HO Scale - What's On Your Workbench?

RDGbuff56 Nov 17, 2009

  1. TAK's Trains

    TAK's Trains TrainBoard Member

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    Learned that one from Luke Towan on youtube! I watch all his and Jason Jenson's videos. These guys are the masters!
     
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  2. RGW

    RGW TrainBoard Member

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    Agree on both counts.
     
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  3. TAK's Trains

    TAK's Trains TrainBoard Member

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    Marklinofsweden is great as well. He does some really interesting stuff.
     
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  4. RGW

    RGW TrainBoard Member

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    I'm not 100% sold on his methods, but he's a prolific YouTuber.
     
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  5. TAK's Trains

    TAK's Trains TrainBoard Member

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    Lol, I know exactly what you mean.
     
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  6. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    I have a full truck done with proper right and left sideframes since they are asymmetric. The bolster has some basic brake beam detail; I'm not sure if I will add any more detail. I can see how the brake shoes are arranged in some of my photos, but I don't have any more information on what is going on underneath the truck, so as of now, that's all I can add.

    However, am getting to the part where I am considering rolling abilities and I may need some input. I am working in 1:1 scale right now, so the distance between the points of the bearing cone is 90". In HO scale, that is 1.033". A Kadee axle is 1.018" long and an Intermountain axle is about 1". My question is, how much play should the axle have end-to-end? I was looking at some of my Atlas and Branchline trucks and both have about .01" of extra space for the axle to move laterally. If I have that same tolerance for a Kadee axle, my truck will be wide for an Intermountain. What would you guys do? Do I design large for all axles to fit? Is that acceptable for those who use Intermountain axles? Should I have two alternate bolsters, one for longer axles and one for shorter and the customer picks?

    Another unknown is the geometry of the bearing cone. What is the angle that the circular opening approaches the point? How do axles ride in the truck? Do they ride exactly on the point, or on the side of needlepoint cone?
    full truck render.PNG
     
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  7. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    It's looking like a car now! The center sill still needs cross members designed, but I'm considering making this piece available in a metal print for weight. That will come at the cost of detail, since the metal sintering printers do not have as high a resolution. I might do two designs, one for the High Detail plastic and a simplified one for metal. car render.PNG
     
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  8. gjslsffan

    gjslsffan Staff Member

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    PlZ consider maybe just a bit more detail to the car if you can. Note the brake beam hangers on the side of the car and the cut bar hangers. Brake levers are available in HO scale, also the brake pipe that wraps around the truck on the other end is a cool little detail.
    A question for you.
    Can you make the deck thin enough on either side of the center sill, and the center sill so that (example) common steel strap like 1'16 or 1/8" X 1/2" strips can be cut with a hacksaw and glued in place, this could also help with any warpage issues. Just tossing that out for thought, that way the plastic print might be heavy enough to work.
    I like those trucks, good job.

    http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1478495

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2020
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  9. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    I still have to think about brake appliances, whether it be molded-in details or mounting points for aftermarket parts. I will finish up the major body lines and then move on to the smaller details. The ends of the cars actually taper in, which I haven’t worked on yet. You can’t really see it it that last photo; it is more visible in aerial shots. There is also a pocket around the grab iron on the A end of the car.

    Hiding weight will be difficult because of how recessed the trucks are in the body, athought there may be room for a sheet of metal in the middle of the car. That would bring the bottom surface of the floor closer to the bottom edge of the sill, but I think it may be worth it for running characteristics.

    Right now, the distance between the top of the deck and the underside of the car (the floor thickness) is 7 scale inches. I don’t want to go much less than that because the tie-down tracks go as deep as 1.5”, which means that some parts of the floor are 5.5” thick already.
     
