Rebuilding an Alco...

[Warbonnet]

An awful man for starting many projects and taking a lifetime to finish them, I have reverted to type yet again. A trip to chez Bracken to buy something godawful (more on that in the future!) I came across a chassis unit of a Kato loco. We tested it to see if we could coax any life out of it but nothing doing. Dave threw it my way in a deal. Being a lover of Kato (nothing touches them when it comes to how they're made, so easy to take apart and work so beautifully) I was determined to get her moving again. Thankfully a wee clean was the answer and she was soon purring along nicely like a Kato loco should!

 

 

The chassis belongs to an RSC2, the rarer 6 axle version of the venerable Alco RS2. Such a loco is a bit out of my timeframe, so instead of modelling her on a specific prototype I think she will be a freelance loco, handy for a bit of shunting as a private owner loco that's lived a long hard life. So I was off to Kato to get some parts which arrived this week.

 

First things first, I don't like the look of the loco with 6 axles, so I decided to switch her to 4 axles and turn it into a normal RS2. New trucks were bought and fitted.

 

 

Chip added and sill fitted

 

 

The body itself has weights screwed in, so it's a tight squeeze for the decoder but fits well. Is very heavy for a loco of its size now so that's good news. I tested to see if it works before attaching the body and I'm delighted to say it's silky smooth.

 

Now comes the detailing. I have some Kato parts to fit such as numberboards and handrails, but will need to get some aftermarket grab irons, cut bars, hoses and a new packet of Kadee couplers. Must say the little thing is growing on me already.

 

 

Sorry about the poor pics btw. Will keep this updated as I progress. Just don't expect it to be swift!

[Flying Scotsman 4472]

Looking great Bud can't wait for the next instalment

[RedRich]

That's coming along nicely Fran. Kato seem to have a fantastic after sales and spares catalog. A few more Manufactures doing the same would be nice. Slightly moving away from the theme of your thread. I notice in the pics that you are also a Star Wars fan. My youngest lad loves it, naturally I encourage him to get as much Star Wars products as he can, being a fan myself.

 

Rich,

[Flying Scotsman 4472]

Fran (staying on topic) will you be painting her in a clean condition looking at the photos I think she would look well weathered up like the SD7 I posted up in the video.

[Warbonnet]

Cheers lads, done a bit more today. I bought a handrail set which also included plastic grab irons. I decided to try them in the interests of saving money but they're both a pain in the ass to fit and they look a bit rubbish. I will be looking for wire sets instead.

 

 

Rich - Yep, love the original trilogy and lego, so it's great to combine the two. The box is from a R2D2 model which herself got me for Christmas. I have a few others too, like the imperial walker in the background. Just need more space for the rest!

 

 

Anthony - She's going to be proper manky, don't worry about that! . A loco at nearing the end. I've also started drawing up a list of stuff to get for my own SD9 rebuild since I wont be using the Athearn one I bought cheap for a Sulzer kit now. I'll have to start it soon enough!

[RedRich]

I have an AT AT from Hasbro myself Fran. I got it in 2011. I have a small troop of about 14 Snow Troopers 3 AT AT drivers and General Veers in it. Conor has an attack on Hoth with an AT ST and some figures. He also has a Defence of Hoth set also from TESB with a turret, some fire power, some rebel soldiers and K3PO. I love the original triology myself, and I can just about stomach the last part of Revenge of the Sith when Anakin turns.

 

I was watching Jonathon Ross a few weeks ago when Warick Davies was on it. I don't fancy the idea of Disney making a seventh movie. I have the Blu Ray collection with all six movies plus extras and the remastered movies look great. I can understand Lucas changing the Han Solo Jabba the Hut meeting in A New Hope. Some of the other changes like R2 flying I can't take. Lucas had originally considered a CGI Yoda to replace the Frank Oz puppet in TESB and TROTJ, thankfully he didn't.

 

Anyway back to topic it's looking good Fran. I think you should go with the brass wire hand rails and grab irons. I removed the hand rails from my 141-181's and left them sit in some warm water for a half hour adding some more warm water every few minutes. I used a hold and fold to clamp them in a straight position over night to cool down. They look great now and there's no bending or curving in them. I got some Detail Associates EMD lift rings for the 071 models as I feel the rings on the models are over scale. They look far more in scale. Trying to find time to do anything though is the hard bit.

 

Rich,

[Guest hidden-agenda]

Nice job WB its turned out well. I like the Kato power plant and bogies it has me thinking of a way to power something for this side of the water.

[Warbonnet]

Nice job WB its turned out well. I like the Kato power plant and bogies it has me thinking of a way to power something for this side of the water.

 

The four axle or the six axle bogies? All their basic components for a drive train can be bought directly from their site (http://www.katousa.com) and shipping is pretty reasonable considering it's from the States.

[jhb171achill]

Ah! She's in new IE freight livery!!! :-)

[Garfield]

Ah! She's in new IE freight livery!!! :-)

 

 

Looking good, Fran! Love those old Alcos.... full of character!

[Guest hidden-agenda]

The four axle or the six axle bogies? All their basic components for a drive train can be bought directly from their site (http://www.katousa.com) and shipping is pretty reasonable considering it's from the States.

 

Not just sure yet as i need to check some measurements but being able to swap and chop bogies at will. Thanks for the link.

[Warbonnet]

Not just sure yet as i need to check some measurements but being able to swap and chop bogies at will. Thanks for the link.

 

More than welcome to these six axle bogies here. Maybe you can swap me for your roof for the SSM brake van...

[Warbonnet]

Work on the Alco is still ongoing, I'm still fiddling with grab irons. I bought some wire replacements but they aren't great. I have since been bending my own but I'm not happy with they way they look either. If they were straight irons like on EMD units I think I could do them perfectly but as they curve around the side of the loco it's a bit tricky to get them all to match. So back to the drawing board. Once they're sorted I'll be on the home straight.

 

In the meantime parts for my next project arrived. I have two ancient Athearn SD9s which I plan to do up. I will be replacing the motor with Kato and DCC them with LED lights. One was bought for the SSM Sulzer which I have since decided against buying, and the other was picked up cheap as a companion.

 

 

First things first though, the Athearn bodies are too wide as their original motors did not fit within scale sized hoods. So I bought two railpower shell kits to overcome this. With Kato motors in place there'll be plenty of room for them to fit.

 

 

Crude photo to show the width difference

 

 

 

Now to draw up a shopping list for all the detail parts I need! In the meantime I really need to finish something instead of starting loads and having them partly finished all over the place!

[Warbonnet]

Alco more or less done. Crappy pics but all that is needed to do now is fit the numberboards and off to the paint shop! Runs like a dream too....