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Any tips on building scratch built O-27 tinplate styled railroad cars and engines? I have found this http://www.littleglitterhouses...ingTinTrainCars.aspx article and will use some of the tips to build a car or two. Just wondering if anyone else has tried building any similar.

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Originally Posted by leikec:

Seems to me there was a thread with pictures of homebuilt tinplate not too long ago. Maybe 2 months old?

 

Jeff C

Yes, there was another thread about this topic. There two scratch-building directions, either to copy replicas of historic vintage toy trains or to manufacture you own trains out of sheetmetal, like I did..

Www.Saunalahti.fi/~likosjo/tinplate/tinplate.htm

Good morning…

 

“Nibbler” was not used to cut slot in coupler blank…but I did use “nibbler” to cut out coupler blank…

 

Here’s how I made slot…

 

Layout location of slot…Drill series of closely spaced, small holes in very straight line through coupler blank on layout line…Punch through remaining metal between holes with small straight tip screwdriver…True and clean up slot with an old fashioned “ignition points file“…(if you can find one)…

 

Note…it’s much easier to buy new couplers than make your own…but the challenge to me has always been making rather than buying…

 

My very best regards…Howard…

 

http://www.littleglitterhouses.com

 

 

Here's the nibbler

 

http://www.kleintools.com/cata...g-tools/nibbler-tool

 

and there are a few Chinese hand punch sets out there you can pick up for cheap just to play around with.

http://www.harborfreight.com/9...d-die-set-95547.html

I tried making a few Marx-type chassis and Brit O scale body parts. You can find some custom pics on www.marxtin.com Click the 'customs' tab on the right.

 

Best thing is to lay out on paper or Strathmore and get a mock-up made before ya start nibblin'. I used to save smooth tin cans for messing around but they are rarer now. As electroliner says, tinplategirl.com has flat sheets.

After that you can get into die-making and buying up old punch-presses and sell to the rest of us! 

http://www.tinplatetimes.com/p...oe%20Mania/mania.htm

Not really any trains but I grew up around metal working. If you get into this big time, price a small metal break(bender), and a real punch will take all the abuse you can give it. Fast, no drilling, circles, squares, etc.. Here is the smallest they make, mine(xx) is 45-50 years old, with a bench mount adaptor Roper-Whitney 

(I am just as likely to use a screwdriver on the thinner stuff

Last edited by Adriatic

I built a tinplate styled electric outline locomotive awhile back, but due to a lack of proper metal working tools I built it out of wood, styrene and PVC pipe! Totally free-style I used styling ques from prewar tinplate, including the std gauge Lionel 33 (no frame). Subtle weathering makes it look like it could be old to the average person.

 

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