Trucks and underbody A speed recorder is on the lead truck, engineer’s side, as shown in the photos. Sand off the rear journal box and drill a No. 76 hole for it. While the drill is out, there are six other holes to drill. These are the dimples on the model truck frame, holes on the EMD frame, and look more realistic
if you drill
them through. Work slowly, as the trucks are made of Delrin and you want a nice clean hole.
When you are finished with all the JIM WIGGIN AND WILLIAM SCHAUMBURG
I did not drill holes above the wind- screen because even a No. 80 drill would deform the area because of the tight clearance between the number board and window. Instead, I simply glued the end that would normally go in the hole into the area between the window weather striping and the num- ber board.
A final thought on the wipers: before assembly, hold the blade part with a small set of pliers and carefully bend the arm to give it a more realistic look. Photos show the windscreen wipers re- main perpendicular; the cab wipers were articulated so the wiper always went straight back and forth.
drilling, install the speed recorder with a drop of thick cyanoacrylate. Make sure the cable is perpendicular to the frame (horizontal); it will make a 45-degree an- gle up and into the body later on. Soak the sideframes and fuel tank (if it needs painting) in alcohol overnight before painting (see below). The m.u. and brake hoses come next. (I drilled the holes for them prior to painting.) While flat, the BLMA m.u. hoses look good, have the right plumb- ing detail, and are easy to install. All you need to do is drill one No .80 hole per set. Start by dipping them into al- cohol, let them air dry, and use a small brush to paint their frames with Ca- boose Red. (I painted the hoses Ca- boose Red at this time, as well.) Next, paint the hoses themselves with En- gine Black. Finally, carefully paint the gladhands at the ends of the hoses and the end of the BLMA No. 69 air hose with Santa Fe Silver. With this all painted, carefully bend the tab as shown in the BLMA instructions and glue the m.u. hoses in place. The air
brake hose gets cemented into a No. 76 hole just to the right of the coupler. With this the pilot area is almost done. At this point the fuel tank and
trucks were still in their plastic state, and after a night in the alcohol tank, they were ready for paint. I used Polly Scale Engine Black. It is really a very dark gray and, as a result, shows the detail
of the trucks well, especially
with some weathering. I used Earth, and shot it through my Badger air- brush 16 p.s.i., which allows a lot of control. I was able to feather the Earth onto the tops of the trucks and fuel tank, where dust would settle. For the carbody I mixed up a mixture
of 60 per cent Steam Power Black and 40 per cent Rust, thinned it as usual, and dusted the roof of the locomotive. With this done, I “detail-painted” the grabs and cut levers with Engine Black, again following the photographs I had, and assembled the trucks and fuel tank on the frame, installed the nose light, and, finally, placed the body on the chassis. There was only one thing left, the couplers. I used Micro-Trains No. 1015. Before adding them to the locomotive I carefully painted them with black, then dry-brushed the front face with Rust. The sides were dry brushed with Roof Brown to represent older rust and dirt. If you do this, be careful that you do not foul the operation of the couplers. That’s it. The 974 is ready to get out on the road and earn its keep and look- ing just as good as the locomotive in that commemorative calendar.
The lead truck received a speed recorder on the engineer’s side (left). After soaking in alcohol, the trucks were painted Engine Black and given a light coat of Earth for weathering. The couplers (below) were painted black with a touch of rust on the front and roof brown on the sides.
RAILROAD MODEL CRAFTSMAN
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