Southern Pacific Steam 2023

[bob turner]

SP Mike boilers were tapered. Lobaugh got it right; Sunset sort of missed. Ditto the Decks - and even Gerry White missed it on the big CB&Q.

But that one is more USRA than Harriman. The EPSW had Mikes that were closer, and SP bought them out in the mid-twenties.

My philosophy is you can pretend - it is a hobby, not a science.

Now I have to look . . .

[R.K. Maroon]

Bob, you are, of course, correct. The boiler on my model is from an GMC/All Nation Pacific, which is supposed to be close to a USRA Light. Compared to this, the SP Mikes look like they have straight boilers -- and I assumed they did without looking closely. I seem to spend a lot of time "not looking closely" -- that might be a good way to maintain friendships and marital relations, but I really wouldn't mind having sharper powers of observation.

I do like the nosing around the SP subsidiary lines to see what might me there -- the El Paso and Southwestern and the T&NO are of particular interest, given the view here from Texas.

Jim

[bob turner]

Did some study of Stagner’s photos. Turns out the Rock Island K-55 classMikes were USRA. Stagner has no photos with the original 1919 cab - they are all of the “Sport” cab that resembles a telephone booth with a slanted side. But the drawings show a cab that looks like Maroon’s model.

So, time for rattle can black and a Rock Island logo. It is possible that I have some spares.

[Retroniac1]

It’s all great stuff! Including the slide valve switcher and Pacific. That straight boiler pacific is really appealing. I would engage in some real barter to obtain, even as a kit.

[bob turner]

I think I shall “bump” this while the photo links still work. I am going to add a pair of non-SP Pacifics. Part of my motivation is that once again I have a functioning (if barely) railroad with four loops. These two Pacifico’s are performing perfectly with no attention.

Uh- standby while I fire up the big computer.

[bob turner]

Yes - the first one is a dirtbag AN Pacific with a few modifications. I don't care if it jumps the track and falls five feet to the concrete - it would most likely crack the floor. I think it is a Lobaugh frame with Pittman/NWSL, but after four years and a minimum of wheel tread cleaning it smoothly leaped into action!



I searched in vain for a prototype - then I spotted the KATY Pacifics. Boxpok drivers, six axle tenders - close enough. Ordering vinyl from Callie for the tender soon.

[bob turner]

Here is the other yeoman - my very first Lobaugh. Good enough that I should add driver springs some day? This one is 1 1/8" gauge, invented before I knew about Q Gauge, and designed to bring the outer rim of .172 wheels to the approximate prototype width. In later years I determined that 17/64 scale was a better way to approach the problem.

Of note is the gearbox - Jan Lorenzen was selling these in the 1980s with a phenolic worm. I figured it would fail about as fast as a brass axle gear, if not faster. But for some reason it has almost a quarter century of weekly laps around my inner loop to its credit.

[bob turner]

I have all four loops running again after a four year break. Dirty track was the single biggest problem, followed by rail joiner slippage. I expected a lot more problems, since huge sections were parked on top of each other.

I do have two beautiful C&EI boxcars that routinely leap off the track at one point, and a lead truck that has discovered an anomaly in a normally trouble-free location. Searching for my track gauge, which is not on its trusty post above the workbench. Next time I shall opt for no more than a sixteenth of elevation from one side to the other on curves - but these two tiny problem areas are on non-superelevated curves, so maybe that is not the problem.

Here is how it looked before the four year break. this area was where the bees decided to make their home.

[bob turner]

Not much is going on, I guess. Here is the latest problem child - might be my second Diesel model in O Scale, say circa 1972. It has those awful sintered iron wheels, so you can see track sliders under one of the trucks. We painted it bright orange, then masked for the black.

It was totally frozen yesterday - motor would not move, and the Liquid Wrench was elsewhere - so I used what I had - WD-40 - and got it to move, slowly. It is now once again pulling freight cars on the newly rejuvenated #3 loop.

The legend SOUTHERN PACIFIC was done by Callie Graphics in vinyl (no decal is bright enough over black, even those with white underlays) and the number is next on my Callie list, along with a pair of Katy shields for a tender and some maroon strips for my very small Milwaukee passenger fleet.

The number, by the way, was used on a GE 70-ton locomotive that hauled the Tombstone Doodlebug in the mid 1950s after they retired Mogul 1674.

[up148]

Great photo Bob. I've always loved the tiger stripe switcher paint jobs used by the SP. If I ever built a switching module I would forgo the UP and have the SP paint job. Simple, but striking!

[bob turner]

Me too, except for the switching layout. I have switches for appearance, but spiked shut. I have observed switching layouts, but need alcohol to last more than ten minutes.

I am going to get Callie to make a set with stripes for my SD9. I do have double sets of the Microscale decals (you need two to get the bright orange to “pop”) but prefer the vinyl on smooth surfaces. Photo of that maybe in 2025.

[De Bruin]

Good looking NW2, that orange and black SP switcher scheme is classic. Agree it's difficult to get the right amount brightness in the orange too. I've considered painting the entire shell bright orange first and then masking off stripes and using appropriate sized vinyl lettering for the road name and number and THEN blowing on the black. I'm sure you'd likely get some (hopefully) minor bleed-over with the lettering and numbers but I'd fix that with a brush by hand. Hmmmmm....have a SLSW RS in the queue.....

[ScaleCraft]

Good looking NW2, that orange and black SP switcher scheme is classic. Agree it's difficult to get the right amount brightness in the orange too. I've considered painting the entire shell bright orange first and then masking off stripes and using appropriate sized vinyl lettering for the road name and number and THEN blowing on the black. I'm sure you'd likely get some (hopefully) minor bleed-over with the lettering and numbers but I'd fix that with a brush by hand. Hmmmmm....have a SLSW RS in the queue.....

I always hit it with clear before spraying second coat. Clear gets under the masking and usually crisp lines result.

Burner......on that NW.....what is that between the wheels on rear truck? Skates for track pickups?

[De Bruin]

A real good point Dave, prior to spraying paint; a very brief shot of clear-coat "hard coats"/locks out the edge when you do the "pull-off"" though if you're really paranoid like me, a slight run-over of the tape seam afterward with a sharp wood fine point or thin blade edge often insures that clean pull-off happens.
It helps to be able to recognize how soft the end color-coats are too, which in my case is from experience as various brands are often inconsistent in their curing qualities as well is my application itself.
Kind of masking tape is key too, I've traditionally used 3-M but these days go with the Tamiya Orange masking tape unless it's spot spraying coatings against attached areas not requiring them.

[bob turner]

I realized that I have no photos of my latest "deck" since I shot it in black rattle-can. Herewith: