Transforming A Generic Kato Mikado Into A NP W-5 Class Mikado Using A GHQ Pewter Kit

This detailed tutorial will kit bash a generic Kato Mikado into a NP W-5 Class coal burning and oil burning Mikado using a GHQ kit. You will need one GHQ kit for each locomotive. The approximate cost of each kit from GHQ is $125.


This NP W-5 Class Coal Burner/Oil Burner GHQ Kit will transform a generic Kato Mikado into a NP W-5 Coal Burner/Oil Burner. I'm going to kit bash a W-5 NP Mikado because the W-5 Mikado uses a longer tender which is necessary if you want to install a sound decoder and speaker in the tender. The tender for the W-3 NP Mikado is a short tender and doesn't have enough room for a sound decoder and speaker. There is barely enough room in the tender for a decoder.

You will need a separate GHQ kit to build a NP W-5 Class Oil Burning Mikado. Most of the photo's in this tutorial will be of the NP W-5 Coal Burning Mikado. There will be some photo's of the NP W-5 Class oil burning Mikado as well

There are four bags of detail parts for the NP W-5 Mikado. None of the parts are labeled and you must read the instructions in the kit very carefully in order to identify the parts. When this kit is completed, you will know all the important parts of a steam locomotive. This kit will take about 30 hours to finish. So, work slowly and carefully.

 The locomotive shell, cab and smoke box have been removed. The details for doing this can be seen in the ESU Lok-Sound Decoder Installation Tutorial In A Kato Mikado on this website.

Five wires from the decoder will be soldered to the light board. In this installation the horizontal support bar below the tightening screw and above the valve gear must be removed on both sides of the locomotive frame. This is necessary in order to seat the pewter boiler of the NP W-5 Mikado. You can remove this support ledge with a diamond cutting instrument in a Dremel and some strong cutting pliers.

You'll need a good pair of cutting pliers to cut wire, remove flash from detail castings and sprue pins.

This is the wiring necessary for a Lok-Sound/Soundtraxx sound decoder wiring in the locomotive. All the wiring is protected with Kapton tape. You must cover the entire frame of the Mikado with Kapton tape to insulate the frame from the Pewter boiler casting which must be seated on the frame. To see the full installation of a Lok Sound decoder in a Kato Mikado. I use five wires to connect the locomotive to the decoder.

The support bar was removed from the Fireman's side of the locomotive frame with diamond cutting tools. This will take some time. Cut the support bar flush with the frame. Make sure you wear protective glasses when cutting the support bar. You will have to remove this support from both sides of the locomotive frame.

The support bar was removed from the Engineers side of the locomotive frame with diamond cutting tools. This will take some time. Cut the support bar flush with the frame. Make sure you wear protective glasses when cutting the support bar. Remove all scrap bits of the support frame  with a small vacuum cleaner.

This is an overhead view of Mikado frame showing the complete covering of the frame with Kapton tape to insulate the frame when the Pewter boiler casting is seated on the frame. Don't cover the light board with Kapton tape. I use five wires to connect the decoder to the locomotive; red, black,orange, gray and white. You could solder the blue wire to the light board, but it isn't necessary.

The Kapton tape covers the Fireman's side of the Mikado frame to insulate the frame when the Pewter boiler casting is seated on the frame. You can see where the support bar was cut flush with the frame.

A lateral view of the Engineers side of the Mikado frame showing the Kapton tape covering the frame.

Closeup view of the light board showing the Kapton tape covering the soldered connections of the wiring.

A closeup view of the Mikado frame on the engineers side showing the Kapton tape covering the frame and the support bar after it was cut flush to the frame.

An overhead view of the pewter boiler casting seated on the Mikado frame. The decoder wiring is seen at the back end of the casting passing over the flywheel of the locomotive. Make sure that these wires are braced with Kapton tape before it exits from the rear of the frame into the cab area of the Mikado.This is the pewter boiler casting for The NP W-5 Class Coal burning Mikado .

An overhead view of the pewter boiler casting seated on the Mikado frame. The decoder wiring is seen at the back end of the casting passing over the flywheel of the locomotive. make sure that these wires are braced with Kapton tape before it exits from the rear of the frame into the cab area of the Mikado.This the pewter boiler casting for The NP W-5 Class Oil burning Mikado.

A view of the Engineers side of the NP W-5 Class Coal Burning Mikado. The pewter casting is firmly seated on the Mikado frame.

A view of the Fireman's side of the NP W-5 Class Coal Burning Mikado. The pewter casting is firmly seated on the Mikado frame.

The original front pilot base must be cut to allow the front pilot castings to be glued to the frame of the front pilot. You can see the score marks made with an #11 scalpel blade.

A view of the pewter boiler casting shows the wires coming from the decoder passing over the flywheel of the locomotive. The wiring must not come into contact with the flywheel. You can anchor the wires above the flywheel with some Kapton tape.

An overhead view of the pewter boiler and cab castings seated in place on the frame.

