I finally got around to completing the GHQ Mi-Jack straddle loader for my intermodal yard. First bits to assemble were the main beam and vertical beams on the operator's side, and the wheels. then the engine compartment was assembled and the etched grilles added, plus the top details this unit was then added to the beams, together with the brackets and operator's cabin below the beam
The other side beams were assembled as before, and the etched walkways added to the top horizontal beams The side sections, top beams and main lift beams, and several small parts were them assembled, to complete the major part of the model that left the lifting arms and cradle to assemble, and glue to the main structure. I chose to have the arms down, for lifting trailers, they can be up for container handling
The completed loader. I am very pleased with the result. It is a quite complex kit, but with care makes an excellent feature for the layout.
Alan, That looks great! Have one question though, shouldn't it be orange with Santa Fe logos on it????
Alan, Even tho i'm an HO'er I must say your making even me drool! Thats spectacular work! Is that a bought kit or one you made???? I'm interested to know, Being its white metal casted... All in all tho, its one impressive model you've got their! I want to build an over head electric crane for the inside of my loco repair building... Nothing real fansy, just so its lighted and also the crane deck moves back and forth the length of the building and maybe to get the 2 sets of hooks and cables to move propertly..... Although everything will be done with pulleys and by a radio tuner. To make all the movements... I just have to think alittle more on the design work to the movable parts... [ 24 December 2001: Message edited by: 7600EM_1 ]
Alan, I'm kinda doing a kitbash/scratchbuild/ redesign... I took a body from an old HO scale Life-Like crane.. The little yellow one, not the wreck crane thats like 250 ton or 400 ton... But the little job. And i'm redesigning it to be a "Burro" crane at a max lift of 5 to 8 tons. One with a 1/2 a cubic yard clam shell bucket. The bucket is a "Custom Finishing" detail part. I got really close to a real one some years ago when I got my first 110 camera and took a few shots of one. I wanted to model the thing for a few reasons... One is well I've always been fond of cranes, 2 would be because its a RAILROAD crane, 3 would be the fact that it has a long history "the real one". The real one was a "Burro" that the B&O originally owned from the last years of the railroad, then went onto Chessie System and the pictures I have of this same crane is carrying "CSX" on it! So it went through the paces, and the times and all so... But anyway, I'm super detailing this Life-Like, to have a clamshell bucket that works, with a raise and lower line, a open and close line for the bucket, and a control line that runs out to a pulley in the middle of the boom to pull the bucket closer to or release the line to leave the bucket swing out further to get into a specific location that the operator would want. All done with brass pulleys, and black thread, and some black elastic thread for the control line, and the open and close line to keep tension on the jaws of the bucket itself. Also to let the bucket swing and all, as if the tied line is actually being released or drawn for the control line. Most of the major materials used is from old 8 track players... Tuning pulleys and drive pulleys, which are solid brass! And just odds and ends that I've collected up that looked usefull when I was dismantling a few old radio's and record players and 8 track players, for electric parts, diodes, resistors etc... I just happened to notice the pulleys, and pins for the pulleys and saved them all! And now their becomming usefull! I may go as far as puting a power source in it to run under its own power. Not to me pulled by another power source. The motor will naturally be small, and in the flat car frame. It will set on being its only going to have 2 axles, "4 wheels" so.... Its seemingly a great project so far! I've also noticed that the original Life-Like design was made to be steam powered... How strange, for its size and all you would think they would have made it a diesel powered version. Which I plan to also change.... [ 25 December 2001: Message edited by: 7600EM_1 ]
Alan, Also being that i'm in the works on the "Burro" crane project, i'm in the thinking/designing process of the over head crane for in my roundhouse! I'm not exactly sure on how I'm going to begine the over head crane as of yet.... But as I've said... Cranes for some reason or other has been a great past time as well as trains! Railroad cranes have to be the best of both worlds!!!! HA! The over head crane isn't going to be as spectacular as your Mi-Jack or my Burro, but its not going to be completely seen.... Not like a Mi-Jack or a Burro would be.... So I can go easy on the details and its functions as far as that goes. But I still want it to look half decent and realistic! The Burro project i've got going on is a special job in its own way. Its going to be added to a train that got me where I am today in skills... My Mow train! I took complete junk cars and parts and pieces and made them into a 20 plus car long train!!!!! I know that a 20 car MOW is not proto-type, but at a train display show such as the one I preform for the holidays at the beginning of December every year, I run the whole complete train for the kids! The yellow cranes just light up the lil ones eyes!!! And for me thats what its all about... On a proto-type run.... I'll run different segments of the train up to 5 cars in length. Sometimes 6 cars at the very most durring a proto-type run. If I had a decent digital camera I'd try to get a half ways decent picture of this MOW train of mine that I totally designed and made. I got 10 years in it from the start of it and I'm still adding to it! I do alittle of freelancing in it and also proto-type cars. A few cars I've seen by other railraods really were interesting so I modeled them and all and freelanced a B&O paint job on them... Most of the B&O's MOW cars were either black with white lettering or "Devils Red" with yellow lettering... My cars are "Enhanchment Blue" with yellow lettering. So I free lanced the tool cars and boom tenders and flat cars and gondolas, and one crane thats the wreck crane, a 400 ton one, that I painted to match the other blue cars. The Burro, and the ditch cranes that are excavators are all yellow. At a latter date i'm going to invest in a "Custom Finishing" Jackson 6700 tamper to go with it and a few other machines, a ballast regulator, a tie crane and tie carts, a spike puller and tie inserter. You know the basic surface gang type thing.... Its a train that got me where I am today so.. I'm going to put my best into it and make it the best possible.... I also got a junked up Walthers Jordan Spreader at a train show, that I'm also reconditioning that someone had all but ruined. So when its all said and done with I should have a nice working conversation piece at the shows and at the local club, and even at its proposed home. My home layout!
Nahhhh....it should be orange with Southern Pacific Speed Lettering on it! Very nice work Alan, the finished model looks fantastic. Here's hoping GHQ makes that Mi-Jack in HO. Otherwise, we HO-scalers are stuck with having to upgrade and update the so-so Walthers one....
Looks great, Alan! I've thought about taking the easier (and cheaper) route with the Walthers version, but yours makes me reconsider. I don't/won't have a domestic/TOFC intermodal yard, but one might look good at the container port (maybe the port can do both). Also, I thought at one time GHQ discontinued, or threatened to discontinue these(?). Russ
Alan, I'll say it looks great! Although it can stay yellow but the "UP" shields should be "CSX" shields! HA Just stokin yer boiler! Its one very well proportioned Mi-Jack... I like the detail and all. Great work!
Yes Russ, they are discontinued, so if you want one, get it now I did offer to take over the production of the kit, but they did not respond to that
Way to go Alan, You are correct when you say the kit was complex! I built mine a few years ago and painted it in 'Baltimore Dock' colors. It made me build a container loading area to give some function. I don't think I'd have the patience to do another. My little WebCam camera doesn't do it justice. Hope to get a real camera soon. ....Eddie
They both look great! What can I say I'm working on some Plastruct to begin my over head crane for in my engine service building... Or if nothing else depending on, I might fit a over head crane in my engine service biulding and my roundhouse. I don't know yet.. I'm 2/3rds the way done on the Burro crane and all so... And all thats left is some slight detailing and painting. So now I'm going to begin the structural work on one of the possible 2 overhead cranes Then when they are both completed in designing and all with the body and so on I'm going to paint them both all at the same time.... And depending on the looks of the overhead I'll then decide if I'm going to make another to fit the roundhouse [ 27 December 2001: Message edited by: 7600EM_1 ]
