Early O scale Docksider

Carey        Bob mentioned that he felt it was scratch built, and I would tend to agree with him.  Its not an International model for lots of reasons. The rivets are all wrong, is the first give away, there are no rivets on the roof of the International model, the rivets on the rear tank run vertical on the International, and horizontal on yours. The frame is quite substantial on yours, and the drivers look to be the right size, with steel tires, not brass. I think I may have seen this model pictured in Model Railroader ? Its a very nice example of scratch building, would be my opinion too. Carey another great find!           cTr....(Choose the Right)

Carey,

Could this be a  Mel Thornberg Model or one built from his MR  articles describing how he built this loco?  Details like the little brakeman's lantern on the top of the water tank are things like Mel would make for his models.

Joe

I think the Mel Thornburgh theory is a good one, his articles were great, and I loved his construction drawings, I wish Model Railroader would consider a complete compilation of his articles, but they are available individually. Im not sure if Mel Thornburgh's Dec 1940 articale had details of the tank version of B&O's No 99 or not, but he indicates in May 1951, the beginning construction article on No 96,  that his 41 article spawned a lot of models commercial and privet models.       cTr....( Choose the Right)

Carey   Is it O Gauge? or HO? because if its "O" I think Ive found your loco, if not its sister in "O".      cTr....(Choose the Right)

Hello Stephen 

thank you for your reply and hunting for information 

the little Docksider is O scale ....

where did you find the photo?

thank you 

cheers Carey

Well it wasn't to hard to find, at one time I went through all my Model Railroaders, Mainline Modellers & Craftsman magazines, and listed all the technical drawings, pictures and articles I thought I may need in the future, and recorded them in a folder or two ( fun lunch time brake activity at work ). So who wouldn't  record this little gem of a loco. So the drivers where a giveaway, they are the right size 46" all the imports etc where to small, so that stuck out in my mind, when I saw your pictures, I thought I think I may have seen this loco before.  Then out came my folder, I was sure I would have recorded this picture, and there it was December 1951 Model Railroader. The next piece of info you will love.    cTr...( Choose the Right )

Stephen,

I think you have it!  At one time MR published drawings for this loco that indicated it had 45" drivers.  This was not correct but US Hobbies made their C-16 drivers that size when they produced their model of this loco.  The correct size is 48".  Somewhere in an ancient MR  (1939/1940) I found an article about a modeler building one of these in HO scale using a Walthers power truck.  The builder acknowledged that the driver spacing was incorrect  but he also mentioned that the drivers were 48" in diameter.  I have modified, with new counterweight overlays, and machined new 48" drivers for this model using PSC 48" driver castings and the loco looks a lot better.  The drivers on the model in question look correct.  I do not see the little brakeman's lantern on the top of the fuel tank in the photos you found.

Joe

Joe   There are a few anomalies between the two photo's, the lantern you mentioned, a pipe by the compressor, and the headlight and rear light are a different shape. The model overall, as a scratch built piece reflects the unique caricature and methodology of the builder, that amounts to a signature, its as unique as an artists brush stroke, and style. I think some improvements where made,and some bits lost in the last 67 years, but I think in my opinion, its unmistakably the same model or at least builder. I always thought 48" for the drivers, but I think Mel Thornburgh says 46" in his article , but the imports wheels where definitely to small.       cTr...( Choose the Right )

Hello Stephen 

thank you for your reply and hunting for information 

the little Docksider is O scale ....

where did you find the photo?

thank you 

cheers Carey

Hello Stephen and Joe

thank you for all your super sleuth work finding the little Docksider 

I went to MR Dec 1951 and found the article about the demise of the prototype engines ... they only made 4 !...... wow how many thousand were produced in Model trains ?

Could your photo of the Docksider be an another issue of MR ?

Here is the article from 1951 mentioning the missing Mel T 17/64ths Docksider ... still missing ?

thank you 

cheers Carey

Carey    Sorry! I also have the article, you showed above, marked, and got confused. Its November 1951 page 13, these little locomotives are truly appealing, its no wonder they have been so popular.      cTr...( Choose the Right )

Hello all ...at long last got the little Docksider running ....

Please see link for video action .

https://youtu.be/-5YGiswihCI?si=4IOBHYkv-j-TAi-K

Pulling Lobaugh Shell tank cars and a Hawk caboose all prewar.

Cheers Carey

Thanks to Mr. Caliri for his hours of hard work and to you Carey for saving it/getting it running.

Interesting in that it does not seem to ever been lettered/numbered. Nonetheless, quite a beautiful piece. The lantern on the water tank is a nice piece of detail, and those hinged doors. Only a true craftsman would make "extra" work for himself!

Although I have been a long-time devotee of the Lionel prewar PRR B6 switchers, as a youngster, my first dabbling in the HO world was a Varney Dockside switcher.

Thanks for sharing.

Tom

Thanks for sharing a great video about a unique piece.  Always enjoy seeing you bring these old treasures back to life.

You mentioned that it took him 625 hours to build - imagine what it would cost if he charged a market rate for his skilled labor!

Some general questions about your rehabilitation process... How often do you need to fabricate parts for the motor/gears/linkage, etc.?  At what point (if ever) do you decide that repairing or replacing parts is either too much work or is too destructive to the original piece?   

That was back in the days when modeling was really MODELING!  625 hours is insane for one little locomotive!

Hello all

When an old piece arrives ...open it up clean and oil ....turn over mech by hand several times to see if any issues ..clean armature ...add some voltage and "help " motor to turn till it remembered what it is suppose to do. ...

Appearance clean , straighten , ...fix minor bits etc

I'm not a fan of repainting ...leave it original as much as possible ...

Cheers Carey

If I recall correctly Mel would do his modeling with hand tools - no drill presses or power tools of any kind.  That might explain 625 hours to scratchbuild an engine.  I REALLY like the lantern too. It's a small touch that adds a lot of realism.

Dale

IIRC Mel Thornburgh used a power drill as a lathe, turning small pieces with files.

@Carey Williams,

Carey,

Thanks for posting. That is an elegant model and an extraordinary piece of craftsmanship. Most interesting.

MELGAR

@Stephen Bloy posted:

Well it wasn't to hard to find, at one time I went through all my Model Railroaders, Mainline Modellers & Craftsman magazines, and listed all the technical drawings, pictures and articles I thought I may need in the future, and recorded them in a folder or two ( fun lunch time brake activity at work ). So who wouldn't  record this little gem of a loco. So the drivers where a giveaway, they are the right size 46" all the imports etc where to small, so that stuck out in my mind, when I saw your pictures, I thought I think I may have seen this loco before.  Then out came my folder, I was sure I would have recorded this picture, and there it was December 1951 Model Railroader. The next piece of info you will love.    cTr...( Choose the Right )

...that S scale (!) hopper ain't half bad neither...

Merry Christmas! 

Mark in Oregon