Trolley Pole Primer - Part 2 The Pole and the Fittings at the Top of the Pole

Before staring the material of this post allow me to make editor's comments. In mentioning any manufacturer I am not endorsing or attempting to push the manufacturer's products. I have at all times tried to remain neutral regarding the hobby manufacturers and their products. However, in writing about my experiences in all fairness to the readers of this blog, I do have to point out the positives and negatives of an item, process, method, etc.

Depending upon the topic of the post manufacturers, suppliers, painters, and various other individuals who have been involved in the trolley end of the model railway business in the United States will be mentioned. This is done to fill in any voids which may appear. My sole purpose is to provide information. It is up to the reader of this blog to use his or her discretion in obtaining goods and services just as in buying an computer, furniture, personal goods and services, etc.

Trolley poles themselves are hollow tubes. If they were not hallow, but solid, they would weigh too much to be supported on the roof of the car.

Some of the poles were a tube like a pipe while others were tapered at one or both ends. For most O scale poles a piece of phosphor bronze wire is used. As far as I know only the Precision Scale trolley pole is a brass casting and is tapered.

Trolley poles come in various lengths. Cars carrying only a single pole mounted in the center (length) of the car are longer than normal. Normal, if there is one, is 12 to 14 scale feet.

The concern is, is the center of the mounting point of the trolley base in the correct position for the car. This should be determined from either plans or photos of the prototype car. In the past articles about what is the correct location of the center point of a trolley pole base have been written.

PE had the 800-929 series of double truck cars which as originally built had only 1 trolley pole. When the subway was built, in order to reverse the direction of travel of the cars, because there was not sufficient room to walk the single pole around to the other end, the cars were double poled. This is mentioned as there has to be some allowances in the exact, required center point location of a trolley base.

Even if you obtain the model built-up and finished by a reputable manufacturer check the centers of the trolley bases for correctness. For example, the CA&E Cincinnati passenger cars made by St. Petersburg Tram Collection did not have the trolley bases mounted in the correct position. The mounting points have to be changed by the modeler.

Furthermore, sometimes the length of a trolley pole has to be adjusted to the car on which it is used. More on this later in this post.

Next comes the strange thing at the end of the trolley pole - the most common are either a trolley wheel or a shoe (slider). Sometimes a "V" shaped object is fitted called a sleet scraper. Another object used is a "greaser" or an "applicator".

Originally a 10", 12" or larger diameter wheel was used. Initially the wheel would rotate but over time it would be worn into a hexagon shape with the wheel sliding along on one of the planes of the hexagon. Over time the trolley companies discovered smaller size wheels could be used.

The slider was an invention based on the wheel worn into a hexagon shape. As you will see there are many sliders which were invented by the manufacturers. The advantage of the slider is it can provide better, continuous contact with the trolley wire thereby providing for more electrical current to be transferred from the trolley wire to the trolley pole.

The disadvantage of the slider is the trolley wire has to be lubricated to prevent premature wear of the wire. This is the reason for the "greaser" or "applicator" at the end of a trolley pole.

Another disadvantage of the slider is the potential of the slider catching the trolley wire during back-up (reverse) moves of the trolley car. Care has to be taken during back-up moves. Normally the opposite trolley pole is raised during back-up moves. The trolley wheel is better for switching where the car moves back and forth with a trolley guide, a human holding onto the trolley rope.

How does all of the above apply to the modeler. Before you order poles from a manufacturer find out if you can get the length of the pole made to order. Since PSC has a pole kit, you can cut the pole to any length you want.

Already mention has been made about the pole fitting the model. Single truck cars often had longer than normal trolley poles mainly for ease of hooking down the pole. When I was working on a model of a North Shore Line coach, I was surprised to find photos and scale drawings which showed the trolley poles did not extend over the ends of the car.

This photo shows the trolley pole of the NSL coach (model on the left) sticking out over the end of the car and above the roof of the model on the right. The poles on this car had to be shortened.

I replaced the trolley poles on a Sunset model of the Electroliner for a friend. I was surprised to find out how short the trolley poles were. The trolley poles on a North Shore standard passenger car or Electroliner could not extend out too far or else they would foul one another on the sharp curves on the Chicago "L". This photo is a comparison of 2 trolley poles. The pole at the top of the photo is from an NSL coach (not the one shown above). The pole at the bottom of the photo is from a Sunset Electroliner. The Sunset slider has been replaced.

When it comes to the end of the pole, a sleet scraper should never be applied to the end of a pole unless the pole is a dummy model of the prototype. The sleet scraper is in a "V" shape and intended to scrape the sleet off the wire. On a layout it could snag the overhead wire and ruin the trolley operation.

