Brass Locomotive Cosmetic Repairs

These are all fairly easily repaired. If there is no more paint damage on the smoke box I would just use JB Weld rather than solder on the class lights. Apply from inside after pulling off the smokebox front. I suspect the bell bracket can be straightened with needle nose pliers.

Same with the pilot after removing it from the frame. I think two screws hold it there.

This sort of damage is fairly typical of brass engines, even new out of the box unfortunately. This would be a good one to learn repair techniques on.

Pete

I agree with Norton. The letter boards are easy to change back to 5011. Decals from Microscale should be easy to find that match the style and size.

The bell bracket can be fixed with plyers, as Norton stated.

Resetting the marker lights with ACC glue or an epoxy such as JB Weld should make this an easy fix.

As for the cow catcher, remove it first and see what can be straighten out to fix the issue. Perhaps a call or email to Scott Mann at 3rd Rail that might result in his shop to fix it.

Of course if you don't feel confident in doing any of these repairs, then you might just sent it back to the seller.

Was any of this disclosed before you bought it? Perhaps damaged in shipment, and if it was insured, put in an claim with the shipper.

Good luck.

RAY

If you bought it from an auction house, it's fairly common to find mismatched tenders.  They buy a collection that includes locomotives numbered 5011 and 5022.  When matching to boxes, the large numbers on the tender are easy but the small numbers on the locomotive number boards can get missed.  I've seen auctions with PRR locomotives (no numbers on the tenders) where the completely wrong class of tender is matched with a locomotive in the auction listing.

Despite what the box says I think it would be easier to renumber the tender rather than the engine. The number plate under the headlight is embossed. Unless you can find an embossed 5011 plate it would detract from the appearance to decal it.

Bob makes a good point. Maybe there is a buyer out there with a 5022 tender looking for a swap. Contact the auction site.

Pete

I had to JB Weld my 5022's pilot on too. I'd be really annoyed by the mismatched tender. If that can't be resolved by the seller and you can't get your $$ back, K4 Decals has a nice set of ATSF decals that should work for renumbering it. I used part of that set to add the numbers and data on the rear of my 5022's tender.

Thanks everyone.

I managed to safely unscrew the pilot off. I was scared it was part of the frame and that whole part would have to be replaced. It’s not as bad as I thought, but still not pretty.

Since I wanted to get the 5011 model, I might just send the whole thing back, unfortunately. At least the seller was kind enough to full refund and return.

@Mikado 4501 posted:

I just bought my first brass locomotive - a 3rd Rail Santa Fe 2-10-4 Texas type from about 2001 or so.

Unfortunately, out of the box, I found a slew of cosmetic issues. The first thing was that the locomotive was numbered 5022, but the tender was numbered 5011. The box indicates it should be no. 5011, so that was pretty jarring.

The second thing was the class light housings were floating around. This isn't the worst thing, but it was still annoying.

But the MOST disappointing issue was the pilot. It was ABSOLUTELY bent that it's literally hanging onto the frame by a thread. Not to mention how mutilated the cowcatcher looks. The bell mount also is bent.

I wanted to ask if anyone is skilled in repairing brass locomotives like this, or if it would just be better sending it back to where it came from. It's a really nice locomotive, but this level of damage is just disappointing. I can't even run it because the pilot bends into the center rail.

I have one and had all these things damaged. I can repair/resolder it.

Repairing the damage is one thing, I get sidetracked on trying to match paint for the repairs!  Personally, I'd probably send it back, I've bought several dozen brass locomotives, and any that had that kind of damage went back to the seller.

I have a brass Allegheny by a well known company. I considered selling it. It does not ship well. So I stuck it in a display case rather than dealing with any disappointments to a perspective buyer.

We get spoiled by some engines that are built like tanks. We expect that level of toughness. It does not come with more intricate, delicate, brass engines. There's that trade off point between rugged and well detailed in scale.

Some buyers won't deal with delicate. Some buyers want everything scaled correctly even if it means sacrificing toughness or durability. I have no judgement of others to post here. Just commenting on this post and what I've seen.

I got used to fixing just about anything. I didn't want to. I had to. Know your limits. Reach out for help and advice from all the talent here. Step back and consider each post for its own merits.

@Engineer-Joe posted:

I have a brass Allegheny by a well known company. I considered selling it. It does not ship well. So I stuck it in a display case rather than dealing with any disappointments to a perspective buyer.

What version I may be interested.....even if it gets damaged.

@Bruk posted:

What version I may be interested.....even if it gets damaged.

Crazy how some see damage to brass as a turn off, but we see it as an opportunity!……how can I make this better than they did ??…..😁

Pat