Got Ditch Lights!?!?!?!?!???
Well here are some of my custom units that sport non-standard ditchlights.
From left to right, (Clockwise);
A BC Rail -8 [HO Atlas, heavily modified] (Fictitious, their -8’s were Draper-Taper Carbodies) with it’s quad crossover lights. I asked about that & they said it was for long turns & tunnels. They also said they are constant & do not alternate over a crossing like US machines. However, they are activated, (if not already on) when the horn is sounded… I’m also told that if an ‘apprentice’ is brought on the rear light may illuminate when the horn is sounded…? Hmmm…
Another BC Rail, this time an SD40-2,[HO Kato Mid 6610 heavily modified]
It is BC Rail #756 in original colors (the link), & then in the Red White & Blue scheme. The details didn’t change tho. Check out the unique front grab iron arrangement, it is a unique, a wide style… Also note the ‘criss cross’ sets of ditchlights, & only the bottoms have stone guards… It is a pretty cool machine.
For some reason I cannot find any pix of it in the current scheme, Sorry… Well, no I’ll keep it BC appropriate…
The next unit is a stock Kato #6600 SD40-Mid Undecorated. It is in here to show the difference between the BC Rail alteration & the IC&E flipped/inverted ditchlights. It is a real nice machine as it comes out of the box. I wish they were still being produced, Please Kato, Please make more HO!!!
Following that is a Kato #6600 painted IC&E blue with its ditchlights inverted, or flipped below the front deck. I cut away the anticlimber braces & shaved off the Ditch Lights from the grab iron assembly. Then I repositioned them under the anticlimber to achieve low mounted ditch lights. I filled the deck with styrene & Archer decals, although they do not match the large Kato Treadplate.
Last is an Athearn CN GP that I modified in my usual style, & added Ra
I completed a half dozen cars this week. All are factory paints and, where necessary, I replaced plastic wheels with metal ones, horn hook couplers with Kadees, added weight to NMRA standards and did some light weathering.
Box NYC 24442 is an Accurail kit with some light weathering
Mobilgas tank cars WSRX 2345 and 2387 are old Athearn Blue Box kits I found with original boxes. I do not know how old these are, but the price on the box is $2.85. I renumbered one car and addded end numbers and Flammable placards to both.
Covered hoppers MEC 2421 2424 and 2442 are Bowser kits; MEC used them for cement service. I used Rustall on 2424 to give it a fresh rust bloom like the paint was just starting to fail.
Kind of like The Count on Sesame Street; 1-2-3 HAHAHAHA [li] (rumble of thunder) [(-D]
I have to admit that is one area I envy the O guys. (The ability to have detailed items like your paint can…and you can actually paint faces on people!)
Here is a Red Caboose kit I bought at a train show. After getting it home, I realized that somebody had started it already, and used almost a full bottle of CA on the handrails! It took some time to fix, but I think it ended up looking alright.
Keith… Looks like you had fun restoring the old tank car. Nice job!
Below shows a project I worked on this week. It is an old Kleiber delevery truck. I made it to be a derilict vehicle in the back corner of a scrap yard I am currently building.
The 1/87 model is made from an old metal kit. I painted and lettered it. Then I weathered it.
I finished up my Bar Mills Bud Smiley’s Gas Stop kit this week. I think they gave me the wrong scale gas pumps though, they look huge. I have some JL ones coming to replace them though.
Good stuff guys. There is some really fine modeling and photography here this week.
A little something different from the BRVRR this week. I finished a PRR F-unit I have been working on. Its an Athearn BB kit. I did a little detailing and weathered it with Bragdon Industries dry powders and some Dulcote. I installed a TCS T1 decoder and a modified structure bulb for lights. It turned out pretty well, I think.
Keep up the good work guys. This is always the best thread of the week.
