Steam Loco Headlights

[mike_lawyer]

I am working on some loco kits right now (one is a GHQ L-1 Mikado), and I am trying to figure out the best method for creating a headlight and lens.  I know some have used a fiber-optic lens, others have used nano-LEDs.  I have used nano-LEDs before, but I could never get the light to kind of "diffuse", if you will, to look like a real head lamp.

Does anyone recommend a particular method?  Thanks so much for your help.

[RBrodzinsky]

I added a front headlamp for someone where I was putting a LokSound into his GHQ L-1 Mike.  I used an 0402 warm white LED, then filled the lamp with Bondic.  I then used diluted Matte ModgePodge, with a little bit of off-white (Vanilla, actually) craft acrylic mixed in, and thinly painted the top of the Bondic bead with the mixture.  Created a nice transparent lens effect. (sorry, cannot find the photo, was a couple years ago)

[peteski]

I prefer small LED mounted directly in the headlight housing.  Real headlights have the small bulb visible and not diffused light. They do have a parabolic mirror which focuses the light, but when the model headlight is on, it is so bright that to me it looks just fine. If it is a large diameter headlight and small LED in the middle, if the inside of the headlight is either silver or painted white, that will reflect the light towards the front and it will look like a 1:1 headlight.

This is a greatly magnified view of such headlight. Warm white SMD 0402 LED slightly tinted with some Tamiya clear amber paint to make it even "warmer". I didn't bother adding a clear "glass" cover. It is so small when viewed in person that the lack of the glass is not noticeable (especially when the light is on).


If you want to diffuse the light then just sand the plastic lens with some 400 or 600 grit sandpaper, and glue it on the front of the  headlight.

[robert3985]

I am working on some loco kits right now (one is a GHQ L-1 Mikado), and I am trying to figure out the best method for creating a headlight and lens.  I know some have used a fiber-optic lens, others have used nano-LEDs.  I have used nano-LEDs before, but I could never get the light to kind of "diffuse", if you will, to look like a real head lamp.

Does anyone recommend a particular method?  Thanks so much for your help.

First, you need to know what a steam locomotive headlamp lens, reflector and bulb looks like.  It may be different for different roads and different engines.

Here's what I did for Union Pacific steam engines.

First, I found historical photos (mostly in black and white) of the front of various U.P. steam engines.

Photo (1) - Headlamp & Lens on U.P. 0-6-0 switcher working the Ogden Yard:


Photo (2) - Headlamp & Lens on U.P. 2256 at Council Bluffs 1956:


Photo (3) - Headlamp & Lens on U.P. FEF-2 830:


Photo (4) - Headlamp & Lens on U.P. TTT "Sports Model" 4-8-2 (thanks Otto!) 7019 at Cajon Pass:


Photo (5) - Headlamp on U.P. Big Boy 4014 while stopped in Salt Lake City en route to being restored in Cheyenne:


And lastly...

Photo (6) - Headlamp & Lens on U.P. FEF-3 844 at Ogden:


What begins to be clear on U.P. steam engines, is that the bulb sticks out quite a bit into the reflector, so locating your light source at the very back of the housing isn't going to look prototypical.  Also, note the bright reflective quality of the lamp reflector, which is extremely evident on U.P. steamers, even when the lens is very dirty and the light is turned off.  Also, U.P. steam headlights are universally not clear but quite yellowish, or amber.

What I did was cut a piece of .015" dia. fiber-optic square on one end, and melted it so that it formed a small, clear blob on that end...and then measured diameter of the blob.  Then I bought MV headlight lenses, which are pretty yellowish, for my brass U.P. steamers I was "improving", drilled an appropriately sized hole (the same diameter as the blob I'd created by melting the end of the .015" dia fiber-optic rod) into the back of the aluminum reflector after creating a dimple in its center with a center punch and light jeweler's hammer.  Then, I glued the fiber-optic into the hole in the back of the MV lens with clear 5 min. Epoxy, and ran that end to my light source, which was a tiny cylindrical incandescent light so its color temperature was just right.  An LED will work fine too, but a warm one, not a cool bluish one.

What this does is create a mirror-finish reflector, which can be easily seen when the light is off, or dim...and with the hole drilled into the clear plastic of the MV lens and the fiber-optic glued into it acting as a bulb, when it's on, it looks very realistic.

Here are some photos of finished models using this technique...

Photo (7) - Brass Big Boy with its headlight off:


Photo (8 ) - Brass U.P.-ized USRA Light MacArthur with its headlight off (sorry about the goober on the side of the headlight):


Photo (9) - Brass S.P. GS-2 at Echo Curve.  Sorry, the turned on headlight overpowers the MV reflector in photos...looks more realistic when seen, as opposed to being photographed:


I'll be using this technique on my improved Athearn Big Boys and Challengers as well as my Kato FEF-3's, but with proper color temperature LED's.

Anyway, that's the way I do it, and I'm happy with the results.



Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore