One Last Shorty

[NP317]

Again:
Sculpture! Classy.
RussN

[Steggy]

She’s takin’ shape!

[ccvstmr]

Thanks guys...your comments ARE appreciated. BUT...there's still more to come! Don't go away. Carl B.

[ccvstmr]

FIDDLIN' ON THE ROOF - Part 5

As I write this construction series, wouldn't have thought a "roof" would be more work than the car body...but it was. Not only from the amount of materials needed, but the time to cut, fit and attach those materials. Mind you...I'm not complaining! Like so many things, the end result ends up being worth the effort. Have a vision in my head (when I can't draw something up) and I just keep working in that image.

Let's get back to the roof. Once the (2) lower clerestory roof sections were Bondo'ed and sanded, covered any remaining surface irregularities with automotive glazing compound. This is a body filler "cream" that fills in minor scratches and voids. The stuff is solvent based and tends to evaporate/dry quickly. Either have to work small areas or move fast for larger areas. The stuff sands easily (and makes a mess). Used the shop vac to pick up the dust and then wipe the surface down with Naptha. Inspect the surface and repeat treatment is needed.

With the lower roof section preparations completed, was time to finish the upper roof. Before any more Bondo could be mixed and applied, had to complete the edge trim. Now the upper roof curvature at the ends was a smaller radius than previously experienced. There was no way a strip of poplar wood could be slit and bent without breaking. For the (4) upper roof curves...made a template from 1/8" thick plywood and cut those curves out with a band saw using the same 1/8" thick hobby craft plywood. Flexing not needed.

The saw used to cut such curved pieces is a Milwaukee Port-a-Band saw on a vertical stand. Saw throat depth in a limiting factor. When cutting such templates and edge trim pieces, have to bear in mind which way the wood gets turned to clear the saw body. What can I say...this works!

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Nail holes were drilled. Glue applied and the trim pieces set in place. Later after the glue dried, the nail heads were set. Each nail head would get a dot of Superglue. Wood putty was used to fill the nail head recess and when that was dry...sanded the surface smooth.

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With the edge trim work completed, could go back and finish up with the Bondo work for the upper roof.

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Repeated Bondo applications until the curves were smooth and there were no hollow areas. After sanding the Bondo surface, glazing compound was spread thin again and sanded when that was dry.

If you're wondering about the roof holes, these will be used to secure roof ventilators. Bear in mind, this is an 1890's vintage car. Lighting was accomplished with oil lamps. Each oil lamp needed it's own "chimney" for exhaust. Besides, the roof ventilators double as handles for lifting and setting the roof aside. Think I can show these when we get to the details.

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Yes, might seem like this is dragging on, but we're closing in on the end of the roof work. Carl B.

[ccvstmr]

FIDDLIN' ON THE ROOF - Part 6

Before getting to the final roof finish, had one item to address. That is, there would be a couple roof penetrations for stove stacks. Had to make sure there was enough wood support UNDER the roof to secure and anchor the stacks.

Once the locations for roof mount items was determined, cut some filler blocks of scrap wood to go on the roof underside. One side of the wood was cut using the band saw to match the underside roof skin curvature. Used plenty of glue to secure.

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The entire roof was set on the drill press with a side standing holding the roof end up. Stove stack mounts started with a pilot drilled hole.

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Since the base of the stove stack was a 3/4" to 1/2" copper reducer, the mounting hole was drilled using a 7/8" paddle/spade bit (the OD of the reducer). This is the time make sure your depth control is set so the paddle bit did NOT go all the way thru the support block.

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Next, a 5/8" diameter paddle bit was then used to drill thru the wood support block under the roof skin. The reason for this sequence was so there was ALWAYS a hole center to use until the last of the wood was removed for the stove stack.

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Used a Dremel tool with a small sanding drum to go around the holes for cleanup and allow the stock stack to slide in easily. Then (of course)...had to slide a stack in place to check "the look".

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Next time, we'll get to the roof surface texture and add some color (black). See you then. Carl B.

[NP317]

All that work perhaps has you wishing you had made a mold for one-piece fiberglass roof from the first car you made.
Mix, mold, repeat. Hmmm...

Your results sure look good and could probably support passengers sitting on top! Beefy construction.
RussN

[Rwilliams]

Carl,

Nice job on the coal stove roof vent stack. Sure hate for the railroad company officials to suffer frostbite or carbon monoxide poisoning during the cold weather events. Rumor has it that the officials have elected to go with a high end heating option not often seen in smaller private business cars of that time period.

Robert

[Dick_Morris]

Thanks for all the work you have put into describing the build of these cars. They provide a lot of inspiration.

[ccvstmr]

All that work perhaps has you wishing you had made a mold for one-piece fiberglass roof from the first car you made.
Mix, mold, repeat. Hmmm...

Your results sure look good and could probably support passengers sitting on top! Beefy construction.
RussN

Hi Russ...think I'd have better luck if I had a magic wand and waved that. A friend pointed out...molding might diminish the roof crisp edges. Would probably have to get a 2nd mortagage to purchase the molding and resin suppliers for that kind of casting. A better approach might be to replicate the ends using 3D printing. Don't want to think how long it would take to 3D print the end sections.

