After seeing a photo of an interesting diesel on MickT's Roving Reporter site, I inquired about it in the thread http://www.009society.com/forum/index.php?topic=2695.0 . It turns out Mick had built it based on the Bachmann brick mechanism and two Plymouth bodies. So, I decided to try the same thing, except this diesel will be in HOn30, rather than 009.
These are the two Plymouth bodies I started with.
I removed everything above the blue paint from the first body. From the second, I removed the hood (bonnet) from the frame.
I trimmed the details off of the hood.
To attach the hood pieces together, I glued some styrene strip to the bottom piece.
Once the glue had dried, I test fit the pieces. Some filing and sanding was done to remove gaps between them.
In addition to sanding the pieces to fit better, I also stripped the paint from both pieces, using 91% rubbing alcohol. It turned out that the yellow body was made of yellow plastic. More sanding was done until I was satisfied (for now) with the fit. This is as far as I have progressed.
Jeff S.
That's exactly how I started mine Jeff - except yours is already much neater than mine ever was! I think I'm going to have to do some shunting on the scrap line to get a space to fit in a new "reject" and start over again!
Looking forward to seeing the next progress report!
Mick
The Brick chassis is a little marvel and will boldly run where no other (rarely) has. However, one irritant , for me at least, is that the cast axleboxes don't actually line up with the wheel centres! It didn't bother me until I noticed it, but since then it really bugs me!
Curses Mr Allcock I never noticed that before, and now I know as well!!
If you make sure you look at the chassis from front three quarter view and not exact broadside, then it looks fine to me.
However, I have a couple of Brick chassis that I converted to 4 wheel (easy peasy 5 minute job for you, about 3 hours for me), and I found that it is quite a simple job to file the centre axle boxes off the casting, leaving it as smooth metal, so if you develop this and file all of the axle boxes off, then you can epoxy or superglue anything you want back on at the correct spacing to match however many axles you have retained, 2 or 3.
Mick
A bit more progress with the build - I noticed that I did not make a square cut when I removed the bonnet from the yellow body, so I glued on a filler piece, hoping to even the sides up.
I wanted to add walkways to the body, so I glued .080 styrene angle to the existing frame. Not knowing where the front and rear buffers will end up, I cut the angle longer than necessary.
I cut the walkway pieces form .020 x .250 styrene strip, with proper indentations. The smaller indentation is for the chassis tabs that clip onto the body. Hopefully, I'll have more to report tomorrow.
Jeff S.
Reading this series is fascinating, and quite addictive. So where is the best place to get hold of two of these locos please?
Check with Members Sales, Andrew. After that, check Ebay.
Jeff S.
Jeff,
Thank you, but the members' sales are generally gone by the time I get to see thrm, and Obama (Cameron's Boss) has blocked eBay/PayPal for my part of the world until he gets complete control. Same goes for Walthers. So, what I need is a retailer who is not afraid of the USA. Any suggestions?
Kindest,
Andrew
You could always ask members sales to look out for you for a "brick" - you don't need 2 whole ones, by that way - just two bodies. Someone out there may well have a bodyshell going spare...
Thanks Hugh. It is a sad day when politicians get in the way of modelling
Andrew,
If you send 009 Sales an email (addresses in 009 News) explaining your position and requesting that a couple of bricks are reserved for you and then you are notified etc I'm sure you will get some help, it's been done in the past so I'm sure it can be done again!
MNick
Thanks Mick, fingers crossed!
Glad to hear you have found a way to get the necessary parts, Andrew.
No new photos to post, but I have found a way to temporarily glue bits together. I have a craft glue (Aleene's) that works like Woodland Scenics scenic accent glue. It's tacky enough to hold styrene parts together, so I can get an idea what a design will look like. That way, if I don't like what I see, it can be easily taken apart and the residue peeled off. I have been working on design of the radiator housing with this method.
Jeff S.
A little more progress to report. I have glued the walkways in place and have started assembly of the radiator housing/front trim. Those pieces are tacked into place, using the craft glue I previously described. The photos show that the radiator needs to be centered better, but that should not be a problem.
Jeff S.
