Holden,
If the late Tom Trigg taught me to just "dig," Bill taught me to just "do." I don't have his eye for seeing treasure in "junk," but I missed opportunities to learn by falling into "analysis paralysis."
My own attempt at an "Old Joe" restoration - an effort that Bill prodded me into undertaking - took multiple stabs and failures over more than year, but I got a passable working loco out of it and made some friends along the way:
Other projects that came following Bill's approach were some buildings, a bridge, a string of cane cars, you name it. Some were better than others, but they all added to my bag of things that work or don't work. The key emphasis is on the "do." I'll say it again...I wasted a lot of time analyzing my approach to the modeling aspect of this hobby rather than accepting failure as a teaching tool in and of itself (Case in point, a three year running battle with another loco ended today...it is off to a professional repair service).
Another trick I used along the way and still apply to keep me from my penchant to over think a project is to take techniqe from each issue of this magazine and try it. It may not be the same application as the article, and it may not use the same tools or materials, as these have to be adopted to my railroad and my circumstances. Still, this "trick" It brings me back to Bill's key word - "do."
Aloha,
Eric
Bill, I will look through the pinterest and the other posts! Thanks so much for your time and tips!
Holden, a lot of questions in a small area, but I'll try to cover all of them, paint I mainly use rattle cans, I like Krylon but use all brands, basically because they are fast and no clean up. I weather just about everything because it makes stuff look more real and it covers up my booboos, Oh and don't turn my stuff over you wouldn't like what you see. Then I'm cheap, so I reuse just about everything and let nothing go to waste I've got tidbits that are old as 40 years yep I'm a Sanford and sons. I do have a knack of being able to see things in stuff which helps me build stuff without having to buy expensive parts. Example I built 3 buildings out of 1 Pola building that was damaged in a hurricane. I am blessed with a great imagination which allows me to see finished projects before I even start, just lucky. Old Joe, was just a bunch of stuff left over from my Mason Bogie project and others, and I was waiting for a RC to finish it and wanted something to keep me busy so Old Joe was started, picked the color as it was industrial yellow like bulldozers and dump trucks are and beings as I was building an industrial engine I figured why not and at the time I wanted to try out a rust technique that I had read about using salt, so Old Joe was born. Usually I don't have a plan per say, just an idea and it changes as I go along. When I was painting my passenger cars and deciding on color I did color some paper with some colored pencils but I don't do that very often. Glad you enjoyed it and if you like there are several of my builds on this forum that go into more detail. You remind me of Eric AKA PVT of the triple O, when Eric was starting out he had the same questions, but you should see him now and even has his kids in it. If you like you can see a bunch of my builds on this web site https://www.pinterest.com/billbarnwell09/boards/, hope you enjoy, Bill
Hey Bill
I love how you've managed to build such a cool engine from such a wide variety of parts. I'm in awe with your ability to turn all these parts into a real locomotive.
Right now I'm just curious, what paint do you use? I'm new to modeling so I'm not sure exactly what to use. How do you figure out which paint scheme to use and how do you go about painting so that you're not sloppy?
Thanks,
Holden
Had a question on what i built it from and that was all covered in the build but so one doesn't have to read it all over her is the short version
He is a combination of parts left from previous builds. Cab is 2 rear sections of Lionel 0-6-0 gold rush special which were left over from my Mason Bogie build, along with the roof and fuel bunker, boiler is PVC fittings, side tanks came from a cut down LGB 2017 that were left from "Rosy's" saddle tanker build, lights came from a LGB 2010 that I built into a Forney, steam dome is a PVC pipe cap, whistle is parts from a electrical connector, left over bell, smoke stack was made from brass 1/4" pipe, firebox is left from my Spreewalt that was the chassis donor for my Mason Bogie build, cab steps were from an old LGB European low side gondola, water fill hatch off a Bachmann 4-6-0 tender from my 2-6-2 prairie build, the chassis and Kadee couplers are new and the bolsters are front is from the rear of the 4-6-0 tender and the rear came from the back on a aristo sloped back tender, Fun build
That really turned out great !! Color scheme makes it stand out. Nice, handy little engine!
Paul
Old Joe, with the MIK challenge finish I have returned to unfinished projects and being as the least amount of work required was on Old Joe I worked on him. Got the number plate finished along with the whistle, wired up both lights and secured all the screws then tested and it works, fun build, now I have a small industrial steam switch made out of old scrap parts. Bill
You are doing a great job rebuiling the engine.
