Advice please Robin!

[SD90]

I was thinking of scratch building a couple of large fuel tanks like you see at locomotive shops, and was wondering if anyone, (Robin!) had any good ideas on how to do this, or if anyone has done one of these? Pictures would be awesome. Thanks!

Mike.

 

[Russ Bellinis]

What scale? How big? Are you talking about cylindrical tanks mounted on stands horizontally?

 

[SD90]

Sorry, N scale, and they are BIG maybe 50 feet high and 60 or 80 wide.

Mike.

 

[Matthyro]

Mike, I made these tanks out of dowelling 1 14inch diameter. I put them into a lathe and rounded the ends. The bands are srips of paper. I spray painted them with automotive laquer paint I got at Canadian Tire.
Hope this helps.

 

[Lighthorseman]

Hmmm.

Mike...do you happen to have a prototype picture of what you have in mind? Here in Edmonton, there are some fuel (?) oil (?) tanks at the local CN yard. They're more like big squat ones that sit on a concrete pad.

 

[jon-monon]

If you don't have a way to turn down the wood (no lathe), you could use PVC pipe end caps of the proper size and get a reasonable facsimile of a storage tank. If you wish to extend the length beyond that of two caps back to back, you will need to somehow fill in the gap. I would use thin styrene, roll some rivits into it, and wrap it around after joining the caps with a small section of pipe. This is two caps end to end.

 

[SD90]

I'll see if I can get a picture of them, they are alot bigger than those...

Mike.

 

[jon-monon]

This type?

Originally posted by SD90
Sorry, N scale, and they are BIG maybe 50 feet high and 60 or 80 wide.

I guess a 5" or 6" PVC end cap should do nicely, just one. 80 little N scale feet = 6", and 50 ft= 3.33" might come out about right.

That would be quite a wood working project.

 

[jon-monon]

BTW: When buying plumbing to use for modeling, if exactness is important, you want to measure it, not go by what it says, cuz plumbers seem to have their own scale

 

[Catt]

Guys ,pipeing no matter what type/kind is always measured on the inside not the outside.Of course for our usage the outside measurement isd important.

 

[SD90]

Those are the ones!
Thanks!

Mike.

 

[McFortner]

Try the cover to a spool of 50 CD-Roms. That should be about right if memory serves. It might be a little too big, but not that big of a deal in N. They would also work for HO size water tanks....

I have one that I'm working on now for a water tank for my son's HO layout.

Michael

 

[Matthyro]

Mike, you could also use the cardboard spools crochet thread comes on. Of course you have to know someone that does crochet work to get them. They are 45 Nscale feet high and 43 feet in diameter. A bit smaller than what you said you would like. I cut them in half to make oil storage tanks for my oil refinery.

 

[jon-monon]

Those are good ideas. If you don't crochet or burn CDs, take a look in your pantry (everyone eats ) I'll bet you have coffee, oatmeal, or other goodies in cylindrical containers, just waiting to be cut to the correct height. Just wait until your wife is asleep and dump the contents in the toilet. Don't dump it in the trash or you'll be in for it if she sees it.

 

[penngg1]

Pipe size

Pipe O.D. doesn"t change wall thickness does (sch. 40 is thinner than sch. 80). Pipe stated O.D. is smaller than actual size. This standard goes back to the days when pipes were made out of lead (plumb hence plumber).

 

[jon-monon]

All ya need to know about plumbing can be summed up with three simple rules:

1. Water goes up.

2. S@#$ goes down.

3. For Gosh sake, whatever you do, don't bite your fingernails.

 

[rguyett]

Originally posted by jon-monon
All ya need to know about plumbing can be summed up with three simple rules:

1. Water goes up.

2. S@#$ goes down.

3. For Gosh sake, whatever you do, don't bite your fingernails.

as an old plumber you forgot one thing #4 payday's friday

 

[jon-monon]

LOL as an amature plumber, I don't get paid.

 

[jimmybeersa]

I have found and endless supply of tanks, useing the tops of spray cans which come in a variety of rounded and flat tops and diameters wrap them with masking tape it holds the paint better than the plastic....just a thought

 

[jimmybeersa]

Used a spray can top for my Water tank also wrapped it with masking tape to hold the glued wood sliding as seen in the back ground of this photo