I was finally able to get the coaches' interior lighting finished this past week. I used an old string of micro LEDs with a 3V button-cell battery. I was given these lights from someone else, so I don't have the original packaging, but it seems each LED regulates itself because 4 LEDs is just as bright as the whole string.
Here's a few photos of them.
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I also bought one #831 set of couplers. These are large off-set couplers for truck mounting. I put them on my SRRL caboose. You can see that I aquired a few older Kadees from eBay purchases in the below photo. The original owner had painted the couplers to look rusty. They also cut the trip pins. I've done my best to refurbish the internal workings of these units, but not all of them have worked well. I may have to just replace them.
So, it turns out, I really like boxcars. I'm not sure why. But I already have a small fleet of them on my railroad and I'm not totally sure how this happened...
But, in any case, here's another. It's a Bachmann car lettered #556 for Pennsylvania Railroad. It needs some serious cleaning. So, I'm taking it apart and cleaning it with a toothbrush and water. Then the lettering will be removed so I can re-letter it for a railroad in New England. I'm thinking the two Bachmann cars I now have will be for the same railroad/ company. I will also be replacing the Hook & Loop couplers with Kadee knuckles and the plastic wheels with metal. It's snowing today in Massachusetts, so I hurried up and pulled out some stock. Here's a few of the photos I took!
Yesterday I managed to get all the parts of the locomotive shell in place. First I painted the door trims and window frames. Next I installed the window glazings, lights, lanterns, and handrails. Then fitting the cab floors and boiler in place (the most tricky part!). Here's a bunch of photos of the finished work. Well, almost. I need to clean the windows to get Toby show-ready.
Once my Rx is delivered I can put that in place and run my loco. I also want to add a couple more details to the cabs such as brakes, hand wheels, and gauges. Click on a photo to view this gallery in full-screen. I managed to get Toby's boiler painted today an it looks just as good as I had hoped!
Note in the second photo the chimneys line up almost perfectly (although the interior part looks smaller for some reason). More progress on Toby today!
I made a quick modification to the strap I am using to keep the battery in place. I realized that it would be better to be able to remove it when needed, so I took a zip tie and drilled a few screw holes in it. This actually works out better because it holds the battery in place more effectively. I also finally finished the boiler details which include a dome (I assume it's meant to be a steam dome, but I'm not sure), plus rivets on the front & rear corners. The dome is a cap off a food coloring container! Finally, I finished cutting open and sanding the windows and doors in the locomotive shell. Next up is painting the frames then putting it all together. I've painted the snowplow's blade to match the car it's attached to. When I can, I'll add a headlamp and decals eventually.
I have made lots of progress on Toby in the last few days. I'm working hard on this model because I am hoping to bring it with me to the ECLSTS in York, PA later this month. My last update saw the construction of the boiler inside the shell and I have since had to cut it in half to fit it in the shell.
Let's see... what else have I managed? I painted the entire inside of the shell using the same red-brown that I used for the cab floors. I wired the Li-Ion (11.1v) in place and soldered the wiring for the front & rear lights. The only thing I am waiting for is the Receiver from RC Trains to finish the wiring.
All that's really left to do is finish the window and door frames, touch up paint as needed, and then put everything together! This loco will definitely be ready for the show in three weeks. |
Hello!My name is John. This is my website dedicated to all things model railroading! I hope you enjoy! Archives
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