MPC steam locomotive "The General" 1:25 scale by Popeye the Sailor - finished

[popeye the sailor]

the work week is over........time for another update me thinks     I did some work on the General today........a bit nerve wracking though since the landlord decided to redo our bathroom this past week........suppose to carry on till next week sometime.   they've already been in there a week.....we're feeling the effects of no toilet and shower.  it sucks!  the good thing is that our younger son Kevin lives close by.......he gave us a key to their apartment.

   the landlord was nice though and gave us a porta-potty to use...............yea.......uhhhhhh no....the thing is a pain in the butt!  I'll leave it to your imagination,  as to what I have to do with it when it needs to be emptied {and please don't think of what was done in "Christmas Vacation"  }

 

anywhey..........when I looked in the camera,  I found that I hadn't shown Friday's update.   so......here it is.   the domes are painted now,  as I had mentioned earlier.   they need to have the rest of their parts installed.......except for the sand dome.......it's already done.

the other parts.......well,  I should have given them the dip too.   cleaning them scarred the heck out of them,  let alone the face that I had to assemble them too.   so while I was doing that,  I though to do the flat steel dry brushing to the pony truck.   further thinking about this,  I figured that the entire lower part of the loco would likely be the same grimy mess.....so I did the lower length of the loco too.  as with the tender trucks,  I will be adding other aspects to the grime situation........I haven't done it yet.

a few other parts were assembled and touched up.....set aside for future installations.   the steam dome is finished and drying.

 

[CDW]

She's really coming along nicely, Denis. I like the dry brushing you did.

 

Your bathroom ordeal reminds me of when we lived a short month or two in a rented house in the mountains of West Virginia and all we had was an outhouse. But hey, it had a natural gas heater inside it and was a double seater. A side-by-side model. 😕 Who in the heck sits on the outhouse throne with someone else at their side? Riddle me that. It sure ain't me. 😄

[popeye the sailor]

today's update is brought to you by......the letter 'P'.............the campfire roughing it continues  

 

after finishing the touch ups to the cab,  populating it was the next order of business.  now that I have the flat red {and other colors for the next big project},  the cab walls and cow catcher can be painted.   I kept with the brass {gold} color for the knobs.....I didn't go nutz.

the coupler box was also added.   I have one knob that is still MIA........flew off the tweezers and I haven't found it yet......    errrrr,  correction......I just found it     while talking to you,  my ocd kicked in.   I thought to use the mouse pad I got for Christmas {Gibbs got it for me},  and I wiped under the shelf that holds my flat screen {clean out the dust kitties}..............and of course, it commenced the search for the knob all over again.   I looked down on the carpet under my chair........and there it was........a tiny black speck!   Oh JOY!!!

     adding more parts to the cab....the steam dome was added

time to get the seats squared away......they will be needed soon.   they are being finished with the paint work...they need their back cushion.   there is a water level sight glass.......and the large gauge  on top of the boiler.

there's still a few more parts to be added before the cab walls go up.   I will be adding some grunge around the boiler door and the floor in front of it, before that is done.

[src]

Looking good Dennis. Since you are not a fan of sleep I know who to call next time we pull an all nighter at work, I'll be sending the Uber by around August!!

Sam

 

[popeye the sailor]

you got it Sam!  but with the stuff that's going on with Uber.....I dunno if I trust 'em    thanks for the good word!   just think though......if the changes at Wally world get any more weirder.........I'll be out the door.   then I'll be look'in for a job.  I learn quick  .......but the commute would be a killer!

 

thanks for the good word as well CDW.........a two seater.......yea that's weird.  all I can think of is check if there was a 'roll' on the other side.......that should be a good enough hint     you know........the door #1,  door #2 thing ☣️   my son bought me a tee shirt ........Ed trying to empty the RV waste down the sewer.   I wore it the night they were showing Christmas Vacation at the cinema.   wouldn't ya know it though.......it was sold out  

[JohnB40]

Hi Dennis, I can't believe I have somehow not found your build of The General till now. I have enjoyed catching up,very nice work.  I have read books on the "chase" and it is interesting to see a detailed view of the locomotive.

John

[mtaylor]

The commute would be a killer but at least if you flew you'd have coffee and stale snack crackers.  BTW, I'm loving this build.  I remember seeing the movie or was it apart of the old Disney TV show on Sundays?  

[Canute]

Denis, the build in looking very good. I like your grime and such on the running gear.

 

I think it was full length movie, Mark. Two holer? Oy. Not that version. No way, Jose.