Radiator is looking good already and providing an excellent "face" to the loco Jeff. I hesitate to ever show my very rough and bashed "prototype" ever again!!
Have you decided yet whether the "brick" will remain as a 6 wheeler or convert to 4, more in keeping with its small size?
Mick
What 'small size'?
Quote from: MickT on June 01, 2016, 11:39
Radiator is looking good already and providing an excellent "face" to the loco Jeff. I hesitate to ever show my very rough and bashed "prototype" ever again!!
Have you decided yet whether the "brick" will remain as a 6 wheeler or convert to 4, more in keeping with its small size?
Mick
Thanks for the compliments, Mick. If not for your photos of the "prototype", I wouldn't have been inspired to start this build.
I will most likely leave the brick in its original state of 6 wheels. I have a few Lima 4 wheel Plymouths that actually run. I started a conversion of one a year or so ago, but got hung up on how to wire a headlight for it. I may go back and graft another hood on top, similar to this build.
Jeff S.
More progress:
I have finished gluing on the walkways/deck. I still need to trim off the excess angle.
The front pieces are glued in place, with some modification to the design. The grill has not been glued in place, yet. Also, I have not glued the top of the hood/bonnet on yet, as I need to work on adding a 2mm white LED for a headlight.
I am also working on the design of the headlight area above the grill. More to come, soon, I hope.
Jeff S.
Late evening progress: I have the pieces fitted in for the headlight. Now it's a matter of enlarging the hole and filing everything to shape.
Jeff S.
i think there are a lot of us really enjoying this series, thanks Jeff. I'm reading this in Odessa, and it is the only bright spot on the horizon for this weekend. Very much appreciated - please keep it coming.
Andrew
Andrew,
Ask and you shall receive. More progress coming, shortly. With all the Views, I'm a little surprised there aren't more comments or questions.
Jeff S.
The front area around the headlight has been filed to shape. Next, I'll be installing the LED for the headlight.
Jeff S.
Some more progress: the LED I plan to use is a cool white LED, which is too bluish for my taste. So, I tried a tip that a colleague here in the states told me. I "painted" the LED with Model Master clear orange Acryl paint. When it dried, the LED appeared to be amber in color.
However, when the LED was lit, it gave off a warm white hue. I also added a headlight bezel to the front of the hood. The final photo shows what the headlight looks like when lit. I have to paint the inside of the shell to prevent excess light shining through.
Jeff S.
It's looking good. You could also try painting the LED black, apart from the end of its lens to reduce stray light. I've wondered if painting an LED silver on the assumption it would would reflect the light back into the LED. Possibly even silver with black on top.
I've painted red-green-blue LEDs white to diffuse the light and sanded a red-yellow one for the same effect for a flickering brazier.
After proudly filing down some LEDs to fit in streetlights, I was told I should not have done this as they contain some harmful chemicals. I do not know if this is true, does anyone know any better?
Quote from: rod335 on June 06, 2016, 09:23
After proudly filing down some LEDs to fit in streetlights, I was told I should not have done this as they contain some harmful chemicals. I do not know if this is true, does anyone know any better?
It depends on how far into the LED you sand, I'd guess. The clear casing is something like acrylic. I would have thought that by the time you get to sanding exotic chemicals, it will have stopped working!
It was a case at the time of seeing how small I could get them to fit in the casings. If they had stopped working I would have abandoned the project. Reminds me of a question in 'Melody Maker' some fifty years ago. Someone asked 'How tight should a Banjo head be?'. The reply was 'Tighten it 'til it snaps then back it off half a turn.'
Quote from: rod335 on June 06, 2016, 09:23
After proudly filing down some LEDs to fit in streetlights, I was told I should not have done this as they contain some harmful chemicals. I do not know if this is true, does anyone know any better?
