Best Of The TP56/TP70 Kitbash thread N scale

[u18b]

On the prototype, the letters are the same, but they are located in different spots.

On the front, it is located below the grab.  Tons of room there.




The challenge is the rear.  It is located ABOVE the grab in the middle of details.  So this is the spot where I'll focus.




So it seems measuring the model is the wise course.
And you can see that the real limiting factor is the BLMA uncoupling bar.




So I took two measurements with my calliper and made two mock-ups.  I just measured the gray box.  Letters could be that size or shaved a tiny bit.

Option one- make it to scale. Cool if works, but might not be able to read letters that small.




Option 2- fill the space.   Less to scale, but greater chance of printing letters clearly.




Hope that helps.

[peteski]

Perfect - thanks Ron. I'll get on it in the next couple of days. I'll print them in both sizes.

[u18b]

Made a lot of progress.

At a hobby shop last week in Georgia.  Went through their decals and found some that might work to make a gray walkway.




This is an O scale decal.  Unfortunately, the stripe is not wide enough to cover in one pass.  So I had to piece decal parts together like puzzle pieces.






I trimmed the weights in the cab a bit since they did not fit well after installing the windows.

Then I remembered after looking pictures that I forgot the handle for the horn.  It goes up top on the left.




Added some CN-type fire extinguisher decals. 
Painted the brake handle red.
Also installed the handrails at the steps.




There's another Fire Extinguisher decal up front on the front right door.















Almost done.

Only need a couple of decals.

[peteski]

Yeah, now it is up to me. 
Hey, where did you get those fire extinguisher decals? I was going to surprise you by including them on the decal sheet.

[narrowminded]

The detailing is very nice.  I really like that you have a believable detailed interior.

[u18b]

The detailing is very nice.  I really like that you have a believable detailed interior.

Thanks Narrowminded.

I covered the LED hole in the roof weight and softened the interior light.  Looks better now.
I still have to program it so that the light stays on at all times.

[u18b]

Yeah, now it is up to me. 
Hey, where did you get those fire extinguisher decals? I was going to surprise you by including them on the decal sheet.

Well, I'm sorry now.   I wasn't expecting that.  Thanks.
But I'm sure others will benefit.   

I have two sets of Canadian National diesel decal sets.  Each one has fire extinguisher decals.

But with an exception.   They are all round.

So I fudged.  I trimmed the edges off to make them square.....ish.

You can tell on a very close macro shot, but from farther away, you can't.

And in case anyone is wondering why a CSX guy has CN decals......
When I go to hobby shops, if I see decals at 1.00 or  .50  I buy them.
Also, tiny numbers in number board is always a problem.  So these sheets probably had lots of good numbers that could be used for SBD Sys/CSX number boards!

So when I have a project like this, it's nice to go through about 100 decal sets looking for something I can use.

And while I was at that hobby shop last week in Atlanta, I also picked up Microscale sheet  TF-11, a solid sheet of Guilford gray.  I think it will work better than the NYC lightning stripe (which is a little light).  So that means I don't have to spray paint a gray box- even though that was an excellent idea.

[up1950s]

Ron , Dcutting , Randy and all others have done such a thorough job that I can't see a manufacture passing up on all R&D handed to them .

I can envision a C-C  two motor center cab but that would require trucks that would be allowed to swivel just a bit .

[dcutting]

Ron , Dcutting , Randy and all others have done such a thorough job that I can't see a manufacture passing up on all R&D handed to them .

I can envision a C-C  two motor center cab but that would require trucks that would be allowed to swivel just a bit .

Richie,

Thanks for the kind comments. I doubt, however that any major manufacturer is going to run with this though. There's just too few units out in the wild to make anything profitable. That being said, I am currently hatching plans that I aim to reveal this weekend, if nothing falls through, that would make small critters like this as well as larger stuff much easier to produce. More to come.

David

[Mark5]

1) This is an amazing execution of a model of a weird prototype!
2) I read back several pages and saw mentions of diodes, etc. Any word on how this thing runs or is expected to run?
3) Even if it was a jack rabbit (and if I modeled "modern" as in 2017) I would still be tempted to get one to place on a siding or in a consist (non-powered) in route to be delivered.

