Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Where users can chronicle their builds. Start one thread and continue to add on to it.

Moderator: Harold_V

Mikadoguy
Posts: 72
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2014 10:23 pm
Location: Nashua, NH

Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Mikadoguy »

Hello all, My name is Stephen, I am working on making all new pattern boards for the RRSC Heavy Mikado. I have been working on the project with my dad (Michael McClure) and I am building an engine as well. My next big project that I am working next is the tender truck for the engine. The pattern board for the tender truck will change. I plan on using the journal boxes for the CP 173 as the journal box for the tender truck and the journal box will have a working journal box lid. This will allow the owner to have a view of the bearing and axle and the frame for the truck will not have a journal box on the truck. I do believe this would work great for the tender. I am also going to get the tender truck wheel pattern board bad as well witch is also the same wheel for the pilot truck. I just got the pilot bracket and journal boxes for the drive wheels today from the foundry they came it pretty good. Right now I am have the pilot beam board being made and we have fulcrum mold done. Things are slowly coming together. If anyone that is building these engines and needs anything let me know i will do my best to help you guys out. Thanks for Checking my blog out.
Last edited by Mikadoguy on Tue Jun 30, 2015 6:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Cary Stewart
Posts: 542
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2011 5:54 pm

Re: Railroad Supply USAR Heavy Mikado

Post by Cary Stewart »

A very fine project. It is a shame that Jim Oetting is gone. He could have given you a world of info about the design and re engineering of the loco before RRSC put it into production. Eric Thomason designed it and if it had been built to his design plans it would have been a worthy comparison to Jim Kreider's Berkshire. However, RRSC could not afford to market a high fine scale locomotive. It still came out rather well and make a fine loco.
One thing you might consider is checking out the diameter of the drive wheels. Through a number of errors from drawing room to pattern maker to aluminum foundry to match plates the wheels shrank in diameter and other features. If you correct this you may have to work on the frame assembly design a little to accommodate slightly larger dia. wheels.
Good luck with your project.
Cary
hwboivin3

Re: Railroad Supply USAR Heavy Mikado

Post by hwboivin3 »

63" drivers scaled to 1.6 is 8.4" the drawings are 8-3/8" dia and my set was machined to that.....thanks to RRnut (Jim).


However.....I'd love to see how it was originally supposed to be designed.
Mikadoguy
Posts: 72
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2014 10:23 pm
Location: Nashua, NH

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Mikadoguy »

Its a big project in hand. Given the fact that all the original patterns for the Mikado are gone from RRSC. The cost of court fees to get the pattern boards back were not justified and we would be better off making all new pattern boards for the engine since Railroad Supply owns the rights to the USRA Heavy Mikado. It sure would be nice to talk to the guy that made the drawings. It would be nice to have great info to base changes that we are making. As for the frame its suppose to be a welded frame, however i do know that there are some frames out there that have been water jet cut. But we are making some changes such as the tender truck to have access on the journal box from customer feed back. As of right now i'm currently working on some parts for the tender (front and end sill and tender truck and tender/ pilot wheel) are currently at the pattern board shop being made which will take a couple of months. The side rods are next on the list and will all be done by CNC. The tender tank will be all steel instead of fiberglass. Also i think what i'm going to do is make the cow catcher by hand instead of a pattern. I know it will take more time to make them and produce them, but i think the quality of the part and better then quantity. Hoping that working days on the railroad i work for (Pan Am Railways), will give me more time in the shop at night to accomplish my tasks at hand.
Mikadoguy
Posts: 72
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2014 10:23 pm
Location: Nashua, NH

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Mikadoguy »

Good Evening all. I would like to give an update on the progress of Railroad Supply's USRA HEAVY MIKADO (2-8-2). Here is a list of parts We have to include ALL NEW molds and pattern boards. Please note that most of the casting will have enough matter that you can modify it to exact scale. Also the shank problems with some of the parts were taking care since we made all new molds and pattern boards.

