My name is James and I have been custom making models professionally for over thirty years. I joined recently because Ken Mathews posted about one of my GP40-2 locomotives that he picked up on ebay and needed help referbishing it. We took care of that and now I’ve decided to share my newest locomotive build and let folks know it will be available later this year. So here is the debut on LSC of my 1/32 scale DD35A. The large lavender block of rubber on the right is the huge mold for the frame/deck Original masters for all part were hand formed from sheet and tube styrene from which silicone rubber molds are made. Detail parts such as handrail stanchions, handrails, grabirons and grills will be brass. I do not 3D print
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Nice! Always good to see new products pop up.
What are the motor blocks? Lack of drive blocks is one of the biggest problems in large scale today.
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I am working on my own motor blocks, currently the housings are nearly complete as I am figuring out how I am going to do the gearing. Motors will be mounted vertically like my B-B and C-C motors blocks which are also close to completed. I’ve included an image of the motor block here. I’m still figuring out what I’m going to use as wheelsets as well. The mount for the motor can be seen on the top and is a seperate part. The one shown is designed to take a 1.125" diameter motor. If needed I can easily make another diameter mount without having to re-make an entire block. Registered trade mark item and Patent pending for the design.
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I will be posting a few mor images of several othe products in the next few days which will include a 1/29th scale 54’ GSC Bulkhead Flatcar, (Release date Feb 20), an unpowered 1/29th scale EMD GP7B slug (release date late 2026), and a 1/32 scale SD7/9 (Release date TBD). For those who migh be curious, I am doing the 1/29th scale stuff because I’ve had requests for them. I am doing the 1/32 scale because that is my scale of choice (as well as 1/7.5 scale).
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I’d suggest you work out the power pickup at the same time as your design. It’s another whole world unless you are going battery only. (and after doing an entire design, I would incorporate this function)
It really has a lot to with how the axles are created, and to that point, the gearing you can accomplish.
Another recommendation is to investigate Aristo and USAT motor blocks and see how they solved these issues (power, gearing, electrical isolation between wheels on an axle, ability to adjust gauge)
Thanks for the input. the power pickup will be similar to what NWSL used on their motor blocks with replaceable brushes that are sprung to press against the backside of the wheels. The basic design of the gearing is done, I’m working with someone who will do the final design.