I just added numbers to one of my Southern GP7s..I letting the decal set cure before I number the other side.
Two projects. A GS-3 conversion from a Kato GS-4 (plus superdetailing and Tsunami sound), and converting four Central Valley Pratt truss bridges into Warren truss bridges for my 6' Taggarts module and my 8' Devil's Slide Ideal Concrete Plant module. The GS-3 is for my son Ben and the next motive power project waiting in line is a de-skirted GS-4, then Tsunami sound in one of my brass FEF-3's. The bridges are requiring special tools to be designed and made to make cutting and sanding some very small girders possible, but they should be ready to paint in a couple of weeks. I'm waiting on a Con-Cor GS-6 single headlight smokebox front on order from them to arrive before proceeding on the GS-3, but the cab has been cut and needs the rear of it to be made. The boiler top also needs to have two generators removed and their respective holes filled, filed and sanded, as well as a hole and box for the whistle. New rivet lines will be applied using Archer resin transfers. It's a very interesting project and we'll run it publicly at the SLC NMRA show on our new modular layout the last weekend of October pulling an appropriate train. Oh, I forgot about the six hand-laid turnouts getting the full Proto87Stores super-detail treatment! Gotta see if the details can actually be seen and if it's worth the extra cost to build the sidings and turnouts at Devil's Slide using them. Another fun project for sure!
Robert: I'm very interested in the Central Valley truss bridge project. I have a kit I am about to assemble. Here is a review of the bridge by EricB. Good ideas there and some pics, too.
Propane tanks Wow, nice projects you're working on. All I did was to make some more propane tanks. View attachment 44148 The following show some of them installed. View attachment 44151 View attachment 44152 View attachment 44153
Finished 2 of these 3900 series SP&S woodchip boxcar. Built from MT double sheathed boxcars Cars 39110 and 39121......
Finished the decal work and lettering for both NP business cars Yakima River, the lightweight, and Madison River the heavyweight. Still have to add rear lights. The accompanying cars are W.O.T. and I'm going to have to do something with that blue interior on those cars.
I worked on some bridge abutments today, using an idea I had to simplify it. I cut foam to shape, then smeared with a thin coat of spackle.. roughly applied. When dry I sanded it just to remove the high peaks.. then scribed in the stone joints.. waddya think?
I did the horizontal lines with a razor saw, using a metal ruler as a guide. The vertical lines are just an exacto knife.
hardly any time this week to model (work-yard work-family)...Spring is 'springing' down here, so the yard is getting a lot of my spare time... so many irons in the fire, but the modelling focus has been on the Fast Mail, and, specifically, the brass car sides to model the heavyweight equipment. All of the heavyweights are being modified for body mount couplers...testing FVM wheelsets (BTW-the longest FVM wheelsets labled specifically for the Atlas/Rivarossi cars are too long, and the 36" wheels rub on the brake shoes-so I'll be ordering the next size shorter and the 33" wheels for all of these cars) Also awaiting an order of Detail associates brass wire for all the handrails and grabs that these cars 'eat'! In the meantime.... re-attatching underframe detail (in the correct locations) that was removed from the cars before the cutting and modifications.... the 70' baggage 2602 series rider car (from the Rivarossi combine), with windows plated, holes drilled for grabs and rails, stairs added, water tank and battery boxes built and re-postioned. and parts for the RPO build assembled (this bash won't need cutting of the body-the MT RPO does well here- but the underframe will need some modification to work; the ATSF RPO's rode on two axle trucks-MT 1017's-and the bolster points on the MT car will have to be repositioned...not nearly as bad as it sounds; the MT1017 trucks provide a complete bolster assembly that will replace the molded on bolster point). With some modifications, I'll also be able to use the Delrin MT stirrup assemblies, which will be a little more sturdy. Thankls for looking, Bruce
I started this project about 10 days ago and finished it up tonight...sort of. I found out from another group that I can change out the fuel tank for a better representation and I'll also need to change the truck to a set of EMD's. Other than that, here's how she looks as of tonight. This has been a fun and educational project, if for nothing else than to get over the fear of hacking up a perfectly good engine... Thanks, Brian I even bent the handrails like the prototype.... and finally with it's long lost mother...
Here is my Russian decapod project so far. I need to decal it now and weather the crud out of it. The tender has Kato caboose trucks under it which helps greatly with the electrical pickup. The little TSC decoder has plenty of room above the worm gear. The whole front of the boiler is a big slug of lead inside from the "Z" bracket where I screw the boiler shell on to the front of the smoke box. I have a hole drilled in it for a light shaft to illuminate the head light.
Ship's chain came in the post so I'm adding the brake detail to all the heavyweights...the chain is not nearly as oversize (compared to the molded-in detail that I removed)...a tiny spot ove CA holds it in place until hand painted...
