A Behemoth is coming!

So in this post I will focus on another of my ER&W steam power projects. I've leaned more towards more general and older locomotives from the late 1800s and the early 1900s. 4-4-0s, 4-6-0s, and 2-8-0s are all favorites of mine. As well as some of the earlier 4-6-2s. Though that being said, sometimes it can be an exhilarating change when larger motive power comes into play! I have had an eye for certain 2-10-0 and 2-10-2 locomotives, and who can forget the slightly smaller, but speedy 2-8-4 Berkshire! So why not a massive 2-10-4!?

This engine started life as a Rivarossi Baltimore & Ohio 2-10-2. I picked it up for $45 at a small local hobby shop in Watkinsville, GA. Probably one of my favorite buys!

There was just something about the proportions of this locomotive that I really liked! And although I'm selective with Vanderbuilt tenders, I still loved the locomotive! Though at the time I didn't know what I would do with it. 

About a year later I was doing some visual research on locomotives and came across pictures of husky and intimidating looking 2-10-4s. As I thought about it I thought it would be fun to try converting this engine into one, but at the time I didn't have the parts. Fortunately a friend of my who lives near Athens, GA let me have a few parts he didn't really need, and that included some parts from a dismantled Bachmann N&W J class 4-8-4. And in that box of goodies was also the rear truck to the 4-8-4. Then the gears began to turn.... And this was the result when I got a chance to pull out the engine.

Again, sorry for any blurryness, and bonus points if you can correctly guess which movie is playing in the background of the second photo!

This engine still has a long way to go, but even with some minor changes the look and feel of this engine has changed substantially! The new smokebox front is from a Pemco 4-8-2. I never had the engine, but it was a part I picked out of a junk box and thought it looked pretty good on the model. The trailing truck is from the Bachmann J class and I think it looks pretty good! Still need to add a headlight and a few other details. And of course the engine has yet to be painted in ER&W colors. Eventually I'll add additional brass detail parts, including a double smoke stack like those used on the SP Cab Forwards. Still debating on whether I want to keep the Vandy tender or try to go with another type. Either way, it will be one heck of a locomotive!

The mighty Empire River & Western!

Greetings once again! And here is another entry for you readers to enjoy. This post is more of a general over view of the majority of my projects in HO scale. However I will go into each one individually at some point.

As mentioned in my earlier posts I am a "Slim Gauger" at heart! Meaning I'm a huge fan of narrow gauge railroading and I like my modeling to reflect that. My scale and gauge of choice is On30, along with a bit of On20 for extra flavor. Both of which are O scale, but run on different track widths. But before I was complete sold on modeling narrow gauge I was fixed on HO scale. It's the most common scale and gauge out there, and On30 uses the same track! Which made kitbashing and converting some of my older HO motive power to On30 that much easier. But on occasion I do get an itch that needs scratching. And seeing as there aren't many model railroad clubs that have On30 layouts, having a decent collection of HO equipment makes operating at club layouts a little easier and enjoyable. And as such, I created a fictional Class 2 regional railroad, the "Empire River & Western"! Has a ring, don't ya' think?

The ER&W starts in Colorado, winds its way west into Utah, and then turns south and runs into Arizona. I'm still fleshing out much of the railroad's history and how they class their locomotives. Not to mention where the main line runs and their branch lines are. But for my collection of HO motive power and rolling stock, I needed a name to letter them after I've had my way individualizing my equipment. Almost all of my HO stock will be ER&W, with little exception. About the only HO projects that won't be are some of my Civil War era models. (More on those another time)

Below is a photo of most of my motive power, quite an impressive lot!

Forgive the poor photo quality, not to mention the lack of a professional setting. But this is about 75% of my HO motive power. I have other engines still in storage and waiting for their turn on the workbench, as soon as I knock out some of these lokies first!

From left to right, smallest to largest, is a Rivarossi 2-8-8-2, a Rivarossi 2-10-2, Bachmann N&W J class with Bowser replacement chassis, an IHC 4-6-2, a pair of old Bachmann 2-8-0s, a Mantua 4-4-2, Mantua Central Pacific 4-8-0, Tyco Rogers 1890 4-6-0, a pair of Athern/Roundhouse old time 2-8-0s (one being backdated to have a wagon top boiler) An IHC old time 4-4-0, a Rivarossi 0-4-0, and an AHM J.W. Bowker 2-4-0. The engines to the rear are a Rivarossi Heisler, A Bachman 2-truck Climxa, and a pair of 0-6-0s.

Each engine here has a predetermined fate, but it will take some time to complete all of these projects. And that is when time, space, and funding allow. Next post will be about one of by BIG locomotives in HO. Stay tuned!

Building one of Eddie's "Clocks".

Alright, so it took me several months to getting around to actually sparking some life into this blog... But I assure you that the wait is worth it!

Some of you may be scratching your heads and raising an eyebrow due to the title of this post. That's because this edition is focusing on a very odd, unique, and RARE locomotive. A 4-4-0 type designed by Wilson Eddie of the Boston & Albany railroad. And these engine's were often referred to as "Eddie's Clock's".

