Best Of SP&S 4-6-2 #626 Project

[wazzou]

But...how does it run?    

Sublime modeling effort Max.

[mmagliaro]

I still haven't ever used those rivets, but how did the decal flim work over the wood?

Excellent question... The short answer is "so so".   They kind of stick, but they won't really stay put for beans until you put
Solvaset over them.  Then they melt and settle into the grain of the wood, so they hold fairly well.  I say fairly.  They stop
lifting and trying to move around, but they will still come off if you scratch over them.  Once I get a coat of paint over them, I'm sure they will be fine.   I could brush over them with a little ACC or something, but I don't want to alter how the paint will look too much,
and I'm afraid that will cause a "smooth" spot wherever the ACC gets on the wood around the edges of the rivet decals.

On metal, they are also tricky.  Once you Solvaset them, they hold pretty well.  But I do have one or two that I need to replace (they got plucked off during all the handling and building)

[mmagliaro]

But...how does it run?    

Sublime modeling effort Max.

I know you're just kidding, but... here's the "shakedown run" video from a couple of months ago.
(wow.... it looks so bare in the video!)

And THANK YOU! 

[superturbine]

Glade I don't model SP&S....     




I'd just give up!!
Stay away from my UP!

Really nice Maximus!

Jason

[mmagliaro]

Glade I don't model SP&S....     




I'd just give up!!
Stay away from my UP!

Really nice Maximus!

Jason

Me too... or you would probably outdo me like you did on the T1. 
(and thank you, honestly, Jason).

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Reading through this thread, all I can say is f***. Max, you do incredible work.

[PRRATSF]

absolutely amazing Craftsmanship.

Sam

[Cajonpassfan]

Max, you're one of a kind, absolutely stunning work.
And yeah,  I can see that covering all that in paint would be bittersweet...
Regards, Otto K.

[peteski]

Max, you're one of a kind, absolutely stunning work.
And yeah,  I can see that covering all that in paint would be bittersweet...
Regards, Otto K.

At least Max has lots of close-up photos showing what the model looked like before it was painted. 

[robert3985]

I will bet that when Max paints it and weathers it, and adds those other little extras like cab curtains...it's going to blow all of us away again.  I wouldn't have any regrets covering up the "raw materials" (I don't when I'm doing a superdetailing project), as properly applied paint and weathering enhances the model and detracts not one iota from it.

However, I always take photos too...and use them for instruction and when entering contests.  It's always nice to see what went into the model, but in the end...Max is going to astound us again...

[sizemore]

PAINT IT...
PAINT IT...


The S.

Ps. This is giving me motivation to get back in ACME Labs and work on the next Skunkwerks project, thanks!

[dnhouston]

Max,
Amazing work.  I've shown my wife and co-workers your progress.  Each time having to explain just how small the real model is compared to the close up photos.  You've got yourself a real masterpiece with this one.  Enjoy!

[mmagliaro]

Max,
Amazing work.  I've shown my wife and co-workers your progress.  Each time having to explain just how small the real model is compared to the close up photos.  You've got yourself a real masterpiece with this one.  Enjoy!

Thanks!   I need to take a photo of this thing next to a dime or something, just to make that clear.  I did think about that again
when I looked at some of the extreme close-up shots I put up of the latest tender work.  I thought, "Wow, in the photo,
that tender looks HUGE".

And to everyone, thank you so very much, a thousand times.   It has been a grueling long project, and I'm not sure
I would stick with it and document it so heavily without all of your encouragement.

I test-ran it last night, just to make sure I hadn't bungled anything mechanically with it while adding all these details, so
I would be sure it was in good operating condition before painting.   It still runs very fine, and VERY quiet.  I was a little worried
about the tender truck safety chains buggering it up around curves, but they are no problem.   

I did the undercarriage brush painting and the white tire striping on the wheels last night.   Maybe I can get to the airbrush this evening for the boiler and tender.   I've decided to go 50/50 Floquil Weathered Black/Engine Black, as opposed to 67/33
like I did on the Atlantic.  I want this engine to look a little blacker, cleaner, and more spiffied up than the Atlantic.
This 4-6-2 was a recent aquisition for the SP&S in the mid 1940s, and they did some rebuilding and a fresh paint job on it
in 1947, so I think it should still look "pretty" in 1952, which is my approximate era (just a year before they scrapped it)

[peteski]

Yes Max, taking a photo with a known-size object for reference works really well.  But then someone will accuse you of using a giant replica of a coin! 

[Lemosteam]

Max, I've been very busy at work for some time, and to see it finally ready for paint!  Wish I'd carried through with as much detailing on some of mine, but then again I'd still be working on them.

This locomotive is simply incredible.

When does the paint shop go to work?

Otto, you are right, it is bittersweet.  Sometimes I look at the pre-paint pics and wish I hadn't painted at all.