While  know there were other sleet scrapers used, the "V" shape is the only one I've seen in person.

The "greaser" or "applicator" applied, depending upon the trolley line, a mixture of beeswax or paraffin, mineral oil, and graphite onto the trolley wire once a week or so. It lubricated the trolley wire for the use of a slider or shoe current collector.

About 1954-55, Rich Wagner experimented with a current collector on the end of a trolley pole to lubricate his trolley wire. See Trolley Talk #2. He sold the device with the idea, the modelers who purchased it would report back on how well it worked.

Today, some modelers use liquid lock lubricant which is graphite in an alcohol mixture. Neolube is a similar product. Either can be applied once a month or so depending upon how many trolleys are operated off the trolley wire. Graphite being pure carbon is an excellent conductor. Also, depending upon the metal, the graphite adheres to the crystals of the metal for a period of time providing long lasting effects.

The wheels provided by the scale manufacturers mimic how a trolley wheel looks. Except for the PSC trolley wheel they are non-rotating. The other manufacturers provide the standard NMRA 6" diameter x 3" wide wheel. Q-Car also provides a scale size 5.5" diameter x 1.5" wheel.

The photo shows the NMRA wheel, scale size wheel, and the working wheel.

The PSC working wheel comes as 2 brass castings. Time is required to clean up the castings, increase the depth of the dimples to hold the wheel's axel, squeeze the ends of the harp to hold the wheel, and finally install the wheel on the trolley pole.

This PSC scan below may be out of order however, it offers a few different visual explanations of some of the unique features of their trolley poles.
1.Starting on the left notice the "exploded" view of the trolley base. The "stud" sticking straight down means the pole has to be installed using the insert mount type of installation. 2. Next notice the trolley wheel and yoke. If you obtain older castings, after Kemtron sold out to PSC but before a few years ago, the castings were not as good as the Kemtron or the newer PSC castings.
3. The trolley shoe is next. After cleaning up the casting check the depth of the hole for the trolley pole. You may have to drill the hole to a uniform depth. I do not have any particular depth in mind other than the slider should be square on the trolley pole.
4. Next look at the roof bushing. You can use this bushing or one you make for the roof of your model.
5. Not shown are replacement springs. They are shown on the same page as the trolley pole. Do not be thrown off by the erroneous numbers shown in the listings.
6. The trolley base is lost wax castings. I have found them to be too fragile for operating trolley poles. I've installed them on non-operating models used for presentations or the shelf. That said, some modelers have not had problems with the PSC poles in operation.

All the work  which goes into making the PSC wheel work is well rewarded as the trolley wheel rotates as the model goes by. I have PSC operating trolley wheels on a few cars. They work equally well going forward or in reverse. For individuals who do not believe the wheel rotates, the model can be slowed down to show them.

From the 4 manufacturers, 3 different sliders are available. All the sliders are brass castings. Some modelers prefer the Wagner sliders because it tends to give the most amount of contact area with the trolley wire and least amount of de-wirements. The photo has the brass casting and the casting after chemically darkened. 

 

This photo is a Wagner slider on the trolley wire. It shows the amount of shoe contact with the wire.

 

 

The Wagner slider is a non-working in that all the sliders were made so the shoe would rock back and forth in the slider body. This would allow the angle of the shoe to conform to the trolley wire. Actually, the Wagner slider is patterned after a slider where the shoe could rotate counter clockwise (per the photo above) when the pole was used in a back-up move to prevent the shoe from snagging on the trolley wire.

 

If one is careful, cars can be backed-up using a pole with a Wagner slider. The back move must be very slow. At the 1st sign the slider is going to snag the wire - the wire tends to go up as the slider is caught - stop the model!

The slider available from Q-Car Company looks to me like the style of slider the Chicago Aurora & Elgin used on its equipment. Two photos are of CA&E cars. Take a look at the sliders on the end of the trolley poles. If the sliders are looked at close enough, space can be seen through the part of the slider holding the shoe.

The Q-Car Company slider as a brass casting and as chemically blackened. The casting comes with a sculptured out portion resembling the area in the CA&E shoes where light can be seen coming through. 

 

This is a Q-Car slider on the trolley wire. The amount of wire contact is seen.

The slider available from PSC looks like the style of slider used by the North Shore Line on its equipment. Compare the sliders in the photos below with the PSC graphic above and photos below.

The PSC slider as a brass casing and after chemically blackened.  Normally the casting is flat in the area under the shoe. As the hot casting cools the metal contracts leaving the cheeks slightly pulled in.

