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Professional Locomotive Kitbashing Services

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  • Member since
    September 2003
  • From: Southeast Texas
  • 5,449 posts
Posted by mobilman44 on Friday, March 3, 2017 5:31 AM

Hi!

It has been difficult for me to keep quiet on this and other of the OP's threads.  At the risk of offending the powers that be (and anyone else), I will temper my comments as best I can and practice the tact and diplomacy I learned growing up on the streets of Chicago.........

To the OP..........

- Don't let yourself be considered an "Armchair Modeler".  That's someone who talks the MR talk, but never actually does anything.  From all your threads and posts, I have not read of you owning any MR equipment, nor actually following through on any of your "proposed projects". 

- There are a lot of good, helpful and knowledgeable folks on this forum, many who have come to your aid and assistance.  As wonderful as that is, it sure does give the appearance that you are "using them" to substitute for your own investigative efforts. 

Many posts by forum members have directed you to threads or websites that would accomodate your questions.  Read between the lines - they are trying to tell you something, without offending you.

- If you are really interested in this wonderful hobby, do something tangible about it!  Buy a couple of car or structure kits and try your hand at them.  Or get a strip of plywood (2x8ft) and put down a simple switching setup.  Just DO something.

I (for one) welcome anyone into the Hobby - especially young people.  But as with anything else (other than politics), "talk is cheap", and "doing" is invaluable.

Good Luck! 

ENJOY  !

 

Mobilman44

 

Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central 

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 11:32 AM

Well to start I have asked all these questions so I have an idea what I am going to be getting into. I happen to have a HO scale loco (BLI Pennsy T-1) I do not have a layout yet but that's in the planning stage still. Lastly I ask questions here because: (1) I do NOT live near a operating railroad. (2) I do NOT have any railroading in my family. (3) I come here because I am looking for tips and advice from people who are much, much more knowledgable than I about railroading and the modelling thereof and who are either: (a railroader) or (a model railroader)

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 11:41 AM

I would like to add that a friend of my Dad's who builds houses always says "you can know whats in the book, but experience is everything" so I ask questions here because I can get information based off years of experience.

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 11:46 AM

Now, to get back on topic Walthers got back to me and said I could get a shell from them for about $25.00 so my project is starting to make headway.

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by richhotrain on Friday, March 3, 2017 11:48 AM

cascadenorthernrr

I would like to add that a friend of my Dad's who builds houses always says "you can know whats in the book, but experience is everything" so I ask questions here because I can get information based off years of experience.

 

I think that you just reinforced mobilman's primary point. Your father's friend is correct. "Experience is everything". You need to gain some practical experience. What you have done in your threads is ask others to draw plans and research issues for you. What others are encouraging you to do is to try your hand at it yourself and then bring those plans to the forum for critique and to research railroading issues first and then ask questions.

Maimonides famously said, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime".

Rich

Alton Junction

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 5:59 PM

Gentlemen, I present to you FRANKENDIESEL!!!! It's basically two stretched GP30s with four two axle trucks and two four axle trucks resulting in a locomotive with a monstrous B+D+B-B+D+B wheel arrangement! I am just going to use a bunch of old Athearn locos to do all this.

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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  • From: Omaha, NE
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Posted by dehusman on Friday, March 3, 2017 6:19 PM

Y'all ought to go back and reread the thread.  Start small.  Do a 40 ft car upgrade.  Heck, just put wire grabirons on 1 car.

Next thing, think before you cut.  You want to put trains on a 4x8 sheet of plywood.  How in the heck are you going to get that long of a diesel around a 18" radius curve?  How are you going to join the drive trains?  How are you going to mount the trucks on the frames?  Not saying it can't be done or you can't do it.  Just saying don't start with the biggest thing on the planet.  Start small, get good and then expand upwards.  You might find you hate kitbashing.  Its better to find that out with a $10 car than after you have cut up $300 of engines.

Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 9:36 PM

BEHOLD FRANKENDIESEL!!!!

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by mbinsewi on Friday, March 3, 2017 10:25 PM

LaughLaughLaugh  Good one kid...Laugh  I don't think that'll handle a 48" curve !  Do something different with all of those center cabs! 

And by the way, the term "Frankendiesel" was taken long before you got here, by a departed member, Jeffery Wimberly, and it was part of how we knew him......yours is not a "Frankendiesel", it's a "Freaking diesel".  Laugh

Remember, all in good fun.  Laugh

Mike.

EDIT:  So, how many prime movers, the 567D3,  16 cylinders, does this monster have?

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 10:55 PM

Two prime movers. What pray tell did the original "Frankendiesel" look like? The center cabs will not have windows on the model. To assist in the models performance in curves the B trucks are mounted on bolsters that pivot from the D truck. The inspiration for this monstrosity is the Illinois Central's #9202 transfer diesel.

Image result for illinois central #9202

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

  • Member since
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  • From: Omaha, NE
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Posted by dehusman on Friday, March 3, 2017 11:17 PM

Good luck kid, you're gonna need it.

Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com

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Posted by NWP SWP on Friday, March 3, 2017 11:17 PM

Not to go from ridiculous to ludacris but I may add a double cupola on top of the cab!

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

  • Member since
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Posted by richhotrain on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:21 AM

cascadenorthernrr

BEHOLD FRANKENDIESEL!!!!

