After I started the build, I wished I'd left space for an index. Since I didn't, I'm adding it to the beginning of my intro post. The actual introduction starts right after the build index. Please skip up there if you don't want to read the index
*10/5/2024: My latest updated BOM spreadsheet (Rev E) has been attached at the bottom of this post. It has updates through the end of the build, including the pressure gauge and dead weight tester.
*1/15/2024: A newly updated BOM spreadsheet (Rev D) has been attached at the bottom of this post. - It has updates up through most of Chapter 29 (Sand Dome)*
*2/4/2023: A newly updated BOM spreadsheet (Rev C) has been attached at the bottom of this post. Has changes up through the first half of Chapter 23 (Boiler)*
Index of Kim's Kozo's Pennsy A3 Switcher Build:
TenderChapter 2: Tender WheelsChapter 2.1 - Tender Wheels -
Reply 20 Chapter 2.2 - Tender Axles -
Reply 105Chapter 3: Tender Truck FramesChapter 3.1 - Journal Boxes -
Reply 116Chapter 3.2 - Journal Bearings -
Reply 142Chapter 3.3 - Columns -
Reply 157Chapter 3.4 - Bolsters and Side Bearings -
Reply 170Chapter 3.5 - Tie Bars and Arch Bars -
Reply 201Chapter 3.6 - Coil Springs -
Reply 234Chapter 4: Tender FrameChapter 4.1 - Side Sills -
Reply 251Chapter 4.2 Front End Sill and Rear End Sill -
Reply 262Chapter 4.3 Front and Rear Bolster -
Reply 296Chapter 4.4 Drawbar Pocket and Drawbar -
Reply 298Chapter 4.5 Front Steps -
Reply 303Chapter 4.6 Step Brackets -
Reply 323Chapter 4.7 Rear Coupler Pocket -
Reply 329Chapter 4.8 Foot Board -
Reply 342Chapter 4.9 Center Pins and Drawbar Pin -
Reply 348Powder Coating the Trucks and Frames -
Reply 360Chapter 5: Tender TankChapter 5.1 Tank Floor -
Reply 421Chapter 5.2 Side Plates -
Reply 447Chapter 5.3 Side Corner Members -
Reply 463Chapter 5.4 Bottom Horseshoe Member and Top Horseshoe Member -
Reply 475Chapter 5.5 Verge Board -
Reply 480Chapter 5.6 Vertical Board -
Reply 489 Vertical Board Revisited -
Reply 507Chapter 5.7 Front Plates -
Reply 503 Front Plates Continued -
Reply 518Chapter 5.8 Top Plate -
Reply 528Chapter 5.9 Rear Corner Member -
Reply 546Chapter 5.10 Soft Soldering and Filing the Bottom -
Reply 552Chapter 5.11 Headlight Baseplate and Headlight Base -
Reply 573Chapter 5.12 Coal Stopper -
Reply 589Chapter 5.14 Dummy Side Plates -
Reply 599Chapter 6: Tender ManholeChapter 6.1 Mounting Plate, Manhole Plate, and Lug -
Reply 613 Manhole Plate -
Reply 619 Lug -
Reply 629Chapter 6.2 Manhole -
Reply 620Chapter 6.3 Manhole Cover -
Reply 634Chapter 6.4 Hinges and Pin -
Reply 637Chapter 7: Steps and HandrailsChapter 7.1 Steps -
Reply 641Chapter 7.2 Handrailing -
Reply 644Chapter 7.3 Handholds -
Reply 661Chapter 7.4 Handholds -
Reply 673Chapter 8: Hand PumpChapter 8.1 Pump body -
Reply 683Chapter 8.2 Plunger -
Reply 710Chapter 8.3 O-Ring Retainer -
Reply 712Chapter 8.4 Plug -
Reply 724Chapter 8.5 Suction Valve -
Reply 725 Suction Valve Screen Retainer -
Reply 742Chapter 8.6 Link -
Reply 731Chapter 8.7 Lever -
Reply 746Chapter 8.8 Handle -
