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The locomotive is now into its final mechanical shake down before electronics are installed and the rest of the minor details between the cab and tender and other items like the retailer frog on the side of the tender. Because of the sheire mass of this locomotive the existing HO tunnel portals had too be enlarged do to the dog house and cab window shades on the swing in reverse. Also low hanging sub roadbed splines.
I set the draw bar to the length the turn table track tightening up the distance between the cab and tender. This made issues with the shovel deck and length of the stoker tube between the cab and tender. Even the electric conduit at the cab roof to tender needed to be readjusted. All this just made the locomotive look even better when the gap was tightend. This loco runs on minimum 48? radii. There where plenty of other needed minor adjustments for shorts but only one required resoldering and that was the pilot. I set it to scale hieght and the first high spot in the rail it touched thus a short. All these issues were so small but it took time too fined. This is why I cleared the brass and not colored yet.
They say in fly fishing; There’s no greater thrill to experience than tying your own fly and catching a fish on it. Well,watching this locomotive pull its first train was all of that and then a hell of a lot more. As a grown man I can’t put it into words without sounding childish.
When the train completed its journey around the main for its first time I thought at the last minute to record it pulling into Ironton Mo. This is not a great video and the locomotive is on dcc with out a decoder so you’re going too hear that buzz.
Go go to my YouTube channel Mike S or search for, Mopac Berkshire shake down run with first train. If you haven’t please subscribe to my channel.
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Mike Swederska Sr
Modeling the Mopac rolling stock in 3/16
