03/30/2026
Hi Everyone—Today's post highlights the HO Scale Brass GEM Models Signature Edition Union Pacific Big Boy 4-8-8-4. This model was produced in Japan, just a few at a time, between the years 1961 and 1964. It is one of the finest brass Big Boys ever made. They still command a high price in the marketplace, and rightfully so. This segment of the restoration shows how we go after the messier and more difficult aspects, before moving on to simpler work.
The model was painted well over 60 years ago. Some of it airbrushed, some of it brush painted. The decals were poorly applied. Worst of all, the model had been dropped on its cab at some point, bending down the cab roof overhang at 45 degrees. That's never good. If that bent cab roof can't be repaired then doing much of anything else would be a waste of our time and our client's money. So we attacked the bent cab roof situation first. Our pictures show the result.
While we were working on the cab roof, something started rattling around inside the cab. It was the boiler backhead. It came loose because the factory glued it in place. Unfortunately we couldn't remove it from the cab because the opening in the back of the cab wasn't large enough to remove the backhead. But then how did the factory get it in there in the first place? Close visual inspection of the backhead (while it was still inside the cab) revealed that this wasn't a single casting. The assembly was actually made of two pieces—a top half and a bottom half. So we had to figure out a way to reach inside the cab, split those castings in two, in order to remove them through the opening in the back of the cab. As it turns out, the backhead was actually glued to two smaller pieces of some sort of ancient plastic that looks like translucent bakelite. The plastic was then glued to the smooth back end of the boiler. So we carefully pried the plastic pieces loose from the back of the backhead until the two casting halves came apart. We were then able to remove the backhead in its entirety.
That got us to the coal load mystery. The coal had been glued into the coal bunker, likely by whomever painted the model. We never know for sure what pre-existing "coal" is made from, especially with a model that's 60+ years old. Coal loads can be made from crushed glass, ceramic, plastic, foam, rubber, real coal, or some other kind of synthetic or organic material. Then there's the issue of the kind of glue used to install it. Some glues such as matte medium or Elmer's white glue loosen fairly easily. But it can be very difficult to remove old coal loads held in with tougher glues like epoxy or Walther's Goo. With this particular bunch of coal we were able to successfully chip it out of the bunker using a proper tool for the job, the Micro-Mark 5.0 MM Scraper. This sharp, flat-bladed scraper can chisel through the coal and glue. Moving slowly and deliberately, the blade is placed flat against the bottom sheet of the bunker, and with even pressure applied, slid under the coal load taking it out a little bit at a time. This needs to be done carefully to prevent marring the brass—easily done if the scraper isn't held correctly, or of some other sharp instrument is used instead, like a screwdriver or X-acto blade.
With those three problems resolved, it was time to clean the brass components, to prepare them for soldering repairs, priming, and eventual painting. That's best accomplished by grit-blasting each brass part and sub-assembly. This restoration will include a new paint job on the boiler and tender. So please stay tuned for more on the actual paint work and reassembly.
As always—when your fine brass model trains need adjustments, repairs, restoration or weathering—we are the shop to contact. Please send your email requests to: [email protected] and please include a few images of your model along with a brief description of the services requested. And as always—whenever you ship brass models to anyone, please use a really BIG box packed tight with new bubble wrap. Your models and your customers will thank you when everything arrives undamaged.
You can visit us on the web at: www.JEFFLEMKETRAINS.com
Our eBay Store can be found here: https://www.ebay.com/str/coolstuff201
Thanks for looking today. We do appreciate your interest in our professional services.
Cheers!
Jeff Lemke Trains, Inc. • Bloomingdale, IL. USA
