Rare Vintage Steam Traction Engine Casting

Not Available through Any Other Source.

NOS Made in the early 1970s

(1970 - 1971)

By the late Jack Kohlbauer

in roughly HO or Matchbox / Hotwheel scale.

Being one of the Charter Members of the Stephenson County Antique Engine Club in Freeport Illinois and working as an Engineer at a factory in Freeport along with being a model train enthusiast, Jack made up a batch of these castings in the early 1970s but then never completed building more than a small handful of the completed models, one of which he gave me as a kid 44 or 45 years ago while at our house for one of the board meetings.

 After his passing many years ago, his wife had talked with me several times about trying to make the wheels and other parts needed to build more of them and sell them at the annual Threshing Shows, but we never actually got around to making it happen. She too has since passed away and I subsequently ended up with the castings through their kids, along with buying the larger model (seen in some of the pictures) at one of the many Estate Sales as they sorted through everything. I also got the foundry pattern for making more of them if I ever feel the need, and a few spare parts that Jack had made but never assembled so I have some patterns to go by. There may have been more parts or fixtures laying around that got disposed of prior to my getting them, and as I haven't yet gotten around to making the other needed fixtures to start making wheels with yet, I thought I would try selling a few of the bare castings for use on model railroad dioramas. They are suitable for use as is for old abandoned boilers laying in the weeds on a farm setting or in a salvage yard, or as a stationary boiler or engine with a simple flywheel attached for a sawmill scene or other such display.

Not sure of the exact scale, but they would be one of the Larger traction engines on an HO layout or one of the smaller engines on a Lionel train set.

They measure just under 3 inches long, 1 1/4 inches wide at the coal bunkers, and just over 1 3/4 high from the bottom of the front axle bolster to the top of the exhaust stack.

 As seen in some of the pictures, they can be built as a traditional traction engine, or as a road roller, or could just easily (or easier actually) be made into a skid engine using a couple small wooden skids. I plan on making up a variety of different styles once I get around to working on them, or you can do so yourself using these bare castings. They are cast aluminum, but easily painted and/or weathered if you want yours rust colored instead black. If making a portable or skid engine, the coal bunkers can be cut off and filed smooth using common hand tools (hacksaw & file, or disc sander)

I do still want to get a bunch of these made up to sell as souvenirs at our Threshing Show in Jacks Honor, but in the mean time, I am selling some of the bare castings on here. Once I get some of the engines completed, I will eventually be putting some of them on here as well, but at a much higher start price considering the amount of work involved in making them.

And Again, These Unmachined castings are Not Available from Any Other Source. I have the castings AND the Foundry Pattern for them. Only a few of them were ever machined and completed in the early 1970s which were handed out locally and rarely ever show up if they are even around any more. (at least until I get a few more of them finished)

What is for sale here, is a Single Bare Casting. Being rough, bare castings, they still need to be deburred and cleaned up on the casting seams and parting lines, and most of them do have minor casting flaws such as minor porosity, sand pocket inclusions, and/or sunken areas from the aluminum cooling quicker in some areas than others, as can be seen in the side of the one shown with the green paint on it in a couple of the pictures. They aren't perfect by any means, but are quite acceptable, with most of the flaws easily hidden with a little filler before painting, or left as is if you want the old damaged look for a diorama scene. I will keep the worst castings to use for set up (practice) parts to perfect the machining process, unless you request one of the more Porous castings to use as a rusted out boiler full of holes for a 'junk yard' display. They are loosely based on the CASE brand of steam traction engine, being scaled down from the larger toy shown in some of the pictures, but can be painted and detailed to resemble Advance Rumely, Reeves, Minneapolis, Baker, Gaar Scott, Nichols & Shepard, and many other brands depending on how much effort you want to put into them.

 I suppose if a person wanted to, they could drill & tap a couple holes in the bottom and use one of these as a hood ornament on a Rat Rod, or on the truck they use for going to Steam Threshing Shows.

Selling AS IS based on pictures & description, and again, you are bidding on a Single Bare Casting, NOT a completed model.  I decided to try the 'Dutch Auction' format for multiple pieces with combined shipping. If you want more than one say for a train load of them leaving the factory, simply enter the quantity wanted.

Shipping will be a flat rate of $3.95 for the first one + $0.15 for each additional one within the United States and will be calculated by weight for International shipping.

Thanks For Looking & Happy Bidding !

Please also check out my other current and future auctions. Never know what I might sell next from 35-40+ years of collecting and hoarding anything and everything.