Reply 752Chapter 8.9 Pins -
Reply 753Chapter 9: Tender PipingChapter 9.1 Drain Pipe, Drain Plug, Suction Stud, Delivery Stud, Suction Strainer and Nut -
Reply 760 Drain Plug -
Reply 761 Suction Stud and Delivery Stud -
Reply 761 Suction Strainer and Nut -
Reply 767Chapter 9.2 Nipple Joints and Nipples -
Reply 768Chapter 9.3 Union Nuts -
Reply 768Chapter 9.4 Pipe Tip -
Reply 771Chapter 9.5 Pipe Clamps and Tube Clamps -
Reply 771Chapter 9.6 Rubber Tubes -
Reply 771Chapter 9.7 Bending a Copper Tube -
Reply 774Chapter 9.8 - Assembling the Tender -
Reply 783 Adding Lettering to the Tank -
Reply 802EngineChapter 10: Main FrameChapter 10.1 Side Frames -
Reply 793Chapter 10.2 Pedestal Braces -
Reply 818Chapter 10.3 Rear Axle Boxes -
Reply 824Chapter 10.4 Front Bumper and Footplate -
Reply 839Chapter 10.5 Remaining Work for Side Frames -
Reply 832Chapter 10.6 Corssties and Pins -
Reply 851Chapter 10.7 Front Coupler Pocket -
Reply 853Chapter 10.8 Foot Board -
Reply 866Chapter 10.9 Drawbar Pocket and Drawbar Pin -
Reply 873Chapter 11: Axle BoxesChapter 11.1 Front Axle Boxes and Axle Box Caps -
Reply 878Chapter 11.2 Bushings -
Reply 886Chapter 12: Driving WheelsChapter 12.1 Driving Wheels -
Reply 891Chapter 12.2 Driving Wheel Axles -
Reply 972Chapter 12.3 Pump Eccentric and Lubricator Eccentric -
Reply 973Chapter 12.4 Crankpins -
Reply 974Chapter 12.5 Side Rod Pins -
Reply 978Chapter 12.6 Quartering -
Reply 983Chapter 13: Side Rods and Main RodsChapter 13.1 Side Rods -
Reply 995Chapter 13.2 Main Rods -
Reply 1026Chapter 13.3 Bushings and Spacers -
Reply 1042Chapter 13.4 Cotters and Bolts -
Reply 1049Chapter 14: CylindersChapter 14.1 Cylinders -
Reply 1055Chapter 14.2 Steam Chests -
Reply 1095Chapter 14.3 Steam Chest Covers -
Reply 1111Chapter 14.4 Steam Chest Cover Casings -
Reply 1123Chapter 14.5 Rear Cylinder Heads -
Reply 1131Chapter 14.6 Front Cylinder Heads -
Reply 1138Chapter 14.7 Cylinder Head Covers -
Reply 1144Chapter 14.8 Piston Rod Bushings and Valve Stem Bushings -
Reply 1150Chapter 14.9 Bolts and Nuts -
Reply 1151Chapter 14.10 Tee -
Reply 1162Chapter 14.11 Steam Deflector and Exhaust Deflector -
Reply 1204Chapter 15: Pistons and CrossheadsChapter 15.1 Pistons -
Reply 1210Chapter 15.2 Piston Rods and Pins -
Reply 1223Chapter 15.3 Nuts -
Reply 1223Chapter 15.4 Crossheads -
Reply 1228 Crossheads Continued -
Reply 1240Chapter 15.5 Crosshead Pins -
Reply 1232Chapter 15.6 Slippers -
Reply 1235Chapter 15.7 Assembly -
Reply 1286Chapter 16: Guide YokesChapter 16.1 Tie Plate -
Reply 1300Chapter 16.2 Guide Yokes -
Reply 1320 Guide Yokes Continued -
Reply 1337Chapter 16.3 Guides -
Reply 1332Chapter 17: Valve GearChapter 17.1 Valves -
Reply 1370Chapter 17.2 Valve Nuts -
Reply 1389Chapter 17.3 Valve Spindles -
Reply 1397Chapter 17.4 Valve Spindle Yokes -
Reply 1399Chapter 17.5 Combination Levers -
Reply 1404Chapter 17.6 Union Links -
Reply 1412Chapter 17.7 Link Brackets -
Reply 1417Chapter 17.8 Radius Rods -
Reply 1422Chapter 17.9 Link Blocks -
Reply 1427Chapter 17.10 Expansion Links and Trunnion Plates -
