How did you go about getting the etched rods made? Did you produce the artwork for the etchings? I'm working on a Western Maryland decapod, and etched rods would make the project considerably easier!
Here's some info on my tender mods and I'll let Jason (superturbine) address the casting of the P10, and when he does I'm anxious to hear because I would love one! I read your thread and was very impressed with your results, thats one awesome looking engine. I'm not sure how well the model power mechanism will work with the integrated motor, but maybe the castings could be fitted to the Kato japanese pacifics? The bachmann 160-C-2 is a one piece tube with a front and rear wall attached. I removed the front wall so that I could access the tender for attaching leads to the contacts on the trucks. On the bottom of the tender I had to trim the front bolster so that it matches the rear one. I then put some oval slots in the tender frame next to the bolsters for the contacts to go through. The last thing you'll need to do is cut reliefs in the side of the bottom frame about 1/8" long where the contact curves in and goes horizontal towards the bolster. See the pictures below: Notice the oval slots next to the bolsters. Here you can see where the sides of the frame were trimmed 1/8" to allow clearance for the horizontal portion of the contacts and the trimmed front bolster. This shows a side profile of the tender sitting on the trucks, you can see the slight clearance between the bottom of the tender and the contacts where I trimmed the 1/8" area in the frame.
Norway2112, thanks for the tips on how to do the truck install. The newer versions look much better than the stock ones that came with the Bman tender.
????? Hey SuperT, I clicked on the MT-4 link in your first post, and it took me to an Amazon site selling maxi-tampons - just thought you'd like to know...:sweat:
Thanks..... Mr Wrathofwotan- But sounds like a problem on your end. Etched rods where done by Loren Perry of Gold Metal Models. He an I both worked on the 3800 class atsf 2-10-2 and 4-12-2. I would venture to say he did the work because he was highly interested in the 3800. And I would bet any custom rods would be about $1000.00 but I could be off by a few hundred. He is a good friend and we exchange work for each other. It really good to have g
Progress of spoked driver conversion- Shown is a GS4 spare parts engine I bought and have converted the drivers to spoked drivers for the MT4 conversion. Of note: the 3rd driver casting has flawsand will be easy to replace. I wanted to prove the concept. Video of the engine running. Yes its a parts engine with sound, the engine was not in he best of shape. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kmp3UTo0MxQ
I just got the same result - and as you can see I'm on the other side of the pond. A couple of days ago when I tried it I got the eBay.com homepage. My browser is set to delete browsing history on exit and this is today's first port of call.
Are you going to leave all 4 drivers spoked, some were outfitted with boxpok drivers on the 3rd driver. What are you going to use for crosheads, alligator or laird multiple bearing (which is what is on the GS-4). They used several different types on their MTs, most were alligator.
We ran into somewhat of an issue on the GS4 mechanism. The axle tubes are prone to cracking if messed with much, and when trying to change the driver inserts you stand an increased risk of cracking the axle tubes, so with no spares available from Kato Jason decided it was too risky. Now we are looking at the possibility of using the Spectrum J class and filing the side rods to try and make them look not so "J Class." The GS4 drivers are 6 inches too large, and the J Class drivers are 3 inches too small, so it may end up being a closer fit anyhow. I'm sure Jason or I will post pics once we get the mechanism figured out.
So we finally have an update. Progress has been somewhat slow due to life in general....dont ya just hate when work gets in the way of play! Anyhow, I finally have whittled away at the Spectrum J-Class mechanism enough to do a test fit. I wanted to keep the stock motor and mount setup if at all possible, and I think I succeeded. This was a dry fit, so we wont know for sure until I can run it on the track. Below are some photos of the stock mechanism, the modified mechanism and then the test fit of the boiler shell and how the tender lines up. When compared to my Key Imports brass MT-4, the height of the boiler is dead on both front and back. The smaller drivers of the J-Class don't stand out as much as I was expected. One of the final steps will be to file the rods to a more appropriate shape so they're not so "J-Class looking." Sorry for the poor quality photos, I took them with my phone. Stock J-Class Mechanism: J Class vs. End Mill! J-Class mechanism after milling: Test Boiler to Tender alignment: Boiler mounted to mechanism: Close up of 160-C-2 tender:
Here is an update on one of the engines Phillip and I have worked on. Pilot and tender still needs to be cast and the right side rods still need to be filed, but I am happy with the results so far.
Here is the Mt4 casting on the modified Bachman j class mech. I still have a liitle work to go...... For example file the engineer side rods... And a few other details.
Very nice shell. I'm not much for messing with steam drivers, etc. Does the shell mount well on a Bachmann mountain mechanism?
Yes..... The castings should be all ready to go in a week. My email is- Superturbine@hotmail.com The casting ended up going on a Bachman J and worked best that way. The frame must be milled but it's not hard at all, can be done with a dermel tool and if needed we can help
BTW, what did you use for the Delta trailing truck. Is that GHQ that is available from Republic (they have no pictures and a vague description of 'GHQ 55-004-09 and 10 Engineer side Delta and fireman side Delta)? [h=2][/h]