 

This is a PSC slider on the trolley wire. The amount of contact with the wire can be seen.

 

Finally; springs, trolley wheels, and trolley sliders are available individually from the manufacturers. Springs can be obtained with different "pull" on the trolley pole. This translates into different pressure on the wire.

The availability of springs and trolley wheels and sliders means you are able to repair trolley poles. More on this and other info on trolley poles in the next post.


Cheers,
Ed

Trolley Pole Primer - Part 1 The Basics and the Base

The one item which makes a trolley model unique is the trolley pole! While this comment may seem obvious to us trolley modelers, it is the part of the model which draws the attention of the average non-trolley modeler and brings the question, "Does the model pick-up electricity from the wire?" 

Steam and diesel models don't have anything as odd or unique as a trolley pole!

 

My idea was to write everything in just one post. As my brain kicked into gear the realization set in, this was going to be one of those subjects requiring more than just a quickie writing.

We will start from the bottom of the trolley pole up in describing the differences between the trolley poles and their manufacturers. There are 4 different designs of trolley poles available based upon the trolley's base available in O scale. 

A trolley base is "an iron base attached to the roof of the car and having a swiveling socket for the bottom end of the trolley pole. The socket and pole are normally held in an upright position by one or more stiff coil springs which are compressed when the pole is pulled down on an angle." 1911 Electric Railway Dictionary

From the description the trolley base includes the object attached to the trolley boards on the roof of the car plus the spring holders and a pivot which allows the pole to move up and down.

For the part attached to the trolley boards on the roof on the car, many modelers use a soft metal casing available from Current Line Models or Q-Car. If a soft metal casting isn't used something which was included on the model, if it came already built-up, or we build our own.

Various prototype manufacturers produced trolley poles over the years trolleys were in use. These included:
     Ohio Brass,
     Union Standard made by R. D. Nuttall Company,
     National Ball and Rolling Bearing,
     Bayonet Roller-Ball made by Bayonet Trolley Harp Company,
     Sterling Roller-Bearing Trolley Base by Sterling-Meaker Company,
     Holland Ball-Bearing by Holland Trolley Supply Company, and
     more. 

Each manufacturer supplied a number of different trolley pole bases. Some of the trolley pole base designs were unique to the company while other bases looked similar to other companies' bases.

We are lucky as there are 4 sources of trolley poles in O scale. In alphabetical order the manufacturers of O scale trolley poles are:

• Current Line Models (originally Wagner Car Company)
• Midcco Models - Jim Osborn
• Precision Scale Models (PSC)
• Q-Car Company

 

You can look up Current Line, PSC, and Q-Car trolley products on the web. Jim Osborn sells poles by word of mouth and at trolley meets. Here is one of his flyers.

Note the date on the flyer, prices may have changed so contact Jim Osborn 1st before sanding any money. 

You can buy direct from the manufacturers or from the several trolley model suppliers. Check the right side and bottom of this web page.

The underlined part of the following descriptions were given by the Wagner Car Company to their trolley poles. For the most part the descriptions are the ones used by trolley modelers.

1. Four Spring Horizontal Forward - the Ohio Brass name is Ohio Brass Form 20

   Probably the most common of all the different styles of trolley pole bases.

Trying to find a photo of this style of base was hard. Everyone takes photos of the entire car (model) while few concentrate on just the trolley pole and its base.

2. Two Spring Vertical Forward or 4 Spring Vertical Forward  - the Ohio Brass name is either
    Ohio Brass Form 10 or 11 depending upon the number of springs. Apparently these trolley poles could be obtained for just streetcars or for heavier duty.

 

The 3 photos above were supplied by Carl Lantz.

 

The above photo shows the bearings required to support the pole upon which it rotates 360 degrees. The page goes into the amount of weight the bearings can support.

3. Four Spring Horizontal Back - the Ohio Brass name is Ohio Brass Form 1

Please excuse the quality of the photo. The photo was taken from an early issue of Trolley Talk. The photo was taken before the entire trolley pole was blackened making the parts of the base easier to see..

4. PE air pneumatic (spring powered) available from Jim Osborn
    The in depth reason for the PE to develop and use the air pneumatic trolley pole is lost on me. PE developed and used the air pneumatic trolley pole base to keep the trolley pole from flying up in the air after a dewirement and destroying the span and associated wires suspending the trolley wire. Apparently the PE had not heard of or believed in the trolley retriever.