[popeye the sailor]

believe me gents........when all this bathroom stuff is over,  I'm washing my hands of the whole sorted mess!     lots of crazy movie scenes were had over the latrine........there's the scene in the movie 'Platoon'.........and who can forget the scene in the show M.A.S.H., where Major Hulahahn was exposed    I'm glad that there's some movement on the General build.......the sand dome is in place and I've added more to the cab........gett'in ready to box 'er in.   the front wall around the boiler is not a perfect fit....I'm not going to risk trimming it.....likely to cause a gap at the roof.   I'm currently on the look out for another valve knob too     thanks to all who hit the like button!

 

welcome to the log John......it may end up not totally accurate,  but I will try my best to make her look good  

 

I loved the Disney movie series they used to do.....my favorite was "The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh" ......or "The Adventures of Dr. Syn".  my oldest grandson was interested in what I liked as a child {we talked extensively about the old horror classics}........I actually found him a book about Dr. Syn and told him to ask his father to look on you tube for the videos {I have them....most of them I think}.  there was "Daniel Boone"  and "Davy Crockett"....and of course all the Disney cartoon classics,  folks are pay'in out the nose for these days.  oh.......and let's not forget "Zorro"    I don't recall one of a train though.........Herbie.......Maybe.........even Chitty Chitty Bang Bang 🎬   thanks for the good word Mark!   

 

thanks Ken.......I wasn't sure about it.......but it seemed so logical.   I see a few places I missed though.   I hope I did equally as good on the canvas door............I have enough for another update.   and the day isn't even over yet.......although I do have to run out and get a hair cut.

[popeye the sailor]

so .....yes,  the sand dome is in place......so far,  the brightest thing on the loco.

some soot was added around the boiler door and on the floor.   I'll add a touch of the flat steel a bit later.

the seats were added too........the reverse bar on the table has been painted and given a dose of the flat steel.  the cab parts are being cleaned up and readied for paint..........but before I do that,  I'd better get that canvas door squared away,  while it's the easiest.  it might be harder to do when the cab is assembled and on the loco.  I gathered some stuff together,.......a couple large eye bolts,  a short length of really small dowel,  and a piece of sail cloth..........this is the cloth that came with the Gothenborg {I still have some....quite a bit actually}.  

using the plastic roll as a guide,  everything was cut to this width.  the eye bolts were spread open a bit and slid onto the dowel,   spacing them to match the pins that will fasten it to the wall of the cab.   I find the plastic one a little illogical...did it go up like a Venetian blind?........did it have a metal or wood spine that it rolled up onto?  not enough detail to explain it.  anyway........the eye bolts were poked through the cloth at one end and super glued in place.

next was to measure and get the length of the door.........it was marked out and the excess was cut off.

then,  it was painted with Ghost Gray.

allowed to dry for a short time,  it them got a brown dry brush........and then a soot dry brush  {I'm almost out of the soot.......I'd better do the smoke stack before I run out}.

it can't be rolled up onto the dowel.........heaven's to overlap!.......I used another piece of the small dowel to roll it up and tie it.

when the ropes were trimmed and all was done,  the dowel was slid out of the roll.   all the while,  making sure that the two pins were sticking straight out from the back.  here is how it looks in place over the opening.

another valve rod and knob was added to the left side of the cab,  coming out of the floor near the brake lever.

....and the Johnson reverse bar was added to the right side of the cab.

where the gauge is,  you might be able to pick out three knobs that I added earlier........I need to find the fourth,  but the admiral just cleaned the carpet,  and it is likely long gone.   I did notice that the dowel I was using looked to be the same diameter.............a sliver of it makes for a dandy knob   

 

[popeye the sailor]

there is a major snafu with the cab it seems.........it doesn't fit correctly.   I was going to paint,  but figured I'd see how it would go together.   the dry fit was fine......until I got to the back wall.   the two ears that stick out at the ends of both walkways don't fit in the slots.....the second is the Johnson bar.   it sticks out of the cab too far.   the back wall is cut into steps from the floor......the second step,  where the bar juts out,  hits the third step and impedes it from going in place.   so,  I though to assemble the front and the sides together.

note the tab by the left seat......there is one on the right side as well.  they appear to be pushing the side walls away from where they should locate.

     there are the two 'L' shaped tabs on the walkways that are the locators for the front wall.   note that both walls stop at the end of those walkway tabs....this is good.  the problem lies with the back wall.   figuring that the tabs on the walls are for the back wall to locate......I cemented the back wall in place.

now.....to cement the Johnson bar into place,  there is a slot that the edge of the seat column fit into.  this put the end of the bar jutting outside of the cab.  

the walls stop just above the slots provided for the walkway tabs....these need to be enlarged.   the third step on the right side needs to be partially removed,  but done so the notching is square.   without doing this,  the entire box will be off by quite a bit.

what I did here to fit the cab walls,  was enlarge the two slots and remove part of the third stepping on the right side.  this is the lesser of my two evils,  since I really don't want to damage anything.   in hindsight,  the back wall can be fitted flush along the edge of the side walls,  the roof line flush with the side wall edges,  with the bottom of the walls flush with the slots for the walkways.

