G - scale Live steam for sale on e-bay

[Gary]

Prior posting had two urls for the Big Boy. This one has the correct 4449
and I added the Shay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1788497736   SP 4449 live
steam Aster

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1788615613   Big Boy live
steam Aster

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1786079501Lindsey
Shay live steam

Gary - Anticipating laying more Stainless Steel rail in Eugene, Oregon
http://www.angelfire.com/or/trainguy
http://community.webshots.com/user/raltzenthor
 

Aster in it's original plastic wrap

[Gary]

Must have a lot of income to buy and not run such a fine loco.  Of course
with that much money at risk, how many of us would operate either of these
locos on our own or buddies track?  If it fell the scale 200 feet off my
trestle I can imagine the sick feeling if it was mine and the hoots from the
club peanut gallery!  If it was your loco and it caught air while flying 8
feet down, I expect our friendship would find an ugly attorney intervention
or at least insurance claim.  Perhaps it is better to leave these on e-bay
and run what we can afford to put at risk without reaching for nitro pills
each time the loco accellerates a bit or wrenches suddenly to one side or
the other while negotiating the picturesque curve over humpy (perhaps I
should have said lumpy) meadows.

Gary - eagerly awaiting two more tubes of Stainless Steel 8' long rail to
arrive in Eugene, Oregon
http://www.angelfire.com/or/trainguy
http://community.webshots.com/user/raltzenthor

Here's your chance to acquire an instant Prestige Aster Collection, thanks
to eBay
and somebody who bought a bunch of high-end locos and never even ran them.
(He
states this with an air of pride)

Daylight 
Big Boy 

Makes you wonder (well, it makes ME wonder).

-vance-

 

RE: instant Aster collection

[Tom Hudson]

I'm surprised at the number of live steam locos on sale at eBay and other
sites that say the owner only ran them once or twice.  Sad.

-Tom

> -Original Message-
> Here's your chance to acquire an instant Prestige Aster
> Collection, thanks to eBay
> and somebody who bought a bunch of high-end locos and never even
> ran them.  (He
> states this with an air of pride)

 

instant Aster collection

[VR Bass]

Here's your chance to acquire an instant Prestige Aster Collection, thanks to eBay
and somebody who bought a bunch of high-end locos and never even ran them.  (He
states this with an air of pride)

Daylight 
Big Boy 

Makes you wonder (well, it makes ME wonder).

-vance-
 

Re: Soldering and welding require practice.

[Michael Martin]

Steve, (and anyone else "listening" within driving distance)

This subject has spawned another hair-brained, half-baked scheme...

It goes something like this:

a)  I have two (2) very large (and full) propane cylinders that are in need of
some work.

b)  I have a deluxe Sievert torch set and a few of the expensive (and brittle)
refractory bricks.

c)  I have a fair supply of Harris Safety Silv 45 and some Easy Flow 45.

d)  It is relatively easy to talk me into getting the Sievert torch out when the
right company is over.

Actually, how about organizing a brazing workshop before, during, or after a
local steamup?  I have numerous projects I'd like to get moving and I am sure
there are others, like yourself, that have projects they would like to work on. 
I'll supply the torch and gas in exchange for the inspiration to get back to
work on some metal projects.

...just thinking out loud,

Michael Martin

http://www.panyo.com/steamups

(SF Bay Area Steamup Images and Model Engineering) 

RE: Soldering and welding require practice.

[Shyvers, Steve]

Tony,

I will definitely avoid getting pickled, especially when working with open
flames. And I'll try to avoid falling into the pickling solution  until
whenever it becomes time to ship me home like Lord Nelson.

I should let you know that I received my new copies of Harris' and Farmer's
books last week, and I harvested another 20 pounds or so of coal the other
Sunday. I may need to ask Santa for a Sievert torch this Christmas. How are
my driver wheels coming along?

Steve
  

Re: Soldering and welding require practice.

[Anthony Dixon]

Hi Guys,
   Being from an old technical school and apprenticeship. It was a mandate 
to pickle the copper in acid (subject to idividual part sizes, complexity 
and access), before any silver soldering. Also easier if any nooks and 
crannies needed cleaning, and difficult to get at with abrasive cloths etc. 
Also less labour intensive and more consistent results.
   Go to it Steve, but beware of the fumes and watch the splashes. Hate to 
see a pickled Steve on the menu!.
   Best Regards,
Tony D.

