Weekend Update 3/1/15

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Fixed the issues with the windows. Looks much better. Time for mold making!

Are you talking about the one by the door? It still looks a little jagged in the upper left corner.

[skytop35]

Luckily I also noticed that Ed. I cleaned it up after taking the photo. Also noticed I originally posted the same photo twice. I fixed that as well.

Rod, still in a cast but almost no pain now. Also I'm able to get around much better with the crutches and even attended a local train show last weekend. Of course I was pretty much confined to a chair most of the time. I did manage to run an engine / caboose up and down the yard tracks to amuse myself and demonstrate Alco sound to the crowd. Three more weeks with the cast though.

[pnolan48]

A mockup of the 433' Contra Costa car ferry in Z scale. It's huge! Sprite can for reference. It's 116' wide. Basically the size of a baby aircraft carrier in WWII. Perhaps the largest wooden hulled ship ever made, at least by weight.

[delamaize]

Late to the show, as usual, but after the Monroe show, I got inspired, and started work on this:

Taking guesses, although, I think you guys will get it pretty easily. and eventually I will start a build thread over in the projects board.

[peteski]

Late to the show, as usual, but after the Monroe show, I got inspired, and started work on this:

Taking guesses, although, I think you guys will get it pretty easily. and eventually I will start a build thread over in the projects board.

Does it have something to do with logging railroads?  And a name starting with "S" and ending with a "y"?

[garethashenden]

Does it have something to do with logging railroads?  And a name starting with "S" and ending with a "y"?

I think it looks more like a B-B-B diesel. 

[delamaize]

Does it have something to do with logging railroads?  And a name starting with "S" and ending with a "y"?

Nope, close though.

I think it looks more like a B-B-B diesel. 

DIESEL?!?!

[randgust]

Nope, you're all wrong.   That's a Class C Climax.

You've got two things going on there that are way cool and perhaps groundbreaking.....

1)  Looks like the Bachmann 44-tonner motor with DUAL SHAFTS going in there so you've got both trucks powered.   Pretty much the same deal as I did with powering the jackshaft of a worm just in front of the motor.    I've got one of those Bachmann motors (no longer available on their website) and it's the exact same as the Kato, just dual shafts.   

2)  Extending the driveshaft THROUGH the center truck with a longer or spliced shaft.  Nice.   Well done.

You might want to look at making that rear shaft to the trailing water tank a slip joint affair, kind of like a Shay universal shaft.  Getting enough 'slop' in the Kato shafts and trucks is a challenge so they don't bind on curves, as the universal is not at the centerline of the truck and it swings over and lengthens on curves.

If you need resin Climax truck sideframes just contact me through the randgust.com web page information.   

I still think there are less than five people that have copied my drive system for the Climax, but you might be the first to get all three trucks powered this way.    That's been my headache with the Heisler concept as well, trying to get both trucks properly powered, inside-frame trucks, outside rods, and a dummy rotating crankshaft.   I 'thought' I was going to use Atlas Shay parts, until I was informed that the next run will have 'significant mechanism changes' and the parts won't be interchangeable with the first run.   So  So much for a kit concept if you're designing off first-run parts.  I'm waiting like everybody else to see what they have done.

I see your Climax in the background, too.    Mine is now...hmmm..... like six years old and its still working just fine.   But I have taken my Kato-motored Class A locomotives and replaced them all with gizmoszone gearheads to get the speed down; the Climax B is the only one left with a Faulhaber in it now.

[pnolan48]

Well, I'm going nowhere today. After picking up the day nurse and bringing the night nurse home, my tracks are still the only ones on our normally bustling street. I'm surprised I even made tracks on the ice. So, cut and glue the 30 braces on the overhanging part of the hull, precisely in order, as they diminish in length. Now repeat three times. This is one expensive boat! But this sort of building would be nearly impossible without a computer.



The bow is misfit because I trimmed it by hand. This happens on a first build when I don't interpret the plans correctly. So the customer actually gets the second (or third) build.

The more I get into this ferry, the more I admire it. First designed in 1871 (the Solano) and improved in 1916 (Contra Costa), it might have taught a lot of lessons to those converting a collier into an aircraft carrier.

You could play ice hockey on the streets of Decatur AL right now--if you could find any skates. I joke--Huntsville has a minor league team, so there must be a rink over there.

[randgust]

I remembered seeing a magnificent HO model of a car ferry in the Western Railway Museum - Rio Vista, I think....

http://www.cable-car-guy.com/ferry/images/solano_thomas_rubarth_001.jpg

And then found this page... yeah, that's just a fascinating ship/ferry/boat/floating railroad yard!

http://cprr.org/Museum/Solano/

[pnolan48]

Those were my sources, among others. I never realized no one else (than Rubarth) had attempted this.

[delamaize]

Nope, you're all wrong.   That's a Class C Climax.

Bingo! 

You've got two things going on there that are way cool and perhaps groundbreaking.....

1)  Looks like the Bachmann 44-tonner motor with DUAL SHAFTS going in there so you've got both trucks powered.   Pretty much the same deal as I did with powering the jackshaft of a worm just in front of the motor.    I've got one of those Bachmann motors (no longer available on their website) and it's the exact same as the Kato, just dual shafts.

