Model Train Journal

Cleaning up the basement and I literally uncovered this. I bought the kit back in early 70's. This is the Entex import of the Aoshima original. It's 1/50 scale and has extremely detailed trucks and the full inside that can be revealed by popping off the cab.







At that point in time I didn't have the tools, skills, or patience to do the kit justice and it wound up so far back on the burner it was invisible. I did start on the truck assemblies and realized I was in over my head and set it aside.

Note the delicacy of the brake rigging. The traction motor vents are annotated relative to a discussion over in the Club Car Lounge re why you don't drive an electric locomotive into water.

Only "flaws" I can find in the kit are some mold sinks and ejection pin marks on the chassis that should be easily fixed. It should go together pretty well (BTW, I'm still working on the LST, trying to scratch build railings for the upper decks. Nice kit but very primitive and weird scale means no off the shelf detail parts.)

Nice kit. My father and I built the Entex Wankel rotary engine kit, which was in the same vein as Revell's Visible V-8 engine kit.

Always reminds me of the old Monty Python skit regarding rude names, "Wankel Rotary Engine" being one of them, lol.

Was up to Sarge's place yesterday. We bagged working on "The Project" and hit one of the local antique malls and had lunch at a local joint, all the while trying to solve the world's problems. Our conversations are pretty diverse, yesterday ranging from the current vagaries of British politics to how one fires an M47 Dragon man-portable wire-guided anti-tank missile. On top of that we found a bunch of neat stuff at the antique joint.

Back at the shop, Sarge did me a huge favor and rewired this early Lionel 259E, the original wiring best described as crumbling:



I had forgotten that this thing had an e-unit, so it was a bit more of a job than anticipated. Got a lesson in un-soldering 90-year-old connections in the process. Now I have a good idea how to proceed on a couple of others in the project pile.

Oh yeah, and he reminded me he's not an effing service station, lol.

Healey

It's still the 1960s here; none of those fancy safety cab 4000hp things.

Snapped with my phone (so pardon the crap picture) on the way to the mouth-mangler.

Did I say phone? Might not be to '60s after all...

sarge wrote:Snapped with my phone (so pardon the crap picture) on the way to the mouth-mangler.

Nice photo Sarge and totally adequate for forum posting. Thank you, I love the F units.

If you are ever around Los Angeles Union Terminal, there is a display of O Scale Santa Fe F units at Philippe's.

chuck wrote:Cleaning up the basement and I literally uncovered this. I bought the kit back in early 70's. This is the Entex import of the Aoshima original. It's 1/50 scale and has extremely detailed trucks and the full inside that can be revealed by popping off the cab.

Cool Blue locomotive Chuck.

It would make an interesting model for a Japan Railroad freight train display.

I cleaned out my PhotoBucket account today and cancelled the subscription.
I saved a few old model train photos while cleaning. They have been shown
here before, but cannot be seen due to PhotoBucket's "Pay or Blocked" policy.

This one is an Atlas O-Scale WDT in a tunnel.

That's a nice tunnel (and a great picture showing it off)

chuck wrote:That's a nice tunnel (and a great picture showing it off)

How the image was made.
The tunnel is an open mine shaft near my house. The camera autofocused back in the mine, giving the entrance an out-of-focus effect that fits the composite image.
The locomotive is sitting on track jacked up to place the locomotive in the center of the tunnel image on my computer monitor which is behind the locomotive. Now that I have exposed the method behind the photo, the track will probably appear to be floating in the air (which it is.)
The locomotive nose was not in sharp focus so I opened the photo in Corel PaintShop and sharpened the image up a bit.

webenda wrote:If you are ever around Los Angeles Union Terminal, there is a display of O Scale Santa Fe F units at Philippe's.

Interesting. I don't remember that, but it's been more than twenty five years since I was last there.



Would make a good model.

Thanks for the details, very nice work. I thought it might be a real tunnel or mine shaft with the model "posed" (wall texture looked like what I've seen in real tunnels and shafts). Very effective way to mix models and real back grounds.

webenda wrote:I cleaned out my PhotoBucket account today and cancelled the subscription.
I saved a few old model train photos while cleaning. They have been shown
here before, but cannot be seen due to PhotoBucket's "Pay or Blocked" policy.

This one is an Atlas O-Scale WDT in a tunnel.

What a nice shot!

George

The food at Phillipe's is pretty good too. Apparently the owner was an avid Lionel collector. I think there is another display case as well.

sarge wrote:It's still the 1960s here; none of those fancy safety cab 4000hp things.

Snapped with my phone (so pardon the crap picture) on the way to the mouth-mangler.

Did I say phone? Might not be to '60s after all...

image.jpg

Sarge,
What railroad or company is this?

Roger, its the Gettysburg Northern.

They run the old Reading branch that leaves the ex-Reading main at Mount Holly Springs and goes down to Gettysburg where it connected to the Western Maryland (now CSX). They run through the little town I live in, adding to the time capsule feel of the place. I see three units in regular operation, the FP9 and high-hood early Geep in the photo, and a nicely rebuilt Geep of the same vintage but with a chopped nose (perhaps an old Paducah or Conrail rebuild). I wouldn't be surprised if the F was the youngest of the three, actually.