The air pneumatic part of the trolley pole base was used to lower the trolley pole in case it went too far up into the air. A lever was tripped as the trolley pole went up causing compressed air to be released into the cylinder. A piston in the cylinder pushed the pole down.

Suydam O scale brass model of a PE car with air pneumatic trolley poles.

I do not know if a trolley railway could specify a particular pole base or if the railway had to take what the builder of the car had. If a series of photos of PCC cars are examined, all of the PCC's came equipped with the vertical spring trolley base.

All of the CA&E cars were equipped with the horizontal spring base, except #20 the line car; until the St. Louis Car Co. delivered the 450 series of cars with vertical spring bases.

The North Shore Line had all 3 of the common trolley bases - springs horizontal, vertical, and backward in use at the same time.  The NSL kept the same type of trolley base on a car for the life of the car. As a car was shopped and some made into Silverliners, it emerged with the same trolley bases.

If the trolley base includes a "plate" attached to the trolley boards on the roof of the car plus the spring and pivot which allows the pole to move up and down plus a swiveling socket for the bottom end of the trolley pole. The swiveling socket has to be the 2-56 screw or something like it or the pole would not rotate in a 360 degree arc.

So how is a model trolley pole attached to a trolley model? There are 2 different way. Both ways have as many pluses and minuses. You'll have to decide which method is best for you. Furthermore, the descriptions below and installation instructions can vary depending upon the model and the modeler.

The 1st method, which I call the "screw mount", is to mount the 2-56 screw through the roof pointing up. The key is to have enough material in the roof to support the trolley pole. The drawing shows the best way to mount the screw in a brass roof. The 2-56 screw has to be insulated from the roof and the balance of the model to prevent short circuits.

The primary reason for having enough material under the brass roof is to protect the 2-56 screw plus the brass roof material from damage should the 2-56 screw receive a sharp blow from the side. The screw can be bent or dislodged and the brass roof severely bent out of shape.



 

The other method of mounting a trolley pole on a model is the "insert mount". First, either a 2-56 screw has to be screwed into the trolley base and cut short with out its head. Or, piece of 0.090" diameter brass has to be threaded 2-56 with enough threads to just screw into the trolley base. The balance of the 0.090" brass rod is cut so enough will fit into the insert in the roof of the model.

 

To prepare the model find out what size styrene tubing is required to accept a piece of brass tubing into which the either the 2-56 screw of the 0.090" rod will fit. Glue the piece of styrene to a piece of 0.020" thick styrene sheet to make the insulation for the trolley boards and the roof of the model. A soft metal casting of the piece of trolley base can be glued on top of the piece of 0.020" styrene sheet.

 

Glue a piece of plastic or other non-conductive material inside the roof to be used as a vertical support of the insert. Drill a hole for the styrene insulation tube into the trolley boards through the roof and vertical support piece.

 

A piece of wire has to be soldered to the piece of brass tubing into which the 2-56 screw or 0.090" brass rod will fit.  The wire is used to bring the trolley wire current into the model. The piece of brass rod can be glued into the styrene insulating tube.

 

For both of the methods of mounting the trolley base, my explanation was kept brief. You should discuss the pro and cons plus how to mount the base with another modeler who has used both methods.

 

One more piece of detail before we move on. The 4-Spring Horizontal Backward Base, due to the swing of the trolley harp as the pole moved up and down, can "cut" into the trolley base attached to the roof boards. This can happen with either the screw or insert mount. Due to the small size of the parts, the action of the trolley harp has to be seen to appreciate what is happening.

 

If you are not too confused we'll go onto the pole and the items at the top of the pole in the next post. There still are many areas to cover regarding trolley poles.

 

Cheers,

Ed

 

John Marton 1941 - 2014

John Marton of Des Plaines, IL passed away on February 21, 2014. He was an excellent trolley modeler in O scale. At the time of his death John was a Vice-President of the Central Electric Railfans' Association (CERA) after serving for 5 years as the Publications Director.

John was responsible for the publication of The Lake Line (B-144), Transit in the Triangle v1 (B-145), and Trolley Sparks Special #1. John's work was very successful, well received, and appreciated by CERA members.

John's health problems stated early in 2013. The health problems have caused delay in the  publication of next CERA Bulletin The Illini Trail, about the Chicago, Ottawa & Peoria. When the Bulletin is published, CERA will dedicate the book in John's memory.

John scratch-built many of his O scale trolley models. His models were always interesting. These are photos of John’s Evanston Ry. car. The model has a full interior. The boy on the back platform has a golf bag with himself.  Coal is included for the old stove to heat the car. This is the only model of an Evanston Ry. car I have ever seem!

 

 

John would often come to a trolley meet with a number of models to be able to make up a train. This is John's Indiana Railroad 3-car train of lightweight cars.

 

 

John was a teacher in the Chicago Public School system for many years. In his final years  he was assigned to a high school on the far west side of the city. John used his interest and skills in building trolley models to teach model building to his students. He demonstrated to the students how they could succeed using their own talents and skills. Many of the students learned new skills which could lead to a job.

The students' grades were based upon how well the individual student could read plans, select material to be used, build the model, and then finish the model. At the end of the school term the students were free to take their models home or leave them at school.

Sometimes a student would give the model to John to have as his own. This is one such model.

 

John was a great friend to all of us traction fans no matter if you were a modeler or not. His volunteer work with the CERA is appreciated by all of us. Seeing his models was always a joy. You could talk with him about almost anything. He would show you how he had built his models. We all are going to miss him.

John, may the signals ahead always be green!

 

Sincerely,
Ed

Models of Open Bench Cars with Some Fixes

Models of open bench cars are a great change of topic. Even though it's February with the cold, uncomfortable weather; we won't let the weather get us down. Spring is around the corner. Now is the time to get your open bench car(s) ready for warmer weather running and the crowds the cars can carry!

The purpose of this post is to show a way to fix 2 potential problems with open bench cars. The glass in the bulkheads and the use on maximum traction trucks can be problems.

There has been lots of material written with regards to open bench cars. Almost every early trolley line had them on their roster.

We'll narrow down our discussion to O scale models of them. To my knowledge the only available models were imported by Ken Kidder and MTS. All the models were made from brass. Brass is probably the best material to be used. Other materials are not as durable and suitable. Open bench cars have curves plus other unique architectural and structural features.

If I recall correctly there have been articles in print on how to scratch-build an open bench car. The brass models mentioned below show up on EBay and at some O scale meets.

Starting in 1955 through 1965 Ken Kidder had built in Japan and imported the following models of open bench cars. All of the models were brass bodies only -
17/64" and 1/4" scale14-bench models from "Model Craftsman" plans,
1/4" scale 9-bench model built from 1895 Cincinnati Car Company plans,
1/4" scale 10-bench models,
1/4" scale Boston 12-bench models, and
1/4" scale Manchester 15-bench models.
The 14-bench models were based on New York City plans while the 10-bench models were patterned after New Haven plans. 

About a decade or more ago MTS imported a brass powered double truck 14-bench open car. The model seemed more refined than the Kidder models. The cars can powered - the modeler didn't have to purchase and install trucks. Also, the MTS models were wired ready to run.

One of the unique features of an open car were the bulkheads between the operator's area and the passenger section of the car. Often the bulkhead had windows with glazing. To replicate this feature in the Ken Kidder bodies, a piece of real glass was fitted between 2 pieces of brass which constituted the bulkhead. 

In the 1970's I acquired Kidder's 14-bench and 10-bench open cars. Painting the cars was not the easiest project. Since this was done many years ago, I think the bodies were sprayed yellow and then the red, brown, and black were hand brushed on. The removable seat backs were sprayed red. How I picked the yellow, red, brown, and black paint scheme is unknown. Maybe the Connecticut Company cars has some influence on me.

The following photo is of my 10-bench open car. Why some of the roof details are painted a wood color is unknown. The model came with the controller and brake handle at each end.

If you look through the car to the opposite side you will notice a bar at about the height of the seat backs. This bar is painted red and can be seen on this side of the car a the top of the post. It was a trick to paint this bar and at the same time not paint it in place. The bars on both sides can be raised and lowered just like on the prototype cars. About the only details added are working headlights and marker holders. The red striping is a very thin decal.

This model of an open bench car with a single trolley pole has a longer than usual trolley pole.

 

The marker holders are short pieces of brass tubing carefully soldered to the end post. The marker holder can be seen just above the brake handle. At the time my models were painted and finished a vendor had single lens markers with a short piece of bent wire on the rear of the marker for hanging.

Some open bench cars were used on extended street or interurban trackage to go to the local street railway owned amusement park. Hence the need for markers on cars.

My 14-bench open car looks much like the 10-bench car with 2 exceptions - the 14-bench car has a interurban headlight and the trucks. The 14-bench has maximum traction trucks.

A few years ago I noticed a crack in one of the small pieces of glass in one bulkhead of the 14-bench model. One thing I failed to mention is, it is easy to run the wire from the trolley poles down through the side of the space into which the piece of glass slides. It just takes a little time while to fish the wire into place. Be careful not to cut into the wire's insulation or you might have a short in the car's electrical system.