Actually, it's a Kato Shorty B motor, that I filed the cap off the brush end of the motor, removed a metal cap that is also in there, but left enough material to keep the bearing in place, then I filed down the bearing on the can end to give me a little more shaft to bite onto. I disassembled the motor, and was able to slide the shaft on the armature to even the spacing front to rear. I did 5 motors like this total, so I would have a few extra, but I probably destroyed 4 armatures in the process. My Class B has one of these modified Shorty B cans in it, that was the only way I was able to get both trucks powered. I know mine is at least 5 years old now, and it's still running strong, including quite a few N-trak shows.

I didn't think about using the Bachmann motors, I will have to pull one of mine apart, and take measurements, that would be a nice option for future builds.

2)  Extending the driveshaft THROUGH the center truck with a longer or spliced shaft.  Nice.   Well done.

That is a spliced shaft, Brass Square tube, with the Shorty B ends attached. The Center truck worm shaft was shifted to leave an even amount of shaft on both sides, leaving enough for the U joints to bite onto. I had to sacrifice my old Class C prototypes for this build, and the splice shafts were built for those prototypes. It was bitter sweet disassembling those prototypes, but after finishing the Class B, I was never happy with the Class C's, and they sat in a box. I had even removed the decoders and lights over time. 

You might want to look at making that rear shaft to the trailing water tank a slip joint affair, kind of like a Shay universal shaft.  Getting enough 'slop' in the Kato shafts and trucks is a challenge so they don't bind on curves, as the universal is not at the centerline of the truck and it swings over and lengthens on curves.

Good idea! I had not thought about that. I will have to start messing with it. A slide joint would probably solve some of the problems I had with the old Class C prototypes...

I wonder of the Atlas Shay shafts would handle the torque to run the rear truck? I'm planning to run 4 traction tires, and a lot of weight in the tender.

If you need resin Climax truck sideframes just contact me through the randgust.com web page information.   

I'll have to E-mail you, I want to do the later style cast trucks, I'm using S/N 1670 as a rough reference. But if you have the right early style trucks, I may just buy those from you. I'll probably order 4 extra, so I can convert the Class B also, given the side frames on it are just bachmann archbar sideframes flipped upside down.

I still think there are less than five people that have copied my drive system for the Climax, but you might be the first to get all three trucks powered this way.    That's been my headache with the Heisler concept as well, trying to get both trucks properly powered, inside-frame trucks, outside rods, and a dummy rotating crankshaft.   I 'thought' I was going to use Atlas Shay parts, until I was informed that the next run will have 'significant mechanism changes' and the parts won't be interchangeable with the first run.   So  So much for a kit concept if you're designing off first-run parts.  I'm waiting like everybody else to see what they have done.

your design was the inspiration for my designs, and only change I really made, besides using different parts for the jackshaft drive, was powering both trucks. Although it was an exercise of patients, and profanity to get the U joint/drive shaft set shrunk down small enough to allow the rear truck to pivot.

I have a Heisler I have been tinkering with over time also, it looks pretty good, and I was able to get a drive shaft to spin under it, and I was able to make some outside frame trucks, but the pickup is horrible, the power is weak, and it's temperamental at best. I have far too much work into it to scrap it, but I'm frustrated with it, so It will probably end up as a scenery item eventually.

I see your Climax in the background, too.    Mine is now...hmmm..... like six years old and its still working just fine.   But I have taken my Kato-motored Class A locomotives and replaced them all with gizmoszone gearheads to get the speed down; the Climax B is the only one left with a Faulhaber in it now.

I had the Class B on the workbench as a reference, the Class C is going to be slightly bigger than the class B. I didn't notice it was in the shot until after I posted the shot, I thought it would be a nice hint, so I left it in the shot.

I am still running the shorty B motor in mine, it has ran fine for at least 5 years, which makes your older than 6 years. I know mine was built while I was in Germany, and finished sometime between 2010 and 2011. Mine has survived several N-trak events now, and countless hours at home. when the motor dies, I'll look into getting a better motor, if one is not available, I have another shorty B motor that I have shifted the shaft on, waiting to be called up to replace the original one.

It's going to be a long project. Especially considering that a lot has changed since I started the last project. In Germany, I had a craft store like you wouldn't believe, they had literally everything I needed to build about any locomotive. Back here in the States, at least in the Olympia area, I am having a hard time finding brass sheet and tube. The shops I use to use have all closed also, so that puts a lot of my resources online now. I will get it done, just going to take time.

[BCR751]

You could play ice hockey on the streets of Decatur AL right now--if you could find any skates. I joke--Huntsville has a minor league team, so there must be a rink over there.

UofA Huntsville has a hockey team as well.  It's their first year ( I think) in the WCHA.  They played my alma mater (Michigan Tech) earlier this year.  Got waxed pretty badly but hey, you have to start somewhere

Great job on the boat, by the way.

Doug

[pnolan48]

I joke. I believe the Von Braun Center has an ice rink, as ice shows come through here every one in a while, as well as UofA Huntsville. I'm sure glad I didn't try heading north on I-65 toward Ohio--folks were stranded overnight (and longer). We considered going through Chattanooga--I-75 was just as bad. So I sit. I don't have the powerful Black Cat cutter to cut the 204 little windows on each outer wall. I could cut things 10X with the Silhouette Cameo and still not cut through. Maybe I'll move on to the Erie-Lackawanna car float that Paul Graf asked for, although I don't have much info from the historical society.