Re-Motored Brass Olympia Gem EH-105 Reading 2-8-0

This page was last updated on Friday, November 26, 2010 02:31:59 AM

Before De-varnishing and Polishing

The model started out as a non-running tarnished pile of crap...well not exactly pile of crap but there was much work to be done to turn this into a model worthy of the Delano Mountain Custom Models name. We start by completely disassembling the model. Once disassembled, each piece is coated with paint remover and allowed to sit for several hours. The parts were then put in a tub to avoid any loss and scrubbed with a toothbrush and warm water to remove the loose varnish.

The parts were then dried and polished using Brasso then finishing with a brass Dremel wire brush. The model was then reassembled piece by piece and cleaned with Q-tips dipped in Goo Gone. The final finish is what you see in the photos below.

After De-varnishing and Polishing

Re-Motoring

The first step in this process is a conversation with Dave at NWSL. The best thing is to send some photos as shown below with all of the dimensions of the re-motoring clearly visible with a ruler as each job is different. Unless you want to re-gear you model, you will need to re-use the gear worm from the old model. Some are soldered on and will need to be heated and de-soldered to remove. I got lucky and had a small screw securing mine so it simply slipped off once loosened. What you will need to know is the OD (outside diameter) of the shaft. Mine was 2.4mm (you will need a set of Calipers to determine the diameter) which is a standard size. The NWSL can motor I used has a shaft diameter of 1.5mm.  (continued below)

What Dave suggested was a NWSL 16mm x 30mm double shafted motor (part # 1630D-9) and a 1.5mm x 2.4 mm bushing (part # 10164-9) to match the old gear worm to the new shaft. I also ordered a flywheel but it would not fit. Once I got the motor and bushings in, I marked the spot on the shaft were the gear worm would go then glued the bushing on the shaft with slow set CA. Once the bushing set, put the gear worm over the bushing and tighten.

I took a piece of brass strip and bent it to the approx. angle of the old motor then epoxied it to the motor as shown above. I used 1 minute epoxy and allowed it to set 1 hour.  (continued below)

I then set the above assembly into the engine as seen below. The brass has some give so I was able to get the worm gear positioned almost perfectly over the gear. I marked the spot were the brass strip sat and epoxied the assembly to the frame and again allowed it to sit 1 hour. I then ran the engine "in space" and made final minor adjustments by bending the brass until the wheels moved freely.  I had to cut off some of the shaft on the flywheel side with a Dremel cutoff wheel.

I then soldered the wires to the motor and the headlight wires in. Final video of the engine running is shown at the top of the page. A sound card can be added inside the tender box if desired.

Finis