Modern N-scale locos

[roundhouse]

Adrian

 

Here is a NS unit you may like that I am currently working on.

 

Its an Atlas SD60 with a 3D printed cab grafted on.

 

Still a fair way to go with the decals and detailing.

Doing the curve between the black and the blue is tricky as it has to be doen accurately so that the red and white ribbon decal fits correctly. Still have the other side to do.

 

Decals came off ebay. HO scale ones are also available.

Edited August 14, 2014 by roundhouse

[Supaned]

Nice work on that SD60 Ian, One for Santa Barbara , or the NS project?

[roundhouse]

Its for the future NS project but will see use on Santa Barbara at TINGS next month. Decoder already fitted.

[Adrian Wintle]

That's very nice. Who does the cab?

 

I have a couple of SD60 shells that are just waiting to become SD60Es. I also have a couple of SD50 shells that may become SD40Es, but that is a much easier conversion.

 

My latest project is an SD40-2 which is going to become an ex-SOU one with the help of an Athabaska high short hood cab. The ex-NW SD40 (see earlier) is in the paint shop - it stalled when I decieded I wanted to keep the CSX SD40 (even though the livery is incorrect)

 

Adrian

[roundhouse]

Adrian

 

Link to various replacement cabs in N and HO scale

 

http://www.shapeways.com/search?q=ns+cab

 

 

This is the actual one that I orderedin N scale

 

https://www.shapeways.com/model/1875445/ns-6920-crescent-cab-v1-0.html?materialId=61&li=ostatus

 

After removing the separate Atlas cab I had to cut a section off the hood andthe batterry boxes for the 3D cab to fit.

[Adrian Wintle]

Here are a couple of the ongoing projects. First, a NS (ex-N&W) SD40. I haven't decided whether it will be in N&W or NS livery. It started life as a Kato CP SD40 and has been modified with an Athabasca high short hood cab (etched brass kit), BLMA fan grills and fans (brass etches), a BLMA horn (cast brass), and a Miniatures by Eric bell (cast brass - I used the under-frame bell in the Athabasca bracket). It is a bit shiny as it is ready for decals - unless I go for the pilot detailing as in the next project.

 

The second project is an NS (ex-Southern) SD40-2. It started life as a Kato CP SD40-2 Snoot nose, with damaged pilots. So far I've only started detailing (rebuilding) the pilots using BLMA parts (pilot overlay, cut lever, MU hoses, snowplows). It is also going to get the Athabasca cab, although being ex-Southern it will have the bell on the long hood and horns either end.

 

Adrian

[Adrian Wintle]

Adrian

 

Link to various replacement cabs in N and HO scale

 

http://www.shapeways.com/search?q=ns+cab

 

 

Even more important than the Crescent cab, that list has Dash-9 cabs and PRR cab signal boxes. And it no longer gets shipped UPS from Europe (which turned me off Shapeways because UPS is useless for international shipping to a home address).

 

Thanks

Adrian

[Adrian Wintle]

Further progress on the SD40-2. I realized that the prototype I wanted to model had a brakewheel rather than the ratchet of the Athabasca cab, so I did a cut-n-shut of the snoot nose and the leftover short hood from the SD-40. I also added Miniatures by Eric air hoses:

 

It still needs a bit of sanding, some filler, hand grabs, and a headlight cluster, but that is in hand. I have an Miniatures by Eric headlight pod and bell (for the other end), and BLMA horns for both ends. I expect I'll do the fans with the BLMA etches as well.

 

Adrian

 

[roundhouse]

That's a different way by just doing the top of the short hood.

Do like the air hoses.

 

Ian

[Adrian Wintle]

That's actually a three-part nose since I had to shorten the existing one. I cut a section out of the nose and then sanded the top to take out the rounded edges before attacing the upper section. The seam line will be almost invisible when sanded.

 

It remains to be seen how fragile the pilots will be in operation.

 

Adrian

Edited August 19, 2014 by Adrian Wintle

[roundhouse]

The pilots look very good but under exhibition standards are likely to get knocked from my own experience.

 

If just used at home then you will have a lot less risk.

 

Ian

[Adrian Wintle]

In a lot of ways this is more a project of 'what is possible' rather than 'what is practical'.

 

Fitting the cut levers is a royal pain - 4 loose brackets threaded onto the cut lever that must be inserted into 4 holes in the pilot. There is a reason that they supply 12 brackets on the fret - you only need 8 -  although I only lost one.

 

The pilot overlay has holes for the cut lever brackets and the MU cable assemblies, so the positioning is quite positive. The plow is just superglued to the pilot.

