don’t need to consider using bulbs any- more in model railroading. The marker lights had me thinking for
a while, but I wound up with a fairly sim- ple solution that was easy and keeps all the wiring out of sight. Because the mark-
ers are attached to the car body and not the roof, the wiring could not be routed in the same manner as the compartment lighting. I used two phosphor bronze wire buss-bars, glued to the floor, to carry the current from the passenger compartment
The cast on brake system of the Rivarossi cars was quite shallow and barely visible from the side. I shaved it all off. After cutting two sheets of styrene to fit the underfloor spaces, I installed a Cal-Scale plastic brake system and, as can be seen here in progress, plumbed it with wire. Getting all five pipes into the back of the valve is tricky, but satisfying. I also added some rudimentary piping, representing the train line piping.
to the rear wall of the vestibule, where they extend upwards to a point above the windows and out of view. I ran one wire up each side of the rear door, in the corner between the door and the collision posts that are on either side of the door. Just below the roof line, the last ¼-inch bends forward at 90 degrees, and the wires from the markers are soldered on. At the other end of the buss, in the baggage compart- ment, I added insulated flex wire to tie into the rest of the wiring harness. I then painted the floor in the passenger com- partment and the vestibule flat black and PRESTO! The buss-bars are no longer vis- ible. I installed a small slide switch extend- ing through the floor of the baggage com- partment, and am currently using two AA batteries to provide power for the lights. Needless to say, I normally do not bother with the lights. However, the two batteries provide enough power to keep the lights lit for more than 30 hours straight. There is plenty of room in the baggage compart- ment, so I may at some future time install a decoder to control the lighting and con- nect the rear headlight. However, if I do that, I guess I’ll also have to add markers to the front of the locomotive as well. With all the work on the body com-
Before I installed the seats, I decided to add some passengers first. Today, it looks like the passenger list consists entirely of deadheading employees! I have also painted the in- terior walls of the passenger compartment and the vestibule light gray. Little details like this help enormously when the interior is lit up after nightfall. The working markers have also been installed at this point and wired to the phosphor bronze buss bars.
94 RAILROAD MODEL CRAFTSMAN
pleted, and just before installing the To- mar marker lights, I painted the body of the trailer to match the locomotive (Scale- coat Coach Olive) and lettered it, sealing all with a final coat of Glosscote. The roof and underbody were painted flat black and lightly weathered — both of my rail- roads keep their equipment clean. Final assembly consisted of connecting the trail- er body to the locomotive using the king- pin. I next connected the front headlight to the wiring in the baggage compartment and gave it a final test. The two portions of the trailer roof were then fitted, and the unit was placed in service. I brought my model to the NMRA Convention at Grand Rapids, Michigan, in July 2012 to be judged. I earned 88 points, which gave me a Merit Award, and 2nd Place in the Kit Built Diesel and Oth- er Locomotive category. I also received 1st Place in the People’s Choice Awards vote in the Locomotive category. This old vet- eran had become one-third of what I need- ed for my Master Builder-Motive Power Achievement Award (since earned, and delivered to me in May 2015).
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