tooters scooters...

[tooter]

Tooter, you have the vote of approval. My daughter thinks your train is "cute" and she hates trains. That engine is really a tank engine, so the tender isn't very prototypical, not that that matters on the Tooter Lines.

You're right. Who cares when nothing else in the train is remotely prototypical...

One thing you might try is replacing the couplers with a shorter drawbar made from plastic scrap. You could get the tender closer to the engine and help disguise the coal bunker hanging off the back.

I wanted the tender to be removeable so that it could be used for long trips, and left off for switching operations. It's lucky there's no actual coal showing on the rear of the engine. It's just a nondescript featureless flat rectangle. I'm going to extend the shelf of the tender with some sheet brass so that the coal is "transferable" to the engine.

Greg

 

[Rico]

I had a small four wheel steamer with a cut down tender that rode on a single truck.
I picked it up used somewhere and just sold it in my last clean up.
Now there's a new project for you, would fit right in!

 

[tooter]

You know, I was planning to do just that when I saw the old unusually short brass tender on ebay, and thought the all metal tender would go nicely with the all metal engine. I still might make a little one truck, and if it turns out good enough, I can always easily sell the brass one especially since it's been restored.

 

[tooter]

The freight truck was just a little small and short, so I installed a different one that has a longer wheelbase to better fit the shell...

For comparison it's next to a 40' flat car...

 

[Larry]

Looks a lot better w/the longer truck. I have a lot of the sprung trucks if you're interested. I think most are Tyco. They are all metal. I tried to use them on a lot of my heavy duty flats, but the cars were to heavy & the truck compressed & derailed the cars.

 

[Littlefoot14]

That looks like a passenger truck to me. It looks much better and not so "tippy" now.

 

[tooter]

Looks a lot better w/the longer truck. I have a lot of the sprung trucks if you're interested. I think most are Tyco. They are all metal. I tried to use them on a lot of my heavy duty flats, but the cars were to heavy & the truck compressed & derailed the cars.

Thanks for the offer, Larry...
but I already have a box full of them. The sprung ones won't work on a single truck car because it allows the center point of attachment to tip forward and backward...

...which would make for a very exciting ride.

Greg

 

[tooter]

That looks like a passenger truck to me. It looks much better and not so "tippy" now.

Yes, it's a passenger. They typically have longer wheelbases. Now it looks more like a 4 wheeled bobber caboose undercarriage.

Greg

 

[tooter]

Still don't have a layout yet, so I built a little experimental diorama made from what's handy in the yard... dirt and rocks.

 

[GaryMc]

Nice look, it's amazing what you can do with stuff around the house.

 

[tooter]

Thanks, Gary... I've never done any landscape modelling before and have decided that this look will be the layout's basic terrain theme...

Gonna have to make sure to build a really stout table to hold the weight of all the rocks...

Greg

 

[Littlefoot14]

Hey tooter, im considering buying one of the kadee logging caboose kits, they seem pretty cool. How hard was it to build?

 

[tooter]

They're pretty easy...
...the hardest part is assembling the Kadee coupler springs.

(sprong!... now where in the heck did it go this time? )

The Kadee #104 is a very well designed kit. Everything fits together perfectly. The all metal sprung kadee truck is really sturdy, and the couplers (once you get them in!) operate flawlessly. It's one of my favorite cars.

The Kadee caboose uses exactly the same truck as their #103 disconnected log buggies...

Just checked... they're about 20 bucks now.

Greg

 

[tooter]

Added another car to the logging train...

 

[tooter]

...and just acquired two more log buggies. They're also Model Engineering Works and over 50 years old just like all of the other rolling stock, except these two have never been used. It's the ebay pic, as they haven't arrived in the mail yet...

The total cost of all 4 sets of log buggies averages out to $9.75 each which pleases me to no end to be able to get cars that are so old and yet are all in such excellent condition.

 

[lmackattack]

Gonna have to make sure to build a really stout table to hold the weight of all the rocks...

Greg

Greg. Use the woodland sceincs hydrocal Rock mold and cheep plaster of paris. add the water based paint after the mold is placed on the layout. You will still be able to make those rock molds look real, put them in exactly how you want and not have all the weight of those real rocks!!!!

 

[tooter]

Hi mack,

Thanks for the helpful suggestion...
If I do use rocks they'll be facades. I'm really cheap, they're free, and they don't need painting.

Greg

 

[tooter]

Lately I've been working on a really neat kit...

It's a hot metal car made by State Tool and Die Company in Ohio. There's still a few more details to add. The kit even includes heavy duty trucks and Kadee couplers.

Just put the Kadees on...

 

[tooter]

The tooter logging train just got a little longer...

All of the cars are made by Model Engineering Works and are all over 50 years old. Even put matching old time logging trucks on the tender.

 

[lmackattack]

Hold on!!!! You need a gondola or flat car between the loco and the metal car. thats what they do to keep the heat safely away from the loco/people operating the loco!!