 

Adrian

Edited August 19, 2014 by Adrian Wintle

[roundhouse]

Adrian

 

I struggle with the HO scale coupler lift bar brackets let alone N scale ones but they do look good.

 

I will be fitting the BLMA etched hoses to the Veterans loco which is now taking shape.

 

Still need to add the white stripe on the other side plus the number boxes on front and rear before giving it a few passes of the Dullcote spray can then glazing the cab etc. I am contemplating fitting working ditch lights aswell if I get chance before TINGS in September.

 

This loco is very much an early morning project before heading off to work leaving any other spare time for other modelling tasks.

 

A photo showing progress

[Adrian Wintle]

So now I see the latest Intermountain ad - they are doing a high short hood Southern SD40-2 (actually 4 different numbers) as part of their latest release of SD40-2s. I'm guessing that means the NS one will be in the next batch...

 

Oh well, this project isn't going to be quite as expensive as buying an RTR one.

 

I got one of those cabs from Shapeways, so I've started hacking up a BNSF SD60M shell. I also picked up an NS Dash 9 cab and a set of PRR cab signal equipment boxes, so I have some more projects. I also have to find a match for Maersk blue, since that is the colour of the equipment box on that unit.

 

Adrian

[Adrian Wintle]

Well, there has been some progress:

 

Norfolk Southern SD40-2 3327 (ex-SOU). Basically done.

 

Norfolk Southern SD40 1586 (ex N&W). Still needs numberboards and cab glazing but otherwise done

 

Pennsylvania GP35 2302. Painted from an undecorated shell. Needs the handrails painted and numberboards added. It does have a cab signal equipment box on the walkway beside the short hood (nice 3D part from Shapeways)

 

Southern caboose in progress. Modified from a ConCor bay window caboose. Need to find the out-of-production Microscale decal sheet.

 

Three NS C40-9s, two decalled from unnumbered units and the third (seen previously) painted from an undecorated shell. Need handrail paint and front numberboards (can you tell I don't like painting handrails or painting and decaling numberboards?)

 

And with an SD60 that was also an unnumbered unit

 

The freight house in the background of the first few shots is the Osborn Models wood kit. This is one of the better kits I've built, as it has an internal structure that the walls then attach to.

 

Adrian

Edited September 28, 2014 by Adrian Wintle

[Adrian Wintle]

Just picked up some more inspiration for the SD60E project - Diesel Era V25N5 (Sept/Oct 2014) has 20 pages on it - an article on the rebuild (including descriptions of the other recent rebuild projects), a section of photos of a rebuild in progress, and a set of detail photos of the finished product. There is also a short bit on the Dash 8-40C to Dash 8.5 rebuild program. The issue also has an article on the Santa Fe GP60Ms and the ongoing GP9 series covers Phelps-Dodge and Rock Island.

 

I may have to do one of the GP50 to GP38-3 rebuilds as well since they look strange.

 

Adrian

Edited October 11, 2014 by Adrian Wintle

[roundhouse]

Adrian

 

I iwll have to look out ofr a copy of that.

 

I know that there are a few more alterations I need ot do to my one to get it a bit more accurate.

 

Ian

[Adrian Wintle]

I just knew I shouldn't have looked at the November Railpace - it has photos two 'new' NS locos:

 

The first is the repainted NS 6418, an ex-BN SD60M, complete with low headlights and numberboards

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3963421

 

and the second is the patch job on NS 7255, an ex-UP SD9043MAC, still with the 'We Will Deliver' slogan

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3986291

 

if I don't want to patch out the Union Pacific, I could do 7287

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3998122

 

The scary thing is that I have donor locos for both these projects already...

 

Adrian

Edited November 1, 2014 by Adrian Wintle

[garethashenden]

That's not scary: that's good fortune.

Yes it's much better to have donors for new projects than to have to go hunting for a donor. That can lead to the whole project being abandoned...

[Adrian Wintle]

This weekend was decoder fitting, as well as a visit to a Model Railroad flea market (jumble sale). I found the two Kato sets of Southern Budd coaches (C-1 and C-2, I already had A*)  on a table at $40 a set (a really good price). When the vendor realized I was very interested, he threw in set A and two Kato E8As for the grand total of $100. How could I refuse that? These, and the occasionally available ConCor Budd cars are the only factory-painted cars that actually look like Southern lightweight coaches, even though they aren't the correct prototypes. The widely available ConCor smoothside coaches in Crescent Limited green are complete fiction (the heavyweights lost that colour scheme for Pullman green in the '30s, and all the new lightweights were in natural metal).

