Large Scale Central

Build Log: The CVSRy's replica log cars

Modeling Rolling stock
#41

I decided to test Dave’s idea of just using the table saw to mill out the bunks so they will sit down over the sills, rather than on top. I need to measure more carefully for the production run, but for a proof-of concept it worked great! I also decided to widen the space between sills to be equal to the sill width. It’s a minor difference, but it looks much better to me. Here’s my proof-of concept frame out for a test run through some switches…

The white styrene represents a steel plate enclosing the draft gear that isn’t there and covering the sill spacer. It will end up painted black. If this car looks out of square, that’s because it is. The sills are seconds from the mill. They have have large knots that cause bends. I think I captured the low-slung look of Cale’s pictures…

This last one is included because the lighting was so interesting…

Time to re-work the glue-up jig and get to work mass producing frames.

#42

Glad it helped Jon. :slight_smile:

#43

Looking good so far Jon.

#44

Jon those are looking real nice. Are you going to put the sides on them like in Cal’s pictures?

#45

Shawn said:
Jon those are looking real nice. Are you going to put the sides on them like in Cal’s pictures?

I don’t think so. I don’t really like that look and it’s more work. I’ll come up with something for the bunk ends to grab the timbers, kind of like on this car…

#46

This project has come to a screeching halt. We had a 10 gallon fish tank let go today while we were at work. Of course it was right above my table saw and wood rack. I’m hopeful that no water got into the motor or adjustment gears. I’m going to let it dry for several days before I try it. A pallet with several bags of concrete was right next to the saw and caught the water next. I wonder what I can use a pillow shaped hunk of concrete for.

I’m just glad it wasn’t the 55 gallon tank.

#47

Aaahhh…just plug it in! Hell ya’ cut rock up on it??

#48

Jon…a little trick i learned from my son when he went swimming with his cell phone (he put it in a bag with a cupful of rice and left it for a week, all was good with the phone after that) So maybe try throwing some rice done in the ‘belly’ of the saw next to the motor/gears. Just don’t know what you have for a saw tho.

#49

Lets see now. It was the wife’s tank, so if the saw is toast she’ll replace it. So, do I have to tell her it was the cheep one at Sears?

#50

No it was the high-end contracters version with the after market fence! :wink:

#51
Randy McDonald said:
No it was the high-end contracters version with the after market fence! ;)
What Randy said!!!!
#52
Jon Radder said:
I wonder what I can use a pillow shaped hunk of concrete for.
If you have two, they'll do a nice job of holding up a bridge.

If this had happened at my house, I’d have to pay for the new saw, new aquarium and fish too :open_mouth:
So…better you than me :smiley:
Ralph

#53
Jon Radder said:
I wonder what I can use a pillow shaped hunk of concrete for..
Put it in your flower [u]bed[/u] along with [u]blanket[/u] of snow alyssums? nyuk! nyuk! nyuk!
#54

Jon Radder said:
I ran the coupler / tracking tests today with two pre-production frames. No problem at all through my tightest mainline curves and Ariosto “Wide” switches…

(http://lsc.cvsry.com/LogCars/LogCarBuild-18_800.JPG)

No such luck in an R1 S curve, but I never expected them to be able to do that. None of my other 1:20 cars will even track through R1, so I’m ahead of the game with this design. Now on to production.

#55

double post

#56

Shawn ? Your point is ???

#57
Jon Radder said:
Shawn ? Your point is ???
Just trying to get you more pages LOL. Truthfully I dont know what happened. My post was there now its gone. Anyway you can also try using a stripe of brass, drill a hole on either end and use that rather then using the links. Then you can make a longer space between couplers. Might help get around tighter curves. I did that and has helped. Although ended up going back to knuckles because they are so much easier to use.
#58

Thanks. That’s a good idea for within the yard. I’ll try it. Could go one further and add a flexible joint in the link.

For the connection to the Accucraft Shay I had to make a custom link. The Shay’s pin was too large for the Ozark link, and Shay link too large for the Ozark pocket. I just fashioned a link from brass rod and made one end narrower to fit in the Ozark pocket. I attempted to solder the link together with a low temp iron and it didn’t work so good. I’ll try again with some flux.

#59

Aaawww…Jon said flux

#60

Got motivated (finally) to get back to this project. Set up a jig for the bunks, and re-worked the sill jig. 2-300 pins later it’s done, but the tolerance is too lose for the sills. I’ll go back to hand assembly for that part and just use a jig for setting the bunks.

So long as the table saw still works I plan on finishing up a group of bunks, and starting assembly.

When I started raiding my Delton stock for trucks, I realized that I don’t really have that many left that I want to cannibalize, so I broke down and bought a batch of 10 off the eBay guy Mik suggested. I just need to come up with a good source of springs. Kadee coupler springs are a bit too small in diameter. The seller suggests cheap pen springs.