 

I'll be back...........

Edited May 10, 2019 by popeye the sailor
spelling

[popeye the sailor]

sorry for the delay in my return..........had a big supper.......feel'in fat,  took a snooze on the couch.   continuing with what I was say'in......the reason I mention altering the assembly of the back wall,  is that the amount the cab is off at the rear wall,  is less that how much it's off at the front wall.   you will gain at least 1/8 of an inch,  but you will still need to cut back on that right side third step to cure the rest of the short coming.   I find that those two slots for the walkways are tooled too much.   in picture three,  note where the side walls sit........at the inner edge of the walkway tabs.   this means that those slots should only be that deep,  judging how the side walls run along the walkway from the front,  to the back.  the protrusion of the walkway looks about 1/16,  running parallel along the cab walls.

I went ahead and made those slots larger......now I need to fill them in somehow,  or there will be square holes there.  so....only as deep as the wall's thickness is required.   the half circle at the front wall has been adjusted as well.......I did that when I went to slide it in place earlier.   material needs to be removed at both sides where they meet the walkways......it seems more oval,  than circular.  trim a little at a time equally,  until it mates with the walkways....there still will be a gap......can't do anything about it,  unless you want to try filling it in.  trimming the base of the front wall will cause mismatching with the side walls.......figured I'd warn ya ahead of time about that pitfall.   filling it in seems the only remedy.....but I'm not going to worry about it....    I thought back........we all do in cases like this.........to see if we might have goofed up somewhere.   the walkways fit in their slots,  the floor fits flush along the inner edges of the walkways,  the Johnson bar is actually longer that the cab floor {where it locates}.......nope,  I don't believe there are mistakes in these areas.   ....hate it when stuff like this happens.  the roof is in two parts......the framing and the roof itself.   to judge if I had made some goof up with the cab,  I dry fitted the roof frame to see how it fit.

it sits inside the cab opening at the top...... the rear roof molding mates with the side moldings and the fit is pretty good.  note where the beam at the rear wall sits......outside the wall.   assembling the back wall flush with the side edges,  this beam will then be on the inside of the back wall.   again,  it's all the matter of that 1/8 of an inch.  by making this back wall adjustment,  I do believe you'll be saving yourself from doing what I'm having to do.

     the step is trimmed back.......

here is a view of the Johnson bar and the tab at the end of the walkway....the two causing the headaches....

after trimming the step until it fit,  there is still a short coming with the two 'L' tabs on the walkway,  where the front wall locates.   the back wall adjustment would have cured this.......it would fit fine.   but I chose to remove part of the 'L' and made it an 'I'

the outcome is a good one.......the cab fits now.   there is only a sliver gap at the base of the back wall......mainly due to slight warpage of the walkways,  which can be easily taken care of after the cab is firmly cemented into place.  I may remove the rest of those front tabs,  now that I know how the cab orients on the walkways.

the back wall will now butt up against the floor.......note the gap at the walkway tabs.  sorry if I sound like a broken record,  but I can't stress this stuff enough......if you want a good fit,  this is one of the problems you'll be dealing with.

it's not mated...but it will press into place........you can see how the side wall runs along the walkway.....evenly.   again......if you flush fit the back wall,  you can get away from altering the tabs at the front.

the left side fits fine.   you can see what looks like gussets at the ends of each step.  when I spoke about fitting the Johnson bar,  one of these is what it has to fit over.  even then,  it is too long for the area it fits in......strange it sticks out like this.  it is what it is   

an overhead view showing the typical layout.   I'll have to check and see what the interior color should be.  just glad all this is over and the cab sits squarely,  enclosing the cab area.

[Canute]

Denis, some nice fixes to the parts fit. Those older kits had issues there.

 

The left cab seat would probably not get much use by the fireman. He'd be on the deck plates, tossing fuel into the firebox and watching the water level gauges. The fireman was usually the most fit guy on the crew because of all the work he did.

 

Once you get the wheels on, the end caps on the pilot truck, the front set of wheels, would usually show some grease and oil ooze. Just dribble some black/brown around the caps, along with the faces of the wheels.

