The "Woody" D&H Challenger

[bob turner]

I volunteered to fix the exploded boiler on a Lobaugh D&H Challenger. Boilers, it turns out, are somewhat of a specialty for me.
I will have a few photos to share in this thread, and a lot of comments. Might get pretty arcane for those who lust for a PSC-quality model.

The boiler exploded because it had been filled with a mixture of lead shot, white glue, and some kind of low melting point metal - maybe pewter or some other more deadly alloy. Initial photos indicated that the model itself had been a true work of art before the explosion. Scale Craft Dave can explain the explosion and maybe his work at removing 90% of the offending glue and shot.

A lot of the detail on the boiler is still exquisite. It will get loosened during the reconstruction, since it is held with low temp solder. I hope I can get most of it back in more or less its original delicate beauty - but remember - I am the blacksmith. Even the cab windows slide - who does that?

Anyway, I shall get some preliminary photos and get started with boiler reinforcements. Next post from me will be a re-run of my own Lobaugh D&H Challenger. No matter how I stumble, this one will be better than mine.

Oh - history: I have no idea who built it, but workmanship is Gerry White quality. Woody Mathews had it, and may have been the culprit for the exploding boiler contents. The Seattle auction house awarded it to Maroon, and Scale Craft Dave picked it up. Dave and the Garbersons packed it perfectly and shipped it in the 116 degree heat last week.

[ScaleCraft]

Bob-
All the photos I took when I got it and started pulling weight have just been e-mailed to you.

Feel free to use them as needed.

[ScaleCraft]

New term/definition:

The Woodyweight, composed of glue and shot, is now proclaimed to be "glot".

[bob turner]

Here are two of Dave's photos - I should have done an aileron roll on one of them. I have four more in Shutterfly, and can post them if you want.





Notice on the second photo just ahead of the sand dome - the top of the boiler is split. There are really three splits up there; I will get some photos of that area before soldering.

[bob turner]

Here is mine - nowhere near as nice as Maroon's, but never split. Fear not; structurally this thing will be bulletproof by Monday evening!



Note how high the tender is - the Lobaugh plans and the kit have a very much shorter tender. I had heard that Maroon's tender was beyond hope, but opening the box showed a pretty much pristine Lobaugh tender with the sides extended on the bottom, just like mine. Lessens my workload considerably, unless the slight heat ripples are troublesome to its new caretaker. Sides with no rivets are almost trivial around here, and I think I can solder without heat ripples.

Also note the lack of sophisticated detail parts. Maroon's Challenger has some very finicky add-ons - even the handrail posts are soldered in, although now they are corroded a bit and some are loose.

The one thing I really need to replace is the large rimmed washout plugs. I think PSC had them, but not sure. I will get a measurement and solicit help in locating a package of them - I think they go in a 1/8" hole, and the rim stops them from falling through.

[ScaleCraft]

As Bob pointed out to me when I started here on this adventure, Lobaugh grooved the sides of the boiler to insert and solder in the running boards.
With the Glot expansion, those were weak points, and most likely failed first.
Once the Glot was chiselled out, the center section was already in two pieces.
I thought there were four horizontal cracks on top of the third section (which includes firebox), and the smokebox, well, there is an odd almost triangle piece at an angle from horizontal underneath that was pushed out by expanding Glot and bent.
I straightened a bit, and pushed it back into place.

It was fun. Every time I knocked more Glot out, more pieces fell off, being held in tension by the expansion.

[ScaleCraft]

Note how high the tender is - the Lobaugh plans and the kit have a very much shorter tender. I had heard that Maroon's tender was beyond hope, but opening the box showed a pretty much pristine Lobaugh tender with the sides extended on the bottom, just like mine. Lessens my workload considerably, unless the slight heat ripples are troublesome to its new caretaker. Sides with no rivets are almost trivial around here, and I think I can solder without heat ripples.

Also note the lack of sophisticated detail parts. Maroon's Challenger has some very finicky add-ons - even the handrail posts are soldered in, although now they are corroded a bit and some are loose.

The one thing I really need to replace is the large rimmed washout plugs. I think PSC had them, but not sure. I will get a measurement and solicit help in locating a package of them - I think they go in a 1/8" hole, and the rim stops them from falling through.

Not beyond hope at all. Slight waves in sides, hard to describe over the phone or via text in e-mails.
I figured heat and shrink, but that usually doesn't work well on brass.