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2020
  10. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    Here is what the ends look like right now. There are holes for adding brake lever hangers as well as holes for corner stirrups. Is there a preference whether I add molded-in stirrups or would people prefer to add their own, like A-Line or Tichy parts? I have mounting holes for the brake pipe too, which I intended to be for eye bolts, and the brake pipe (.02" brass wire) would go through them. I am reluctant to add every single detail, just because there is a point at which aftermarket parts would be better.
    end render.PNG
     
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  11. dti406

    dti406 TrainBoard Member

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    Working on a few projects, finished painting a pair of brass caboose's that I will be decaling in the near future, want to have them done for when I receive my Ann Arbor and Wabash FA-2's.
    In the background is another Canadian Wheat Board Covered Hopper that will be added to the fleet, and on the left ready for the paint shop is an Exactrail PS 4427 CF Covered Hopper, have not decided what it will be painted yet.

    [​IMG]

    Rick Jesionowski
     
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  12. VinceP

    VinceP TrainBoard Member

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    What maker is the caboose.
     
  13. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    DODX flatcar is live on Shapeways-just got all the listings done
     
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  14. gjslsffan

    gjslsffan Staff Member

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    I am buying at least 1 or 1 dozen. Maybe a link to your car and trucks?
     
  15. N-Jineer

    N-Jineer TrainBoard Member

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    Nick, I'd sure like to hear how you go about this as I'm looking to fit a LokSound in my BLI Y6b as its got a faulty Paragon 2 decoder.
     
  16. RailMix

    RailMix TrainBoard Member

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    One of the things we all wrestle with in 3D printing is what details to include and which ones to apply later. We often run afoul of process limitations. Observing minimum wall and wire thicknesses for the material used can mean that some details will look heavy and would be better if fabricated from styrene or wire. Other times a commercial product or even a 3D printed detail made from a different material can be used to good effect. Durability, and in the case of rolling stock, ease of repair if a derailment happens to cause prototypical damage are important considerations, so we know it's not always best to include all the fine details. BTW, Outstanding job on the car and some good engineering on the trucks. Maybe I missed it, but could you include a link to your Shapeways store?
     
  17. RailMix

    RailMix TrainBoard Member

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    What about a sintered metal car with applied detail parts from high detail plastic?
     
  18. RailMix

    RailMix TrainBoard Member

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    Yeah, I started watching their videos a while ago, as well as a lot of Kathy Millat's videos. I agree there's a lot of good information there, although I tend to like my structures a little less dilapidated than Jason Jensen does. I tend to work with plastic kits (I like a lot of what's available these days). I've been applying a lot of the techniques to them and found that, yes, it's quite time consuming but the difference is amazing. Great structure, BTW. I see a number of their techniques there, like the raised ends on the clapboards and that last photo of the structures in place on the layout is just plain excellent. Superb scene.
     
    Last edited: Apr 4, 2020
  19. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    The problem with an all-metal car is that the body is too thin to reliably print. We tried this with the depressed center flatcar and they always had problems. The way the printer works it that it makes layers of glue in metal powder to build up the object and then the finished print is put in an oven. Molten bronze melts in to replace the glue and make a solid metal object. However, when the glue/metal matrix comes out the printer and before they put it in the kiln, it is in a state that they describe as ‘wet sand,’ and picking up a flatcar made from wet sand does not work very well. The tolerances are less accurate then the plastic printer, so most model designers use the Smooth detail plastic because it is the most detailed. I included a space for a steel weight in my model to relatively meet NMRA weight requirements. If the metal printers worked better and were cheaper, they would be a better contender for modeling. They still might be useful for locomotive chassis, where there is no detail, but I think shells are better off in plastic.
     
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  20. Mr. Trainiac

    Mr. Trainiac TrainBoard Member

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    This is as low as I could get the prices. I originally had the frame and the deck listed as separate products, but by combining them into one with sprues/wires, I got it a few dollars cheaper. Shapeways sets their prices based on print volume, so there isn't much more I can do at this point.
    https://www.shapeways.com/product/9ANQBNVWK/dodx-flatcar-deck-and-frame?optionId=155656022&li=shops

    https://www.shapeways.com/product/VQTUDYEEM/3-axle-buckeye-trucks-and-dodx-detail-kit

    Any ideas for my next project? I was thinking the Freightcar America 2-unit spine car, the Dynastack well car, or the Burlington Northern Trough Train. Alternatives?
     
    Last edited: Apr 4, 2020
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