Kim's A3 Pennsylvania Switcher

[Kim]

After 6 years, 296 pages, 606 progress posts, 3970 images, 33 videos, and a WHOLE lot of help, input, encouragement, and support from all of you wonderful people who hang out here in this forum, I have now, as of today, completed my A3 Pennsylvania Switcher locomotive build.  (And there was much rejoicing!)

I am very pleased with how it came out. 

I would also like to take a moment to express my gratitude to all the wonderful people that make up this forum.  I wouldn’t have been able to do this without your help and support. Thank you one and all.  I truly appreciate it!

With all that said, here are a few beauty shots of my A3 Pennsy Switcher.  The full build log can be found here: https://www.modelenginemaker.com/index.php/topic,8552.0.html

Thanks again!
Kim

[Dave Otto]

Congratulations Kim, beautiful model and certainly one to be proud of!

Dave

[crueby]

Stunning result to a great journey!!   

[tghs]

looksgreat,, so was the process..

[RReid]

Gorgeous. Congratulations on so successfully completing such a major project, not to mention documenting pretty much every step along the way. A true tribute to Hiraoka-San.

[Admiral_dk]

What a Wonderful Lokomotive and Tender 

The latest addition looks fantastic too with the color printed Face 

Thank you so Much for taking Us All along for this Amazing build 

Per     

[MJM460]

Well done on reaching the end of construction.  And I do hope the engine will continue to give you joy for years to come.

It’s been a great journey and you have beautifully recorded it, and I have been following from the beginning.  (I did not realise it had been quite so long though.  But I am sure to you at times it must have seemed longer.)

I am also one of the many who feel the pressure gauge was beyond me, but you have made it seem within reach (almost).  And I am so glad you made the dead weight tester, so you can check the gauge (and any others you come by) whenever you want.  I have added that at least to my build list.  Dealing with dodgy pressure gauges over many years and witnessing the calibrations for many years made me appreciate the value of that device.

Thank you for all the work you have put into documenting it all so we can follow along and enjoy the journey with you.

MJM460

[wagnmkr]

A wonderful accomplishment Kim. The journey has been worth it as you have a beautiful engine there.

 

Tom

[Kim]

Thank you all for your kind words!  It has been a very enjoyable journey, made even more so by sharing it with you all. Thank you!

Kim

[Kim]

I am also one of the many who feel the pressure gauge was beyond me, but you have made it seem within reach (almost).  And I am so glad you made the dead weight tester, so you can check the gauge (and any others you come by) whenever you want.  I have added that at least to my build list.  Dealing with dodgy pressure gauges over many years and witnessing the calibrations for many years made me appreciate the value of that device.

The pressure gauge was much less of a struggle than I had imagined.  I would encourage anyone to build it!  I found it very rewarding.  And seriously, if anyone is interested in doing so, I would gladly share some 0.005" phosphor bronze with you to help you out!  Just let me know.

As for the dead weight tester, that was a fun project also, and not too difficult, much simpler than the pressure gauge for sure.  However, I'm not sure how much value it would be as a general pressure gauge tester.  As i found, the amount of air it can displace is VERY small.  I doubled that with my longer plunger, but still, I'm not sure if it would work well with larger pressure gauges with more dead air space in them. The bourdon tube tester that I made from Kozo's plans had VERY little dead air space in the tester which is why, I believe, this little tester worked well with it.  So just that gentle warning about using it at a general dead weight tester.  It might work.  It's possible that other leaks that I had in the system were what caused me problems with my stock pressure gauge. Maybe I should go back and try it out with that gauge again now that I've seen it work!

Best of luck if you do try it MJM!  And please let me know if you'd be interested in any of the sheet phosphor bronze!

Kim

[MJM460]

Hi Kim, thanks so much for your generous offer, it’s very tempting.  I will have to re-consider my build list.

I will send you a pm (probably tomorrow).

I think the deadweight tester will work fine if I make provision for a hand pump connected to the end of the length wise drilling.  Air bubbles are the undoing of any piston pump, if I can purge them through and compress the air remaining in the gauge with oil from a hand pump, I expect it to be fine, as mentioned by one of those who commented at the time, especially if the gauge is directly connected to the tester, and with the longer piston as you made for the modified design.

MJM460

[Wobblers123]

Well done, amazing work.

[stevendavis]

Congratulations!!! And thank you for sharing all your work!!

[Kim]

Thank you Wobblers, and Steve! 

Kim

[RonGinger]

Very nice work. And dont overlook all the work you did to document this so we could all see it. I am sure you spent many hours editing text, selecting photos, uploading, etc.

[Kim]

True enough, Ron!  I'll bet I averaged over an hour per update!  It did take some work, but it was a labor of love!  I really do enjoy sharing what I'm doing and getting valuable input from everyone.  I've learned so much from others giving me helpful pointers and tips. 

