I have collected a bunch of N scale stuff over the years, I initially set out to build a N scale layout when I was in High School, and then looked into HOn30 when I couldn’t make HOn3 work in the places I lived and eventually started experimenting with TTn3.
So here in the new year, with my HOn3 mini layout in development I need to build some rolling stock to test tolerances and I realized I’ll need some small HOn3 Motive Power. I do have a Joe Works Rio Grande Mini Land C-16that has yet to be built, I want to put a better motor in it and to head of operational issues it will be built as a Dead Rail Locomotive, and I didn’t want to build it to take it apart and retrofit later.
So in a fit of manic excitement I decided to use what I already had laying around, which was a N scale Bachman 4-6-0 which has not had a use for a while. It his is good for a number of reasons 1) gives me some heavier power to pull passenger trains 2) uses old stock I wasn’t using before 3) gives me less excuses to get side tracked on some N scale turn of century western themed branch/shortline 4) time to practice some mechanical and fabrication skills.
This compares the N scale Bachman loco to the Joe Works loco. The drivers are slightly taller and the wheel base about 3/8” longer. I’m making a exact copy of the cab to Match the C-16 and will play with proportions of the boiler to make it look good. All I be using is the tender and the mechanism.
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Because this needs to be DC to work I have to use the tender stock to get proper electrical pickup. I modified the trucks by pulling the wheels out to HOn3 gauge on the half axle, filling the nubs (call it a journal mebbe?) on the pickups down creating a hole all the way through, thinning down the inside of the truck side frame a little and then bending the pickups out to accommodate the wider gauge. This resulted in free rolling trucks but was done by feel.
Re gauging the pilot was as simple as pulling the wheels out to gauge after disassembly. I tried to pull the drivers out while still attached to the locomotive, and while I was successful in getting the gauge correct the wheels got out of quarter, which was good because I discovered I was going to have a contact issue as now the wheels sets were to wide to engage on the split frame reliably. The mechanism below is a stock one. The brass piece may be used to wide the frame.. I’m trying to avoid taking the mechanism apart but we’ll see.
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That’s where we are at for now. It’s not narrow gauge yet, but we are on track to run on the broad gauge
