Toy Model Conversion?

[Anonymous]

Has anybody turned a toy HO model of a freight car or locomotive(AHM, LLK, Bachman)into a realistic prototype model?

[dharmon]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Heartland Flyer

Has anybody turned a toy HO model of a freight car or locomotive(AHM, LLK, Bachman)into a realistic prototype model?

I have a couple of old Tyco flat cars, that I re- trucked to use as MOW flats and an old Bachaman 250 ton crane that I reworked many years ago. They all need alot more work to bring them up to what I consider acceptable now.

[Anonymous]

I've reworked alot of "lesser detailed HO trains" into acceptable models.
It did require a good bit of work on some.
Some weren't so bad.
I've reworked GP20s, C630s, RS2s, RS11s, SD40s, U33Bs, GP30s, GP38-2s into GP38s, GP18s into GP9s, F7s, F9s into F7 phase IIs, FM C-liners into CPA 24-5s,and Erie- Builts and more.
I get alot of enjoyment from transforming these diamonds in the rough.

[willy6]

I'm attempting to do one currently, however confidence is low,coupler installation is kicking my butt.

[Anonymous]

Hey everybody those projects sound really cool![8D] I am currently considering reworking some old Bachman F Units I have that are collecting dust. I think they will become dummy units but I am definitly going to repaint them in Santa Fe Blue and Yellow Bonnets.

[Anonymous]

Heartland Flyer,
The first photo in this link is an old Bachmann F9 shell. I back dated it to a phase II F7 by removing some louvers, removing the weatherization hatch and replaced it with a cooling fan, added railings and steps, then repainted it.
further down in the thread is the modified Model Power chassis I built for it.
http://www.the-gauge.com/showthread.php?t=9503

[dknelson]

Bachmann has or had a rather nice 40 ft highcube boxcar and Tyco had a more than decent 50 foot flatcar with simulated wood floor that both are quite worthy of attention from scale model railroaders. Some of the train set toys out there are actually old Varney and Penn Line molds that in their day were scale models.
Dave Nelson

[orsonroy]

I've turned Mantua "generic" steam into pretty good representations of USRA engines, and the IHC 4-8-2 into a nice IC 2600-series 4-8-2. I've also turned plenty of Athearn Blue Box F units and GP7/9's into proto-close models.

So long as the mechanism works well, and you don't mind putting a lot of time into a model, you can turn just about any toy model into something that's proto correct. It's usually not worth the time, effort and money, however.

[vsmith]

I have the WORST cars ever made for large scale, a well meaning relaitive got me one of those battery oped G scale sets you see at KB Toys every Xmas, I got an Echo Toy Co "Coastal Express" set which features Euro 2 axle cars with the crappiest cast detialing you have ever seen, and one of the worst looking loco and tender out there. The engine was such a crappy performer, (two speeds, off and on, its "choo choo " sounds were more like a fork in a garbage disposal, and it would often roll right off a curve and keep going) I ended up scrapping the loco and tender for what ever parts i could salvage. The cars have been in a continual state of bashing. I am using them as a low cost 'schooling" on how to upgrade and detail. At least if I completely botch a bash, I'm not out anything valuable and I get to try new technics on a cheap Guinea Pig.

[Anonymous]

I was given an Echo Melody Christmas Train set. I don't know what was worse, the fork in a garbage disposal "choo choo " sounds or the Christmas Melody. I gutted the 2-6-0 loco and repowered it with VCR parts. Someday I might track power and repaint it.

[vsmith]

Ray

Good luck with repowering that little piece of hidiousness. I found the best use for mine was as an organ donor. I scavenged the domes, bell, pilot, headlight and smokestack for use on other loco kitbashes, the cab became the cab on a new bashed yard critter, and the tender frame got completely rebuilt with archbar trucks into a flatcar. I also added archbars to the frieght cars and decided I'm going to make these Eeecho train cars look passable or bust! Given that the detailing on these Echos inst much better that low end LGB, what I learn in terms of removal of cast details and the addition of Ozark or Trackside Detail parts will carry over to alot of other large scale offerings. I still have the carcass of the loco, might have some need for the parts someday.

Later Vic

[AntonioFP45]

Good work guys!

I helped a friend repaint and detail a Tyco GP20 which has a pretty decent and workable body shell.

I would love to see someone completely redo an HO Bachmann DDA40X or turn an Athearn DD40 into the DDA40X! If any of you have, consider posting the picture on this thread!

Cheers! [:D][8D][;)]

[AntonioFP45]

BTW: I'm currently working on an HO Tyco flat car that came in a train set that my late father bought for me in 1973. It will become an SCL "MOW" flat car. I shaved the molded on bolster and intalled bolsters from an Athearn underframe. I'll be adding P2K trucks and Kadee coupler boxes. The flat car body itself will get a coat of Polly Scale Box Car red.

The plastic wood deck has actually aged itself over the years and already looks weathered.

Roger that. [4:-)]

[MidlandPacific]

I suspect a lot of us are doing this for sentimental reasons: I have four steamers that my parents gave me when I was a child, and although they're going to be very changed indeed by the time I've finished with them, I just can't throw them out or discard them.

[AntonioFP45]

QUOTE: Originally posted by rripperger

I suspect a lot of us are doing this for sentimental reasons: I have four steamers that my parents gave me when I was a child, and although they're going to be very changed indeed by the time I've finished with them, I just can't throw them out or discard them.

You're right Rripperger. I miss my dad and now wi***hat I had saved a few more of the Tyco pieces from that 1973 set. The dummy F9B unit that came with the set would have been perfect today to equip it with sound, but hindsight is always 20-20. I don't remember getting rid of the F9A body shell, but I can't find it.

However, I am quite happy with that one flat car. [;)]

[rogerhensley]

QUOTE: Originally posted by willy6

I'm attempting to do one currently, however confidence is low,coupler installation is kicking my butt.

There are several article on the NMRA 'Introduction to Model Railroading pages http://www.nmra.org/beginner/ that can help with upgrading older cars.

- Knuckle Couplers
- Wheels, metal or plastic?
- More on metal or plastic wheels
- Retrucking old r-t-r cars

[loathar]

Yea, I have two old cheap F units that were my Dads.I re-painted,decaled, and detailed them to be CP Rail units.They turned out pretty good.Still have a little growl to em. I like to think when I run them, my Dads looking down giving me a [tup][angel]

[tjsmrinfo]

on the cheap train set freight cars i do this

take the snap in trucks off drill the bolster 3/16 add 3/16 styrene tube cut flu***hen add 1/8 styrene tube SUPER GLUE both add truck of choice
for the couplers take a kadee no.5 draft gear box drill for the type of screw you want to use if the screw sticks up above the deck of a flat car or gondola cut flush

any other questions e mail me

hope this helps

tom