Improving the Life-Like C-424

[jmlaboda - RIP]

Charlie, those are some great prototype pix... thanks so very much for sharing them, I am sure that some will find them to be very good resources!!!

[mandealco]

I did have a senior moment when I looked at the photo of the dynamic brake cover.  What is that small detail in the middle front?  Doh!  Great effort Charlie.  As Jerry said, these are a wonderful resource, the more we study the prototype, the better our models will look.  I won't be adding the builder's ruler to my model.

Cheers
Steve

[rdg5308]

I’m certainly glad to contribute what I can.

Yeah, the ruler was not an Alco option… It’s a force of habit to stick one in when I take pictures if I can.

As far as the radiators go, the fins are so close together it makes the cores appear almost solid. Without having maintenance records to know why the shutters were removed, we assumed it may have been for maintenance of some kind and simply never reinstalled because of the sale of the GBW and the storage of the Alco’s.  It would seem odd to operate them without the shutters for any appreciable time – certainly not in the winter.  So unless you are modeling a specific time where you know they were missing, I’m not sure you’d need to model it without them.

Charlie

[mandealco]

I've had a busy week, but finally finished the roof changes. I filed down the dynamic brake hatch and added a flat panel over the part that was left.

Many thanks for the photos Charlie. Apart from the larger fuel tank, this could be the 322.


Cheers
Steve

[rdg5308]

Looks great, Steve.  You've given me inspiration and ideas on the ones I have stored away.  This will sound almost blasphemous to a Reading fan, but I actually plan to model the 5204 as the worn out and weary Conrail patched 2493.

Even if GE/Hornell had replaced the fuel tank on the 322 with a larger one as they did on the two ex-Rdg's that went to the D&H, there's one small option that always identified them as ex-Rdg.  The Reading's were the only C-424's built with two sand filler hatches on the front nose. Small detail yes, but it kept me straight through the Guilford renumbering and even now with one surviving on the Western NY & PA.

Charlie

[mandealco]

Worn and weathered seems to suit Alcos.  I had forgottem about the 2 sand fills on Rdg units, even though they were quite visible on your photo.  There was 1 Reading detail removed from the rebuilds, the distinctive rain gutters.

As you can see from the photos, I didn't change the radiator.  Though hard to tell from my old photos, I think they were there when we were in Green Bay in '85.  Now I've got to go and see another Steve about painting this for me.

While I'm waiting for this to happen, I'm going to look at another half finished project on my bench, the proposed but never built C-636P. 

Enjoy your weekend.
Cheers
Steve

[jmlaboda - RIP]

She's looking good and I am looking forward to her being in full dress!!!

[mandealco]

Hi
We're in the paint shop at last.  Steve4Painting is taking care of this one for me.  Paint, decals and weathering.  Can't wait to get her back.  Pictures to follow in a week or so.

Cheers
Steve

[mandealco]

Hi Guys
Picked her up from Steve4Painting today.  Still a few small things to do, lenses, winter window glass, class lights, oil stains, but nearly done.





Not great photos, light not the best and I don't like flash.
More over the weekend.
Cheers
Steve

[central.vermont]

Steve,

That's sweet looking!!!!! I know you said you have a few things still to do but thought I would
mention one thing I noticed and that is you need to take the truck side frames off and paint the
outside faces of the bronze wheel contacts. That's the only thing I see. Just a great looking Loco!!

Jon

[Philip H]

oh man, those are HAWT!  Looks just like the one I keep photographing in Green Bay!

[lock4244]

"Mmmmm, Alco, gaahhhh..."

[Scott Lupia]

Steve, you do wonderful things with Alco's.  Love seeing your work.

Scott Lupia

[Scottl]

Steve, your finishing on this unit is excellent, as was the work to bring it to that point.  Thanks for sharing.

[Puddington]

"Alco-lishous"...............
Looks outstanding !