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Dan-147

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Everything posted by Dan-147

  1. Dan-147
    I've successfully used 14 gauge solid electrical wiring (the kind used for wiring a house). It is cheap and easy to get at your local hardware store. Black and white are common colors, red can be found. Other colors are much harder to get. The idea came to me when I saw that some Modders would insert a wire in a length of flex tubing so that it would keep a curved shape. I figured I'd save a step and use "tubing" that had the wire pre-inserted. Dan-147
  2. Dan-147
    Looks like the "wrong" side of a Shay geared locomotive (the cylinders are upright on the other side). I don't think the FORD logo means that it was built by FORD but rather that it worked in a FORD plant. Shays were usually manufactured by Lima Locomotives and they were able to negotiate tight curves that were common in industrial sites. Their slow speed would not be an issue in that environment. Dan-147
  3. Dan-147
    The original train shed came out just when Lego was changing from light grey/dark grey to light bley/dark bley. Later batches came in the new colors so technically, using bley isn't really a substitution. I bought one of the original batches and the change in color was one of the reasons I never got a second set (like a lot of recent Lego sets, it looks better when you have 2). I would really like to see your pictures! Dan-147
  4. Dan-147
    I've seen it done a few times in Canadian National colors; black body, red cab and ends with a white stripe. Very common colors so it is as inexpensive as it can get! Plus the colors really snap. Additionally, CN really has SD 40-2 locomotives (which this is supposed to be except for the 4 wheel trucks instead of 6 wheel trucks) and GP 40-2s (which is what it really is with a 4 wheel truck). I must have a picture of it somewhere but I just can't find it right now. I'll look for it and post it soon. Dan-147
  5. Dan-147
    The brass axle on brass tubing has very little friction compared to a plastic technic cross-axle on plastic technic hole. Just make sure that there is no flashing left on the cut of the tubing. I use a round needle file to grind it off. I've also tried the original 9-volt wheels with a steel axle that went through the wheels. This also worked well but these wheels are getting harder and more expensive to get. A bit of graphite powder lubricant reduces friction even more without making any mess. The inner shoulder on the Lego wheel is flush with the side of the wheel. This does not create a problem when the wheels are used as originally intended as there is nothing that can rub on the inside of the wheels in the wheelblock. Initially, I cut the tubing at 32mm (exactly 4 studs) but the sides of the wheels would sometimes rub on the sides of the bogie frame (creating quite a bit of friction). That is why I now cut the tube at 33mm so there is a ½mm play on each side. Dan-147
  6. Dan-147
    If you're going for a look that's different from the standard Lego wheelblock (for example, North American freight cars) and are not a die-hard purist, I would suggest a design by Cale Leiphart that is available on the Railbricks site. http://railbricks.co...freight-trucks/ I use a simplified version on my freight cars. Here is a picture of it beside a regular Lego truck. https://www.flickr.com/photos/14163824@N07/5726592488/in/photostream/. Please overlook the fact that in the picture it uses Kadee couplers. It also works very well with the older Lego magnets. Besides the couplers, the only non Lego parts I use are K+E Engineering 1/8" tubing cut to 33mm length and K+E Engineering 0,081" brass rod cut to 40mm length. This rod fits snuggly on the regular Lego wheels without any glue so it can be disassembled at will. The rolling resistance of this setup is comparable to Lego wheelblocks. You can also reduce even more this resistance by using graphite powder. Dan-147
  7. Dan-147
    Kids, I would guess... Dan-147
  8. Dan-147
    You could also have a look at instructions that are available on-line, many of them for free. I recommend http://railbricks.com/instructions/ . This will give you a lot of ideas on how to build. You might be particularly interested in Reinhard Ben Beneke's BR-23 in the Steam Locomotive section. Dan-147
  9. Dan-147
    Go for a lower-case "r". Dan-147
  10. Dan-147
    I personally try to avoid STAMPS (STickers Across Many PieceS) in my MOCs as it makes sticker application easier and neater. The UW logo beneath the cab window could fit on a 1 x 4 brick which could be centered by changing some of the bricks for plates (or just changing the build sequence beneath the window). A rather minor quibble.... Dan-147
  11. Dan-147
    Actually, it would be very easy to take the third floor of the Grand Emporium and spread it out between the other two floors. The longer look would work quite well. Dan-147
  12. Dan-147
    I'm very interested in seeing what you come up with. I also feel like the stairs take up all the Inside space. Please post your LDD file whenyou are ready. Dan-147
  13. Dan-147

    Project X

    Dan-147 replied to Barduck's topic in LEGO Train Tech

    That will clear out any scenery on a regular layout! It'll turn it into a desert. Wait, didn't these locomotives operate in the desert? Dan-147
  14. Dan-147
    Allow me to drool... Very impressive! I'm pretty sure it didn't come cheap. Quite a commitment in time and money, not to mention talent. Dan-147
  15. Dan-147
    That was going to be my question as well. Iwas also wondering; when you say set, does that mean a locomotive with a group of cars or is it just a word that means "group of pieces that make up a car or locomotive" ? Dan-147
  16. Dan-147
    Personally, I'd be very happy with a Jessica Rabbit mini-fig...
  17. Dan-147
    Wow!! I wish second hand stores here in Canada were so well stocked!! Any chance you could take pictures of a partly disassembled waggon so that we could see how the sides are built? Dan-147
  18. Dan-147
    The 9-volt wheels came preassembled. The metal axle goes through each wheel and the bearing surface is on the tip of this pointy metal axle. The wheels can only be separated from the axle with quite a bit of effort, but they can be put back. The RC wheels have to be assembled. The metal axle fits in a hole in the wheel and it does not go through it. The bearing surface is on a molded pointy part of the plastic wheel. If you take the wheels out of the wheel carrier, they fall off the axle as this fit is a bit loose. Many AFOLs who make MOCs that do not use the wheel carrier prefer the 9 volt wheels as the wheels hold on solidly to the axle. I am one of those AFOLs but I use the RC wheels (cheaper and more readily available). However, I substitute a slightly bigger axle (0.081 inch brass rod from K & S Engineering, stock number 8168) instead of the stock steel axle. I cut it to 40mm. Dan-147
  19. Dan-147
    I couldn't agree more! Dan-147
  20. Dan-147
    More like the opposite. That would only make it run even slower. There doesn't seem to be an issue with torque so the solution would be to gear it even higher, maybe in two stages. Only problem is available space... Dan-147
  21. Dan-147
    I did a repaint of it in VIA Rail colors (yellow, blue and black). I used this part http://www.bricklink...m.asp?P=2377c03 for the portholes. Although it is rather squareish, I like the results, plus it's pure LEGO. I have no idea how much it cost me. A lot of the parts came from my spares. Dan-147
  22. Dan-147
    American steam would be great, especially if it's a New York Central J-3a streamlined Hudson (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NYC_Hudson). While I'm dreaming, a passenger coach set for the 20th Century Limited (the passenger train this locomotive hauled). I know, it's not going to happen after the ATSF cars disaster. Dan-147
  23. Dan-147
    The answer to life, the universe and everything...
  24. Dan-147
    It seems to run so smoothly. You make it look so effortless (which I'm sure it's not!) Congradulations on another fine steam engine. Dan-147
  25. Dan-147
    No need for a 3D printer. The standard Kadee 806 O gauge draft box can easily be attached to a 3 x 2 plate with hole using a #2 screw and nut plus a few small parts; Here's an example mounted on my MOC locomotives and freight cars; My bogie design places the 3 x 2 plate with hole one plate higher than the hole would be on a buffer beam. The bottom pins on the coupler would then have to be bent upwards (Kadee sells a special plyer for this) but otherwise, the installation is the same. Dan-147
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