I am hoping that someone on this site has the Sawmill Kit #11.
I need a copy of the instructions so that I can assemble the kit, this is one of the steel kits requiring soldering.the kit was purchased a number of years ago along with several other Suydam kits.
I did locate a couplle, sets of directions on the HOSeeker site but not of this kit.
If anyone could help me I would certainly appreciatle it, otherwise all of the components will end up in a box full of old Suydam/California/ Alpine models…
I have built that kit many years ago when it was just Suydam and I probably have some of the kit and instructions for it, somewhere in my never throw away boxes. It will also be in the original box… If I can find it later today I’ll Pm you and find a way to send it to, I’m in Chgo. area… By the way it was tin, you can’t solder steel
I did find the plans that i thought I had, but they say it is kit #15, Barton Flats Lumber Co. It is a E. Suydam & Co. kit. It contains, the mill an office attached to, an incinerator, a sawdust bin, boiler house,log unloading ramp and log chute. If the plans can be of use to You, let me know and I WILL mail them to you, FREE…
If you solder, do not use rosin core solder that is used for electrical work. The heated rosin will be a mess to clean up. I soldered their sawtooh roof water heater kit some time ago and was never able to clean all the flux. The mess interfered with painting.
If you can find it, use solid solder and the flux used for soldering copper pipe, like Kester.
Also, you can get 60/40 solid solder from a place that sells stained glass supplies. This solder will be about 1/16" diameter, so you will have to hammer it to a smaller size. You can get suitable flux from the glass store as well.
He still has copies of the plans for the kit #11 Sawmill which he will send to me after Christmas.
Nice to find a company not manufacturing off shore.
I was at the Alpine Modeling site and for those of you that might be interested Alpine will be discontinuing their metal (steel) buildings. In their placet, Alpine is coming out with new buildings.
It is with mixed emotions that we announce the discontinuance of our line of model buildings made from metal. However, all of our current mat-board and plastic buildings are in production and are in stock.
With the transfer by many companies to overseas manufacturing, plus the price increase during the past two years, we cannot get the metal we use at a price that is affordable. To make this a positive event to you and our company, we will introduce a line of corrugated laser-cut mat-board buildings to replace those previously made with metal. The new buildings will look like corrugated metal, but do not need to be soldered in the assembly.
Frank, you can indeed solder steel, as long as it’s not the stainless variety. I solder wire to the steel brackets on the Athearn trucks to get rid of that sliding piece of steel that picks up current, and is so problematic when it oxidizes. How do I know it’s steel? it’s magnetic, and it rusts. As long as you clean the surface properly (I do it with a wire brush in a motor tool), you can solder to steel like you would to brass and copper.
I’M sorry, just tried to help, I bought that kit in 1952, when it was 3.95 a lot of money back then, and they didn’t have Ca back then and I was only 9yrs old… Tin is also magnetic and rusts, leave outside for awhile, instantly weathered,nice feature …I do not want to continue, I KNOW how to weld … stick , gas, mig, owned my own semi’s
The metal used in these kits is indeed “steel” tin is commonly used to mean thin sheet steel, but is actually a coating applied to thin sheets to minimize corrosion, tin will not rust, but the underlying steel still can eventually.
SymbolSn A malleable, silvery metallic element obtained chiefly from cassiterite. It is used to coat other metals to prevent corrosion and is a part of numerous alloys, such as soft solder, pewter, type metal, and bronze. Atomic number 50; atomic weight 118.71; melting point 231.89°C; boiling point 2,270°C; specific gravity 7.31; valence 2, 4. See Table at element.
I would like to thank you all for taking the time to go looking for the plans anyway… As noted Alpine Models, the successor to Suydam replied to an e-mail I sent and they have a set of the plans for this kit.
I bought that Barton Lumber Kit this weekend 12 Jan 2012 at a train show but it had no instructions. I’d be happy to pay postage or whatever to get a copy from you. Not sure how to get you my info as I am just new to this forum.
Sorry to disappoint, but you can indeed solder steel. If you have the structure, put a magnet to it. The Suydam metal buildings were made of tinned steel. That’s steel with a tinning compound plated over it. But, I’ve soldered steel every time I solder wires to the truck pickups on an Athearn Blue Box diesel. All you need is a hot iron, and clean surfaces, with plenty of paste flux.
Sorry about that - forgot I’d already answered this. Senior moment… [:$]
If the kit you purchased is the Barton Flats LUMBER Mill kit #15. send me a E-mail at FM_stripe@dabloone.org with Your mailing address and I will gladly mail them to You.
The kit I have is #11 Lumber Mill, it is not the Barton Lumber kit but a much smaller sawmill.
I see you have been offered a copy of the instructions from one of the readers. Should that fall through contact Alpine and request a copy.
True to their word, Alpine sent me a copy of the instructions for Kit #11 which I received in Fridays mail. I hope to start work on the kit later this month.
I am the one who made the offer for the plans and they are the original ones, not a copy… If he would contact me,I will mail them to him,for I have no use for them anyway…