A Bachman Big Hauler on a diet
1919 opened with the Allegheny Valley
Railroad anticipating great things. The War to End All Wars had ended
the previous November, business was good, and increased passenger
revenues meant they needed heavier motive power than their older 19th
century Moguls could provide.
An inquiry was sent to Balwin in Philadelphia. Most surprisingly, they had a suitable locomotive in stock. A wartime order for a far East export 42" gauge 2-6-0 had been cancelled after the locomotive had been partially constructed. So #12 was delivered to the AV at Kiskiminetas Jct on a flatcar on March 22, 1919. Her large drivers made her especially suited for hauling the twice daily Flyer between Verona and Emlenton.
When the AV discontinued passenger service in 1939 #12 was relegated to yard service in Oil City, a job for which she was not well suited. In 1951 she just happened to be in the shops getting a rebuilt firebox when the management decided to plan a special for the line's Centennial the following spring. Work on her was hastened, and she was given the name Wm. Otto to honor the former director that had saved the line in the 1890's. But fate conspired against the railroad, and the special never took place .
When the decision was made in mid-1957 to begin tourist and railfan service the following year, #12 was the natural choice to back up Mallet #8. She had seen little service since her 1951 rebuild, and, frankly, the operating department felt they could gladly spare her. She can now often be seen on weekends during thesummer doing what she did best, pulling passenger trains.
An inquiry was sent to Balwin in Philadelphia. Most surprisingly, they had a suitable locomotive in stock. A wartime order for a far East export 42" gauge 2-6-0 had been cancelled after the locomotive had been partially constructed. So #12 was delivered to the AV at Kiskiminetas Jct on a flatcar on March 22, 1919. Her large drivers made her especially suited for hauling the twice daily Flyer between Verona and Emlenton.
#12 pulls the last regularly scheduled passenger train, Nov 1, 1939
When the AV discontinued passenger service in 1939 #12 was relegated to yard service in Oil City, a job for which she was not well suited. In 1951 she just happened to be in the shops getting a rebuilt firebox when the management decided to plan a special for the line's Centennial the following spring. Work on her was hastened, and she was given the name Wm. Otto to honor the former director that had saved the line in the 1890's. But fate conspired against the railroad, and the special never took place .
#12 in an advertising photo for the 1952 Centennial
When the decision was made in mid-1957 to begin tourist and railfan service the following year, #12 was the natural choice to back up Mallet #8. She had seen little service since her 1951 rebuild, and, frankly, the operating department felt they could gladly spare her. She can now often be seen on weekends during thesummer doing what she did best, pulling passenger trains.
About the Model
#12 started out as a Bachmann Christmas 4-6-0 that got wrecked
(dropped) before it was ever run. It was slightly modified in the
following rebuilding, but I never particularly liked it. It was
really just too big to look good on my layout.During the early fall of 2010 I went to
move the locomotive , when it tumbled AGAIN, from a height of about 6
feet. Which destroyed the cab and undid all my work. Now I had a nearly
new locomotive that was just good for parts..... or was it? I had
a NoS Delton cab and boiler shell in my scrapbox, so why not build
something I could use?
Cutting the cast in boiler bottom off the chassis with a Dremel saw and shortening the chassis took the better part of an evening. The cylinders were relocated back nearly touching the first set of drivers and the pilot shortened.
Cutting the cast in boiler bottom off the chassis with a Dremel saw and shortening the chassis took the better part of an evening. The cylinders were relocated back nearly touching the first set of drivers and the pilot shortened.
The crank pin was relocated to the third
axle so that the valve gear could be retained.- which involved
lengthening the rods by about 3/8" - and a Bachman pilot wheel was
fitted to the Delton pony truck.
While driving a 6 coupled
locomotive from the third axle was not common, at least on the narrow
gauge, it did happen in prototype practice. As this builder's
photo shows
The Delton cab and modified boiler fit
this shortened chassis pretty well. The Bachmann bell, generator, sand
dome, piping and etc. were re-used.
Full handmade cab piping was rescued from the trashed 10 wheeler as well,
A steam dome was fabricated from a pvc pipe cap, some 1/4" brass strip, and detail castings. Since #12 will be used in passenger service, she rates a trackside Details chime whistle. Freight hogs on the AV get plain bell singles.
The Bachmann tender was too big for the new locomotibe, so I revived a Vanderbilt tender shell that U had previously constructed from a Delton base, HLW tank car, plexi and wood, and using the Bachmann trucks
Thanks for looking!
Take me back to the AV pages
Full handmade cab piping was rescued from the trashed 10 wheeler as well,
A steam dome was fabricated from a pvc pipe cap, some 1/4" brass strip, and detail castings. Since #12 will be used in passenger service, she rates a trackside Details chime whistle. Freight hogs on the AV get plain bell singles.
The Bachmann tender was too big for the new locomotibe, so I revived a Vanderbilt tender shell that U had previously constructed from a Delton base, HLW tank car, plexi and wood, and using the Bachmann trucks
A literal "2 cent" water hatch. It is 2 pennies, styrene and wire.
Test running, October 2010. It has
10 pick-up points spead out over about 15" so it ran well even though I
hadn't cleaned the track in weeks. Bill Otto was my fiancee Kim's
first husband. He died young from a siezure. I decided to surprise her
by making him an important director in the history of my AV, and that
naming #12 after him would be a nice way to honor his memory as
well. The locomotive is now firmly in her posession, I just get
to borrow it for photos once in a while
Thanks for looking!
Take me back to the AV pages