An elderly friend of my Sister phoned her knowing I was into MRR asking if I would be interested in any of her (late) husband's vast collection of CPR brass locomotives and rolling stock. A lot of it is new in box and includes Vancouver Hobbies, Sunset, and others apparently. Included are some A.T.S.F. and G.N. Brass as well.
I have never been into Brass, however, she wants little for them if I come and get them as she lives in a town up North.
It will cost me in excess of $1500.00 to make the drive with hotels and food and lodging. My fear is that it will all end up in the garbage if I don't.
My question is, what is involved in converting these to DCC/Sound Loco's and what is involved in remotoring/gearing etc. She has Selkirks, Hudsons, Jubilees, Northerns, Pacifics and a lot of Brass rolling stock.
So I am thinking what is the cost of converting them. Apparently, she just can't be bothered mailing any of it to me and just wants to be done with it.
Advice on converting appreciated.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
Wow man.... $1500? Where does she live? On the other side of the continent? Brass is valuable, Canadian brass can be even more so. Not very hard to DCC and sound convert.
My guess is that you can get your money back and then some....
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( I can' send emoticons) Just kidding.Converting brass to dcc is not a big deal. Now sound, that may step the difficult factor a little, but thta sounds like a worthwhile trip to me.
Old Fat Robert
It is about 1800kms one way, 20+ hrs. Google maps say it is out of their area of coverage. It is still in the Province of British Columbia though, so I wouldn't even be leaving the Province. Canada is a big place.
I have been up North many times so I am familiar with what the trip will entail. Probably six tanks of diesel in my F-350, I would not make the trip in a car or a powder puff SUV. Lots to consider. Pack for survival, just in case, and I would need to scrounge a rifle from the ranch. There are places in Canada where you cannot get between gas stations without carrying extra fuel, this is not one of them, however, I would pack an extra 80 Litre's. just in case.
Sweden 447,435 square KM.Canada 9.985 million square km. With only 36 million people. It is a drive that needs to be thought out.
You can understand why the stuff will likely end up in the trash if someone doesn't go get it.
I dunno, Brent...for an offer like that, I could probably drive to there from southern Ontario, without need of hotels or food - maybe a few stops for gasoline.
While I'm not using DCC, changing brass locomotives to DCC is pretty-much the same as converting plastic locomotives. If some of them have open-frame motors, they may benefit from replacement with a can motor. From the sound of it, there may be more locos there than you'd use for your own layout, so selling-off the surplus might possibly pay not only for any needed motors, but perhaps the decoders for the ones which you're keeping, too.
Wayne
Wayne, There is definitely more than I would keep and the plan would be to sell what I don't want. I have already talked to a consignment vendor.
What is the cost of a good can motor? What would a good sound decoder cost and could I get the proper sounds for the Selkirk, Hudson, Jubilee and C.P. Pacific? There does not appear to be any Mikados in the bunch, but there is a couple of 2-8-0s and coaches, including sets of the KVR.
Edit; There appears to be a bunch of Tyco freight cars with horn hook couplers to boot. That is worth the drive alone!
Brent,
If it were me I'd get an accurate inventory of what she has and do the math on your time and expenses...If the economics work so that you can sell enough to cover all that and still have you want then I might proceed. (I presume you have done that math already or you wouldn't be posting this)
Is the brass painted?? How old are the offerings? It is not possible to know how well this stuff runs, but that will be a factor when you get to converting it to run in DCC.
Costs - Good sound decoder $100, keep alive (might want it) $20, speaker $10, can motor $30-40, Leds for headlights $2.
Minimum tasks for conversion are wiring up the decoder to the motor and lights, isolating the motor from the frame, installing a speaker.
Tasks that might be becessary for conversion depending on the condition of the loco: Remotoring, tweaking running gear, front coupler installation (not trivial depending), Installing headlight and rear light leds/bulbs and lenses, adding extra electrical pick up, drilling holes for wires and/or speakers in tender, troubleshooting shorts....Not every loco will need all this but it is surprising the amount of work some do require...This is not including painting and decaling...
My two cents,
Guy
see stuff at: the Willoughby Line Site
Thanks Guy.
I am wondering if the plastic bags or whatever she says they are wrapped in and still in the original boxes may have decomposed itself onto the loco. Most are new in box, unpainted. I feel I am capable of doing the painting and conversions, it comes down to the cost of acquiring them. Probably a week of time for this well worn old guy, plus the expense. I am trying to get a more detailed inventory, but it is taking time and I don't want the old gal to grow weary.
The consignment vendor may send his kid to get them if I don't go, depending on the math.
Can anyone tell me about this? Who makes it and any other info?
Have a look here, Batman...
https://www.brasstrains.com/BrassGuide/PDG/Detail/21950/HO-Steam-Pacific-Fast-Mail-P-Canadian-Pacific-Rlwy-4-6-2-G-2-PACIFIC
Cheers, the Bear.
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Tell you what Batman, I will pay you 1500 bucks if you let me run up there from WA State and pick them up for my own purposes. Seriously I am not sure what the hesitation is. Two decent pieces of brass should pay for your fuel. What else are you doing? You make this sound like a difficult trip. I have driven to Inuvik, NWT. It is not that difficult.
I've got a lot of experience with old brass steam, and not all of them need total re-working. Many of the ones I've dealt with are fine. Some are superb. Some are junk. Each is different, tho' some companies had a reputation, either good, bad or both.
