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My “wanted list”, at a recent train show, was the purchase another Lionel General and tender and some of the General cars especially a passenger car to complement my General 1862.  The idea was to get enough cars for two civil war era trains and replicate The Great Locomotive Chase and also the meeting of the east and west for the joining of the railroads at Promontory Utah. 

All I could find was a Lionel General 8005 set, a real low quality Lionel starter set.  It had a Railway Express Agency sort of passenger car, a flat car with rails, a stock car with outlaws poking out the side and a tiny DC transformer.  The cars had plastic wheels and the 8005 ran on DC.  The price was low and I figured the agency car would do and I could convert the engine to AC with a bridge rectifier (only in one direction).  The 8005 was minimal with two colors of molded in plastic red and few details (see picture, sorry about the poor picture of "before" below, this is the only one I took).

Ponc. Train show & stuff 3-5-2016 038

 

I installed a 4 amp bridged rectifier and added a mini double pole, double throw slide switch to allow reversing by throwing the switch installed in the rear of the engine cab.  The rectifier and switch were found in my electrical parts box but came from the closing of a local Radio Shack. 

4-4-0 Gen 8005 mods 3-3-2016 007

 

4-4-0 Gen 8005 mods 3-3-2016 001

 Train -General 4-1-2016 023

 

 

I added some lead from an automobile tire weight to the boiler and in the bottom near the power pickup.  I also add a couple of washers to weight down the 4 plastic leading wheels.  It runs pretty well but is short on low speed operation.

8005 General & 9541 mods 002

 

Here is picture of the smoke stack spark screen I made from a piece of fiberglass window shade screen I had laying around.

My Trains 4-18-2016 001

 

I dressed up the 8005 engine by masking and spray painting the boiler with Walmart gloss black spray paint, painting the front wheels red and silver, adding gold foil bands (from Christmas wrapping paper) on the boiler and making cowcatcher support rods.  I also installed a mini 12 volt bulb in the head light.  It now looks much more handsome. 

Train -General 4-1-2016 005

 

Train -General 4-1-2016 003

I removed the plastic wheeled rear truck on the coal tender and replaced it with a metal fast angle wheeled truck with remote uncoupler.  I like all my coal tenders to have remote uncouplers.

This was an easy project, with no worry about lowering engine value as that was low anyway and now it will operate on my AC powered layout while looking great.

Choo Choo

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  • Ponc. Train show & stuff 3-5-2016 038
  • 4-4-0 Gen 8005 mods 3-3-2016 007
  • 4-4-0 Gen 8005 mods 3-3-2016 001
  • 8005 General & 9541 mods 002
  • Train -General 4-1-2016 023
  • Train -General 4-1-2016 005
  • Train -General 4-1-2016 003
Last edited by Choo Choo Charlie
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Looks better than an 1882!

Coat thickness, prep-work, temperature, and humidity are the keys to nice paint. Try for two thin coats vs one heavy. Too thick is the number one mistake. A thin "tack coat", or "misting" let to dry a minute or 5 can aid against runs if you can't go to two coats easily.

   I never could find reference to an exploded view, instructions, or figure out myself exactly how the stack assembly comes off those Generals. Any ideas?

I managed the rest of the "puzzle" fine (the PW versions aren't real easy). I just couldn't manage to get the stack off and apart. I need to redo a weak smoke resistor.

A note: I don't know how prototypical you intend to be, but while I was entertaining that thought, I learned at least one, maybe both (I think the Texas) had a straight stack originally. I think the funnel was added in a rebuild during the early 1900's.

   Thanks Charlie,  I have had the funnel top off of a Pulmore type before. And I know the power is in the handrails, and that the stack was "an assembly", etc. I've torn one down about 98% & even cut the pilot and added a working front coupler to one. But how the stack actually attaches to the rest of the loco has stumped me the few times I've had them apart. I have never got a shell off 100%. The stack stopped me. Nobody answered when I asked, and the one has weak smoke, not dead yet; so I wait, and ask again every once in a while. I know that one there is a bit different being DC*, but figure the stack mounting hasn't changed, even on non smokers. And with that nice paint job, I figured you had gotten the stack off, to get the boiler off, for spray paint.

* another question as I'm playing with gear sets lately; The square area that makes up the motor mount, is that part of the frame, or a separate piece? And if separate, is it welded/riveted/or screwed onto the frame?

Hey , isn't one of those supposed to be traveling backwards too

Thank you too SWANKO.  I did try it, but it seemed too tight. Could be the chrome ones are thicker & the fit tighter. I didn't want to push and break it, if there was just a simple trick to "unlocking" it. Its just an RI&P that retired the old 1872 from its "tree run". But I used "kid gloves"; this was my Grandmothers favorite train. She had "commandeered" all the other "Old Timers" too

"Go ask your Grandmother if we can run one, she will tell me no

Poor Gramps .

 

 

 

Porter09 posted:

Question,  I'm actually to going to do this to a general . Does it matter what volts it is? I'm looking  at one for 50 and 100 volts. Which is better?

Either really. They are rated at twice what you'll normally feed them. Safe and very safe.

The minimum amps are almost more important. I like using 6amp, but 4a sneaks it's way in places.

In general, overating a bridge rectifier will only make it stay cooler.

Charlie, your work looks great on these 4-4-0s!  The biggest thing that bothers me about these Lionel engines is that the drive wheels aren't spoked or even appear to look like they are spoked. Talk about a first world problem, ha!

Anyway, if I had one of these 4-4-0s, I'd be tempted to paint the spaces between the spokes a flat black to give the illusion of spoked drive wheels.

Leviathan_63_Train_Festival_2009

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  • Leviathan_63_Train_Festival_2009

Charlie,

Looks great!  I put TMCC in mine (in the tender with a tether).  One other thing I did is order new rods to connect the wheels since the existing rod only goes to the rear set of drivers.  I put the Coupling Rod ordered from Lionel from their General Engine (I also ordered the 2 extra wheel screws needed from them) on first.  Then I cut down the existing Connecting Rod to fit to the front drive wheel.  This is a cheap upgrade and makes the engine look more realistic.  Of course you can't order anything until Lionel moves their parts center and re-opens.  I'd get you the part numbers, but their site is down.

Compare it to the engine in 6-82442:

General

James Gang:

James Gang

To drill the hole on the Connecting Rod, I rolled the wheel screws to the point where the Connecting Rod would be the farthest forward, then pushed the Connecting Rod into the piston all the way.  Then I pulled it back slightly to set where to drill the hole and then cut the rest off so it looked normal.  

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  • General
  • James Gang

Porter09

It is well worth the effort to add weight to the boiler and leading truck with the 4 wheels.  This engine is very light with a small DC motor and needs the extra weight ( I used old tire weight) to have more traction.  It now will pull four cars plus tender now. 

I found mine had trouble with derailing the front wheels and adding a couple of washers helped keep it on the rails.  I glued the tire weight in the boiler and washers on 4 wheel truck with clear silicone caulking.  Alieens glue will work too.

Charlie

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