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Darth Santa Fe
Registrace 9. 03. 2010
I like doing a lot of odd projects involving model trains of all shapes and sizes. Some of my videos are reviews, some are repairs and restorations, some are kit builds, and sometimes a non-train related video might squeeze its way in. Whatever it is I'm doing though, you can bet something unusual is going to come up now and then.
AHM O-Scale IHB 0-8-0 Kit Build and 3-Rail Modification
Back in the 70's, AHM offered a line of all different models for 2-rail DC O-scale made by Rivarossi. For this video, I got the IHB 0-8-0 and powering kit! All of my O-gauge track is 3-rail AC though, so along the way, I also modified the model to work with it, and things turned out great!
zhlédnutí: 4 003
Video
Fixing an old Bachmann HO 2-10-4 Texas Chugger
zhlédnutí 6KPřed měsícem
Picked this one up a while back for a decent deal and finally got to finishing it! These 2-10-4 steam engines are sloppy and not really well built, but can run alright with more work than most will want to do. It still needs a little more fine-tuning, but things at least turned out alright! On a side note, this is the first video to come from my now operational new computer, and not only did it...
Darth's Train Shop - Tetsudo Brass/Bronze F3A Repair
zhlédnutí 3,6KPřed 2 měsíci
Sold, thanks for bidding! Auction ended Friday (4/26/24) Time for another Darth's Train Shop project! This time around is an old Tetsudo model of an F3A. It was in awful condition and needed a lot of work done, and even if it's not a realistic model, it turned out pretty good! And for those of you who voted in my little railroad poll a couple weeks back, now you get to see the results!
Gilbert HO ALCO DL600 Repair and Review
zhlédnutí 5KPřed 2 měsíci
Got another interesting one! The DL600 was one of Gilbert's few HO models from the mid-50's, initially offered under their own name before switching it to the American flyer brand. They weren't around long, but if nothing else, they were built to last!
Rivarossi Motor Brush Upgrade for Better Performance
zhlédnutí 2,9KPřed 3 měsíci
Rivarossi's motors are typically good runners, but with a simple brush upgrade, they can be made even better! With only a few minutes of modification to some new Athearn brushes, these motors can run quieter and more reliably.
Upgrading the Original Tyco Super 630 with NWSL Wheels
zhlédnutí 3,1KPřed 3 měsíci
As I showed in my other video, the original Tyco Super 630 is a pretty nice model, but the chassis was largely let down by poor quality wheels. I wanted mine to be a better runner, so I decided to give it an upgrade with some wheels from NWSL! Sorry, this conversion doesn't work for the Power-Torque drives.
Build and Review of the Original 1957 Athearn "GP9"
zhlédnutí 8KPřed 4 měsíci
Athearn made the GP9 (actually a GP7) kit for over 40 years, but the first version was only made from 1957 to about 1960. In this video, I build that original model and then go over it in a review!
Build/Restoration of the Original Athearn Metal RDC!
zhlédnutí 8KPřed 4 měsíci
Before the plastic bodied F7 and GP9(GP7) that would change the HO scale market and help set the design standards still used today, Athearn was a small manufacturer making various freight car kits from metal, paper and wood. The all-metal RDC kit was their first powered model, and in this video, I do a full restoration, build and tune-up of the RDC-1, with some extras added in! They had a ways ...
Plans and Projects for 2024
zhlédnutí 1,3KPřed 5 měsíci
Would you believe there's even more than what's on the table!? If anyone needs work done, I'll be starting with train service again in 2025. I know it's a while to wait, but as you can see in the video, I have a lot that I need to get through. Thanks for your understanding!
Repairing an old Penn Line 2-10-0, plus adding DCC and Sound!
zhlédnutí 3,5KPřed 5 měsíci
Got another interesting project from a viewer! This is an old lead-body Penn Line 2-10-0 that was i need of some repair work. This was also my first time programming a DCC and sound installation in an HO model! I think I'll stick with DC myself, but it was something different and interesting for a change!