The broken pieces of glass were taken to a local glass outlet near my home for replacement. In an hour or less the new piece of glass with a rounded top was ready. When I picked it up I was told the piece of original glass in the model was thinner than glass available now.

Upon getting home the new piece of glass was tried. It didn't fit!  The new glass was too thick! The model with the pieces of glass sat on my workbench for about 2 years until the idea of obtaining clear, colorless polycarbonate. Amazon.com was logged onto and 0.060" polycarbonate looked-up. There is a vendor with different thicknesses of polycarbonate in 12" X 12" sheets. It was ordered and arrived in 2 days.

The next day (Our mail usually arrives after 6:00 pm or later daily.), the sheet was cut and the new piece inserted. It is impossible to tell the difference between the glass and the polycarbonate.

 

Why polycarbonate and not another clear plastic? Polycarbonate is the same material used to make CD's, DVD's, more importantly the lenses in eyeglasses. Polycarbonate is strong but can be scratched.

 

Unfortunately, there are no good photos of the piece of polycarbonate after installation in the model. If there was, you would find it hard to be able to tell the difference between a piece of glass and the polycarbonate.

 

Just like the prototype maximum traction trucks, my model maximum traction trucks did not power the model very well. The maximum traction trucks were more like minimum traction trucks. Two power trucks were tried and still didn't work very well.

 

With the small diameter wheels powered, the truck tended to lift off these wheels and ride on the larger diameter wheels only. In talking to other modelers, they complained of the same problem.

 

What was need was a way to keep the small wheels on the track. In my pile of brass shapes was a 1/4" (I think that is the size. It may be slightly smaller.) square bar. A piece was cut off and soldered to the piece of brass used to covers the truck's gears.

 

This has 2 effects on the truck. The piece of brass was heavy enough to change the weight distribution onto the axel of the smaller wheels. The other effect was to fill the area between the truck and the body of the car. The small wheels did not have as much space into which they could lift.

 

My other idea had been to install spring(s) on top of the gear area of the truck. But by the time a way to keep the spring in place and controlled along with installing the spring and its "mechanism"; it was easier to solder the piece of square brass on!

 

With a little bit of lubrication and a good cleaning and dusting, the 2 open cars of the Chicago & Utopia are ready for summer. Maybe some day, lighting will be installed inside the roof of the cars.

 

Cheers,

Ed

North Shore Line 409 - Part 16 Final Assembly

The conductor or trainman was left out of the last post. I get conductor looking figures already painted. Some have their arms extended like they are holding onto a seat while others are looking at a watch or items in their hands. If the arms are extended like holding onto a seat place "glue" on the feet and hands. Use the hands to stabilize the figure.

Other trainmen can be "glued" in place standing against a wall, seat, or free standing in the aisle or vestibule. Seeing a conductor standing in the vestibule is interesting. Yes, sometimes train personnel can be found standing in the vestibule! One more reason for having a light in the vestibule!

The balance of the work needed to finish the model are a patch quilt of items. Before anything else is done the underbody, steps, and coupler area may need painting and/or touch up.

On my model older Wagner trailer trucks are to be used. Some of the brass making up the steps had to be cut back. In doing this small holes appeared in the steps, If the hole was small, Squadron body putty was used to fill the hole.

For larger holes a piece of index card was ACC'ed in place. After the ACC cured, cuticle scissors were used to cut off the excess index card. The card was made from paper and it quickly absorbed the ACC. After the ACC cured the paper was stiff and hard.

Originally Squadron Green body putty was used to try to fill the hole. The hole was too large. A small piece of index card was ACC'ed over the hole and them trimmed in place.

 

 

Both the body putty and index card materials were sanded with a finger nail emery board. All the areas of the steps were painted the same as the underbody. 

The installation of the trucks is next. Two wires stick out from the underbody near the trucks. This floor has a number of holes already drilled into it by the manufacturer. These 2 wires are the ground wires to be attached to the trucks. I prefer to make my own connectors out of 0.005" brass. Two brass tabs with a larger hole for the truck screw plus a small hole for the ground wire were made.

Install the tabs on the model without the trucks. Place the ground wire into the small hole. Solder the wires to the tabs. If required cut off any the excess wire.

Keep the 0.005" brass flat. Bends and wrinkles will artificially increase the thickness of the connector.

The trucks can now be installed on the model. The drawing below shows how a spring is included over the 3-48 screw. Using the spring usually prevents the model from wobbling as it goes down the track. If installed properly the trucks should continue to rotate as they would without the spring. The tucks should have been painted prior to installation.