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Ken...........now that I've assembled the cab,  I think that cementing the back wall flush with the side walls,  will cure a lot of the issues.  at the same time,  remove those tabs on the side walls,  so they don't interfere with the seats.   also.....by doing this,  it will put that beam {rib} of the roof frame on the inside of the cab,  rather than the outside.  I have given thought towards drilling new holes for the canvas,  a bit higher,  so to cloud that issue {although it really doesn't hurt the model too much}.   this is the Round 2 model release in 2015.........I have a feeling that they didn't do any retooling on the molds,  so the original release may be plagued with the same problems.

 

thanks for the additional grunge tips........I'll include it when I do the rest of the paint

[popeye the sailor]

as with the S&M build,  here is the update I promised you folks........it's comprised of everything done between the tenth through the fourteenth.  for the first order of business........the cab was painted with the flat red.

I did fix the gaps at the walkway tabs.......no more spaces there.

there are grab handles along with a few other parts that need to be painted........so they were gathered and painted.  before I can add the roof to the equation,  the windows will be added.

it's not a clear picture,  but the arm rests were added and some grunge was dabbed on

the sand handles,  grab handles,  and coupler block were added next.

for some reason,  one set of grab handles were gold chromed.......I left them as they were.   I may grunge them up a little too.   due to the roof beam being outside of the cab,  I didn't bother to raise the height of the canvas door.

last but not least.......I began to assemble the bell bracket.

I'll put the shiny part on later,  after it's painted.

[popeye the sailor]

hello again.........here with another update on this fine piece of equipment.  thanks to all who looked in and hit the like button....I really appreciate it  

 

    I must admit.......I'm kick'in myself......I dropped the ball on a bit of detail.......what's worse,  I even reminded myself to do it    the session started with the roof......painting the underside and adding the whistle control lever.

then came a hurdle......cementing in the windows.   it wouldn't be a tough job,  but the lip around the windows isn't very pronounce.  this is nice for the overall installation and looks of the model........but it might be a nightmare for the modeler applying just enough cement to hold them in place.   I finished,  only coming out of it with a couple of spots of ooze.   I used the Testor's window maker,  so when it dries,  it will hardly be seen.

looking inside will give you an idea of how narrow the lip is.

I noticed that I hadn't put on some of the decals......on the back of the tender,  the number 3.....

...and on the head lamp {the picture was too blurry...worse than this one}.   I also put them on the cab.....

....and the number 3 on the sand dome.

I went on another search for more pictures......and that's when I made the discovery.    the interior of the cab was green!  of course,  it's too late now to paint it because of the windows {I'd never be able to do the in between areas around the windows}.....so I guess it will remain red.  what I could and did do though,  was these two black areas on both sides of the entrance.  the beam along the bottom was to be black as well,  but I opted to leave it red to offset these two areas.

then it was time to cement the roof assembly on.

I've seen others do a masterful job with these aspects.......I'm not one of them.  the round badge button that locates on the nose of the loco,  needs to be painted.   it was done using three colors....light pronza green,  flat red,  and gold.  the green is a white ensign color.....I think it looks very close to the original color.   it does need some touch up.......stuff like this is not my strong point.

it looks better in person { I think my camera is possessed by Murphy}   I've seen so many models of this train,  left with the gray plastic parts.   so far in the build,  I've had a hard time with that,  thinking that they should be of color......of application and functionality.   I think this is one of the pitfalls with models molded in multi colored plastic.   I get it.........this was done to attract more folks to buy the kit,  especially those who are not that great at painting.  as a young lad......I fell victim to that ploy,  only painting the detail that would stand out.   the internet has really been a boon to the hobby in this regard.......there is so much more to find now,  then it was back then.  paint schemes.....tutorials.......and sites like MSW......Pandora really came out of the box! {in a good way  }   the gray stuff has to go.........and what color would enhance this model....hmmmmmm?!?!?!  why more red!......of course  

*spoiler alert*    today's session is going to begin with cementing the cab in place   🚂   

[CDW]

The locomotive is looking very nice, Denis. I am beginning to appreciate how much work goes into an old vintage model like this. A lot of steps involved and it looks like not much is a "drop fit". Of course, this just adds to the modeling pleasure experience in some ways. 🙂

[lmagna]

Red or green it still is great looking work Denis.

[popeye the sailor]

well.......it's a newer kit from old molds.......I'm fairly certain that the molds were never retooled.  I'm sure both issues of kit have the same problems.  I do like older kits......there is a challenge to them.   the worst hurdle is the decals.

 

if I had thought of it.......I coulda looked this up and been ok.   oh well >shrug<

 

thanks for the good word gents........and thanks to those who hit the like button  

[popeye the sailor]

hello all     just a brief update on the General.  yes.......the cab has been cemented in place...I just need to touch it up a little.   I did touch up the badge and cement it in place as well.   it's not a great picture.........but it looks good in person.