Reply 1438Chapter 17.11 Link Brackets -
Reply 1453Chapter 17.12 Return Cranks -
Reply 1462Chapter 17.13 Pins -
Reply 1473Chapter 17.14 Setting Return Cranks -
Reply 1475Chapter 17.15 Eccentric Rods -
Reply 1476Chapter 17.16 Bushings -
Reply 1495Chapter 18: Reversing GearChapter 18.1 Running Boards -
Reply 1551Chapter 18.2 Support Plates and Brackets -
Reply 1566Chapter 18.3 Stand and Quadrant -
Reply 1573Chapter 18.4 Reverse Lever -
Reply 1603Chapter 18.5 Latch Lever -
Reply 1610Chapter 18.6 Spring -
Reply 1611Chapter 18.7 Pin and Collar -
Reply 1619Chapter 18.8 Reach Rod -
Reply 1625Chapter 18.9 Reverse Shaft -
Reply 1630Chapter 18.10 Reach Rod Arm and Reverse Arm -
Reply 1647Chapter 18.11 Reverse Shaft Bearings -
Reply 1655Chapter 18.12 Radius Rod Hangers -
Reply 1661Chapter 18.13 Pins -
Reply 1662Chapter 18.14 Setting Reverse Arms -
Reply 1667Chapter 18.15 Setting Reverse Gear and Cutting Notches -
Reply 1667Chapter 19: Cylindar CocksChapter 19.1 Cock Bodies -
Reply 1686Chapter 19.2 Cock Plugs -
Reply 1698Chapter 19.3 Links -
Reply 1699Chapter 19.4 Arm Shaft -
Reply 1700Chapter 19.5 Arm Shaft Bearings -
Reply 1700Chapter 19.6 Arms -
Reply 1713Chapter 19.7 Collar -
Reply 1720Chapter 19.8 Front Bracket -
Reply 1723Chapter 19.9 Rear Bracket -
Reply 1724Chapter 19.10 Lever -
Reply 1734Chapter 19.11 Reach Rod -
Reply 1742Chapter 19.12 Link -
Reply 1743Chapter 19.13 Pins -
Reply 1747Chapter 20: Feedwater PumpChapter 20.1 Pump Body -
Reply 1799Chapter 20.2 Fittings -
Reply 1812Chapter 20.3 O-Ring Retainer -
Reply 1816Chapter 20.4 Plunger -
Reply 1816Chapter 20.5 Pin -
Reply 1827Chapter 20.6 Eccentric Rod -
Reply 1832Chapter 20.7 Eccentric Strap -
Reply 1835Chapter 21: LubricatorChapter 21.1 Pump Housing -
Reply 1843Chapter 21.2 Cover -
Reply 1864Chapter 21.3 Pump Body -
Reply 1867Chapter 21.4 Plug and Nut -
Reply 1872Chapter 21.5 Plunger -
Reply 1874Chapter 21.6 Crank -
Reply 1877Chapter 21.7 Ratchet Wheel -
Reply 1880Chapter 21.8 Bushing and Nut -
Reply 1886Chapter 21.9 Pawl Brackt and Lever -
Reply 1887Chapter 21.10 Spring Pawls -
Reply 1890Chapter 21.11 Eccentric Strap -
Reply 1911Chapter 22: Grate and AshpanChapter 22.1 Grate -
Reply 1924Chapter 22.2 Grate Supports -
Reply 1938Chapter 22.3 Ashpan -
Reply 1949Chapter 22.4 Ashpan Latch and Spring Hanger -
Reply 1956Chapter 22.5 Pins -
Reply 1957Chapter 22.6 Spring -
Reply 1958Chapter 23: BoilerChapter 23.3 Formers and Backing Plates -
Reply 1986Chapter 23.4 Forming -
Reply 2011Chapter 23.5 Machining and Silver Soldering the Front Tube Sheet -
Reply 2031Chapter 23.6 Machining and Silver Soldering the Backhead -
Reply 2082Chapter 23.7 Machining and Silver Soldering the Firebox Sheets -
Reply 2161Chapter 23.8 Machining and Silver Soldering the throat Sheet -
Reply 2183Chapter 23.9 Rolling the Shell -
Reply 2205Chapter 23.10 Silver Soldering the Shell -
Reply 2268Chapter 23.11 Truing and Facing the Shell -
Reply 2302Chapter 23.12 Silver Soldering the Bushings and Studs -
Reply 2304Chapter 23.13 Silver Soldering the Steam Dome Base -
