DebenLLC Hoist w/S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

Discussion in 'Structures' started by SAFN SAAP, May 15, 2012.

  1. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 517 on winch duty

    Small update...I painted the flat car and also the steel bracing. The flat is dry but the bracing was just done. Here are some pics of what it looks like in raw Boxcar Red. It's getting there. Once the hoist is on and the lettering, it will look even better. I need to pick up weathering supplies too!

    Enjoy.

    Manny

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  2. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    May I present, San Antonio & Aransas Pass 30' Flat Car 550 in her "Mission Route" Livery. Ain't she a beauty? I'm really struggling to per her on railroad ties now...

    That's application and one coat of Solvaset. She'll get one, if not, two more Solvaset coats over the next two days.

    Manny

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  3. yardmaster

    yardmaster Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Manny, I've been enjoying seeing the craftsmanship that's gone into the hoist, but I find myself most excited about the flat. It's a real gem, regardless of where and how you place it.

    Best Regards,
     
  4. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Yes, I know. I'm really having trouble putting this one on ties, especially since it's my first craftsman kit car. It came out, IMHO, so great. I can't get myself to make it, removed from service. What a battle I'm in. I want to finish
    it as a revenue car and do another for the winch. Ugh, decisions, decisions.
     
  5. Jim James

    Jim James Staff Member Staff Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Manny, I would use your finished flat car as a guide and scratchbuild another to use with the hoist. With your skills and attention to detail you can produce a very convincing clone for static use. Then you could weather the crap out of it and fade out the lettering and rust up all the hardware. Keep your original kit ready for occasional service. That's just me though. Very good job.
     
  6. meteor910

    meteor910 2009 Engineer of the Year Staff Member Frisco.org Supporter

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Very nice, Manny. 550 will look pretty neat sitting on Kadee's arch bar trucks.

    Ken
     
  7. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Thanks everyone.

    Ken, James, et all,

    I have arch bar trucks on the way. I am working to put this car into revenue service and make another for the platform. This is just too nice. I have to weather it, and rough the boards up quite a bit, but overall, it will be a roller, not a "X". I'll include the build of it in here, and the secondary for the platform. I'll probably start work on it today or tomorrow.

    Thanks,

    Manny
     
  8. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Hi Y'all,

    Long time, no work, but the hoist came in today and I've been busy. I've given the ties a bit of a green hue in areas to represent moss/mold. I've added some greenery to it to represent some surface moss/growth.

    550 has been retired to permanent winching duty for the car shop. Here are pics of the work so far on the winch. It's looking good. Once together, I'll weather with some powders and then Dull Cote it. The rigging will be done when the scene is created.

    Enjoy!

    Manny

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  9. Jim James

    Jim James Staff Member Staff Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    That's going to be a very cool scene! Have you thought about winding some rust colored thread or fine wire around the hoist drum for some added realism? That casting line along the wrapped cable could be easily hidden. I'm anxious to see it all weathered and placed into some surrounding scenery. Keep up the excellant work.
     
  10. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Thanks Jim,

    The winch is finished with the exception of the steam lines. That is coming next. I'm trying to decide if I want a steam boiler on the back of the flat car or if I want to plumb the hoist into a boiler house which will be between the rail car shed and the siding where the hoist will be.

    Yes, there will be weathering done to it. I'm getting pastels and will weather it finely. Then I will dull coat it. I'm going to go get silver thread, fine, and will use the pastels in rust colors to hide it. The drum will be rusted up, as will the mechanisms, etc. Overall I'm really liking what I see.

    Here are some pics of the completed hoist, with steam cylinders and lever controls applied.

    Manny

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  11. Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Manny, Not all cars had to be updated to the Knuckle coupler. Small short lines still kept them. There was a logging line in south arkansas that still had some up into the 1960's. Also to answer Tom Holley's question about using link and pin and Knuckle couplers together they could. In some early knuckle couplers there is a notch in the knuckle that would accept the link.
     
  12. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Ah yes! Goodies arrived today! I got my boiler! Bingo, back to the build!

    The boiler is Scale Structures Ltd #9118. It's nice, but a little rough and requires a bit of filing and also leveling. I used only the pop valve from the kit. I installed a Cary Whistle to replace the kits. I also replaced the valve for draining in the back with a bent piece of .020 PB and added a globe valve to make it look like a spicket. I'm really happy with it.

    Here is S.A. & A.P. sporting more of what she'll look like. The overhead cover is gone. I didn't like it. I still have to plumb the barrels to the boiler and the barrels to a water pump house. The coal bin is full of coal ready for the fire in the hogger and the tools are starting to gather round.

    I'm waiting on some .040 brickwork from Monster Model Works for the base of the boiler. I'll be forming and soldering the pipe from phosphorus bronze. I'm very happy with the way she looks. Now I have to find crew members who look like they belong there!

    More tomorrow...

    Manny

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  13. Jim James

    Jim James Staff Member Staff Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Old boilers are fun to work with for sure. The one in my rickety old steamshovel got some extra details as well. Manny, this is going to be a first rate model. I look forward to your modeling posts. Kind of like a web clinic. Keep up the good work.
     
