Lights, Decoder, ACTION!
#1
Well, here I am, a Camelback steam guy for decades and now I have this diesel. It is an OMI Reading GP39-2 that I got very cheap – less than the cost of a new Atlas DCC-ready version – as the rear truck and drive tower were, except for the bigger parts, in a small plastic Zip Lock baggie! After carefully laying out all the parts, grouping and counting them, the reassembly went fairly easily and it has been successfully restored to “original factory condition.” It looks pretty cool and will undoubtedly look even better in Reading “Green Machine” Green with the Signal Yellow stripped nose and yellow number board area over the cab.

But first things first! Should I assume that I should put some of those previously mentioned 2mm lights in the headlamp openings from behind and secure them with Krystal Klear? If so, that will be an interesting operation as the unit has a full cab interior that appears to have been secured in place using a number of 00-80 machine screws and then soldered for good measure. HMmmmm! Any ideas?

There are no “ditch lights,” only a single MU stand at each end, so I’m off the hook there. There are, however, what I believe are called “classification lights” on the vertical face of both hoods … I suppose they take another pair of those same 2mm lights? Those openings are accessible so they should not be all that difficult … more Krystal Klear, right?

Next step then would logically be the Soundtraxx TSU-1000 EMD 645 decoder … a straightforward installation, I am told. Any feed-back here would be greatly appreciated!

This is my "practice decoder install" so that when I start tackling older brass Camelback conversions I'm not totally clueless ... only partly clueless.
357
I just want to get all of these things test fitted and operational prior to atomizing any finely ground pigment and embellishing it further with thin decalcomania film! And since it is still has the shell off, there’s no time like the present!

Seriously, this is my first diesel since that Varney F-3 Dummy that I got back in the ‘50’s from a Kix cereal box top offer! I still have it to remind me of where I started and to induce me to be humble about my current modeling skill level!]
biL

Lehigh Susquehanna & Western 

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." ~~Abraham Lincoln
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#2
biL,
The classification lights need only be lit if you intend to use them. The prototype spent most of it's time with those lamps off. So the option is yours. Plus, you then need to decide what color you want them. The prototype had a clear outer lens, with a plastic lens behind it that could be rotated from clear, to red, to green. Being a Conrail modeler myself, IF I lit them, I would use red, as that was the only color CR ever used, and even then only when on the rear of a train, such as in pusher service or when running light.

If access to the headlamp assembly is difficult, you could place a small diameter tube on the roof of the cab that leads to the headlamp housing. You should be able to add this without even removing the cab interior. Perhaps drilling an appropriately sized hole in the rear cab wall. Then you could just slide your headlamp bulb- on long wire leads- into the tube loose, without glue for easy replacement. Of course, this would assume using a larger bulb, not scale bulbs that actually fit into the headlamp holes.

BTW, the 645 sound is correct, remember this is a turbo 645, as apposed to the very similar looking GP38 which is a non-turbo 645. The way you can tell, since I know you are a steam guy, is that the GP39-2 should have only 1 exhaust stack. The GP38/38-2 has 2 smaller exhaust stacks.

Oh, and isn't this your second diesel since that Varney F3...? Or am I only imagining the ALCo S-2 that you are working on?
Dave
-Dave
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#3
Oh... biL... one more thing...

:needpics:
-Dave
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#4
Puddlejumper Wrote: The classification lights need only be lit if you intend to use them. The prototype spent most of it's time with those lamps off. So the option is yours. Plus, you then need to decide what color you want them. The prototype had a clear outer lens, with a plastic lens behind it that could be rotated from clear, to red, to green. Being a Conrail modeler myself, IF I lit them, I would use red, as that was the only color CR ever used, and even then only when on the rear of a train, such as in pusher service or when running light.
Thanks, Dave, I appreciate the help. I'll have to get some info from a couple Reading modelers who I have been in touch with on the Reading Modeler forum to see what their standard practice was.

Puddlejumper Wrote: If access to the headlamp assembly is difficult, you could place a small diameter tube on the roof of the cab that leads to the headlamp housing. You should be able to add this without even removing the cab interior. Perhaps drilling an appropriately sized hole in the rear cab wall. Then you could just slide your headlamp bulb- on long wire leads- into the tube loose, without glue for easy replacement. Of course, this would assume using a larger bulb, not scale bulbs that actually fit into the headlamp holes.

Ah ... I'll have to take a few photos and post them so the situation is more evident. It is a bit of a problem, to be sure, and may delay completing the decoder install, painting, decaling, weathering and then putting this unit into service, but I'll take my time and do this "correctly" and professionally ... I know no other way!

Puddlejumper Wrote: BTW, the 645 sound is correct, remember this is a turbo 645, as opposed to the very similar looking GP38 which is a non-turbo 645. The way you can tell, since I know you are a steam guy, is that the GP39-2 should have only 1 exhaust stack. The GP38/38-2 has 2 smaller exhaust stacks.

The Soundtraxx TSU-1000 #827102 decoder is the one that I got for this unit. From what seems to be the whine of the turbo, I think I have the correct one. As for exhaust stacks, it appears to me to have only one rectangular stack, somewhat forward of the first of three fans. Plus, I kind of trusted OMI when they put "Reading GP39-2" on the label of the box. 8-)

Puddlejumper Wrote: Oh, and isn't this your second diesel since that Varney F3...? Or am I only imagining the ALCo S-2 that you are working on?

Well, sort of. I bought this unit first. It was to be my "easy, first decoder install." Then I saw the Alco S-2 for the cost of an older Athearn
Blue Box diesel, so I got it, thinking that now I could operate a diesel in either of two successive time periods. (The S-2, it turns out, will not be "easy.") So, officially, the GP39-2 is my second diesel (after the Varney F-3) and the S-2 is my third. OMG ... I hope this is not a trend ... what will the Camelbacks think! 357 357

Thanks again for your assistance, Dave ... I really do appreciate it! Thumbsup

(I'll try to get some photos today and post them tonight of the "Cab interior" situation.)
biL

Lehigh Susquehanna & Western 

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." ~~Abraham Lincoln
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#5
Well, I looked at this thing and thought …

… There’s no way this is any more complicated than that C&O H6 Articulated I took entirely apart, painted, decaled and then put back together for a client, back when I was managing the Allied Hobbies store in the Plymouth Meeting Mall, back in the mid-seventies. Yeah, O.K., so that was a year or two ago, but c’mon …

So, out came the jeweler’s screwdrivers and the Optivisor and the high intensity light and I started removing screws, carefully noting which one came from where (see the blue painter’s tape in the photos.) Lo, and behold, all my anticipated problems have vanished … clever people, these South Koreans at Ajin! (Now I shall have to get together a crew of “modern” LPB’s to take their rightful places in the cab!)

I now wish I had taken photos of the mess that was the pre-reassembly situation with the rear truck, with all the parts and many tiny #00-80 screws … but putting it back together after not having been the one who took it apart was a bit of a bugger, and I will not be taking it apart for photos, unless of course, it doesn’t run. If that turns out to be the case, any work done to correct the problem will be photographed. BTW, I never found the supposedly “”broken” plastic part described by the seller on EBay … I think he took it apart for some reason and just couldn’t figure out how to properly put it back together.

Anyway, this evening’s project will be to go through a couple of boxes that I just re-packed two weeks ago that say “LS&W - Electrical” on the outside and find the MRC Tech II and some wire so I can give this unit a “power test” and, if successful, let it have a “run-in” session.

In the meantime, the following photos will hopefully satisfy your desire for colorful images, Dave!

The break-down into the four basic components …

[Image: TheFourMainComponents.jpg]

BiL’s method of keeping track of what screw goes where …

[Image: KeepingtheScrewsinProperOrder.jpg]

The cab interior that caused (almost) total disassembly …

[Image: TheCabInterior.jpg]

See- thru fans …

[Image: See-ThroughFans.jpg]

The Cab front showing the headlights …

[Image: CabFrontwithHeadlights.jpg]

The Low Hood showing the holes for Classification Lights …

[Image: LowHoodwithClassificationLights.jpg]

The High Hood showing Headlights and holes for Classification Lights …

[Image: HighHoodwithClassificationLights.jpg]

So … now I have a little work to do ... a little research, a little measuring, a little shell interior volume management, a little speaker identification and a little electronics work, soldering, etc. …

… and yes, I’ll photograph my way through the process.

Now … I wonder which box that MRC Tech II is in?
biL

Lehigh Susquehanna & Western 

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." ~~Abraham Lincoln
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#6
Wow, that is a beautiful model! Do the number boards have transparent material, I.E. are they made to allow lighting them? I would definitely at least add jewels to those class lights if you don't decide to light them. I look forward to your progress!
-Dave
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#7
There are a bunch of additional parts still in the little baggie ...

Tomorrow maybe I'll photograph them ...

I'm thinking I'll put clear (white) lights in the classification lights ... If I turn them on, the train it is pulling will be running "Extra" ... white still means "Extra," doesn't it?

And the number boards will be backlit ... I just have to pick a proper number ... and after paging through Bob Gottschall's new book, "The Reading Railroad GREEN MACHINES," I'm thinking it'll be #3413.

Now, I've gotta find that Tech II so ...
biL

Lehigh Susquehanna & Western 

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." ~~Abraham Lincoln
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#8
Well this one looks a lot easier than the Also unit. With the see through grill you will be able to mout a speaker on the inside of the shell and let the sond out through the grills. Make sure you block all of the other openings with black plastic so the shell will become a enclosure.
One more thought- get most of your sound install work done before you start to paint. And you would be better off using a TSU-AT board , and not the TSU-1000.
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#9
I'll take your speaker suggestion under advisement ... It sounds like it might be a winner ... I'm wondering, though, about the concept of supposedly better Bass response by bouncing the sound waves off the track/roadbed ... we used to do that with the self-contained, battery-powered sound systems of the time. They were produced by Miniatronics, or something like that, if my failing memory still works at all.

I am very interested in what is behind your suggestion of the use of TSU-AT1000 decoder rather than the TSU-1000, though ... what is the theory that supports that decoder choice?

And by all means, I will have ALL other work completed - decoder, speaker, all lights (test fit,) cab glazing (test fit) etcetera - prior to applying the first granule of finely ground pigment suspended in a liquid atomizing vehicle! This is not my first "disassemble, paint, reassemble" project. Among other things done for hobby shop customers on an "outside the store" custom basis to earn a few more bucks a month, like building craftsman kits and small scenic modules to "plant" them on, was carrying on a custom painting service, painting more than a couple dozen brass steam locomotives, several in multi-color paint schemes. I am familiar with the "order of operations."

It has been a couple of days since I have been involved it the process though, so I will be proceeding at a slowed, methodical pace.

But I do thank you for your considered advice.
biL

Lehigh Susquehanna & Western 

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." ~~Abraham Lincoln
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#10
Bil,

This is definitely going to be an easier one than the Alco... (an honourary steam loco, so if you still want to call this your "first" diesel, I think that's fair).

This one should take the Soundtraxx 113 oval speaker in the end of the long hood. Just build a styrene enclosure for it, and seal the holes (and the enclosure) with Krystal Kleer or canopy cement.

Some people will tell you to fire the speaker out the fan/radiator holes, but I find that having the speaker fire downwards through the trucks trims off a lot of the shrill high-end that these speakers make. You can decide for yourself of course, but my preference would be to paint the enclosure black and stuff it up into the hood under the fans, and fire the speaker down over the truck. It looks like there's a fair bit of room over the gear tower there, so you should get some good volume out of it.
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#11
P5se Camelback Wrote:I'll take your speaker suggestion under advisement ... It sounds like it might be a winner ... I'm wondering, though, about the concept of supposedly better Bass response by bouncing the sound waves off the track/roadbed ... we used to do that with the self-contained, battery-powered sound systems of the time. They were produced by Miniatronics, or something like that, if my failing memory still works at all.

I am very interested in what is behind your suggestion of the use of TSU-AT1000 decoder rather than the TSU-1000, though ... what is the theory that supports that decoder choice?

And by all means, I will have ALL other work completed - decoder, speaker, all lights (test fit,) cab glazing (test fit) etcetera - prior to applying the first granule of finely ground pigment suspended in a liquid atomizing vehicle! This is not my first "disassemble, paint, reassemble" project. Among other things done for hobby shop customers on an "outside the store" custom basis to earn a few more bucks a month, like building craftsman kits and small scenic modules to "plant" them on, was carrying on a custom painting service, painting more than a couple dozen brass steam locomotives, several in multi-color paint schemes. I am familiar with the "order of operations."

It has been a couple of days since I have been involved it the process though, so I will be proceeding at a slowed, methodical pace.
But I do thank you for your considered advice.

First, the closer your ear is to the speaker the better the sound and volume. A 16 mm X 35 mm speaker should fit just fine. The At board cost less- $80.00
It is easier to wire- you will not have to splice wire for the pickup wires- just solder to the board-less wires-cleaner install (IMO). The board is thinner so you have more room to work with. I have many DCC sound installs under my belt, but these are just my ideas, from experience.
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#12
HMmmm! Got it! I never thought to look at it like that.

Like I said, the Alco S-2 aside (it was purchased and arrived here after the GP39-2 ...) this GP39-2 is my first decoder install and I expect there to be bumps in the road. The first such bump being the fact that I have already acquired a TSU-1000 "packaged" decoder (list minus $30) and will be using that. As the proper sounds for the S-2 are only available on a TSU-AT1000 decoder, I will get to experience that type of install next and will, at that point, have a bit of knowledge about the comparison of which you speak.

I have been studying the speaker situation and, not knowing that much about sound waves, the whole 200-20k Hz vs. 750 -3.5k Hz is a bit of a puzzlement! I suppose I'll have to spend some time researching the Hz range and what it takes to make high-pitched sounds and low-pitched sounds.

What a hobby ... where you learn about such diverse things as basic carpentry, geology, history and the science of sound waves ... all as part of your favorite hobby! Kool! What other hobby offers the opportunity to learn from such a diverse curriculum?

Thank you, Mr. Wood of a Singular Nature! I do appreciate your considered input, as well as the input of the others who have offered their own empirical expertise. It is exactly the type of volunteering of one's knowledge to assist another that makes this forum such a valluable resource, as well as a kool place to "hang out!"
biL

Lehigh Susquehanna & Western 

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." ~~Abraham Lincoln
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#13
I'm with Woodone... the AT boards are much easier to wire and install, for two reasons. First, soldering to the tabs on the board is easier than splicing 32 ga wire, and you wind up with a much tidier wiring harness. With the TSU-1000, you usually have wires that you need to fold, twist, tie up, or otherwise stuff out of the way of things when you go to put the shell back together.

As for speaker placement, what's important is the sound you get. Try a few different configurations and go with what provides the best sound to your ear.
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#14
One more thing.
It looks like the side grills are open also. Make sure you block these off as well. As for where you mount the speaker is a matter of ease.
If you mount the speaker to the floor you would have to drill holes in the floor to let the sound out. The speaker magnet will pick up any metal that could be on the road bed and track, if mounted on the floor. This will cause poor sound and you will have to clean to restore the sound quality.
I have seen the newer Kato locomotives which have the speaker placed in the fuel tank, come back with sound problems, only to find that the speaker was filled with metal fillings and debris.
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#15
biL...
When I first started reading your post I thought you were talking about a plastic loco....But brass...That's one beauty of an engine..!!

I also saw your brief foray into the Digitrax forum.... 357 Most folks there are reasonable....But a couple are pompous a**** that figure you shouldn't bother them with trivialities....What a difference from ol' Blue....
Gus (LC&P).
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