Large Scale Central

Tuscarora Timber Co. M-1

Modeling
#1

A Bachmann 45-tonner loses some weight…

From this:

to this:

And in between, it looked like this:

The locomotive was narrowed by about 1", the cab narrowed and lowered about 5/8", and the hoods lowered about 3/4". Now, it’s overall size is much more consistent with the size of the other narrow gauge locos I run on the railroad.

From the front:

and a new cab interior, modeled from photos of the interiors of other GE center cabs:

From the side:

and a few details:

rust damage on the hood:

and lots of dirt and grime around the trucks and fuel tank:

Photos, as well as the history and inspiration behind this model can be found on my blog at:
http://tuscarorarailroad.blogspot.com

Later,

K

#2

Looks great, Kevin! You do nice work.

#3

Very nice, as usual!

#4

Keven do you have anything not come out so well???

#5

Very nice job, thanks for sharing.

#6

That looks great Kevin. Now you need some log cars…

#7

Beautiful workmanship… :slight_smile:

#8

I really like how that came out. If I had done something like that I wouldn’t have had to rebuild my tunnel for the second time!

#9

Neat. I like the dent on the louvers, even though it wasn’t intentional. :wink:

#10

Really nice build. Looking forward to the “calf” build. :slight_smile:

#11

Bruce = the dent in the louvers adds the ‘Backwoods Character’. :slight_smile:

#12

Kevin, you’re prolly the best “engine-eer” out there. You always manage to turn out an interesting loco and your work is tops. How you do it is beyond me, what with a day job and two kids. Maybe it’s those long Colorado winters? Or the pakalolo that’s now legal? Nah, can’t be that 'cause if it were, we wouldn’t hear from you in years. :slight_smile:

#13

Thanks, guys.

John, funny you should mention a “calf.” I’m not planning one for this, but the impetus for this project came from the center cab I rebuilt for dad’s railroad. Evidently that loco has proven so popular with the guys who operate on his railroad that he’s commissioned another switcher for the railroad. So I’ve acquired an NW-2 calf, and once it arrives, I’ll be “upscaling” it to 1:22, turning it into a “cow” in the process.

Sean, the trick is that I don’t publish photos until I’m happy with the results. Getting to that point takes longer on some locos than others. I’ve got a Climax that I just finished up just before this loco, but there’s something “not quite right” with it yet. I can’t put my finger on it–it could be something as simple as not yet having a crew–but something’s not clicking yet for me with it, so I haven’t put photos up.

Bob, I’m actually surprised there’s not more “front end” damage with this loco. I’ve got QSI’s new “Titan” controller installed, with prototypical braking enabled. That takes some getting used to when doing switching. I’m using Airwire’s controllers, so I don’t have a “stop NOW!” button to keep me from banging into things. So far, I haven’t broken any couplers, though. Oh, and I’m also holding the heat gun farther away from models when drying paint…

Joe, if you ask my wife, she’ll likely paint a different picture of my efficiency. (“When are you going to fix the toilet!!?”) Actually, a lot has to do with my work schedule. I work evenings (mostly), so I don’t get home until 11:30, and have to unwind. I do that either in the workshop or writing articles. I’m then up at 7:30 the next morning to get the kids off to school, at which point I’m usually awake again, so I have the morning after the kids are to school. In the summer, that’s when I maintain the railroad (and by “maintain,” I mean making sure trains run properly and on schedule), but in the winter, I spend more time in the workshop.

But speaking of taking care of other chores, I best be fixing the rod in the laundry room…

Later,

K