Eastern Tn logging on the DG CC & W RR 1928

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Doctor G #4 looks happier with its new red roof. Pretty good therapy for the old gal. Doc Tom:thumb:[/quote said:
What will make her happier is all wheel pick up. that won't be easy but I'm thinking hard on it. the trucks are set up very similar to the Riverossi Heisler so the same technique may work on both.


Bill
 

gbwdude

General Manager, W.R.Ry.
My 2-4-4-2s stood out on my RR as they were almost the only locomotives on my railroad without a red roof (excepting a Southern Railway 0-8-0 that really doesn't count.


This morning they made their way down to the paint shops, along with other locomotives ( a horizontal boiler class A Climax and an HOn3 0-4-4 Forney. they have red roofs now.


Looking good Bill. If the WRRy hadn't acquired C&S's old Heisler they'd be interested in that vertical boilered Climax.

On another note I made it back from Cheeseland safely. It was a tight squeeze having the car loaded with all my daughter's toys and clothes that she got from her birthday parties (one by my parents and one by my wife's parents, we live 4 hours apart), our clothes and then my loot that was in storage. The car reminded me of a National Lampoon's Vacation movie...

Also when I was up in the frozen tundra I snapped a few pics of my beloved Hiawatha on my home club's layout. It was the first time they'd been out of the box and on rails ever and I bought them about two years ago, but it would have been pointless to have them shipped to Korea and especially since I'd have to move and the fact that shipping would have cost a lot more.

Tyler
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Also when I was up in the frozen tundra I snapped a few pics of my beloved Hiawatha on my home club's layout. It was the first time they'd been out of the box and on rails ever and I bought them about two years ago, but it would have been pointless to have them shipped to Korea and especially since I'd have to move and the fact that shipping would have cost a lot more.

Tyler

Welcome back to Tn. I can't wait to see the Hiawatha pictures. Does that train fit in your eventual plans? One thing I would like change on my current railroad were I to start over would be to have a big loop of Southern Rwy track, and ay ard, rather than the dead end interchange connection I have on my current RR. It would be dramatic and fun to have big southern RR trains roll through the layout. Perhaps if I did that, and had the interchange in the saw mill town, I could have used the space I spent on Harlow for a humongous logging camp.


Bill Nelson
 

gbwdude

General Manager, W.R.Ry.
In the eventual plan of the WRRy it might have a guest appearance every now and then, but it won't be regularly run. The cars are for the 1955 Hiawatha (but were used on earlier Hi's too), the brass steamer I have was built in '44 and retired in '54... so an authentic '55 Hi with the 261 wouldn't happen. Besides, normal power on the Hi's were sleek diesels... which will never fly by me.

If you go to my profile thingy on here and check out the photo albums, the pics are up of the Hi.

Tyler
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SML A5 locomotive shops.jpg Busy week!

It has been a busy week, On Monday morning I had to drive down to Nashville for an echocardiagram. Yesterday (Tuesday) , I went back for a visit with my cardiologist.. Good news there, my aorta didn't enlarge any last year. . I was also lucky, in that my wife drove me down, which was a good thing, as I had been up all night at work, and we did not get back home until three in the afternoon.

Today, finally, I didn't have bunches of stuff to do, and I went back to the engine shops and did a little bit more work toward getting a new motor in my ancient an honorable AHM 2-4-0 ( J. W. Bowker). These, before I had any geared power , were the backbone of my locomotive fleet, and so returning one to service is important for historical purposes. Even though many are gone forever I saved the stacks and the headlights, which now grace two MDC shays and two Riverossi Heislers, and contribute emensely to the family look of my locomotive fleet. Back in the 1960's I could regularly get a J W Bowker for $12.00 on sale. any part for that locomotive would cost more, so when I needed a part, I'd buy a locomotive, and part out the new or the old one, depending on what was easiest to do.



The motor ( robbed from a Government Motors vehicle durring my previous life as a GM Technician) is exactly like the one I put in the AHM 4-4-0. I think they share wheels and gears, so hopefully they will double head together well. the work I have done on these older rod locomotives may send me back to work on the engine facilities in Harlow ( Southside). as most of these locomotives will live there. have vacuumed out the inside of the two stall engine house, and treated it with spider poison. the single stall engine house (long enough for one of my 2-4-4-2's need a new roof.

one thing leads to another. The cooler weather that has rolled in makes work in the attic RR room much more comfortable, so hopefully I can get to it.