 

So the following got decoders this weekend:

LifeLike Southern GP18 (CN-GP) - this is the second generation (split chassis, but not DCC-ready)

Atlas Southern GP9 (CN-GP)

Kato Southern E8A (DN163K0A) x2

Atlas Reading C630 (DN163A0) - this one might donate its chassis to a Shapeways Baldwin Transfer unit, and the shell might end up as a CR patch.

Atlas N&W SD35 (DN163A0)

 

I also picked up a couple of the old Rowa corrugated-side passenger cars - these are C&O prototypes, but they have the right sort of bodyshell to become some more Southern coaches, and I have figured out how to easily convert them to Microtrains trucks.

 

*The Kato sets are actually CB&Q California Zephyr** prototypes, but were done in a few other liveries. Southern sets C-1 and C-2 contain a Baggage Car, a 10-6 Sleeper, and two Coaches (each set has different numbers/names), while set A contains a Baggage-RPO, a Diner, an Observation car (not a dome), and a Slumbercoach.

 

**Edit: they are actually general service/other Zephyr coaches rather than CZ ones. The Kato Silver Streak Zephyr set (correctly) uses these coaches with an E5A.

 

Adrian

Edited September 5, 2015 by Adrian Wintle

[roundhouse]

Adrian - how do you find the TCS split board decoders? Generally I have found them good but have one that occassioanlly ends up with a short in the loco yet cannot find anything out of place .

 

We picked up our next to last NS heritage loco this weekend in Gaugmaster in Sussex, number 1007  leaving just 1009 to finish the set. My other half bought it so its my turn for the last one on our next visit.

 

Not cheap at £100 a go but buying them on line incurs postage and/ or duty if from USA so doesnt work out that much different these days. It sitll requires a decoder but the Digitrax DN1363 K1C's aren't easily to come by as I believe they are soon to be replaced with a newer model.

 

I do keep toying with getting the new Kato turnatable and building a roundhouse to put them all in until the new layout is started!

[DanielB]

I'm a big fan of the TCS split board decoders, as they - by their intended nature - fit in pretty much any split frame loco.

 

The only time I've had a short with one of them was due to my dodgy soldering - one of the motor wires kept pulling loose from the contact. Once I removed the solder, re-tinned both contact and wire and then re-soldered them, no problem at all.

[Adrian Wintle]

I have found them relatively easy to install. I'm not a great fan of TCS decoders, but they do seem to work quite well.. You do have to watch out that you don't pinch the motor wires - that may be your issue. I've installed them in a dozen locos so far.

 

I think the issue with DN163K1Cs is that they fit almost every Kato hood unit, so they tend to be in high demand. I think I still need one for my KCS SD70ACe.

 

1007 and 1009 are not, technically, heritage units, just standard SD70ACes - they are the only two of the Kato units I have. I think I might need to get another one to turn into an SD70M-2 - Trainworx has an etched conversion/detail set in their selection of etched details

http://www.train-worx.com/details.parts.htm

 

Adrian

[roundhouse]

Another Digitrax K1c decoder arrived through the post from Coastal DCC last night.

 

This morning it was fitted into a recently purchased 2 nd hand Kato dash 9. It still had the really long Rapido style couplings. These locos take a different Microtrains to lost modern Kato locos. Luckily a previously purchased 2nd hand loco had the wrong type fitted that were correct for this loco. So these came in rather handy.

 

The loco still requires the cab handrails fitting then detailing work.

Another Digitrax K1c decoder arrived through the post from Coastal DCC last night.

 

This morning it was fitted into a recently purchased 2 nd hand Kato dash 9. It still had the really long Rapido style couplings. These locos take a different Microtrains to lost modern Kato locos. Luckily a previously purchased 2nd hand loco had the wrong type fitted that were correct for this loco. So these came in rather handy.

 

The loco still requires the cab handrails fitting then detailing work.

[Adrian Wintle]

Those Kato Dash 9s are nice beasts. You can get an NS-style cab from Shapeways (the same guy who does the SD60E cab), but I keep looking at the one I have and thinking it is a lot of effort for not much gain. If you are going to run the Dash 9 as a second unit then the headlight position isn't that noticeable. Of the three I have I blanked off the headlight and put a cosmetic high-level on on one and completely ignored the headlights on the other two. At least they have the correct wide handrails, unlike the Fox Valley ES40DC (which also has the wrong headlights) and ES44ACs.

 

If you are goning to run it as a current unit it will need a frame stripe. The first two? batches came without any frame marks, but 8979 appears to have received frame stripes in 2008. It is otherwise still in the as-delivered livery:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3966512

 

As delivered:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=47736

 

Adrian