MikeOxon's Pre-Grouping Blog

The easy way to solve a problem like this is to buy a set of brass compensated W irons (assuming such things are still available in 4mm) and set them up using a simple jig - which can either be bought in or made. I find that if a wagon is not square, and cannot be made so, it can at least be made to run properly by following this method. This is not my idea originally - it was Iain Rice who pointed me in this direction. It is often simpler to do this than assemble the wagon as designed - white metal often distorts and even plastic kits are not always perfect.

By the way, superglue does the job perfectly well. I have some white metal 7mm scale wagons built circa 1991 with this method and up to now only one has failed in service. Solder is better, but not essential.

Thanks for those thoughts, Poggy1165.  Iain Rice's book on building etched brass kits has been a constant source of inspiration and I do like his definition of a 'kit' including "the kit designer must describe how the kit is to be built, and he should have addressed and solved all the problems encountered in building the model at the design stage".  Fortunately, I quite enjoy 'problem-solving'   I agree that superglue sometimes gets a bad press but is great, when used correctly. I'm also testing Bostik 'Serious Glue', which seems quite promising.

I agree with Poggy's suggestion. Amputate the running gear and rebuild it using etched W irons. On other vehicles that I have encountered, it is not uncommon to find that the two sides have been cast from a single pattern. As a result, if the axleboxes on the pattern are slightly asymmetric, this will be faithfully reproduced on all the castings. You can therefore have either a square body, or a square chassis - but not both.

Best wishes

Eric

Hi Mike, I agree about the superglue. It's underrated for glueing whitemetal together. I now swear by the gel type, which has a bit of a filling effect and therefore works very nicely for people like me who don't get along so well with fine tolerances :-)

 

I don't recall having problems with mis-aligned axles on the two 3-plankers I've built, so not sure what has made the difference. I usually file the solebar ends as appropriate to ensure a square fit, if that is any help. When I have glued all the sides I sometimes hold the model between all four fingers and tweak it until it is square. Cave-man technology but it works for me :-)

 

Here are some more photos of the first 3-planker I did (although that was built with Araldite): http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/75/entry-6024-3-plank-open-in-gwr-red/

 

If you decide to go for new W irons the MJT ones are really nice.

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I think my own clumsiness was the main reason for mis-alignment, as the cast w-irons are actually separate from the side castings. The instructions suggested fitting them first, which I did, but it would be better to leave them until later, so that they can be aligned correctly.  I'm going to try my brass floor idea first and may also try the MJT etchings.  I enjoy problem-solving  

 

Mike

Mike

I don't see any sign of a really flat surface in any of your photos.

My method for building kit wagons involves assembling them upside down on an old mirror using a miniature set square.

I must admit that I can't get on with Superglue and whitemetal and solder all my kits together, but thats just me.

As Burgundy says ' Not all castings are precise' and it could be a good idea to put mating castings together back to back to see if any end of the solebars needs trimming to get more accurately matching sides and a more square end result.

 

For Mikkel, What is this gel type that you mention please?

 

Michael

To test Burgundy's suggestion, I photographed one wagon side and then used Photoshop to make a mirror image.  This shows that there is indeed a small discrepancy in the placing of the bump stops and V-hangers.  Since I aligned the axleboxes with the bump stops, this can explain the mis-aligned axles.