I have always wanted to build one of these but couldn’t get my head wrapped round it and still haven’t but I’m going to take the build Theme, Rolls on Rails, to the Extreme!
Lots of wheels, Lots and Lots of Wheels! What have I done to myself? Go BIG or go home as they say.
Todd… After building the Rubelator Heavy Hauler several years ago… A couple of tips…
Figure out how long it’s to be end to end… then cut some cardboard up to that length and build a duct taped together prototype, and test run it around your pike to see if it will make it around everywhere.
Mine won’t make it around my extra tight corners
I remember when you built that heavy hauler and how awesome it is. That is a good tip. When I built other HD cars I cut a 2x4 to length, attached trucks and sent it through Pinch Point tunnel to make sure the car would make it. PP Tunnel is a 15’ long horseshoe shaped tunnel built round a 6.5’ diameter curve. I gotta watch the overhang through there. The rest of the RR uses 8’ and 10’ curves with height through portals/bridges being the only concern.
I plan on building this schnable in 3 pieces, the ends and the middle which will be detachable. There is so much engineering to figure out before the saws are turned on. I think what will limit this car is the length of the load.
If I am stating the obvious I apologize but figured I better mention it. If you look at Dave’s car each of the paired trucks (two front and two rear) are attached to a “bolster” of some sort (in Dave’s case basically mini flat cars) that the car then attaches to. This is the only way to get all four trucks to track other wise they would bind on anything but the largest of curves. By doing this it will take much much tighter curves. And the closer those pairs of trucks are to one another the tighter the curves are even more. I am tackling a similiar project with a 16 wheel four truck heavy flat car.
If it were me I would first design each pair of trucks and then take like you said and use a piece of wood or cardboard and mount them and see what it looks like. Another thing to keep in mind is even if the car is long but will physically roll through your curves, if the trucks are a long ways apart it will have some considerable inside over hang and may hit stuff staged close to the track on inside curves.
Neat idea but there are some considerations.
Duly noted Devon. I have 3 homemade heavy duty cars with the longest being 31". One is a rip off of the LGB transformer car but mine has a longer 12" deck so it can transport small engines. This one uses what is basically a short flat car with pivoting trucks just like Dave T’s rig. The long flat, designed to carry wrecked passenger cars has 2 trucks at each end that are attached to a bar that also pivots.
I have seen a video on youtube where a guy built a schnabel using a 3D printer and his made it round his layout on the 4’ diameter curves. The overhang was CRAZY but it made it.
The way I see it I will be building 4 mini flat cars then another flat to sit on top of those and then a large “arm” that will be attached to the cars and carry the load, whatever that might be. Everything will have to be articulated and swing freely with lots of testing to ensure it will work.
lol I obviously did state the obvious. You had it covered.
That’s okay Devon. I think a good benefit of build logs like we do is that they can inspire others and pictures really help.
its always hard to know what people know. What might be obvious to us may be unknown to others. Would hate to see an early design flaw ruin a project that could have been avoided with a timely tip. Ignorance is not a flaw, we don’t know what we don’t know; stupidity is not asking when we don’t know. So I figure its better to say what is known than leave what is unknown in the dark.
Very true. If we can save someone from a costly frustrating mistake that is a good thing.
Todd, this will be a fun build to follow. I’m sure you will win the award for the use of most wheelsets 
Will this be a mostly wooden model or styrene or alummmiiinnnummm or steel or brass or, or or … Ah heck, what will the thing be made of? 
That is a good question Dan. I am so used to working with wood and I like that I can cut, glue, pin and move on to the next spot but making it all out of wood would make it heavy. I’m thinking about using plastic “wood” sheet, plexi glass and anything else that makes this work. Waiting for the glue to dry on the non wood pieces is going to be tough and take time. A wood frame with plexi sides would work. Looking at videos of the real deal I don’t see too many rivets but adding them could keep the build moving forward. There is still so much to work out.
Rolls on the Rails is the theme so there will be lots of wheels rolling on this build
Day one of the Mik Build challenge 2025 is in the books and I’m sure everyone is off to a great start.
I did more planning and measuring. I also built a mock up of one of the truck units, there will be 4 total. I’m taking measurements from this. I also put it through a torture test. The tightest track on my RR is a 6.5’ curve and I’m testing it with a 5’ diameter S curve.
This schnabel like all my other builds will not be a scale model but it will instead will be selectively compressed to convey the idea of what it is supposed to be. If you Squint it’s Mint as I like to say. It is still going to be BIG. Each truck piece will be 16" long so 32" per side plus a few more inches. This thing could be near 6’ long and that is without a load!
The Progress.
Spacing the wheels.
Very cool. Love how compact it is for what is supposed to be a giant car. Selective compression is fun. That might even make it around Vics pizza. . . Well maybe not.
Gonna be a lot of trucks, may cause the big truck shortage of 2025 Look forward to seeing this unique build come together.
KId-zilla agrees! And so do I!
Update: Slowly but surely it is coming along with lots of test fittings in between. Given the price of trucks these days I’m glad that I have been buying them over the past several years but it still hurts to cut the tongues off some. I tried to avoid this by countersinking a pivoting screw that was hitting the tongue and the drill caught something and totally destroyed the carrier for the 2 trucks. A minor setback.
The bases are made from pine. I think the next piece that carries these 2 trucks will be made from 1/4" plastic sheet. I don’t want this rig to be top heavy. I’m dreading the big carrier arms but will cross that bridge when I get to it. They need to be strong enough to carry a load but light too since they are so chunky. I did wake up this morning thinking about changing the pivot point of it but more needs to be constructed.
Wow, really great progress Todd!
We should have a contest…our PLAYMOBIL vs. your Smurfs! 
Eric
Update time.
I have no pictures of the figuring, thinking and pondering but the Schnabel is coming together.
I call this part the bridge. It connects the 2 truck pieces. I’m using a harder wood than the pine I started with thinking that it will hold the wood screws better. To help trim weight I’m using plastic that I cut from our old business sign.
Lots of test fittings but it is taking shape.
I cut these pieces from plexi and used E6000 to to glue them together. Next is to cut a piece of wood that will support the back of it. The washer will be stuck on and will represent what looks to be a open pipe that runs through the prototype.
I wasn’t going to build the cabs but thought it would look odd without so here they are. They are 4x7x3.75 tall. I sprayed the inside grey today. The outside will get a sheathing of plexi and not seen in the photo is an angled piece that will be where the windshield will go. I will then put on tape to make windows, spray the whole thing red, use a sharpie round the edge of the tape, then remove the tape and that will be the windows and doors.
I set up the whole thing the other day and had an engine pull it through some switches in the main yard and it snaked right along. I will have to see if I can post from my phone since I forgot to take a photo with my Nikon.
I have to start thinking about the toughest part this week, the lifting arms. This thing is getting HUUUGE !
Geez I thought Dave’s car was a behemoth. This thing is stout. It has an entire trees worth of wood in it. Looks great. It’s really making me want one and I don’t really know why.
