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 Posted - October 24 2021 : 10:37:54 PM
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Hello everyone,
After some time I have finished my Varney Berkshire.
Cast Bronze? Boiler
Mechanism came like this. No filing or bearing fittings which was very nice.
Valve Gear being built
Filed and sanded boiler. The boiler contains a huge lead weight.
Mounting on chassis
Adding details
Fitting valve gear onto chassis
Painted mechanism. The steam chest was the challenge of this build. I had to make my own rod hangers. This took a ton of fitting and time. (about 2 weeks to get it rolling happily.)
Painted boiler
My kit did not come with a tender so I used a metal Mantua tender that my friend Alex supplied.
Headlight wiring. I used a micro LED, epoxy, and gold paint to give it a nice bright headlight.
Finished 1
Finished 2
Finished 3
Finished 4. This is my favorite photo of any of my models.
Finished 5.
I have since mounted kadees and I run this engine as often as I can. I had a little issue with some of the rivets failing on the valve gear so i just replaced them with 00-80 screws and nuts. I have about 20 hours of run time on this engine with no issues. With it being well over 2lbs it pulls everything I throw at it.
Edited by - kristofer4301 on October 24 2021 10:38:51 PM
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 Posted - October 24 2021 : 11:21:38 PM
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Looks great.
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 Posted - October 25 2021 : 10:23:44 AM
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What the HECK man! That is extraordinary work. I know they give
you the parts, but assembling it, and fine tuning all the edges, that
is one step away from scratching. I would never attempt such a
project. All thumbs, moi.  
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Posted - October 25 2021 : 12:55:02 PM
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Love it!
I like seeing somebody building these old survivor kits instead of shelving them as "collector's items." The manufacturers intended them to be built and operated.
1182
Glenn
I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"
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Posted - October 25 2021 : 7:38:00 PM
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Wow! That's even a correct road number for a CNW Berkshire.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 25 2021 : 9:36:47 PM
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Incredible work, Kris! Simply awesome.
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven." - Matthew 5:16
Youtube Channel: www.youtube.com/rpmodelrailroads
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rp_model_railroads/
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Posted - October 26 2021 : 12:06:17 AM
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| That is a work of art!
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Posted - October 28 2021 : 3:12:38 PM
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Thank you for the kind words everyone. It was a difficult build but nothing too hard. The side rod guides on the steam chest were a huge PITA and when parts of the valve gear rivets gave up during the trial runs was quite annoying it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be fixed. It took me about 50 or 60 hours to build. For reference the Bowser Challenger took me 120 to 140 hours.
Like I stated earlier I really enjoy this engine. Sunday is about the only day I have free and I’ll typically start it up in the morning and just let it run all day. It’s a total brute too. I haven’t had a long enough train on it to even make it think about struggling. Also this was my first time using micro LEDs. I am really glad I went with this instead of the jewel as I LOVE the super-bright headlight.
Stay tuned for more builds.
Edited by - kristofer4301 on October 28 2021 3:14:29 PM
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Posted - November 24 2021 : 10:27:01 PM
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That is simply a wonderful build. I was fortunate to be able to buy this same Varney model of a Berkshire (it is one of my favorite model engines) a couple years ago from the gentleman who built it, and having had to take it apart in order to get it back up and running all right I don't think I could have managed building the rods and valve gear myself. Absolutely well done!
Edited by - Bring Back British Rail on November 25 2021 12:08:11 AM
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