One Last Shorty

Where users can chronicle their builds. Start one thread and continue to add on to it.

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ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2003 10:37 am
Location: New Lenox, IL

Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

DETAILS - I Brake for Railings

Slight change in plans here. Instead of getting into the platform side gates, decided I might as well put this little gem out there for viewing. If you recall on the far end of car #7, made a folding brake wheel to maximize the platform walkway. Wasn't sure what I was going to do on the observation deck...might have been another folding brake wheel.

Well, around that time, made a "road trip" with friend Chris, to downstate IL to the Monticello Railway Museum in Monticello, IL. The president of MSR is a live steamer that used to visit the local train club annual meets. Contacted him in advance and he offered to give us the 25 cent tour...which ended up being worth WAY more than that!

Walking thru one of the many storage facilities at the museum, came across Wabash RR #6...a rear end observation car.

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At that point, had one of those... "AHA" moments! A rear end brake lever was the solution. That's the ticket! Problem solved and once again something a little different than seen on other pieces of rolling stock...freight or passenger cars.

How to make something that resembled a brake lever? Cut off a piece of 1/8" brazing rod. One end was threaded for 5-40. Took a piece of 1/4" diam. brass rod and drilled/tapped a hole in that for a 5-40 thread. Then pulled out a piece of 1/4" square brass and rounded the end to look like a handle and gave the piece a long taper...filed and sanded smooth. Silver soldered the 1/4" cylinder to the end of the handle and. Now, we had us a handle! Made a brass acorn nut with a 5-40 thread and used that to lock the handle in place.

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But wait...we weren't done yet. Needed some lever stops. Reached for the 1/8" thick brass sheet stock. 1st made some mounting bases. Carved a recess on the bottom. Therefore, would only need (1) 2-56 hex head screw to secure. The recess prevented the lever stop from rotating. Turned some brass round for the stop "claws" (?). Machined the stop brackets on the mill and performed some judicious filing to get the necessary shape. Silver soldered some more pieces together including the mounting base and then cut the side open for the lever. Then, the screw holes were drilled or drilled/tapped for the mounting screw.

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Had to be careful locating the lever stops...didn't want to create any pinch points where train crew member fingers could get smashed.

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Then, needed a spacer to hold the brake lever assembly at the proper height. Turned a piece of 3/8" brass rod. I s'pose, the brake lever ratcheting mechanism was hiding inside that spacer. A couple collars were made make the brake lever assembly "captive" on the end beam. Those were made from 1/4" brass rod, drilled to slide over the brazing rod and then cross drilled/tapped for 3-48 set screws.

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Believe the brake lever stops were glass bead blasted to clean those up. At that point, declared the brake lever mission was accomplished!

Okay, next time I WILL get back to the observation deck railing gates.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2003 10:37 am
Location: New Lenox, IL

Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

DETAILS-Swing Time, Part 1

Another sleepless session in the middle of the night (hate these). Figured even at this hour, why not get up and exercise my fingers. After all, the house is quiet. This time, will describe car #7's observation deck side gates.

Since the deck plates covering the corner stairs were hinged, figured I better make operating gates to swing out of the way so the deck plates COULD be raised. As with any assembly like this, started with a drawing. After several versions were drawn up, the CAD system spit out the following...

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Two versions are shown in the above drawing. What's the best way to describe these? Balusters out (as on the left) and balusters in (as on the right). Decided to go with the balusters "out" on the left side of the drawing. Why? 1st...the balusters would be "squeezed" slightly between the gate frames and 2) needed the space between the first two balusters and adjacent to the side gate frame for a latch mechanism. The baluster arrangement was opposite of the arrangement used on the back railing.

Holes were drilled in the gate side upright pieces for the 1/8" diameter brazing cross rods. Both ends of the cross rods would eventually be threaded with a 5-40 thread. A nut would eventually be soldered on one end to thread the rod. And the nut side of the gate frame was drilled for a clearance hole...the far side threaded.

