ScaleCraft early and later drives

Love your video's Steve.  Oh that K4 is worth saving for sure.  The hard parts your missing are all the side rods and valve gear.  Those Lobaugh drivers might work if the diameter is ok.  I think the SC engines use 3/16ths axles (0.1875").  I keep a watch out for driver castings over hear and buy em when I see em if they are cheap enough.

This little ugly fellow showed up on my doorstep a week or so ago in not much better shape that yours.  Maybe just that it has drivers and half its siderods lol.

Bob T., This picture shows what I am missing on this loco,  The left side main rod, cross head and what ever else.  Basically everything but the side rod.  I'll shoot you an email.

... was thinking of putting in a bid on that one Dennis, but figured it was a project well beyond my abilities.

Glad to see it went to a good home.   Please keep us posted as to its "reclamation"...

Mark in Oregon

I thought you were only missing a side rod.  That was easy.  I will check for main rod, but I am quite sure no crossheads around here - I had to make the last set (not difficult; it is a plate soldered to a dowel).  Valve gear rods are even easier - all you need is .032 brass, a new file, and a vice.  A #63 drill is the first step, then you just trim 'till it looks right.

here is my Scale-Craft 2 rail K-4 with Max Grey tender.  It's 2 rail with DCC and sound.  Original multi piece SC frame with Pittman motor replacing the K&D wound motor.

@j2morris posted:

here is my Scale-Craft 2 rail K-4 with Max Grey tender.  It's 2 rail with DCC and sound.  Original multi piece SC frame with Pittman motor replacing the K&D wound motor.

...nice... 

Mark in Oregon

Here is a recently built Scale-Craft auto car from virgin kit. Kadee couplers, SC trucks.

Scale-Craft MT-3 mountain, all original but for Pittman motor, DCC and sound.  Split frame design.

oops, here's the pictureforgot, drivers are from Pearce tool co. (Henry Pearce)

Scale Craft hopper in kit, original box.

Scale-Craft Offset Hopper  Athearn trucks

Great photos - drivers on the K4 look like brass imports.

Any comments on the provenance of that stone wall?  I am about to order a bunch of Scenic Express PRR stone wall.

Drivers were likely from Henry Pearce - domestic.  Stone wall was hand colored Holgate and Reynolds plastic sheet.

Fantastic freight cars - thanks for sharing

Scale Craft mikado tender.  Will add decal based rivets after primer paint.

JJ

Scale-Craft Stock Cars.  Mostly Athearn trucks and Kadee couplers

Hello all 

 1940 SC catalog ...K4 chassis now sold with drivers attached ..the single piece frame had arrived ...

SC found it cheaper / more reliable if they put the drivers on ..less pieces ..less chance of user "error" ...  also  reverse unit that use to hang under cab ...is now disguised as the smoke stack ...just give it a twist . 

The center axle drive / single piece chassis on the K4 ...seem to be the harder one to find ..being introduced in 1940 ..everything stops spring of 42 .....not too many were made   ...as the O scale market was probably K4 saturated.... SC selling them since 1933  , and offered by Icken , Icken/ Barker, Egolf,  Alexander , MiLoco , Scale Railway Models , and a few much smaller outfits from as early as 1926 ...    all these other K4's by the other manufacturers are much harder to find than the SC versions .. 

Cheers Carey 

yes the smoke stack knob has been installed up side down ...clever these builders ..and you wonder why  SC just installed the drivers not trusting that to the end user .....

Yes, agreed.  So far of the five complete K4's I've owned, three were early frames and two were the later frames. I've gotten the reverse switch in the stack on a couple of them as well including an earlier frame version.  Both my  SP Mountains have the reverse switch in the stack.  It is amazing to ponder just how many K4's Scale craft may have produced over that lifespan.  I know Bob has owned plenty of them and he doesn't even focus on Scale craft.  I am sure you have more than a handful and I have four now with my eyes open for more of them for some reason. 

