E-paw's kitbash summer '09 challenge

[e-paw]

Here we go now.I chose to bash a Walthers Carfloat apron in HO scale.It was a partially assembled (poorly) and damaged kit I picked up some time ago for a steal, Perfect kitbash fodder. I will have to "unglue" most of the kit somehow to get all the parts to line up properly. The Headhouse and steal pear will have to go,They will be back dated to some thing a little less modern looking. the apron rail will be electrified and a system for getting power to the barge will be added because I intend to move some small locos over the water also.    
Because of the nature of this bash I'll need to build it in place. So first up is to prep the layout where it is to be installed.    
That is the future site of the Susquehanna river. I first figured out the height of the "high water mark" and build the river bed from 1/2 inch ply wood. It was then covered with a layer of Durham's water putty and painted a dark green.    

[e-paw]

Next I put the apron in place to see how it would fit. I made some reference marks for a card stock backing that will become the retaining wall that keeps the Susquehanna out of Catawissa the western extent of my mainline.    
   
This will serve as flat area for me to install some coffee stirrers that were stained and distressed. they were cut into scale 10 foot lengths and glued to the backing.That makes up the first part of the retaining wall, pilings and other details will be added later. So now on to some real kitbashing.    

[eightyeightfan1]

Looks like you got a great project going there.
Neat idea using popsicle sticks for the wall.

[e-paw]

Lets start on the apron.I had to disassemble it as much as possible,Some of the pieces were put on backwards by the original owner..    
Next I got everything glued up so it was square, straight, plumb, and level. this part of the kit will remain pretty much unchained, Just some paint and weathering when it's time.I started on the counter weights at this point also. I don't like the way Walther's attaches them to the cable from the head house with string just coming out of the top of it, I'll come up with a better way later. For now the putty that fills in the joints needs to dry.    
The next step was to move on to the bridge. I had to fabricate one of the triangle shaped braces because one was missing from the kit. ( not to hard at all.)     I'll cover up those round marks from the molding process later.

[e-paw]

Then I decided to work on the way that I was going to get power from the bridge to the car float. I wanted a way that was hidden from view and not be some clunky cable that I would have to hide. After some thought I came up with this.     I cut a grove in the hold down pins that connect the bridge to the barge and glued a section of brass rod in it. Next I soldered up some wipers that fit in under them where they slide out of on the bridge.     They make contact with the hidden rod when the hold down pins are extended out to lock the car float in place. That will in turn make contact with another set of contacts on the barge (when I put that together) basically a mirror image of what I have here, bringing power out to it. When it was all put together it looks like this.     The other end of the wire will be soldered to the under side of the rail on the apron. All of the tracks on the carfloat system are to be on one block, I am using plain old cab control and not dcc. If I was to change over this wiring would work out just fine for dcc also.

[e-paw]

The last thing for today is the supporting hinge for the bridge. I had to rework it a little because I am not using the 2 steal pears that come with the kit.     It will eventually look like poured concrete.

[nachoman]

Great start. I can see there is going to be some stiff competition for this contest!

[upnick]

Look forward to seeing more progress on this one very interesting project

[ocalicreek]

Excellent! Good 'ole Durham's water putty. Nice choice for the river color as well, btw.

Galen

[Ralph]

Nice! Looking forward to more.
Ralph

[Trucklover]

Looking good I like this idea, and im really looking forward to seeing it completed

[e-paw]

Well I changed my mind , Just couldn't leave well enough alone and decided to add an operators shed half way up one side of the of the steelwork. I glued up some I-beams and u-channel to support the new structure.    


next I added a pulley system to the counter weights to give them some more heft.     They are just some and scrap triangular shaped braces glued together with some washers as the pulleys.

In order to hide the round dimples on the inside edge of the bridge section I cut some U-channel to fit and glued them in place over the offending spots.    

[e-paw]

On to the head house.... This part I tossed around a little, just wasn't to sure of what to do.I looked at some pictures of other aprons to get some Ideas. I found some that were completely devoid of this structure, just with 2 exposed wheels over the counter weights. Although interesting they kind of looked not right to me and unfinished looking. I saw plenty wooden ones that looked cool (nice and weathered), but there is already lots of wood in the seen with the retaining wall and pilings. I realy did not like the corrugated steel and wanted to change it around somewhat. I thought that concrete would look good and would tie in well with the coalling tower that I built, but could not find any built this way. I could not see any reason why it could not be built like this so that is the way it will be.     I used a file to remove the ribs and textured the plastic with some course sand paper.It's the same technique I used on the coalling tower and was pleased with it.

Here are the major subassemblies ready to paint I'll try to get to that tomorrow.    

[Trucklover]

excellent work!! i love the counterweights and the pulley's on them!!

[e-paw]

Before I painted the sub assemblies I decided to make provisions for some lighting. It would be hard to hide the wire in such an open structure so I tried to make them look like electrical conduite. I glued them to the inside of the iron work in straight runs from top to bottom to simulate a buried feed to the apron.    
Then it is off to the paint shop. All the parts got a few coats of either Polly Scale empire green or aged concrete. The same as my coaling bridge.    
while that dried I started to work on the support for the side fo the bridge that is in the water. I started by carving a block of foam to shape and gluing some stained dowels to the side of it that faces the apron bridge. The rest will be covered with rip raft and dirt.