Do the two different scaled Bachmann sidetank switcher, the 1/22.5 version and the 1/20.3 version share the same drivetrain? motor, wheels, pistons, etc?

The reason I ask is that I have a 1/20.3 saddletanker, bought used,  thats motor is Phhtt! I want to fix it but was considering simply replacing the entire drivetrain from the 1/20.3 side tanker onto the body of my 1/20.3 saddletanker if possible. If they are too different can the motor from a 1/22.5 version be swapped into the 1.20.3 version?

Are there even replacement parts available?

Why should we in the States have all the fun?  

Here are a couple of suggestions for any who like me, really like British or Export engines





Both would be relatively easy bashes using the Lil Biggers

Just tossing ideas randomly into the air  

Lil Big Hauler Saddletanker, a few upgrades

I know these little buggers are kinda too cutesy for the more 'serious' modellers here , but they do have a lot of potential and they certainly do have charm.

I've gotten busy with other stuff of late, and quite frankly didnt want to bother with bashing the pistons and cylinders like I did with the Bumble Bee version of this engine, so I decided to try something different, an inside frame version of the typical mining engine, like a Bell Locomotive was constructed.



Looks like a bog standard LBH but...






New smokestack, scratched bell and mounting, repainted parts of the body






Popped off the dummy cylinders, re-cut and positioned them under the fore-frame.






Added an air compresser, theres a small tank on the other side






Added a simple backhead details and coal bunker, link/pin couplers F & R




Bachmann did such a nice job on the finish, I just haven't had the heart to repaint it. I wasn't originally going to repaint the boiler but during modifications I smeared Zap onto the upper boiler, by the time I have removed it I permanently marred the surface, so that's why its now black.

The best part is that I can still do the cylinders and siderods later when i feel like it, the mounts are still there and I can do the same way I reworked the Bumble Bee.

Overall a relatively small project, but one that looks very nice to my eye.

Lil Big Hauler Bumble Bee Loco, adding Big Hauler pistons kitbash. Got this a while ago , time to finally get around to modifying my LBH engines, I decided to start with the Bee version first, here are the results, Big Hauler (BH) pistons mounts cut and shaped to fit the slots from the stock piston mounts:









The stock BH pushrods were then cut down and mounted back onto the sliders with a micro nut and micro bolt and some very small washers between the moving parts, I locked the nut with a little tiny dab of CA. The trickiest part was fixing the pushrod to the wheel, I ended up searching for a long enough bolt that was just large enough to thread into wheel's mounting hole for the plastic siderod locking pin. I used a styrene tube spacer to fill in the opening space in the pushrod. More pics to come, I have since added water feed lines to each side of the boiler, a more complete looking backhead, an air brake compressor pump and storage tanks, a new BH bell that luckly fit into the left over opening after I cut the bell off, link/pin couplers from and rear, and stirrups and grab bars to the tender. Certainly looks better, even if the pistons are a tad larger than I would have liked, but you use what you got. Will be doing the same treatment to the Saddletanker one of these days. PS you WILL need a Dremel or some sort of tool to do the cutting efficiently, it could be shaped with a razorsaw and xacto blades, but it would be tedious work.



Finished my bash: Added air compressor/tanks, spark arrester, backhead details, tender steps and grab bars













Added other various Big Hauler bits, Finished.

Lil Big Hauler Combine Car Into Railbus Bash

As part of the ongoing evolution of my roster I have been trying to find ways to upgrade older models that for what ever reason just never worked as well as I would have liked. With the main layout becoming a harbor transfer layout, I have pieces that are now extraneous without any place on either the harbor layout or are too big for the pizza. This was one of them, a railtruck bashed from HLW parts and a NWSL Magic Carpet drive:



Its track powered but it was too long for the Pizza but there is no place for it on the Harbor layout, so its has lingered in limbo as to what should become of it. I wanted a passenger railbus but it had to fit the 32" diameter pizza. From the first moment I saw the new Lil Big Hauler lineup I was certain the combine car would make just such a nifty railbus and, come a lucky bid on a brand new Lil Big Hauler passenger train set on Evilbay and low and behold I had the perfect base for bashing me a new railbus. I started by carefully cutting up one end and re-positioning the two end walls.







 

BTW Pollyscale DRGW Yellow is almost an exact match for the Bmann plastic color, still searching for a few finishing touches but its 99% there.

PS Attn Bachmann, I was requested to post this here so as to suggest that this might make the basis for a future LBH release, based on merging the LBH Combine and the Spectrum Railbus. It would be a fairly straight forward thing but that's up to you guys, I got mine  

I picked up a couple of the new line and the coupler mounts are like the Thomas line too high to match standard LGB couplers. Why was this done? Does Bachmann sell the adapter mounts seperately? I cannot find them listed anywhere

Got Thomas, poor Thomas, he didnt even make it out of the shop without having his face bartered away.

