Roger Dowden tells us this is his most extensive kitbash to date. Many years ago he purchased a 1/76 scale Langley white metal kit just for the shovel front which Roger used as a trailer load. Recently Roger ran across a Link-Belt brochure and noted that his shovel front was a perfect match. The shovel front only required minor modifications and the track frames were reshaped to be more prototypical but the house and interior were all new construction. The house was fabricated from brass sheet, the hoist works were fabricated using the Langley cable drums and pulleys in conjunction with a framework made from an Evergreen Caterpillar generator frame, the chain case was scratchbuilt as were the operator’s controls and seat, and the Evergreen Caterpillar generator donated the proper six cylinder Caterpillar diesel engine. The catwalk around the house was also scratchbuilt from brass. The chain for the shovel crowd was robbed from a 1/12 scale motorcycle model and heated to reshape it to the proper configuration. The lettering is Woodland Scenic dry transfers that were the perfect size and font. Roger constructed the hoist works to be operable.

Posted May 14, 2011