Freight traffic was getting heavy in Durango for my poor little 44-tonner. More and more, it was being asked to move cuts of standard gauge cars, when it's really up to just one or two at a time. So it was time to search the motive power desk, actually a motive power chest of drawers, for candidate into conversion into a heavier dual-coupler equipped unit.
It just so happens my old Walthers F-M H10-44 works. It has some easy off features. Pluck them off gently: the front step on one side, the SAME side on each end. The end railings pop off.
This install uses a Kadee 714 in the SG location and a M-T 1015 in the NH position. Putting the coupler in the orginal position won't work. The mount hole is too far back. But we have to keep in mind the coupler retains the body on these cars. Moving further in wasn't good, but moving it out to take advantage of the cast-in buffer plate seemed feasible. I double checked with coupler length. Then I filed the buffer down flat. There was plenty of room behind the pilot beam to install couplers, but I pushed them out by building a larger buffer by fabbing it from plastic. The new buffer beam was glued and filed to shape. The rest was easy if you follow what I previously discussed. The H10-44 has a lot more panache shoving cars around.
This install uses a Kadee 714 in the SG location and a M-T 1015 in the NH position. Putting the coupler in the orginal position won't work. The mount hole is too far back. But we have to keep in mind the coupler retains the body on these cars.
Moving further in wasn't good, but moving it out to take advantage of the cast-in buffer plate seemed feasible. I double checked with coupler length. Then I filed the buffer down flat. There was plenty of room behind the pilot beam to install couplers, but I pushed them out by building a larger buffer by fabbing it from plastic. The new buffer beam was glued and filed to shape. The rest was easy if you follow what I previously discussed. The H10-44 has a lot more panache shoving cars around.
Moving further in wasn't good, but moving it out to take advantage of the cast-in buffer plate seemed feasible. I double checked with coupler length. Then I filed the buffer down flat.
There was plenty of room behind the pilot beam to install couplers, but I pushed them out by building a larger buffer by fabbing it from plastic. The new buffer beam was glued and filed to shape. The rest was easy if you follow what I previously discussed. The H10-44 has a lot more panache shoving cars around.
There was plenty of room behind the pilot beam to install couplers, but I pushed them out by building a larger buffer by fabbing it from plastic.
The new buffer beam was glued and filed to shape. The rest was easy if you follow what I previously discussed. The H10-44 has a lot more panache shoving cars around.
The new buffer beam was glued and filed to shape.
The rest was easy if you follow what I previously discussed. The H10-44 has a lot more panache shoving cars around.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
I thought I'd throw in some action shots, err...well, actually it looks like the crew of 123 is stuck in the hole until the eastbound wayfreight and a westbound passenger roll by.
Mike, superb dual gauge work and coupler tutorial. When I leaped in, feet first, to narrow gauge, HOn3 in 2009 after 40 years in HO standard gauge, I had dreams of a dual gauge system so I could run some of my HO as well. I ordered several bundles to dual gauge micro engineering track to go with my 7 or 8 new Blackstone N.G. locos in 2010.
I had a dual gauge fantasy plan of my Virginia home based N.G. Atlantic and Danville linking to the Southern, N&W etc. but my little D&RGW engines, I felt, needed a Colorado nesting place.
Fortunately, I stopped dead and spent a ton of money on N.G. books (history, MR related, etc.)I read for about 8 months and realized I went to N.G. because it was the backwoods lore of the little road that intrigued me coupled with its WWII Uranium ore transport effort solely within the N.G. system. Having a dual gauge terminus seemed too busy and crowded, too cosmo. I wanted a "grass and weeds growing through the tracks" type system.
The one thing that I liked about dual gauge was the interesting track work and the use of those sweet little idler cars as opposed to dual gauge coupler systems which were certainly around on a few locos. As late retirement looms in April 2014, I hope to have much more time to finalize things on the Paradox, Uravan and Placerville.
I still have all that cool unused dual gauge track........Who knows.....A small, separate Dual gauge Switching layout??.....Heaven forbid...a little Plymouth switcher, too!
You have a fabulous layout.
Richard
If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed
Richard,
Thanks for your comments, it's always satisfying to hear people appreaciate what you're doing.
I always liked the complex look of dual gauge, so wanted some on my layout when I designed it. I originally wanted to include Alamosa, but the physical reality set in that my basement wasn't that big. So I just "preserved" the dual gauge track that was taken up in Durango back in the 20s and hooked it into the main Rio Grande system with a SG branch.
It was also the pre-Blackstone era of HOn3, so I figured I could watch the SG go in circles while trying to get the NG going. In fact, I have both running great, knock on wood.
A dual gauge switching layout would be cool. There's all kinds of little tricks to design, but so long as you take you time, they're nott too hard to figure out.