I did clean the chassis up a bit, oiled it, and ran it with my old MRC test pack with alligator clips.
Initially lead engine was slower, but as it ran in a bit, the speed of lead and trail engines seemed to come back into sync.
Commutators need cleaning.

Whose motors are those?

[R.K. Maroon]

Here's some background on Woody's Lobaugh D&H Challenger. Woody lived in Seattle for much (most?) of his adult life. He had a basement with a small layout and a LOT of trains. I first saw it on while visiting five or six years ago. I made several visits over the next few years, as business and vacations both brought me to the area. I last saw Woody in August/September of 2019. I snapped this photo of the exploded-boiler articulated at that time:



Woody passed early this year. He was "up there" in age but spry and active so it was a bit of a surprise to hear of his death.

I next saw the model in the auction for Woody's estate, which happened the last week in May:



The lawyer for the estate screwed things up by hiring a local auction house to handle the trains. Clueless to how to sell model train equipment, the auctioneer sold the estate with scant advertising and only one photo per item. Good for us that knew the collection, bad for the estate and high-risk for everybody else.

Scalecraft Dave volunteered to pick up the items I won, including the Lobaugh. He volunteered to remove the lead shot and glue weight (as described in this thread). This required boiler removal, which revealed the double-motored chassis:




Bob Turner, who gets full credit for first identifying the model as a Lobaugh, volunteered to restoration (boiler repair and who knows what else). Richard Garberson volunteered to pack and ship the model to Bob. Yes, I have the best friends in the hobby one could ask for.

Finally, for reference, here is the one-and-only catalog shot of the D&H Challenger:



Fun project. My role at this point seems to be "assemble a prototypical consist" and "look for a suitable caboose". I can do both of those.
Jim

[bob turner]

Front course and smokebox ready for soldering. Junction to rear boiler course is a bit more problematic. I have changed the plan - tighten the split area first, then join to the front boiler course. Photos ready to load when I get off the couch.

[up148]

Wow! Thanks for posting the extra photos and history Jim, it really completes the story for me. Dual open frame motors.....how cool is that. Someone really wanted to build the "best of the best" for that period. Did Woody build this or buy it from someone? I know it will be restored to it's splendor and beauty by the "crew", but worst case scenario, it looks really cool with the boiler cracked open and could sit outside your engine facility representing a "very minor" boiler rupture...

[E7]

Jim, I'll second Butch's comments! Considering Woody's age, and how long he's been in the hobby, your visits had to have been interesting to say the least. It's really a shame how things ended up being handled in the end. Glad you were able to preserve some of it.

Rich

[ScaleCraft]

Post-game guess (as we'll never know for sure): The most James Woodrow had to do with this was maybe the Glot. While he talked a good story, all any of us were aware of was his uncanny ability to take things apart...and leave them in piles.
That photo on Woody's pile exhibition trackage really tells more than you think.
That is a ScaleCraft tank laying in the front of the photo.....and no frame. To this day, no frame.
All over his "layout". Piles of disassembled stuff.
Dozens of boilers/cabs/even tenders, and no chassis.
The thing that saved this D&H from oblivion was you couldn't get it apart.
So it stayed intact.
There was another at auction, that you apparently could get apart. Because the entire chassis was gone, and boiler exploded with Glot.

[bob turner]

Woody was a pleasant sort, and very knowledgable - but a builder he was not.

Here is the cleaned boiler getting ready for pins and solder. I will join the entire thing in the next 30 minutes or so, and then it is off to the airport.

You can see one of the four fatigue cracks in the upper left - just barely. The worst of the lot goes all the way to the firebox through a missing washout plug hole. Amazing what a little moisture can do! Blam!

[bob turner]

And here is the cleaned smokebox. Note the exquisite detail up by the stack - not exactly my specialty. I am going to try to preserve it as much as possible - but the darn thing gets heated up pretty hot this week. Maybe some damp rags . . .

[up148]

The builder of this loco was an exceptional modeler and especially considering when I think it was done........pretty remarkable. The craftsmanship is evident at 1st glance and the added detailing rivals anything available, except maybe KEY, PSC Crown or Koh's and it's way ahead of detailing on a stock MG, USH or WS loco. Dual open frame motors.......wow!

Sure would be nice to know who built it and when.....just interesting history that enhances the enjoyment of the model for me.

BTW Dr. Bob, you're work looks fantastic. You make it look so simple and we know it is not. Glad there were no serious corrosion issues to deal with.