Powered Stewart Models 25 ton rail crane

[Jim Starbuck]

Decals and Vallejo flat coat went on earlier so I installed the marker LEDs. Red Gallery Glass was used for the lenses.
It’s tough to photograph them lit but in person it’s exactly what I was after.
These are wired parallel with a 5k SMD resistor powered by a 3 volt test cell. The voltage can be adjusted on the decoder when they’re wired permanently but it works well.

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[Jim Starbuck]

It’s Safety First on the layout so I issued our operator Mr. Thomas an aluminum hard hat.

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I don’t think the prototype had a sliding side window but I’m exercising a large dose of modeler’s license anyway so…

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Also added Archer HO louver decals.

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The carbody is almost complete and will be set aside until final assembly.

[BCR 570]

Great progress; well done!  Still looking for my Stewart crane . . .

Tim

[Jim Starbuck]

Finished up the interior and got the bucket work lights mounted and tested.
It’s time to move on to the chassis.

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[up1950s]

I feel like crabgrass in the redwood forest , and thank you for the view .

[Jim Starbuck]

Thank you Ritchie

Here’s a couple shots of the lighting  test.

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[peteski]

While eBay might show California as the seller's location, the description states "The item(s) will be shipped byAirmailfrom Hong Kong or China. The item(s) will be sent within 2 working days after payment received.".  Not that there is anything wrong with that.

I might give these a try. Warm white 0201 LEDs sound like a winner.

Looks like mine arrived First Class USPS Mail from Californa after all, even if the description states they would be shipped from China.
Few of the leads on my LEDs also came loose.

[Jim Starbuck]

I think the eBay seller is a one man band that stocks a variety of items.
There’s not much solder area on the LEDs. For the two I fixed I held the both wires between my thumb and forefinger close to the LED and was able to position the loose wire above the solder pad then gave a quick swipe with the iron. The solder on the wire and pad were enough to reattach it. I may have put a tiny spot of flux on it too. Magnification is highly recommended.

[Jim Starbuck]

There was some progress made on the chassis.

Side sills with reinforcement ribs and .008 air line were installed. The truck sideframes from the Stewart kit were sanded thinner and overlaid on the Kato trucks. I also fitted couplers from an Arnold SW1.
Some deck plates, cut levers, drop grabs on the ends stirrup steps and some short bits of chain attach to the pilots before paint. Trainline hoses go on after that.
A friend pointed out that the wheel flanges look too tall. These do run ok on Atlas code 55 rain but I’ll probably turn them down a bit for appearance before going too much farther detailing the chassis.

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[peteski]

I think the eBay seller is a one man band that stocks a variety of items.
There’s not much solder area on the LEDs. For the two I fixed I held the both wires between my thumb and forefinger close to the LED and was able to position the loose wire above the solder pad then gave a quick swipe with the iron. The solder on the wire and pad were enough to reattach it. I may have put a tiny spot of flux on it too. Magnification is highly recommended.

You did mention earlier in this thread that you had to resolder some wires on those LEDs. Thanks Jim!

You are doing some very impressive work on this model!

[Jim Starbuck]

You did mention earlier in this thread that you had to resolder some wires on those LEDs. Thanks Jim!

You are doing some very impressive work on this model!

Thank you Peteski

I tried twisting the wires and it put too much strain on the solder joints causing the break.
After that I started the twist down a bit down from the LED and they did fine.

[Jim Starbuck]

The chassis is detailed and ready for primer and paint hopefully tomorrow.
It got BLMA early cut levers and 18” drop grabs on the ends. The little twin lugs are leftovers from the cut levers and will get a wire pin and a short piece of chain draped up to the grab iron. I’m not sure what it’s for but it was in one of the proto photos and I thought it would be a nice detail. The trainline hoses are from Precision Scale. They’re not glued in here but will go on after paint. The air and fuel tanks are styrene.

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[Jim Starbuck]

I primed and painted the chassis yesterday morning but I seem to have trouble with Tru Color paint and the finish was unacceptable. I disassembled the chassis and into the alcohol bath it went. Fortunately the paint stripped off nicely with no damaged details.
While I was waiting for the new coat of primer to dry this morning I turned down brass sheaves for the boom tip.

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The chassis and boom got painted with Vallejo NATO black which went on just fine. There are some decals to go on the chassis sill then flat finish can be applied.
From there it’s ready for final (re)assembly.

[mmagliaro]

This is,without doubt, the most killer build of this old crane I have ever seen anywhere.  Excellent work!

[Jim Starbuck]

This is,without doubt, the most killer build of this old crane I have ever seen anywhere.  Excellent work!

Thank you Max!