  14. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Hahaha! You're right Jim. I want to make a "patch", put it on the side of the boiler shell, with some NBW's, and really rough her up! I want the well used look. Kinda like she was brought out of retirement again. I tried to find the right tank for the water, but couldn't find one that fit right. The barrels came to mind. I just need to plumb them. Top line, dropping into all three from the pump house. Lower line to connect all three and bring the water to the boiler. One line to run to the steam chests forward to operate the winch. It's going to look great! Like I said, I'm real happy I chose this route.

    More to come tomorrow!

    M
     
  15. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Stained the barrels, and plumbed the input line to the boiler today. Waiting on several key parts to complete the process. I noticed a gap in the boiler where the middle section joined the bottom section. I'm going to cover that with a piece of copper and "patch" it. I'm also going to put another patch on the other side to make her look really used, tired, but still kickin'. I'll have pics in a few days.

    Thanks,

    Manny
     
  16. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Hey Everyone!

    Happy Fathers Day to all you dads' out there in Frisco Land!

    I'm just spending my day quietly working on the S.A. & A.P. 550 getting her all together for winching duty.

    I received a lot of supplies this past week so I've been able to do a lot of work.

    First I worked on rigging the water feed system for the boiler. Three barrels plumbed together to feed the hogger. There is also a feed line from the pump house that will be between the hoist and the car shop. I must admit that I really messed up the first set of barrels that I did. I didn't have a steady hand to do the bands so they got 86'd and I have started to redo them.

    The boiler was painted Tamiya Bronze. The pop valves and water drain were painted copper. I'm waiting for Titanium Gold which is a subdued gold, like a soft brass to arrive to paint the whistle. I cut a piece of copper out and put it as a patch over the one area of the boiler 1st and 2nd joint that had a gap, and will patina it, with some of the bronze on the boiler for age.

    Big thanks to Jim James who gave me a photo of an old boiler when he was on vacation. Its really helped on detailing.

    The coal bin was completed. I painted it brown with metal supports. Using Woodland Scenics B76 Medium Cinders, I added the coal load into the bin and secured it with Woodland Scenics Scenic Cement.

    The trash can is painted with Polly S Flat Aluminum, and then washed with DebenLLC's Weathered Rust and Instant Age.

    The flat car has been weathered also. I used DebenLLC's Instant Age, Oily Black, Weathered Rust, Muddy River Bottom, Granite Gray, and then a second Instant Age. It came out nice.

    The brick work under the boiler is the masterful work of Jimmy at Monster Modelworks! Jimmy will custom laser cut for you. All you need to do is give him the artwork or dimensions and he'll work it out for you. I had him cut his .040 Brickwork out for pot belly stove bases for stations, and this worked out great for the boiler! I surrounded it with scale 4x4's. Using a combination of acrylic washes I obtained from Hobby Lobby, and learning a little from Railroad Line Forums on doing brickwork, I have a great platform for the boiler.

    Various tools are being painted right now and drying. They will be added shortly. I also need to add some people and weather the trucks.

    I'll have more pics up shortly. For now, enjoy.

    One other thing. I really enjoy constructive criticism. I know a lot of folks have viewed, but only a few have responded. I really want to hear your thoughts and ideas. This is how I learn. Again, thanks to all who have helped me along the way!

    Manny

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  17. Jim James

    Jim James Staff Member Staff Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    No criticisms here. Very nice, meticulate work. If it represents a hard worked machine I would cover everything in a black wash followed by heavy rust powders and coaldust with Dullcoat to seal. It would be a shame to cover your nice paint job so you should maybe say it was just built recently. I have a tendency to make stuff look as if it's about to take its last breath.
     
  18. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Thanks Jim. I intend to do just that. Everything will get an Instant Age wash as with some rust, but not too much as things down here in Texas don't rust very quickly. It is so hard to make stuff look like its on its last breath, but I've got to go there. A lot has to do with weathering techniques and I'm still in the learning curve on that.

    I got the barrels done, and they're in position. I added a bunch of NBW's to the barrel holding frame. The rear of the barrels are plumbed. The way it will work is on a gravity principle. The crews will open the main valve right before the barrels, and the water will fill the barrels up. Once the barrels are filled, the main valve is closed, blocking the escape of the water back towards the pump house and will allow the water to flow back into the first barrel which feeds the boiler. I'm using a Cal-Scale WP-287 pump with hose reel as the means to pump the water not only into the boiler, but to also serve as a fire hose. I'm working on rigging that up right now.

    Here are some updated pictures...

    Manny

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    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 17, 2012
  19. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    ...Building an overhead platform above the barrels...
     
  20. SAFN SAAP

    SAFN SAAP Member

    Re: DebenLLC Hoist w/ S.A.& A.P. Flat car 550 on winch duty

    Done for the night. I built the overhead platform for the boiler pump and the fire hose reel. I'll paint it and NBW it in the morning. This simplified the plumbing quite a bit. The only thing left to plumb is the two steam pistons up front. I'm trying to decide if I want all that plumbing exposed or if I want to hide it.

    Here are the pics for today's work.

    More tomorrow.

    Have a great evening.

    Manny

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