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

[popeye the sailor]

a very interesting video Kevin........thanks for posting it    I'm sure cleaning soot is a lot less maintenance than cleaning ash from coal or wood     I meant to get this model finished and buttoned up by this time.  I did do a little on the General,  there are two pairs of foot steps that go on each side of the front and rear of the loco.   I had to let them set for a while.........got tied into the Arizona build,  and this is as far as I got.  I hope to have the two joined by day's end  

getting the train upside down took a little thought.......especially this late in the build.  too many parts could have gotten broken off.

 

thanks for the kind comments and the likes  

[popeye the sailor]

as promised,  the finish is at hand for this project.  it's time to join the two together.   the pin that connects then wasn't the hard part,  although during the finish assembly,  it kept wanting to pull out.  I gave it a dab of CA to keep it from happening.  the water tubes were another sticky wicket........being very stiff {stiffer than I thought},  it gave me fits that they might break the plumbing free.   they still might somewhere down the road.......cross the bridge when it occurs.  after the pin was set in place,  the chains were hooked up.

I drilled out the water hoses to make connecting them easier.

....and then came the buzz kill..........the cover plate.

....and this concludes the model........it is finished!   gallery pictures are to follow  

[Richmond]

 

[popeye the sailor]

here are the gallery pictures.  a huge thanks to all who followed along,  and for all the suggestions you all gave.   they were a big help.  thanks to you as well Ken for your persistence about the wood.......the plastic parts that would have made up the wood load are languishing at the dump as we speak     I'm glad I decided to take the plunge,  and do it.......I like it so much better    it came with it's own plaque........I was going to write Popeye on it,  but posterity wouldn't know me from a hole in the wall,  if I did  

the reflection from everything around it make sit hard to read: Denis J. Wenzel

I don't even recall showing a picture of the head lamp in place

I had fun building him.......uncovered a couple of quirks along the way.   should anyone build this model,  be sure to use very flexible hoses.  again.......thanks to all who followed along  

[popeye the sailor]

OMG Richmond.........haven't seen anything 'Buster Keaton'  in quite a while!      the collapsing bridge was pretty cool.......so was the mortar!     thanks!

[CDW]

Love it. Came out soo nice. A beautiful display piece.

[Richmond]

1 hour ago, popeye the sailor said:

OMG Richmond.........haven't seen anything 'Buster Keaton'  in quite a while!      the collapsing bridge was pretty cool.......so was the mortar!     thanks!

Its his deadpan look that always gets me. Funny guy

 

I think he did all own stunts - some pretty dangerous situations in that small segment alone.

[Kevin]

lovely build, well done

[Canute]

Denis, that turned out very well. Locos back then were real beauties; the builders and owners were proud of their creations. This one fits in well with those old engines.

[Tom E]

Awesome subject

Awesome build

Awesome outcome!!!!!

 

Tom E 

[thibaultron]

A model to be proud of indeed!

[hof00]

Looks awesome!!

A great piece of 19th Century American history.

 

(Wots next?)

 

Cheers and Regards,

 

Harry.

[popeye the sailor]

thanks to every one for the wonderfully nice comments..........thanks also for the likes as well    I'm really glad you folks enjoyed following along.   what's next?.........aside from finishing a few outstanding projects {some of many},  I do have a couple that {to me} are unique.  I could do the Lindberg Concord Stagecoach with figures and horses.......or I could start one I received just this past Friday.  it's an HO scale model of the Thomas Point Shoals lighthouse.  it has a lighted beacon and looks really cool!  .......quite a few parts for a small structure.   I've never built an HO building model before....quite taken with it when I saw it  

    for now.....the Arizona.......back to the Sox & Martin {still ongoing}....and then the Vendetta.  wood is calling me too........

[Old Collingwood]

Well done denis  -  what a lovely piece of work  certainly should be pride of place in your home.

 

OC.

[lmagna]

Great work on a unique subject Denis. Certainly worth signing.

 

Congratulations

[src]

Well done Dennis!

ANd the wood, I am lichen it!!..... Sorry couldnt resist.

sam

[popeye the sailor]

ohhh........the likes have grown!    thank you to those who have looked in....I'm glad you like it.   it's really not a bad kit....got it for Christmas,  so I have no idea what the admiral paid for it.   I did see one on the oldmodelkits site,  but I'm sure it can be found out there on the world wide web.    I didn't run into too many complete build logs either,  so I hope I did a good job with the assembly.   I've got a hankering to look for one of the German rail guns.........I believe there were two of them......definitely would make for an interesting log   

 

thanks OC,  Lou,  and Sam.........painted or not,  I'm gonna have to put up the addition to the shelving I did in the living room.   the addition will likely give me two more shelves.   the Arizona is next to be finished....I hope I can get 'er done quick.......I really want to move on  

[gene1]

Denis, Your General build is the best I have ever seen. I am going to be 89 in 2 months & still am building models. I started before Dec. 7 1941 and still love it. My general I just bought arrives tomorrow. My first HO engine back in 1954 was the Mantua General & I still have a newspaper clipping of the layout I built to run it on. I am excited to start  the big General.

 I built at least 5 more big layouts , & about everything else. Right now I am doing the big HMS Victory & some Carriers from Midway. I had a friend in school, older then me , who joined the navy right after Pearl Harbor & was on the Yorktown at Midway. He made it thru the war OK. I would love to talk to you sometime as you are really a great builder. I have a lot of questions for you. 

 

    Thanks again,   Gene

[Mirabell61]

Very nice work Denis,

 

Nils

[CDW]

Just now, gene1 said:

Denis, Your General build is the best I have ever seen. I am going to be 89 in 2 months & still am building models. I started before Dec. 7 1941 and still love it. My general I just bought arrives tomorrow. My first HO engine back in 1954 was the Mantua General & I still have a newspaper clipping of the layout I built to run it on. I am excited to start  the big General.

 I built at least 5 more big layouts , & about everything else. Right now I am doing the big HMS Victory & some Carriers from Midway. I had a friend in school, older then me , who joined the navy right after Pearl Harbor & was on the Yorktown at Midway. He made it thru the war OK. I would love to talk to you sometime as you are really a great builder. I have a lot of questions for you. 

 

    Thanks again,   Gene

Hi Gene

 

I have seen your model ship work and I hope you might consider sharing some of your work here on MSW. 

For anyone who has not yet seen Gene's work, you are going to be in for a real treat. 🙂

Gene is a humble guy but he is also a great modeler. Happy to see you here, Gene.

[Shotlocker]

Doggone it Denis, I have four...no, five, ships that I swore I'd finally finish and you had to go and build that beautiful model of the The General...grrrrr, now

I want to build it as well! Restrain...must restraaaiiinnn....

[gene1]

CDW, Thanks for the compliment, I would be glad to put on pictures. I really meant what I said about Denis's General post. It was great all the way thru. I read everything and was very happy to learn a whole lot for my build of the General. I really loved train models all my life. I will even put some pictures of them on if that is ok. I built a lot of wood ships & riverboat back some years ago. 

 

   I was big on Riverboats too I was scratch building the Betsy Ann from plans I got from an architect in California. His grandfather owned & was Captain  on the Betsy. She is a neat little sternwheeler from 1898.  I will have to learn how to post pictures tho.

   I have to say again Thanks to Popeye for such a great post on the General. I know it will save me a bunch of time.  His build & pictures were both super. I am back to using super & great because old people forget words quicker than anything.      Gene   

[popeye the sailor]

thank you Gene1 and welcome to the community    glad to be of help any way I can.......just PM me and I'll give you my email address.   thanks to every one who've recently looked at the General....it was a really fun project and I had a great time building him    there are a couple to things to watch out for though,  and I hope I showed a good remedy for them.  one thing to remember.......the cab interior is green    by all means.....start a log so we all can view you progress....I'm sure I can speak for all.........we love eye candy!   

 

I'm the same way shotlocker........every time I see something interestingly different,  my mind starts to wander.  if I don't catch myself,  I could end up on another journey    anything that lands on the table is fair game 

[nino]

Popeye,

  Thanks for a great Build-Thread.  I have been following along. Somehow I never realized plastic kits of Trains were available. You have enlarged my horizons.

 

And really nice work on this older kit.

 

    Nino

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Nino.........there aren't a lot of them,  but yes,  they've been around for quite a few years.  I'd love to get another one........they are a really neat project.

[Landlubber Mike]

Awesome work Popeye!  I think my dad built this many years ago (or a similar subject).  Brings back memories of when I was little and watching him put it together.

[popeye the sailor]

thanks mike.......I wonder if the older kit was a better fit    there were a few bumps,  but it does make for a really nice model.......I put up another shelf in the living room for it.   I tried to convince the admiral that another,  done in a different color scheme,  would compliment the other end of the shelf..........she didn't buy it       I appreciate ya look'in in and the nice comment  

[CDW]

Our admirals may have been born on a Friday, but it wasn't last Friday. 😄

[popeye the sailor]

mine knows the way my mind works..........I slipped up and told her my thoughts on the B 17.   she wasn't too receptive on that idea either      

[gene1]

Denis, (Popeye) You gave me a lot of help & the best building post ever on building the General, Now I would like to give you some ideas to get back on the General kit again.  Old Model Kits has a small forum & a good post on building the 2 Loco's that met in Utah in 1869. It was by a man ,I believe named Frank Leidek & he did a super job. 

            I did them both & had a super fun 4 months doing both. I learned a lot & added even more than he did ,I will do a post after this on this Forum today or tomorrow. Here are a couple pictures. I will have to relearn how to post pictures.

                                                           Gene