I am attempting to enlarge a Walthers blast furnace from 60% of true HO scale to 90%. Using whatever scraps of styrene and PVC I could get my hands on, I duplicated everything [except the cast house] on the Walthers kit, multiplying each dimension by 150 percent.
Here are some views of the almost-finished product. It hasn't been painted yet, but I'll do that before I put it on my layout.
Click on any thumbnail to see full-sized image.
I plan to publish photos of the many pieces and subassemblies used to
create this structure. My free time is scarce, so please be patient as I
try to add little "chunks" of info at regular intervals.
| 1. The Furnace Body | Here are some shots of the pieces used to make the body, or 'stack', of the enlarged blast furnace. I did not use Plastruct(TM) (more about that later), since the sizes and shapes of PVC tubing I required were readily available at my local hardware store. |
| 2. Uptakes and Bell Platform | A collection of snapshots and diagrams detailing the addition of the bell platform and uptake piping to the furnace body. |
| 3. Top Piping Assembly | Various images showing the cutting/assembly of the top pipe sections for the uptakes and downcomer. |
| 4. Skip Hoist | Instructions for making the Walthers skip hoist wider and longer. |
| 5. Bell Chute Modifications | Detailing diagrams for the gateway through which raw materials enter the furnace. |
| 6. Maintenance Crane Frame | How to build the frame which supports the maintenance crane trolley. |
| 7. Stoves | Constructing the bodies of the three stoves. |
| 8. The Downcomer | Using Schedule-40 PVC pipe and elbows to build the downcomer. |
If you have questions or comments about anything you see on these pages, please drop me an email at ken.larsen@jhuapl.edu.
-Ken Larsen
Last updated on 07/25/2002.
Copyright ©2002 by Kenneth J. Larsen. Any material found on the IronBelt web site may be printed or duplicated locally for personal use. However, publishing or mass distribution is prohibited without prior written permission.