At 01:32 PM 11/14/02 -0600, Arthur S. Cohen wrote:
I read with interest about the silver soldering problems.  I think
"pickling" copper in acid to clean it prior to soldering is a bit far out.
Any time I will be soldering anything I thoroughly clean the two pieces to
joined with a fine abrasive cloth of about 180 grit until there is no oxides
or dirt present .  Then the proper flux is applied before heating.  This
holds true with soft solder or silver solder.  Both pieces have to heated
sufficiently so that the solder "flows" when applied to the their surface.
Sufficient flame heat is required in the general area to be soldered but
little heat should be applied to the actual solder because it will melt
first and drip away.  If you concentrate a sharp flame directly on the items
you are going to solder the pieces could become too hot burning off the flux
and this will leave a deposit or dirty their surfaces causing a non wetable
coating to form where you want to apply the solder.  Since you are a
beginner at soldering you have to practice with scraps of metals to get the
idea.  It is a good idea to put the items to be soldered on something like a
common red brick as that will reflect the heat rather than absorb it
allowing the pieces to be heated more uniformly.  For small silver and soft
solder jobs I have used those small hand held butane torches and even the
smaller butane torches used to light cigars.  They are available in smoking
shops.

Arthur--Mexico City

Soldering and welding require practice.

[Arthur S. Cohen]

I read with interest about the silver soldering problems.  I think
"pickling" copper in acid to clean it prior to soldering is a bit far out.
Any time I will be soldering anything I thoroughly clean the two pieces to
joined with a fine abrasive cloth of about 180 grit until there is no oxides
or dirt present .  Then the proper flux is applied before heating.  This
holds true with soft solder or silver solder.  Both pieces have to heated
sufficiently so that the solder "flows" when applied to the their surface.
Sufficient flame heat is required in the general area to be soldered but
little heat should be applied to the actual solder because it will melt
first and drip away.  If you concentrate a sharp flame directly on the items
you are going to solder the pieces could become too hot burning off the flux
and this will leave a deposit or dirty their surfaces causing a non wetable
coating to form where you want to apply the solder.  Since you are a
beginner at soldering you have to practice with scraps of metals to get the
idea.  It is a good idea to put the items to be soldered on something like a
common red brick as that will reflect the heat rather than absorb it
allowing the pieces to be heated more uniformly.  For small silver and soft
solder jobs I have used those small hand held butane torches and even the
smaller butane torches used to light cigars.  They are available in smoking
shops.

Arthur--Mexico City

 

Re: Hi Ho Silver (Brazing)!

[Cgnr]

Glad that you were successful Steve.  You will find that copper is a little 
harder to get up to temp than other metals.  Creating an enviroment by 
surronding your piece with firebrick or other refractory material helps 
holding the heat in.  Also cutting your solder into small snipets, say a 1/16 
long and applying several of them with a flux coated brush around the joint 
allows the solder to melt quicker.  Capillary action will cause it to flow 
around your joint.  It is so satisfying to watch it happen!
Bob 

Re: Hi Ho Silver (Brazing)!

[Terry Griner]

Congratulations Steve!!
Welcome to the wonderful world of silver soldering!
Terry Griner
Columbus Ohio USA

Hi Ho Silver (Brazing)!

[Shyvers, Steve]

I did it! I finally succeeded to silver braze a copper joint! In fact,
several of them! Six silver brazed joints were made in four separate
operations on a alcohol burner assembly for my latest project loco.

I tried to do the job a week and a half back and did not succeed, although I
learned the cleaning effect on copper of a sulphuric acid pickle. After
mulling over why the silver brazing failed at that time I decided that the
silver solder wasn't getting heated adequately, although the copper work
pieces were. 

For the second, successful attempt I brazed different parts of the assembly
in separate operations in order to position each joint so that a length of
silver solder (brazing filler metal) could be formed to lie in place along
each joint before heating. This would ensure that the solder came up to
temperature at the same time as the work. A plunge in the pickle and a quick
rinse after each brazing operation made the work ready for the next.

Flanged joints got rings of silver solder around them. Small tubing got
little horseshoe-shaped pieces placed over them where they joined larger
sections. Joints and solder were both liberally fluxed. Then it was heat it
up, watch the flux changes its looks, apply more heat, and then the solder
flowed. 

I used MAPP gas and a basic Bernzomatic torch that connected to the gas
bottle through a 3-ft hose. This unit does not have an adjustable nozzle but
it does have a regulator as part of the valve & gas bottle fitting. I did
have to turn the gas up higher than I first thought in order to really blast
the work pieces and keep them up to temperature.

The setup is okay for small parts but it is not adequate for a complete
boiler assembly, and I've got a lot more practice to do before attempting
one. The silver solder was 0.047" dia. 45% Ag wire and the flux was
Sta-Silv, both from Sulphur Springs. 

For a pickle I diluted sulphuric acid drain cleaner from the hardware store.
Note: Always ADD ACID to the water. NEVER the other way around. (Thanks Jon,
for the AAA "Always Add Acid" reminder.)

Steve