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Pulled out some 1/8" thick brass plate and cut/milled the side and bottom gate frame pieces to 1/8 x 1/4" wide. The top gate railing piece was slightly wider at 1/8 x 3/8". The (4) gate frame pieces would be silver soldered into a single assembly. However, needed a fixture to hold the various parts 'n pieces during the soldering process. Machined a piece of 1/4" thick aluminum with the corners removed where the soldering would take place.

Started the process by clamping the gate sides and bottom for soldering. Used the Micromark adjustable brass clamps for this.

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Next, time to solder the gate railing top in place. Clamps would be used to hold the top and bottom...made an aluminum spacer to fill the frame void. Else, when heated, there was a chance the brass would soften and deform.

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With the gate frames in one piece, could install (ready for this Ody?) 10 balusters in each gate. This brought the total number of balusters needed for the project to qty=64. Due to the frame dimensions, these balusters had to be slightly shorter than the end railing balusters. A close encounter with a disk sander shortened the balusters as needed.

Here's how the gate assembly was starting to look...

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Now the nuts could be attached to the cross tie rods and the rods shortened so they didn't put a "squeeze" on the gate frame.

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Next time, we'll make some hinges and hang the gates. Carl B.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2003 10:37 am
Location: New Lenox, IL

Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

DETAILS-Swing Time, Part 2

With the gate frames fabricated and "populated" with balusters, it was now time to look at hanging the gates on their respective posts. One of the criteria for the gates from the start was the gates HAD to swing clear of the corner stair deck plate. As such, the gate pivot point needed to be located on the "far" corner of the post (unlike a household door that pivots on the near corner).

Grabbed some brass angle and some 1/4" round brass to make the (4) pairs of hinges. Used a (2) pieces of 1/16" stainless steel rod for the hinge pins (didn't want squeaky hinges). One hinge pin per gate. The single hinge pins also helped align the upper and lower hinges on each gate.

Recesses were machined on the hinge side of the gate to hold the gate hinge. Similarly, recesses were milled in the back side of the posts. This was done so the hinge hardware connection point was mostly out of view. The .060" recesses helped to support the hinge in a horizontal orientation. Hinges were held in place with 2-56 brass hex head screws...shortened to almost nothing! Getting those screws started in their respective threads was a challenge at times...even for someone with small fingers.

By this time, was working back on car #7's observation deck to make sure all the distances for the gate would be made on the car itself. While the rear railing was still loose...could check the gate swing and clearance between the gate and corner post for a soon-t0-made gate latch. Here's a top view...

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Here's a side view...

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Here's a view of the gate swung open...

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Well, didn't like the way the 1st set of hinges "fit". Those stuck out too far on the back side of the gate. Now with a better idea how this was going to fit up, made a 2nd set of hinges. The result of that effort...the hinges STILL stuck out too far on the back side. Didn't want the railroad prez's wife to snag her petticoat on the hinge hardware. At least I was getting closer to a more desirable arrangement in terms of hinge length to space the gate between posts and vertical height so the gate would swing over closed corner stair deck plate.

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By now, was tired of using a needle nose pliers to insert/remove the hinge pin. Reached for the box of various sized stainless steel balls for check valves and pulled out a couple 1/8" balls for the tops of the hinge pins. Tried hard NOT to drop these and watch them roll away into the dark recess twilight zone under the bench. These balls too went into a 5C collet on lathe. Used the smallest center drill available to start a hole so the balls could be super-glued to the ends of the hinge pins. Opted NOT to silver solder the balls in place and then have to go back and clean up/polish away the heat distress marks. With glued balls...no heat needed.

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At this point, STILL didn't like the way the gate hinges were looking! Decided to make one more run at coming up with an acceptable hinge arrangement. This time, the hinge straps would be placed "behind" the hinge pin, up against the side of the post and therefore, wouldn't stick out so far. Turns out, the 3rd time was the charm and the hinges didn't look so "gangly" anymore.