I'm not aware of there being anything particular to worry about. I've filed down LEDs to make them fit too and I'm still here (jibber, jibber, drool... :P)
I've also seen LEDs explode (well pop their tops off) and if there is anything iffy inside then vapourising it would be a good way to spread it around. Much of the concern about toxicity in electronics comes down to the recycling and disposal of the huge volume of old electronics (e.g. the move to lead-free solder). The materials listed as being a possible cause for concern in the article here are lead, copper and nickel:
http://www.ledsmagazine.com/articles/2011/02/study-looks-at-toxic-metal-content-of-leds.html (http://www.ledsmagazine.com/articles/2011/02/study-looks-at-toxic-metal-content-of-leds.html)
In which case white metal locos running on nickel-silver rails are death traps!
I wonder if the person making the observation knew that some LEDs are made of gallium arsenide and thought "Arghhhh! - arsenic"?
Again, there does not appear to be much need for concern:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15276420 (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15276420)
I must admit that I was surprised when I was told this. Can't now remember who it was.
This seems to have turned into a symposium on the Care and Feeding of LEDs. ;D
Hopefully, I can get things back on topic before all is lost.
I painted the inside of the shell flat black. It seems to have fixed the LED shining through the shell. More to come, soon.
Jeff S.
Coming on nicely Jeff. I take it this is being built to 3.5 rather than 4mm scale? With the walkways alongside the engine, I expect it is still going to be rather wider than my "prototype", which is 24mm across the buffer beam.
How wide is yours. just for interest?
Mick
Mick,
Yes, it is built to 3.5 mm scale for HOn30. It's 27 mm wide. Not too much wider than your diesel.
Jeff S.
I have started working on the buffers. I hopefully will have some more photos posted this evening, tomorrow for sure.
While I was waiting for some glue to dry, I test fitted the cab from a Knightwing 0-4-0 shunter kit. It works. I'll be doing some cutting on the cab front to fit properly, plus I'm considering what to do about the uneven windows on the cab front and rear.
Jeff S.
Re: Knightwing cab windows. One way to even them out, if you are keeping the body the same width as the kit comes, is to carefully slice off the dividing bit between the two windows and then glue it back on in a central position, therefore making both the windows the same side.
I've got a Knightwing bash on the stocks (permanently I think as it's been on the stocks for years) where I narrowed the cab by a few mm and then jiggled the window dividing piece front and back around to make the windows both the same size.
Mick
Photos attached showing the buffer beams, front and back. You'll also notice that I painted the space behind the grill black.
I also started reworking the windows on the Knightwing cab. The front opening needs a little cleaning., but the window fits. The rear window plug is too thick and will be replaced. I've also included a photo of the cab front fitted onto the chassis. More to come shortly, I hope.
Jeff S.
I have only just recently caught up with this thread, but am really enjoying seeing this loco taking shape. I do have a couple of Bachmann locos bought for their chassis - one for 009 and one for 09. I will be checking later this weekend if I saved the bodies, and if so I will be planning look what possible options for a cab are in my spares and start planning my own conversion.
Thanks for taking a look, Neil. I hope you find the parts you're looking for.
Jeff S.
A few more photos: I have done some more work on the buffers and have made openings for the couplers. I have also fitted in the plug for the rear cab window.
Jeff S.
I did a bit more work on the cab today. I sanded off the window "trim" and the circular bumps (lights?) from the cab rear, as well as adding a housing for a rear headlight. I also added "trim" to the enlarged window opening on the cab front. Hopefully, they will look better once they are primed.
Jeff S.
I have primed the cab sides and roof and started to assemble the cab.
Jeff S.
I tacked the cab together and set it on the chassis. To me, it dwarfs the bonnet.
So, I dug out a project I started over a year ago: a diesel built on the Lima 0-4-0 mechanism. I had built a cab from the parts of a Grandt Line boxcab diesel, which seemed a bit small for the Lima body. If I stack the bonnets of two Lima bodies, similar to what I'm doing with the Bachmann Plymouth, the Knightwing cab would be a better fit, in my opinion. It looks like I'll be working on two projects at the same time.
Jeff S.
The Knightwing cab is rather large Jeff. If you do decide to continue using it on the Bachmann bash, then maybe cutting around 3mm off the bottom will make it look better?
The scratchbuilt cabsides on my own "prototype" are 24mm tall above the footplate/running plate/walkway, with the cab rising to 26mm at the apex of the curved roof. The top of the cab at the centre is approx 6mm above the top of the "stacked" engine bonnet
Here's a couple of early construction comparison photos (from several years ago!) showing a Lima diesel being built under the same "stacked" principle and a comparison with a Knightwing bash at a similar early stage of bashing.
