did a little digging and I think I may have hit upon the parentage of Athearns Rotory. Irv was partial to Railroads that ran in and thru California, so once while I was skimming through my UP Color Guide to freight and passenger equipment book I stumbled on a picture of, (to my eyes anyway), Athearns rotory snowplow!! The book states that UP purchased 2 snowplows from Lima Hamilton in 1949, both were oil fired and had their boilers reversed so they could be fired from the center of the carbody. Here's something to make you smile John, both of UP's rotorys were equipped with ex-C&O 2-8-8-2 tenders! Apparently one is on display in Hermiston, Oregon. If my scanner hadn't pooped out last month I would have a picture of it to post. Jim could you help? The pictures are on pages 114 & 115. 2slim
Bingo!! Hermiston, Oregon was the key word. http://hometown.aol.com/accrs2001/rotary0761.html http://hometown.aol.com/accrs2001/hermiston.html http://hometown.aol.com/accrs2001/april.htm http://www.hazegray.org/rail/rotaries.htm http://wasteam.railfan.net/snowplows.html
Thanks a million guys! That stops the modelers continuous headscratch On finding out what the builder or builders was! Also lends a hand in helping with the tender as well! I believe that the snowblowers would have been better off made to fire off oil instead of coal. Being petroeum doesn't freeze and all like the coal did. Thing is, I'm going to mess with an Idea of my own with this for awhile. My Y6b (2-8-8-2) tenders I used for my EM-1's. Being that its part of my MOW train which a few on the board has seen in person and others seen in a video tape thanks to Johnny Trains and his buddy Louie... The whole train is hand made, and also freelanced to the B&O. So being so, its got cars the B&O never actually had. So why not add a snow blower? And being of my own design and from my own thought of liking one car to another, I had the thought of making it oil fired to begin with, thing of that tho, is the fact that i'm less an oil tender thats a square welded type! BUT I do have a semi Vanderbuilt oil tender thats just laying around collecting dust. So, my thought is to make the front as super detailed as possible to the manufacturer, and freelance the tender to the mother unit etc with a freelanced color sceme to match my MOW train. I believe, like the rest of my B&O MOW train, it will create a very conversational piece to the train. Being All the snowblowers I've seen have square tenders and not Vanderbuilt or even semi-Vanderbuilt tenders....I think it will look good like this. I just have to play with my ideas etc to make it look right and well detailed for each piece being a set as a loco and its tender.... Just to be different and all, plus to draw some attension and be a "talkitive piece"
Forgot to say, THANKS Jim for the links! VERY HELPFULL! I have to say, that the one UP snowblower in those is the first and only one I ever seen with a Vanderbuilt tender of any I've seen! Very interesting! THANKS! I sure appreciate it!
One of the best topics I have seen in a long time!!!!!! I might just have to pick up another plow now, one that is silver. On that Vany tender, you could build a plastic skirt aboud the tank, flush with the upperdeck...just a thought, though. How about adding htis investigation into "Best of trainboard" Section? I know i won't want to dig this one out when I need it agin! Thanks all and good night.
Benny, No, I kinda like the idea of making a snow blower with the vandy tender... Its something different! And then, the whole idea I've got is different! The B&O never had a snow blower at all! Just one wedge snow plow That I will post a link to for you all to have a look see. But never a snow blower! So, being the entire train I'm building (yes, building) is hand made, and B&O free lanced, why not? I liked it and I'm going to add it to the MOW train that gave me the name I have today for what I do...It was a hit when I first started it back in 1989/90 so... And to this very day, its still a big hit in my neck of the woods! All the cars so far to it is either hand made scratchbuilt, or kit bashed repaired junk cars I had picked up at yard sales/garage sales along the way. Some of which, I had bought just to customize to whatever I wanted and all so.. then freelanced a blue with dulux yellow lettering numbers and even some with striping! The whole train is all "Royal Blue" to match the B&O'd diesels and passenger car shade of blue, with the striping and lettering and numbers from the first high nose road diesel sceme, with 2 stripes, one on the side sill and one 2/3rds up the side of the body, all blue and the words "Baltimore And Ohio" written out on the long hood. So I took this design, and made it fit the crew cars the big hook crane body, and the caboose cabs on like the boom tender etc and the rest of the cars are all blue (the same shade) and just have numbers and the written out wording of "Baltimore And Ohio" on them! I liked the Snowblower for the fact of it being Maintenace of Way so.. I thought it be a nice conversational piece to the train! I've also got a Jordan Spreader in the works of getting the same treatment as well! To add to this long rostered train! I do however have another question on the snow blower.. The portholes, was their glass in these ??? or were they open to let air inside to the boiler???? If it were a diesel powered version, I would know that the portholes had glass in them, but for the steam versio, I'm not so sure... Being it would have been quite warm in their... Let me know so I know to make my porthole glass or not too! THANKS everyone for the help! Its greatly appreciated! Jim, Let it up to me to come up with something interesting. HA! It means I'm probably modeling it or something of the sort! That I got stumped on or wanted to know more information on it.... I vote to have it put in the "Best Of" for our users to pull up if the question would ever come up again... [ 08. October 2002, 09:47: Message edited by: 7600EM_1 ]
Heres that link I had mentioned about posting... This is the only form of B&O snow removal I've seen... It looks to be a "sides" plow, and not a V plow.... Being it has the straight edge on the plow at the very front/ point.... B&O Wedge Plow I've gave it some thought to model this as well at a later date.... But, thats just a thought in progress right now!
Jim, I figured it was a one sided plow for double main lines, instead of a "V" plow... Its very noticable from the straight edge on the plows point. The thing on that, thats got me really wondering, is the point of the plow itself near the tracks! see how it sort of points up? I would have thought it be pointed down, or level with the track. Not as it is with an upwards point. Strange! Know any reason why they would have made it like that ???? Besides having the flanger near the rear set of trucks ???? Made to oppose hitting something? Its got me wondering!
John, study the photo carefully. Note the shear-foot edge of the scoop is 3" above the rail at BOTH rails. The shear edge is horizontal so it can "cut" the snow pack and get under it to lift it off the rails at speed. As the snow is lifting up it is then guided to the right hand side where by momentum it is then discarded off the right-of-way, like windrowing wheat stubble. On Double track right-of-way, the plow would be pushed at speed on the right hand track, say, going north, then turned around and be pushed going south on the other track. This would throw the snow off away from the two tracks. Follow me? A wedge plow would have covered one of the tracks either way it was pushed, see?
Yes Watash I follow you! A "V" plow would only clear one side at a time but cover the other track being a double mainline! A single mainline they used the "V" plow to evenly discard the snow to both sides! As for the snow blower, it would whip the snow to the right going north, and the right again going south, this would keep both tracks pretty near clear, besides the flying snow of the blades out in front that would put some "overspray" onto the track beside the one being cleared, but nothing of volume. It be like a snow dusting from the blades throwback or overspray...