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The gate assembly and hinges were complete. Suitable hinges had been fabricated. The gates were swung free and clean. There was one more matter left to address...needed a way to latch the gates...in both open and closed positions. That's where I'll start next time. Carl B.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2003 10:37 am
Location: New Lenox, IL

Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

DETAILS-Swing Time, Part 3

The observation deck gates were now a swingin'...but there's still one part missing...gate latches. Wouldn't be acceptable for the gates to swing in OR OUT while the train was motion. Not safe!

Peasleecreek came to the rescue once again and started started flipping prototype photos of latches and catches my way. Like this...

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Had considered spring loaded latches...for not more than a fleeting moment. Decided that was getting a too involved to miniaturize and work reliably. Besides, life sized fingers still needed to operate the latch. However, there's a bar shown hanging on the side that was used to hold the gate in the open position so the stairway deck plate could be raised and secured. That was easy enough to replicate and attach to the inside of the observation deck wing walls. We'll get back to that at some point.

Decided to use a simple "L" shaped pivoting latch for the gates. This was one reason for the baluster arrangement on the gates. The wider opening next to the gate frame would contain the latch mechanism and still allow that to operate. This meant too, the side of the gate frame and the adjacent baluster, would have to be slotted for the "L" shaped latch.

And so fabrication began...starting with 1/4" square brass stock, machined a slot for the latch, drilled some mounting holes, rounded off the square edges...and had something I could use like this...

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Made a total of (4) of these. Two of them had cross holes drilled for a small screw to retain the "L" shaped latching lever and provide a pivot point.

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The gates went back on to the mill with extended jaws to hold the gates while mounting holes were drilled and the slot carved out for the latch opening.

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Had originally envisioned the latch to swing "up" into the catch block to lock the gate in the closed position. Didn't work. In fact, tried several versions of "L" shaped latches to accomplish that.

Tried wider vertical sections to add weight to the latch. That didn't work. Tried thinning the horizontal sections to reduce weight. That didn't work. Some of my attempts were rough...really rough. More like just trying to prove a concept...which still didn't work. The (2) "L" shaped latches on the right are pretty close to the final version.

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For the most part, the extended weight of the latch horizontal section would not allow the latch to work as originally desired. Needed a back up plan. Then had one of those "AHA" moments (which usually come in the middle of the night). Realized if I flipped the "catch block" upside down, the latch mechanism WOULD work...and the latch would fall down into the catch block. Now, when I push the lever to the side, the latch lifts up and is released from the catch block. The solution was to simply reverse the orientation of the catch block...'cause there was no way I was going to beat Mother Nature and gravity!

The vertical position of the catch block was determined by how high the block could be set and still have the latch clear the top edge. 2-56 brass hex head screws were used to hold the latch and catch in place. The corner railing posts were removed, drilled/tapped to hold the catch block.

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Will finish up with the rear railing and gate hardware next time. Carl B.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2003 10:37 am
Location: New Lenox, IL

Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

DETAILS - Time to Stand Back

With the component fabrication for #7's rear railing pretty much completed, was time to take a break...stand back...and look at what was created.

Mentioned in the last post, needed some latching bars to hold the gates in the "open" position. These were made from some 1/4" brass strip. Probably used some .060" brass. Didn't want these too delicate. Here's what the latching bars looked like before sand blasting and painting.

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Here's some pix of the completed railing...gates were opened and the corner step deck plates raised (before the deck plates were sand blasted and painted satin black)...

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Pulled the roof back and took and "overhead" shot of the rear observation deck area...with some of the little trinkets for the railing now in place.

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At this point, had to drag out one of the original photos of the Guatamalan Railway rear end observation/parlor car...the Elisa...and compare the inspiration for this project with my version. Yes, there are some differences. But for the most part (In my mind)...think I did a good job capturing the "look and feel" of the Elisa observation deck railing for car #7. But that's me...you'll have to be the judges.