Bill Nelson
 
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gbwdude

General Manager, W.R.Ry.
It has been a busy week, On Monday morning I had to drive down to Nashville for an echocardiagram. Yesterday (Tuesday) , I went back for a visit with my cardiologist.. Good news there, my aorta didn't enlarge any last year. . I was also lucky, in that my wife drove me down, which was a good thing, as I had been up all night at work, and we did not get back home until three in the afternoon.

Today, finally, I didn't have bunches of stuff to do, and I went back to the engine shops and did a little bit more work toward getting a new motor in my ancient an honorable AHM 2-4-0 ( J. W. Bowker). These, before I had any geared power , were the backbone of my locomotive fleet, and so returning one to service is important for historical purposes. Even though many are gone forever I saved the stacks and the headlights, which now grace two MDC shays and two Riverossi Heislers, and contribute emensely to the family look of my locomotive fleet. Back in the 1960's I could regularly get a J W Bowker for $12.00 on sale. any part for that locomotive would cost more, so when I needed a part, I'd buy a locomotive, and part out the new or the old one, depending on what was easiest to do.



The motor ( robbed from a Government Motors vehicle durring my previous life as a GM Technician) is exactly like the one I put in the AHM 4-4-0. I think they share wheels and gears, so hopefully they will double head together well. the work I have done on these older rod locomotives may send me back to work on the engine facilities in Harlow ( Southside). as most of these locomotives will live there. have vacuumed out the inside of the two stall engine house, and treated it with spider poison. the single stall engine house (long enough for one of my 2-4-4-2's need a new roof.

one thing leads to another. The cooler weather that has rolled in makes work in the attic RR room much more comfortable, so hopefully I can get to it.


Bill Nelson

Bill,

Great to see you're making progress. I wish I had more train time, but I'm sure you still remember how it is with a baby PLUS dealing with the Army. The easy part is buying trains, the fun (and time consuming) part is building the layout. Speaking of which, I found #12's weight and put it in. Really helps keep it more balanced and I have a feeling it'd help pull itself up the hill going to Crooked Creek unlike last time.

I knew you worked at a dealership but I had no idea you were a GM mechanic. How much experience do you have on S-10's?

Tyler
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Bill,


I knew you worked at a dealership but I had no idea you were a GM mechanic. How much experience do you have on S-10's?

Tyler


entirely too much, but I was the trim guy, so I have had the interior of them completely gutted to trace down water leaks, and having the dash out running down rattles. Not the kind of thing anyone wants to do. as for actual mechanical stuuff, I haven't done much work on them.


Bill
 

gbwdude

General Manager, W.R.Ry.
entirely too much, but I was the trim guy, so I have had the interior of them completely gutted to trace down water leaks, and having the dash out running down rattles. Not the kind of thing anyone wants to do. as for actual mechanical stuff, I haven't done much work on them.


Bill

Ahh ok, still good to know. I do have a question or two... but we'll have to talk about this some other place, this is train talk.

On the other hand, do you have plans this weekend?

Tyler
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
good news and bad news.

The 2-4-0 (#3) is back together. I wired it right, and it's motor spins the right way. The driveshaft between the locomotive and the motor in the tender is stripped out on one end though, so it is not operable yet. I have made two attempts to fix this, but neither held up.


Testing the good end on tiny metric sockets I found out the the hex end is 5mm. What I need to do now is to find two 5mm nuts , and use them to build a replacement drive shaft.


Bill Nelson
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SML A bldg a drsft.jpg making a driveshaft

I am making an attempt to build a drive shaft. I got a piece of brass rod cut to the right length I greased a 5mm socket filled it with J B quick, and then stuck the brass rod in it. the resulting hexagonal shape is just slightly two large for the drive cups, but with a little judicious filing It will fit nicely.
 
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Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
#3

#3 is back into service with the homemade drive shaft! it works pretty well, smoother than I thought it would be.

it double heads well with #2. Satisfactory!


Bill Nelson
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Tests show that #3 is a little slower than #2. but will double head with it nicely. #1 will also double head well with #3, although it is too slow to double head well with #2. #5 is in the box that goes back and fourth to the club, and hasn't been tested yet.


Next on the locomotive front will probably be two brass consolidations, which will be the medium size valley division power.

Bill Nelson
 

gbwdude

General Manager, W.R.Ry.
The WRRy has the same issues

Next on the locomotive front will probably be two brass consolidations, which will be the medium size valley division power.