Installing RailPro Controls in a USA Trains SD40-2
zhlédnutí 1,6KPřed 5 měsíci
One more RailPro installation video! This time is in a USA Trains SD40-2. This isn't an easy installation, so if you're attempting one yourself, be sure you have all the tools and supplies you need on hand and have plenty of patience when working on it.
Installing RailPro Controls in a Large Scale Bachmann DASH 9
zhlédnutí 1,6KPřed 5 měsíci
Well, this is certainly a new one for me! One of my viewers asked about installing RailPro electronics in some of his large scale models, and since he was willing to provide the controls for testing, I figured I'd give it a shot! I don't know if I did everything quite right in here, but it all seems to be working fine! I ended up doing this on my dining room table since the workbench doesn't ha...
Tenshodo T-Evolution Motorized Truck Review - Affordable successor to SPUD
zhlédnutí 10KPřed 7 měsíci
Tenshodo is still making motorized trucks for HO gauge track, and not only do they now have coreless motors, but they're extremely affordable! And using it to power a model such as the Plum KiHa 20 diesel rail passenger car, you'll get a fantastically smooth and quiet runner! I ordered these from Hobby Search (1999.co.jp), but you can also get the T-Evolution trucks direct from Tenshodo and pos...
Repair, Redetail and Repaint of an IHC 2-10-2
zhlédnutí 3,9KPřed 7 měsíci
Another project from a viewer! This one goes further than my usual repairs since I also added and modified details and repainted the whole model. I'm not the best there is at this work, but I think it went well overall! Any details I couldn't get were printed instead.
Darth's Train Shop - Mass Train Repair #2!
zhlédnutí 12KPřed 7 měsíci
See these at the Great Midwest Train Show tomorrow, 11/5/2023! UPDATE: About half of the collection was sold at the train show, and the rest will be up on eBay later. Links will be in the Community section of my channel when ready! Quite the collection up for repair today! This is quite a bit more varied than the previous mass repair video, and there are some really nice pieces here!
Isolating a Spectrum 8-40CW for DCC and tuning up a Walthers 8-40BW
zhlédnutí 4,2KPřed 9 měsíci
Isolating a Spectrum 8-40CW for DCC and tuning up a Walthers 8-40BW
Life-Like Proto 2000 HO Scale GP20 Review
zhlédnutí 12KPřed 9 měsíci
Life-Like Proto 2000 HO Scale GP20 Review
Tune-Up, Build and Review of the Original Tyco Super 630!
zhlédnutí 13KPřed 9 měsíci
Tune-Up, Build and Review of the Original Tyco Super 630!
Repairing a Couple Broken and Mistreated Switchers
zhlédnutí 9KPřed 10 měsíci
Repairing a Couple Broken and Mistreated Switchers
Restoring and Reviewing the ORIGINAL Rivarossi FM C-LINER!
zhlédnutí 8KPřed 10 měsíci
Restoring and Reviewing the ORIGINAL Rivarossi FM C-LINER!
Repairing a whole (mostly) HO scale Collection!!
zhlédnutí 19KPřed 11 měsíci
Repairing a whole (mostly) HO scale Collection!!
Fleischmann HO C&NW Baldwin VO Switcher, Tune-Up and Review
zhlédnutí 7KPřed 11 měsíci
Fleischmann HO C&NW Baldwin VO Switcher, Tune-Up and Review
Darth's Train Shop - Sunset brass GP7 repair
zhlédnutí 5KPřed rokem
Darth's Train Shop - Sunset brass GP7 repair
Tuning up a super rare Lindsay 8-wheel drive Globe F7 chassis
zhlédnutí 8KPřed rokem
Tuning up a super rare Lindsay 8-wheel drive Globe F7 chassis
Building an Arbour Models 2-6-0 and 4-6-0 for a viewer
zhlédnutí 5KPřed rokem
Building an Arbour Models 2-6-0 and 4-6-0 for a viewer
New Series: Darth's Train Shop - Mass Train Repair!!
zhlédnutí 26KPřed rokem
New Series: Darth's Train Shop - Mass Train Repair!!
