Best Of Spokane, Portland and Seattle (SP&S) 0-6-0 Project

[Cajonpassfan]

I just read the page on the trucks.

I have nothing I can say, except that I need to find an hour very soon to sit back and read the thread from post one.

Unbelievable.

Craig.

Ditto here Max, just wow!
Otto

[Sokramiketes]

Wow, Max, nice work.

On the wheel sets, is it just hard to tell in the photos, or is the wheel tread not tapered?  If the tread was cut straight, that might have been affecting your pickup issue as well.

[svedblen]

this blows my mind...very impressive

Hear, hear!

[strummer]

Although this term has been used numerous times in this thread, all I can say (again!) is "wow'...

There was been, in the history of model building, some true craftsmen; you are one of those rare individuals Max.

Mark in Oregon

[Ed Kapuscinski]

[mmagliaro]

Okay okay... Mother of God ???   LOL!

First, thank you for such nice compliments!   

And to Sokramiketes' question about the wheel tread taper, all I can say is "Taper?  What taper? "  LOL!
Honestly, I make the cutting tool by eye, and cut the wheels so that they just look good to me.  As long
as they aren't all wonky and they roll straight, I don't have any illusions of trying to make them conform
to a proper taper.  I think they are most likely just flat, with no taper.

As to whether that had anything to do with my pickup problems, remember, I had the same problems even with Kato
wheelsets in my trucks, and even with Kato trucks themselves.  I eliminated my trucks and wheels
as the source of the problem.

[up1950s]

Your Grandfather was a diamond setter ..... so that's the roots that gives you your dogged determination for exactness of fit and finish . Mine must have been an Irish Setter , always looks like I need a haircut , laid back , over weight , sad sack look , and rusty at whatever I do .

[mmagliaro]

Your Grandfather was a diamond setter ..... so that's the roots that gives you your dogged determination for exactness of fit and finish . Mine must have been an Irish Setter , always looks like I need a haircut , laid back , over weight , sad sack look , and rusty at whatever I do .

Ya made me laugh, guy!

In all seriousness, while my grandfather was a talented guy who made beautiful jewelry pieces,
if I owe anyone for inheriting any talent, it would be my father.  He's now an 86 year old retired civil engineer. 
We did a lot of elaborate school projects together, and he helped us build our basement HO layouts as kids.

He's the one who taught me how to use tools and how to fix things. 

Well, let me rephrase that. 
He can fix anything, and he spent a lot of time with us kids, and he certainly taught me a lot.
But I'll never match his natural engineering and repair skill.

[glakedylan]

this thread just continues to get more and more amazing with each post
your skillfulness, Max, and ability to create these micro-parts is just awesome
what wonderful work!


sincerely
Gary

[dnhouston]

Archbar trucks from scratch!  Dang Max, you continue to raise an already high bar in scratch building.

[Angus Shops]

I didn't know it was possible to do such things! There are things I think about and try, and they work. Then there are things I think about and try that don't work. Then there are the things that I never even think about...

Geoff

[mmagliaro]

Hello again everyone!

Today, we move to a selection of new pieces on the 0-6-0, all related to the nose.  These may not seem to be related pieces, but they are in the following sense.  I still have to focus on making pieces that have to fit, be removable, and have to provide some mechanical or electrical function.  Those types of things have to get done first before I can focus on cosmetic parts.

So this installment covers:

1. cylinder saddle
2. cylinders
3. working headlight (and the headlight casing itself that sits atop the boiler) - remember, this has to all be
from scratch as much as possible, so I do not want to use any commercial parts unless I cannot possible avoid it.
4. pilot beam and front coupler


1. The Saddle

First, I scaled, studied, annotated the prototype drawings to make a pattern for the saddle.










Now, to start making the saddle.
























2. The Cylinders













There is a very definite reason for making the saddle and the cylinder supports out of styrene.  Remember, this is a brass split-frame engine.  The driver rods will push in and out of the cylinders, and I was afraid that I would end up with shorts from the drivers, through the rods and cylinders.  As it turns out, the cylinders are full of epoxy and would have insulated the rods just fine.  But I didn't know I was going to make the cylinders that way when I built the saddle.   I say all this just to give you some insight into the way this project is evolving. 














3. Headlight









































4. Pilot Beam

This is just the functional part of the beam - meaning it has to fit in place on the frame and support the coupler. 
I will add the metal brackets that drop down from it and the pilot steps and coupler lift lever details much later
in the project.
















That's all for today, folks.  And as always, thank you most sincerely for your encouragement, constructive comments, and just for following along!

[djconway]

Amazing work - as always!

[Cajonpassfan]

 
Otto

[Lemosteam]

Time to pack up the tools and go home. Max has ended the dream by creating one!

Good night everybody!