4-4-0 The General - Looking for Assembly Instructions Booklet

[RiViT]

Hi All,

 

This is my first time posting to this forum, so "Hello!"

 

I'm a 3D modeler (using Blender) intent on building a 4-4-0 steam locomotive a la The General. I've got some of the larger bits done, but now that I'm getting more and more into details, I'm finding that references are dwindling or are just hard to make out on the photos I have.

 

What I'm currently wrestling with is the boiler mounts, how the spring gear sits between the frame/drive wheels and the boiler. In other words, how exactly the boiler is attached to the spring gear and thus onto the frame/drive wheels. Every reference photo I've found (naturally) includes the drive wheels and they hide the mounts. I've reasoned out that there are L-brackets of some kind welded onto the boiler that somehow are attached to the spring gear (I got this from studying drawings in "Modern Locomotive Construction" by J.G.A. Meyer) but the exact details still elude me. So, I'm hoping to find something that will get me past this roadblock and on into the rest of the build.

 

What has me puzzled is that the L-brackets shouldn't be strong enough to hold the weight of the boiler. I'm thinking there should be a cradle of some kind, but none of the drawings in Meyer's book show that.

 

In my search for references, I came across (on eBay) a kit branded as MPC (or AMT, depending on the era it was released). It's museum-quality, so I'm thinking there should be some solid information in the drawings included in the assembly instructions. I've emailed the company to see if I can buy the assembly instructions booklet, but it's been a while and I've had no reply. The kits on eBay are out of my price range (doing this on the cheap-cheap) and therefore I'm looking elsewhere.

 

I know Revell makes some of their assembly instructions available for free online, but so far I've found nothing for this particular kit on the Round2 site (the current licencee of TOMY products which now owns the rights to MPC kits). The TOMY site, of course, doesn't cater to this type of thing at all.

 

So, I'm wondering if someone out there has a copy of the assembly instructions for this kit and would be kind enough to scan the pages for me. I can cover any costs incurred via PayPal.

 

The MPC version is: 1-2001 "The General 4-4-0 American Standard Wood-Burning Steam Locomotive" and...

 

The AMT version is: 8124 "The General 4-4-0 American Standard Steam Locomotive."

 

I'm fairly certain of the kit numbers, but not 100%.

 

Or, if that's not possible (or practical) perhaps someone knows of a reference photo that shows the boiler mounted onto the spring gear.

[Russell Niles]

Hi there

I can help you out with this. I have the instructions sheets in my desk. Drop me a line off list.

 

Russ

r_niles1@juno.com