Mick
And just to complete the loop on the Lima, here are some photos of it completed - well completed as far as it got. The idea was to create a 4mm version of the 3.5mm Minitrains Lima, one of these photos shows my very rough rendition alongside one of the pre-modern Minitrains jobs that I borrowed from 009 Sales at the time (2008) for a comparison photo.
Mick
Mick,
Nice work on the Lima conversion.
I thought about reducing the height of the Knigtwing cab, but not for long.
A new question - what mechanism did you use for the Knightwing conversion that shows up in one of the photos?
Jeff S.
More progress to report - Here are a couple shots of the Bachmann conversion with the smaller cab. I had to cut a notch in the cab rear to fit over the mechanism.
Jeff S.
Here are a couple shots of the Knightwing cab (at least part of it) with the stacked Lima Plymouth bonnets.
Jeff S.
Bachmann looks better with the lower cab in my opinion Jeff.
To answer your last question, the Knightwing conversion uses a Kato "shorty" bogie chassis - 11-106. I've never progressed this build and as at last night it was still sitting in a Ferrero Roche chocolate box along with several other "stalled" or "suspended limbo" projects going back a very long time - about 7 years in the case of the Knightwing (I think)
Quote from: MickT on June 19, 2016, 11:23
Bachmann looks better with the lower cab in my opinion Jeff.
To answer your last question, the Knightwing conversion uses a Kato "shorty" bogie chassis - 11-106. I've never progressed this build and as at last night it was still sitting in a Ferrero Roche chocolate box along with several other "stalled" or "suspended limbo" projects going back a very long time - about 7 years in the case of the Knightwing (I think)
Thanks, Mick. I think it looks better, too.
I thought the Knightwind mechanism might be one the shorty chassis. I have several "stalled" projects, one of which is the Lima bash. With the Knightwing cab, I think I'll be able to move it toward completion.
Jeff S.
I've done some more work on the Bachmann bash. The roof has been cut for the cab. I've also removed one of the panels in each cab door to provide more windows. To hide the notch cut out of the cab rear, I removed a tool box from one of the Lima Plymouth bodies. Hopefully, I'll have more photos for the Lima bash, shortly.
Jeff S.
More on the Lima bash. I removed the tool box from the Lima frame, so the Knightwing cab would fit. A .156 piece of styrene was glued into the gap created.
I gave the Knightwing cab an initial coat of green paint. Here are photos of what the diesel currently looks like.
Jeff S.
I have done some work on the front of the Lima bash, in a style similar to the Bachmann conversion. Since I don't have an etched grill large enough, I will have to build my own. The second photo shows the frame of the grill set in place.
Jeff S.
I have built two grills. The one on the left is a proof of concept. The one on the right is version 2. Now to decide which one to use. Suggestions are welcome.
Jeff S.
I have drilled a hole in the front for a headlight, plus added a bezel. Grill #2 is temporarily fitted into the open. The cab was set in place to get an idea how things were going together.
Jeff S.
No new photos, but I did glue the windows into the Knightwing cab and spray primer on the cab roof for the Bachmann conversion.
I will be traveling to a train show and meeting up with three other members of the Great Lakes HOn30 group. We will be setting up a portion of our layout for the weekend.
Jeff S.
I hope to get back to the conversions sometime tomorrow. I took a couple days to decompress from the weekend show. It was an enjoyable exhibition.
Jeff S.
Ok, a few photos to get things started, again. I've installed the windows in the Knightwing cab. The first two photos, hopefully, show this.
I've also shortened the rear deck on the Bachmann conversion. It still needs some cleaning up and reattaching the buffer.
I've made some more progress on the Bachmann conversion. I have reattached the rear buffer and have built a pedestal to hold the 2mm LED in place. The pedestal will be glued to the "brick" and the LED to the pedestal, and the LED wires will be shortened. Everything is sitting loosely in place in the photos.
Jeff S.
