Auxiliary Water Tenders

[Trains Again]

I am wondering if Bachmann can produce Auxiliary Water Tenders with different kinds of road names.     i.e:  UP, SP, WP, ext.   I have a Marklin Trix Big Boy, and it would really look great to have a yellow Auxiliary Water Tender behind it 

[lanny]

I have a Bachmann Spectrum aux. water tender ... I am pretty sure its patterned after an N & W water tender. However I purchased it 'undecorated' (that is with no numbering or anything) to try to 'bash' it into an IC water tender.

I haven't tried to do anything with it yet, but depending on what you want your water tender to look like, an "undec Spectrum water tender" seems like a great place to start.

I purchased mine about a year and a half ago, but assume they are still available.

lanny nicolet

[lanny]

One other thing I should have mentioned about the aux water tender. On the ICRR, at least, I don't think there was any lettering ('road name', etc.) that I can see, on them. Just a small number. Perhaps the same is true of other railroads ... maybe your water tender just doesn't need a road name or even a large number to be 'prototypical' appearing?

lanny nicolet

[Stephen Warrington]

The Bachmann Water tender is a N&W prototype, the ones I have seen for the UP had rounded ends on them if I remember correctly.

Lanny ICRR's water tenders were basically old locomotive tenders so they varied all over the system. I have seen photos of some that looked like they came off of old 2-6-0s and some huge ones from 2-10-2's most of them did have a number on the side with a X in front of it if I remember correctly and some of them carried the same number as the locomotive they belonged too.I remember seeing in a book (forgot the title) of a ICRR 2500 class with a water tender numbered same as the locomotive. How common this was I have no clue.

Stephen

[Virginian]

UP's tenders are pretty unique, and if I remember correctly, the ones they use in excursion service are ex-turbine unit fuel tanks.  I do not recall having seen an authentic UP steam era auxiliary water tender.
The Bachmann ones are generally patterned after N&W prototypes (and they just killed the brass aux. tender market).

[lanny]

Thanks for the ICRR info, Stephen.

Maybe that Bachmann water tender I have will go on eBay :-). It shouldn't be hard to bash a water car from an old tender!

lanny nicolet

[Nigel]

A passable UP A-tank can be bashed from two Bowser #150001 SP-1 Semi-Vanderbilt Tender Kits, join two rear sections together.

A similar conversion could probably done with some of the tenders Bachmann sells, such as this one:
http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/catalog/?function=detail&id=1144
Though it does look a little light.

The Spectrum A-tank is an excellent match for the N&W prototype, down to the unique trucks.

[Trains Again]

A passable UP A-tank can be bashed from two Bowser #150001 SP-1 Semi-Vanderbilt Tender Kits, join two rear sections together.

A similar conversion could probably done with some of the tenders Bachmann sells, such as this one:
http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/catalog/?function=detail&id=1144
Though it does look a little light.

The Spectrum A-tank is an excellent match for the N&W prototype, down to the unique trucks.

Nah. Wouldn't work for what I need. Bachmann would pretty much have to recreate a whole new tender if they decided to make some in UP.

[r0bert]

JFYI, the ex-turbine tenders,

have just been rebuilt into this



and are now much closer to the N&W style, then the original turbine tenders.

[Trains Again]

Oh how strange! When did they rebuild them like that? Thats really interesting. Thank you for showing that

[r0bert]

pics taken just over the last summer, pic of turbine tender 809 taken in may 2006, and  rebuilt 814 in sept, 2006, both at Kansas City Union Station
814 was done over winter 2005/2006, and 809 is being rebuilt now
entire album can be seen at
http://s46.photobucket.com/albums/f123/river_eagle/UP-844/

[r0bert]

links to the rebuilds
upp809
http://projects.wasatch-rr-contractors.com/?page_id=99
upp 814
http://projects.wasatch-rr-contractors.com/?page_id=14

[Trains Again]

Very cool. With the new one they have now.....I could almost get an undecorated Bachmann Aux tender and repaint it as UP.

Would that work, or is Bachmann's Aux tender still the wrong shape?

[SteamGene]

Remember that the auxillary water tender is an "end of steam" device.  As noted, almost all of them were bashed in company shops from retired tenders, removing the fuel bunker and converting the entire tender to hold water. 
Yes, I'm almost positive that the UP A tenders come from turbine fuel tanks and are all excursion devices.
Gene

[Trains Again]

Remember that the auxillary water tender is an "end of steam" device.  As noted, almost all of them were bashed in company shops from retired tenders, removing the fuel bunker and converting the entire tender to hold water. 
Yes, I'm almost positive that the UP A tenders come from turbine fuel tanks and are all excursion devices.
Gene

Interesting. It must have been the cheapest and easiest way to do it.

Can Bachmann build some of these? Do you know if any other company has built Auxiliary water tenders?