Ok, all new plan..
What else could be built with the "T-Boiler" idea?
The heritage boiler MUST stay vertical..thats a given..so to build any kind of "traditional looking" steam locomotive,
it must be some sort of T-boiler right?
right.
so..what kind of locomotives had t-boilers? Shays!

The best, most in-depth resource on the internet about Shay locomotives is www.shaylocomotives.com
So I started to check out photos there to find some interesting engines..
found some interesting early T-boiler photos..but I just kept being drawn back to that logo on the main page!
that little Shay in the logo for shaylocomotives.com is absolutely perfect!
So I designed my new engine based on the proportions of that engine..(I dont even know what prototype
shay it is based on..if anyone knows please let me know!)

Obviously this isnt going to be a prototypically accurate Shay!
technically it isnt even going to be a Shay at all!
its just going to be "Shayish"..(which brings me to the name of my engine!)

BAGRS is the acronym for the "Bay Area Garden Railway Society"
It was Mike Martin, a BAGRS member, who first developed this idea of using the Midwest steam engine
kit to make a logging engine! and the locomotives of this type are all called "BAGRS Basic" or "BAGRS Project"
engines.. everyone I have talked to pronounces "BAGRS" as "Baggers"...
"im building a Baggers engine"
So, since my engine is also based on the BAGRS Basic idea..but modified into a Shay-looking type locomotive..
the name "Bagger Shayish" just came to me..then got stuck in my head! So now its the name of my engine..
"Bagger" because its based on the BAGRS..
and "Shayish" because its Shayish! Shay-like..

Ok, back to the design..
If I offset the boiler to the left side, like a real Shay, I can mount the engine and gears to the right side, in the same position
as real Shay cylinders..im still going to use the chain-drive, and was originally planning to power only one driver..but then
though..why not both! just some extra gearing and chain will do the trick..and it will look so cool having all
wheels powered! ;)
Shorten the whole engine..modify the trucks to one-axle each..widen the boiler to the size of the midwest boiler,
tweak the cab..and we get this groovy little thing!

I like it!
That drawing, and the next drawing, became my actual "plan"..all dimensions on the actual model are based on
these 2 drawings..

I drew up a plan, working out where the engine and all the gearing needs to be..
The size of the frame itself is 10.75" X 3" (not including the pilot..with the pilots the total length is 11 and 5/8")

here it is full-size

Only one potential "problem" with this design..the wheelbase is 7.25"
rather long for fixed trucks..the wheels can not be allowed pivot with curved track because of the chain drive and gears..
its the same concept as the "stock" BAGRS..fixed wheels, just a longer wheelbase.
I took 2 Bachman passenger car trucks..removed a wheelset on each one so each truck had only one axel..
screwed the trucks to a block of wood so the axels were 7.25" apart and ran the block-car around some
8' diameter curves..it ran ok! a little binding, but rolled pretty good..so the minimum diameter of this machine is going to
be 8'...anything larger should be totally clear..I will build in as much side-to-side slop as I can to help it on curves..
The gearing is essentially going to be same as the stock BAGRS..same gear ratios and same wheels..
the only difference is I will be powering both axels..I hope the engine can handle the added friction..we shall see!
I am willing to gamble on that! (unlike the John Bull concept) because if it doesent work it will be a simple matter
to just power one axel..If both axels powered, and rigid, does not work, I will simply remove the chain to the front axel,
power the real axel only, and then modify the front truck so it will pivot..that would then be basically the same drive
train as the stock BAGRS and would work fine..but I will only do that if I have to..
 
 

The Heritage steam engine kit came from Tower Hobbies.
And the Drive train (gears & chain), the roundhouse lubricator, the wheels,
and other bits of brass hardware and fasteners came from Sulpher Springs.
its thier "KIT-BPE"..designed specially for the Bagrs Project Engine.

here are (almost) all the parts!

 

And construction begins!

 

 The trucks were scratch-built from brass and wood..I had no plan to follow, so I drew out
a design on graph paper, took a long brass strip, marked the bend points and drilled the holes,
then just bent it by hand using only my fingers and pliers! they could have been a little
neater if I had some kind of proper metal-bending tool, but this worked fine..
basically the only tools for this entire project are pliers and my new drill press!
the axel journals are from Ozark Miniatures..
 

May 4th..coming along!
The tender is done, and I have installed the lubricator.
 

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