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In spite of having over half of my cars
painted, I still have 40+ locomotives to complete. Alas, I hope I live long enough to complete
them and see them run…. Click on the photos to make them larger Baldwin BF16 “Sharks” These are Omnicon urethane BF16 “Sharks” I bought them painted
from eBay. They were a kit offered in the early 1990s with NWSL drive
components. The decal job could have been better. I pretty much painted over
all of the areas that were not decaled, added an all wheel pickup electrical
system, made the drive bulletproof, added DCC and lights, and lots of stick
on tire weights! They have good pulling power now. They will compliment the
River Raisin/Boo Rim http://riverraisinmodels.com PRR A-B-A set I got. I have another Omnicon
A-B-A set that I want to finish in the Single Stripe Scheme. I also got a River
Raisin B&O A-B set. (Above) I went from 0 to 10 Sharks in March 2006! River Raisin Models B&O RF16
PRR F7 ABA Set This is a plastic F7 ABA set made by S Helper Service. I did
some detail work to it, including adding the Trainphone Antennas, extra grab
irons, nose lift rings, and modified the pilot coupler doors. The “how to”
article for this set was featured in the January 2004 Mainline Modeler. Alco PRR FA2 FB2 Set These FA2 and FB2 were made by Overland Models in the Mid to
late 1980s. They are very nice, from the period that I call Overland’s
“Golden Age” where Ajin was producing very nice models for a reasonable
price. I have an A B A set of these that need painting. I bought this set on
eBay in June 2007 because they were painted for about what I thought they
should sell for unpainted. All I had to do was add DCC and I had added
another set of diesels to the roster, or so I thought. When I opened the box
it was immediately apparent that the seller mangled the antennas as it was
put in the model box for shipping. We made good on that issue quickly. I got
an assembled wood Phosphate car. But the repairs lead to a month long side
project to repair the antennas, make the drive line slip proof, add all wheel
electric pickup and sound units. I made rolled ring baffles that mounted the
speakers directly under the roof fans. There was some touch up and we are
good to go! I also added a 2 wire plug that runs between the units to insure
pickup at ALL times not matter how dirty the track may be. The plugs get
hidden in the diaphragm between the units. After a good lube job they run amazingly well! I hope all of my
Overland units run this well. May 2008 – As a result of me meeting the
seller of these locomotives, he is back in trains bigger then ever. We are
VERY good friends now! (But he is
NOT getting this FA set back!) Life
works like that sometimes! PRR Alco RS1 These photos are temporary. I will change them with more formal
studio photos soon. This is a rather rare S Scale locomotive. It is a
Locomotive Workshop Alco RS1 that was released in 1973. It came as a kit with
the long and short hoods formed, but everything else was flat etched brass
sheets that required the builder to form and solder everything. The kit was
not for the novice or faint of heart.
It has a rather interesting truck gear arrangement that features a
movable wheelbase that also equalizes. I bought it pretty much as is from the
collection of Larry Sokol. When I first got it, I had plans for a massive
rebuild with a new drive and complete detail makeover. After spending a few
days with it more recently, I am now not as sure. It would take LOTS of work to make it better. In August 2008 I
added an NCE decoder, all wheel pickup and new headlights so I can at least
run it. That should due for now. PRR E8a This is another Overland engine I bought mostly because it was
already painted. I have never seen a single stripe paint job on an S Scale
engine. This paint job is OK but could be a little better. I don’t know where
the decals came from. I repainted the trucks, fuel tank, added all wheel pick
up, real glass windows all around, and made the curved numberboards. I also
added a little dusty weathering and DCC. It looks much better now then when I
got it. PRR GP9 This is a plastic American Models GP9 released in about 1990. I
have started reworking it for DCC and sound last year. PRR SD9 I have 2 of these PRR SD9. They were made by
River Raisin Models in 1994. There were only 18 pieces of this version made.
I did not finish these models as I was just getting into DCC at the time.
They both have sound units and lots of lights! Conrail SD40-2 Egads! Conrail! Yes, this was the major project after the PRR
GP9 above. This too has LOTS of work to it. Like the GP9, the numberboards
and corner markers light up. I added THREE flywheels to the drive. There are
4 constant lighting units crammed in there. This was done in Pre-DCC days of
1991. I did not want to weather it much as that was a new concept for at that
time. Unfortunately, you could not accuse Overland of using too much solder
on this model. Some of the handrail stanchions and major hood cross braces
have come loose. PRSL Baldwin AS16 This PRSL Baldwin AS16 is a one of a kind scratchbuilt plastic
shell. I acquired it as a shell only in a “no holds barred” buy and trade
deal about 15 years ago. I reworked a brass GP30 drive purchased from eBay
for it. See the Current Projects Page as I
have substantially progressed in completing this model. I will not stop until
it is done. I would be interested to know if there are
any other S Scale PRSL Modelers out there. Please contact me if you are. Updated 9-1-08 All photos and content © Lanes Trains 2005-2008 |
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