Best of RW material.

Mark

[Philip H]

Best of RW material.

Mark

Concur.  Like totally.

[u18b]

Ron , Dcutting , Randy and all others have done such a thorough job that I can't see a manufacture passing up on all R&D handed to them .

I can envision a C-C  two motor center cab but that would require trucks that would be allowed to swivel just a bit .

Ritchie,

Thanks also for your comments.

However, if you mean a typical two-truck loco that has a motor embedded in each truck..... a few thoughts come to my mind.

1.  There are already many examples.  More in larger scales, but some even in N.

2.  The end results are not all that great.  Cases in point-  brass Centipede and the brass EP-2.

It is one of those things that sounds good, but does not pan out as well in real life.

It only works well when BOTH motors and trucks run exactly alike.  If there are any differences in motors, gears, friction levels, etc between the two, then they will not be pulling at the same speed.

Think of it this way.  Which runs better?  One Kato F40PH or 2 of them MUed together?

If they run exactly the same speed, the two are OK.  But usually, they are not exact.
And when that happens, noise increases and efficiency goes down.

So, for example, I showed that a brass Centipede runs FAR far better when ONE motor is installed.

At least that's been my experience.

[u18b]

1) This is an amazing execution of a model of a weird prototype!
2) I read back several pages and saw mentions of diodes, etc. Any word on how this thing runs or is expected to run?
3) Even if it was a jack rabbit (and if I modeled "modern" as in 2017) I would still be tempted to get one to place on a siding or in a consist (non-powered) in route to be delivered.

Best of RW material.

Mark

Mark (and Philip).    Thanks.

Mark.  I never tried the diodes.  I definitely see their value in running analog.

But in spite of the theory that we bandied about, I have seen no actual problems with mine running under a decoder.

My plan was just to run it until it burns out- if ever- and then worry about it.

Right now, mine runs really fabulously.

It is smooth.
VERY quiet.
And as long as I don't load it up to the absolute max (just under wheels slipping- which is about 9 cars for me) and then run it full throttle continuously..... mine never gets hot.

It only got warm when maxxed out.

So far, I'm not seeing a problem.
But I have extra motors, and if one burns out, then I'll go with the zener diodes.

[peteski]

Best of RW material.

Mark

Another vote to make this a "best of" thread. Also Ron's other threads (such as the Milwaukee EP-2) also deserve that honor.  I"m really surprised that this hasn't happened yet.

[randgust]

Really, as critters go - this is a 'big one'.   You're looking at something that's about the same size as the Atlas/Bachmann Plymouth MDT, only much, much better execution.    It looks small, but it's really as tall as an SW1500 and has about the same cab dimensions.

I got to tinker and run with mine a lot while I was at the Altoona show and discovered that performance was definitely impacted by wheel gauge and pickup wiper settings.   It's a little fussier than I'd like.  When it's good, it's very, very good in the slow speed and tractive effort department, but I'll be the first to say that in the decision to go with a direct-drive motor with the centered Kato gearbox, vs. a gearhead motor and an offset gearbox of the Roco design, it's not a slam-dunk here.  I can definitely get creeping speed and can pull quite well, but the thing needs a cab full of weight to really do it justice.  I think Ron's cab is impressive, particularly that he got all the weight in it he did anyway.

Until I'm happy (happier?) with consistent operation I'm not ready to charge into all the final detail work.

Oh, and my two cents on frames - have you considered doing them as hybrid materials?   I've had great success in that - taking a resin cast part and pouring Type 160 metal into it to add weight.  If I had any extra acetal material I'd give it a go.   I thought for sure the heat would distort resin, but it actually didn't, particularly if held in a jig during cooling.   I made hybrid fuel tanks, and I also pour into Climax roofs now.   That's one other way you could do this - a frame with pockets or hollow portions with weights added into it.   You still have to deal with electrical pickup issues though as a metal split-frame can pick up off split axles, at least somewhat.