FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE

This medium-sized mixed-traffic engine is one of the oldest working steam locomotives on the Pinwood Railroad. Normally, engines like these would be either relegated to light trains or retired from service possibly even scrapped. But some lines on the Pinwood Railroad run through forests and areas that can get extremely hot and dry during the summer, where wildfires could be a real danger. Surprisingly, smaller engines like this one were the ideal solution.

Instead of being withdrawn, this lucky locomotive was converted to run on oil and fitted with high-pressure water pumps, extra pipes, hoses, and water cannons. It even gained a brand new paint job to highlight its role in railroad safety. It was assigned to a special train of interconnected tank cars full of water and a work caboose, with a crew of brave railroad workers acting firefighters. The normal, everyday railroad engine had become a railroad fire engine, ready for action to keep the tracks and their surroundings safe. Sometimes you really can fight fire with fire.

DESIGN PROCESS

INSPIRATION

This locomotive is a roughly 1:48 scale model of a steam locomotive modified for firefighting service, complete with a short train of water cars. Two examples of this locomotive survive today, as they were preserved due to their importance in fire control. One currently has an elegant paint job with blues, reds, and gold, the other has a rare "Whaleback" tender with a round top; my design is a combination of both traits along with their previous careers as firefighting trains. Such a novel concept was fascinating to me, making it stand out compared to normal passenger and freight trains. I chose to make it in 1:48 scale because this is a common modelling scale for model trains, and also because the official driving wheel parts are almost the right size for it.

As well as the water cars with hoses, I also added a work caboose, a special kind of caboose that has a flatcar-like section to carry cargo or equipment, for extra variety in cars, color, and play functionality.

CHALLENGES

The boiler on the real-life prototype is tapered, with one example clad in a metal commonly known as Russia Iron. This metal has has highly reflective surface that often appears bluish because it reflects the color of the sky. To replicate this look, I used my usual "SNOT Core" technique, combining modified bricks, plates, and brackets to create the tapered shape, and ensuring there were enough attachment points for the numerous Sand Blue slope parts. This color was somewhat limited in parts variety, but I was able to make it work.

The firebox area was particularly tricky. It needed to be narrow with solid sides, but also have enough space for a motor. I had to use brackets in some unusual positions to create the solid walls.

The unique tender is a half-cylinder with platforms and decks running along the top. This required a lot of curved slopes placed both normally and sideways to get the right shape. Similar techniques were employed on the water cars, albeit for complete cylinders with a smaller radius. I took advantage of the bracket parts peeking out of the gray on the water cars to create red and white warning stripes for more visual interest.

The color schemes of the locomotive and work caboose required sideways building, especially with the gold lining on the cab and tender and the wooden sides of the caboose. Limited parts variety for certain desired colors was a big obstacle, not just for getting the right shape but also making sure structures were stable.

SPECIAL FEATURES

The locomotive can be converted to a normal locomotive. Most of the pumping equipment on the boiler comes off in one big piece, with a few extra pieces for the front water cannons, smokestack guard, and roof pipes. The hoses and firefighting emblems on the tender are also removable.

The water cars feature flexible fire hoses with two-handed nozzles for the minifigures to hold. They can also be converted to regular tank cars with simple modifications.

The decks on the tender, water cars, and work caboose have a mix of tiles and plates to securely position minifigures during play or display.

The water splash elements on the front sprayers and hoses are removable for play and display.

The locomotive can be motorized with Powered-Up elements.

BUILD STATS:

Lengths:
- Engine = 32.5 studs
- Tender = 26.4 studs
- Engine + Tender = 61.5 studs
- Water Cars = 37.8 studs
- Work Caboose = 35 studs
- Total = 177 studs
Widths: Mostly 8 studs, 9 studs at the motion, 9.2 studs at the handlebars, 9.6 studs at the steps, 9.8 studs at the ladders
Heights: 14.8 studs from rail to chimney, 15.2 studs overall
Water splash elements and positioning of front water cannons and hoses may result in increased width and height
Functions and Features:
- 1:48 scale
- Working driving wheels and motion
- Runs on R40 curves
- Fully decorated interior for engine cab and work caboose
- Minifig-usable hoses and ladders on water cars
- Storage space on the work caboose
- Powered-Up Requirements
  - 1 Hub
  - 1 Large Motor