O gauge Trains

Samplingman · Mar 16, 2019

Wow, nice haul! It looks like the Wabash just needs to be cleaned up a bit to be a runner. Even that blue 6464-150 box car just needs a couple of repro doors. I’m not a fan of vinegar for track cleaning/rust removal. Too many issues with flash rust inside the rails and it tends to remove any plating. I usually hit it with a scotch brite and call it a day.

monaco75 · Mar 16, 2019

cantflip said:
Don't toss the vinegar when your done, I have some more of that track for you.

I kept the bottles! LOL. Idk though... let’s see if it works first. Looking at it today, it’s cleaning up the ties, and pins mostly. Not noticing much of the actual track yet. May be more then a day soak.

Samplingman said:
Wow, nice haul! It looks like the Wabash just needs to be cleaned up a bit to be a runner. Even that blue 6464-150 box car just needs a couple of repro doors. I’m not a fan of vinegar for track cleaning/rust removal. Too many issues with flash rust inside the rails and it tends to remove any plating. I usually hit it with a scotch brite and call it a day.

Not sure if this was the guys parts bin, or he was just a tinker. All the cars except for the 2 gondolas are missing screws, and pieces. That blue boxcar body is nice! But the frame is trash, and as seen the doors are missing.

The Wabash needs a good going over. I contacted L&L restorations about it. They seemed pretty excited about it. Said it’s a fairly rare engine, and they have restored a couple of em. They claim they have seen a couple of nice ones reach $1k at auction. They want $470 to do a complete mechanical, and body restoration.

There’s a couple of nice originals on eBay in the same price range.

Might send em this one to redo. It was basically a freebie in the bin....

monaco75 · Mar 16, 2019

It’s been about 22 hours. The vinegar is working! I went through, and scrubbed em all with a toothbrush to get the now loose top layer off. I’ll let em soak again over night to attack what’s left. After soaking a bath in water, and baking soda to neutralize the vinegar. Then sit in the oven for an hour to completely dry. If they come out decent I’ll brush some black paint on the ties. Maybe wipe em down with a rag soaked in wd-40 to keep em from flash rusting.

Looks like these were on a layout at some time. A lot of em have green paint (simulated grass I’m assuming) on em. There’s also some white paint too... the green is coming off for the most part. The white is a little tougher.

A little comparison

stubs300 · Mar 16, 2019

Man, why didn't I think of that? I had some track that was a lot rustier then that. I proceeded to take every piece of track apart, wire wheel & steel wool them and put them all back together. Must have been well over 150 pieces of track. FWIW. All the old tin plate track of mine is so temperamental with current that I upgraded with Atlas track. I got to say, no drops in current and it just has a smooth pull without the clickity clack of the wheels going over the joints. Of which I do miss.

monaco75 · Mar 17, 2019

stubs300 said:
Man, why didn't I think of that? I had some track that was a lot rustier then that. I proceeded to take every piece of track apart, wire wheel & steel wool them and put them all back together. Must have been well over 150 pieces of track. FWIW. All the old tin plate track of mine is so temperamental with current that I upgraded with Atlas track. I got to say, no drops in current and it just has a smooth pull without the clickity clack of the wheels going over the joints. Of which I do miss.

I came across a guy on YouTube doing it. Worked out pretty well!

There’s a s#it ton of old rusty track out there. Sure it’s cheap to buy, but worth a shot if it can be brought back to life.

monaco75 · Mar 17, 2019

Straight out of the oven, and to the floor. The ZW isn’t working, but the TW is. Steve is enjoying himself. lol

Big_John · Mar 17, 2019

Take a look at using oxalic acid instead of vinegar. It may be easier on the tin plate that I think those tracks have.

Buy on Amazon in powder form or as wood bleach at Home Depot etc.

monaco75 · Mar 22, 2019

Big_John said:
Take a look at using oxalic acid instead of vinegar. It may be easier on the tin plate that I think those tracks have.

Buy on Amazon in powder form or as wood bleach at Home Depot etc.

I’ll have to look into this for the next batch. Thanks!

monaco75 · Mar 22, 2019

With the TW working decent, I decided to give its beauty a little restoration. Give it a little more pop to work on the layout.

It looks like it suffered a decent fall in the past. The case had a big crack on the back side, and the bottom frame was a little distorted in the same corner.

Glued the crack up, and sanded it pretty smooth. After a good cleaning and sanding, gave it a coat of adhesion promoter, and some new semi gloss black. Looks good!

The original cord was toast, so it received a new one. Was also able to find a new cover for the light, and some reproduction handles for the controls. The original orange handle must have suffered a crack from the same fall, plus the paint was long gone.I’m waiting on the new decal to come for final assembly.

monaco75 · Mar 25, 2019

TW all finished up, and now doing work on the layout! She looks and runs good!

The decal got a little goobered up from the screws, but I can live with it. Looks 1000% better.