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At this point, you might think this was the end of the story for #7's rear railing...and you would be wrong (sorry). There was still one more matter to address for the back end of the car and that's where I'll pick up next time (don't worry, there will be an end to all of the car detail work for this project...and it's approaching fast!). Carl B.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
DRS_RR
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Re: One Last Shorty

Post by DRS_RR »

Carl,

That end railing is a piece of artwork. The average person walking by would be oh that's a nice touch, but to see and know all the work that has gone into it really makes it very inspirational and very classy. and then throw in all the added details, can't wait to see it in person one of these days!

Dave
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NP317
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Re: One Last Shorty

Post by NP317 »

13 points out of ten!
RussN
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Re: One Last Shorty

Post by Odyknuck »

IMHO your entire project is a work of art. I seriously do not think any of your fellow Bean counters is going to question the suttle differences from the prototype.lol
Pontiacguy1
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Re: One Last Shorty

Post by Pontiacguy1 »

I like this sort of thing. Since you are not building an exact model of a specific car, you can do it however you want to and nobody can tell you that you did it wrong. It just has to be believable as something that was used somewhere at some point in the general time-frame you are trying to model. In any case, it looks excellent, and it has a prototypical basis, so... win-win!
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Steggy
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Re: One Last Shorty

Post by Steggy »

Pontiacguy1 wrote: Fri Mar 31, 2023 7:27 am Since you are not building an exact model of a specific car, you can do it however you want to and nobody can tell you that you did it wrong.
My typical response to anyone who questions the accuracy of a model, especially one with a lot of complex detail, is “When will we be seeing your build?”

I’ve never seen any of the prototype “shorties” in the flesh, so I have no clue as to how accurately Carl has modeled them. However, as the Mexicans would say, ¡No muy importante, amigo mío! What are important are appearance and craftsmanship, which having seen these cars up close and personal, I can say is on another level.

BTW, I wonder how they’d look hooked to my F-unit? :D Totally period-incorrect, most likely. :?
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ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
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Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

DRS Dave, Russ and Ody...
Never thought I would have the patience to do something like this. Had no choice but to stick with the railing (and the rest of the car for that matter) to the end. So, kept pushing forward. Thanx for appreciating the effort. Carl B.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
ccvstmr
Posts: 2230
Joined: Sat Jan 04, 2003 10:37 am
Location: New Lenox, IL

Re: One Last Shorty

Post by ccvstmr »

Pontiacguy1 wrote: Fri Mar 31, 2023 7:27 am I like this sort of thing. Since you are not building an exact model of a specific car, you can do it however you want to and nobody can tell you that you did it wrong. It just has to be believable as something that was used somewhere at some point in the general time-frame you are trying to model. In any case, it looks excellent, and it has a prototypical basis, so... win-win!
Pontiacguy...you are so right! By not building a scale replica, there's a lot of latitude for deviation. In particular when you can't find properly sized parts (or don't want to make either). As I've said sometimes...Build strong to last long. To accomplish that, sometimes had to use slightly out of scale fasteners. With some rolling stock now hitting the 36 year mark and looking no worse for the wear...must have done something right.

Back in the 80's, there was a company that came out with a computer spreadsheet program known as Lotus 1-2-3. Like most computer programs, this was a great tool for data analysis and manipulation. Several other companies came out with competing products. Lotus took them to court claiming others stole the "look and feel" of their product. Don't recall what happened. But that's where much of model building work falls. 1) was something being built possible? 2) was it modeled to be believable? 3) if it looks acceptable from 10 feet away...we're doing good.

Think I'm hitting the target. Thanks for your compliment. Carl B.
Life is like a sewer...what you get out of it depends on what you put into it!
I don't walk on water...I just learned where some of the stepping stones are!
I love mankind...it's some of the people I can't stand!
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