(EMD) G scale engine CR (NS) SD80MAC build

I planned on working on this much more today. First off, a package came and had me occupied on my other hobby, music.

So I started late on this project. Made a few cuts in and I'm hurting. So not much progress to show yet.

I got spoiled on my first 2 projects using white plastic. I had to use masking tape to help me see my layout marks better on this stuff. I made some scribe marks to show the body separations. I started cutting the sections for proper height variations. Once it goes right, I'll rip to the final height. 

I'm not going thru the trouble of a top miter as I've done in the past. There's so many top panels that will hide the box joints anyways. The ends and the rest gets mitered. I hope I got the dimensions correct.

Does it look like anything yet?

Is this a tease?

So I glued on 3/8" I beams. I also had H beams but it appears the real ones are the I beam shape. I have used 1/2" versions. I used what I had here. I fear the longer engine might need more travel space. I only glued them where I think they'll remain after the fuel tank gets mounted. I cut them roughly to length leaving extra in case the tank dimensions aren't perfect when I make it. I also leave them long where they'll touch the pilots that aren't even designed yet.

It's tuff to get things perfect without designing everything in advance. Because I wing it on the fly, I went ahead and mounted the trucks so I can see where stuff needs clearances. I only make one of each type of engine so there's extra work as models change.

It looks ugly to some? For me, I can see the finish line even when I start. As the engine develops, you'll see what model it is.

I was going to work on the fuel tank. I worked on the cab instead. Each piece is slightly oversized, and allows for fitment. I file the angles roughly and do several dry fits. I then file more exactly and check for tight fits. Even still, I get a joint or two that needs more work.

The cab was about 1mm too wide. I had flexed it a bit trying to get the back to fit tightly while glued up but not dry. One of the joints failed this morning and I had to refile it clean and remove enough material to get the measurement exact. I like that it failed easily this morning to show me what was wrong. Better now than in paint!

So then, I had to refile the back to get a tight fit.

Until the cab or any pieces get built as a cube, they are relatively fragile. Because I have to file and work on them in their incomplete state, I back up the joints with a good quality hot melt glue. Every piece added, adds to the overall strength until the final assembly gets quite strong. Once the cab gets it's nose, it will be pretty tough.

This particular model has a cab with many angles that makes it more difficult. It will be an experience to get all the angles right. I usually cut angles on nearly  every joint. I held off on some, as it is very complicated and hard to design perfectly. I will custom file the nose piece's angles each, one at a time.

This stinking cab has more angles that are driving me nuts! I could have machined a cab out of wood and cast a mold faster and easier than this is going. I started getting sloppy with my cuts. I will have to fill the gaps later. A little extra time and material would have made the difference. I start hurting and rush to get things done. Sometimes, it's better to walk away and do something else. I just feel like venting off some steam!

Ah well....

very nice Job Joe, so what system are you going to put inside mth or lionel ,and are you going to use a light of markers and lights etc. Smoke or no smoke diesel quillable whistle? can wait to see it completed. I read that the diesel board can use quillable diesel whistle sound like it would be cool !

Alan

I have a couple of PS3 diesel engines already. None of them have the playable horn in them yet. So it will be fun to see what that's like. Yes, this will get a MTH PS3 board inside. Almost all my builds get a MTH smoke unit. All get LEDs and this one should get walkway and ground lights. We'll see I guess. Sometimes I run out of patience routing all the extra wires and LEDs. My GEVO never got walkway lights like it deserves now that I think of it. Running the charging lights taxed my brain!

Started on the nose section. This should be fun.... 

too high, too wide, angles wrong...… Urrggg.

I should have just filed the slight cab angle of the nose. I decided to cut all the angles and it's a pain. I've been at it for awhile now and I got one side roughed in. They're just laying there loose without glue. I quit for now.

With the title I flashed back to highschool and Mr Keglovitch ("Kegger") getting locked in the supply closet by the burnouts of final hour... again 

I'd call the office 😇 from the store or home

at.....2:01 pm 😈

It also allowed me to jump the slow 1:30 freight home 

(shame on me )

I get all the parts to fit dry, and then when I glue them up, things are off slightly. I think the angles have enough play to mess with me? Or I don't allow for the thickness of the glue! 

I had the nose together and didn't like one of the joints so I broke it off and filed it down. I glued it together again and noticed the other side wasn't perfect. Good enough. I filed the fit against the cab all over again and things must have moved a bit. Here's where I'm at. I did a quick file to show how the face gets rounded. It will get another fine sanding before paint.

Here's one, easy to assemble fuel tank kit. Now why haven't you started? 

Man, this is a big tank! The last one I built for the EVO, was around 8 5/8" long. This one is 10"!! …..(no jokes please)

It needs more structure supports and the top angles installed.

I got it roughed in and it needs more work but here it is today:

OK, now we mount 2 MTH 8 ohm super EMD turbo rumbler speakers!      

This one is for Willy Gee!

Ooops! Did I say EMD?

