The Tridaily Doorstop -- Bob's Mexicano Electric

[E7]

Enough already about backgrounds and photo composition! What I want to know is: Are these up to snuff COPYRIGHT wise??????

[bob turner]

Yes. I got permission.
Not a joke - none of us will ever sue, but some folks can and do. Never assume it is ok to repeat an internet image.

All of my friends say Ok - but if some time elapses I ask again. It is polite. I was unable to get permission for one image in the Alexander Mikado thread, so you didn't get to see it.

I know you were just pulling my leg, but this can become a problem for the unwary.

[R.K. Maroon]

There is one last thing to note about the Icken O-1, which is that it had a most unusual drive. Though it had only two driving axles, the model had two motors. Each motor drove one of the axles directly through a worm gear:



This arrangement would have given the model a good amount of power. The cast bronze shell provides decent weight for traction, so one would think this model would have been a good runner and a good puller. The buyer had a choice between the standard 18:1 ration or a by-request 24:1 ratio. I like slow running, so the latter would have been my choice.

The prototype O-1 was notable in that eight were built, which is a pretty good amount for an electric locomotive, but all eight were experimental. They were built in four pairs, with each pair equipped with different motors, gearing, and chassis design. As it was, none of the four sets performed at levels that kept up with the ever increasing train length and schedule demands of the Pennsy electrified mainlines. As such, the O-1 never went into production, and these units were assigned to secondary operations. Too bad -- I think they are really cool.

[R.K. Maroon]

#28 -- Scale-Craft Offset-Side Twin Hopper

Scale-Craft offered two types of hoppers, a straight side and an offset side. Both were twins. Here is a example of the latter, finished for the Big Four:





These are relatively common. They lack rivet detail, but are otherwise quite serviceable.

[R.K. Maroon]

Here is the underside of the Scale-Craft Hopper:



Most of these that I have seen were equipped with Scale-Craft trucks, in large part (I am guessing) because the trucks were included as part of the kit. This model, however, is equipped with Carl Auel trucks:



The Auel trucks were sprung, and, as best I can tell, were considered the finest truck available in the pre-war years. These are the baseline versions. The super-fancy versions had working journal covers. I know of one collector that pays a premium for them.

[R.K. Maroon]

Be sure to check out the two added photos of the Lobaugh SP steel caboose that Bob added back on page 24.

My memory is that Scale-Craft introduced the straight-side hopper first (and quite early -- 1936, I think), with the offset-side a year or two later. Here is a photo of it in Big Four markings from the 1938 catalog:



I have seen a good number of these go by over the years. A solid majority of them had the same road number as the model in the catalog shot.

[bob turner]

Bump. Mexicano #1001. But I may freelance Milwaukee, or Butte, Anaconda, & Western. Don't be too critical; I just started:

[ScaleCraft]

Bump. Mexicano #1001. But I may freelance Milwaukee, or Butte, Anaconda, & Western.

Pacific. BA&P

[J. S. Bach]

Bob,
How about a photo of the drive, it looks quite interesting.

[bob turner]

It will be unpowered. With a hundred powered locomotives around here it would be a full time job just keeping them running. Steam seems easier than Diesel at the moment, since all that needs is lubrication and test.

I will power the Bi-Polar, though. Might be my last powered locomotive.

[bob turner]

Progress? At least you can see hints of my color scheme.

[De Bruin]

Wow Bob, this came together quickly. Looks great!

[R.K. Maroon]

I will second Pete's comments regarding the speed in which this project got off the ground -- Very impressive, Bob.

While Bob was working on this, I was in the Pacific Northwest, visiting various O-scale friends and otherwise enjoying being out of the Texas heat, at least for a while. I only mention this because John Fisher was one of the guys I visited. He told me that he was riding behind one of these Mexicano electrics when he met a young woman whom he later married. That was a long time ago -- he and Suzanna are still married.

Here for fun are a couple of more photos of the Mexicano units, from the DeGolyer collection at SMU: