Smokestack

The cast smokestack from Allen Models is too tall for my engine because the Wooten firebox has to sit above the drivers. The distance from the rail to the top of the stack on the prototype when built was 14 feet, 11 inches. That was reduced to 14 feet, 9-1/2 inches when the engines were rebuilt due to close clearances in tunnels.

I turned a plug from scraps of walnut and bolted the stack to another piece held in a four jaw chuck so I could machine the casting. The casting is quite oval so I did not even try to clean up the outside diameter.

I faced the top of the stack so I could attach a new cap.

The cap is made of steel and was bolted on with #5-40 flat head screws.

I used a carbide tipped hole saw to make a 2 inch diameter hole for the stack.

I made sure the boiler was level and then mounted the stack over the machined hole. The stack was mounted with #8-32 screws drilled and tapped into the smokebox.

The stack will be mounted with more decorative screws at final assembly. The smokebox is attached to the boiler with 4 screws on the inside edge. Now that the relationship with the boiler is correct, I will be able to duplicate this position on the chassis with the use of the level.