GO Transit F59PH n scale kit bash

[justGO]

Hello, this was my first kit bash and detail. I was inspired by the work I saw in these forums, and when I realized there was no off the shelf F59PH (except the Kaslo) I decided to give this mash up a try, why not? I did a lot of research, tried to measure a lot before cutting, and gave it a GO. Here are some of the images of the process, hit or miss as it went. 

Comparison shot of the two engines I cut together:



I cut the F59PHI cab:


Here is where I cut the SD50 cab (I think it was an SD50 I did this a while ago:




Here is a rough first fitting of the two engines into one:


I saved the center of the roof from the F59PHI and replaced the fans:



This was a difficult part, and I wish I could have found a better way. I glued several pieces of styrene together and then glued them into place. Once it was dry I sanded and carved the angle on the roof. I think (hope) paint will make it all nice and what not:


I found a thin mesh and added the vents:


I used a grill off an F-unit for the front grill:


The bell is Miniatures by Eric (his parts have been a huge help)


I used BLMA detail parts for grab irons/ fans/ sun shades, here you can see the near finished engine next to the original F59PHI


Here's the finished build on the F59PH next to a Kato F40PH which I detailed as a GO Transit F40PH. I have pictures of that build as well, it was much easier, basically removing the center fan, adding a vertical tail lamp, then general details. I'll post that another time:


I should mention the details: the plow is Miniatures by Eric, the hoses are BLMA. I redid the front plaque on the rails for the GO logo, I just thought it looked flimsy. I finally came across a Kaslo Shops F59PHI, here is a comparison of that kit and what I was building from scratch:


OK this is my first post, sorry if the images are too big, or too many. Thanks for all the help, you might not have known it but the posts I read before I joined the board really helped me get this done. Thanks

[Deleted]

sweet canadian unit you have going there

[enginseer]

Lots of nice work there...

...in N scale no less.

[tankcarsrule]

That's some serious rebuilding! Outstanding craftsmanship.

Regards, Bobby

[slowfreight]

A few suggestions...

First, A light coat of grey primer from the airbrush will always help you tell if your cutting/filling/sanding is good enough. Once everything's the same color, every defect will magically pop out and you can go back to fix it. Don't bother with a full priming job because you don't want to layer up lots of paint.

Second, your way of making the hood edges really isn't bad. But gluing the grill mesh onto the outside wouldn't look as good as if you recessed them in. You could probably still cut openings and square them with a file, then set the grills you made inside. Etched parts also look a lot better, and it looks like you found some etchings for the air intakes. Check HO scale etched parts if you can't find what you need in N. If you have an LHS where you can browse racks, sometimes you'll find something that can be adapted from another detail part set.

Otherwise, if you can find an F40PH shell or some such, you could probably cut enough roof material out of two to get the pieces you need. Remember to cut oversize and file to shape.

And any time I cut/file/sand on a model, I like to mark cut lines with masking tape as it helps prevent me from damaging the other detail surfaces.

[justGO]

hey guys, wow thanks for the responses I really appreciate it. Slow freight, thank you for the advice, those ideas will be a huge help on my next two engines. I just began work on some new ones. I agree the grills on the rear of the F59PH would look better inset, I wish I had done that but at the time I was just glad to get them on. It's been a real challenge finding parts that work, I do not have a good hobby shop nearby to scrounge for parts as I would like. I end up trial and error ordering online. I really like the masking tape idea. Do you put masking tape on the part you are going to cut, and then draw the line on the tape itself, cutting through tape and plastic? I hope I am understanding correctly. Thanks again

[slowfreight]

No. I use the masking tape to actually make the line. Everything I want to keep is under the tape.

[stevef45]

not bad, not bad at all!

[justGO]

Here is an update on the kit bash F59PH. I sent it to "Emperor of the North" Custom Painting and I think Doug did a great job. I've been doing some further detail work since I got it back, painted the grabs and tweaked the black nose a bit. I still have to paint the windows and the edges around the windows. I also want to remove the molded rail above the front windows and add a custom rail. Despite this being my first ever kit bash I think it's coming out ok. So much so that I feel the need to replace the plastic stanchions with some brass ones so I have that little bit of fun detailing to look forward to but I think it needs it. After I sent this unit to Emperor I decided to teach myself airbrushing and its helpful to see how someone else did it and what I've learned talking to you guys on the board. Below are three units I painted, a GP40-2w and two F40ph's. I'll be following up with a pair of Kaslo F59PH and my fleet will be getting pretty solid. 

Below are the units I painted after I was inspired by Doug's work and the advice I got on the boards. I did the custom detailing on all the engines.