I have instialled the windows in the cab for the Bachmann conversion and have painted the cab roof. You may notice a styrene patch in the lower left front of the cab. The cab front was originally cut to fit around a Lima pancake motor. Switching it over to the Bachmann brick left a gap that needed to be filled. It will soon be painted.
Jeff S.
I also have been testing out door arrangements for the bonnet. The door panels are made from .005 styrene. Right now, they are tacked on to the bonnet using the craft glue I mentioned earlier in this thread. If I like how the design works out, I will most likely do the same with the Lima conversion.
Jeff S.
I found that I don't have any .015 styrene rod on hand, so work on the bonnet doors has stopped, for now. I shortened the LED leads and taped them to split frame of the Bachmann brick. Here are photos of the result. I am figuring out a way to attach an LED inside the cab for the rear light, so there may be more photos later today.
Jeff S.
I believe I have come up with a way to hold the LED inside the cab for the rear light. It's made up of styrene channel, angle, and strip. I've temporarily tacked it to the cab roof. Once the glue dries, I will be testing it.
Jeff S.
Turning my attention to the Lima conversion, I painted the radiator grill, since it will secured to the front after the body has been painted.
Jeff S.
Since I began the Lima conversion over a year ago, I thought I'd show how I attached couplers to the body. I used couplers that come with the Microtrains 1017 passenger car bogies. I first cut out the coupler pockets from the frame. The couplers are screw directly into the weights. I'm not sure how well this method will work for other types of couplers.
Jeff S.
Success! The LED holder works like I hoped it would. Now to paint it, so it blends in with the cab interior.
Jeff S.
I have never managed to get these Lima chassis to work very well in 009.
The worst problem I had was with the brass gears shorting out on the point blades as the gears had the same outer diameter as the wheels! But I do not know if this is the same on every chassis.
I also always found the gearing a bit high as well so that at dead slow speeds the motor tends to judder and not run smoothly at all as it is just turning too slow.
They also benefit from as much weight as possible.
The only one I have left is under a Matchbox diesel body, but it gets no use at all.
Brian Meldon
Brian,
I have picked up several Lima mechs from Ebay and trainshows. The better running ones become candidates for conversions. The others become parts sources.
Jeff S.
I discovered something interesting today. The metal (lead?) weights with the Lima mechanism touch the brass contacts which pick up the electricity from the rails. This will make it easier to connect the LED leads.
Jeff S.
I got the rear light working with the cab temporarily attached to the body.
The "cradles" for the LEDs for the Lima conversion have been built and glued into place.
Jeff S.
I ran into a minor setback with the Bachmann conversion. The liquid cement I was using "melted" the .005 styrene I was using for the doors. Fortunately, I was able to scrape the mess off with no damage to the rest of the body. I will try again, using a different type of glue.
Jeff S.
Attempt #2 at gluing the doors onto the Bachmann conversion. I am trying canopy glue. I'm pretty sure it won't craze the .005 styrene like the liquid cement did. Hopefully, it will hold the doors in place. It was a bit messy applying it and I will need to clean things up a bit, once the glue has dried. The divider between the doors is a length of .015 styrene rod.
Jeff S.
The canopy glue seems to be working. More photos shortly, hopefully.
Jeff S.
I've finished gluing the doors onto the body. Now to figure out where to put hinges and door handles.
Jeff S.
i've added some quarter round to the backs of the "wings" on the bonnet. I need to file them to the correct shape.
Jeff S.
Corner round is sanded to shape.
Jeff S.
I've started to put .040 quarter round where the bonnet meets the cab, to hide some imperfect cuts I initially made.
Jeff S.
The "trim" around the bonnet has been glued in place. Finishing touches need to be applied.
I've also added some more quarter round to the Lima conversion and sanded it to shape.
I will be driving to the Wiscasset Waterville & Farmington Ry museum in Maine, roughly a two day trip. So, work on the Plymouth conversions will be on hold until I return in about ten days.
Jeff S.
Well, I'm back. It was an enjoyable trip. I hope to do some work on the conversions later today, or tomorrow.
Jeff S.