Most of the deals I find on them is because they are not advertised even remotely correctly and I have a keen eye for searching.  Heck I once found a spare CLW H10 complete frame in a pile of junk listed under American Flyer S gauge.  I just happened to spy it and knew what it was because I knew I needed one!!  Knowledge is key then comes timing and luck lol

I'll add, the one piece frame may have come a bit earlier as my unbuilt K4 did not have a pre assembled boiler but did have what I think was a factory assembled chassis.  So assuming my loco "kit" actually left the factory together originally, that might suggest the one piece frame started before 1938 when they advertised the pre assembled boiler.  Then again, they could have still offered the craftsman kits lol who knows.   All I know is I like K4's!!

Below, later-ish one piece frame I think factory assembled but without factory built up boiler.  Probably a good thing looking at that tender!!

This one might be the ugliest one ever built.  I am not sure what the builder was thinking when he did the boiler.  The tender is pretty crude as well.  It's really more tinplate-ish than scale-ish.... part of the reason I like it lol Three piece frame on this one.

This is the one I sent to Daniel in France, it was an early three piece frame as well.

You are right - great thread.  I have four K4s, plus two extra functioning mechanisms, plus one mechanism under a Reading G1.  Since Dennis keeps showing us his red K4, I guess I have to re-post mine - I checked, and could not find it posted before in this thread.

Scale craftMostly Alexander, with USH tenderScratch Reading with Scale Craft mechanism.

Shame to see this die.  Carey has a nice Scale Craft Mountain at auction at the moment.  Here is another Scale Craft (I think) box car:

Yeah and it's got a nice set of wheels on it too .  Been inventorying my doorstop cars, up to 32 Scale craft so far but I have a few more boxes to go through.  I know there are some more lol.  

I just got lucky the other day and found these SC Hudson drawings as throw ins  with a wild pile of Athearn box car parts listed in Mixed lots basically just by luck.  This will be good for me to help with the valve gear on  my Hudson lol.

Jeez Dennis, you sure are lucky!

Mark in Oregon

Really interesting history, reading of prototypes not available today.  Who made that pre-war C&O Mikado kit?  (Not Scalecraft). Would like to see photos of versions of those posted...

You made me look!  I did not see the C&O Mike you referenced.  Hard to tell without a photo, but I believe Ed Alexander made casting sets for C&O locomotives.

  Being a Santa Fe nut I just could not refuse purchasing these as of late.  The heft of the metal on these Scalecraft pieces is impressive. Now I just have to find some running gear to match or build my own. The latter is unlikely given the lack of free time I have these these days.  If anyone out there has the matching running gear, I would definitely be interested.

Image not found.

The Lobaugh Berk mechanism works quite well.  I have two of these - one is lengthened to fit either a 2-10-2 or 4-8-2 mechanism.

The tender is not worth looking for (opinion).

Hey - this thread is worth reviewing - both pages.  There are some really nice Scale Craft locomotives pictured, including maybe eight photos of the Mikado.  I checked to make sure I had already posted my S/C Mike/Santa Fe type.  Yep, on page 1.  Now I need to convert it to a Mountain and take a photo.  Soon.

Funny - I looked through this three weeks ago, and now I am looking again.  It is like finding a good picture book.

I promised an ATSF Mountain - bet I can find one.  But here is my friend Bud's Mikado:

Yep.  Pretty sure I finished this mechanism - but you get the idea:

SWRR and I have eyes open for a Mikado mechanism - preferably Scale Craft ATSF.  I can fix things like broken drivers and missing rods.  Probably need gears, though.  Keep your eyes peeled for us.

The seller poplar has had a brass 8 driver chassis listed for ever on ebay,  looks like an Adams ish but can't tell if it is a 2-8-0 or 2-8-2 or 0-8-0 lol.   But it is a bare chassis and no cylinders lol.

If I make it up to the Chicago show, I'll keep an eye out for a loose mike chassis.