Has anyone changed out the cylinders on the Spectrum low-wheeled 4-6-0 to replace the slide valve cylinders with piston valve cylinders?
If so, what cylinders did you use?
Thanks in advance.
I didn’t change them out, but I did change the existing slide valve casting to look more like a piston valve type. I’ve done the one shown, and have the parts cut and ready for another one. I plan to do an illustrated tutorial over on the Gauge eventually, but I’m currently pretty busy rebuild three Bachmann Consolidations to match CNR prototypes.
The procedure involves filling some places with dimensional strip styrene, adding new ends to the valve chambers, and covering the whole shebang with a styrene wrapper. I also plan to change the entire superstructure of these locos, with new cabs and boilers, and all new fittings.
Wayne
Hi Wayne.
That’s exactly what I want to do with the cylinders. 
Did you remove the cylinders from the chassis or did you manage to do the modifications in situ?
I’ve already modified the cab by simply blanking out the front side windows and have kit-bashed the tenders to add a recessed coalbunker and coal rails. I also plan on replacing the “wedding cake” dome and sandbox for a more Canadian look.
You mention the Gauge, what is that?
As I recalled the procedure, I thought that it had been done in situ: however, I read the description of the procedure and it seems that the cylinder assembly was removed from the loco. Several parts need to be removed from it, with some being discarded and others modified and replaced. The original slide valve cylinder block, after some modifications, is used as a pattern to fashion new front and rear faces for the piston valve block, then a wrapper is applied to complete the new assembly. To be quite honest, the procedure (which I wrote when I did the loco shown above) seems a bit difficult to follow, although I’m sure that it’ll make more sense when I actually start working on the second loco. [swg] I had originally bought new domes and cabs for my two locos, but I felt that they appeared too small for my purposes (I had originally purchased them for conversion to CNR H-6 Ten Wheelers, but the driver spacing is wrong, so they’ll eventually end up lettered for one of my free-lance roads, “in the style of” those CNR locos). I went out and bought a used H-6-g, at a good price, [;)] did a few modifications and a bit of minor repair work, then repainted it:
The Gauge is another forum to which I belong. If you click on the link (in blue) you can check it out. If you’re on dial-up, you may want to exercise caution, though, as it’s a very “photo friendly” place. [:-^]
Wayne
I didn’t like the inside valve gear on my Roundhouse 4-6-0s; sometime in the mid- to late-70s RMC I believe ran a conversion article utilizing Bowser components. This was about the time I retired from the Air Force–1978–and I got busy with other things so when I bolted HO-Scale for N-Scale a few years later these lokes got sold unmodified. This conversion article may work for you if you can locate a copy of it.