Hope you got written permission for publishing those protected images!

Alton Junction

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Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:36 AM

cascadenorthernrr

BEHOLD FRANKENDIESEL!!!!

 

I thought you were doing an SD70Ace?  Also you may want to take a look into copyright infringement.  Those drawings say that you need written permission for use other than personal.  Im not a lawyer, but I dont think that publishing on a forum group of hacked up copyrighted images passes the litmus test for "personal use".  Just sayin. 

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Posted by richhotrain on Saturday, March 4, 2017 6:06 AM

Pretty sure that the forum admin will delete the unauthorized images.

 

Alton Junction

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  • From: Omaha, NE
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Posted by dehusman on Saturday, March 4, 2017 8:00 AM

BMMECNYC
I thought you were doing an SD70Ace?

He not really going to build any of it.  He's just dreaming and what if'ing to have something to talk about.  If he hasn't built a single model yet it will take him years to get a suitable shell kitbashed and double that for the metal working and mechanical skills to build a mechanism.

Those pictures are generally intended for modelers to use, I would say hacking them up falls within fair use because people have been using them to plan kitbashes and paint schemes for years.

Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com

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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 10:18 AM

I thought someone around here said to try my hand at cutting up old Athearn shells to get pratice with cutting plastic? Even then I can still chop up the shells to build the shell for the big loco even if I do not build the frame. I just looked at ebay the four GP30s and the DD40 will only run me about a hundred dollars. Walthers said I could get a shell for a SD70ACe for $25. 

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by tstage on Saturday, March 4, 2017 10:35 AM

Actually, I believe someone(s) have been telling you to "do something" rather than wasting all of your time dreaming.  Dreaming and vision are essential to future plans...but a every journey starts with a single step.

I'll ask again: Have you put together a kit yet?  If you haven't, Accurail would be a good and inexpensive one to start with.  And older Athearn BB (blue box) would be even less expensive.  Once you have one of those assembled you can then try your hand at a more challenging kit, or find ways to detail the one you assembled.

Tom

https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling

Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.

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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 10:56 AM

Ok then! I have a few old Athearn kits someplace I'll find them and work on them.

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by tstage on Saturday, March 4, 2017 11:00 AM

Be sure to post a picture of one when your finished...

https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling

Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.

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Posted by mbinsewi on Saturday, March 4, 2017 11:35 AM

And some progress pics while your building would be great!  I'd like to see this come together.

Mike

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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:10 PM

Ok so I actually do not have any kits (they were kits at one time but not any more) therefore I proceeded to my local hobby shop and purchased a accurail UP box car. Now can I use super glue gel to put it together?

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by tstage on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:25 PM

Most superglues (cyanoacrylate or CA) tend to attack styrene and turn it whitish in color.  (IIRC, this is primarily due to the accelerant in the CA, which helps it to cure quickly when exposed to the air.)  There are "styrene-safe" CAs on the market but you have to hunt for them.

The best adhesives for styrene are the liquid type (e.g Testors) that are essentially MEK (methylethylketone):

These melt or soften the exterior of the plastic surfaces so that they "meld" together for a strong bond.  Because they are thinner and more watery they tend to "wick" or flow and disappear into a joint very easily, which makes assembly go more quickly.

The liquid adhesives like Testors come with a brush built into the bottle cap.  However, I prefer applying the adhesive with a 5-0 or 10-0 artist brush; the latter for smaller and more delicate applications - like grab iron and hand rail holes.

Tom

https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling

Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.

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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:29 PM

Which store would most likely carry Testors?

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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Posted by tstage on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:35 PM

Any LHS (local hobby store) should carry it.  What about the place where you picked up your Accurail kit from?

You can pick up MEK at your local hardware or home improvement store (e.g. Home Depot or Lowe's) but the smallest size is usually a 1 qt. can.  Cheaper, for sure, but a bigger spill if you accidentally knock it over.

Tom

https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling

Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.

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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 5:38 PM

I'm not sure, they're closed now anyway. 

Steve

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Posted by zstripe on Saturday, March 4, 2017 6:09 PM

Steven,

When You are finished with the Accurail car..try Your hand at this kit,  they state that a 10yr old can build it...when finished It would make a very nice mantel piece and over the yrs. You can look at it and say to Yourself, this was My second learning kit. Aside from that You'll learn what makes up a steam Locomotive....it is in 1/87 scale......when correctly built it will roll on HO scale track:

https://www.hobbylinc.com/revell-germany-big-boy-locomotive-plastic-model-locomotive-kit-1:87-scale-02165

Price won't break the bank.

Take Care! Big Smile

Frank

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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 9:30 PM

Here are some pictures of the project.

Only thing I changed is the couplers I installed Kadee couplers instead of the Accumate ones that came with it.

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

Moderator
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  • From: Northeast OH
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Posted by tstage on Saturday, March 4, 2017 9:51 PM

Steven,

Unfortunately the photos you posted are not viewable via Google because you need to have permission to access them.  You'll need to upload them to a photo hosting site like Photobucket or RailImages.com for others to view them.

Or, you could just post them on your website and link to them from there.  That would be the simplist way to do it since you already have the space.

Tom

https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling

Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.

  • Member since
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Posted by NWP SWP on Saturday, March 4, 2017 10:42 PM

I re uploaded the pictures should be fixed now. 

Steve

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!

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