Thanks!
Kim

[Firebird]

Hi Kim

Very well done, stunning bit of work 

Cheers

Rich

[Kim]

Thank you, Rich!
Kim

[JCvdW]

Congratulations Kim! What a beautiful engine! Really inspiring!.  And thank you very much for your detailed build log. I consult it regularly before starting on any new part, as I slowly progress with my own build.

[Kim]

Thanks JC!   

I see you're comming along with your build too.  I'm following along and enjoying your progress with you!

Kim

[10KPete]

Beautiful locomotive, Kim! It has been a wonderful journey watching you build this over the years. Your persistance is to be admired. From the first issues with rivets to the marvelous paint and detail the learning has been wonderful. I wish you the best in all your endevors.

I assume you have been keeping up with Quinn Dunki ???

Pete

[Kim]

Hi Pete, Thanks!   

Yes, it has been quite a journey, hasn't it!

And yes, I've been watching Quinn with her work on her A3 Switcher and all her other videos too.  She's quite good at explaining things and very entertaining too!

Kim

[Roger B]

Splendid      You must be proud of that   

[pirmin]

 

That must be quite an amazing feeling to sit on that little thing and ride it the first time !

Well done ! Now whats next ?

[Kim]

Thanks, Roger and Primin! 

Yes, I'm quite pleased with it and am happy with how it turned out!

Next, I'm going to make a nice spring driven time keeping engine.  I'm still in the planning stages of this right now.  Working on a CAD model, making my bill of materials, etc.  Lots of fun planning

Kim

[propforward]

That is a mighty accomplishment and a simply beautiful locomotive. Very well done indeed - you have a right to be proud of that!

[cnr6400]

  Looking forward to hearing about the timepiece build Kim. BTW if one of Chris' shop elves send you out looking for a long weight, don't go for it...  

[Kim]

Thanks Stuart and Jeff! 

I'll be on the watch for any of Chris's elves' hazing tactics!   

Kim

[bent]

Lovely work!  I've kibbitzed on the build from time to time, and am amazed at the level of detail.   

[Kim]

Thanks Bent! 

Kim

[PJPickard]

Wow this is great! I have followed (most) of it! Thanks for posting I know it is a LOT of extra work!

[Don1966]

Kim I been away from the forum for a while and just catching up on this awesome build. Congrats on complete it it and it is a very nice piece of work and your documentary on it is superb.

 
Don

[Kim]

Thank you PJ and Don!   

Don!  How are you doing? It has been a while since I've seen you around.  Hope all is going well for you and that you're finding time to work on fun projects?

Kim

[Don1966]

Thank you PJ and Don!   

Don!  How are you doing? It has been a while since I've seen you around.  Hope all is going well for you and that you're finding time to work on fun projects?

Kim

Kim I been into wood projects lately building toys for the grandkids . It’s fun orojects and I enjoy wood working. Just finish remodeling our TV cabinet to more modern floating shelves and wall mounted smart TV.  A photo of one of my projects.

[Kim]

That's really nice looking, Don!  Glad you're getting some time to work in your shop and make some fun projects!  Doesn't really matter whether it's metal or wood, as long as you're having fun   

Kim

[scc]

Kim, I have only just seen this posting,      I t has all been said..... A wonderful build and very well documented for the enjoyment and encouragement of us all.  Thank you.        Regards   Terry

[Kim]

Thank you, Terry! 

Kim

[matthew-s]

Kim. I regret not sharing my congratulations (and thanks!) sooner. The Engine is beautiful and your build log continues to be a source of motivation and knowledgeable for me.

I am curious though: did you ever fire up the boiler and get it running on steam?

Best wishes,


Matt

[Kim]

Thank you, Matt! 

Embarrassingly enough, I actually haven't fired it up yet.    I may still do it someday, but so far, I've been pretty happy to just demo it on air.  I'm afraid if I get it all sooty and stinky I won't be allowed to have it in the house anymore! 

But it still may happen someday.  I'm not counting it out entirely...

Kim

[matthew-s]

I can understand that. I’ve often wondered what I’ll do when done … even to the point of being intrigued by some is the gas burners I’ve seen which would keep things cleaner.

This is also what causes me to use 303 SS where possible as it will sit way more than it runs. Of course I’ve discovered the extra complexity that emails.

I don’t think you need much encouragement, but I do hoper you post a video andhere if you ever do fire it!

[gary.a.ayres]

Kim - congratulations on completing this build.

While I have been absent from this forum, I have seen some of your build videos on youtube.

Lovely work!

[Kim]

Thanks Gary! 

Kim

[gary.a.ayres]