Hi Guys
I recently bought the 4100 in Kokosing colors , have to say i am very pleased with it.
It's nr 5 from the 4100 series i have so it's a somewhat double from the standard crane i already had.
Reason i bought it is that the color scheme is very attractive to me.
I know the 4100 in Kokosing colors is fictional and the Walsh and Lampson are not.
So that was toughest part for me , go for an existing model or for a non existing model but with the nicest color combo I think.
So i ended with this one , and i have to say it's so much better looking as the boring red.
But for me it was close race between the Lampson and the Kokosing.
Don't know what it is but a yelow crane with black boom and black a frame always looks good for me.
So this being nr five of 4100's i bought i think i can say i am an experienced 4100 buyer.
And from that standpoint i thought it would be interesting to make some observations on this new series of 4100's.
Are there some improvements in this new limited series , the answer is yes.
First thing i noticed is that all the counterweights are from steel and not the light alu version.
This was previously only done with tower version , so this is great it makes the model much more stable.
Another thing is the quality of the threaded holes in the boom and the pendants are perfect now in this new series.
It used to be sometimes way to tight in the previous versions and putting a thread tap through the holes was necessary.
So a big improvement here.
Next thing is the paint , the whole undercarriage including the center counterweights are now painted with gloss paint instead of satin paint.
Is this an improvement , well that is a personel preference but I think it matches better with the gloss paint of upper part of the crane.
In the past i used both types of paints on models i repainted and i still can figure out what i like the most.
Gloss painted models have more of the " i want to have it factor " while satin painted models look more realistic i think.
Last thing is an almost not noticeable thing because it looks so natural , but boom tip offset adaptors are missing.
So the boom tip is now without the offset , i think it looks much better and most of real machines where used this way.
Of coarse they where easy to remove but now it´s out of box looking good instant.
Was there some more room for improvement in this new limited series , the answer is also yes.
First the famous and stupid knot , yes it´s still there.
How on earth could they do this after so many comments on several forums.
And the strange part is with the previous drag line version i bought it was gone.
So they know how to do it right and now they are doing it wrong again , a complete mystery to me.
On the other hand how much fun would a model be if there was no room for improvement anymore.
It´s not something that cannot be solved by an experienced model collector , but a strange and unnecessary thing I think.
Another thing is the tape used in the package to keep the reeving in place.
Yes it´s also still there and it still a pain in the ass to remove it and after removing most of the reeving is jumped of the sheaves anyway.
And the solution is so simple , connect the outer bail to boom with a small pin and put four small screws in the a frame and secure it the transport position.
Keep the boom under tension downwards with a simple rubber band and you are ready to go.
( and those 4 extra screws would be a big improvement to keep the a frame up as well )
The rope on the main drums are rolled the wrong way up , easy to fix with a cut off key and a power tool.
Why not standard extra weight in the hollow center counterweights , it makes the model even more stable.
I know it's suplied with jib extension kit but it would be better to mount it in al the cranes.
And i cannot imagine that it would be a big cost in fabrication.
Last point are the pendants , there are two straight boom sections A 10 and 40 feet section but the 10 feet pendants are missing.
This is an error that is made in all the previous models and is so simple to correct.
In the tower version they used 10 ft pendants so why not here ?.
Are the 5 points mentioned above big deals , no they are definite not.
But they would make an extremely good model ( which the TWH 4100 still is I think ) the 100% perfect model.
No need to say i already made the modifications on the center counterweights and the 10 ft pendants , main drums and the knot is gone be modified soon.
Does this justify the extra price for these limited editions , well that is up to you but for me well no need to explain that because i bought one.
So a big hurray for Chuck here for starting this project and for TWH to make another great livery of the 4100.
Would i recommend to buy one , i would say yes if you like the 4100 a lot another color is very refreshing.
Nice side effect some standard 4100 would show up on the second hands market , which is great for repaints and rebuild lovers.
Don't know what is gone happen to my standard red 4100 but it's always goood to have a project on the shelf ( like i have none ).
One point i did not mentioned is the Jib extension kit , well there is none in the matching colors.
Why not , i think it would relatively easy for TWH to produce some matching colored jib kits.
I think this a missed change here from a commercial point of view , not al collectors are able or want to make modifications.
I repainted a 40 ft section and a jib assembly black to complete the crane because i think it looks so much better with a jib.
If there where let´s say 100 black jib kits ( 50 for the Kokosing and 50 for the Walsh ) and another 50 kits in blue for the Lampson i think they would sell pretty good.
And for some 20% extra in price it still would be interesting for collectors to buy one.
Hope you enjoyed reading this and watching the pictures , let me know your thoughts.
A very happy 4100 Kokosing owner.
Eef
Straight out of the box , no modifications.
The missing 10 feet pendants added.
The missing extra boom section , jib and extra center counterweights.
The extra jib attached.
Complete only thing needs to be done is the knot and the extra 40 ft section.
Togheter with the red version
***
Flickr American cranes group***
3D printed crane parts at I.materialise