Bachmann Spectrum DASH 8-40CW - Tune-Up, Build & Review
zhlédnutí 11KPřed rokem
Bachmann Spectrum DASH 8-40CW - Tune-Up, Build & Review
Build and Quick Review of One of HO Scale's Tiniest Kits - Cosmic AEG Deki 3
zhlédnutí 27KPřed rokem
Build and Quick Review of One of HO Scale's Tiniest Kits - Cosmic AEG Deki 3
Restoring a Lionel (Williams) Standard Gauge 381E
zhlédnutí 6KPřed rokem
Restoring a Lionel (Williams) Standard Gauge 381E
A brass model train is about as logical as a golden boat anchor 😂 Some people just don’t like money well spent.
Many of these brass models can be found for a similar price to modern plastic models, and will often last much longer.
"Like" number 2-8-4... John
Fun kit and fun to watch you build it! I really wish you would've de-flanged the middle drivers tho, many prototypes did that bc having the rear drivers flangless throws off the geometry between the engine and tender in the curves. Your solution works tho, and it looks great 👍
I enjjoyed the step by step assembly of this kit and some of the modifications that you did. When you got to the point of having the engine pull some cars, I was struck by the lettering on the New Haven gondola. Was that a factory made car? I would think that the N should be over the H. Was that done on both sides of the car?
Yes, it's a factory painted car from Menards. Are you saying you've never heard of the "Hew Naven" railroad? :O Their seasonal trains are good for the price, but they don't really put too much into accuracy.
@@DarthSantaFe I was a member of the New Haven Historical Society and modeled many New Haven diesels and rolling stock, but I never saw an NH lettering to a piece of equipment with the H on top of the N.
@@lorettacaputo6997 Yeah, someone definitely messed that one up. I haven’t heard of Hew Naven either.
@@DarthSantaFe Maybe it will be eventually be a collectible and be worth some $$$ in the future. Some post war Lionel pieces had printing errors.
Those Atlas locos are almost top of the range & are supposed to run smoothly & quietly. There has to be something wrong with it to make that noise. Sometimes, the drive shafts are a fraction too long, can make that noise as it appears the trucks run smooth & quiet before they were put on the chassis. They are nice locos.
This is a very nice kit, and relatively easy to build if you take your time to to ensure proper fit. I've built 2 of them, one with the motorizing kit. I look forward to seeing how yours turns out.
This is great! I've got the exact same kit and was wondering how I should go about doing a conversion.
I built one of those back in 1969. Bought the model at Woolco for $9.99 during their yearly train blow out sale. Nice work!
Three rail is O gauge. Two rail is O scale.
Yes, this was a 2-rail O scale model which I converted to work on 3-rail O gauge track.
Good Job. 👍🏼
I'm an O Gauge collector and runner, just found your channel. Very cool kit, first one I have seen. Lionel Berkshires have the 2nd and 3rd driver wheel flanges removed. Excellent job!
You need some 2 rail track
In the 1970s, my family had that same box which contained an HO scale train set. It was the same size and the graphics on the front and sides were the same. The wording on the front described the contents, which were packaged in the standard AHM "True to blueprint" window boxes along with track and a power pack.
Might as well make full use of available packaging!
