Steam experts, help me I.D. this one


phatpony

Member
My Grandfather was big into model railroading in the 60'-70's. When he passed away I got what was remaining of his locomotives. Most are steam. I grew up running these units, and would very much like to get them running good again. This one has no manufacturers name on it. It needs some detail stuff replaced like some of the valve gearing, but also needs to be remotored and new drive wheels. I have no idea what to get and I figure the best thing is to at least identify what it is first, then I can research the parts (anybody know of a good vendor for such items?).

I suspect this unit is from the early 70's.

Thanks for any help.

Glenn
 
Glen, let me see if I can wake up Cjcrescent on this. He has been working on/repairing steam locos for a very long time.
 
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I'm certainly no expert on steam locomotives, but it looks like an old Bowser H-9 Consolidation kit. You can still buy this kit, as well as the detail kits, repair parts, etc. from Bowser. Check this link and see if it matches your model.
 
WOW RCH! Jackpot. Thanks alot! Not only is this the correct one, but I was able to identify a Pennsy 2-10-0 decapod also. Excellent info on that site.

Thanks a ton!

Glenn
 
Alright! Okay, let's see if anyone can identify this one:

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I know the answer, just curious if anyone recognizes it... ;)
 
Nope.... Mantua has made railroad models for a long time, but it's not Mantua.

Here's a hint: it's older than me (I'm 32), and my grandpa bought it new. The shell is plastic, the drivers are metal and the tires (flanged portion of the drivers) are brass.
 
ehhh come on that WAY beyond my age... you gotta think Internet age for me to know it, and at that I dunno...
 
Ding ding ding! Carey gets it right. It is the Athearn (I thought it was a Boston & Albany) Pacific. Check the front of those old blue boxes, the ones with the steam locomotive on the front. That's the model right there. It also makes an appearance, in a similar view to the photo I took, on the "bottom" side flap of the box lid to the left of a Santa Fe passenger train.

I also have the old 0-6-0, but it's a weak model in comparison. Still, these older steamers are pretty sweet. One day, when I actually learn something about them, I'll restore them to their original factory lustre....
 
Actually Ryan it is B&A. I remembered it being one of those "Northeastern" roads. When I got started into the hobby I wanted one but couldn't afford it. By the time I could afford one and had actually found a shop dedicated to MRRing, they were long out of production.
 
When I found this one in my grandpa's collection, I got very excited and showed it to him. He thought it was no big deal, of course, and said if I kept looking I'd probably find his other Athearn steamers. I had no idea that Athearn made more than the Pacific on the blue box, so I was excited to keep searching.

Amazingly enough, it didn't take too much effort to get this Pacific running again. Repairing/restoring this locomotive, and a very old (but nicely done) brass Mountain, are my projects for the long rainy days of my empty nest years (20 or so to go?).
 
RCH said:
I'm certainly no expert on steam locomotives, but it looks like an old Bowser H-9 Consolidation kit. You can still buy this kit, as well as the detail kits, repair parts, etc. from Bowser. Check this link and see if it matches your model.
I have two of those kits sitting on the shelf right now, but they're a little bit newer production :rolleyes:. If you decide to fix it up and need any parts, let me know.
 
Thanks Nate. I am going to fix her up, along with the others I have. My layout will be modern, but I plan on a few steam days as well. That should be fun. As far as parts, I'll let you know when I get ready for the rebuild. Right now I have to save up for building the layout. I have just enough lumber to get it started, but I have a long list of stuff I need to continue. Do you have or can you get Peco switches?

Glenn
 



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