NEW Lilliput Locomotives
I had never built a locomotive before. Lots of model AFV's and aircraft. I've modeled figures since I was seven years old. But now I was faced with a sponsored Railmaster Dc loco kitset to be built to a display standard and painted in the sponsors colors ( that of DB Breweries ). I armed myself with copious amounts of Dc photos and went for it.
Yes, well. The Dc was certainly a learning experience for me. I also found out about the Athern motor. I figured I'd get about 6 months out of it. Well after two weeks of running all the plastic motor surrounds and brush holders had melted and driped down onto the chassie. It all had to be chisiled off and replaced with a Sagami 3032CW. The model also has a Kadee coupling on both ends now.
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The following is a report I wrote for the NZ Model Railroad Journal. The Dc was the first loco I built for Lilliput when I took over in 1995. The Dc loco is one of my favourite NZ locos so I was determined to get one for the railway.Buildin' It
The last thing everyone wants to read about is probably the building of another
kit, so I'll just do the interesting bits. The only problem with the actual
kit was the nose of the Dc. It had a millimeter deep canyon down the left
hand side which needed filling, filing, and reshaping. Apart from that it was a process of learn as you go. The detail of the piping along the undersides
of the body and instructions of what should be there were a bit sparse, but
a quick climb all over a real Dc sorted that out ( thanks Tranz Rail! ). The other problem that
needed fixing was the wiring. Lilliput is wired "backwards" compared to normal
model railways, so the Athern motor had to be removed, insulated from the
chassis ( since it has a pickup there ) and reinstalled with the wires swapped.
We use Sagami motors as standard in Lilliput, so when the Athern motor wears
out ( about six months ) I'll replace it. Details were another problem. The
locomotives in Lilliput get handled more than I would like so the finest
bits I did were the main handrails. The rest was built tough. A standard
Lilliput coupling ( one of the REAL OLD Hornby ones ) was added to the loco
and a Kadee coupler installed on the front ( I'm testing the Kadee's and
hope to use them as standard on Lilliput when I find a sponsor to pay for
them ).
Paintin' It
The loco was airbrushed all over in NZR Gray then masked and the yellow front
and end done. Black was used instead of NZR red because of the colors of
the DB logo. I originally approached DB about sponsoring a Dc loco to be
painted in the Kiwi Lager colors, but they don't make Kiwi Lager anymore.
They were happy instead, to sponsor the *NEXT* train in the series, the DB
Export Gold locomotive. I was happy to do that. So.........
How Do You Paint The Export Gold Logo Then?
A Dsg Locomotive For Lilliput
The purchase of a Railside Dsg kit for Lilliput was the realization of over six years of dreaming. I had always wanted a Dsg model, and now, thanks to sponsorship, TranzRail, and a successful raffle, we had one.
I decided from the start that the DSG would be a scale model of an actual Napier Remote Controlled loco so I started by making several trips to the rail yards and making notes. The kit was pretty easy until I got to the brass cab that required, SOLDERING ABILITY! However I managed to get it *mostly* square. More good luck than good management. Now the fun really began. Paint was matched as close as possible and the model was hand painted. One of the shunters provided with the kit was fitted with a remote control device and added to the front ( or back depending on which way you are looking ). The model was also fitted with working front and rear lights, plus a cab light. The number 3304 was chosen ( mainly because I liked it better than 3277 ) and added using Railmaster decals. The "Remote Control" and "DSG 3304" decals were made up on a computer and printed onto decal sheet, and the other decals were made up by hand. Kadee couplings were added to both ends and the model locked in a display cabinet until I could bring myself to let it loose on the railway ( it stayed on display for about a year ).
The BIG Dx 5212
Building a Wf steam loco
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