@Trainmstr posted:Looking forward to the project also. Note, the Centipede Babyface is a different face profile. You may not care as you are willing to deal with the sidewall taper. Just wanted to let you know if it “doesn’t look right” against pics. I too wish someone would make these shells available, hopefully via 3D printing. First Person Scale Models is considering it for a summer project. If interested please contact him, the more interest the better chance it will happen.
Considering what I'm attempting, and the scanty documentation available on the prototypes, there will be no rivet counting. Other than folks online, I doubt anyone who'll ever see it will have ever seen the original (heck, other than photos I'VE never seen the original). The main difference that I can see is the DRX-6-4-2000 and DR-4-4-1500's noses don't start curving in until past the front of the cab side windows, where the centipede starts curving in right in front of the cab door. The rest of the nose profile might differ slightly, but considering there aren't any models in O scale of the others (and how many widely distributed models of things like RS-3s are incorrect), I'm not sweating it.
As it is, I'll be off a few scale inches on the space between the cab window and cab door, but I want to be sure to leave enough material so that the cab door still operates. If it were a plastic shell, I'd work it closer, but since a die-cast shell is more difficult to work with, I'm not sweating it. I'll be moving the running numbers back to the correct position, and filling in the holes where the centipede's number boards attached.
May take a crack at 3D printing the pilot, if that doesn't turn out well, I can always pick up a couple of the Lionel ones, even if I have to wait until November to get them half off. I've talked to Zach about purchasing his DR-4-4-1500 model, but it's currently in a very rudimentary state.
