Ok, Im totaly lost on how to kit bash 3500's 0-6-0 switchers. Is there anyone who has done this in the past and can give me some advise? Jason Ross Bham, AL
Jason, which series? The 3539-3548 were rebuilt from Baldwin 1898 ten wheelers. They had a taper in the middle of the boiler and uneven driver spacings. Piston valves must have been added during the conversions, as Stagner has a Volrath photo of 539 as a slide-valve ten wheeler in 1916. The photo caption said the conversion was made in 1923 when she was 25 years old. Photos show both oil and coal tenders. If I were you, I'd follow the prototype and convert one of the Spectrum ten wheelers. Use the 52" driver version. The 3550-3552 were 1905 Baldwin's were sold to MoP/NOT&M.
The March 2010 Model Railroader has a well done article about kit-bashing a steam locomotive. It will at least give you an overview about how one could approach such a project.
HO? Spectrum ten wheeler, 52" drivers, remove pilot truck, add a little weight below the cab for balance, repaint, Oddball decals, coonskin number plate on smokebox lid, presto. Post photos for our enjoyment.
Ah, not so fast grasshopper!!! It just so happens that I am currently working on just such a conversion. I too thought it would be just about that simple, however once I got into it I realized it would be a little more involved. To start with, if your modeling a coal burner, the tender has to have a switcher style bunker constructed and details rearranged. With the locomotive, the cab has to be replaced with a more modern version. I happened to have a couple old tyco's laying around that I grafted together to get the correct length. With the cab in place, there was a gap between the front wall of the cab and the top of the boiler to fill in with styrene. The boiler will need an additional sand dome as well as other details. The cylinders have to be replaced as well, this too came from the scrap box, I think I will try to make do with the existing valve gear even though it's not an exact match. This is about as far as I have got, although I'm not all together certain that I won't have to shorten the front of the frame that the pilot attaches to as it seems to stick out a long way. But I will figure that out as I go. Brad
Frisco prototype modeling. Never easy. Gotta love it. Now where did I put those parts on the MDC 0-6-0 to 3700-series conversion I started years ago? I had the tender done and was working on the cab when I ran out of interest.
Ill be working on the mdc/roundhouse 0-6-0's as well later on. I have a lot of work on my hands. 0-6-0's, 2-8-0's, 2-8-2's-4000's -4200's, and that is just what i have now for frisco. seaboard, ic and c of g as well ill be working on. alot of stuff going on in bham in the 40's and 50's. working only on steam for now, diesel will come in time. Me with no skills or know how as of yet.......a work in progress. thanks guys for the input....feel free to check on me....ill be posting the loco's and layout as the project come together. one of these decades. jason ross bham, al bham belt rr
Nothing to report as of yet. Been looking at 2-6-0's, but the boiler is all wrong. I just need to learn how to kit bash. Jason Ross Bham, AL BBRR
I have 5 Pemco 2-6-0's in house now. Plus got the 4-4-0 boilers to put on them. I have 2 aristocraft 4-6-0's in as well. Well the Bham Belt will be in the building stage for a while. More updates to follow. That's all for now from the Bham-Memphis line in Adamsville AL.
patiently await the updates. I'm presently converting MDC 2-6-0's with Mantua 50" drivers and the Cary 4-4-0 Boiler. Oh how I know the kit-bashing blues! (Not really blue though. Only word that would fit. LOL...)
Don's recent post about the 4-6-0 has kind of got me going again on the little 3500, so here is the update. I painted it the tender this evening, but before I did I grabbed a few shots. As a brief description of the work, the flared curb around the perimeter of the tank was removed and sanded smooth. A new coal bunker was fabricated from styrene with wooden batter boards made from styrene placed on top. New details were added on the rear of the tender and the ladder was moved from center to offset on the firemans side. I have started doing some work on the engine, but it will be a while before it's ready for paint. Brad Slone
Looking really good, Brad. Can't wait to see the finished product! And, be sure to include some 'as you go photo's' of the locomotive work.
For those interested, here is my latest photo's of the 3500 class switcher prior to painting. Fitting the new cab and the new cylinders & steam chest was the biggest challenges. Brad
Man, you sure did a clean job on that cab modification. My hat's off to you. I can't wait to see her painted. Very impressive work.
Brad - Nice work, your 3500 is going to be sweet. Glad to see you are doing a Frisco 0-6-0, not many have done those. Ken
Brad, Why not write an artilce about this conversion for The Meteor? This is the kind of artilce it needs.
Splendid, Brad - thanks for sharing. On the fireman's side, what did you use for the step? It looks like a small piece of Plastruct u-channel? Best Regards,
Chris, Yes that was a piece of styrene channel, it seemed like the simplest approach. Attached are a few of the finished product for those interested. Brad