Bill Nelson

Bill,

The WRRy is still considering what kind of Consolidations would be adequate power for the road. The reviews on the Bachmann 2-8-0 are good, but I just don't like how the unit is built with a band drive off of the worm. I'm sure the units will work great for a few years but after a while I can see those bands breaking down and pulling the same deal an old Athearn Hi-Fi lokie does.

I've also been considering on breaking down and buying one or two of those older ATSF 2-8-0 in brass. The only issue I have is the same deal with my big ol' #261 plus adding DCC. Also if I got one of the ATSF ones, I'd have to swap out the oil tender for a coal one.

Tyler
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Locomotive decisions

High end modern model locomotives models have outstanding detail, run very smoothly, and are impressive at every level, especially the ones with DCC and sound (to my old fashioned self sound is primary advantage to DCC)


I have had one of thew Bachman 2-8-0s apart for repairs, as well as some other recently produced locomotives. Let me tell you, It is scary disassembling these locomotives, getting them apart and back together is hard. For years I have been fearless in taking apart, cutting up, modifying, and reassembling brass locomotives that cost up to and above my yearly train budget. Most of the roster of the DG CC and W RR has been in service for more than 30 years. When I put a locomotive in service it is my intention that it stays in service forever.


When I could hear the motor run on my Bachman 2-8-0 without any movement I thoutht it was probably the belt. it turned out that the pulley was spinning on the motor shaft. I was able to glue the pulley in place, and the locomotive is working, had the belt been broken I was going to try to hunt for an O ring that would fit.


If you want Robust power, you might want to think old school and look at Bowser kits. These are very old school, for the most part 1950 technology. but the bearings are good, the wheels are good, the gears are good. by using a high quality modern can motor you should be able to get excellent performance out of them. adding the brass super detailing kits to them makes them look acceptable, the heavy cast metal makes them good pullers, and the mechanisms are tried and true. I'll look around and see if I can find a catalog.


Bill
 

gbwdude

General Manager, W.R.Ry.
Rubust power!

Bill,

The Bowser Old Lady 2-8-0 would look nice, but the look is more Southern Pacific with the lower boiler. They use the same boiler as their 4-6-0 kits. A while back Bowser offered a underframe kit for the Bachmann Plus Reading 2-8-0, and that could be reworked for the look I'm going for, but still the firebox is unique to the Reading. What would be really nice is if I could find a underframe for the Old Lady 2-8-0 and the body of a Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 and work them together.

On another note, I was cruising the vast internet when I ran into a website about the M&StL. All of their steam locomotives are almost like how I want the WRRy lokies to look! There's even a build of a IHC 2-6-0 to look like a M&StL loco which I'll have to borrow some of their ideas. I like how they built the cylinders to make them look like older style ones (don't know the correct term). The website is http://www.cashgroth.com/ho/mstl304.html
If Model Power took their N scale 2-6-0 and made a HO scale version (especially since IHC is no longer in business) and had the parts available to make it look more vintage, I'd be on that like a fat kid on cake.:p

One last note, if anyone knows or has one of those nifty old Mellor conversion kits for the Mantua 2-6-2 to make it a Consolidation... I'm interested.

Tyler
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
I got some time upstairs yesterday, cleaned track in Southside, repaired a broken solder joint on a power feed, and reassembled the Gallows structure for the turntable there that had been re-kitted.


I played with a few locomotives , and that lead to cleaning track near Tom's Bend. and while there I played with Shay #8, which is always fun. I took a short video to show off how slow and smooth it is.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AzAUH_YEgQ
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
I got a package from micromark while napping today. I have some drive shaft material to build a better driveshaft to go between the tender and the locomotive on #1. I also got some V-grove tin roofing material for several projects,


I also got a rubber polishing block to carry to the club for track cleaning


I also resupplied myself with micromark small spikes. of which I was running low.

Bill Nelson
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SMLA #1s nw dr sht.jpg I got that Micro Mark drive shaft installed in #1. It went in very nicely. thse look familliar, and I am wondering if they are the driveshafts we once could get for Hobbytown drive mechanisms.


I was surprised with the new driveshaft this locomotive has great low speed. I mad a video for U-tube.




There are some small binds in the mechanism, and now it looks it will be worth addressing them, and it could also use some improved electrical pick up


Bill Nelson
 
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