EMD F7 in SCALE

[Odyknuck]

Innovative and well done

[ccvstmr]

Steggy...good to see you back on-line after your break and once again, moving the F unit closer to completion! Carl B.

[djjh87]

Good to see you're back in the shop! This build is awesome and would hope it will inspire others to shop build their locos. Jim

[Steggy]

Innovative and well done

Thanks!

Steggy...good to see you back on-line after your break and once again, moving the F unit closer to completion! Carl B.

Thanks! Considering all the medical sturm und drang of the past 16 years, I’m amazed I’ve gotten this far. Goes to show it takes more than a couple of surgeons and Medicare bureaucrats to kill me.

Good to see you're back in the shop! This build is awesome and would hope it will inspire others to shop build their locos. Jim

Thanks!

As always, the first one is the hardest, since that is how you learn what isn’t going to work. Most of the F-unit’s fabrication came after nearly three (intermittent) years of design work—it was a paper locomotive well before any steel got cut. However, drawing from my railroad career experience, once I had a basic layout (“general arrangement”) established and some piece part drawings completed, I built a mockup in my basement shop to verify spacial relationships before I got in too deep:

mockup01.jpg (172.06 KiB) Viewed 1233 times

mockup01.jpg (155.69 KiB) Viewed 1233 times

The above photos were taken about eight months apart. The F-unit was in the mockup stage for about a year before I commenced the full build. Some of what you see above didn’t make it into the final cut once I got the unit to a running state and had put it through some shakedown runs.

I’ve been following some of the other build logs here (including Carl B’s “shorty” builds) and often see parallels to what I’ve been doing and how design and/or fabrication problems got worked out. This sort of hobby tends to give the old brain a lot of exercise of the type that I am convinced will keep it (the old brain) from rotting out and turning its owner into an elected official.

Once I get this A-unit finished, I’m going to entertain my fantasy of building a powered B-unit. All of the engineering and design work that went into the A-unit’s running chassis is applicable to the B’s chassis, with minor differences in the body mounting arrangements. The B-unit’s body would be much less a challenge to build, since there isn't that “bulldog” nose, headlights, number boards, etc., to detail. Ultimately, the decision to build it will be determined by the state of my health, as well as the state of my finances.

Speaking of the B-unit, one time while at the railroad, I mentioned how the A-unit mechanicals would work in a B-unit, giving me a fully-powered MU setup. One of our brilliant members said in reference to the hauling capability of the two units together, “You don’t need it.”

My retort was, “Of course I don’t ‘need it.’ I also don’t ‘need’ to be eating Hershey bars.”

I’m not sure if he got my point.

[Harold_V]

Speaking of the B-unit, one time while at the railroad, I mentioned how the A-unit mechanicals would work in a B-unit, giving me a fully-powered MU setup. One of our brilliant members said in reference to the hauling capability of the two units together, “You don’t need it.”

My retort was, “Of course I don’t ‘need it.’ I also don’t ‘need’ to be eating Hershey bars.”

I’m not sure if he got my point.

I'm not, either. My shop is a perfect example of that philosophy. There's a good number of things I have that I "don't need". However, life is more than just going to work and coming home. For those of us who have considerable curiosity about things, having or making "unneeded" things is very much a part of our existence and hoped for longevity.

I have long believed that a person must have a reason to get out of bed each day. I am thankful for my curiosity and willingness to explore. I don't know that I'd still be around (or even care) if I was unable to do so.

I heartily endorse projects that are challenging and keep one's mind active---even when they may not be "needed".

H

[Steggy]

For those of us who have considerable curiosity about things, having or making "unneeded" things is very much a part of our existence and hoped for longevity.

Amen!

[NP317]

For those of us who have considerable curiosity about things, having or making "unneeded" things is very much a part of our existence and hoped for longevity.

Amen!

Absolutely!!
RussN

[cwood1218]

I thought those trucks looked familiar. I have the same ones under Tom Bee's old GP40. Plus i have enough castings for 3 more engines. If I decide to build them. Tom sold the truck pattern to Adam Wright.
Build looks great!
Corey

[Steggy]

I thought those trucks looked familiar. I have the same ones under Tom Bee's old GP40. Plus i have enough castings for 3 more engines. If I decide to build them. Tom sold the truck pattern to Adam Wright.

To which trucks are you referring? The trucks that are now under the F-unit are modified Pike River parts.

Build looks great!

Thanks!

[Steggy]

While rummaging through my sizable collection of photos I’ve taken while in the shop, I ran across these while working out the number boards. They were taken last year, right before medical malarkey sidelined me.

number_boards01_reduced.jpg (123.02 KiB) Viewed 1007 times

number_boards02_reduced.jpg (286.24 KiB) Viewed 1007 times

[NP317]

Really gorgeous workmanship!
RussN

[cwood1218]

The trucks I was referring to are from much earlier in your build.
Corey