Hmmm listen to this one

https://mthtrains.com/sites/de...150203a-webckout.mp3

then, listen to this one

https://mthtrains.com/sites/de...190423a-WEBckout.mp3

Getting close? Maybe this week she'll get track time? 

anybody know a source for the 4 wire connectors used on MTH one gauge diesel trucks?

https://ogrforum.com/...ire-truck-connectors

Engineer-Joe posted:

Hmmm listen to this one

https://mthtrains.com/sites/de...150203a-webckout.mp3

then, listen to this one

https://mthtrains.com/sites/de...190423a-WEBckout.mp3

Joe I have to admit they sound very much alike to me. The closest SD70Ace horn I've heard to the real thing is my MTH BNSF PS3 SD70Ace. Keep up the good work!

Paul, ??

On my computer speakers the bass in the second one is about twice as loud. In the first one, it's turned down. I should say the engine's turbo sounds.

I bet when I load it, they'll be the same!

BTW, this isn't a SD70ACe! Think a little bigger.

Some people won't know the difference anyways.

I do like some sound sets horns better than others. If I was more adventurous, I'd use the computer program from Mark S to swap out the horns.

I have the MTH PS3 kit on the way. I thought I'd get a head start on the wiring.

You've done some impressive work with your locomotive builds, Joe. Where are you getting the power trucks?

That's awesome. I've been looking at some engines on eBay as potential parts donors. I've had the "as-is" experience also -- purchased a locomotive with the intent of using its innards in another engine. Ended up liking the little critter.

That is very impressive Joe!  Can't wait to see it progress to the end!

Here's some more work done on the cab

For any new people here, I've done 4 other hack jobs. The 2 recent ones, are on this forum.

My SD70ACe before MTH decided to make one

https://ogrforum.com/...cratch-built-sd70ace

and another that Mike Wolf waffled over making. It sits right here next to me, for inspiration.

https://ogrforum.com/topic/g-scale-es44

Here's the MP15AC I built too! I edited the title now after searching for my old posts

https://ogrforum.com/topic/custom-installs

What do you think? Bright enough? 

Probably around 2.5 volts on used batteries. I was testing motors and stuff. Maybe brighter on the PS3 outputs.

Trying to close her up! Working on the rear now.

UnBleepingbelievable    How cool is this

"

I need to cut off the top light shields on the rear lamp housings to make them flat. The front has these shields on the top of the lamp housing.

One thing that I keep running across, is when copying existing models when building. There are shortcuts builders make that can mess you up. Some are obvious. I think that some are from the way the product is built to make it easier?

 I'm working on the rear of the long hood. Lucky for me, I decided to get an exact measurement of the thickness of the rear top panel.

I can see on the prototype, that it's 2 (x 1.5mm thick roughly) panels sandwiched together. The top is bigger, and overhangs the middle piece. 

On my MTH O scale model, it's just one piece (3mm thick roughly) the exact same size.

Hey Joe, is this an SD80MAC or one of the NS re-builds? 

Well?? I'm shooting for a Conrail SD80MAC. What it ends up being, we'll see. I need to get several detail parts still.

It's tuff to build things like fan housings. Your eyes pick up any flaws in anything less than perfect.

So a problem for me here, is that I have forgotten how I did some things. It's good in some ways in that I can improve a design without even knowing it. I have a vague feeling I did something a certain way and I attack it as if it was the first time.

 So I need to build the MAC's cooling fan assembly. I did something like it before

I think I overbuilt the whole section using 1/8" hard plastic. It is built like a tank! When I first started, I used a suggested glue and found some things were breaking off from handling. So I overbuilt the rest so that it could take a pounding. I switched glues and found that this section never even got a scratch after years of handling. When you have a shallow angle, the joint of the pieces is weak. If I re-enforce those joints properly, the box becomes very strong. Trouble here is something has to be cut to fit around each other and that weakens it again. If it's not removeable the glue takes care of that.

 So on this next build, I tried a sort of half cut box where the box is cut half way, and the long hood is cut half way thru. I forgot that the assembly does not need to be removeable like the O scale version is. I made my Gevo's fan cover removeable because it houses the speaker. This build has the speakers in the fuel tank.

My joints at the body are a little off so I will glue and clamp them tight to fix it. At least I got it started. I wasted some extra effort here.

Not a lot more done today. I plugged away at the cooling section and glued the panels together. I hesitated on the intake grill section until I remember how I achieved it on the ACe. The metal grills need to be backed up from rough handling pressing them inwards.

 Some parts of the builds are more fun than others. It all needs to be done. I love looking at tiny details. I just hate making them. I wish 3D printing had moved forward more to allow for ready made details for engines in one gauge. There are some. Just not a lot. Hand made details only go so far. The flaws are too big to get away with.

 There's more parts available in 1/29. Even more in other scales. There's so much available in HO scale. It doesn't make sense. The current RTR releases are pretty top notch.

 I looked into a laser cutter years back to make some finer detailing. It arrived broken and just sits here. I got it for free! I'm too lazy to discard it and it's too far damaged for fixing. I considered trying to make it into something better but it never started. Over my limits and over my pay grade.

If I had the money I'd get a resin printer. It's way down on the list of priorities. I still need to do my O scale scenery.

My favorite part of any build is seeing them come to life!

I do rush to get this going.

I'm actually getting slower at these wiring harnesses. I spent the morning working on routing wires. Most of the lights are just laying loose where they need to go.

I think I'll skip the marker lights on this.

I spent the afternoon installing the smoke unit and funnel system that probably won't get used anyways. 

I come up stairs to see it's the nicest day of the month! I missed it.