Time to get back to work on Old Joe. With the Christmas crowd gone and the stuff put away figured it was time to get back to the construction of Old Joe. Never really stopped work but had only been piddling with guests here and medical issues, I had painted the engineer/fireman, and weathered the engine a little. Got tied up with the LSC MIK challenge but think I can do both just have to do a little juggling. Yesterday I got the new motor installed in the motor block and got the block reinstalled in the chassis which allowed me to start assembly of the boiler, side tanks and cab with wood chute. At the same time I ran wiring from the front head light back to the rear along with the motor wires. When I got done I powered it up on the roller bearings and it runs like a champ. The firewood bunker is real neat as it just slides on to the back of the cab and is all hollow back there leaving enough room to make up the wiring which I still have to do. Placed the engineer/fireman in the cab and he looks great, more to come, Bill
Call HR, and bring him in for orientation....He's perfect !!
I like the style ! Your model building is excellent!!!
New engineer and fireman
While looking for a figure to be Old Joe's engineer and fireman I came across is figure from American diorama which seemed to fit the bill, pot bellied, standing and aged looking, only problem was he was carrying a took box and a wrench that was necessary for his job as an engineer/fireman. so I changed the toolbox to a log and removed the wrench also reformed his hat and dirtied him up a little.
The more I follow your builds, the more I kick myself for not buying that pair of derelict Big Haulers and damaged LGB Euro-style freight cars I saw in a shop last summer. Live and learn!
Had a comment that the cab on old Joe looked very shallow so I compared it to an aristo craft 0-4-0 switcher cab it might be 1/16" less not enough to matter
Got a little more done today been tuff cause I'm taking meds for a lung infection and so now I shake more than usual, the Kadee springs were a blast to do. Used my last beam of cut down PVC board from the pillars of my water tower for the rear beam, found a step in my junk collection off a aristo slope back tender and a new Kadee #779 coupler. Being as there is no rear section left on the engine deck, cut it off some time ago, I mounted the beam, coupler assy to the motor block using 2/56 screws taped into the housing and secured with lock tight. Hopefully the meds will be over soon and I can get to some finish assy and wiring, now looking for a usable motor to make it run, more to come , Bill
Just junk from 40 years don't throw alot away, might need it some day, LOL
Looking great !
Finally decided on a headlight for Old Joe, had a selection of Bachmann, toy train and stanza, and I selected stanza basically because of size and style, but I did cut down the stanza one, removed the side board on the stock one so that the head light stood alone without a back board. Mounted it to the boiler using 2/56 black Allen head screws that are taped into the boiler, painted the one for the front to match the machine yellow that the tank is painted in, just because I waned it to show up more than a drab black or plain one, have a matching vertical one for the rear of the wood tender vertical back but painted that one silver for the same reason as I didn't want it to disappear into the back ground., also modified it in the same manner removing the back board behind the stanza light, think I will paint the reflector bright silver instead of leaving it factory white. more to come, Bill
Adding details to engine, got air piping along with the air compressor attached to the starboard side water tank + a bell attached to the vertical front of the engine cab and on the port side a air tank, tied the air piping and the air tank together with a pine made from metal wire covered vinyl, also added some hand rails on top of the water tanks for workers that came off and old aristo 0-4-0. Ran across a couple of head lights that I could incorporate into the engine but initially I was not going to put any headlights because it was thought engine only worked during the day, still thinking about that. Also started weathering the engine but a lot left to do, more to come, Bill. Since originally posting I have come to understand that by law the must have a head light so I guess I just have to pick a style.
yep, you're getting to be an old timer, Bill
Have fun with your trains
Thanks, Eric, good idea I'll give it a try, Bill
Bill, It looks better each post! As for the canvas roof, I used to use painted tissue paper for tarps and flags and stuff back when I did 1/32 military models. I usually dipped the tissue paper in a thin whtie glue solution so it would have some mass to get it to drape over the model. As the glue hardened, it "froze" it in place but did not hide the texture. Those were for static display, so it might not work in this application. It would be a cheap experiment!
Failing that, you might remember I used a stained t-shirt to represent a cloth cover for the "cab" of my double-hulled sailing locomotive.
The stain was actually the stuff we used to tint our concrete. The material might be too heavy in appearance for your application (scale was hardly at the topmost of our minds in this project!), but, again, it might be worth a few strips of old T-shirt and some thinned paint to see if it could work for you.
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