Hawaiian Interisland 2-8-2

[catnippertom]

I just purchased this locomotive from a train show that I just went to. I have fully disassembled the model and want to know a bit more from the forum. Excuse me for some noob questions I am going to ask but I want to know more about the hobby.
First, should I consider remotoring the locomotive or is this motor type okay (the loco ran fine before disassembly)?

What is the best way to get parts? I am missing a few small screws and want to replace them.

What is the best way of going about restoring the paint work? Can I attempt to hand paint and with what kind of paint?

What kind of wires can I use to rewire the loco because a few of the wires are rotting?

Could I convert this to DCC?

Can and where could I get new headlights/trailing lights?

Also any information you guys have on this model would be nice as well. Hopefully the experience that some of you have in the hobby can further my knowledge and make me a better repair man!

 

[bnsf971]

That looks like A Mantua Mikado. I'm almost 100% certain that is a custom paint job, so finding matching paint will be a challenge. If you decide to go DCC with it, I would look for a can motor of similar dimensions and shaft diameter. The motor now is grounded through the frame, so it would need to be insulated from the frame if you decide to use the original motor. Looks like you already have a headlight bulb. If you want to install an LED headlight, make sure the decoder outputs are compatible with LEDs, or you will need to add a resistor to the headlight circuit.

 

[KB02]

Northwest Short Lines is a great place to get replacement motors if you decide to go that route:

Micro Motors

NorthWest Short Line

nwsl.com

 

[catnippertom]

So a little update here, I went to eBay and ordered some parts along with going to my local hobby store to grab some supplies.
So far I have:

• A new motor assembly thanks to https://www.ebay.com/usr/cv-backshop. They make a ton of motor conversions for other older locomotives so if you are looking for one, they are a great place to go.
• Thanks to https://picclick.com/Popular/ho-mantua-parts I was able to find parts way easier. I picked up a replacement cab from eBay through this.
• I picked up some wire from my local hobby store red and black
• I also picked up a replacement bell to replace the broken bell on the locomotive
• I purchased an LED kit from the hobby store and I am excited to try my hand at setting up new lighting.
• I also purchased new wheels for the front truck

I am looking at maybe trying my hand at airbrushing the loco back to it's former Hawaiian Interisland glory. We will see how this goes.

 

[KriegslokBR52]

So a little update here, I went to eBay and ordered some parts along with going to my local hobby store to grab some supplies.
So far I have:

• A new motor assembly thanks to https://www.ebay.com/usr/cv-backshop. They make a ton of motor conversions for other older locomotives so if you are looking for one, they are a great place to go.
• Thanks to https://picclick.com/Popular/ho-mantua-parts I was able to find parts way easier. I picked up a replacement cab from eBay through this.
• I picked up some wire from my local hobby store red and black
• I also picked up a replacement bell to replace the broken bell on the locomotive
• I purchased an LED kit from the hobby store and I am excited to try my hand at setting up new lighting.
• I also purchased new wheels for the front truck

I am looking at maybe trying my hand at airbrushing the loco back to it's former Hawaiian Interisland glory. We will see how this goes.

All this work...did you consider maybe painting the locomotive into something more realistic?

 

[catnippertom]

All this work...did you consider maybe painting the locomotive into something more realistic?

Nope! I like what the previous owner did. It is just a typical Mantua Mikado at the end of the day, so there are thousands like it. I wouldn't have bought it if it didn't have this livery. Realism-shmealism!

 

[KriegslokBR52]

Nope! I like what the previous owner did. It is just a typical Mantua Mikado at the end of the day, so there are thousands like it. I wouldn't have bought it if it didn't have this livery. Realism-shmealism!

Fair enough