One thing that will capture my interest, or inspire me to make a model of a particular locomotive (or base a project on) are locomotives and rolling stock that are odd, strange, and/or unique. And the Eddie Clock locomotives are no exception.

This is probably the best photo of ANY of the Eddie Clocks I've been able to find. These engines were unique that they were constructed entirely of iron, even though steel was available. Also these locomotives only had massive (for their time) strait boilers and NO steam domes! Instead the engine's used steam pedestals, which you can see in the above photo. One just behind the smoke stack and another in front of the cab. The engines also used square sand boxes. The biggest difference is internal. Instead of having a steam dome to allow rising steam to collect and then pipe to the cylinders, the locomotive had a perforated dry pipe that ran the full length of the boiler. This method takes full advantage of the entire steaming space of the boiler. the throttle valve was actually fixed in the smoke box. Although the design elements are a little archaic for the mid 1870s, these locomotives were among some of the most reliable and best performing locomotives on the rails.

However, what I find both depressing and amazing is that only ONE of these engines is left in existence today... barely. The tender at some point fell victim to the scrapper's torch, but at least the locomotive survives. And it's B&A #39, also known as the "Mamora". It's on static display at the St. Louis Museum of Transportation. And here are some photos of this Lone Survivor today.

Okay, not that the brief history is done with, lets move on to the model! Or at least it's progress.

The objective with this project is NOT to recreate this specific engine, but to create an Eddie Clock locomotive. The model is in HO scale and uses a Bachmann Old Time 4-4-0 as the donor mechanism.

                                               (Not this one specifically, but it's close enough)

I've had to do some major surgery to the model and there's still a lot left to do! But first I carefully separated the cab from the stock boiler. The cab was saved, though that's about the only original bit that will remain on this engine aside from the tender shell. Although I did cut off the smoke box and have used it on the new boiler.

Next was creating a new boiler. I cut a length of brass tubing with is about the same diameter as the wagon top of the original boiler. I notched out the rear underside so the chassis would fit inside. The running boards were also removed and will be replaced with new ones made from scratch from sheet styrene plastic. Below is a  photo of the model thus far.

Here you can see that I tried to alter the original running boards to mimic the ones on the prototype. This... didn't work out that well as the photo shows. And that's why I'm working on scratching new ones from styrene. Also the brass stack is just a stand in an a new one that better resembles the prototype will be bashed soon. The new pilot wheels are from a Tyco/Mantua "General" 4-4-0. Eventually they'll be replaced with better looked and performing all metal wheels from Precision Scale Company. The pistons and crossheads will also be scavenged from said Mantua 4-4-0. It won't be needing them anymore as I'm converting it into a "Dutch Wagon" type 4-4-0 locomotive. Though more on that in another entry.

Well that's about it for this post and I hope I've peaked your interest. I bounce between a lot of projects just to keep myself busy and to prevent burning out on any particular project. Well, until next time!

What is this blog even about!?

Hi there, and welcome to Model Railroading A.D.D.!

My name is A.J. by the way, and the purpose of this blog is to show case my other projects withing the model railroading hobby. And unlike many hobbyists who find a particular scale and gauge and become committed to that... I can't seem to do that. Sure, there are many fellow model railroaders who branch out and dabble with another scale or gauge, but from my experience speaking with other hobbyists it's usually just ONE different scale. And they still focus on their primary choice. Where as for myself, I dabble with a multitude of scales and gauges.

My personal preference in model railroading is On30, an right along side that is On20. And that's because they fit within the same theme of Arizona copper mining and the two railroads work together. But then I have my other... distractions. I collect and model, ACTIVELY, in HO, HOn3, and Gauge 1 Large scale. And even more recently the 7.5" gauge live steam crowd!! That's a lot to juggle with, but I find myself unable to model in an exclusive scale and/or gauge. And so that is why this blog exists. Along side my On30 and On20 modeling I mostly work in HO scale. Mostly because that's arguably the most popular scale and gauge. Most model railroad clubs feature HO standard gauge for their club layouts and when I find one I'd like to join I'd like to have a decent roster of HO equipment I'd like to operate. Or at least that's my "excuse" for venturing into HO scale. And then there's HOn3, which is a natural because I use the same gauge for my On20 efforts... but my interest in Narrow Gauge railroading stemmed from Colorado 3 foot gauge railroads. So I would like to have a small bit of HOn3 equipment for the fun of it.

And ever since I was a child I've always felt drawn to the Large Scale model trains. First by LGB, which was a train I always wanted, but never got. The closest I got to large scale was a battery operated train set in G gauge. Though I did invest in a Bachmann Rocky Mountain Express set and recently a Lionel Gold Rush set, as well as an old Echo Classic Rail batter train. (Which is undergoing an extensive rebuild.)

So this is just a little introduction to Model Railroading A.D.D. And I have to thank a good friend of mine, Matt Coleman, for coining the term and inspiring this blog. Thanks again! And stick around, there's some good stuff to come!