# Accucraft Forney 7.5" Gauge



## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

Yup, you read that right.

I just noticed today that Accuraft updated their website with the actual engine instead of the "its in development" comment.

Here is a link to the specs:

http://accucraftrideon.com/brochure/AT RIDEON FORNEY KS-130 [WEB] 2011-01-20.pdf


Its pretty impressive engine - especially since you know you are going to be getting a quality product (kind of hard in this gauge when you are dealing with a lot of used engines / home built).


Priced decently reasonable too, going to be a great engine for new people to the hobby.


Wish they had a weight listed, this is a very important peace of information in determining the power of an engine.


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

*RE: Accucraft Forny 7.5" Gauge*

Why would they blow up a Ruby!!!! And still kept the tiny rear truck, thats got to support 200lbs now... 

Hard sell at 20k when there are so many locos for sale on Discover live steam and the other ride on clubs/websites. 

I dont understand the 2.5" scale though. 

Look at the measurements 

Scales out to be 28' long, 10.4' tall and 6.9' wide. 

The copper boiler is also trouble for the big ride on guys. Who brings 50 gallons of distilled water to the track. I see the guys with the OS locos at the track dragging in gallons of water but they are small boilers on the 1" locos. 

Though it looks like they used the Stevenson from the Alice. Now it they bring that into gauge 1...


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

*RE: Accucraft Forny 7.5" Gauge*

Posted By Kovacjr on 24 Feb 2011 04:39 PM 
Why would they blow up a Ruby!!!! And still kept the tiny rear truck, thats got to support 200lbs now... 

Hard sell at 20k when there are so many locos for sale on Discover live steam and the other ride on clubs/websites. 

I dont understand the 2.5" scale though. 

Look at the measurements 

Scales out to be 28' long, 10.4' tall and 6.9' wide. 

The copper boiler is also trouble for the big ride on guys. Who brings 50 gallons of distilled water to the track. I see the guys with the OS locos at the track dragging in gallons of water but they are small boilers on the 1" locos. 

Though it looks like they used the Stevenson from the Alice. Now it they bring that into gauge 1... 
Its 2.5" scale because it is a narrow gauge engine, making it 2.5" scale on 7.5" gauge track.

As for the price, it is a little bit more, but you get a brand new engine that has been built by a professional company. Many of the engines under 20k are either MUCH smaller than this engine, are very old, or any other number of things.

Truck size is not really a problem, a standard set of freight car trucks can easily support 1,000 lbs (500 lbs per truck).

You do not need distilled water for a copper boiler.


As for the measurements, why do they seem strange to you? Seems reasonable to me 


EDIT: forgot to mention that on a properly balanced engine the lead and trailing trucks should only have enough weight on them to keep them on the track and guide the engine, all the weight should be on the drivers.


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

O... a ride-on Ruby;-), overwhelmed Zubi


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

Posted By zubi on 24 Feb 2011 05:53 PM 
O... a ride-on Ruby;-), overwhelmed Zubi guess you would have to be into this gauge to understand the significance of a well done mass produced engine.


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Posted By ChaoticRambo on 24 Feb 2011 06:14 PM 
Posted By zubi on 24 Feb 2011 05:53 PM 
O... a ride-on Ruby;-), overwhelmed Zubi guess you would have to be into this gauge to understand the significance of a well done mass produced engine.

Dear ChaoticRambo, As it is done for/with Maxitrak, I expect it will indeed be done well. But why, why, why..., does it have to look like RUBY!!! Well, anyway, let's hope it will only inherit the look and not the running characteristics of it's prototype...) Best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi


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## Dwight Ennis (Jan 2, 2008)

I suspect the reasoning was to produce an entry-level LARGE ride-on loco at a reasonable price. The OS Mogul certainly wasn't/isn't cheap and that's a kit, not r-t-r. Additionally, it's smaller, being a SG locomotive. The OS Shay comes in at 20K for the kit also (the last time I looked - probably more than that now if it's still available).


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

No Zubi a 20K Ruby. Thats what bothers me so much about it is its a blown up Ruby. The width seems too narrow and it seems too long per forney drawings Ive looked over. But again the Accucraft G1 Forney is based on a Ruby chassis not a exact prototype. But to base a ride on loco seems silly when there are Baldwin drawings for many Forneys available. Just my opnion... 

As for distilled water in a copper boilker yes it is required. 

My friend just bought a 2.5" 2-6-0 mogul never fired and beautifully built and painted. The price....equal to an Accucucraft T1. 


Here is a clip from another site which is a reply from Roundhouse. 
Asked Roundhouse Engineering about 'water types' their reply sums it up pretty well. 

Use distilled or filtered rain water if you live in an area where the tap water is anything but soft. 

Roundhouse quote.............. 

