1" Little Engines Atlantic/Pacific Guidance

[jmpharrington]

Has there been any article series, booklet, etc. on the construction of the 1" scale Little Engines Atlantic or Pacific?
Thanks,
Jim

[tetramachine]

There are many members on here that have built pacific/Atlantic models.
I have one started, and one almost finished.

Both Pacifica.
Tom

[Glenn Brooks]

The Kozo books describe different model engines than the Atlantic or Pacific. But if you are interested in building in 1” scale, his descriptions and methods are very well suited for that particular scale. They’d be very good reference books to have on the shelf for either an Atlantic or Pacific build.

Glenn

[Mike Walsh]

Has there been any article series, booklet, etc. on the construction of the 1" scale Little Engines Atlantic or Pacific?
Thanks,
Jim

Not sure. I haven't heard of one... I do have a LE-issued construction booklet on the 0-6-0, but don't know if one was made for the Pacific/Atlantic.

[Rwilliams]

The steam supply piping on the LE prints will make the locomotive operate nicely. In rebuilding a 1 inch pacific into a northern design, I saw where some improvements in the steam supply might improve the performance of the design. A new boiler was required and a slightly larger dry pipe diameter was used. A ball valve was used for the front end throttle. The 1/4 inch diameter copper supply lines to the slide valves seemed to be an opportunity for some major improvement. The supply lines were changed to 5/16 diameter copper tubing and the brass copper tubing connection fittings were bored out for maximum steam flow as much as possible. The slide valves were lapped to a perfect flat steam tight condition. The test on air sounded much improved and we were encouraged that the rebuild was going to be for the best.

At the track, the first steam test proved that the changes and increased steam flow area to the cylinders had created one of the loudest exhaust sounds of any Little Engines 1 inch steamer built. Sounded like a 1.5 scale size steamer and was the talk of the members present that day so long ago at SVLS.

Too bad at that time I was not aware of the megaphone style blast nozzle, or the sound performance at the stack could have been more impressive.

According to most calculations, the 1/4 inch diameter tubing should be acceptable, but it was found that by increasing to the next larger size copper tubing, the performance increase was certainly worth the effort invested. Today the 1 inch Northern of Richard Finn is operated at St. Croix Live steamers where it still turns heads when operated. Richard Finn told me recently that the first time he operated the big 1 inch Lackawana Northern at the ST. Croix track, that they could not believe what they were seeing. What they thought was going to be just another standard performance of a 1 inch LE Pacific with another driving axle tacked on was not what they saw.

I have often wondered if increasing the bore diameter of the cylinders by another 1/16 or 1/8 inch would improve the performance of these locomotives even more?

[jmpharrington]

The Kozo books describe different model engines than the Atlantic or Pacific. But if you are interested in building in 1” scale, his descriptions and methods are very well suited for that particular scale. They’d be very good reference books to have on the shelf for either an Atlantic or Pacific build.

Glenn

Thanks,
I have a few of Kozo's books and find them excellent in terms of instruction to the novice.
I was hoping someone produced guidance specifically for the LE Atlantic or Pacific, as some time back I acquired a partially built Atlantic, and finally was able to set up a vintage SB 9" and small bench mill.
Thanks,
Jimmy

[Marty_Knox]

Les Friend built a 1" scale Atlantic that is very similar in size to the LE Atlantic. He wrote 11 articles that appeared in The Miniature Locomotive magazine. A reprint of those articles is available from Friends Models.

[jmpharrington]

Les Friend built a 1" scale Atlantic that is very similar in size to the LE Atlantic. He wrote 11 articles that appeared in The Miniature Locomotive magazine. A reprint of those articles is available from Friends Models.

Marty,
Thanks. I ordered the article series from John K. at Freinds. I plan to build the tender first before completing the locomotive, and was pleased to learn that the articles include construction of the tender.
- Jimmy

[Mike Walsh]

According to most calculations, the 1/4 inch diameter tubing should be acceptable, but it was found that by increasing to the next larger size copper tubing, the performance increase was certainly worth the effort invested. Today the 1 inch Northern of Richard Finn is operated at St. Croix Live steamers where it still turns heads when operated. Richard Finn told me recently that the first time he operated the big 1 inch Lackawana Northern at the ST. Croix track, that they could not believe what they were seeing. What they thought was going to be just another standard performance of a 1 inch LE Pacific with another driving axle tacked on was not what they saw.

I have often wondered if increasing the bore diameter of the cylinders by another 1/16 or 1/8 inch would improve the performance of these locomotives even more?

Last I heard, Richard Finn's Northern is on display at a museum in Branson, MO. - unless that changed...

[Rwilliams]

Mike,

From what Dick Finn he told me he keeps in on display at the museum in the winter months and then takes it up to the monster track in St. Croix for the summer. Once the good weather is over with, he brings it back to the museum. With the current Covid conditions, no telling what he is doing with the
locomotive.

Robert

[jscarmozza]

Check your PM Jim.
John