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Johnson 1P, more fiddly bits


buffalo

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Not so much to show this week, I've had less free time and have been using it to add some of the small fiddly bits. Now I've reached the point where I need to wait a few days for some new supplies from Eileen's. These include some brass channel section that I hope to use in producing the little brackets on the buffer beams that hold the electrical connection cable when not in use.

 

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The first photo shows most of the new additions. Starting from the rear, the bunker step is quite prominent in the one photo I have of the rear end of 58047. The screw reversing gear has been added inside the cab, but the floor and backhead are only temorarily placed in position to check their fit. I need to build up the detail on the backhead but only have a couple of photos of prototypes, neither of which is of a push-pull fitted engine. There are two injectors on one photo but only one on the other. However, 58047 has clack valves on either side of the boiler so, with my limited knowledge of how these things work, I'm uncertain what needs adding to the backhead.

 

The next addition is the tank filler caps. As I mentioned last time, the castings in the kit are wrong in almost every respect. Most Johnson tanks have an almost flush fitting cap, so I've tried to reproduce these from brass sheet and lace pins. Also on the tank top are the brackets for holding fire irons. There is one just in front of the cab made from a lace pin and the more curvy one in line with the front of the filler cap was made from some boiler band strip. It is rather delicate, so only time will tell whether it survives or needs to be replaced with something a bit stronger.

 

The other new parts are at the front. They are the vacuum regulator apparatus, sandbox filler caps and a vague representation of the sandbox operating levers. I've not been able to find a photo showing the latter in any detail but, like several photos, they give the impression that there is something there. All of these can be seen more clearly in the second photo, although this also shows more solder that needs cleaning off. As is often the case, it looks worse in the photo and the use of Bar Keepers Friend for cleaning has the effect of darkening both solder and white metal.

 

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Looking at that second photo and thinking about the sanding mechanism, I can see that I'm going to have to add a representation of the control rod. There is a rod visible on photos of engines with the front sand boxes passing between the tank and splasher on this side, just above footplate level. I am fairly certain this is the sanding control. Whatever it is, it is another of those cases of something that you might not normally notice, but once you know it's there, its absence sticks out like a sore thumb.

 

Incidentally, my request for information on how the vacuum regulator worked seems to have fallen on deaf ears. If anyone knows, I'd appreciate any information you can offer.

 

I'd like to add the builder's plates to the sides of the bunker and the tank capacity plate to the rear. So far, though, I've not found a source of suitable etches. Does anyone have any ideas, please? Thinking about the builder's plates led me to realise that I knew very little about 58047's history. The ealiest photos I have show the engine in 1951 with this number but with LMS still on the tank sides. I've not been able to find the numbers it carried in LMS and MR days or where it was build. Again, any information, references, etc. would be appreciated.

 

Nick

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Hi Nick,

 

I've been following your progress on the Johnson tank with some interest as I built one of these pretty little tank engines over 10 years ago. A picture of mine is posted here....

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/gallery/image/4768-craftsmanscratchbuilt-johnson-0-4-4t/

 

It seems you have gone down a very similar route to me. Considering it's age the brass parts of the Craftsman body are very nice but as you point out the chassis and castings show their age. I too replaced the chassis and boiler fittings with Gibson parts. My chassis was compensated with twin beams (adjacent to the frames) on the driving wheel axles and a central beam rocking one bogie axle whilst the other is fixed. This was at a time before I got into springing and CSB's. If doing another I'd go that way.

 

When you mentioned above about the tank fillers being flat I had a sudden panic that I'd done mine wrong. I used the kit castings with some added detail. However it seems the locos fitted with condensing apparatus had a different filler. Phew!

 

To answer a couple of your questions. 58047 was numbered 1303 by the MR in 1907 and was carried through LMS ownership. Prior to 1907 I believe it was number 1649 but this is assumed by comparing the number series in Table 1 (page 4) of the Wild Swan book of these locos. Regarding builders plates I used a suitably sized oval plate from a Mainly Trains etch of wagon detailing parts. There is no legible text on it and it looked about the right size from study of photos. If you wanted something more accurate then Guilplates would probably be able to help.

