# Progress pics of my Roundhouse Billy Kit



## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

Got started on my Roundhouse Billy kit today. I plan to make an African/Aussie bush engine out of him. I will be adding a small cow catcher/monkey/roo pusher on each end, a pair of huge Darjeeling Railway arc headlamps from Roundhouse(will be lighted as well) and a coal bunker on the rear of the cab using the bunker brass etch from the Lady Anne Kit hopefully. Today I got the frames and motion etch primered, painted, baked and assembled. A SSP Slomo inertia device was also fitted as this will remain a manual controled engine for now. I have left the grub screw loose so its not functional yet, I do not want the extra drag on the motion and cylinders till they are run in some first. A successful air test followed all of the assembly work. Next up is to drill and pin the return cranks and fit the cab foot plate and boiler so I can start running in the chassis on steam whist waiting for goodies from Roundhouse(they are on holiday till next week). Cheers Mike


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Looks like a good start. I'll be watching for further updates.


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

Todays progress pics on my Billy kit. We are now ready for a steam test. Plumbing is hooked up on both gas and steam, reversing quadrant hooked up. Boiler and boiler wrapper are painted and installed. I am working on cutting down one of the extra set of buffer plates that come with the engine. I do have the Billy style ones painted and baking right now so he can have something till I figure out how I want to cut the others down to just fitting across the frame rails to expose the cylinders.


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## Steve S. (Jan 2, 2008)

I have a silly question. What is the chain drive to the back drivers for? It's all looking very nice.


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

That is the drive for the SSP products Slomo inertia device Look on youtube for videos of how much better these little beasts perform with this in place. Switching cars at a realistic pace, no jack rabbit starts ect. Kind of like the Momentum on smaller trains or ones with DCC control, but in a mechanical form. I am running with the grub screw loose right now, so the device isnt doing anything yet. I didn't want the extra drag while I was fine tuning the valve timing and before I drilled and pinned the return cranks. After a couple of hours of running on blocks, I will tighten the grub screw and he will be ready for track trials. Mike the Aspie


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

I got the return cranks drilled and pinned a few minutes ago(I really hate that task!) I then replaced the curved weight shaft that spans the frame to shift the valve gear position to a piece of 3mm straight rod as the curve one would either hit the bottom of the boiler or the top of the Slomo device. So if your putting a Slomo in a 4 coupled Roundhouse, you will need to replace the curved cross shaft. I also touched up any chips in the motion work paint from fine tuning. His initial steam test went well with just some initial stiffness that was gone by the time the fuel ran out. Mike the Aspie


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

You are moving fast on that. Great job and great looking locomotive. I'm look forward to your mods.


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

It will slow down for a bit now, have to get more goodies from Roundhouse and Swift Sixteen in the UK, so that will take a couple weeks. Plenty of time to just keep running him on blocks to run in the chassis before the first steam up he will go to in early Feb at the NMRA show in Noblesville, IN. Being on shut down at work, has its benefits I guess, plenty of time to assemble this thing is one of them. Back to work next tuesday though! Mike the Aspie


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## Charles M (Jan 2, 2008)

I have often wondered why Roundhouse pins the cranks on their locomotives. When I rebuilt my Roundhouse " Katie " to a model of the Hunslet " Jack " , I set the valve timing and locked the screw down snug. I then used a toothpick and put a single small drop of " Blue Loctite " on the exposed end of the shaft and the return crank. The Loctite wicked into the crank and locked it onto the shaft. If I ever have to take things apart, the Loctite will come apart and I don't have to drive the fiddly little pins out of the return crank again. More than a year on, and things are still tight and the timing hasn't shifted. 

Charles M SA#74


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

My guess would be so newbies cannot knock it out of time, that would be the newbies that have no clue how to reset the timing should that happen. I never thought about wicking the lock tight. I did have to remove one pin as the crank slipped when I drilled it and make that valve short stroke. Its fixed now, there was enough of a burr that once I reset the crank and tightened the screw, it doesn't want to move. I will wick a drop of loctite in the morning, im off to bed now. Mike the Aspie


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

Got the timing pretty darn close, just painted the body green, roof is black, tank tops will be black once the body has cured till Friday and I get some more low tack painters tape to mask off the body. All the parts are baking in the over right now, so no pics yet. Going to go with Regner Euro lanterns on both ends and etched O&K plates to give her the complete Austrian/German look that could have exhisted both in mainland Europe or on an export loco from the pics I have found. I believe the Regner lanterns are cheaper than the big Darjeeling ones as well, keeping the railways head bean counter happy! I will still light them up. Mike the Aspie


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

Here is a pic of the test shot I did of the green I ended up using for the cab. excuse the mess below the engine. need to drop a cleaning bomb in my workshop/train room.


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## Nick Jr (Jan 2, 2008)

Mike, I too am watching and cheering right along. Nothing gives more pride than to see something you built running, and as is said "Nothing runs like a Roundhouse", I'm a big fan of their product. LG


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

Here are some more pics of my Billy, now with a cab and really sporting the "LGB" look now. Just needs lanterns and a driver figure. Will try to take a video of him running on blocks later this week. Mike the Aspie


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

Beautiful Mike, very nice work!


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Check me if I'm wrong, but I think you may have a gauge problem. 

Seriously, good lookin' loco.

Later,

K


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## Nick Jr (Jan 2, 2008)

K, after a second look, I got it. Great. LG


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Looking good! I'll be watching for the Aussie mods you mentioned.


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

I am working on raising funds for the extra goodies, a bit tapped out right now, my truck has been a cash hog lately, put almost 2K into it over the holidays, 8 new fuel injectors get installed tomorrow, already changed the primary and secondary vibration damper and a new starter earlier this month, and 2 brand new batteries 2 days ago. Atleast she starts in the cold now, just overfueling and hard starting as the injectors are wore out. I am not totaly sold on the green cab yet, the all black cab is more Aussie/bush looking than the LGBish color. Cab is back off right now while I do some more work inside the cab and run in the chassis on blocks. Mike the Aspie


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