Reply 2326Chapter 23.14 Bending the Outside Firebox Sheet -
Reply 2383Chapter 23.15 Silver Soldering the Outside Firebox Sheet Making the parts -
Reply 2405 Soldering -
Reply 2450Chapter 23.16 Firebox Sheet Making the parts -
Reply 2438 Shaping -
Reply 2455Chapter 23.17 Silver Soldering the Tubes -
Reply 2494Chapter 23.18 Silver Soldering the Tubes -
Reply 2516Chapter 23.19 Silver Soldering the Foundation Ring -
Reply 2540Chapter 23.20 Silver Soldering the Throat Sheet Staybolts -
Reply 2609Chapter 23.21 Silver Soldering the Backhead Blower Pipe -
Reply 2507 Soldering the Backhead -
Reply 2610Chapter 23.22 Silver Soldering the Staybolts Stay Bolts -
Reply 2427 Soldering the Staybolts-
Reply 2616Chapter 23.23 Silver Soldering the Front Tube Sheet -
Reply 2648Chapter 23.24 Hydrostatic Testing -
Reply 2664Chapter 24: Fire DoorChapter 24.1 Fire Door -
Reply 2750Chapter 24.2 Door Shield -
Reply 2768Chapter 24.3 Spacers and Pin -
Reply 2770Chapter 24.4 Spring Latch -
Reply 2774Chapter 25: SmokeboxChapter 25.1 Smokebox -
Reply 2778Chapter 25.2 Smokebox Door -
Reply 2900Chapter 25.3 Door Hinges -
Reply 2983Chapter 25.4 Door Clamps -
Reply 2991Chapter 25.5 Number Plate -
Reply 3007Chapter 25.6 Handrail Brackets -
Reply 3031Chapter 25.7 Handrail -
Reply 3066Chapter 25.8 Stack -
Reply 3085Chapter 25.9 Cone -
Reply 3119Chapter 25.10 Headlight Bracket -
Reply 3125Chapter 25.11 Smokebox Saddle -
Reply 3133Chapter 25.12 Bottom Cover -
Reply 3161Chapter 25.13 Exhaust Nozzle -
Reply 3168Chapter 25.14 Steam Piping, Blower Pipe, and Union Nut -
Reply 3170Chapter 25.15 Deadweight -
Reply 3183Chapter 26: HeadlightsChapter 26.1 Housing -
Reply 3199Chapter 26.2 Top Covers, Rear Covers, Baseplates, and Glass Holders -
Reply 3226Chapter 26.3 Reflectors -
Reply 3292Chapter 26.4 Glasses and Minature Bulbs -
Reply 3194Chapter 27: Boiler Jacket and HandrailsChapter 27.1 Boiler Jacket -
Reply 3312Chapter 27.2 Straps -
Reply 3336Chapter 27.3 Handrail Brackets -
Reply 3346Chapter 27.4 Handrailss -
Reply 3357Chapter 28: Throttle and Safety ValvesChapter 28.1 Throttle -
Reply 3365Chapter 28.2 Trunnion -
Reply 3385Chapter 28.3 Gland Nut and Nut -
Reply 3400Chapter 28.4 Valve Stem and Fork End -
Reply 3404Chapter 28.5 Link and Lever -
Reply 3411Chapter 28.6 Gasket -
Reply 3425Chapter 28.7 Springs -
Reply 3420Chapter 28.8 Valve Bodies -
Reply 3433Chapter 28.9 Valve Plugs, Valve Bonets and Nuts -
Reply 3445Chapter 28.10 Snifting Valve -
Reply 3473Chapter 29: Steam Dome, Sandbox, and Bell Chapter 29.1 Steam Dome -
Reply 3506Chapter 29.2 Sandbox Saddle, Sandbox and Cap -
Reply 3571Chapter 29.3 Water Plug and Gasket and Bolts -
Reply 3622Chapter 29.4 Sandpipes and Screws -
Reply 3630Chapter 29.5 Bell -
Reply 3686Chapter 29.6 Bell Stand -
Reply 3704Chapter 29.7 Tounge, Cap Nut and Lever -
Reply 3738Chapter 30: Manifold and Whistle Chapter 30.1 Manifold -
Reply 3764Chapter 30.2 Manifold Plug and Gasket -
Reply 3778Chapter 30.3 Whistle Valve Push Pin -
Reply 3786Chapter 30.4 Cap and O-ring Retainer -
Reply 3793Chapter 30.5 Spring and Plug -