The nice thing about 'em is that they can almost always be saved and made to work if you know what you're doing. Only real damage or wear that makes one uneconomical to repair would make any worth scrapping.
Mostly, stripping it down, replacing all lubricants, replacing the rubber universal joint, and basic maintenance is all most need. If the plastic gears are cracked/worn, replacements are available up to an all new gear tower. Motors, if they run well, can be salvaged. Old open frame motors can be just fine on DCC. Heck, I have a NJ/Custom Brass Pacific with the original DC71-clone motor in it, and I've been running that with DCC since 1999.
It just depends. Generally, however, they are usually worth it. Some are basketcases and will drive you to drink with random shorts, derailments and poor operation. Others you swear must be brand new plastic models but are actually decades old brass.Most of these old girls are set up for the old PFM sound system. They'll have holes drilled in the tender floor for sound. I've started using iPhone4 speakers for almost all my sound installations, and I've been very impressed with them. That, and I've only been paying $2 per speaker. I use double sided foam tape and stick 'em to the bottom of the tender deck, aiming the speaker opening towards the floor and the holes therein. Works great for me.
I also use the keep alive units when I can. For steamers without flywheels and that have limited pick ups (see: Pacifics), it can really make these old units move along switch ladders with ease where before they need nudged. I think they are totally worth the expense on small engines, and a nice thing to have on larger steamers.
BATMAN Can anyone tell me about this? Who makes it and any other info?
Check the brass trains.com brass guide (green tab).
What I can tell you is that guy was pretty smart. The foam in that box would be attacking the model if not for that plastic. The plastic is not standard packaging for brass. The foam in that box looks decomposed.
Check the foam in the boxes. If it springs back when you push your finger in, you might be alright.
Whether or not the foam is in bad shape, the plastic wrap (not the cling-type stuff, but the plain plastic used to make plastic bags) is a good idea, as it helps to prevent protruding detail parts from catching on the foam when the model is placed into or removed from the box. For boxes where the foam has deteriorated, there was a supplier (the name of whom I can't recall) who offered replacement foam for specific models and their boxes. However, some fabric stores carry a pretty wide selection of foam types, and you could create your own replacements much more economically, using a sharp utility knife.
If you select some of the locomotives for your own layout, you can convert them to DCC to meet your needs, but I'd suggest not doing so for the ones you wish to sell. Many brass collectors are actually collectors only, and the model may never be run. Others who have brass locomotives and do run them (myself and several friends included) don't use DCC, and I have removed DCC from several such locomotives.I wouldn't worry too much about fixing or painting the ones you wish to sell, either. All of the painted ones I've bought, and most of those purchased by friends have had their paint stripped off, and that includes several by locally well-recognised custom painters. If they needed repairs, it was done before the repainting.The Toby locomotive which you showed earlier, and those by Akane, are older models which, in their era, were very well-regarded, and even today, their detailing and performance is more than acceptable. They were also extremely well-built and rugged.
This is an old Akane USRA 2-10-2. A friend had been searching for one for some time when I came across it, used, in a nearby hobbyshop. The tender is a replacement...
A previous owner had remotored it with a large can motor...
...and all I had to do was add some details and give it a new paint job...
The CNR purchased 10 such USRA locos from the Boston & Albany, and a photo of the re-worked prototypes was the inspiration for the model. I've included the photos only to encourage you to do whatever might be necessary for the ones you want to keep. Brass is as kit-bashable as you wish.
Well, after much communication with the lady and her kid's that live in Saskatchewan and staying up to 0300hrs on Saturday pouring over the list she provided, the whole lot will be making the trip back to Saskatchewan with Grandma.
Neither she or her kids had any idea what the stuff was worth, only that he had been collecting it for some sixty years. She is moving into a seniors facility in Saskatchewan near her family and her son said the collection will pay for two to three years of her stay. I gave him the name of two great people that I know that will help them sell it.
They live(d) in a pretty remote place and there was a road in, however, they had a plane they used to get to civilization most of the time. MRR was this guys life in the winter.
As soon as I had received a more comprehensive list of what she/he has/had, I ended up talking to the kids two Provinces over, as it was no longer just getting a bargain and helping out an old lady.
I just want to thank everyone for the advice and opinions, I had decided to make the trip until I discovered what she really had and it went from getting a bargain to what would be exploiting an old lady in my book.
Driving up North is a safe trip until something goes wrong. My Sister lost her boyfriend and his buddy when they had an accident on the way to a diamond mine. Had they been prepared they would likely still be alive today. My Cousin was posted to a 3 member RCMP detachment up North and I would go on patrol with him. 300Km out, 300Km back. All I'll say is some people make their own luck.
Thanks again.
BATMAN it went from getting a bargain to what would be exploiting an old lady in my book. Neither she or her kids had any idea what the stuff was worth, only that he had been collecting it for some sixty years. She is moving into a seniors facility in Saskatchewan near her family and her son said the collection will pay for two to three years of her stay. I gave him the name of two great people that I know that will help them sell it.
it went from getting a bargain to what would be exploiting an old lady in my book.
IMHO: Sounds like you did the right thing. When the value of the collection reaches a certain point, the situation changes. Always best to remember who is on the other end of the deal and how you would want your survivors to be treated when the times comes.