this is "phase 2" of this project, What I did was swap the rear truck to the front and vicey versey. But this created a problem, the universal connects would be on the outside, so...
I had to pull the "universal" -cleats- off as I callem that hold the flex-tube on. The issue was how do I replace it? The room is very restricted. I looked at my NWSL universal couplings, and, well, I shaved off excess plastic and mounted them on the shaft. I had to also shove the gears -nudgem- so theres room for the universals to mount.
I was worried the cleats would be tough to remove but they came right out.
looking good, engine is not track tested at this moment, I just superglued the shaft together, the first image it was just lying on top not attached. Fingertested the gears everything is free-turning.
Heres the flex-tube on the other truck, it sits firmly on one shaft, but tries to connect all the time on the other, but the truck action loosens it up. This cause the truck to force up, swing up, cause some herky-jerky, who knows. If my replacement works well this changes too.
Track test is later.
overNout
One note to think about is all our diesel engines are "Diesel-Electric", when you come down to it they are your juice jack engines with onboard generators, so all them traction modelers rejoice...if you like diesels, you like...electricity...you just don't have overhead wire. The electric generation device is different. Jawn Henry tried another steam factor, and may be one of the last "modern" steam locomotives ever built.
KMT, yeppers, ALCO models import.
Just ended another session clanging around on this engine. I was -finally- able to run the chassis over my entire test layout, hooked some new Rivarrossi C&NW shorty passenger cars and ran it, it unhooked from the cars at a lumpy spot. Looks like I will change the coupler to a shelf kadee so the couplers wont disjoin.
Put the shell on and off several times debugging issues, had to change my custom motor mount as it was hitting the cab interior. They put a metal piece in the cab to block view inside. This is giving me more encitive to use the axle power now, and scrap the gear tower, and gain a full detailed cab interior.
So I put the shell on, place it on the track, and run... GRIND!!! thats the gears on the tower. My VGN EL-2s do the same thing. If I am going to get sound on this thing its time to quiet it down. Sorry, the gear towers go. The engine gets a power revamp...period.
That Jawn Henry is one monster of an engine! You just don't see super-powered experiments like that anymore. Makes modern locomotives seem a little boring, huh?
Glad to hear you're getting those problems worked out. Electrical problems are usually very easy to solve once they're found, so you should have the thing together and running perfect in no time! It looks like your engine is a KMT design?
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I have this one broader curve thats "lumpylike" in its curvature. I shaved off the frame where the gear mount hits, ran thru this curve.....short...try again...short...I look closer...I don't think its touching, I shave a smidge more off...short......short....then I found this detail on the underside of the frame, its a "blocker" you might say to stop the trucks from swinging too far...I suspected the secondary frame was touching this in its swing, it looked like it was touching to me....back to the bench and I shaved some metal off the backside, it will be hard to detect visually normally anyways. Back to the track.....sh.......shh......RUN!!!!!!!! whoooeeyy!!!
It finally ran thru the track I was test checking. Back and forth and back and forth. I wasn't going to run it all the way around my dogbone, I was pleased enough. Its the first time the engine had any -serious- running without problems. You don't know the subtle but profound thrill when that happens.
I took it back to the bench and dabbed this liquid insulator "black electrical tape" on the areas it could touch, now drying, will test again tomorrow.
The frame has mounting holes for the top shell, but it makes the brass frame weakish where the holes are and several times it threatens to yank into a pretzel, but I am careful about that, my "shaving" makes more weakness, but when you get the shell on its solid.
But now I have to locate the same shave points on the shell and cut them in there.
After that I may be able to give this engine the more serious operation workover, get it to test pull some cars.
I learned it uses a Nathan M5R24 Air Whistle (Horn)
You can hear this M5R24 right here, awesome for a horn.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofxanmCdQIM
41 inch wheels, so thats a fit.
I really have to eliminate these rubber-plastic shaft connectors between the trucks, I fidget with one to seat between the 2 trucks, and it pushes one truck up.
It's an awesome engine to see on any layout. That's for sure.
From the Miniature Railroad Club Of York
Don - Specializing in layout DC->DCC conversions
Modeling C&O transition era and steel industries There's Nothing Like Big Steam!
I would say the Railflyer traction motors would probably be the way to go. What size are your wheels?. The Railflyer wheels with their integral gear (this connects directly with the miniature traction motor) are 40".
For those not aware of what Railflyer has been developing and is near ready for production, is a real 4 and 6 actual motors (depending on the axles per engine), just like the real thing! From the testing I've seen, these will be very powerful performing drives. Except for a very small circuit board, it leaves most of the space under the hoods for detailing. I believe they will be available as DC/DCC Ready.
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
This is one side of the power connections of the Jawn Henry, note the motor on the left larger. Model was a 2 motor, I modded to a 1 motor with flex-connects. I built the new truck mounted today. Dang, it works!
now see the next pic.
The engine is reversed so you can compare, note the gear connections.
The top gear is mounted far out on the rear truck, the bottom gear is mounted near the turn center of the dual trucks. Note the trucks are dual mounted on a sub frame.
My problem I have found is the top pic the gear mount swings much farther out then the bottom, it hits the frame side, this was causing a short, even on wider radius. Also the wide swing causes power problems trying to transfer motor torque to the gears using the arrangement like the 2nd pic.
I have tried 2-3 different setups with the 1 motor, failure. The swing is too wide, too close. I grinded into the frame to stop the shorting and into the gearbox a little, then I built the new truck mounted motor, want too tough but ingenuity was abound here.
I am successfully getting this engine to run 24 inch radius, believe me, it will perform better when tweaked out like I am, but when it runs on the "real" layout it will be restricted to wider radius. The size of this engine beats the Big Boy, the Centipede.
An RMC article years ago about 1956-7 someone custom made a Jawn Henry in brass and made it run on 22 inch radius. So I am convinced this model can be made to work 24 inch.
I just -might- make another truck mount motor soon and re dual motor this engine, my plan was to add 2 more tower gears and make it 4 motors like the one I just made and disconnect the teeny plastic flext rubber between the 2 trucks that transfers power to the next truck so all trucks are directly powered.
But guess what I found.
http://www.railflyermodel.com/collections/model-kit-drive-motor/traction-motors
canadian company doing this, amazing, I may yet take this direction and dump the power scheme on this engine alltogether.
Will see how it progressives developmentwise, right now the engine runs a LOT better than before, still work to do.