Tom S., if you are actually planning to re-gauge a Shay I would suggest that you surely consider an additional mechanical engineer’s consultation to confirm my suggestion that the miss-alignment on the horizontal plain or vertical plain makes no different for the small degrees that are involved. I’m not impressed by your just using Dan Ranger’s name without entering what he says, and the reasons. Why just throw money away on new pipes and manifolds if they are totally unneeded?
The distance from centerline of track to the crankshaft of a Standard Gauge Shay is usually 42 7/8” (52 3/8” to c/l boiler) and with a narrow gauge Shay about 36” to 36.5”. If narrow gauge trucks were placed under a standard gauge model 70-2 with a normal 3.5’ between U-joints, than the angle of deflection would be about 8 degrees. Now, compare that to the design of the last narrow gauge Shay (#3345 NML) built in 1929, where the height of the crankshaft was higher than the drive shaft at the trucks, and its angle between the U-joints was 5 degrees off tangent or horizontal. In most cases the Shay drive shaft between the U-joints is longer than 3.5 feet and would therefore be at a less angle of deflection from tangent. These angles are nothing of consequence, when considering the angle of deflections that Shay’s wheel-sets worked around when on an 80-degree curve - such as Uintah RR original design.
In all the history of gauge changes of Shay engines on the logging and mining railroads, I have never heard of the cylinders having to be remounted such as in the earlier posts where I said it was stupid to make new manifolds.
And I can imagine there are many model railroaders who have models of Shay locomotives, which they have operated with narrow gauge truck and standard gauge truck without changing the location of the crankshaft. And I judge they have had no noticeable problem making the locomotive operate, as long as there is sufficient play or length in the square slip joints. Why don’t you test it with a model before you waste the money making new manifolds?