Here he is with new Chief Mechanic Homer



Using the same Face-ectomy technics learned on Percy, a short stand at the workbench ended thus:



This time using a brass Trackside Details smokebox door. took forever to sand the styrene round to fit right, now onto the cab

PS after complaints about Chief Mechanic Jigsaw were investigated he was subsequently discovered to have a rather disturbing past and as such was let go but is now working as an Chief Executive at NBC. 

Besides Homer works for donuts

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1241203/Why-grumpy-vicar-created-Thomas-The-Tank-Engine-ended-HATING-him.html

Interesting cautionary tale about the loss of control of your creations. Now I know why JK Rawlings so jealously guards the rights to Harry Potter.

Will B'mann be issueing any new additional British profile freight cars for the Thomas line in the (near) future?

I ask so I know if I can hold off on additional cars for my new Avonside 0-4-0-ST ( RIP Percy ) or if I will have to go visit some sites in Jolly Ol England for said new large scale cars.

Yes or no please, "anticipate" or "anything is possible" don't feed the bulldog 

Hello Percy



Nevermind those men with hyperdermic needles

Body removes with 4 screws easily accessable from under holding the cab down, and 4 holding down the boiler

Percy after anesthesia



Percy after facial removal


this was very very easy, just press on the sides and it will pop off,

Side view showing tabs that hold faceplate to body



New smokebox face


Sheet black styrene & a spare wheel, I actually traced the diameter directly from the boiler

Smokebox in place


just simply ACC in place

Painted



Percy on the autopsy slab


This was a seriously EASY project completed in literally ONE evening
just waiting for the paint to dry then will add a gloss coat to match body gloss for now.

Already cannot wait to get my paws on Thomas! these are very very easy models to work on

Houston we may have a Problem here:

Found a rather sizable glitch:



Thats a STANDARD unmodified LGB car next to Percy, there is about  a 1/2" hieght difference  between the couplers. The tongue of Percy will bend low enough to couple but not the other way around, no way.

This is a very nice model but as it is Percy is very limited to what it can be expected to couple to, Thomas, the coachs and the troublesome trucks I assume all have this non-standard height couplers, meaning every one of them will require some form of serious mods to put the couplers back down to standard height.

Why Why Why was the coupler placed at this non-standard hieght?

Is this sort of stuff done on purpose 

Bachmann On30 minimum radius? Maximum grade capability?

Question re: Bachmann On30 lineup, what are the real world minimum turning radius of thier lineup particular

4-6-0 Ten Wheeler

2-8-0 Connie

2-4-4 Forney

I have a plan in mind but while most of it is 18" radius, in one section it calls for a minimum radius of 15"

I already found the posts here re the Porter, 2-6-0 and rolling stock items min radius, so I'm primariliy concerned about the newest offerings. So I need to find which will work, also I will have a working grade of 4% so I need to know also if they are capable of working the grade as well.

I'm particularly interested in the 2-6-0 on a 4% grade, 18" R, typical consist would be either engine, tender, and 2 0r 3 passenger cars, or engine, tender, 3-4 freight cars and caboose. not long trains but then my passing sidings arent long either. the whole layout will be pretty small but I plan to take it as vertical as I can.

Thanks

Will it be R1 capable? 

I ask because the real Uintah Baldwins, also 2-6-6-2T's, could take a 66 degree curve, thats pretty close to an R1 curve, of course they did it  while grinding up a 7% grade at the same time at Morro Castle. 

If so, I'll start saving my pennies, if not.... 

OK, now that the Elephant engine (cant get much bigger than a K-27 ) has been delivered, is B'mann going to next do more of a Dove in comparison?

Seams to me thats a pattern, we had the Railtruck, then the 3 truck Shay, then the revamped Porter, now the K, so that indicates to me something a tad smaller should be next on the Storks delivery schedule.

So can you give us any kind of hint as to what this years big announcement will be, or when it will be announced, even just the words, Big or Little, will suffice 

I'm really hoping for something like a small Forney or a Mason Bogie or something friendly to the R1's on my tight little mining layout. Please dont forget about us, theres still a few of us out here.

What I would really drool over would be a 0-4-4 Porter like those used on the Arizona Copper Company RR.

LGBs Forney offering kinda took the wind out of the sales  for any large scale version of Bachmanns On30 Forney, LGBs offering proved to be popular despite being a gummi scaled engine, but now with LGB effectivley out of the picture for at least a year or maybe more, maybe its time for Bachmann to fill the gap and produce a 1/20 scale version of its own Forney? It could easily utilize the same drive as the Porter.
How about it Bachmann?