Baddest Birney Ever Built!

[Firelock76]

Looks like a great concept for re-establishing mass transit in rough neighborhoods.

[handyandy]

Cool! Reminds me of some of the stuff the "A-Team" built. Yes, a big ram or plow "cow catcher" on each end would be awesome. 

I can almost see Mr T at the controls yelling, "I pity the fool that tries to stop this trolley!"

[cwburfle]

I see them now. Didn't do anything other than try the thread again.

Must be magic :)

 

[jwse30]

They show up fine for me on  this site. I can't say I've ever seen anything like it. Ameritrains or Marx made an engine they called Thor that this sort of reminds me of. I think adding plows or rams to the bumpers would be a neat touch should the need to confront the enemy head on ever arise. Some sort of landmine countermeasure would be pretty cool too, but you would likely lose the bump and go feature to be able to safely pull that off.

Thanks for sharing,

J White

[M. Mitchell Marmel]

cwburfle

Your pictures do not show up on my computer

Tried reloading the page? 

If that doesn't work, try here:  http://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/topic/baddest-birney-ever-built

Mitch

[AF1963]

I see them fine.  

[cwburfle]

Your pictures do not show up on my computer

[M. Mitchell Marmel]

Meet "Scarface", late of the Krupmark Illuminating Company: 

 

Yes, those are cannons besides the motorman.  And yes, the turret rotates with the trolley pole... 

 Here to present the story of "Scarface's" build is the creator, author and raconteur W.D. Reimer!  Take it away, Walt! 

 

On the pirate haven of Krupmark Island in the Spontoon Island universe, by 1940 there are two competing power companies that also run two competing trolley lines. Because the real money's in the betting, and Krupmark's awash in guns, it was only a matter of time before the trolleys ended up armored and armed.
You can read all about it in Knocking Down the Fares by Eric O. Costello, on the Spontoon website.
So, what's that got to do with all the stuff on the table, huh?
Glad you asked! Here we see a variety of model building materials (knives, glue, paints and brushes), a 1/72 scale British Mk I tank (male), a 1/72 German A7V tank, an O-Scale Lionel trolley, and a 1980s-era Testors 'MiG-31 Stealth Fighter' that has graciously consented to sacrifice itself.
The stage is set. Let’s go!

 

It's so cute, isn't it? Sitting there on the newspaper, so innocent, and doesn't know what's going to hit it . . . 
This is the O-Scale trolley I'm going to kitbash. Just wanted to give it a closeup before I start doing awful things. The roof's a tad loose (apparently it’s supposed to be like that) and has a small crack in one corner, but otherwise it looks to be in good nick mechanically.

 

Okay, the first step is to start assembling the bits that will get stuck onto the trolley, and that leads us to the British Mk I male. It may sound terribly sexist, but in World War One British tanks were male (cannon), female (machine guns), or hermaphrodites (both).
In real life, the Mk I was equipped with two QF 6-pounder BL naval guns, but because of the scale difference I'll call these 37mm cannon. While devastating against an unarmored target, the guns will likely give the occupants of another armored trolley a splitting headache.
I'm glad the glue company provided precision tips, as these two sponson guns are made up of 7 pieces each.

 

Here's a test fit (now cemented in place) of one cheek turret. Once the other cheek is in place on the offsetting corner, I can start cutting the armor.
The armor will be a combination of strake and plate, giving limited visibility for the passengers, but opportunity to stick a shotgun out and dissuade a person. 
Now, before you start yelling at me about it not looking like a professional job, this is looking slapdash on purpose - it'll look like a group of ham-pawed, drunk or drug-addled amateurs with welding torches put it together.

The cheek guns are mounted, and I'll be starting to sort out the armor. If the MiG-31 doesn't provide enough material, I have another plane willing and ready to give up its existence.

 

As you can see, I've attached some armor to one side of the trolley, as well as put armor on the doors on that side.

 

Another view of my progress. I'm going to stop now to let the glue cure and get out of the heat. It's 92 outside.

 (later)

 

Second verse, same as the first - starting the other side of the trolley (which, after consultation with Mitch and Eric, will be called 'Scarface') and it looks just as slapdash as the other side, let me tell you.
You can see the little bits of plastic I glued to the bottom of the car body to give the strake armor the right angle.  (NB:  The finished product LOOKS slapdash, but is well engineered indeed! -MMM-)

 

Okay, let's start on the ends of this trolley!
The motormen for the trolley have to be able to see out (ahead, if not to the side), so two of the front windows are covered with metal grating. With a more substantial piece of armor on the door-side window, 'Scarface' will look like it has an eyepatch.

 

Here's the other end, completed.
The grating got a teensy bit messed up as I was cutting it, but no matter - it looks like a bomb went off and took part of the grating with it. I pity whoever was driving at the time, but not to worry. The hatches under the front windows make hosing the car out easy!
It takes a special (i.e., crazy) fur to do the Fort Bob run.

 

 

This shows the side I was starting on in a previous picture. The ends are armored up and - wait!
What's that I see atop the trolley?
Yes, it's a turret. I managed to open up one of the hatches in the A7V's armored cupola with a hot knife blade, and the stodgy main gun from the German tank's inside it. What you see is the test fit; I'm going to fabricate a turret skirt and base for it so it doesn't look so tacky. 
My goal is to finish the fabrication phase and start painting the bugger today, with an eye toward completing painting and decals before I leave for Mephit FurMeet on Wednesday.

 

 

Completed the armoring, now for the paint!
Here's the view showing the damaged motorman's cab.

 

 

Here's the other side of the completed up-armor and arming of the trolley. The turret had to be built up in a series of layers, but it looks okay.
Allons-y!

 

And here it is, looking a bit like the Airstream from ****.
This is the first coat of flat steel gray paint, and I'm done for the day. Sunday I'll do some finer work, add touches here and there, and apply some custom decals.
The object is to have it done in time for me to take it with me to Mephit FurMeet.

 

Krupmark Island is located in the northern Pacific Ocean region, so it gets a lot of rain. The sometimes filthy weather, occasional snow and cold snaps, and the fact that you don't get a lot of maintenance will earn you rust on your fancy-schmancy steel-coated trolley.
So, to add texture, I've added rust. 
You might wonder about the cards you see beside the door. In the story "Knocking Down the Fares," every conductor or motorman gets a deck of cards when they're hired. You start out at the bottom with the King of Hearts, then progress through the suits, through Diamonds, Clubs and Spades. An Ace of Spades is a person to be respected.
Everyone gets 52 runs to complete the deck. When you get to the end of your deck you have two choices - you can either start a new deck, or opt for retirement. Retirement means a payout of $50,000 in gold; however, not a lot of people get that far.
The decal shows a Five of Spades, a Jack of Clubs, and two Eights of Diamonds - a nice solid journeyman crew.

 

Another custom decal is visible on the front lower left. It's the trolley's name, "Scarface." 
It was named "Cannibal" until the lucky shot that went off in front of the motormen, killing and injuring the other. It did make it back, but the crew basically had to be scooped out.
"Scarface" is owned by the Krupmark Illumination Company, one of the two power utilities on the island. KILL, as it's called, competes directly with FUCuPS (Fort Bob United and Consolidated Public Service Company). Yes, they have armored and armed trolleys as well, and to call it a 'cut-throat' industry is understating the matter.

 And there you have it.  From innocuous Lionel 60 to killer streetcar!  Many thanks, Walt, for "Scarface" and for his history!

 Mitch