Roof Strength? You know, the roof probably could carry a person...at least a small person. I'd be more concerned about the car sides and windows getting kicked. For now, think I'll have the riders stick to a riding car. My opin...the cars are too nice to risk scuff marks. Thanx. Carl B.

[ccvstmr]

Carl,

Nice job on the coal stove roof vent stack. Sure hate for the railroad company officials to suffer frostbite or carbon monoxide poisoning during the cold weather events. Rumor has it that the officials have elected to go with a high end heating option not often seen in smaller private business cars of that time period.

Robert

Robert...thanks for that comment. Will eventually get around to describe the making of the stove stacks. A "high end heating option"? Oh, you don't want me to give away some coming secrets do you? Carl B.

[ccvstmr]

Thanks for all the work you have put into describing the build of these cars. They provide a lot of inspiration.

Hi Dick...

You're welcome. Guess 30+ years of writing specifications, safety bulletins, incident reports, training materials and more finally came in handy. After all, if I can't dazzle 'em with my work...can certainly baffle 'em with my long-winded writing!

As for the inspiration...just sharing the "love" here. Copying something another modeler has done is the sincerest form of flattery. If my efforts inspire others to follow with their own passenger car projects (shorties or longer)...go for it! Never thought when I got into this hobby I'd be building a few passenger cars like this. All it took was a couple pairs of old time passenger car trucks and then figure out what to put on those. The passenger car project has been challenging and fun...but they are lot of work...even with templates and previous experience. Still, happy to share, answer questions and offer ideas for others that might want to follow. Stay tuned. Carl B.

[ccvstmr]

FIDDLIN' ON THE ROOF - Part 7

Think it's time for the roof finale and figured out who's going to wear the pants for this roof? As the roof is about to get covered in denim!

At one point, Peasleecreek informed me that the material used for old time passenger car roofs was something called Mulehide. Never knew that. Supposedly the stuff is still available. Always figured that was canvas type material covered with hot tar.

For the shorty passenger cars, would follow a club member's lead when he covered a caboose roof with denim. Figured black denim would be easier to cover with paint later on. However, when I went to purchase material, little did I realize there were SO MANY different types of denim! Not just color, but also the weight and weave. So when cars #5 and #6 were under construction, went to a nearby fabric store and purchased 4 yards of black denim. Over the last few years, that denim supply covered (5) passenger car roofs and (1) caboose roof.

The two sides of the denim are NOT identical. Didn't want the denim texture to be overly coarse. The back side seemed "smoother". So in the next photo, opted to use the denim texture on the left. Had my wife (a seamstress by trade) use her rotary knife to cut the denim into small-er pieces.

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Used a Sharpie pen to draw the denim "breaks"...which would allow for a nominal 1/4" over lap. The denim squares would be "shingled"...much like the roof on a house where the next course overlaps the top edge of the first course. This is for shedding water. When I first drew out the denim pattern, didn't like the way the denim would lay down in the center of the roof, so moved the lines slightly.

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Next step, mask off roof areas where I didn't want the adhesive to come in contact with. Used SIG Stix-It which is a heat activated adhesive used by guys in the R/C airplane hobby. Need to use Stix-It in a WELL VENTILATED area. The adhesive carrier are some potent solvents... toluene and MEK. When applied with a foam brush, Stix-It dries almost instantly. Where do the solvents go when they "flash off"...into the air. One coat might have been sufficient...went back and applied a 2nd coat. In particular, on the roof trim edges. When dry, the Stix-It still has a glossy look. When done applying the adhesive, the can was closed and the foam brush wrapped in a plastic bag and discarded. Wasn't worth cleaning. And then...stepped outside for some fresh air.

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Started with the end denim pieces, lined up the denim piece along the first line and used a cheap fabric iron from Walmart. Best NOT to use the wife's favorite clothing iron for this...just in case you accidentally get adhesive on the ironing plate.

Start by "tacking" the denim along the line and then moved the iron slowly to heat the denim which will heat the adhesive underneath and bond the denim to the roof. Best to work from the roof center to the roof edges. If at the start the denim doesn't lay down the way you want...apply the iron heat and lift the denim off the roof surface...and start again.

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When the denim patches were affixed on the flat surfaces, used the iron to wrap the denim around the edge trim and secure the edges. Found from my first experience, if the denim did NOT stick to the roof trim...can apply Superglue and then press the denim in place. When all the ironing work was done, went back and trimmed the denim along the edges. 1st removed most of the excess, then went back with a finer scissors to remove the last of the denim edging overhang and stray denim fibers. Don't remember how many times I went around and around the roof trimming denim.

For the slight overlap, used a glue call Fabri-Tac fabric adhesive. Kind of like superglue for fabrics, but this is an acetone based adhesive. Spread a bead of the Fabri-Tac along the denim seam and pressed the top piece of denim to that already on the roof.

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The roof is looking good, but wasn't done yet. Will start to tone down whatever denim texture is there. Next comes (2) applications of brush on paint. Rustoleum satin black. When dry, will apply 3 or 4 or more applications of satin black spray.

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In the foreground, can see the depression in the denim where one of the stove stacks will go. When dry, will use an Xacto blade to remove that fabric circle and brush in some black paint to cover the exposed wood. Would use an awl to locate the holes on the upper roof for the ventilator mounting screws. Have one more photo to share...in the next posting. Carl B.