A view of the Engineer's side of the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado. The boiler casting is seated on the Mikado frame. The front pilot casting has also been added and cemented in place.

A view of the Fireman's side of the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado. The boiler casting is seated on the Mikado frame. The front pilot casting has also been added and cemented in place.

A closeup view of the front pilot castings on the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado.

An Engineer's side view of the seated boiler and cab castings on the Mikado frame. These castings must be firmly seated in place.

A view of the Fireman's side of the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado. The boiler casting is firmly  seated on the Mikado frame. The front pilot casting has also been added and cemented in place.

An overhead view of the boiler casting. Holes have been tapped in the boiler frame from the handrails on the boiler of the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado.

An overhead view of the NP W-5 Class Mikado pewter boiler casting. All the detail parts and piping has been added and cemented in place. I used the front headlight from a generic Kato Mikado.

All the detail parts and piping have been added to the Engineers side of the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado.

All of the detail parts and piping have been added to the fireman's side of the NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado.

All the detail parts and piping have been added to the smoke box and front pilot of the NP W-5 coal burning Class Mikado.

The Pewter truck side frame castings of the tender have been cemented in place along with a re-railer.

Overhead view of the coal burning tender with all the castings cemented in place. I'm using the original Kato Mikado tender as this is a W-5 Class Mikado and I need room for the ESU Lok-Sound decoder and speaker.

A lateral overhead view of the coal burning tender with all the detail castings in place.

An overhead view of the painted NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado. The locomotive was painted with a Polly Scale Brunswick Green. The decoder wiring from the cab of the locomotive were also sprayed with Brunswick Green.

The Engineers side of completely painted NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado. The drivers, valve gear and side rods were blackened with Neolube # 2.

The Fireman's side of the completely painted NP W-5 Class coal burning Mikado. Neolube #2 was used to blacken the drivers, valve gear and side rods.

A view of the engineers side of the painted coal burning tender. The tender was also painted with Brunswick Green Polly Scale paint. I now use this paint for all steam locomotives instead of Polly Scale Grimy Black or Steam Power Black.

An overhead view of the painted NP W-5 coal burning tender. The tender for the W-3 is a short tender which barely has enough room for a decoder, much less a sound decoder and speaker. That is why I used the stock Kato Mikado tender.

A closeup view of the painted NP W-5 Class coal burning tender.

A closeup view of the details and castings added to the NP W-5 oil burning tender.

An overhead view of the completely painted oil burning NP W-5 Class Mikado.

A Fireman's side view of the completely painted NP W-5 Class Oil Burning Mikado.

An Engineers side view of the NP W-5 Oil Burning and Coal Burning Class Mikado's. The only differences between the two locomotives is the front pilot and of course the tenders.

A Fireman's side view of both NP W-5 Class Coal Burning and Oil Burning Mikado's. The drivers, valve gears and side rods of both Mikado's were blackened with Neolube # 2.

A closeup view of the front pilots of the two NP W-5 Class Mikados. The coal burning Mikado is on the right.

A closeup overhead view of two PRR L1-s Mikado's (Top two) and the two NP W-5 Class Mikado's on the bottom. All four locomotives were painted with Polly Scale Brunswick Green. Each locomotive took about 30 hours to completely finish. Each of these locomotives weighs at least three times more than the generic Kato Mikado. On average each locomotive will pull over 60 cars on level track.

I really enjoyed kit bashing all four of these steam locomotives with the GHQ kits.

NP #1825 W-5 Class oil burning Mikado in the Switching Yard of the "new" JJJ&E. This is a very early photo of the Switching Yard. None of the Unitrack has been ballasted.

A closeup of NP #1825 NP W-5 Class oil burning Mikado in the Switching yard of the "new" JJJ&E.

NP Mikado #1825 W-5 Class Oil Burning Heavy Mikado kit bashed from a generic Kato Mikado using a GHQ kit. This locomotive will pull 55 cars on level Track. The Locomotive with all the pewter castings weighs about three times heavier than the original generic Kato Mikado.

Another view  of NP #1837 W-5 Class Coal Burning Heavy Mikado on a siding east of San Marino. This locomotive will easily pull 55 cars on level track.

A classic old time photo of the NP W-5 Class #1837 coal burning Heavy Mikado on a siding east of San Marino. This locomotive was kit bashed from a generic Kato Mikado using a GHQ kit.

Track side views of the fireman's side of NP W-5 Class oil burning Mikado #1825 on the elevated mainline track east of San Marino. There is a Lok-Sound micro decoder and speaker in the tender. This kit bashed steamer will pull 55 cars on level track.

A NP W-5 Class Coal Burning Mikado #1837 kit bashed from a generic Kato Mikado using a GHQ full pewter detail kit. There is a Lok Sound micro decoder and speaker in the tender. This steamer weighs three times what the original locomotive weighed and pulls over 55 cars on level track.

These GHQ pewter kits are time consuming and a lot of fun to build. If you are interested in steam locomotives, give one a try. You will be pleasantly surprised with the results.