HobbyBob's Current Projects

[HobbyBob]

Hi folks!
I'm in the process of designing a series on N scale (1:160) passenger trains, with accurate mid-50's representations of the following trains (the entire consists):

• Northern Pacific North Coast Limited (two-tone Lowey scheme, with vista-domes)
• Northern Pacific North Coast Limited (Pine Tree scheme)
• Great Northern Empire Builder
• Milwaukee Road Olympic Hiawatha (including a bi-polar electric locomotive)
• Milwaukee Road Twin Cities Hiawatha (two versions, 1935 and 1939)

One problem I'm facing is the round-end observation cars, which are flat-out beyond my abilities to design. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. For the moment, I'm replacing the round-end observation cars with open-platform business cars...

[Siwi]

I'm a Brit and have limited knowledge of US railways, but just the names evoke romantic ideas of powerful streamlined locomotives pulling sleek decopunk cars through forests, canyons and cities where the coffee is fresh and every gent has a fedora.


The compound curves of things like vista domes and the front of the locos are certainly a challenge in that scale. It comes down to how much you want to simplify the shape. Petal segments seem like a possible avenue here; you might be OK getting a 180° hemisphere with just four segments. Maybe look at how aircraft noses are done in small scale too. The rear of the Olympian was made from a matrix of flat glass windows, so it must translate to a flat surface! I think you could make a 'strip' for each row of windows if you calculate the angle they are at compared to vertical.
These are also going to be long trains!

[rmks2000]

Minimodel.sk has a GMC scenic cruiser bus that uses horizontal sections for the rear of the bus (see DC models on the catalog page). It is similar in theory to Siwi's suggestion for the Olympian.

[ReynoldsSlumber]

Fun stuff, I'm interested in how this goes!
Also, what did you have in mind for the windows? If not clear plastic, I've been having some success using 90 gsm vellum (tracing paper) for airplane canopies. It looks pretty good in person in terms of light coming through, not as evident in photos. For compound curves like the ends of the vista-domes, orange peel-like conic segments with "shark teeth" joining tabs could work, like on aircraft nose cones, though the joining tabs may mess with the look more than you'd like.

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And hi, HobbyBob. I read with interest your plans to recreate a number of postwar passenger trains in N scale. I thought you might like to see my effort in this realm, my paper model of the original Milwaukee Road Hiawatha.

I built the model to complement my Marx toy train collection. The bodies of Marx trains were smaller than Lionel, often hovering around S scale, but they rode on O-27 trucks. So, for my Hiawatha, I designed a shrouded S scale Atlantic locomotive to pull S scale cars all riding on O-Gauge Marx running gear and wheelsets. Goofy Gauge, I call it.

I sat down, about 35 years ago, and drew out the parts for the consist. The train includes one locomotive, one tender, one café car, three coaches, one parlor car and an observation car. I can’t present a picture here that shows the entire consist as it measures just over nine feet long when hooked up. After my drawings were ready, I photocopied them onto 17” X 11” cardstock then colored them by hand with water color. This all took place before we bought our first computer, so it was an exercise in old-school paper modeling.

To make the car bodies stronger, I laminated three or four layers of card over the wooden bucks you see in the final photograph. Then I carefully laminated the painted skins over the hard paper shells. I had experimented with sealers to cover the delicate water colored finish, but everything I tried tended to make the black copier lines bloom and run. All the paint on the train is unsealed but with careful handling, it has held up quite well over the years.

In answer to your question about designing the ends of the observation cars, I had a relatively easy time designing and building the famous Beaver Tail on the observation car Wenonah. My biggest problem was designing the rounded section at the very front of the locomotive. I wound up making a hard balsa buck for the part and using it to create a form-fitting part that could be used as an aid in the paper part design. The larger bucks seen in the picture were very helpful in keeping the cars uniform in cross section. The smaller buck was used for the shell of the locomotive.

Best of luck in your project, HobbyBob. The postwar streamliners were all wonderful trains, and are missed by those of us who remember those mid-century days. My interest in the Hiawatha comes from the fact that we live just a few block for the old Milwaukee Road line where it used to charge back and forth between Chicago and Minneapolis. Fast, comfortable and stylish, the Hiawatha made a colorful and lasting mark in the history of American railroading.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[HobbyBob]

Wow! Those are fantastic! I'll share mine when its a bit further along...

[Siwi]

Those are amazingly neatly drawn and proportioned given no digital tools were used. As good as any professional kits of the time.

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And hi, HobbyBob. Thanks for your thoughtful comment and letting me horn in on your thread. I’m looking forward to seeing your N scale streamliners.

And thanks to Siwi, too.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog