Precision Scale Beacon pics?

Joe, the PSC online catalog for O scale diesel parts shows a drawing of the beacon on page 31.  It's not the best rendition, but better than nothing.  My normal go-to for PSC parts would be P&D, and they don't have photos on the website for parts.

Jim

Thanks Jim!

I have that catalog and I also go to P&D. I will order them and post later. #56205, -1,-2,etc

I thought I had ordered them a while back? I believe they were backordered and never showed up.

There's always some diesel that could use a beacon.

Hi Joe, I maybe looking in the wrong place but I just went threw a hole page of pictures of F40PH and didn't see any with a beacon.

I see 2 clear strobes on top of the cab in this pic

I should have said strobes?

I bow down as I am wrong! What are you going to use for strobes? You made me look at my Amtrak F40PH and sure enough there are strobes on top. really small ones! would have to be a really small LED.

Joe:

If you want to live dangerously, you could use white LEDs for the strobes. You can carefully file the end flat on a 3mm LED and you'll have the approximate shape. You could even paint the ridge black to simulate the mounting gaskets and drill a small hole for the leads. Add a flasher circuit and you're good to go. There's a site that makes very small boards to drive LEDs for MARS lights, etc. and I think they have a strobe kit for LEDs.

The general website for NGineering is here.

 The specific application for the F40PH is here.

Not the best pic. but if you want I can get you one on my dslr in the morning in sunlight. not a bad casting imo.

TJ, That pic is good enough for me! Thanks.

Matt, the MTH ps boards drive the strobes anyways. There's already amber LEDs poking thru the roof. I would like them to look better. I think even adding a ring at the base would have helped. I hope the new release from MTH will be better. I don't see them making any changes. So I would replace what's there for better looks.

 There are miniatronic strobes and beacons but I haven't seen them in person for O scale.

The best operating strobes are ones that use flashing blue LEDs. They really give that sharp strobe effect. I had 2mm blue LEDs installed on my 2        K-Line Amtrak F40's you can't see it in a still picture. 

Engineer-Joe posted:

I see 2 clear strobes on top of the cab in this pic

I should have said strobes?

I know where that shot was taken, I was just there this week  - the Depew, NY Amtrak station and beyond that is CP431 on the former NYC Water Level Route.   Back in the day... the Conrail Buffalo Dispatching offices used to be in the building in the background left of the train.  The Buffalo dispatching offices were relocated to Selkirk (Albany) New York prior to the split of Conrail (which is where they still reside today under CSX) .  Here is a shot of one of those dispatcher screens taken back in the early 90s.  Norfolk Southern Wabash 146 train is backing through CP Draw to double onto the remainder of its train sitting on the old NKP eastbound main before heading to Detroit across southern Ontario, CA with mostly auto parts in tow - many originating from the Ford Motor Co. Woodlawn Stamping plant located only few miles from CP Draw.

Here is a ground shot taken at CP Draw around the same time period as the shot above.  The Buffalo Central Terminal tower is visible in the background.  Here we have a westbound NS manifest train departing NS Buffalo Junction Yard headed to Bellevue, OH while an eastbound NS stack train heads across CP Draw and up the Bison Runner (the second white line up from the bottom right in the shot above)  to hand off to the D&H at their Buffalo SK Yard.  The D&H will then take this stack train to Binghamton, NY on the Conrail (former Erie RR) Southern Tier route via trackage rights where it will then be handed over to the NYS&W for the final leg into Elizabeth, New Jersey for unloading.  CP Draw was - and still is - a very busy place .

Scott K.

(heading back to) Austin, TX

precision scale

Joe, I got several from Pat a while back here is one of the 56205-2 parts with the Amber lens. As you noted Amtrak has two clear strobes which are slightly different.  I believe the PSC beacon is designed for a rotating effect, whereas the Amtrak is a strobe effect so Matt's idea may actually yield a more accurate representation.  You could always cut off the internal part of the PSC casting which is designed to represent the rotating part of the beacon, drill it out and got with an LED approach.

Joe,

The PSC unit will look too large on your locos, unless you model the Metra F40PHs which had two of the PSC types closer together on the cabs. I would consider going to Hobby Lobby or hobby shop to find tiny brass loops to be filed as a base for the strobes and maybe very thin tubing for body or just let the current glass stick out as the prototype, perhaps died blue. Should get you 95% of where you need to be. OR model the Metras units.

My 2 cents.

Ron H

I will still order a couple of them. At the least, I will use them on other engines. I wonder if they will look good on my G scale F40?

http://americanscalemodels.com...Ditch_Lights-Beacons

nothing is there right now. I will still send an email.

Joe, Let us know what Bill has to say about possible availability of a rotary beacon!