Bob's caboose build

[S. Heisley]

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The main points are that you are still doing things and you remain optimistic.
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PS. Loved your BBQ/DO tip (see below) for Droid. It looks like that one out does the DO Satellite-walker table!

viewtopic.php?f=54&t=53091

[bobhenry]

.
The main points are that you are still doing things and you remain optimistic.
.

PS. Loved your BBQ/DO tip (see below) for Droid. It looks like that one out does the DO Satellite-walker table!

viewtopic.php?f=54&t=53091

Actually Sharon the D.O. satelite dish table supports the Smokey Joe Jr. on my back deck every day of the week. I have taken to using them as a set. No bending over and no worry about a stray spark or coal causing problems on a wooden deck.

[bobhenry]

Only one grill but several several cook tops white gas and propane and 3 burner LP oven combos

Do have a few satelite D.O. tables though..........

[bobhenry]

I know you thought I fell off of the face of the earth. Spent last weekend at Mom's for an early thanksgiving and this weekend was a bit of a downer.......

The rubber roof fella I was hoping would show Sunday and help me finish tightening down the roof didn't show. He did call , however, and let me know he was unable to make it. So I drove to the plant and cut a full truckload of 1" blue foam for the sidewalls and roof cavities out of last weeks production scrap. When I got back home with my treasure I removed the mock up kitchen counter and unloaded my cargo and once again continued stuffing walls. I am going to concentrate this week while the weather is nice on getting the electrical all installed. If it's insulated and electrified it will be much more inviting to work out in it on those cold and dark nights that will be returning soon. A little electric heater and some bright lights and tunes and I can happily work on thru the dark and the cold. Sorry no pics. I did think about taking a picture of a pickup truck load of 21 1/2 and 22 1/2 wide precut 1" foam but you can close your eyes and imagine that.

Have Thursday thru Sunday this coming weekend to work like a mad man so a lot of things should leap forward.

[S. Heisley]

Thanks for the update/caboose build "fix".
You post reads like the train is chuggin' up hill; but, things are still movin'!
All of a sudden, you'll get to the crest and things will start going faster.

[michiganflipper]

So where are they miss checking these out on here since I can not see it in person so are the next best thing

[bobhenry]

Hey there Frank.........!

All the pics worth taking are in the album. Lately it has just been more of the same adding blue foam insulation by layers and layers and layers. It's kinda boring but necessary .
I started roughing in the electrical. Hell Saturday morning I even bought my Christmas, $79.00 worth of electrical supplies. Still haven't gotten the rubber roof terminated correctly. Either my help can't make it or it's is too cold and that thick rubber is as stiff as a sheet of plywood at 45 - 50 degrees. As the insulation is closer and closer to being fully installed it is starting to get nice inside while working. Even without heat, once inside out of the wind it is flannel shirt comfortable inside even though the outside temp is 30 degree with a 40 MPH wind.

I Became the mad scientist this weekend and experimented . I took 3 of my 4.5 volt 99 cent led flashlights and hooked them in parallel to see if they would work with the 12 volt power circuit and yes they did !

[Wobbly Wheels]

I took 3 of my 4.5 volt 99 cent led flashlights and hooked them in parallel to see if they would work with the 12 volt power circuit and yes they did !

That's good to know. I use the same type for work and get a few months out of them before they die. I hit the circuit board with a heat gun and that seems to fix the cold solders and then solder leads on in place of the battery terms. I want to use them for under-cabinet and maybe courtesy lighting but was going to solder in a 1/4W resistor when I figure out a housing (prob a piece of pvc conduit).
I'll have to check it out and see if mine will take 12V too. Thx Bob !

[bobhenry]

I took 3 of my 4.5 volt 99 cent led flashlights and hooked them in parallel to see if they would work with the 12 volt power circuit and yes they did !

I want to use them for under-cabinet and maybe courtesy lighting but was going to solder in a 1/4W resistor when I figure out a housing (prob a piece of pvc conduit).
I'll have to check it out and see if mine will take 12V too. Thx Bob !

