Next locomotive project.......(update 1/17)

Are you working off a prototype photo?

Some REALLY bad photos I took back in the day.....for inspiration only!! But for the project I found lots of vintage photos hosted on the web. THX

Good luck Dave and I'm looking forward to your decal skills shining through. Keep us posted...

I totally agree that you don't have to be a purist to get what you want. Good luck with this project.

 Sometimes the purists can't help but let you know everything that's wrong with your loco or attempt at recreating it. I try my best to listen. It's great to learn what the differences are. It's nice to know if I've overlooked something.

 It's hard sometimes to not let it bother me. I admire you for posting this. I hope nothing gets posted that detracts from YOUR FUN!!

Coming from a somewhat rivet counting HO scale....I do know the differences between a FP-45 and SDP-40F.....but I do run trains on track with 3 rails.....rails that if scaled up would be a foot or more tall!!!! So a FP-45 standing in for a SDP-40F.....I can over look it!!!

As I age....little things like this do not bother me like they did!!

I like what you do......I am into some similar projects....Tom

-Careful masking{tamiya or frog tape}

-and nice score on that engine-{I hate you}

Just to warn you, there are some differences between those two locos...  

Oh man, that is a nice project.  Who says you can't go home again - on the train you took, too.  Wonderful!

I love watching loco modification threads, no matter if accurate or not.  Look forward to the process Dave.

Sometimes, you need to weigh the time and total project cost vs. just purchasing the released mth Amtrak FP45 railking scale loco.  You will have issues with the cab looking more scale.

IF you are keeping the Williams I would:

1] Flip the fuel tank around

2] ditch the front nose Railing. Amtraks didn't have a front nose platform- just a small thin anticlimber for crashes and servicing.

3] Swap out the EMD Pilots for more prototypical FM pilots for this particular model.

good luck with the rest of the project!

Thanks for the info......

1. Did not think about that one....will check.

2. Front railing is gone and I am reworking the entire front platform area.

3. Pilots will get reworked....not there yet....

The time I spend is my enjoyment of the hobby....the great thing about this hobby...everyone finds his/her path to what is 'fun' for them.

And I doubt I'd ever find a MTH scale FP-45 for $28....or even under $50....but if I do I'll buy it too!!

Got a good bit done. I removed the end railings last night and today I reworked the front platform.

I filled the top step with plastic stock. I then filled in the handrail post and added to the anti-climber.  These were cut and sanded to shape. You may note that I have the black paint area masked already. I decided to leave the black paint intact. It was in good shape and it cut my work by a third. I know some folks insist that for a repaint you must strip it to bare plastic. And for contest model I'd agree.....but I use automotive paints and like most body shops....I paint over paint that is stable and in good condition.

I also removed the front molded in hand rails.

By this time I had also removed all the tampo with lacquer thinner. 

I finished filling the front platform, clean the body and shot two light coats of Dupli-color primer sealer. GREAT stuff and about $4 a can. Plastic compatible and leaves a smooth surface. Ready for some red paint. 

I got busy and didn't take photos of the red being applied. But I used Tamiya bright red spray can. This was much closer than the very dark red Williams used.....and the fact the paint break lines were wrong were the main reasons for the repaint. So here it is.....the black is the original paint. The red was corrected and the silver is Testors met silver. Here she is unmasked and fresh from the food dehydrator! BTW...paint break lines are masked with Tamiya and the other areas regular painting masking tape.

I drew the art in CorelDraw and printed them. There may be correct Amtrak decals out there....but I like making my own....and at about $4 for a big sheet......hard to beat.....plus it allowed me to scale them to the Williams loco which is somewhat semi-scale!

I may put the shell back in the dehydrator for a while longer and then start appliying decals tonight. If there is interest I will detail my method of decal application. Thanks

Clear decal sheet...right? What about color transparency?

Interesting. I wonder why you didn't angle the anticlimber as per prototype/

This is a very neat project.  Great stuff!

I use a system I've kinda developed on my own. It's works well and I use it for commercial prototype decals I do for some model companies.

As for the anti-climber not correct shape I was working off some photos of first gen SDP40's and they looked different than yours.....but may have been the same.

Decals applied.

Where we started.....

OK....Not a HUGE difference.......but my graphic artist eyes could not accept the wrong font on 'Amtrak', the wrong arrow logo and the wrong paint break and red on the nose.

But the mods were needed for a locomotive built for a personal memory/trip.

And I still plan on doing more detail work. Nothing really big but enough to make it much better than the stock Williams unit. Thanks

Looks nice Dave....what else do you have planned- grab rails...improved lighting{added markers or something...?}

Paint and parts added to chassis. Better glass and glass added to areas that had no glass. Better number boards up front. Some type of better lighting....not sure what yet. THX

Dave looks good so far...Now all you need is a set of passengers cars and some Material Handling Cars!!

I made a Material car once!!!  THX

Looks real good.

Wow....awesome work, Dave. And you make your own decals to boot! You....uh.....er....don't need a new best friend by any chance....do you?      Tom