Spitfire2865

Well professionally Im an engineer technician, trained as an engineer. Modelling wise, Im a very gifted CAD drafter and designer. They kinda go hand in hand. While I personally model in 13.5mm scale, I have experience in 4mm OO scale and an currently in the process of designing a brass etch to be made. Typically kitbuilt and scratchbuilt locomotives use brass etches for major components such as the chassis, most the entire thing. As I am soon to commission an etch (in .55mm brass, which while a little thick for 4mm scale, would make a good strong chassis) for my own purposes and as your offer for chassis help came at a great time, I still have time to add additional parts to my etch sheet design. If you wanted to have an etched brass chassis for your model, I would be willing to add it to my soon to be made sheet and send it off to you at no cost but postage within the US, on account of me being in NY and you in SC.

Ive got them from a British importer in New York City. Good stuff those are.

Are you capable of soldering? Most scratchbuilders would naturally say go with an etched chassis if you can, though making it rigid requires quite a bit of effort during construction. If you would like to try it, I am soon to commission an etch for a Gauge 3 loco and I could always fit some 4mm chassis parts into it while in the design stage. All Id ask monetarily is to cover postage to you, if you want. Though I admit Im not too good at chassis design for models. My G3 designs rely on hornblocks to correct my sloppy soldering skills.

Would it be impractical to switch to battery RC? You dont quote scale so I cant say myself.

Dont feel too bad about your turning practices. I do it too, but with quite more expensive equipment!

Does anyone actually refer to it as "World Wide Web" anymore? I havent heard it referred to as such since the very early 2000s. Ive never heard it pronounced "Oh-led" over here.

But hey, its both Unpainted and already Green! When did the kitmakers start casting precoloured whitemetal?

Did you perhaps swap the frog feeds?

Been working on the cab design. Quick mockup to test fit with the loco. And all the parts. All parts are intended to be 1mm lasercut wood in 3 layers to beef up the structure and allow for windows and trim mouldings. Does anyone know someone who would be able to lasercut 1mm wood sheet?

Something to be aware of if using Shapeways for brass castings, they have a minimum cost of $14 US, so regardless of how small the part is itll always be at that minimum. You are however able to sprue parts together to try to get a better cost savings.

Well thats not always an option, as nice as it would be. Especially for us working in larger scales where a brass casting would cost quite a bit. Ive actually just bought some Alclad brass paint to test, as Ive read good things, though apparently fiddly.

Well a quick update as I hadnt the time last night to post it. Taken a break from the loco to work on the tender. I expect most of it to be made up of lasercut steel. But Ive got the bogies mostly finished Still have to figure out the springing arrangement on the trucks. Isnt particularly clear on the plans.

But the Bachmann G "scale" model suffers OO-itis. They are actually 1:22.5 running on 45mm track. Its actually bigger than the original TV models.

I have noted the age of the poster prior to my comment. No reason not to dream big however. Im not much older than the OP and I was doing similar to him at 17. Ive since quickly spiraled into the largest scenic modelling scale and its honestly a lot easier than working in 4mm scale. While he may still want to go through with the Bachmann modification, and power to him if he does, I was simply offering an alternative as from his post it sounds like what he really would want is a screen accurate model. In my opinion, nothing would scream screen accurate more than a G1 loco. But if the Bachmann model is already owned (not actually mentioned in the post), then I could see the desire to go through with it as originally planned.

Lego has just this year introduced the bluetooth system. And 2 new train sets for it. From looking at initial reactions, its not a great successor. Still has piss poor range, even more limited expand-ability, and a rather weak battery life, probably on account of the bluetooth. Not to mention due to connector changes, its useless with the recent PF elements. At least when PF was introduced, they had an adaptor cable from PF to 9V plugs so you could control 9V items with PF. I cant remember what name they gave the system. Been out of the Lego loop for quite a few years now due to other modelling interests taking over.

Honestly, I think your mistake is trying to make a OO model of Thomas. If this is for an independent project, why not try to go whole hog and build a Gauge 1 loco in the same way the original was. Im sure you could find reference to what parts they used. The mechanisms were Marklin, and I believe the bodys were scratched from plastic. Wouldnt be the hardest thing in the world, though sourcing a 30 year old Marklin chassis may be difficult.

Rather surprised so many missed that considering the photos posted in the OP.

While proper draftsmen will always recommend drawing 1:1, model building requires a lot more considerations. As you probably hear from any kitmaker asked to resize etches to a different scale, it often requires an entire redesign due to tolerances changing. Same with 3D CAD design, what may work in one scale wont in another. So Id say definitely draw your finished parts to scale, not 1:1. That way any minimums are observed throughout the design.

Ive got the motion all finished. Its very satisfying playing with it in the simulation. Ive started on the engine truck and have hit a bit of a mystery View is of the right side with forward to the right. I have no assembly drawings that show the forked part and the bar hanging down towards the front. The only reference I have of it going like that is a side view line drawing which obscures most of the detail and intuition based on hole patterns and slot tolerances. Ive yet to model a brace that would cross directly between the mystery parts. So how are they supposed to link? I can see if they were sprung together it would act as a self centering device, bringing the bogie back to face forward and stay neutral to the frame when on straight track. Does anyone know the anatomy of swing link bogies and if Ive somehow missed a crucial drawing. Im pretty sure I havent as Ive searched through the entire thing.

Its been a bit, but kinetic and static friction is from mass and material coefficients. Thus as weight increases, so too does the friction between wheel and rail. You do gain increased traction and momentum once rolling, but it takes more energy to get going and longer to stop. So his math is entirely backwards. However his overall point is still valid. The extra weight also would be near negligible. As battery banks can be put under floors and in otherwise wasted spaces, you can increase the range of your trains without requiring the infrastructure to continuously support it.

Well Id assume the "heating" is intended to ensure all bacteria and other life is killed off, as well as dry the dirt to avoid mold growing.

Quick progress. Although the loco will be battery RC, Im adding functional valve gear which will be controllable from the cab because the valve gear is such a dominant part of exposed chassis. Still have to start on the engine truck at some point. Im pretty sure this loco uses a swing link bogie but I could be wrong.

A bit of a shame. They just redid the interiors and I rather like the Amfleet 1s. Would be interesting to buy one. I can think of several things I would do to make it more useful as a private car.

CA glue is a great alternative to bandages for small to medium cuts. Also always triple check your fingers arent in the path of the blade. My tips kinda go hand in hand.

I would think archaic graffiti would be a little less crude. Looks more like a child got bored.