Model Railroader – October 2019

October 2019 47

tell, no. 4300 was the only one to retain
this headlight configuration through the
PC and early Amtrak eras.
The door casing contained a twin
sealed-beam headlight, which was simu-
lated by drilling two no. 54 holes into a
small styrene square, affixed to a styrene
tube containing the light-emitting diode
(LED) headlight ❼. The tube was cut at
an 11 degree angle, approximating the
slope of the nose of the locomotive and
serving to keep the headlight beam par-
allel to the ground.
The upper (nose) fixture, which on
the prototype might have been an oscil-
lating signal light, utilized a short sec-
tion of^7 ⁄ 32 " diameter brass tube, cut
slightly longer than the LED it would
contain. I attached the brass tube/LED
assembly to the inner body shell with
CA, being careful to align the axis of the
tube with the headlight opening. With
the LED installed, the rear of the fixture
was sealed for light leaks with black elec-
trical tape.
I like the look of working classification
and marker lights. I installed Detail
Associates JW1708 4^1 ⁄ 2 " clear classifica-
tion lights according to the instructions.
I fashioned LED housings for the lights
from short lengths of^3 ⁄ 16 " styrene tube.
The LEDs, purchased from RadioShack a
few years ago, fit into slots cut about half
way down the styrene tubes. The slots
provide for the LED leads, which were
then bent back, attached to wires ❽, and
insulated with brush-on liquid insulation.
Be sure the slots are cut deep enough
to fully recess the LED from the pro-
truding class light lens. A drop of CA
will affix the LED in the tube, and

another will attach the tube/LED assem-

bly to the body shell interior, placed

directly over the protruding marker light

❾. I wired the class lights in series, opt-

ing to connect them to the reverse light

(yellow) DCC decoder circuit, since they

would act as marker lights when the

locomotive was pushing or running light.

After installing the signal light and

marker/classification lights, I examined

the interior for potential light leaks, and

used black paint and small pieces of elec-

trical tape to seal everything up.

With the body shell placed upside

down for interior access, I cut a piece of

styrene sheet roughly to the shape of the

rounded nose area and placed it directly

on the upper headlight/class light LED

array ❿. With the styrene plate affixed

and sealed for light leaks, the door head-

light LED assembly was cemented to the

inside of the nose door, aligned carefully

to center the headlight. This will func-

tion as the locomotive’s main headlight

and was wired to the white decoder lead.

Once the headlight was sealed for

light leaks, two additional LEDs placed

behind the number box openings were

cemented directly to the styrene plate.

Like the classification lights, they were

wired in series. Both the signal light and

number box lights were wired to the

decoder’s accessory leads.

The eight wires for the lighs were bun-

dled using black thread, forming a single

“cable” that I passed through the center

of the cab. I painted the bundle black to

help hide it. I made a U-shaped fastener

from sheet styrene and cemented it to the

interior roof just behind the cab to hold

the wires in place ⓫.

I removed the front portion of the cab

interior, cutting at a point directly in

front of the base for the engineer and

fireman figures, to allow space for the

lighting. A square notch was cut into the

top center of the rear cab wall to provide

space for the LED wiring to pass.

I sprayed the cab interior a tan color,

so it would be visible through the win-

dows, and hand-painted the engineer

and fireman figures. The unpainted cab

assembly is shown in ⓫.

The front cab interior mount on the

die-cast metal frame interferes with the

LED wiring, so I removed the mount

with a motor tool cut-off wheel. Be care-

ful not to let the metal shavings get into

the gearing of the drive assembly.

There’s sufficient space behind the cab

for a small circuit board holding the

resistors needed for the LEDs. Each of

the four anode leads was connected to a

resistor, then to the blue common wire.

The remaining four cathode leads plus

the blue resistor “common” wire were

directed back to the rear of the locomo-

tive. where I installed the DCC decoder.

With the wiring complete and grills

installed, I carefully reattached the body

shell. All that was left was to add a few

more detail parts (like windshield wip-

ers) and apply some weathering powder.

The result is a fairly authentic-looking

late-1960s E unit.

Louis Millan has been a model rail-

roader for more than 40 years. He lives in

central New Jersey. He’s married and has

two children, and also enjoys music and

gardening. This is his first article in

Model Railroader.

❾ Fitting it all in. The upper light was
mounted in a^7 ⁄ 32 " diameter brass tube,
which was glued to the inside of the
shell along with the class light tubes.

Brass

light tube

❿ Mounting plate. Louis cut a styrene

plate to match the curve of the inside of

the locomotive shell so he could mount

the next layer of lights.

Door

headlight

opening

⓫ Last bits. The door headlight and

number box lights were mounted to the

body shell and styrene plate. A styrene

hoop helps manage the wiring.

Shortened

cab interior

Class light

tubes

Liquid

insulation

Electrical

tape

Headlight

and number

box lights

under tape

Styrene

hoop