SP, T&NO, 4-8-4 GS-1 build

[carlso]

Here is the start of my next project. It is a "superturbine" casting on a B'mann Class J chassis. I have had these since 2015 and have only looked at them and scratched my head (? ? ? ?).
So, here is the image of the parts...........


One of the fit tests.................


Here is my project goal, #702.......................


I ordered a new motor and a pony truck for it today. This build should take a while.

Stay safe, stay well,
Carl

[JMaurer1]

I've been waiting for you to start this project. Now I wait to see how it progresses. Once again, I miss having superturbine and his awesome castings

[carlso]

It has been quite a while since I started this build and thread. I have done quite a bit of work and still have a lot to do, especially to the boiler. Here is where I am at as of today...................









Stay well,
Carl

[Cajonpassfan]

Yikes, Carl, applying those rivets on the smokebox must have been a joy!
She’s looking really good, very nice work!
Otto

[carlso]

The cast on running boards are extremely thin and subject to breaking so I had applied some etched BLMA strips to add detail and to strengthen the walkway. I did not like the way they turned out, so I removed them and replaced with thin styrene strips. I ordered some Archer tread plate decals to help get "the look".



Also, I sprayed a very thin white coat on tender to enable rivet decal application.



Stay well,
Carl

As a side note - I am "thinking" about an ESU LS5 Micro and 8x12 speaker for the tender. I filled the tender shell with "Play-Doh" and pressed the chassis on then removed the clay and measured. I, if measured correctly, have room for the 20x10x3.8 decoder & speaker.
Tight but doable.

[carlso]

A little progress, 2 days of decal effort on tender. Sure hope it is worth this effort when painted.





Stay well,
Carl

[Steveruger45]

Looks real good Carl.
My word,  you obviously have patience, a steady hand And determination.

Now, I can’t resist this.... “did you count them? 😀

[Chris333]

How do you get the rivets in a strip like that? I can't seem to ever get more than 3 in a row.

[mmagliaro]

The rivets on the tender look very good.

As for the ones on the smokebox front, (Otto asked, I think), those are the circular pattern sets that Archer makes, right?  When they came out with those, it made getting round patterns on smokebox fronts so much better!

I agree with your switch to styrene running boards.  The etched brass ones have great texture, but they are too thin to stand on their own, as you noted.  You would have to laminate them to something firm to keep them from being all loosey goosey.

[carlso]

Thanks for the nice comments , it really helps and keeps me going.

Steve - I guess I am just a glutton for punishment. Yes, I did count and found that I
            missed one.

Chris - They are Archer decals and come in strips.

Max - Yes  the smoke box front are also Archer circular. I am not happy with the
          application and will strip them off and re-do. The boiler was my "test" as I had
           never used these decals before.

All stay well and let's support MT employees,

Carl

[Mike Madonna]

Carl,

Very impressive AND encouraging!
Look forward to updates on any of your projects....
Be safe and well!

[carlso]

It has been some time since I updated, so here is the tender as of today. I sprayed it with Tru-Color black to protect the rivet decals, applied the SP decals and now have sprayed with a thin app of matte. Work continues on boiler, trying to figure out how to attach pilot. Motor has been mounted in the chassis and runs OK.

1st image is after spraying the black..







Stay well,
Carl

[PiperguyUMD]

Thanks for the nice comments , it really helps and keeps me going.

Steve - I guess I am just a glutton for punishment. Yes, I did count and found that I
            missed one.

The sad truth is that counting them is easier than measuring them when you need repeatable lengths. I had quite a moment when I realized that I was literally counting rivets on my Potomac! 

[kiwi_al]

Hey Carl,
Have you got this all reassembled yet?

[carlso]

Al,

I am sad to say that I have not worked on this project for several weeks now. Both crossheads had come off of the slides and with my huge numb fingers I could not get them back together as they should be. So, I sent the chassis to a person who has done other work for me and is a very talented modeler. The problem is his father passed about 6-8 weeks ago and he is just getting settled in after the loss. I passed on my condolences and told him "no rush" take your time.  I would feel bad about trying to be pushy at this point. He will get them done and it will be good job.

Thanks for your interest!

Be well,
Carl