When I found out that the Bachmann 45 ton Diesels were on sale for $60, I just couldn’t resist the deal. I wanted a switcher and this seemed like a good idea. The only problem is that these are a bit too new for my 1930’s era railroad. So, I started doing some research - and during one of the chat sessions here I was directed to a great boxcab site. (http://my.execpc.com/~jcampbel/ageir.html) These are all standard gauge but I thought I could replicate one in narrow gauge. I like the look of this one
I did some playing around with a drawing and placed it over a picture of th 45t. The grills from the hood ends were crying out to be used so I decided to put them on the sides.
I didn’t like the looks of the trucks - I wanted the wheels to be more visible. So, I started cutting away pieces of the plastic. But, I still couldn’t get them to look the way I wanted. Finally, I cut off the connecting rods. Much better. Of course I needed to cover the ends of the axles, so I built some journal boxes out of styrene. I also added some large bolts and some other pieces of styrene in order to make this look more like one of those old trucks.
I initially thought I could use the original base, but it just sat too high, so I made a new one from a couple of styrene sheets and some Plastruct I-beams.
I will be putting in battery and using RCS for control. Hopefully I’ll get some more done this weekend.