Reply 3800Chapter 30.6 Whistle -
Reply 3806Chapter 30.7 Pressure Gauge Tubing -
Reply 3817Chapter 31: Water Gauge and Valves Chapter 31.1 Water Gauge -
Reply 3830Chapter 31.2 Plug and Nut -
Reply 3848Chapter 31.3 Glass Tube and Gland Nuts -
Reply 3855Chapter 31.5 Blower Valve Parts -
Reply 3864Chapter 31.6 Blowoff Valve Parts -
Reply 3885Chapter 32: Cab Chapter 32.1 Cab Roof -
Reply 3896Chapter 32.2 Ventilator -
Reply 3941Chapter 32.3 Cab Front -
Reply 3947Chapter 32.4 Cab Sides -
Reply 3989Chapter 32.5 Link Brackets and Link -
Reply 4016Chapter 32.6 Air Reservoir -
Reply 4026Chapter 32.7 Battery Contactors -
Reply 4045Kims Extra Stuff - Conduit Run -
Reply 4054Kims Extra Stuff - Switch Bracket -
Reply 4066Chapter 33: Water PipingChapter 33.1 Check Valves -
Reply 4092Chapter 33.2 Bypass Valve -
Reply 4132Chapter 33.3 T-Joints -
Reply 4136Chapter 33.4 Coupling Joints -
Reply 4142Chapter 33.5 Brackets -
Reply 4149Chapter 33.6 Suction Ring, Union Nuts, and Nipples -
Reply 4155Chapter 33.7 Assembly -
Reply 4164Chapter 34: Oil TubingChapter 34.1 Check Valve -
Reply 4213Chapter 34.2 Union Nut and Nipples -
Reply 4213Chapter 35: CouplersChapter 35.1 Couplers -
Reply 4237Chapter 35.2 Pins -
Reply 4295Painting and Assembling the Engine -
Reply 4307
Pressure Gauge - From the second apendix in Kozo's "Building the Heisler"Dead Weight Tester -
Reply 4349Pressure Gauge -
Reply 4378
Welcome everyone, to my introductory post for my new build of Kozos Pennsy A3 Switcher!
Im sure this is no surprise to anyone since Ive been talking about it, asking questions about it, and doing some pretty serious planning on it for well over a year now. But, this is my formal intro to my build thread. So, if youre too disappointed, please feel free to skip on past to the next post. I promise not to be offended.
As an intro post, here is my obligatory photo of what Im shooting for. This is the cover photo from Kozo Hiraokas book The Pennsylvania A3 Switcher.
The final engine will be 38 long, 10 high, and 7 wide. It is a 3.5 gauge, 1:16 scale (3/4 to a foot) model of an 0-4-0 Pennsylvania Switcher Type A3. The drivers are 3.25 diameter and the cylinder bore is 7/8 with a stroke of 1-1/4". It will have Walshaerts type valve gear, will be coal-fired with a running pressure of 100psi. Engine plus tender will weigh-in at about 62 lbs.
So, this will be quite a monster for me! More than double the size of the steam tractor I did. And a MUCH more serious steam project than Ive taken on in the past. But Im ready and very excited for the challenge! And isnt that half the battle right there? (He says with naοve optimism
).
With that lengthy introduction, let me now introduce you to my BOM spreadsheet. Kozos book is amazingly complete and gives excellent instructions on all his fabrication techniques. But! It does not include a bill of materials! So, what does any self-respecting anal-retentive engineering-type do? Create a spreadsheet, of course.
Last updated: January of 2024
Ive attached my spreadsheet to this post.