Could've left the old decals on to make it look like it was used right up into 1952 when the 0-8-0's were retired
I’ll leave that to the ones who like to do weathering. :)
Loved the vedio! I have the “Casey Jones” that AHM produced about the same time as this one. I always thought they should have produced models of the “General” as well as the “Jupiter” and the “119”. Someone did produce a 1/25 th scale model of I believe the “General”, that was a nice kit. I’m going to have fun with the “Casey Jones” as some of the smaller detail parts have gone the way of un assembled kits. It’s too bad The only difference inthe 2 kits was the 0-8-0 kit came with metal wheelsets whereas the “Casey Jones” had plastic wheelsets and were to be replaced with sets included in the “power” upgrade kit, I think there were other parts in the power kit that replaced plastic counterparts in the original kit. The real irony was to make the “Casey Jones” an operating model, the power kit had to be added as the kit was assembled. So if you built the kit as a static model, you couldn’t upgrade it.
This 0-8-0 also had all plastic wheels as a static model, so the metal wheels all came from the powering kit. The Casey Jones would be another interesting one to build!
Great job as usual. Interesting that you ground off the back flanges instead of the middle ones, but if it works, it works.
I was originally going to do the middle flanges, but after doing some testing with the plastic wheels and keeping the springs undern consideration, it actually worked better in this case to remove the rear flanges.
I have a less intricate 2-rail/3-rail conversion in my future, but loosely related to yours. Earlier this year, I acquired a UK Class 33 diesel made by Lima, to go with a small collection of UK passenger cars also made by the same company. My planned conversion will employ a pair of standard pickup rollers (part number 2328-173), and an Electric RR Co Mini-Commander command board. Though _really_ expensive considering what I'm putting it in, there's plenty of room inside the loco and it will make for a really neat and highly oddball conversion. While this a fairly lightweight single-motor unit, the cars it will be pulling (Lima's Mark-1 UK coaches) are also very free-rolling, albeit with wheelsets that don't tolerate irregularities in 3-rail track very well (I run 072 curves on an around-the-walls loop), so I plan on cutting discs out of thin clear plastic and cementing them to the back faces of these wheels to act as flange extenders. Oh yeah, somewhere along the line I amassed a collection of almost all of AHM's O scale freight cars (3-4 roadnames across four body types), but those will be pulled by one of my less-exotic 3-rail locos :D. In the midst of this activity I found an Ebay vendor who has conversion couplers made by AHM to address their funky hook couplers (which are the same as those used on Lima and Rivarossi's European O scale equipment) With regards to your 3D-printed coupler, I'd suggest looking into modifying the knuckle portion to make it a little thinner. While your present design works, it looks unusually tight-fitting, which brings to mind an issue I had with Menards' first-gen plastic trucks, that being their couplers were mostly so tight they almost couldn't mate with each other, much less slide vertically relative to each other. I found that slightly thinning the far end of the inner face of the knuckle and slightly enlarging the enclosed area behind it greatly improved their ability to couple with each other, not to mention no longer derailing connected cars in curves. If you google "Tuning my Menard's 24-Flatcar Set", you'll find a post I made in 2015 on O Gauge Railroading's forum detailing (with photos) the fixes I made to early Menards plastic couplers. You'll notice their "before" condition (other than being 'operating') had similar proportions to your design.
I'm sure the conversion will go well! As for my coupler, I might re-print it to a better size eventually, but for now, it is working fine even if the fit is tight. No derailments so far!
3 cylinder loco
The rivarossi german, French and Italian stuff is even more uncommon over here
I saw that model many years ago you did an amazing job 👍👍
That's really impressive!
Man that was great! I stared at that box art in the 60s and 70s for hours. Loved AHM products and catalog. I remember these kits but was never disciplined enough to put one together. Thanks for allowing me to relive a favorite memory! Just subscribed!
Lord Santa Fe, Very entertaining build video, even though I'm an HO Scaler. It's unfortunate with the decals. I make my own by downloading the images and then tweaking the images to size with Microsoft Publisher, and then printing on decal paper.
What an amazing find! I had no idea AHM made O gauge kits. It's interesting the model was made for 2 rail which is not as common as the 3 rail contemporaries. That may have played a significant role as to why these kits had a short run, or were limited. Your modification was brilliant, and the model is stunning. Secondly, its amazing how you utilize a 3D printer for parts. I love how the bell Infront of the boiler is accented to the side, and linkage on the tender adds depth. Thank you Darth for sharing this magnificent video.
I've seen these around online, but the difficulty and price associated with finding a motorizing kit has kept me from acquiring one so far. That said, I am the proud owner of a different Rivarossi O scale model that also happens to be a 3 rail conversion. I purchased an A-A C-Liner set at a show one year that had been heavily modified. The shells were more or less stock (although repainted), but everything else was modified. They were bashed into the passenger variant with a B + A-1-A wheel arrangement, using Lionel horizontal motor F3 trucks with can motor conversions in front and dummy SD trucks in back. An E-Unit is located in one unit, and a 2-conductor tether runs to the other unit to provide power to the motor. Both units have directional headlights and a blinking warning light on the roof. A whistle relay was wired up to the E-Unit, though at some point I want to convert them to conventional reversing and add an operating horn. If I have a chance to get a powering kit for one of these locomotives, I'll definitely seriously consider it- the Rivarossi O scale models are very attractive.
That C-Liner set should run forever with those Lionel trucks! The original Rivarossi chassis was a single truck drive with their smallest motor, and I’ve heard it could barely pull anything.
Train archeology, a new discipline. You are the first professor in this field. lol, Great video, Jersey Bill
Check K4 Decals for the decals, they might have something!
Beautiful work on that 0-8-0
Hey Darth, I was wondering if you had any tips for someone wanting to find a replacement gear for that life-like/play art engine? I’m a big playart fan (despite the cheapness) and I just managed to get one of those weird 2-6-0s but mine has the same gear issue and I’m not sure how’d I’d search for a replacement online. Thanks for reading :)
Hi Darth, a really good video here. I have two of these, one RTR from the factory, and one in kit form that I haven’t built. I thought the plastic parts may have distorted over time, so I was reluctant to start. But from your video it seems to go together well. I have a motorising kit as well, but it was in water at some stage, and the zinc plated weights have some corrosion, but the motor has a lot of corrosion, though it turns by hand. I already bought a much bigger NWSL replacement motor, as the original motor seemed really small. The assembly comments you made will help a lot. And I’ll photograph the transfers first so I can make decals if I need. You inspired me to make up my own kit …)
Cool, if those decals come out well I’ll definitely be interested in getting a set!
No problem with the decals, but it will probably be two months or so. I plan to follow the IHB prototype design of the main tender emblem in the slightly squared ellipse. I think Rivarossi simplified it into a circle design, but I need to check.
@@varus5596 Yeah, I did notice the decals looked different from prototype photos, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they were wrong.
WHat A Beauty
WOW this is so great ... You have brought back History ... this is so great ... you are a kid again back in that day when this first came out ...Thats how I see it ... This is like Christmas
I actually HAVE this kit!. But..finding the motorizing kit is like finding a needle in a haystack , and when you do find one, it's expensive as heck. GRRRRRR
Yeah, this one wasn't cheap either. Hope you can find one of those motorizing kits for a decent price sometime!
@@DarthSantaFe I hope so too! . There is a train show scheduled for November near me ,so i'm praying,lol.
The way the tender has side rods almost reminds me of the 45-tonner rebuilt to S&C #102's tender at Museum of Transportation in Green Bay, WI
I'm just curious how did you come to the decision that the rear wheel was the best one to file the flange off of? I know a lot of Lionel steam locomotives to this day their Center drivers typically don't have any flanges.
After looking things over, I determined that it wouldn’t sit well on curves with blind center drivers since the rear axle is lightly sprung. It also would’ve taken twice as much work to do those.
A very nice build video, maybe in future this engine could get a larger motor and maybe a blunami board for both direction control and smoother running.
Hey, I have one of those. Mine is 2-rail O-scale with the motor kit. I got it at a train show in Ohio for $20.00.