Here is our 'water' information straight from our website; 

Well, water is just water isn't it?. 
Actually no, it's not quite that simple. 
Our miniature steam boilers are made mostly of copper, with some bronze and silver solder and there are also brass steam fittings for the steam to negotiate before it exits to atmosphere. Although all these items are made from non-ferrous metals and therefore do not rust, they are subject to chemical attack in other ways. Here is a quick run down of the common sources of water with their pros and cons. 
Tap water - in soft water areas, this is fine but in hard water areas it can quickly lead to a build up of 'lime scale' on the inner surfaces of the boiler, fittings and pipe work. The easiest way of establishing what your water is like is to look inside your kettle. If it's thick with white 'lime scale' deposits, avoid using it. 
Rain water - free of charge and quite good if you can get sufficient quantity. It must be filtered to get all the dirt, grit and other crap out of it and the filters used by home brewers and wine makers does an excellent job. 
De-ionized water - this is often sold for use in steam irons and the general opinion amongst the small scale live steam community is that it should not be used. Because of the way it is 'purified', it can cause long term problems by slowly removing zinc from the brass fittings - commonly called de-zincification. 
Purified water - tricky one this, as it is not always clear how purification has taken place. Shops that sell it will variously tell you it is de-ionized, or distilled. If you can't be sure that it is distilled, don't use it. 
De-humidifier water - another good source. A de-humidifier is a bit like a fridge in reverse, and the water that collects in the tank is quite safe to use. 
Refrigerator/deep freezer ice - good. It is basically moisture in the air that has frozen and once thawed out is good to use if you can get sufficient quantity. 
Distilled water - the best water you can use. Unfortunately, it is difficult to get hold of. If buying distilled water, be very sure that it actually is. Some retail outlets will sell 'purified' or 'de-ionized' water (for steam irons or car batteries) and tell you it is distilled but it is actually quite different. 
You will probably find that a combination of these will supply all your needs but if you store or stock pile collected water, be sure to filter it well before use and change the containers from time to time. If not, you will find algae and other deposits forming in the water which will cause steaming problems. Dirt, algae and other debris can cause the water to foam as it boils and this will cause priming to the cylinders and syphoning at the safety valve. 

With regards to sourcing the water, distilled is becoming harder and harder to find which is why we recommend people to use filtered rainwater....it's cheap and there's generally plenty of it around! 

unquote..............


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Dwight, OK, Ruby silhouette apparently has some appeal;-) To be fair, OS Forte looks quite peculiar too... But I was hoping for something looking more, well..., like this https://vault1.secured-url.com/reeves2000/shop_item.asp?sub_cat_id=142 Best, Zubi 
PS Jay, I LOVE water, let's talk about water!!


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

Yes, you a 100% correct, for gauge 1 live steam, the difference between that and 7.5" gauge is huge.

First off let me start of by saying that almost all engines use copper boiler tubes, and some FULL SIZE European engines used copper boilers because of its better heat transfer. 


Now, I have been around the hobby literally my entire life, and almost all clubs provide water straight from a hose (obviously depending on the location depends on the site, our club for instance has water straight from city supply). Many people simply put this water straight into their tender (and boiler), others will use a type of cheese cloth to filter out any larger particles. The only thing some cautious people will do is add a chemical to the water (a TINY little drop, like the size of a ball pen point) to keep the minerals in suspension. When you do this, all you do is blow down the engine every half hour to an hour and your all set. 



In fact, this is exactly what one of our good friends does with his steam engines, and he is a full size steam locomotive engineer.


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Zubi how about a 3.75" Maine Forney. After all Maine was 2' I still have my eyes on that 2.5" Unitah that the owner of Roll Models now ownes. Saw a video I think from Train Mountian. She is giant!!! Makes the K36 look small.


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Jay, this is exactly IT: https://vault1.secured-url.com/reeves2000/shop_item.asp?sub_cat_id=142 .... 1/3 scale version of the Bridgeton and Harrison #7, Almost twice as long as Accucraft ride-on Ruby. But a lot could be achieved with some kitbashing;-0... Dreaming Zubi 
PS actually, my ultimate dream is 7.5 inch Hunslet, this 18" Hunslet (Jack or Gwen), and no other: http://www.maxitrak.co.uk/getloco.asp?loconum=55


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

BTW Jay, you mentioned a magic word: UINTAH, Zubi


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

Do you have the link to either pictures of video of the 2-6-6-2 in 7.5" gauge?

I would love to see it, searched for it, couldn't find anything.


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## Spule 4 (Jan 2, 2008)

Dunno, sent it to a friend that is a 7.5 steam guy that was impressed, then shocked by the low price.


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

Posted By Dwight Ennis on 24 Feb 2011 07:40 PM 
I suspect the reasoning was to produce an entry-level LARGE ride-on loco at a reasonable price. The OS Mogul certainly wasn't/isn't cheap and that's a kit, not r-t-r. Additionally, it's smaller, being a SG locomotive. The OS Shay comes in at 20K for the kit also (the last time I looked - probably more than that now if it's still available). Dwight - I just checked the price of the O.S. 7.25" gauge Mogul kit here in UK.

It's £27,995.00.

That's $45,350.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Pretty expensive fun, albeit with a beautiful end-product. No wonder I've never seen one here.

Whinemeal, details of the new AccuCraft ride-on Forney - courtesy of Andy at Maxitrak UK -

UK versions will have a *UK-built WELDED* copper boiler.

