1851 Lowell Locomotive Works build

[bparrish]

OK........ I'm back....

I got stuck on about three things on this project and that has forced my silence until I had them worked out.  One was the working valve gear off of the steam cutoff lever.  Recall that they operated the cutoff separately from the direction links prior to the Gooch link of the mid to late 1860's.  None of these were very efficient use of steam.

This photo shows the outboard link to the cutoff.   Also shown is the fender panels that radius the drive wheels.  This took a very long time to chop out and then plot where the wheels actually fell between the frame and the superstructure.



Now I'm going on to the pilot wheels.  They were spoke wheels with an inboard frame.  This was later changed but probably not before 1870.   There are no spoke wheels available in the dimensions I needed so I took some plastic Roundhouse spoke centers and turned out the tires to fit.  I made these from mild steel from a chunk of 3/8" pipe fitting.  As the spokes are plastic, there was never going to be any electrical benefit to the operation.  So steel doesn't matter.




I made the inboard frame from a piece of 1/2' wide channel stock and reduced the sides to about .110".  The axles are .092" so I only need to invent a retainer to hold the wheel sets in.   That's for tomorrow.



see ya

[GPdemayo]

Wonderful work Bob.....

[PRR Modeler]

Outstanding modeling Bob.

[deemery]

Welcome back, inspiring as always.


dave

[bparrish]

Thank you, all...

Let's build a tender.  These forgotten little guys are pretty important in the construction of any steamer.  This particular tender is really small and scales out only at about 16 feet. That's not a lot if I need to get a motor and decoder in there.  I'm going to use a Digitrax 162 as it is hardly more than an inch long and a eight inch thick.  The motor is a flat can 12x20 millimeters.

All the sheet brass in the superstructure is '006" sheet with rivet embossed from the back with a small stylus.  The wrapper is all one piece and goes from the water tank valve on one side to the similar location on the other side.



The floor is also light brass sheet and bent and formed.  The center rail is one eighth by one quarter rectangular tube with an additional .030" sheet over the top to provide some stock to get the truck screws place to anchor in.

Around the sides are various small strips added for rivet plates and corner reinforcement.



A load bulkhead and water tank lid were added.  The bulkhead is .010" brass and the tank lid is an old Kemtron casting.



The load wrapper is really easy to construct. You lay it all out on paper and then transfer the perimeter onto the brass with a scribe.  Important to the wrapper is that the outside legs are 90 degrees and the inter connecter is forty five degrees. Then leave enough tab material inside so as to have some material to solder to the tank wrap.







Here is a look at the metal load wrapper when pulled around before installation.



More later

[postalkarl]

Hey Bob:

Can't to see this one finished. Great job so far.

Karl

[Oldguy]

Looking real good. 

[Keep It Rusty]

Amazing work.

[ACL1504]

Bob,

Absolutely amazing sir.

Tom 

[bparrish]

So I am getting close........ I put the railings on and found a spring loaded lash up for the pilot truck.

There are a lot of detail stuff that has to happen before I can consider paint.  But for now....

[Bernd]

Wow, that is one nice scratch build.

Bernd

[PRR Modeler]

Beautiful doesn't do it justice.

[Keep It Rusty]

Just wonderful. Well done!

[BandOGuy]

Almost a shame to cover such fine workmanship with paint.
Maybe a coat of clear lacquer if you can still spray that toxic stuff in Idaho?

[bparrish]

Thank you all for your supportive remarks.

And yes, we still have distillates in Idaho........... that brings me to a great story.

I did a clinic at the 2007 regional NMRA convention here in Boise on how I do sage brush trees using spray contact cement.

Cody Grivno was present representing ModelRailroader at this clinic.

I began the clinic with the following:    those boys at MR make me crazy!  Every time they open a jar of some paint some lawyer says that they have to give some disclaimer about the dangers of petroleum distillates.  This is bunk!

They do not understand Darwinian Succession  (Some guy later called it the survival of the fittest, not Darwin).

So here is how I see it.  Understanding Darwinian Succession, the stronger will outlast the weaker.  So I if I drown an adequate number of brain cells with the distillate (beer drinkers take heed, this applies also to the alcoholic  substances) of your choice, which will go away first, the stronger or the weaker?

The weaker of course.

This then is simple............ the more distillates I inhale, and the more alcohol I ingest............ the smarter I become.

Do not write me back with some scientific refutation.  My mind is made up...... don't confuse me with the facts.

see ya
Bob