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 Posted - July 20 2014 : 11:37:02 PM
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A couple months back, I picked up an Akane 4-8-8-2 Cab Forward at a train show. The mounting points were broken, the motor had a broken winding, and it had an awful paint job.
The paint was all brushed, and the yellow and blue were so heavy that all of the details were covered! Stripping it all off took some work...
Looks a lot better! I managed to repair the Akane motor, and it's a very good runner, but I like top end coreless in my brass.
The new Faulhaber motor is a fantastic runner, and barely draws any current at all! I'm sure I'll find a use for the Akane motor eventually since it is a good runner. I also replaced the stock marker lights, since they looked awful. And now, I've finally got it all painted and finished!
I think it turned out great! The smokebox and the band on the firebox are painted with a blend of Scalecoat II black and silver, and I made the firebox paint darker since that's how the prototypes often were from what I've found (went through tons of photos to be sure!). The only problem is that the Microscale number board decals were slightly too large, so I had to leave the "X" off the beginning of the top front numbers for them to fit.
To make it run on my 22" radius, I had to make a longer steam pipe to the articulated engine. It was difficult, but I think I've finally got it running really well on my layout. If I can ever get a room or basement for a larger layout, I'll certainly be running this one on larger curves, because it barely handles the 22" radius even with the new steam pipe!
According to the build certificate in the box, this one was made on November 13th, 1961. It's held up well!
Darth Santa Fe, doing weird and challenging projects for the fun of it!
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 Posted - July 20 2014 : 11:56:09 PM
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Wow! Really nice!! Massive size! Love it!! Great job !
Walt
Luck, usually comes dressed in work clothes...
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Posted - July 21 2014 : 12:07:49 AM
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I agree,
You do great work.
Regards, John
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Posted - July 21 2014 : 12:36:52 AM
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 I agree with all of you guys. That thing looks just like the prototype at the museum. Okay, not that good but it still looks very nice.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
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Posted - July 21 2014 : 11:23:00 AM
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| A beautiful model. Great work!
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babuff
Little Six
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Posted - July 21 2014 : 6:18:12 PM
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fantastic work as always darth. it is a true labor of love
Leo
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Posted - July 22 2014 : 9:25:20 PM
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That is a truly impressive transformation of a truly impressive piece of classic brass. Very nicely done, darth!
--CRC
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Posted - July 23 2014 : 11:42:12 AM
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| Dayyyyyyyyyymmn
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Posted - July 23 2014 : 2:50:54 PM
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NICE WORK! Great stuff!!!
Do you have any more in process pictures?
I love to see vintage brass models (& die cast models for that matter) getting a new lease on life. Great Job! Well done!!
I have an Akane 4-8-8-2 Cab Forward as well... Pretty much needs to be restored too!
I have a friend of mine working on my Akane 2-6-6-6. He has done several more restorations for me in the past as well. I posted pictures of all of them to Flickr as individual restoration sets. Good for posterity I suppose.
This time, he has since joined Flickr and is posting them of his own...
https://www.flickr.com/photos/57293605@N07/sets/72157645256775409
The first top picture is of how I sent it to him.
Sean
"If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!" - Mario Andretti!
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Posted - July 23 2014 : 4:40:41 PM
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Gorgeous repaint, Darth. I'm sure you have Tom W. on the MR forum drooling on his keyboard.
The original paint job does pose an interesting what-if. I never thought I'd see a Cab Forward in the bumblebee scheme. 
The Tyco Depot
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Posted - July 24 2014 : 06:55:24 AM
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Just seen the Cab forward and it is a good one. Great Job! Congratulations for bringing a wonderful older model back to life and usefulness.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
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Posted - July 25 2014 : 01:22:46 AM
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Thank a lot all!
Mustangs_n_Trains, I like the speed-up gear tower idea in that Allegheny! The Cab Forward is a bit slow at 40 MPH, so I may have to try that eventually.
NickelPlate759, he did like the repaint and restoration! There are a lot of interesting what-if's out there, but this one really needed that paint gone. It looks far better in the picture than it did up close.
Darth Santa Fe, doing weird and challenging projects for the fun of it!
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 Posted - August 08 2023 : 8:25:45 PM
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Nice cab forward engine. I guess you still have it.
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Posted - August 11 2023 : 10:16:43 PM
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Great work as usual!!
Proudly keeping Tyco Pluggers out of landfills since 2016
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Posted - May 08 2024 : 10:53:08 AM
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Just saw this...very nice indeed.
There are (4) Akanes in my stable; 2 Paciifics and 2 Mikados, all B & O.
All from the early 1960s, all run VERY well...nice models for sure.
Mark in Oregon
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