The mutant 1130

[thor]

Well here it is, still not quite finished but at this stage of things I'll probably call it quits till I get the energy to try again!

Next time I'll start from scratch! I've HAD it with wet and dry

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6db33b3127cce895c026dac9d00000016100AcsnLVizaMWMg


http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b6db33b3127cce895c02682da800000016100AcsnLVizaMWMg

[wrmcclellan]

Thor,

But you had so much fun! I think it looks great!

Now you can start modifying 027 Lionel passenger cars to go with it!

Regards,
Roy

[wrmcclellan]

Pulled them into the forum for you Thor!

[Anonymous]

Outstanding! Simply outstanding! You ought to send in photos of your work to CTT. I'm now more anxious than ever to see the whole train once it's finished.

[Anonymous]

That is pretty good to tell you the truth.

[thor]

Thanks Roy, thanks guys. I had hoped for a better finish but I was running into the law of diminishing returns plus which the whole model has become super saturated with solvents and absolutely has to dry out thoroughly before any more can be done with it.

It'll be interesting to see if it remains stable over the next few months but the original shell was a good grade of plastic, reinforced styrene I suspect. It was remarkably hard to sand and didn't distort despite all the various operations performed on it.

I'd like to lay my hands on a few more of these mechanisms and do some scratchbuilt bodies now I understand them better. My next will be a tank engine. My hats off to Lionel though, for a 52 year old cheap toy its held up pretty well!

[andregg1]

Hi
Very nice job!!
Did you use tin plate or brass?
I work alot with brass i did some tenders and anothe few things.
congratulation again and keep going!!
Andre.

[thor]

Thanks Andre, no its all plastic except for the handrails. It started out life as a Scout a cheap Lionel loco made in 1954. The side of the shell had warped from excessive heat from the brushes, so I cut away almost everything save the boiler and used styrene and epoxy plus filler to turn it into a British style loco.

[luther_stanton]

Awesome work. You have definitely captured the look and feel!

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by luther_stanton

Awesome work. You have definitely captured the look and feel!

Thanks Luther, now all I have to do is find a cheap source of 1130's to mutate! I want more of that particular mechanism because its metal geared and solid even if the book dismisses it as a cheap toy.

Unfortunately since I posted those pictures I tried adding some additional pinstriping and the darned paint pen went all blooby on me and dried hard as a rock so I may have to do a respray but thats okay, its the wrong green anyway. It should be S.R Malachite Green which is about the same shade as a golden delicious apple. Only can near that shade was something called Parrot Green, I wish one could find a wider range of shades in the rattle can lineup but I cant afford an airbrush!

The book in question I just got 'Lionel - America's Favorite Toy Trains by Gerry and Janet Souter' was informative and quite amusing, I dont know how well regarded it is for its accuracy but I found it fascinating with a good narrative style that made it enjoyable to read.

[Jumijo]

Thor,
You did a wonderful job on that. I hope it runs as well as it looks.

Jim

[cnw1995]

Great job, I can almost hear that high-pitched whistle.

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by jaabat

Thor,
You did a wonderful job on that. I hope it runs as well as it looks.

Jim

Jim, it runs BEAUTIFULLY! When I got it - for ten bucks - it had one side badly warped because the motor couldn't turn except under full power. At full power it went almost incandescent and smoke started pouring out which I knew was bad beause it had no smoke generator!

Everything was bad. The commutator was scored and blackened, the slots were filled with black crud, the gears were jammed with hairs and hardened goop, it had obviously been reassembled by a complete idiot, the wires were pinched, the E-unit wouldnt work reliably - you name it.

So I stripped it, cleaned it, polished it and lubed it and it purred along afterwards although after a few sessions the low speed growl came back. Tried a few things to stop that but came to the conclusion any fix is temporary. Either you lube it to death or live with the growl and anyway a lot of the noise is coming from the E-unit which would probably shut up if given a rectified supply. I'm amazed those solenoids can handle AC at all without overheating and burning out.

The best part is that thanks to the heavy weights that engine sticks to curves like nothing else I have, its actually fun to run it at super speeds just to watch the carriages leaning like drunks. The game is how fast can you go without triggering the reverser!

You actually have to DRIVE these engines, its enjoyable. They will run very slowly but the trick is to get them to start then quickly back off and on a short layout your fingers better never stray far from that button!

[FJ and G]

That looks great. Perhaps some high gloss enamel?

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by cnw1995

Great job, I can almost hear that high-pitched whistle.

Hey that's a good observation, Doug! I wonder if I can modify a whistling tender? Or make my own.

What I'd like to try is fitting one of those Electric Railroad Sound Commander boards, has anyone tried one and do they sound good? I also need to get a smoke unit for her.

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by FJ and G

That looks great. Perhaps some high gloss enamel?

That IS a high gloss enamel! Actually though I know what you mean, but I dunno if I can do it without it looking horrible because of the brush strokes. The shiny paint accentuates all the dips and glitches I made, add klutzy brush strokes and it'll be a bit TOO much like early tinplate for my taste!

I was looking at some of those really early trains in my Lionel book and thinking what chutzpah to sell anything that looked THAT ropey! Then on the other hand, my effort isn't all that wonderful either, just dont look too closely.

[darianj]

Looks good to me!