1" Pacific Rebuild

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AnthonyDuarte
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1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by AnthonyDuarte »

Hello everyone!

I've begun my winter project of rebuilding my Pacific. It'll get all new paint and plumbing, and will be converted from coal to oil. I'd like to use this thread for my progress and questions (I'm sure I'll have many...)

I'll be painting the locomotive for the Southern Pacific, and so far I've completed painting the chassis (valve gear is getting nickel plated), and I've found a silver color that I'm very happy with for the smokebox front.

That said, I can't find a good match for the grey portion of the smokebox. I've been looking at SP 2472, but the colors look different in every picture. A worker at an auto parts store, upon being shown a picture, recommended "cast iron grey" by dupli-color, but it just doesn't look right. Any suggestions?

Also, does anyone offer a more scale headlight for 1" locos?
"Before" picture. Taken at the FLLS June open house
"Before" picture. Taken at the FLLS June open house
Boiler removed and chassis brought to my apartment. (I obviously live alone)
Boiler removed and chassis brought to my apartment. (I obviously live alone)
Break rigging and drivers removed
Break rigging and drivers removed
This is what was hiding behind the main rods. All the valve gear has been cleaned and sent off to be nickel plated.
This is what was hiding behind the main rods. All the valve gear has been cleaned and sent off to be nickel plated.
Chassis painted and on display at The Great NY State Train Fair
Chassis painted and on display at The Great NY State Train Fair
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Harold_V
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by Harold_V »

If any of the pieces of your valve gear are heat treated (they may be), do not overlook the recommended roast after plating. Heat treated parts suffer from hydrogen embrittlement when subjected to plating, or any free hydrogen source. A simple roast @ 375° for a couple hours eliminates the condition.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
duckman903
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by duckman903 »

Anthony nice project but what kind of floor is that , wood or vinyl if wood do you have a brand name for it.
SilverSanJuan
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by SilverSanJuan »

Beautiful locomotive Anthony! And, nice work on the cleanup and rebuild so far. I look forward to following your progress.

Todd
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AnthonyDuarte
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by AnthonyDuarte »

Harold,
The valve gear is all bronze and will be plated professionally. I don't know what kind of finishing/hardening methods they'll do, but I'll be sure to ask.

duckman903,
The floors are wood, but I have no idea who makes em'. I just pay rent :lol:

When I first removed the boiler, it took me around 7 hours just to get all the bolts out of the smokebox. Many of those hours were spent getting the ones on the bottom where there is little to no access - not to mention 4 bolts actually had a nut on the back... ugh. So, all but three of those bolts are being cut and placed back in as dummies. Three (one on top, two on the sides) will actually be used to hold the boiler into the sleeve. This will save me a few hours if the boiler ever needs to come off again.
Dummies being put on before painting.
Dummies being put on before painting.
As for the smoekbox... I painted a small area on the smokebox to get an idea of the color. It seems to dark...? or maybe to blue...? or something. I'm really not sure. Does anyone know of a close match for SP?
Smokebox color test
Smokebox color test
Until next time
- Anthony
Doug_Edwards
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by Doug_Edwards »

Anthony,

The smoke box colors depend on the era of the SP that you wish to model. Into the early 40's, the smoke box would have been coated with a graphite wash, including the smokebox front. The light smokebox front was a later change. Cast iron gray would not be far off, if off at all, since cast iron is about the same color as graphite.

Old timers long departed commented on the boiler jackets having a green tinge to the steel in the 20's and 30's. In the latter years of steam, many appear to be just painted black.

Regards,

Doug
http://www.precisionlocomotivecastings.com/
Building a 70 ton Willamette in 1.6"
Building a 80 ton Climax in 1.6"

"Aim to improve!"
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Harold_V
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by Harold_V »

AnthonyDuarte wrote:Harold,
The valve gear is all bronze and will be plated professionally. I don't know what kind of finishing/hardening methods they'll do, but I'll be sure to ask.
Not a problem, Anthony. It manifests itself only with heat treated objects. Bronze will not have any issues of which I am aware.

Harold
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
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AnthonyDuarte
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by AnthonyDuarte »

After looking at more pictures of SP smokeboxes, I decided to stick with the color I picked out. After painting the whole smokebox, I'm plenty happy with it. There's probably a closer color out there, but this is good enough for me.

The valve gear will hopefully be finished this week. Pictures will come as soon as it's back on the locomotive :D
2012-11-10 at 16-42-08.jpg
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tsph6500
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by tsph6500 »

The smokebox paint will most likely shift in colour the first time you fire the engine. Then there is the steam oil that will get on it from the exhaust and it will change some more.

Don't worry, get steaming. :)
Best regards,
Jim Leggett

Montreal Live Steamers
www.montreallivesteamers.org

A Founding Member of the Tinkerbell Scale Society - Northern Division
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AnthonyDuarte
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by AnthonyDuarte »

Progress has slowed down a bit and I'm still waiting for the valve gear to come back, but I began working on the boiler this week.
I let it soak overnight in vinegar then sloshed some water back and forth in the boiler to loosen anything that may have been hanging on. Rinsed it out and a whole lot more solids came out than I was expecting! After rinsing I did a hydro and found that a previously negligible leak is now worth some attention. That will hopefully be taken care of after thanksgiving.
The next time I fire my engine, it will be on oil, so I scrubbed all (a lot of, rather) of the coal residue out of the firebox. There was easily 1/2 a cup's worth lining the firebox walls.

I also rerouted the plumbing from the mechanical lubricator to the steam line. Before, it stretched out around the outside of the steam chest and just looked clumsy. There was also no way to separate the oil line from the smoke box, so if I wanted to take the smoke box off, I would have had to deal with a ≈12" long 1/8" copper tube dangling about.
Oil line (before)
Oil line (before)
Now the oil line is less obtrusive and I added a union so the bulk of the line can be removed if necessary. Once the oil line is painted, it should blend in with the rest of the locomotive just fine.
Oil line (after - side)
Oil line (after - side)
Oil line (after – front)
Oil line (after – front)
Will have more updates in 2 weeks or so. I'm headed to California for Thanksgiving :D
DJSteamer3017
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by DJSteamer3017 »

Anthony,
I can't wait to see when your done with the Pacific, I really enjoyed te videos of your 4-6-2 at FLLS. I'm a Big 1" Scale Fan, and I actually Ive had my eye on a 1" LE Atlantic. Hey Do you have any idea where your fittings, valves and appliances came from? Thanks appreciate any info you have. Keep on Steamin' My Friend!!

David
The 1" Scale Junkie ... But steam of all sizes is cool with me!!
"If you can dream it, you can do it" - Walt Disney
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AnthonyDuarte
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Re: 1" Pacific Rebuild

Post by AnthonyDuarte »

The valve gear was finished just in time for me to leave for California three weeks ago, but now I'm back in New York and should get my hands on it shortly.
In the meantime, I've been developing a 1" scale dynamo that I intend to be a working model. The dynamo is based on the Pyle National "K" equipment since that's what the majority of the SP pacifics used. I designed it in SolidWorks and had it 3D printed in Stainless Steel, which is actually printed in SS powder then infused with bronze, resulting in about 70/30 SS to bronze. I had this one printed as a test for both the design as well as the 3D printing method. There are a few things I need to adjust and the dynamo wound up about 3-4% undersized, but I'm very happy with it! For size reference the bolts are #0-80.

David, I'm not sure where the original valves came from, but I'm planning on using all PM Research valves for the rebuild.
DSC_0043.jpg
DSC_0041.jpg
DSC_0042.jpg
Sitting on the boiler
Sitting on the boiler
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