We thought you knew…
Well Um no I didn’t know. . . But I do now. This local metals dealer is a good supplier. I knew they did bigger stuff but turns out they do all sorts of stuff. I bought a 4" piece of cast acrylic 2"dia rod for turning a stack also. And they are reasonable priced. I bought a 31" remnant of the 1/8 X 1/4 flat bar for $3.10. not bad.
That place is a good source though I book marked it.
Feeling somewhat defeated by this project. I got the second side rod done at least enough to test drive it and see if it will work. I got both side rods on and ran it. It runs but not well. It is very rough running. It appears that the back set of drivers (the ones with the motor) are seriously wobbling. I went to take the rods off and was going to run it without them to test the rear drivers and see if indeed that is what is wobbling or if the wobble is being caused by everything just being out of sync. Well in trying to do so I set the loco down wrong on the front pilot truck and broke it off.
I am at the point of very severe frustration at it. I have always said all along that it was intended to be a runner unless it doesn’t work then it will be a shelf queen. Its moving closer in that direction. I haven’t given up yet but need to walk away until I have more patience for it.
One thing I am a firm believer in is learning from failures. Just like Thomas Edison I am learning how not to build a locomotive. For one thing early on I realized I built this in a manor that does not allow me to take it apart easily. So I really cant separate the loco shell from the body. This is not only causing me difficulty maneuvering it but it is contributing to broken pieces. I need to be able to disassemble it more. The little Micro I am building I have corrected this mistake. Another take away from this is I should have made 100% certain I had a working chassis before spending so much time with the fluff. That way things like side rods and wobbly drive trains can be fixed before such a large investment of time is made.
For now I need to set it aside until I can work on it with out wanting to fix it with a hammer. Get some other stuff running and then come back and revisit it. Well it is my first build and it was a crazy one. So I can get to upset. And I haven’t thrown in the towel yet.
Another thing I have decided is I need a device for testing locos that does not require them to move on a track. I know they make those roller blocks and I might have to get or make some. But also I think the loco needs to be able to rotate in a circle. I am thinking something like mounting the roller blocks on a lazy Susan. Then I can spin it.
Siderods or not, you should still bring to the RPM meet. Show of what you’ve go done, and maybe if you talk with enough people someone might have a good fix. I get burned out with a model sometimes too… I just set it aside and wait until the inspiration hits again. Sometimes that means starting all over again, like I’ve done with my Snow Dozer. My first build was a fast, try and get it done type project, but now the second time around I’m taking my time to make sure everything is right.
I’ll still bring it. I haven’t given up on it but I do need to rethink it that’s for sure. The side rods will be done. And look pretty. Like I said it works just not well. I will put what I have together ,back together, and then shelf it for awhile until I can figure out the fix.
It’s still pretty . . .lol
Craig Townsend said:
Siderods or not, you should still bring to the RPM meet. Show of what you’ve go done, and maybe if you talk with enough people someone might have a good fix. I get burned out with a model sometimes too… I just set it aside and wait until the inspiration hits again. Sometimes that means starting all over again, like I’ve done with my Snow Dozer. My first build was a fast, try and get it done type project, but now the second time around I’m taking my time to make sure everything is right.
Yea, my scratch-built wooden passenger cars took 2 years to build, because I had the shelf them and move on when I hit a roadblock. Then one night the answer came to me, and it was so simple. That’s when I brought the cars back into the workshop and finished them.