New "Sn3" Project Announcement from P-B-L: The 60 ton Class "B", two truck and 70 ton Class "C", three truck Climaxes! In "Sn3" of course... Since the "Real McCoy" is just up the road from us in Willits, California, research and design of the two truck version was Pretty much a slam-dunk for us... Or at least as much of a slam-dunk as that sort of stuff ever gets for us anyway... The models are expected to arrive here early in 2014... Just a few months hence... This page contains some of the stories behind the project... Yes sir, things are lookin' good here at P-B-L ! Come and see for yourself !

~ Fresh Updates: Monday, September 23, 2013 ~

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Over the past many years that we have been creating our MILESTONE MODELS, the CLIMAX Locomotive has somehow always slipped through the cracks...

But no longer! We showed a hurry-up "pilot model" back last winter at the Sn3 Symposium in Minneapolis to test the waters, so to speak... The model was an instant "hit", performed admirably, but because it lacked sufficient development time it had major design flaws... Relying on drawings other than our own had come back to bite us once again... ( Yes Martha... It's happened before... Some people learn hard... The terms "Hurry-Up" and "Finescale Modeling" are simply not compatible... )

That model has since been retired, to be replaced with models researched and designed by our own selves and created from our own drawings and photos, most of which were captured on CAD, on site up in Willits, California where the "Roots of Motive Power" guys pretty much gave us the run of the place to do our R&D... (Thanks guys!) And you better believe that our efforts are going to show in the production models...

CLICK THE PHOTO FOR MORE PICTURES & HISTORIES!

SOME NOTES ABOUT THESE UPCOMING MODELS:

OIL / COAL / WOOD? YES! Take your pick! The OIL TANK shown in our drawings will be packaged separately... So the models can easily be "coal fired", or "wood fired", or "oil fired..." And of course, if you opt for either our "standard" or Jimmy's "custom" weathering treatment, you can specify your preference on the Custom Weathering Form, as usual...
SPARK ARRESTORS: Many steam logging operations elected to use some sort of spark arrestor to minimize the chances of setting the woods, and thus their livelihood on fire... (Nowadays, we are all much more fire conscious so this is pretty much a "given"...) Although oil fired locos were much less prone to tossing cinders into the air than their coal or wood fired counterparts, even some of these ran with spark arrestors... (Case in point: Of our recent Shay model run, only the Eagle Lakes Spruce Mills and West Side Lumber Co shays were not so equipped...)
That being said, each of our Climax models will come with FOUR STACK OPTIONS... Which one you choose to use will definitely personalize the "character" of your model!
MOTOR / DRIVETRAIN: Basic power for these models will come from our traditional Faulhauber coreless Micro Motor... (Traditional in that these have been our "Geared Locomotive Motor of Choice" since 1986 when we introduced those splendid West Side Lumber Company Shays #7, #14 and #15...) We know of some of these things that have logged hundreds of REAL miles, yet not one of these has ever failed!"
GEARING: We are going to TRY to pull off gearing these models like the prototype! With spiral cut ring and pinion gears on each axle... (Click Here to watch a YouTube Video of how these work...) Note that it may not be possible to hold the tolerances necessary for smooth operation in a scale this small, but we' intend to give it our best shot!

LIKE THIS PAINT JOB? CLICK PHOTO FOR A BETTER LOOK...
Click Here to watch a YouTube Video of #3 in action!

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A SIX PAGE "PDF" WITH EVEN MORE STORIES & HISTORIES IN IT PLUS YOUR RESERVATION FORM TODAY!

PLEASE NOTE: THIS SITE UNDERGOES PERIODIC UPGRADES. SOME PAGES MAY CHANGE RAPIDLY; OTHERS MAY NOT. SO COME BACK OFTEN TO STAY ABREAST OF THE HAPPENINGS HERE AT P-B-L !

Call 707-462-7680 to talk to a REAL PERSON ! Really !

We're P-B-L, P. O. Box 769, Ukiah, CA. 95482

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