I sold the ZW, and a few other pieces from the bin. The transformer needed work, and wasn’t as clean of one I was looking for. Ended up winning one on eBay. It’s been completely restored, and ready to go.

stubs300 · Mar 25, 2019

monaco75 said:
There’s a s#it ton of old rusty track out there. Sure it’s cheap to buy, but worth a shot if it can be brought back to life.

I know, I have 3 brothers worth of track stuffed in a box in storage, some in better shape then others. I venture to say that box weighs 80 pounds if not more! Nothing but curves & straights.

cantflip · Mar 25, 2019

Zac, I am pained to have to express just how deeply disappointed I am to see all this work, cash and effort... but still missing the one Mopar that corner of the track needs...

It's time to find or produce a proper shitmobile for the park...

monaco75 · Mar 28, 2019

stubs300 said:
I know, I have 3 brothers worth of track stuffed in a box in storage, some in better shape then others. I venture to say that box weighs 80 pounds if not more! Nothing but curves & straights.

Are they in a plastic bin? Maybe just start filling it full of vinegar! LOL Don’t even have to touch em.

I’ve got another round of track going. I’ve let these go another day longer so far. They were in much worse shape, but seem to be cleaning up.

cantflip said:
Zac, I am pained to have to express just how deeply disappointed I am to see all this work, cash and effort... but still missing the one Mopar that corner of the track needs...
View attachment 272623
It's time to find or produce a proper shitmobile for the park...

I’ve been looking! Have you seen the prices for the 1/43 Chrysler’s from over in Europe? Almost $100 or more a pop! Most expensive car on the layout is the blumo at $25... I’d only spend that kind of $$ if it was a 2dr ‘73 newport.

monaco75 · Mar 28, 2019

I feel like one of the cool kids now! She showed up, and is working perfect!

Need to build a bigger control center to house everything lol.

monaco75 · Apr 6, 2019

Went to another show down south a bit. The postwar bug has really bit. Came home with a 2350 New Haven. Guy claimed it ran good, but once home it wouldn’t move on the tracks. Removed the shell to find the wires had pulled off the motor. Soldered em back up, and she is running.

Also picked up a complete 2055 set. Locomotive and all but one car came with their original boxes. The guy wasn’t sure if the whistle tender worked or not. Was a pleasant surprise to hear it come to life on the layout! Sounds great! It even had remnants of an old smoke pellet in the engine. She smoked for a couple minutes around her first laps.

The submarine car looked too good to pass up.

I need to get on some shelving for displaying, instead of it all crammed on the layout!

Samplingman · Apr 6, 2019

You postwar madman! I love the 2350, it looks like it’s in really great shape! I spent the day dismantling my layout tables. After 13 years, it just wasn’t progressing and it became a junk collector and alternate work bench for the Chrysler. Time for a fresh start!

monaco75 · Apr 6, 2019

Samplingman said:
You postwar madman! I love the 2350, it looks like it’s in really great shape! I spent the day dismantling my layout tables. After 13 years, it just wasn’t progressing and it became a junk collector and alternate work bench for the Chrysler. Time for a fresh start!

View attachment 276197

I’ve been trying to grab one for a little while now. Bid on a few online, but kept getting outbid. Surprised to find this one at the somewhat local show. Guy had 2 of em. The shell is in great shape, but it has a few little issues that need resolved mechanically. The 2055 was great surprise once on the track. She runs beautifully.

Uh oh!! Don’t let it sit too long apart!! LOL I’ll be keeping an eye out for what you plan out! I like that wall in the background!

It’s amazing how “free” space turns into work/storage space! Hell even the cars aren’t safe at times from turning into a shelf around here once in a while.

LocuMob · Apr 7, 2019

monaco75 said:
Went to another show down south a bit. The postwar bug has really bit. Came home with a 2350 New Haven. Guy claimed it ran good, but once home it wouldn’t move on the tracks. Removed the shell to find the wires had pulled off the motor. Soldered em back up, and she is running.

View attachment 276194
View attachment 276195

Also picked up a complete 2055 set. Locomotive and all but one car came with their original boxes. The guy wasn’t sure if the whistle tender worked or not. Was a pleasant surprise to hear it come to life on the layout! Sounds great! It even had remnants of an old smoke pellet in the engine. She smoked for a couple minutes around her first laps.

View attachment 276193

The submarine car looked too good to pass up.

View attachment 276196

I need to get on some shelving for displaying, instead of it all crammed on the layout!

Build another table for the yard. "Honey, we don't need this closet, do we?"

monaco75 · Apr 18, 2019

I dropped the above New Haven off at the shop down in Daytona. Hopefully they can get it going in both directions instead of just one lol. Of coarse while there, I had to get a couple things! Picked up a big flood light tower for the yard. Also grabbed a restaurant for the city.

Placed a nice order on Menards. Been wanting this one for a while. Finally pulled the trigger. It is HUGE! The York Hotel. Looks great, and massive on the layout. Love how it can be used as a tunnel as well. Think I found a good home for it. It dwarfs the other city buildings.