Jump to content
 

Jez

Members
  • Posts

    255
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Contact Methods

  • Website URL
    http://lawleystreet.com

Profile Information

  • Location
    Atherstone

Recent Profile Visitors

The recent visitors block is disabled and is not being shown to other users.

Jez's Achievements

231

Reputation

  1. New Field - just about all finished. This won't be coming back with me at the end of the day now though, as a deal has been done and it will be off to a new home. Jez
  2. Missoula is still on going Chris - just put it to one side for now as the craving for a switching layout was too great to ignore . Nice and simple layout with a couple of industries (including a cement distribution company) and a run-round loop. Plenty of scope for switching and ideal for those new Athearn Watco CF7s. (Thanks for the heads up Jack). Can be extended with staging for exhibitions, but fits nicely in the shed for stress relieving switching sessions. All the track is laid and wired up and I made good progress with fitting the back-scene boards today. Its all down to you having watched your CF7s switching out those 100 ton cement cars on North Haston.
  3. I popped down to Wickes a couple of weeks back:
  4. Yes Jordan, I carried out the re-motor work as previously posted on this very forum using Kato motors, trucks and drive parts from Kato/Stewart F units. Really pleased with how they turned out and didn't really want to give them back. I think Chris is rather pleased with them too. Re-motoring them also gave me some inspiration to continue building my latest layout based on MRL's maintenance facility in Missoula Mt, which also includes the turntable. Jez
  5. Dirty Dog!! He has certainly been eating his Pedigree Chum. Jez
  6. Unfortunately, the vibe I am getting since starting this topic seems to be negative - it may just be me having a bad day. The idea behind the post was to share my experiences in a simple re-motoring project for those of you that may want to have a go. I try to seek as good a running and operating loco as possible - pulling away at a scale 1 mph and watching the coupling tighten one by one is what this hobby is all about for me. If your Athearn/Atlas/Model Power loco runs well out of the box then excellent, but I am sure there are one or two who may appreciate a tutorial on how to tweak an engine to get it to run even better. I am definitely no DCC expert, I only share my experiences of what works best for me. Oh well, at least I now know not to waste my time posting my experiences or ideas on this particular forum. Jez
  7. Yes that should work Jordan as long as: the Kato motor has the 4 mounting lugs/screw holes to fit into the Athearn frame and the Kato motor flywheels and Athearn drive parts are the 'Hex' drive type. You may have to look at the electrical pick up system as well to do a bit of hard wiring. Try 128 speed steps too, as that gives for superior slow speed running. Jez
  8. Martyn, with a little surgery, the Proto GP30 and GP20 fit nicely onto a slightly modified Kato GP35 Chassis/frame. Jez
  9. Once everything is aligned, the Kato lighting board or DASR decoder (or equivalent) can be fitted. The original Kato light board mounting screws are used. Plug in an 8 pin decoder of your choice and give the loco a test run: This image shows an Athearn chassis, Kato light board, NCE DCC 8 pin decoder and original Kato pick-up wires with soldered extensions. This image shows a Rail Power Chassis/Frame, Kato light board, NCE DCC 8 pin decoder and Kato GP35 pick-up wires. This image shows an Athearn chassis, Kato light board, Bachmann 8 pin decoder and original Kato pick-up wires with soldered extensions. This image shows a Rail Power Chassis/Frame, NCE DASR decoder and original short pick-up wires. An ESU LokSound V4 decoder also fits perfectly with the round speaker mounted to the roof of the cab. Weight can also be added to the shell: Final assembly once the chassis is running as you would like, is to lower the body onto the frame and secure with the coupler mounting screws. I replaced the original couplers with Kadee 158s (with the trip pins removed), but you will need to use the original Athearn mounting screws: One final thing to bear in mind (I forgot about this) - the truck side frames are incorrect, the outer brake shoes need to be removed as on the left of this image: I hope this tutorial is of use and you enjoy a smoother running CF7. Enjoy, Jez
  10. I have always been a fan of the Los Angeles Junction Railway - lots of switching operations, modelable industries, Santa Fe (BNSF) and UP visiting locomotive variety and of course the ex-Santa Fe CF7 locomotives. The gutsy CF7s with their raspy EMD 567 BC engines were converted from F3, F7 and F9 locos by Santa Fe's Cleburne shops from February 1970 until March 1978. The LAJ inherited 4 of these locos: 2563, 2568, 2571 and 2619. 2563 was eventually withdrawn and used for spare parts to keep the other 3 locos running. There have been several posts on this forum in regard to Athearn's CF7 offering. Some have been to do with poor or erratic running. So here is a simple, one evening project to give you a smooth, slow running work horse to switch out those freight industries. Items required: Athearn CF7 (Livery of your choice) Kato/Stewart F3/F7 or F9. Donor loco should be one of the earlier Kato manufactured offerings. Kato GP35/SD40/SD45 lighting board Kato GP35 pick-up wires 0.75 plasticard Kadee couplers Optional item: 8 pin DCC decoder of your choice. (A NCE DASR or equivalent can be used - you will not need the Kato lighting board if you use this type of decoder) The donor locomotive: The Kato stamp can be seen on the bottom of the trucks - The earlier Kato manufactured locos for Stewart give the best performance in my opinion, although the later Stewart locomotives can be used. The donor locomotive will need to be disassembled - the motor, trucks and all drive parts are required. The Athearn CF7 will also need to be stripped, leaving just the frame. It is a good idea to strip, clean and lubricate the Kato trucks at this stage. The GP35 pick-up wires should also be fitted, although you can cheat and use the original pick-up wire with extra length soldered on and heat shrink added. The Kato trucks and drive parts are a simple click fit to the Athearn frame: The Kato motor is also a drop in fit: Although you may need to make a 0.75 plasticard motor mount shim to keep all the drive parts aligned: Use the original Kato motor mounting screws to secure the motor to the Athearn Frame. You can also use one of the original Rail Power CF7 chassis/frames - the Athearn shell will fit perfectly and you will probably not need to shim the motor: Continued on next page. Jez
  11. Staines on the branch line from West Drayton - now terminates at Colnbrook - I have a picture of the final train departing the terminal. North Camp on the Southern region - not sure if the sidings are still there, but they were in existence and in good condition long after the Terminal closed. Not sure if anyone mentioned Micheldever south of Basingstoke. Very surprised when this Terminal closed, always seemed to be so busy.
  12. Brilliant - sat in a UK railway yard watching a very busy German railway yard at 2 in the morning - it doesn't get much better than that.
×
×
  • Create New...