Best Of New Brass EP-2 assembly & Mod clinic

[u18b]

Here is a bigger more direct shot.

http://www.brasstrains.com/images/products/033350/IMG_0040.jpg

Yes, that's exactly what I thought.

Thanks.

[peteski]

Maybe this link will help out: http://www.brasstrains.com/classic/Product/Detail/033350/HO-PSC-Milwaukee-Road-Bi-Polar-E-3-Chicago-RR-Fair-BRAND-NEW

Although the photos are of an HO scale model, it's highly detailed and looks to be in compliance with the photos I've looked at as far as the wind deflectors are concerned.

Hmmmm, the boiler room windows appear to be painted gray from the inside.

[central.vermont]

Also noticed in this shot that on the HO model the grabs on the nose of the front deck are painted orange. You had said in an earlier post that you thought  they might be maroon.

Jon

http://www.brasstrains.com/images/products/033350/IMG_0031.jpg

[u18b]

Also noticed in this shot that on the HO model the grabs on the nose of the front deck are painted orange. You had said in an earlier post that you thought  they might be maroon.

Jon

http://www.brasstrains.com/images/products/033350/IMG_0031.jpg

Hmmmm.
This is a case where that Iron Horse brass model is helpful overall, but not definitive.  The truth is that we are not overflowing with color photos from 1948 of EP-2s.

Look again at this shot.  Even though the color is a bit faded, I draw a couple of (tentative) conclusions.



While a bright orange grab would have common sense as a safety measure, it really only stands out as a safety color if it is different.

I admit that it is hard to tell from this shot, but since the frame stripe is orange, it looks to me like the grab is darker.

However, there is something else important about this photo.  The brass model has the walkway top surface painted black.

But study the frame edge VERY carefully on the front.  The top edge of the frame is maroon!  You can especially see it over on the left side of the photo near that steam loco.

To me, that maroon makes no sense if the top walking surface is black.  However, it makes perfect sense if the top walking surface is maroon.

By the way, if the top surface is indeed maroon, then an orange grab makes a bit more sense from a safety point of view-  at least if you are topside looking down, then the orange would stand out.


Another by the way-  Those pointy posts at the corner of the walkway (are they capstands for tying off rope like on a ship?)...

They almost look silver.

[u18b]

Petski,

Hmmmm.

On this photo....


There seams to be no glare or shiny-ness on the windows.  They look a bit flat- like satin paint.  At any rate, they look exactly like the body.  Somehow, this makes me think the paint is on the outside.

[Roger Holmes]

I have been a fan of the Chicago Railroad Fair and have some memorabilia and original slides taken by my Dad including one of my oldest brother sitting in the rear of a Skytop observation.  IIRC Dad also shot 8mm movie film but not sure where that ended up.

Not hijacking Ron's fantastic thread but I am surprised that no one has  found it humorous that the Bi-Polar carried its own catenary onto the RR Fair stage which appears to be a piece of pipe extending between and just past the two extended pans.

I have seen professional film of the RR Fair and it was quite a stage presentation documenting railroads from the DeWitt Clinton era through the most modern steam, diesel and electric locos of 1948-9 all set on a massive stage with Lake Michigan as the backdrop.

Ron, I can't wait to see your model painted.  You've chosen the most ambitious of the many schemes that the Bi-Polars wore.  If I ever paint mine it would be in the 1952 Orange/Maroon/Black scheme but that project is way down my list.

[u18b]

Roger,

hahaha.  I never noticed.  I guess I never looked "up".

Hey, that means I could model that too!

BTW-  I would LOVE to see your photos.

[peteski]

Ron, I suspect that those posts on the corners of the walkways are simply grabs to assist in climbing onto the walkway.  Many European steam locos were equipped with similar posts on the walkways.



As far as the painted over windows go, I just commented that the model also had them painted over (but most likely from the inside).  Your photos seem to show that the paint is on the outside (or that the "glass" might simply be sheet metal). As in dummy windows.

[u18b]

Yeah, I can see that.

The EP-2 is a strange bird.

Created in 1919/1920.  Even though it is an electric loco, it VERY much follows a lot of steam design.

For example, the headlights and the bell look exactly like they could have come off a steam loco.

Milw Rd sort-of "dieselized" the look with the 1953 rebuild.

[Chris333]

Those posts in the corners are flag holders just like steam loco had.

[u18b]

Well, at the risk of looking like a totally compulsive nut..... something has been bothering me.  I guess I didn't pay much attention to it until this stage-- probably because it has only been at this stage that I've been working with a whole loco instead of parts.

To get a perspective, let's take a refresher look at the original 1983 NJ version.


YIKES!  Look at the gap between the Cabs and the boiler room.  Man, that EP-2 could navigate 4 inch curves, I believe!

The new one looks better.  But dang, the gap looks un-even.  The gap on the right is bigger than the gap on the left.


It may not look like that much, but I can tell.



I already tried to adjust the height slightly by bending the brace on the Cabs.  But the Cab can do nothing to the length of the gap.  So I was going to have to go to the hanger inside the boiler room vestibule. (the draw-bar).



I made a strategic decision.  Originally, I wanted the boiler room to be symmetrical.  I wanted there not to be a front or back.  But as I worked through this, I saw that this goal would not match reality.  So I committed that the cross-rail up top would go in the front.  So I then marked the plate underneath so I could always keep the correct orientation.  Besides, this decision will make painting and decals better.



That previous shot was the bottom.  Here is the inside with the hangers.  I marked front and back.



Here is the side view of the hanger.  If I want to shorten the gap, I need to move the hole toward the middle.



First I took the upright brace and bent it back toward the middle.



Then I bent the horizontal piece down.



Better.... but still not satisfied.  And of course I'm careful not to let that pipe on the left optically fool me.



After getting the right side as close as I could, I finally gave in and made the left side a little longer to match the right side.



That looks better.  Not as close as I would like, but better.



This is a better look, I think.  I also noted that the Cab on the rear (right) is just a wee bit taller.  I'll have to be careful when I paint that I keep everything straight.


And just to compare, here is the old one again.

[peteski]

That is a huge visual improvement!

But the side photo also shows the huge openings between the body and the trucks. That seems very toyish  (looks a bit like something Lionel would make), but there really isn't much that can be done about those gaps.  I suspect that this will be a bit less visible after the model is painted. And of course, it won't be much of a prolbme when the model is viewed from other angles.

[spookshow]

Ron, I would advise against using anybody else's model as a reference point. I seriously doubt that there's a brass manufacturer on this planet that does as much obsessive research as you do! 

Cheers,
-Mark

[spookshow]

But the side photo also shows the huge openings between the body and the trucks. That seems very toyish  (looks a bit like something Lionel would make), but there really isn't much that can be done about those gaps.  I suspect that this will be a bit less visible after the model is painted. And of course, it won't be much of a problem when the model is viewed from other angles.

I think lowering the chassis relative to the trucks could lead to some short-circuiting issues (what with the electrically "live" shell and all). And as you say, I doubt it's something that would really be noticeable under most circumstances anyway.

Cheers,
-Mark

[Chris333]

Maybe just make a styrene center sill under there, mostly just as a view block not a detail. There must be a little area you can fill between the body and the trucks.  I always add a piece of sheet styrene under steam fireboxes so there isn't a bunch of light around the trailing trucks. No detail, just a light blocker.