GE 44ton locomotive project update

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WJH
Posts: 1417
Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:29 pm
Location: Florida

Re: GE 44ton locomotive project update

Post by WJH »

redneckalbertan wrote:
WJH wrote:The welder is going to be the cheap part! Oh yeh, need a foot pedal as well..
After the welder, my budget is now very tight. Looking at a Jackson shadow mask for 35$, would get the Lincoln auto darkening one...
If you are over spent, you can probably forego the foot pedal for a while. They are very nice but not needed for the operation of the machine. I took a quick skim of the table of contents of the machine you are getting and it will do lift start.
Yep, it does lift start, and also HF start. Does HF start require a foot pedal?
redneckalbertan
Posts: 1274
Joined: Thu Nov 01, 2012 10:39 am
Location: South Central Alberta

Re: GE 44ton locomotive project update

Post by redneckalbertan »

From what I have used yes, but read your manual when you get it. Depending on how the machine works you would either get your torch set at the proper distance from the work, rod at the ready then either tap the pedal to start things or press the pedal and hold it where you want the amperage set. (On the machines that I have used the pedal controls the amperage of what the machine is set at as a percentage. If you want to weld with 110 amps I would set the machine at 125ish amps and then use the pedal to vary the amperage, that way if things are a little too hot I can ease off the pedal a bit or if I am having a hard time getting the penetration that I want I can crank it up a bit easily.) Then once your puddle is established you start adding rod and moving along in a nice rythem. When you are done the weld either tap the pedal again or slowly taper the amperage down. The HF is only used to start the amperage flow, once amperage flow is established HF is turned off.

I have seen controls on the torch body as well. what a person may be able to do is find out the pin out of the plug on the welder and wire up a switch that is situated on the torch body to control the machine like a pedal would.
Mark Landgraf
Posts: 100
Joined: Sun Jun 09, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Albany, NY

Re: GE 44ton locomotive project update

Post by Mark Landgraf »

Hi,

I built a 44 tonner about 15 years ago. I have some 1½ inch scale plans that might be useful.

Contact me at
mark_landgraf at yahoo.com
Glenn Brooks
Posts: 2930
Joined: Mon Nov 10, 2014 1:39 pm
Location: Woodinville, Washington

Re: GE 44ton locomotive project update

Post by Glenn Brooks »

kvom wrote:While attending Cabin Fever in York, PA l visited the York Industrial Museum, where there is a GE44 on display. This one was last used the the Harley Davidson factory. The display allows one to enter the cab as well as close access to the rest, so it would be quite easy to get measurements if you were to visit, or get a local to do so. I took only one snapshot of it on my visit, and will post it later, although i doubt it will help much.

An interesting point was that the 44 ton size was the maximum allowed for operation by a 1-man crew according to union contracts at the time they were built.

Hi Guys, I would be interested in any photos of a prototype you all might have access to- such as you mentioned in your post. I just acquired a 12" ga steamer, and found it comes with a loose replica of the GE 44 tonner. Albeit in 3" scale or thereabouts. It's been in storage in a shed for 25 years, so very much out of commission. Yet, it might be worthwhile restoring and detailing out. It's still buried behind a lot of stuff, so I haven't taken any photos or even looked at it to closely- except to verify it was/is a ride in cab, and has at least one set of trucks still attached!

Thanks
Glenn
Moderator - Grand Scale Forum

Motive power : 1902 A.S.Campbell 4-4-0 American - 12 5/8" gauge, 1955 Ottaway 4-4-0 American 12" gauge

Ahaha, Retirement: the good life - drifting endlessly on a Sea of projects....
WJH
Posts: 1417
Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2010 9:29 pm
Location: Florida

Re: GE 44ton locomotive project update

Post by WJH »

Glenn Brooks wrote:
kvom wrote:While attending Cabin Fever in York, PA l visited the York Industrial Museum, where there is a GE44 on display. This one was last used the the Harley Davidson factory. The display allows one to enter the cab as well as close access to the rest, so it would be quite easy to get measurements if you were to visit, or get a local to do so. I took only one snapshot of it on my visit, and will post it later, although i doubt it will help much.

An interesting point was that the 44 ton size was the maximum allowed for operation by a 1-man crew according to union contracts at the time they were built.

Hi Guys, I would be interested in any photos of a prototype you all might have access to- such as you mentioned in your post. I just acquired a 12" ga steamer, and found it comes with a loose replica of the GE 44 tonner. Albeit in 3" scale or thereabouts. It's been in storage in a shed for 25 years, so very much out of commission. Yet, it might be worthwhile restoring and detailing out. It's still buried behind a lot of stuff, so I haven't taken any photos or even looked at it to closely- except to verify it was/is a ride in cab, and has at least one set of trucks still attached!

Thanks
Glenn
I am uploading the photos I took of the GE44 tonner in California that I used as a basis for my model. It is a zip file, about 120mb.
http://www.ge44.org/ge44.zip
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