I was wondering if anyone ever made or does make reproduction castings of the Dorfan "narrow gauge" or as we know them O gauge engines. I understand the history of the original castings falling apart and with such simple engineering would it be possible to make them again or find someone that does?
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Apparently Steve and I are the only Dorfan fans left.....oh well. I will keep hunting and working on a solution.
I suppose if you had an intact shell, you could always sand cast an aluminum replacement. It will come out slightly smaller, of course. And I don't know if I would be brave enough to pack a fragile Dorfan shell in Petrobond... you might end up with a pile of Zamak dust... 
I suppose if you had an intact shell, you could always sand cast an aluminum replacement. It will come out slightly smaller, of course. And I don't know if I would be brave enough to pack a fragile Dorfan shell in Petrobond... you might end up with a pile of Zamak dust...
I was thinking of doing a 3d scan and then 3d printing of a shell to prototype.
I suppose if you had an intact shell, you could always sand cast an aluminum replacement. It will come out slightly smaller, of course. And I don't know if I would be brave enough to pack a fragile Dorfan shell in Petrobond... you might end up with a pile of Zamak dust...
I was thinking of doing a 3d scan and then 3d printing of a shell to prototype.
Is it possible to go into the scan program and correct for zinc-pest distortions before printing?
BTW I like your club's 20" squares idea.
I suppose if you had an intact shell, you could always sand cast an aluminum replacement. It will come out slightly smaller, of course. And I don't know if I would be brave enough to pack a fragile Dorfan shell in Petrobond... you might end up with a pile of Zamak dust...
I was thinking of doing a 3d scan and then 3d printing of a shell to prototype.
Is it possible to go into the scan program and correct for zinc-pest distortions before printing?
BTW I like your club's 20" squares idea.
From what I know of yes it can be done. We need a good scan to start t
with and then can correct for defects.
Not meaning to hijack, but given the high likelihood of original Dorfan castings being un-usable, corrected scans for 3d metal printers might be a solution for all those shelf queens out there.
This idea is worth watching, IMHO : http://3dprint.com/47065/argen...an-3d-metal-printer/
Yeah, 3D scanning and printing would be a nice solution. I'm just old school... gimme sand and molten metal, and I'm happy!
I do have a couple with pretty nice castings. I would be glad to loan one if someone wanted to use one to make a file.
Steve
The late Robert Loxley made lost wax brass castings of the locomotive sides. These castings allowed the owner to use all of the non-diecast Dorfan locomotive components to build a running engine but it is my understanding that none of the machinery needed to continue this process survived his passing.
The late Robert Loxley made lost wax brass castings of the locomotive sides. These castings allowed the owner to use all of the non-diecast Dorfan locomotive components to build a running engine but it is my understanding that none of the machinery needed to continue this process survived his passing.
What a shame. Well hopefully I can figure out something.
Did T-Reproductions offer these at one time?
Only in the Std Gauge Croc style that I know of.
Steve
Hi -
I'm new to the forum.
I know its been a year since the last post to this thread but I've only recently started adding Dorfan to my small train collection.
Is there any more news to report on this front a year later?
I would be willing to contribute financially to getting a casting 3d scanned and printed as I have a great set of motor parts waiting for a shell to be mounted in.
Would also need wheel castings.
Another Steve
If someone got workable drive wheels wheels rolling, I'd contribute as well. I need a good source of drive wheels for a 0-4-0T I'm working on.
Was searching for some info on Dorfan Castings came across this thread. Since a couple years have passed, and there have been advances in 3D printing is there anybody on this forum or knows of anyone that can produce scans for 3d printing of these castings. I'm sure there is a need out there for those that have all the motor parts but lack a casting to resurrect these shelf queens.
Count me in if you find a solution!
FIXIT posted:Was searching for some info on Dorfan Castings came across this thread. Since a couple years have passed, and there have been advances in 3D printing is there anybody on this forum or knows of anyone that can produce scans for 3d printing of these castings. I'm sure there is a need out there for those that have all the motor parts but lack a casting to resurrect these shelf queens.
Not aware of anyone currently making them, but they have been done in the past. I have a 51-52 type repro shell and 3 crude aluminum crocodile shells. I have a number of original engines with fair shells that could be made to work if drivers were available, especially the geared ones. I am going to re motor a few 3920’s with can motors and if there is enough room inside, one may be DCS.
Steve
Anyone looked at Henning's Trains for Dorfan stuff?
gunrunnerjohn posted:Anyone looked at Henning's Trains for Dorfan stuff?
I have bought quite a few of his Dorfan parts. May be time to replenish my inventory.
Steve
Hi, I am new to this thread. I have 2 of the Dorfan 52 aluminum castings that might have been made in the 1960s. I have had success getting them running but I need Drive Wheels, especially the ones with the gears. I had an original green Model 53 that was still running a couple years ago but it needs drivers now too. Can we at least 3D Print some drivers? I'm in on that project.
Have you checked Henning's Trains? They make a lot of wheels, don't know if these are in the list specifically.
Hennings is worth checking with!
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