Aleksi Perala

Hello @domik, thanks for sharing your model of Hr1. Looks like it's modeled after one of the last two built; either 1020 or 1021, equipped with roller bearings and Witte-type smoke deflectors. I have very fond childhood memories of a 1:10 scale model of this locomotive that used to reside in the ticket hall of Helsinki Central Station. You could make it run by inserting a coin. I built a 1:42 scale model a couple of years ago, here are a few photos and a video of it.

Thank you @LEGO Train 12 Volts. I'm glad you asked. Yes indeed, I cut the Tile, Modified 1 x 2 Grille in two. I had tried different ways of doing the air vents; first I had sets of two 1x2 grille tiles in a row, but that way the air vents were too long. Then I tried Slope 18 2 x 1 x 2/3 with Grille in rows of three in upright position, but it didn't look quite right. I tried different colours — the vents should be black really — but I love shiny metallic things so that's what I went with. I have been a purist most of my life but these days I happily get the tools out as a last resort.

Hello Rory, welcome aboard!

Urban legend or not, the story made me laugh, thanks for that @zephyr1934! Probably not so far-fetched as birds are pretty high up on the list of things that might hit windshields.

Thank you @zephyr1934. Yeah it’s a weird one, but it paved the way to the next diesel locomotive Hr12 which in turn was highly successful. I wasn’t going to build this one at all, but after doing a few shows and talking to people who remember it in service it became a necessity. I don’t like the bars on the driver’s window — they were required by the health and safety regulations at the time as the top speed was set to 120 km/h and the glass wasn’t considered strong enough. Thank you @Feuer Zug. No pain, it was a fun build : ) If you are referring to the 24599 Brick, Round Corner 5 x 5 without Studs, then yes indeed! I took the easy way and built it in 10 wide. The real thing is 3080 mm wide, so it’s narrower than the Dm4. In 1:42 scale that is 73.3 mm which is closer to 9 wide — now THAT would have been a royal pain… Thank you @Sebeus I. Not a cannon just yet – there is no motor : ) I need to work it out.

The Hr11 is the first class of line-haul diesel locomotives used by VR (Finnish State Railways). Only five units were built, all delivered by Valmet in 1955. They pulled mainly passenger trains, especially the grey express train 'kiitojuna' introduced in 1954. The Maybach diesel engines used in the locomotives proved highly unreliable, resulting in a complete overhaul of the engine-transmission system in 1956–58, but this did not solve all of the reliability problems. The Hr11 series was withdrawn from service in 1972. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VR_Class_Hr11 Here's my WIP model in 1:42 scale.

Having trouble with flickr links: [url=https://flic.kr/p/2qH2GRy][img]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/54285563858_32878c0962_c.jpg[/img][/url][url=https://flic.kr/p/2qH2GRy]Dm4_LEFTSIDE[/url] by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/60387829@N08/]Aleksi Perälä[/url], on Flickr

Thank you for the nice words everyOne! Here's the rest of the train, still work in progress... "Kiitojuna" is the name given to the high-speed passenger train operated by VR (the Finnish State Railways) in the 1950s. The service began in 1954, when the first three multiple unit carriages were completed by Valmet. Another three carriages were completed later. One carriage consisted of three units connected in series; they were hardly ever separated. The first unit (KEi) had 62 third class seats. The middle unit (KEis) had 56 third class seats and housed a diesel generator that generated electricity for the entire carriage. The end unit (KCik) had a small kitchen and 35 second class seats. One carriage had 153 seats in total. The carriages were mainly pulled by Dm4 multiple units and sometimes by Hr11 diesel locomotives. They operated from Helsinki to Turku, Pori, Vaasa, Savonlinna and Kuopio. With a top speed of 110 km/h, they were the most modern rolling stock in Finland of their time. The railcars were then used in railcar and express train traffic until they were finally withdrawn from service in the early 1970s. One KCik unit and one Hr11 locomotive still exist today, both are outdoors in poor condition. I built my train based on detailed drawings by Tapio Keränen in his article about Dm4 and Kiitojuna comprising the whole number 5 issue of "Junat" magazine from 1994. Also a book called "Harmaan kiitojunan tarina" has been a great help. In this 1:42 scale model each unit is about 50 cm long, which makes the whole train just over 2 meters long when pulled by the Dm4. The rubber stuff between the units is black pneumatic hose. The curtains are made of masking tape. The train is coupled by old type magnets and it has BMR ball bearings on all wheels. Photos taken by me and Melissa Speirs.

Thanks @Phil B. Once you go 10W you won't go back! At least that's what happened to me. But I don't run my trains anymore, apart from shows. They reside on my shelves, window sills and on the top of my piano. Thanks @zephyr1934. Speaking of details, where do you draw the line? I mean, some small details get easily blown out of proportion when built from bricks and that's where I give up / leave them out. But it is the details that make the design. Like the saying: "God is in the details". If you know what the details' function is then they are meaningful, and then you don't want to leave them out. Like if you are a steam engine driver you know every bit of your engine and if you built a model of it you wouldn't want to leave anything out. You know the dozens of places where the oil goes. I don't... at least not yet : ) I haven't taken many photos of MOCs before. Now I understand why: I'm out of my comfort zone! It's hard. But it's so worth it. I notice things I haven't seen before. I need to go back and forth. I have a lot to learn.

Thank you for your kind words gentlemen. I'm glad to be here!

VR Class Dm3 and Dm4 were multiple units used by the Finnish State Railways (VR) in 1952–1972. Ten of both series were ordered in 1949. They were manufactured by Valmet in 1952–1953. Four more Dm4 multiple units were ordered and manufactured in 1954. Sadly, all have been scrapped.Dm4 had an engine at both ends of the carriage, while the Dm3 had a luggage compartment instead of the engine at one end. In 1956–1959, all Dm3 series were converted to Dm4 by adding an engine instead of the luggage compartment. Technical data Maximum speed: 110 km/h Length: 21 000 mm Width: 3 194 mm Wheel system: originally B´B´, 1A0A01 (the poorly functioning cardan shaft that transferred power from the inner wheelset to the outer wheelset was later removed, resulting in two driven axles) Wheel length: 16 200 mm (Dm3), 16 400 mm (Dm4) Wheel diameter: 960 mm Weight in running order: 40.6 t (Dm3), 47.5 t (Dm4) Engines: General Motors 2-stroke 12-cylinder twin diesel engine (two straight-six cylinders coupled together by a gearbox) Power: 350 hp https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:VR_Class_Dm4 Here is my model of Dm4 1609 in 1:42 scale - 10 studs wide. It is powered by a 12V train motor and it has 12V lights. It's all genuine LEGO. I used some electrical tape for the front stripes and stickers of course. I built it in 2021 and have been going back to it for a couple of years now. It's not quite finished yet; I can't get the bogies right and I need to figure out how to make the side walls curvature without compromising the inside structure. IMG_1727_SIDE by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr IMG_1735_FRONTSIDE by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr IMG_1760_FRONT by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr IMG_1767_FRONT by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr IMG_1780_FRONTSIDELEFT by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr IMG_1844_SIDELEFT by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr IMG_2108_INSIDE_FULL by Aleksi Perälä, on Flickr There's a three-unit carriage that goes with it that I will be adding here once I get a chance to take photos of it. I've also built a mail carriage based on proposed technical drawings; it was never built in real life.

Testing posting and editing

Hello,I was born in Finland in 1976. I grew up with LEGO. I built trains, submarines and spaceships from Battlestar Galactica. I had 4.5V train motors and lights but couldn't afford the 12V systems. I started making music in 1988 and forgot about the bricks. Making music is very time consuming.I moved to the UK in 2010 and found a new spark of interest towards LEGO trains. I gradually got the 12V train sets and light bricks that I had always wanted. I started building my own models; limited to the LEGO track geometry and thus building mostly 6 wide. I built models of trains from the UK and USA. The photo below is of my setup from 2017. 10_11_2017 by Aleksi Perälä, on FlickrI moved back to Finland in 2018. First I lived in a trackman's house and built a model of it in a minifigure scale. As I lived in the house it was an easy target to get it just right. I ended up building it in 1:42 scale, which is roughly 3 studs per meter. After that I have been building all my trains in that same 1:42 scale. It yields mostly 10 wide trains.I am a 12V fan all the way. I love the 12V light bricks and their warm tungsten light. The lightbulbs inside can be used on their own. I love the original 12V train motors and appreciate their quiet operation compared to the 9V whining -and weak- motors, not to mention the modern stuff.So far I have done three shows here in Finland. My favourite is Pienoisjunatreffit at the Finnish Railway Museum because it's not too crowded and you get to present your models in front of the real trains. All my models are unfinished but I don’t mind, I like the WIP nature of things. 2024_05_19_F by Aleksi Perälä, on FlickrI will be sharing MOCs with you in detail — one by one — once I manage to take decent photos of them!