US versions will have a *Chinese-built silver-soldered* copper boiler

UK price will be about £10-12K for a KIT and £12-14K RTR - the first not that much different from the US price.....

Cliff has one right now, I'm told by Andy. There will soon be one or two here in UK - down at Maxitrak's HQ in Southern England.

I think it's pretty cute! 

Best

tac
http://www.ovgrs.org/
Supporter of the Cape Meares Lighthouse Restoration fund


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

A dealer that was demoing the OS mogul before it was put up for sale was at our club track and I got an opportunity to run it. It is a very nice looking engine, and well built, but TINY. I am sure it would be good for a small railroad, but around where I am, all the railroads have at least a mile of track or so.


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

...sigh..................................................

tac
www.ovgrs.org


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)




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## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Don't know whether this would help, but I used a NACO water softner ball every-other time I filled the tender on the Crown Metal Products 4-4-0 at Hershey Park. The tender fill hatch had a metal mesh sleeve that could be removed to dump the ball out once the tender was filled. We lived in a limestone area, so all municipal water supplies were hard. The locomotive had an iron or steel boiler, and it was a 2 foot gauge locomotive. We blew down the boiler at least daily (opened the valve on the firebox leg). I don't know whether chemical softners would help with the copper boiler or be cost effective, but they are available. 

The full-sized locomotives on the W, K&S tourist line used untreated well water. Again, this was a limestone area. We blew down their boilers every day they were operated. Not apples to apples, but it does show opperating practice. 

Ironically, in 1976 the White Water Valley tourist line offered to sell me their newly reboilered Heisler for $15,000.00. The locomotive was simmering on low pressure steam when I looked it over. (Make note to kick self again over passing up that one.) No I won't be kicking myself. I had a relatively low income job at the time, plus a growing family. In today's money, that $15,000.00 would be more like $250,000.00. Still, if I had a time machine big enough to bring the Heisler back, I'd go for it. 

Yours, 
David Meashey


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## Dwight Ennis (Jan 2, 2008)

A dealer that was demoing the OS mogul before it was put up for sale was at our club track and I got an opportunity to run it. It is a very nice looking engine, and well built, but TINY.Could that possibly have been their earlier Mogul? It was not 7-1/2" gauge (can't remember if it was 3-1/2 or 4-3/4). At any rate, it's been out of production for a while now.


As you say, GGLS supplies city water from a hose/tap. That's what everyone there uses regardless of whether their boiler is copper or steel. That club is celebrating its 75th anniversary this summer (founded in 1936). If tap water damaged boilers, I would think they of all people would know it and would have made alternate arrangements for water supply.


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

No, it was 7.5".

Just to small for my taste, for instance, the engine we are getting I would consider a moderate sized engine:


http://tacllc.biz/rgs20prod.htm


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## Dwight Ennis (Jan 2, 2008)

Very nice locomotive!! Looks to be 2-1/2" scale (narrow gauge on 7-1/4 or 7-1/2" gauge track). My buddy of JD Locomotive Works in Las Vegas is building a Eureka 4-4-0 in 2-1/2" scale.


My 4-4-0 is a model of Central Pacific #173, a standard gauge loco on 7-1/2" gauge track, so it's 1-1/2" scale. It too is rather small, but that suits me as anything bigger wouldn't fit in the back of my RAV and would pose transportation problems for me. I'd also have no place to store anything larger.


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## ChaoticRambo (Nov 20, 2010)

Posted By Dwight Ennis on 25 Feb 2011 09:00 AM 


Very nice locomotive!! Looks to be 2-1/2" scale (narrow gauge on 7-1/4 or 7-1/2" gauge track). My buddy of JD Locomotive Works in Las Vegas is building a Eureka 4-4-0 in 2-1/2" scale.


My 4-4-0 is a model of Central Pacific #173, a standard gauge loco on 7-1/2" gauge track, so it's 1-1/2" scale. It too is rather small, but that suits me as anything bigger wouldn't fit in the back of my RAV and would pose transportation problems for me. I'd also have no place to store anything larger.








Yes, it is 2.5" scale.

I got to opportunity to see the Eureka at Owosso, it is an amazing engine!

One of the members of our club has a nice 4-4-0, its a very good little engine. He even fires it on wood.


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## Dwight Ennis (Jan 2, 2008)

Here's Jesse's Eureka at its current stage...










He's waiting on his cylinder castings now made from his custom patterns. Behind the Eureks is a 1-1/2" Kozo 0-4-0 also in process.

*Here's his web page* describing the project if you're interested.


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Anyone ever check out Mammoth Loco works???


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## tacfoley (Jan 3, 2008)

Here's more from Alex at Maxitrak [UK] with apologies to the detractors [My advice is just don't look.] 

http://www.maxitrak.co.uk/stock/ind...oqZGRiM2FlZDliNTZhNGYyMGNjNDdjYzg1ZGMyZmZjN2I 

And for those if us who like cute little locos, enjoy! 

tac 
www.ovgrs.org 
Supporter of the Cape Meares Lighthouse Restoration Fund


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks for the link.. I really like the Pearl and Jack.


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