What we have ready:

X 2002-1/2 Main Side Frame, Right/ Left
C 2004 Bumper Bracket
D 2009-1 Side Rail, Cradle, Right
D 2009-2 Side Rail, Cradle, Left
D 2009-3 Spreader, Cradle
D 2009-5 Tailpiece, Cradle
D 2009-6/7 Bracket/ Brake Hanger, Right/ Left
C 2016-1 Equalizer Fulcrum, Front/ Rear
C 2016-2 Equalizer Fulcrum, Middle
D 2020-1 63" Drive Wheel, Heavy
D 2020-2 63" Drive Wheel, Medium
D 2020-3 63" Drive Wheel, Light
C 2021 Journal Box
X 2026 Cylinder Saddle
C 2035-1 Cross head
X 2052 Truck Frame (Trailing Truck, Delta)
C 2052 Wheel, 12 Spoke, 43"
C 2091 Smoke Box Front
D 2109 Steam Dome
D 2110 Sand Box Casing
D 2111 Lid, Sand Box
X 2123 USRA Cab Kit
D 2115 Grate frame (Coal)
D 2115-5 Ashpan Hopper
X 2138 Tender Tank (Steel)
D 2115-6 Dump Door
D 2116 Firepan (Oil)
X 2137 Tender Frame/ Floor
D 2147 Radial Buffer
B 1501 Front Mounted Bell
D 9790 Tender Hand Pump

Valve gear will be all CNC machined, no castings


What is at the pattern shop being made:

D 2134-1 Side Frame, Andrews 70 Ton
D 2134-2 Truck Bolster
D 2134-3 Wheel, 33" Plain Block
D 2038 Pilot Wheel
D 2047 Pilot Beam
D 2139 Front Sill
D 2040 End Sill
C 2113 Turret
B 2112 Safety Valve Shroud
5 pattern Board for the motion structure

Any questions feel to message me or give my dad a call. Here are a few Photos of the new Castings. Thanks

Steve
Attachments
13173931_751215805013670_3215801790363869061_n.jpg
13177296_751210985014152_3071726315240366026_n.jpg
13178688_751215655013685_7564863947875622208_n.jpg
13226946_751211391680778_7669216602043271740_n.jpg
FLtenwheeler
Posts: 1591
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 8:47 am
Location: Florida, on the Lake Wales Ridge

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by FLtenwheeler »

Hi Steve

The parts are looking great.

Tim
He who dies with the most unfinished projects: Should of put more time into their hobby.
Cary Stewart
Posts: 542
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2011 5:54 pm

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Cary Stewart »

Hello Steve,
Chet Peterson contracted Eric Thompson of Redwood Valley RR fame to design the USRA heavy mike. Eric completed his drawings and received payment. Chet took one look and determined that RRSC could not afford to build the engine as designed. It would have been on the same level as Jim Kreider's Berk. For production purposes many things were simplified for production economy. Jim Oetting did the engineering for the changes. Unfortunately both Eric and Jim have passed so there is no one that I know of who could give you any help on re doing the patterns. One thing I would caution is that through over sight of the pattern maker the drivers are a bit under size. This came about because the fact that a double shrink would occur when an aluminum mold for the match plate was made from the wooden patterns. Only a single shrink was allowed for. At least that is what Jim told me when we measured the first set of iron castings from the foundry. The prints were modified to accommodate the slightly smaller diameter of the drivers. I don't know if any builders ever noticed the difference.
Best, Cary Stewart
User avatar
dwilloughby
Posts: 254
Joined: Fri Apr 18, 2008 8:39 pm
Location: North Las Vegas, NV

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by dwilloughby »

Any pricing available for current parts?
Mikadoguy
Posts: 72
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2014 10:23 pm
Location: Nashua, NH

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Mikadoguy »

Just a quick update. really have not had much time to do anything since my last post. I'm hope to stop at the pattern shop some next month and see how things are turning out with the pattern boards I'm having made. I wanted to share a picture. The picture is of the trailing truck wheels the wheel on the left is our new pattern and the wheel on the right is the original casting. Our new castings have more material for you to machine so you can machine to true scale. The same goes for our drive wheels and soon to be pilot wheel. I'm hoping this winter I can get back to building my Mikado since I havnt touched it in over year. But that is what happens when you work for a real railroad company and your never home. Hope you all had a great summer. Cheers!!!
Mikadoguy
Posts: 72
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2014 10:23 pm
Location: Nashua, NH

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Mikadoguy »

Here is the picture
Attachments
IMG_1535[1].JPG
Rob Gardner
Posts: 463
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2005 9:27 am
Location: Newbury, OH

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Rob Gardner »

Looks great Steve. Keep up the great work.

Rob Gardner
Mikadoguy
Posts: 72
Joined: Wed Dec 24, 2014 10:23 pm
Location: Nashua, NH

Re: Railroad Supply USRA Heavy Mikado

Post by Mikadoguy »

Here are a few more parts we just got back from the foundry. They are the brake hanger for the front middle and rear. Also the equalizer for the spring group
Attachments
IMG_1553[1].JPG
IMG_1552[1].JPG
IMG_1543[1].JPG
Post Reply