I wanted them for low light courtesy lighting as well. I want to install 12 of them in banks of 3 each. I added 28" of lead to each of the trios of lights as a hot feed and a 28" lead for the grounds, soldered direct to the housing. I have not tried yet but am sure a pvc tube can be fitted and hot glued into the remaining head of the flashlight and inserted into a snug hole drilled into my inside soffit. The banks of 3 will be installed exactly 24" on center between each truss bay. These trios will be over the sofa, the bath tub, in the potty area and near the side door ( probably in a slightly different configuration). They will be all but totally stealth. I was able to score 4 goose neck desk lamps at Goodwill last week for 3.75 each and will be mounting the chrome necks only as adjustable wall sconces for much brighter reading and task lighting. I am not sure at this time if they will remain 120V AC or if I will opt up for a ,currently rather expensive, 12 volt standard base LED bulb.

[Wobbly Wheels]

So you're wiring banks of three in series instead of a dropping resistor ?
Makes sense.

I've taken the arrays right out of the housing - that's the part I'll glue right into the PVC:


This one had 3 dead lamps in it that resoldering didn't fix, so I figured I'd hit it with 12V. I don't want to use it as it is and it's not really worth separating the LEDs given how cheap they are individually.
Needless to say, it wasn't too tolerant of 12V.

On 6V:


I lucked into some waterproof LED lights intended for decks and steps. All that seems to be missing out of the box are the 110-12V transformer and some connectors (none of which I need anyway), so for $10 in the clearance bin at the hardware store, I couldn't go wrong. I'll mount them on the trailer's rocker panels so they illuminate the ground around it. They install by drilling a 1" round hole - easy peasy.
The deals are out there, but you know that !

I still need something for the inside...that's where these come in.
I saw a neat effect on a white solid-surface countertop a while back - flourescent tubes were installed under the top and actually backlit the countertop so it glowed.
The one I saw was white, but here's a random web pic:


On a smaller scale and using the 12V flouro fixture I already have from the camper I stripped out, it might be a good way to provide enough light in...say, the bathroom.
It would be even easier on sleepy eyes in the middle of the night than the red LEDs I've seen so far.

I am not sure at this time if they will remain 120V AC or if I will opt up for a ,currently rather expensive, 12 volt standard base LED bulb.

Are you using an inverter ?
I wonder if a 6500K CFL running off the inverter might give you the most bang for your buck for the periodic use that a reading lamp gets ?
The ballast might not be happy on a MSW inverter, but it'll work fine for a couple hours a night.
I hear ya on the cost of those bulbs !

[bobhenry]

Up extra early before work so I went out into the snow and rescued my camera from the truck. It didn't like being left in the cold and was fogging up a bit when I took this picture of the lights lit up in this one. The pic was taken in total darkness without a flash!


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Here is the little LED flashlight sawn into pieces


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here is the hot wire souldered to the center terminal and the ground souldered to the case


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Here is a one of the 3 lights wired with 2 hot feeds and 2 grounds one of each was input the other was pass thru to the next light


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I have parts left over so I may used the push on push off switch to break the ground to shut off the lights.

[Wobbly Wheels]

It didn't like being left in the cold and was fogging up a bit

Hehe, tell me about it: my glasses do the same thing !

wired with 2 hot feeds and 2 grounds one of each was input the other was pass thru to the next light

So it sounds like they ARE wired in parallel, so each light sees 12V ?
Mine burned out instantly when I tried that.

I like the extension cord for wire: waste not, want not !

Bit of a funny story - I wired up some driving lights on the bumper of a truck and used boat cable. It's a tinned, stranded 2-wire, low voltage cable that's overkill for auto use, but I had it left over (being a marine guy) and just needed short piece to run from the relay to the lights, so I used it.
It has a white sheath like the extension cord in your pic: I got razzed by my 4X4 buddies because it looked like I had wired them up with romex building wire.
OK, maybe not THAT funny a story...

[bobhenry]

I like the extension cord for wire: waste not, want not !

It's worse than that look again !

red. yellow. green .and black

it's phone cable.

I was looking for some light weight stranded so I stripped all 4 and twisted them together just for the experiment.

[Wobbly Wheels]

Hehe...I was wondering: in the second pic it looks like the hot is solid wire...

Sssshhh....I won't tell anyone if you don't...

[night*sky]

I've been lurking for some time, and finally joined so I could comment on this build. I love all the ideas you've been posting here and other threads for space saving ideas, etc. And I'm especially interested in your caboose build since I recently bought a 1974 Semaphore Caboose TT that needs a complete rebuild. IF I can even get it home, that is, it's in very poor condition!