If anyone is ever interested in doing this build, I would think having the BOM available would be helpful. I went through the book, entered every piece of stock as specified by Kozo, broken down by section and part number within the section (and often sub-element of a part within a section). It includes all fasteners, jigs and the sacrificial screws Kozo uses to hold parts together while silver soldering. Thats the first sheet. It's labeled A3 Switcher BOM and has something like 850 unique lines.
The second sheet is the Materials List. This has one entry for each type & size of material used and summarized the total number of inches (for bar, rod, hex) or square inches (for sheet material) that are needed for ALL parts using that type of material. it has more than 350 lines, but only 260 something of them ended up being used in my final version of the BOM.
The actual materials listed are based on My Material, not on the type originally specified by Kozo. He did almost everything with 360 Brass. I substituted a lot of 1018 (CRS) or 12L14, or even Stainless in some places. But I did leave Kozos originally specified material listed on the first sheet. And someone could move to using that material if they wanted to.
The completion of my BOM spreadsheet took me almost a year of background work, so was no small task in itself.
Late last week I did an inventory of my stock on hand against this Materials List. Then I entered that into the spreadsheet and it told me how much of what I needed to purchase. After that, I went through the spreadsheet and did some more substitutions and combining of lines. For example, if I need 1 of 5/16 brass, Id look at changing it to 12L14 or if it needed to be brass (because it comes into contact with water) I would just combine it with the 3/8 brass. I made some fancy columns to help me combine lines. Not intuitive, but if anyone's interested I'd be happy to explain it.
Last weekend, I spent hours placing a big metal order. I ended up going mainly with On Line Metals, and with Speedy Metals. On Line Metals generally had better pricing on 1018, Stainless, and Brass, whereas Speedy Metals had better prices on 12L14 and had a larger selection of sizes of 1018 than On Line Metals. Unfortunately, shipping from Speedy Metals is 2x more than On Line Metals because they are on the far side of the country from me. But I tried to get it all these two larger orders. Shipping hurt, but it could have been worse!
And yesterday a bunch of my metal started showing up! This was the bulk of the order from On Line Metals. Speedy Metals wont arrive till next week.
After opening the containers and comparing to the shipping invoice (all correct, BTW) heres what Ive gotten so far. And this is probably about two-thirds of what I ordered.
In addition, theres a bunch of fasteners, non-metal parts and various new tools Ill need for this build. I also kept a list of tools I needed to order for this build. Thats also one of the sheets in my spreadsheet. Heres whats arrived from that list so far:
Kozo uses a TON of random sized threads in his build. He uses 5-40 and 5-44. He uses 8-32 and 8-36. I considered standardizing on taps I already had but decided it would be fun to get some new taps anyway. And I figure he had some reason for using the finer pitched threads, so why not follow his lead, since Im game for buying another half dozen taps and dies
Then one other thing I bought for this build, and am just a little too excited about, is a set of letter & number punches. I have a very cheap set (cost $10 at a harbor-freight look-alike place) but they are so cheap that they make poor letters. And any of them Ive used more than once are already getting so flat it's hard to read what gets punched. This is a set of CH Hansen Letter and Number Punches. It cost significantly more and had quite good reviews with people saying the punches held up under actual use. And Ill say they look much better than my cheapy punches.
Kozo recommends punching identifying numbers & marks into each piece so that you can get it re-assembled back into the same spot it was designed for. I'm going to try and do that too.
So, wish me well on my next multi-year voyage in the world of Steam Model Engineering!
Thanks,
Kim
*Rev B BOM Update*
I've updated the Bill Of Materials now (as of 12-21-22). This version fixes several mistakes I found where I had the wrong qty of items required or an incorrect dimension or part. I also fixed some material issues where I'd specified putting 1018 instead of stainless steel in areas touching water/steam. And I updated a few places where I used different material than what I'd initially specified.
I've only completed up through chapter 22 in Kozo's book and am currently working on the boiler (Chapter 23.) So only the first half or so of the materials list has been verified. Regardless, there are undoubtedly many errors still even in the 'verified' half of the BOM, so consult my list at your own risk.
You'll want to make your own determination of materials and what stock to use anyway, so you'll need to review the entire thing. But please feel free to use this as a starting point if it is of any help to you.
Kim
Rev C of the BOM now includes the Bell Stud for the boiler shell. And I added a change log to the BOM (sheet labeled 'Change Log'.)