Finally, back to work on the conversions. I want to apply decal based louvers to the doors. I've had great success priming the body before decal application, for better decal adhesion. The Bachmann conversion was sprayed with white primer. Afterwards, I remembered that I wanted to fill in some gaps, so I applied some Squadron white body filler. Once sanded, I resprayed the body, which is drying at the moment.
(note: the photos show the body BEFORE filler was applied to the gaps)
Jeff S.
I started applying the louver decals. I also have added hinges (hard to see) and drilled holes for door handles.
Jeff S.
I have repeated the process for the door on the "wing" (hinges, hole for handle, louver decals).
Jeff S.
The other side has had the louvers applied.
Jeff S.
Primer has been sprayed over the louver decals. Once dry, I will be spraying the body color.
Jeff S.
A minor setback - the rattle can spray paint I used covered much of the louvers. I will need to strip the paint off, which will probably remove the louver decals, as well. Fortunately, I have more decals. So, while the paint stripper is doing its thing, I will be working on the Lima conversion.
Jeff S.
Bachmann conversion has been stripped of paint. I will be reapplying the louver decals tomorrow. Bonnet doors have been added to the Lima conversion. Photos of that shortly.
Jeff S.
Bonnet doors added to the Lima conversion. Hinges will be next.
Jeff S.
Progress with both conversions. I've reapplied the louver decals to the Bachmann conversion, as well as added hinges to the bonnet doors of the Lima conversion. Next, will be louvers for the Lima body.
Jeff S.
Current state of the Bachmann conversion - I gave the body a coat of Testor's Yellow spray paint. Now, I'm deciding whether I like the color or not. I may paint the deck and frame the same green as the cab.
No further progress on the Lima conversion. I have relaid the mainline of one of my modules, in preparation for a show this weekend. This has taken up some of my time.
Jeff S.
Sorry I haven't posted much recently. I am on the convention committee for the 2016 National Narrow Gauge convention in Augusta, Maine, which will be Sept. 7-10. Currently, I am working on a plan for the setup of layouts that will be at the convention, plus putting together a clinic I will be giving at the convention. I have done a little work on the loco conversions, but nothing to photograph. Hopefully, I will have something by the end of the week.
Jeff S.
More progress, finally! I have done some more painting of the Bachmann body. I need to do some touching up. Let me know what you think of the paint scheme.
Jeff S.
I have also built cab steps out of 60 thou styrene angle.
Jeff S.
The Bachmann conversion is almost complete. I've added the steps and couplers. Still to be added are a bell, horn, exhaust, and handrails.
Jeff S.
A couple more photos.
Jeff S.
I have added and exhaust and horns to the Bachmann conversion. The horns came from an old AHM Minitrains Plymouth that I have. I need to add a bell and some handrails, which will finish this build.
Jeff S.
A fellow 009 member, who lives in the same state as I do, has been loaning his back issues of the 009 News, so I can scan them. Going through the Sept. 2006 issue, I came across Mick Thornton's article on his two diesels. There, I found a photo of Dean, the diesel that inspired my conversion. Thanks again, Mick.
Jeff S.
It's a pleasure Jeff. I am very impressed with what you are creating here and quite humbled that my quite primitive Bachmann-bash - "sort of reminiscent" of a Hibberd in a squashed and compressed style something like Upnor Castle on the Festiniog has been your inspiration!
Mick
I have added handrails, door handles, and a bell. The bell is under the deck and comes from a GE boxcab kit. The cab is still loose. I need to tweak the rear light connections to get it to work more consistently. For all purposes, this conversion is finished. I will be concentrating on finishing the Lima conversion, now.
Jeff S.
A belated thanks to MickT for the kind words regarding my work. I consider myself a "muddler", rather than a modeler. I muddle through a project until it's completed to my satisfaction.
Jeff S.
Some progress on the Lima conversion - I've added louver decals.
Jeff S.
Back from the National Narrow Gauge Convention in Augusta, Maine. I hope to get back to work on the Lima conversion tomorrow.
Jeff S.
Still some loose convention ends to tie up, so the conversion restart has been delayed. But, it will continue.
Jeff S.
Finally, some progress and new photos. I've begun painting the body.
Jeff S.