redneckrigger

Thanks! This scratch building itch just won't go away. Love it!

I drilled the cast in knuckles out with a regular drill bit, deep enough to accept a new ball. I then found a package of plastic craft beads at Walmart. These already have a hole drilled through them. I simply drilled another hole at 90 degrees to the existing hole, but only until it intersected the original hole, not all the way through. Then it was simply a matter of orienting the ball in the knuckle with the original hole vertical with the pivot point of the knuckle and drilling a hole in the top and bottom of the knuckle to line up with the hole in the ball. I then glued the ball to the metal rod in the end of the axle housing using the hole I drilled part way through. Then I installed the knuckle and pressed a styrene rod into the top down through the ball and through the bottom of the knuckle. Made a pretty good and extremely easily done working approximation of the real deal!

The front axle is controlled from the steering wheel. The rear axle is steered by a hydraulic valve with a control lever independently from the front axle. The rear can be left straight, steered conventionally like four wheel steering or steered crab style. There is a red warning light in the cab that indicates when the rear axle is not in the straight ahead position.

Finished up the counterweight by gluing the laminated sections together, shaping and then filling with auto body spot putty. I also reworked the winch to resemble the actual one by cutting cooling fins into the gear housing. Then I attached the letters onto the counterweight as this is a huge cast piece. I converted the Moluminum powered steering axles to working steering. I drilled out the knuckle ball and then used small plastic spherical craft beads and drilled them and attached to the axle ends. After drilling the knuckles and pinning in place, they made a great looking steering axle. It's definitely getting there one piece at a time!

Yup, so far those parts are the only kit parts used.............and even then, only PART of the part! LOL!

Just started the counterweight. Since it is a very heavy casting, I started by laminating several pieces of .080 styrene together which will then all be glued together and then shaped as needed. Also put the winch together which will have a mount made for it to mount inside the counterweight against the back of the main boom. Seems like it's never going to end, but, for as much fun this kind of build is, that would not be a bad thing!

That is a superb build you have going there...............................though I would not want to be the driver of the steer car! VERY well done!

Here's the assembled boom with all hydraulic cylinders, boom end block and boom extension rollers installed. Charlie, you're right......this IS fun!!!

Thanks for the good words Charlie! Means a lot to me! I stay awake at night thinking of the steps needed to make a tiny piece. It's amazing how it gets into your head. I have probably 300 kits waiting to be built, but they may not........it will be a letdown after the scratch builds I've done in the past two years.....all inspired by your great work!!! Already thinking what the next build will be.....!

Here is the boom end block, with details from the Galion parts book. Made my own pulleys by punching out discs, using empty cartridge cases as a punch, and gluing the discs together. The whole thing, tiny as it is, is made up of over fifty pieces. Will add some more details to it later.

Ha! You'll see it right after I do! Haven't gotten to that yet, but is soon to come. Going to make the sheave soon, as well as all of the boom guides and rollers, cable guides, winch, hydraulic piping, counterweight etc. Seems like there is never an end in sight! After that, install the powerplant, drive shafts, make the steering work, the outriggers, the operator controls, the cab, the engine compartment, all of the hydraulic lines and valves, and ...., and ...., and ....!!!!!

I make the tubes by cutting strips to the size I want. I use a paper guillotine to cut them straight and parallel. I then glue them together using steel parallel blocks to hold them at right angles. If you look back into previous posts on this thread you will see how I do it. There are some tube sizes available from Evergreen and Plastruct, but just not what I needed.

Tonight I built the double extension cylinders, which are two cylinders bolted together side by side, actually one over the top of the other, with one pointing one way and one pointing the other way. They are then attached inside the third boom section, bolted to the inside of the end of the boom closest to the turntable. The rod at that end is attached inside the end of the second section closest to the turntable. The other end is attached inside the end of the fourth section at the end furthest from the turntable. The fourth section then telescopes into the third, over the double cylinders. The two cylinders extend the third section out of the second and the fourth out of the third. I also installed the primary extension cylinder inside the main boom beneath section two. In the actual crane, the hydraulics are valves so the three cylinders extend at the same time, extending the boom progressively at each section. Was a bit of styrene engineering to get it done but it works perfectly! The way this is put together it cannot extend apart as the cylinder travel keeps each section in the correct relationship to the previous and the next. Still have to build the winch box and the counterweight but this was a major step forward!

That's a great idea! Thanks! But the way I am making my boom, just like the prototype with the extension cylinders, the rods can only extend so far, just like the original. The extension cylinder for the first section mounts inside the main boom beneath the first section. The two cylinders for the second and third sections mount inside the second and third section, exactly like the real deal. So when the boom is extended, it won't be able to come apart. It will be all painted and then assembled, and will work just like the real deal. Nice looking build you got there!

Got the last two sections of boom made up as well as all three extension cylinders. This is going to be a four section power extended boom. Some of these cranes had manually extended booms that were pinned in place, but this one will be the optional all power boom. I am considering making the jib for it as well. The boom will extend to a scale length of 60 feet and the optional swinging jib will be 12 feet. The operators and parts manuals for this crane are priceless!

I am not sure if it will be done by then, but I'm sure going to try! Haven't been to that show yet as it is smack dab in the middle of deer season, but this year I'm not taking a trip to the midwest to hunt, so maybe???!!!

Installed the boom lift cylinder. Works well!

Made up the main boom lift cylinder today. I make my cylinders by using several different sizes of tube that telescope together along with an aluminum tube for the piston rod. I take the outer tube, make a shallow sleeve as the rod end cap, make a base end cap from several shallow slices of tube and rod slid into each other. The rod has a piston glued on its end and is slid into the body tube before gluing the base in. Then I slid two larger tubes over the whole thing to make the main cylinder body larger. This works pretty well and works for multiple stage telescoping cylinders as well.

Last minute mockup before hitting the hay.

That is from Jamie. Very nice too! Got the boom base roughed in tonite. Time for the sack now! I do too many one step forward and three back exercises if I work too late!

Realized I made the extension boom too big...... it is supposed to be shallower to allow room for the extension cylinder which mounts beneath it. So, cut it down to fit. That's what I get when I build after midnight trying to find time to build. Tried something new to cut long straight pieces of styrene......a paper guillotine. Works great. This is a light duty one that I figured I'd try but will definitely be getting a heavier duty one. Got the hydraulic pump mounted on the front of the engine too. Also put together some proper wheels for it.

Now have to do the boom pivot base, counterweight, manuallly extended boom sections, and outriggers. Then the much more fun part begins, all of the little bits that give it life!

Got the Detroit 4-71 engine from Moluminum put together with the torque converter and transfer case. Made up the main boom section along with the first hydraulically extended boom One piece at a time! Only glued my fingers together about ten times. Not too bad!

They are from the Ertl John Deere 310 backhoe Thanks.....getting there!

Got a couple of hours today to cut some styrene....................made the front and rear outrigger structures, did some body work on the turntable, got the left side tank/toolbox made and installed, and made the front and rear axle mounts. The rear is a rubber block type, while the front is a solid mount. Attached the two drive axles, and did a quick mock-up with the tires and wheels as shown. Still have to make drive hubs for the wheels, but it is starting to get "the look". I will be attacking the boom assembly next, and then all of the hydraulic cylinders for the boom, steering and outriggers. Thanks for stopping by!