Good deal! That’s way less than I paid for mine, but even then I still feel like I got it for an alright price.
Very Nice
I didn't know you worked on O scale too! I recently discovered O scale 2 rail and I like the vintage engines that have 7 pole motors and tons of weight!
My collection includes N, HO, O, G and Standard Gauge. :) Of all my stuff in O, my American Flyer prewar Royal Blue might be the most dense for weight. Not only is it all metal, but they filled every last space inside with solid lead!
I’ve always been intrigued by these models as they were the basis for many a kitbash of a heavy 2-8-0 as shown in the hobby mags. I’m pretty sure AHM offered them right up to the IHC days but probably not past the mid eighties.
Nice Job! It’s to bad they don’t make these kits anymore
It's beautiful and a nice runner.
Hmmm; with all those unfinished projects, you might have to be banned from markets and train-shows.... like me.
The blue tape worked perfectly when masking my plastic models. It did not like my metal engine and tender. Major disaster. What are the other tapes you mentioned?? Good video, btw!
Some paints don't hold well to metal, so you might want to start with a good quality primer coat. I had the same problem with my Athearn metal RDC, but after trying Tamiya spray can primer, the blue tape didn't peel off even a flake of the colored paint.
Wow those prices are cheap, i just started getting into HO strains. I went to my first train shop and all the train engines were selling between 200$ to 450$. But almost all were over 300$ not including tax. I honestly couldn’t believe the prices. Plus they didnt sell used train engines, only the box cars with only wheels. I even trying looking at the really small trains thinking they would be much cheap, nope they’re the same price as the larger😮. Im going to try to fine a place that sells lots of used stuff including engine trains. Anyway is this a very expensive? Im thinking of building everything on a table thats about 5feet by 5feet and using the ez tracks.
New models have been expensive for a while. About the cheapest standard diesel you can buy brand new for under $70 is the Walthers GP9M. You can save a lot by getting used and old stock models and still have a reliable train on a full layout. Model train shows and eBay are good sources for that. You can often find Athearn diesels in good running condition for around $30, and decent freight cars for under $10 each. You can save a lot on track by getting old stock in lots instead of piece by piece. Scenery and buildings can also be found in lots or by making some things from scrap supplies and other things, such as grabbing twigs from a tree or bush and wrapping green foam or other material around them.
Technically it should have run on DC without removing the motor electric magnet. The only problem I could see when you opened it up was the reversing mechanism was missing.
That was actually all there (I forgot to hit the record button), but it wasn’t working at all when I tested it, so I took the AC reverse mechanism out and put in the permanent magnet to simplify it.
Super. My railroad never used C-Liners, but I operate other locomotives with the same drivetrain, and with heavy maintenance, they can operate quite well, just not as quietly. Also, just so it isn't just a C-Liner, this could be a Fairbanks Morse CFA20-4. C = Consolidation Line, F = Freight, A = cab unit, 2,000 hp, 4 axles. The infamous Atlas N scale 5 axle C-Liner is an FM CPA24-5, C = C-Liner, A = cab unit, 2,400 hp, 5 axles. Hello from the Tracy Mountain Railway in Colorado. 💙 T.E.N.
The weights up top make it look like it will tip over. I own a couple of tenshodo brass models and I can't stop singing their praises on how detailed tey are even the ones built 60 plus years ago. They have always run smoothly for me and are easy to maintain.
Gotta leave it to a jewelry company to make some of the best model trains! The weights on top aren't quite enough to cause any instability, so it's a good and smooth runner. I just need to get some more flexible wiring so that it won't struggle around curves anymore!
Do you have to supply your own screws? My kit appears to be missing mine?
They're supposed to be included, but since these are all old stock, sometimes a kit will be missing parts. The assembly screws are all standard 0-80 and 2-56, but you might have to improvise with the siderod screws.
Really nice looking model! I see lots of them for sale online in pretty rough shape.