John, 1) The vestibule steps are Gold Metal Models from their heavyweight details set (although I wish they were wider). Diaphragms are American Limited Models for heavyweights. 2)I body mount couplers on all my passenger cars but yes, the steps would probably require it. 3)I have 19 inch radius curves. I don't think they would work on anything smaller.
Bill: That is beautiful work on the GP9. Great job on the handrails and great job on installing the louvers, too. :thumbs_up: As far as rivet counting...How should the lift rings be oriented to the axis if the engine? I see that yours are lateral to the axis. Is here a correct orientation? Do some railroads do i differently from others? Is each panel different? Thanks.
Could you post a "How to" on your handrail making? I am in the process of rebuilding a few 7's and 9's and well the handrails are the hardest part for me.
Next time I do some handrails I'll have to take some in progress photos. In a nutshell I use Gold Metal Models stanchions and .008 phosphor bronze wire. Cut off the stock stanchions, drill holes and glue on new stanchions. Tin all the stanchions with some solder. Next bend the handrails using a scale drawing as a guide. One end of the handrails will be inserted into the frame near the bottom of the step and the other end gets inserted into the cab. This will hold them loosely in place while soldering. Using a toothpick apply some paste flux to the handrail where it touches the stanchion. Now just touch it briefly with the end of a tinned soldering iron. Repeat and work your way along the handrail. Make sure the handrail is even and everything is square, if not, retouch with the soldering iron. When you are satisfied, nip off the tip of the stanchion above the handrail. That's it! I hope this helps. You might want to practice on a scrap shell before you try this on a good model. Good Luck and don't forget to post a photo of your work when finished.
Sorry to disappoint you Flash but I haven't studied lift ring orientation so I'm not sure. I just went by photos of Milwaukee units I had on hand. Maybe someone else knows for sure.
Beautiful work Bill - those handrails alone are a real piece of work! You and Skibbe planning something for the LTHS train show?
You might want to try and make it to Highwheeler at Harper College in Palatine. It's the first weekend in March. We should have some new modules to show, since Mike is having a module building party in early January. He's also trying to shame me :embarassed: into doing more work on my New Lisbon modules but I've been busy counting louvers :angel: We'll probably be at LTHS also. Mike splits his time between helping me out with Kingsbury and the guys over on the dark side. (Midwest HO Modutrak) :shade: Hope to see you there.