If there is a problem with electrical conductivity or truck swing due to friction, apply Neolub to the truck and body bolsters, electrical ground tab/washer/connector, and truck spring.

The re-installation of the couplers is next. A prior post, dated December 12, 2013, "NSL 409 Part 2 Couplers and Trucks", covered the installation of the couplers. Again, if any touch-up is required now is the time.

After the couplers are installed, the pilots need to be installed. Be careful not the strip the small metric screws. If you do apply a drop of canopy glue on the top and bottom of the screw as it is held in place. Paint or re-paint the pilots.

Penultimate, the marker lamp brass exteriors can be installed. The red lens is facing back with the 2 green lens facing to the side. The DAP bath tub caulk or canopy glue can be used.

Lenses with canopy glue and the marker lamp housings. The canopy glue was applied to the marker housings with a tooth pick.

The lenses for the markers were made from 0.005" styrene using a leather punch. A leather punch with a revolving punch wheel is handy for making various size lenses. Lenses are applied to the marker housings before attaching the marker housings to the model. The lenses were colored red and green after the "glue" used to attach the marker housings to the model has cured. Red and green permanent dry markers were used to color the lenses.

Last, the trolley poles are attached. The model can be placed on a test track and the power turned on. The interior and vestibule lights should be on plus any exterior lights.

As with any model work I do there are other individuals who have helped ma along the way. Terrell Colson and Eric Bronsky provided photos of the 409. Bernie Rossbach provided the MR O scale plan of the 409. John Giove in an off-the-wall manner provided the vents for the roof. Charlie Pitts provided a method to attach the couplers. There may be more who contributed. To all of you, thank you!

Cheers,
Ed 

North Shore Line 409 - Part 15 Interior with Seats, Passengers, and Lavatory

The model came with a false interior floor - a sheet of brass mounted a couple of millimeters above the floor upon which the trucks are mounted. The area between the 2 sheets of brass was where the model's wiring to the trucks was located.

Depending upon if the false floor is retained or not may alter how the interior is installed. There are probably as many ways to install an interior as there are modelers. Since the roof is fixed on the model of the 409, the interior has to be installed from the bottom of the model.

A glitch or pain in the butt are the small tabs onto which the floor is secured with screws. If the interior is built-up on the floor something has to be done to accommodate the tabs.

A way around the "tab" glitch is to install the seats either directly to the sides of the model and/or on a thin floor strip. If the seats are installed on a thin strip of brass or styrene, the seat "units" can be "glued" against the side above where the tabs and floor are located.

The lavatory is located at the #1 end exactly where the "lav" was in the original 409 set-up as a dining car. The walls of the "lav" can be built-up of styrene and attached directly to the bulkhead. The open ceiling of the "lav" is to be used to direct wiring from the roof to the floor to the trucks. Some lighting from the coach part of the model will spill over into the "lav".

The drawing is looking down at the floor. The dimensions of the lavatory are in inches.

The "lav" can be assembled, painted the same color as the bulkhead then glued to it. 

Depending upon your preference, the glazing in the "lav" section of the model can be frosted before or after the "lav" is installed. Some modelers have started to used the flat part of a plastic milk or similar container or jug. This plastic comes frosted. All one needs to do is to cut up the plastic to the desired size and attach it with canopy glue to the interior of the car's glazing.

I made my own frosted glazing by using an emery board on a piece of clear, colorless 0.010" styrene.

Don't forget to thread the wiring from the ceiling (light stick) through the lavatory.

The seats installed in the 409 were not "top-of-the-line" seats as installed in the other Silverliners.  The seats were medium grade seats available in the late 1940's and 50's. One feature of the seats which shows up in photos of the 409 is the chrome color metal tubing which went along the side and over the back of the seat. The seats were easily reversed by swinging the seats around on the base of the seat. The color of the seat and back was a "medium-dark red" color.

Once a supply of seats has been obtained, there's a couple of ways to proceed depending upon your preferences and how much you desire your model to reflect the prototype. The goal is to get the floor a dark color, the seats "medium-dark red", and the chrome tubing to show.

In preparing the seats for painting, since the chrome tubing over and around the seats shows up so much in photos of the 409, a piece of 0.020" wire was ACC'ed to all the seats. After the seats were painted a "red" the wire was painted a silver color. Even if the seat castings have a chrome tubing included, the addition of the wire makes the tubing just that much more prominent.