 

Looking forward to see how you get on with the chassis.

 

Cheers...Morgan

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Hi Morgan,

 

Thanks for this. I knew I'd seen a photo of a model of a condensing tank on here somewhere. There's some fine extra detail there :D If mine ends up looking half as good as yours, I'll be more than happy. Fortunately, I'll be able to avoid lining because this one will be in late LMS black, though probably with early BR renumbering.

 

As to the chassis, I'll probably go for a sprung approach, although I've had some interesting alternative suggestions. At the moment I think that, with my limited experience, getting a CSB to work well on an 0-4-4 is going to be an interesting exercise, but one that I'd like to try.

 

Yes, as far as I can see, most of the condensing tanks had the taller filler though, even with the additions that you made, it looks like the castings you started with were better than the ones in my kit.

 

Many thanks for the info about numbers, and interesting that you mention the Mainly Trains wagon plates etch. I have one of these and was considering it as a fallback if nothing else came to light. I might give Guilplates a try, though, as I'll also need a shed plate.

 

Nick

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Further to your question about the vaccum operated regulator these are my thoughts based on the type of regulator fitted - I do not know 100%

 

The 1Ps were fitted with a vertical regulator so as the regulator was moved a lever moved upwards or downwards depending on if opened or closed to open an intital pilot valve and then the main steam valve. On a normal engine the main steam valve then allowed steam through to the cylinders.

 

Looking now at the vacuum operated ones the apparatus was on the side of the smokebox in line with were the main steam pipes split to go to the two cylinders. Therefore it would look likley that the vacuum moves the lever you talk about up and down to open and close a smaller valve. inside the smokebox on the main steam pipe.

 

Thinking about how stiff a 3f regulator is to move (the nearest i have experienced) a vaccum operated system would need more of a lever effect to move the acutal regulator handle. Therefore I would suggest that the process would be a signal from the driving cab to signal to the fireman to open the regulator/ close the regulator with the vaccum controlled appuratus giving the fine control the driver wanted.

 

Moving onto your build its very nice, if you want a photo of the engine in LMS livery I might have one in my neg collection. will check for you.

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Thanks for the suggestions about the regulator. I hadn't really considered the fireman's involvement in the process, but it makes sense.

 

The drawings in the James, Hunt and Essery volume make it fairly clear how the vacuum control actually works. Normally, the steam pipe comes out of the centre top of the boiler and curves around the left side of the smokebox, before splitting to the cylinders. In the vacuum controlled version, the pipe is diverted through the control valve which is under the vertical tubular cover on the outside.

 

As to photos, there are plenty in the sources that I've been using, but I only have two good ones of 58047. If you have any of this engine, or of the cab of a push pull fitted engine, they would be very welcome.

 

Nick

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Hi Nick, please find attached two photos of 47 one from each side both taken in March 1951 at Highbridge. I can't find a way of attaching the photo so will do a topic for you in prototype

 

Regards

 

Duncan

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Excellent, thanks Duncan, I look forward to seeing them. Thinking ahead to when the model is running, do you happen to have any photos of the push-pull coaches they worked with on the Wells branch?

 

Nick

 

ps. yes, a sometimes irritating downside of the blog format is that it makes it impossible for anyone to add photos unless they are already hosted elsewhere.

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Sorry just seen your post, I may have will have a look through that part of my collection for you. What detail are you looking for?

 

Kind regards

 

Duncan

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Many thanks, Duncan. I've responded with yet more questions on your thread.

 

As to the coaches, I know next to nothing about them and was intending to start a prototype questions thread about them soon. At present, I only have two or three photos all with different coaches. One, in another 1951 photo is, I think, numbered M34456, though the first and last digits are uncertain. Certainly anything showing the driving end would be interesting.

 

Nick

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Nick,

 

I've updated the thread, hopefully Coachman might read this and be able to help

 

Kind regards

 

Duncan

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