Constructing "Old 99" #12: Spacing the wheels

It’s time we start gluing up some of the parts we have made. I drilled the 1/8” hole in the ends of the cylinders and glued a 3 1/2” piece of dowel in.

I glued the rest of the wheels on to the base using a spacer to allow them to ride on the rails. NOTE: The larger drive wheels are not glued at this time.

I glued the front and rear assemblies to the base. I used a piece of packaging plastic with a slot cut in it between the assembly and base. This allowed me to pound the axle pin into the hole. Sometimes they are very tight.

Here’s a tip: Use a pair of pliers and squeeze the end of the dowel to form grooves for the glue. If you force the axle in without doing this, you will push all the glue out.
I then glued and clamped the floor of the cab to the base. In the picture you may see the cylinder mount. It is not glued yet. The front wheel assembly dowel has to be shortened slightly to fit under the mount.

Next up is the pilot beam. A piece of walnut 1/2” X 5/8” X 4 1/2” with layout lines for a 2” X 1/8” dado, 4 holes 3/8” deep, and rounded ends.

The finished pilot beam without some dowelling that has to wait until near the end of the project.

-- If we learn from our mistakes, I'm getting a fantastic education.