The 2-10-0 project

[muktown128]

I have a few Con-Cor 2-10-2's that I hope to turn into PRR J1 and/or C&O T1 2-10-4's at some point.  The driver size and spacing is just about perfect.  I keep forgetting to check the valve gear though.  I also have 4 GHQ L1 kits and Kato Mikado's intended for I1sa builds.  Probably about the time I get them all done BLI will have released RTR versions of both... 

Ha ha - I have acquired a few GHQ L1 kits and a couple of Kato Mikado's to make some I1sa as well.  I hadn't thought of using a Con-Cor 2-10-2 as a starting point for a J1...Interesting...

[muktown128]

Thanks, John.
I'll put out an APB for a Decapod once a few more sheckels find their way into my pot.

I'm pretty sure that I have a spare Trix Decapod or two laying around and some extra parts.  Not sure if they run or not.  I'll check my workbench and see what I can find.  I have some longer tenders shells as well...

Scott

[SkipGear]

Some inspirational pics......

Trix version, not quite as nice as @Lemosteam but passable for me. Never could get it to run smooth enough to make me happy at switching speed. Runs fine pulling a train.



Also a Kato Mikado conversion, B&O S-1 2-10-2, not a pennsy but the mechanics are there.



I added gearing to the front driver because the plan for this one was to pull at shows. It pulls so hard it melted the coupling between the motor and the worm. Still need to repair that.

[wm3798]

The PRR version is about what I'm after... and if I can make it perform the way I'd like it to, I might entertain using the same frame to whip up a WM 2-10-0. 

All of it is conjecture though.  Like I have time for any of it!
Lee

[wm3798]

I'm pretty sure that I have a spare Trix Decapod or two laying around and some extra parts.  Not sure if they run or not.  I'll check my workbench and see what I can find.  I have some longer tenders shells as well...

Scott

Thanks, Scott.  PM me if you find anything.  The goal would be to repower it anyway, so the critical bit would a full set of drive gears and the shells.

Lee

[mike_lawyer]

On my I1 I built about 10 years ago, with a GHQ boiler, traction tire driver, and a quality coreless motor, I could pull 100 cars on our local club layout without any slipping. 

[SkipGear]

My problem was the motor/gearing. I never went as far as putting a gear head in it and Kato stock gearing is just too tall to pull long trains for any length of time. That is somewhat why I never repaired it, trying to decide what to do for an improved motor or gear reduction.

[mike_lawyer]

Tony, I highly recommend a Faulhaber 1016 with 4:1 gearing.  It is about the perfect top speed for this size engine and solves the gearing issue.  The stock motor is way too fast, and under a large load like 100 cars I would be afraid of burning out the stock motor.  It can get very hot.

[randgust]

I have a GHQ conversion L1 with traction tire and pewter boiler, and it's the tractive effort champ of anything else I own.   And it can most definitely get warm enough to feel through the pewter.   

I've heard that the I1's rode really rough, and that they also were limited to about 35mph due to the dynamic augment of the rods, etc. causing rail pounding and damage.   So running 'em with a gearhead makes even more sense.

[ncbqguy]

IIRC the even though it was inspired by the Kato Mikado the mechanism as well as the boiler is stretched by comparison. 
Too bad Bachmann hasn’t done a USRA Heavy.  The Light has smaller drivers.
Charlie Vlk

[Lemosteam]

IIRC the even though it was inspired by the Kato Mikado the mechanism as well as the boiler is stretched by comparison. 
Too bad Bachmann hasn’t done a USRA Heavy.  The Light has smaller drivers.
Charlie Vlk

If you are referring to the GHQ boiler, yes that is another (in addition to boiler diameters that I think it closer to the I1.

[mike_lawyer]

IIRC the even though it was inspired by the Kato Mikado the mechanism as well as the boiler is stretched by comparison. 
Too bad Bachmann hasn’t done a USRA Heavy.  The Light has smaller drivers.
Charlie Vlk

I really wish the Con-Cor 2-10-2 had the same dimensions as the Kato Mikado, it would make the whole process much easier.  It just is extended too much for my liking.

[Lemosteam]

The Bachmann 2-10-2 is much shorter than the ConCor, as @cbroughton67 can attest.

[VonRyan]

I have a @Lemosteam question...  I haven't got a Trix decapod in the collection currently, but I had one many thousands of years ago.  (I cut some short bits of drinking straw to extend the cylinders to line up more or less with the smoke box, then painted the whole mess blue and gray in the manner of the engine I really wanted... the Rivarossi Pacific in B&O)

Anyway, the drive went bust, probably by my own clumsy hand, and eventually the whole thing evaporated into the mists.

So I'm thinking about getting a new one so I can have a more appropriate freight hauler when Pennsy Steam Night rolls around on the Retro Layout.

Since I'm not adhering to any strict standards (either as a retro collector or a PRR modeler) I intend to modify the shell adequately to adjust for the smoke box issue, and maybe scab together a longer tender.  My question is, can the drive for the 2-10-0 be given a similar upgrade that you apply to the K-4 drive, or do you think the original drive would be adequate for my purposes?  At the very least, I would do a tender pick up improvement, but I'm wondering how the gearing/motor stack up, and would it be worth it to do the upgrades... and do you have parts available?

Lee

Lee, if you end up getting a Trix decapod, let me know and I’ll see if I have a spare Camden & Amboy Models conversion shell. A retro kit to solve the issue on a retro model.

[wm3798]

That would be excellent!