I also used up the last bit of soot on the stack.......before it dried up and blew away.   I need to make some more.

[src]

That looks good Dennis. Too bad about the interior, still looks good. What are you using for soot?

Sam

[popeye the sailor]

thanks for the likes.........more is on the way {I promise}.   I've been devoting time in the S&M debacle,  and showing the landlord how I patched the pipe.

   I haven't gotten the pictures out of the camera yet.........likely to do more today,  I'll post them all later.

 

I had to look back in the log Sam.......I thought I posted the formula I use.   using flat colors,  I mix black,  white and battleship gray together til I get the consistency I want { I usually don't pre measure}.  for it to look even better,  I like to wait till the flat black becomes diluted with thinner.  this usually kills off the slight sheen that flat colors sometimes has.   not that one needs to do that........just add thinner to the mix til it becomes a wash.  when it dries,  it will not have the sheen and give off a totally dead look.

[src]

20 hours ago, popeye the sailor said:

I mix black,  white and battleship gray together til I get the consistency I want

Its like the Swiss and Fondue, everybody has their favorite recipe. Yours looks good.

I dont think it would work at the scales we work in here, but I have watched our scenic painters muddle, spatter, or drip their "mud", "grease" or whatever and then spray it with a Hudson Sprayer and water. Quite effective for some things. Again though at our scales I don't see that working well.

Sam

[amateur]

Just a question: did you use the red parts straight out of the box, or did you paint over the red?

 

Jan

[popeye the sailor]

the paint we use today have come a long way.   now we can buy bottles of rust,  grime, and dirt.   I bought some recently for an upcoming project.

 

back in the day,  I wouldn't paint over a same color plastic.  it's all part of the allure buying these large scale models.  now,  even smaller scale kit are coming this way........all with the aim that a person with lesser painting skills will buy the kit.   I'm still not an expert at painting,  but I have evolved with a different way of thinking.   it's not so much the color,  as it is the sheen of the bare plastic...I use flats quite a bit    I've painted everything...even the black......although I've yet to find anything that will match chrome,  so it is unnoticeable.  I'm also finding that the hue of the colored part doesn't look right...for ships it's worse.  what they envision teak should look right,  we can correct with paint.  the cab was a shinier red.......painting it dulled it out and turned it flat,  as I still wonder if gloss paint was around during this time period.  as I mentioned earlier,  I've seen finished models with all those gray parts unpainted.........it just doesn't look right to me.  I'm trying my best that this doesn't look like a toy when I'm finished......I hope I'm succeeding.

 

didn't get to do much yesterday........cripes,  I did more this morning,  than I've done my whole time off   not to mention I floated to different projects and did snippets of work.   I finally got storage for all those paints I needed to separate.  update coming up!

[druxey]

Sam: scenic painting techniques work in miniature. However, in place of a Hudson sprayer, a spatter tip on an airbrush achieves the same effect. The lo-tech alternative, but less easily controlled, is an old toothbrush!

[popeye the sailor]

I was rummaging around this morning in the middle of painting,  and I found this      good to see my 'ole friend Dudley again   

 

enjoy!

[popeye the sailor]

I'd better post this update before I die laughing........wish I could remember the name of the one about the Indian tribe.   as I mentioned,  kits with the different colored plastics made it easier for a model to be assembled unpainted.   the gray parts on this model was left unpainted on many of the finished kits I've seen.  I wish I had done this earlier...it looks so much better now with the cylinder chest caps painted.

before:

after:

I didn't want to put the pony truck wheels on just yet....but I'm going past this step now,  so I had better.   I don't want to find myself in a bind if I don't.   ........getting the wheel painted.

at this point,  the pony truck fenders were added to the model.

I continued with the General this morning  

[popeye the sailor]

I put my plumber's hat on today.........setting up the water supply lines with the associated valves.

the left side is a bit different.......

more painting done on some of the drive line parts,  along with the rest of the paint work for the wheels.

I wanted to do a red ring on the pony wheels,  but the drive wheels are molded in red plastic.........     should have more for ya in a bit   

[popeye the sailor]

I went a bit further on Friday........the pony wheels were added to the model.

I panted the parts for the pilot........or the 'ole west slang 'cow catcher'

assembled.......

....and added to the model.

still have the rubber band on it...for some reason,  it wanted to go crooked.  the fit wasn't too good either.

I added some more plumbing on the left side.

the rods that connect to the valve chest.........the beginnings of the drive assembly are being painted at this time - cross head assemblies and valve rods

more on these in the next session