I’m a prototype modeler, many are prototype modelers, many get fun out of making something their own, be it an F7 on AAR trucks, or a a GP30 painted pink with purple polka dots. While I’d rather do something more prototypical, if someone has fun making their model isn’t that the whole point. Why must we criticize someone imaginative work when its obvious he is not trying to make a model of a real locomotive, but a whimsical piece of equipment. The loco looks fine. While the horns and flash stand out as toy like, as long as the owner does not mind, then what else matters, Jeff, I think I can dig up a scale sized horn if you need it.
Not neccesary. I have plenty of horns.
Ditto that. It’s your hobby, enjoy it how you like it.
I had one of those. If you are using another FA chassis to power it, try to get the mechanism as far back in the shell as possible. The center of the rear truck was only 8-9 ft from the rear coupler in an FT and there was considerably more overhang on the front of the engine than an F3 or F7. The truck centers of an FA are pretty close to that of an FT.
One of the things Bachmann screwed up on the shell of the FT was the “chicken-wire” screens on the sides of the unit. An F unit has an internal truss structure that supports the weight of the uint. The FT used a wire mesh over the vents along the top of carbody sides (as did some F3’s). You could see the top of the trusswork through those vents. Unfortunately Bachmann’s die makers interpreted drawings of that to mean putting the trusses in front of the chicken wire. One fairly interesting opportunity is to get fine mesh brass screen or nylon tule from a fabric store and put the mesh over the trusses (on the bias). If you use tule spray it with paint or laquer based hair spray to stiffen it, it makes it easier to cut and glue. Adds a whole lot of dimension.
I never completed mine. I hadn’t replaced the terrible Bachmann drive so it performed horribly and it went to the back burner. I was painting it for a freelanced club road, moved and changed scales before I finished all the work. It ended up being paint test dummy before being disposed of along with my AHM BL2, Tyco C430, AHM RS2’s and other aborted locomotive feedstock (the low nose C430 cab and dynamic brake section was going to be combined with a Tyco C630 long hood and put on a AHM C628 underframe to make a low nose C630) I ended up buying Stewart FT&
Did the work on the FT shell today. The paint on the cab is still a bit rough. I’ll take care of that tomorrow, I’m to tired to do it tonight. It wouldn’t do any harm to put the decals on though so I did that. Also did the decals for the two F7 shells. Here are some photos of the FT as it is right now.
Looks good, Jeff.
Jeffrey,
Make sure you get that pesky hair around the decal before you finish up your painting.
Tom
Thanks Tom. That hair has already been tended to.
Jeff,
One thing I like about the things you do is that you enjoy doing them and am not afraid to show your efforts, unlike some of the self proclaimed experts who know all and do nothing.
Keep up the good work Jeff and enjoy the hobby - as you obviously do.
Teditor.
Sometimes you have to do it to get an engine running, because you can’t find the correct parts. A while back i got a box of parts and junk, including an Athearn SD-9 that was in decent shape (except the motor and drive train were missing, so made it a dummy), but it was missing a truck (metal sideframes). I dug into my parts box and found a metal sideframe truck from a SDP-40 i used to have (actually still have but it’s broken). It fit, but the siderame styles are completely diffrent. If i can find the correct truck i’ll replace it, but for now:
jw:
I have to admit, I couldn’t figure out why you did that, but it makes sense now. I used to cobble up diseasels from train show box lots. It was a cheap way to get something with a coupler on the back that could haul trains. [:)] Your workmanship is better than mine was then, however.
The FT is as done as it’s gonna get and the F7-B needs just a spot of paint on the diaphrams. Wish the decals were better but this new printer is a piece of crap!
Looks great Jeff.
I licked the decal printing problem. By making the decal at a larger font size, say 12 instead of 6, and printing it with printers scaling set at 25% I get nice crisp decals with no blurring or fading.
Jeff -
I like your work a lot. Thanks for posting all the photos. Sounds like fun too.
Most likely at the end of F units some body somewhere swapped trucks on these units. Someone once said “There is a prototype of everything”
Jeff, I am wondering about the Spray Can Rembrant thing, We call them taggers here. Ha!
Cliff
The Spray can Rembrant was put on because I do a lot of my model painting with spray paints.
I have admired your work in the past but anyone that can use spray cans as well as you deserve all the praise that can be piled on! I read about someone in Denver who turns the can upside down and lets the gas out, then pierces the can to pour the paint into a bottle. I tried this and the can spewed most of the paint out on my fingers and on a bench when I clamped the can down. I then made a nozzle with a coffee stir tube and it worked fine. The next trip to Wal-Mart for another color, I thought I was ready to paint, lo and behold Krylon had changed nozzles. It is now back to the drawing board.
Keep up the good work. Always good to see your posts.
Cliff
[:-^]
I am the guy responsible.
I gave that nick-name (The Spray Can Rembrandt" ) to Jeff last year some time.
It fits him well. He would make a good tagger.
Johnboy out…
Why empty a spray can? Why not buy a bottle of paint to start with? Hobby acrylics go one smoother with a thinner coat, the solvents are water based for easy clean up, low odor and they don’t dissolve plastic. I grant they are more expensive but normally we don’t use that much paint to cover a model. For small jobs the acrylic craft paints in the little round bottles can be found on sale at craft stores for less than a dollar a bottle, sometimes as low as 33 cents.
The propellant in a lot of those cans is propane. Messing around with flamable gas and puncturing a pressure container just doesn’t seem like really good ideas when there are safer alterntives.
Dave H.