As with other NSL cars, the single seat by the window in the bulkhead (the railfan's seat) was fixed (did not rotate or move). The double seat immediately in back of the motorman's cab was also fixed. With the "lav" located in back of a motorman's cab, the seat adjacent to the "lav" was fixed. These double seats were often shorter so the door in the bulkhead could be fully opened.

The reason the above seats are mention is, they can be painted and attached to the sides and/or bulkheads separate from the other seats. I used clear DAP bathtub caulk - the type which comes out of the tube white and dries clear. If one of these seats is located above one of the tabs to which the floor is secured, the area of the seat above the screw location has to be filed or grounded out to clear the screw.

It's time to talk passengers. From whatever source of passengers you use, a number of passengers should be placed on the seats. Every modeler has different thoughts on passengers and the number to use. I try to place 1 passenger on about 55% of the seats in a model. Some are near the outer side. A few are placed on the inside away from the side. Children, if any, are placed on the seat facing the parent or adult. The conductor will be mentioned later.

DAP bathtub caulk was used to attach the passengers to a seat. I like the DAP product because it dried clear and colorless. Passengers can be removed from a seat without damaging the paint on either the seat or the passenger. Finally it's easy to clean-up by pulling the dried caulk off.

The seats with passengers have been ACC'ed to strips of 0.010" styrene. Notice the random pattern to the passenger placement.

For my model only the exterior floor was to be used. The interior floor was placed in the parts bin. Originally I tried to attach the seats to the sides using DAP bathtub caulk. It was hard to keep them square to the sides. Before the caulk completely dried, the seats were pulled out.

The best way to keep the seats square is to attach them to a thin piece of styrene or brass. I used a piece of 0.010" of styrene. The seats were attached with ACC. Allow the ACC to cure overnight before spraying everything the seat color. Paint the floor at the base of the seats a medium to dark brown or similar color and shade using a brush.

Install the light stick before installing any seats. The amount of space for tools and fingers is limited once the seats have been installed. 

 

Allow the "glue" to completely cure prior to turning the model over to install the other set of seats!

 

How well the passengers look with regards to height in the car can be seen. 

 

The other set of seats have to be installed.

The above photos shows the wiring from the light stick in place. Finishing-up the model is the topic for the next post so don't let the attached coupler cause you worry. You haven't missed anything.

The original brass floor with the holes for a speaker was used. Just so this item is not overlooked, remove the center air tank casting from under the floor which blocks the swing of one of the trucks. The bottom of the floor was painted matte "Grimy Black" and the top, the interior floor a matte dark brown.

This is the only photo of the floor prior to painting and installation. The thin strips of styrene (I forgot the dimensions.) along the sides of the floor are required to move the seats up a little bit to compensate for the metal "L" shape located at the bottom of the car sides. Note the styrene strips are pushed back from the edge of the floor side.

The piece of styrene tubing secures the ground wire as it passes from one truck to the other thereby guaranteeing a good ground for the car's wiring. More about the final wiring in the next post.

All the white styrene was painted a matte dark brown.

 

The floor can be secured to the bottom of the model. This will prevent any damage to the interior of the model during final assembly and touch-up.

 

Cheers,

Ed

Post #100 - Thank You for Viewing the Blog

This the 100th Post published. Google collects a number of stats related to a blog which can be viewed by the owner. One of the sets of stats collected tells me the country in which viewers of the blog are. This blog has had viewers from all over the globe.

You may be surprised to find out the "All Time" page views after the United States, in order of number of page views, are Russia, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Japan, France, Ukraine, and Sweden. After Sweden, Google does not provide information.

How do I know other countries are represented? Google breaks down the stats by "All Time", "Month", "Week", "Day", and "Now". By clicking on the various time frames, the names of other countries have shown up. There are so many other countries, a list of the United Nations would be required to list them all. If your country is not listed in the "All Time" group, do not worry as I know you are there.

At the same time the number of page views (Listed as "Total Passengers" in the right hand column of the blog page.)  is approaching 30,000. This represents many individuals who have looked at the posts in this blog. Some have viewed the blog once while others have viewed the blog multiple times. Whether you have intentionally or unintentionally looked at this blog - THANK YOU!

Since the blog was started in late 2011, numerous positive comments regarding my blog have been received from viewers.

My intention in writing a blog has been to get the viewer interested in O scale trolley modeling and to do some model building in any scale. Some where a writer in a modeling magazine noted if a modeler were to work on his or her hobby for 30 minutes per day, in a year's time this would be approximately 183 hours. One year is 183 hours! Need more be said?

Again, THANK YOU for viewing this blog and now back to model building.

Cheers,
Ed