CrispyBassist
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Everything posted by CrispyBassist
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One takeaway I see from this is that the adding weight to the tender - around the equivalent weight of a battery box - could help prevent it from derailing when pushed by a power car 🤔
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The 17 refurbished cars mentioned above are actually cars used in the 1920s to 1930s for the Orient Express; they can represent both the modern train and the one from a century ago. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-orient-express-is-making-a-comeback-180981216/
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I don't think anyone who plans to seriously model ANY train is satisfied with the version that comes in a Lego set! But those who do are likely significantly fewer in number than those who would buy a set that is close, but imperfect.
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But I really want to see the next inevitable explosion! 🍿 Ha! As they say, "there's a prototype for everything!" The MÁV v63 electric behind it is quite interesting too 😁
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It does look short, but looking at OE models from model train manufacturers (Marklin, specifically) it's correct for the loco (without the tender) to be about half the length of the passenger cars. That said, the passenger cars are shorter than prototypical, likely because they have to work on R40 track, thus the loco gets squished too. I may get two, to extend the passenger cars a bit and still wind up with an extra one and also make adjustments to the loco! Conveniently the OE has been around for a LONG time in different reincarnations, so just about any locomotive could be "correct" on the front of it, even modern stuff that was operating in 2022 when I photographed it: https://flic.kr/p/2ntzTiW
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I heard someone recently call them "electric garrats", which is quite correct
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Are smaller flanges possible on larger radius tracks?
CrispyBassist replied to SteamSewnEmpire's topic in LEGO Train Tech
The flanges play a large role in switches too. If I'm not mistaken, the wheels are flange-bearing across the gaps in the frog, which is a technology the real railroads use too, even to the point of eliminating flangeway gaps in some frogs: Lift Frog by Matt Csenge, on Flickr Some variety in wheel sizes could be useful though. Like you said, locomotives have larger wheels than freight cars, autoracks have smaller wheels than typical freight cars, I'm sure there's more variation as well. -
Just wanted to share with y'all another load I recently put together for the BMR flat car: Turtle Creek Central Flatcar by Matt Csenge, on Flickr I've had the aero tubes set aside for this for a while, though I've mostly seen corrugated pipe loads on bulkhead flats or gondolas. Perhaps they're being shipped to the construction site for some kind of Hyper-circuit thing ;-)
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Yup, I've done it before too. Both of the trains in this video use train motors with large wheels:
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[MOC] Santa Fe EMD F7A Warbonnet #315
CrispyBassist replied to SavaTheAggie's topic in LEGO Train Tech
Thats exciting to hear! I'm thinking this will look good in black, white, and orange ? -
Since the two rails are different lengths, the other wheel had a longer distance to travel in the curve. If both wheels are spinning at the same speed, one must slip in order for both to arrive at the end of the curve at the same time (easily visualized by trying to roll a cylinder in a circle). The same thing happens in real railroading, though the solution is typically to use slightly conical wheels, so that the radius of the wheel can adjust slightly to the curves.
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Would a Power UP box fit in the cab? That would let you eliminate the IR receiver entirely, it's just hard to tell if the new cable connections would fit in the cab.
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Again, thanks for the heads-up! Just ordered 200 as well. Maybe all of us ordering as many as possible will clue Lego in that it's a high-demand piece...
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Now it looks a lot more like one of these:
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On that note, time to build more boxcars before Cale re-drains the world of this valuable resource!
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Big Ben Bricks does that size of wheel, though it's not exactly the same style (see Flanged Train Wheel 17.6mm). If that doesn't suit it, painting would probably work. It would only be the tread of the wheel that would wear off, might not be too noticeable...
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BrickTracks: R104 Switch Kickstarter is LIVE!
CrispyBassist replied to coaster's topic in LEGO Train Tech
You either need a new credit card, or a new wife ? -
Yup! Pretty sure I can tell them all. Seriously, great job there.
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Wow, this is gorgeous! I'm very interested in this pantograph, it looks like the parts are much more common, whereas my current design uses 16 Minifig pirate hooks each, which are getting expensive...
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I finally found the box my PF remote was hiding in and was able to test the Brickstuff Power Functions adapter v2 that I built into this loco: Headlight Test by Matt Csenge, on Flickr I've got it on the red input and the motors on the blue, so I can control them independently if I wish. So far I'm very happy with the way it works!
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I recently rebuilt my GP-9 to resolve some aspects of it that I was unhappy about. Here's the final result: New Haven GP-9 Rebuild by Matt Csenge, on Flickr Primarily, I rebuilt it so that the section around the battery box and IR receiver is truly 5-studs wide. After that, I added the fuel ports to the sides of the fuel tank. Then, being inspired by Aaron Burnett's amazing Central of Georgia GP-9, I modified the ends using less-than-half-stud offsets to get rid of the stepped slope typically seen when using cheese slopes. I also added lights using Brickstuff's new Power Functions Power Source v2, which includes directional lights. Unfortunately when I moved back to NY I misplaced my controller, so I haven't tested it yet... Stickers from OK Brick Works and Jim Pirzyk. New Haven GP-9 Rebuild by Matt Csenge, on Flickr New Haven GP-9 Rebuild by Matt Csenge, on Flickr And here's the pre-rebuild version: NYNH&H GP-9 by Matt Csenge, on Flickr
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Back again with another duo of BMR freight cars! This time it's two State of Maine boxcars, one for the Bangor and Aroostook and one for the New Haven, since both railroads owned these cars. State of Maine Boxcars by Matt Csenge, on Flickr I chose dark blue after seeing Dawson Santoro's on Flickr. The cost of the handle plates in dark blue is pretty high on Bricklink, so the New Haven got black ends to keep the price down. Aside from the color, the only major deviation from the BMR plan was for the charcoal heaters on the underside of the car. These cars were outfitted with heaters to keep the potatoes they transported from freezing in the winter. Wow, these reefers are gorgeous! You're right about them fitting in with the BMR cars. I'm impressed with the quantity you have too!
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Shay geared steam locomotive and silver ore mining train - MOD of a MOC
CrispyBassist replied to Murdoch17's topic in LEGO Train Tech
I can't tell from these pics, but is the boiler centered on the loco? Another defining feature of a Shay was the offset boiler to accommodate the pistons. You might be able to use jumper tiles to get it slightly offset, though that might complicate the piston assembly and frame... Looks good though, the geared drive on the side is eye-catching. -
So I'm not the only one with that plan
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Having seen the post in another thread regarding the price of large drivers on BrickLink, I might pick up a couple of these for the parts too...