Max Gray Kanawha - missing boiler weight

John,

I have quite a few MG/USH cast iron boiler weights.  Maybe I can find one for you.  Does it mount with two screws or three?  Can you give me the spread on the bolt pattern?

We can start with that.

Jay

Walthers used to sell a low temp melt weight material. Help, someone.

Dick

I have made some weights by cutting a length of brass drain pipe like from a sink.   Then filling the pipe with lead and drilling and tappping for the mounting screws.        I put the lead in by taping the pipe to a piece of wood and sealing around with duct tape.    The lead cools fast enough that it does not leak much.    The drain pipes are often chrome plated brass and pretty thin walls. 

It is tedious approach, but works as a last resort.

Talk to Prof. Sethian about a tungsten weight.

Low melting stuff - Cerrobend?  Good proportion of that is cadmium; if you want some, let me know.  Could use it in the above drain pipe scenario.  Just to be careful that it expands a fraction on cooling....

I have a couple of extra MG/USH weights too, so if Jay doesn't have what you need, I might.  Jay's collection of stuff is way bigger than mine, but always happy to help.  Besides the number of screw holes and spread, the diameter of the boiler might be helpful too.  Boiler weights were never works of art and can be drilled and tapped for new screw holes if necessary, but getting the size close to the original is best. 

Butch

Hi

I am remiss in my duties. I should have added more info to my query. The first image shows the boiler vs the mechanism. You can see the gearbox on the right and the slot in the bottom of the boiler to receive the gearbox on the left. This puts a limit on the length of the boiler weight, since the gearbox sits fairly high inside the boiler. Also the hole for mounting the boiler to the steam chest can be seen at the bottom of the picture. Together these define the overall length.

This photo shows some dimensions that define the size of the space available for the boiler weight. A cylindrical weight roughly 1.5 inches in diameter and 3 inches long with a #8 hole tapped about 0.25 inches from one end should be just about right.

Thanks in advance for your help

John

I bought 1/16" lead sheeting and roll it for my engine weights.  I also add extra around the cab area.  It's easy to make custom fit weights and add additional weight to your engines: and very cost effective!

lead web site:

http://www.rotometals.com/lead...d-shielding-s/31.htm

You can cast lead if you have an iron ladle. I used to make my own fishing weights this way. You would want to pour it into aluminum tubing of the proper size or maybe iron pipe. A propane torch is hot enough to melt lead.

CerroBend, mentioned above, can still be had. It melts at 158F so all you need is a glass to melt it in. You could actually pour CerroBend right into the engine with walls to hold it in place until it cools.

Pete

My thoughts are that you don't want too much weight.   My guess is not make the whole engine including weight not more than 4-5 lbs.    And the weight should be placed such that the loco is balanced about midpoint on the drivers.     The original weights generally balanced the locos pretty well.