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Ernies 7mm Wagons - 21 ton MDV


The Bigbee Line
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Recently I received some prototype instanter links. The modern type made from cast steel. I could resist no longer and last night roughed up a couple of outer links to the prototype dimensions. Excuse the roughness and shape of the links, they are to test out functionality not form, with this etched centre link...

 

Here shown in various modes. The first two pictures show it in the short position. The wagon on the left is a lionheart mineral with a 3H on the right with a non descript coupler that sticks out a smidgen too far..

 

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Using a scale pole, the link can be lifted by a lug and the coupler is then in the long position

 

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The coupler can also be shortened when hanging thus, often done to tidy couplings in real life.

 

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In the long position

 

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Big clue to provenence...

 

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In conclusion they exceed all expectations in terms of looks and their operation. I need to make a former to bend some links, copper for the inner and soft iron for the outer to allow magic wand coupling. I am advised that the design is being fettled as we speak. Well done Stenson Models...

Edited by The Bigbee Line
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Just sneaked in some modelling tonight.

 

Sorted out the level to pack the underframe to and secured with one screw.  The side opposite the screw is cemented down.  Tomorrow I will slit the big piece of white card down the middle to create the removable section.

 

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There is life outside model railways.  Here's a Planter under construction for the boss.  She likes growing salads...

 

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The planter was very reasonably priced from Screwfix.  Linda did say it looked a bit like a coffin on legs..  Maybe room for some N gauge around the rim, I think not.

 

The week has been hectic workwise so modelling has been in dribs and drabs.  The second Lima Minfit conversion is almost complete.  It's in the background of the next shot waiting for some bodywork tweaks to dry before preparation for body painting tomorrow.  I can find some brake levers and get them fitted with the suitable brakework.

 

In the foreground is a Parkside Fruit Van underway.  The floor and one end have been cemented and are sitting on the end of a square to set.  That was glued at about 18h00 so might go out and get a side glued on...

 

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Today was mainly garden....

 

However the Fruit van got a look in.

 

Being a tight wad I wanted to use some Slaters Axleguards , so made up some solebars from styrene sheet and a strip of evergreen.

 

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The axleguards were given some 'feet' from scrap syrene.

 

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I am not going to use the 'chassis' that nobody will see, but used it as a cutting guide for the solebars and will use it to space out the axleguards when the time comes.

 

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The body had a couple of pieces of scrap cemented between the body in the vicinity of the doors to stop any tendency to bend in..

 

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I did think about filling the body with wood to make the 5 oz weight, but think it isn't heavy enough.  I need to try...

 

The buffer shanks were cemented in place and the 'rings' cemented to the fronts.  These will sit for a couple of days and I can pull the buffers out before painting.

 

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Finally as the result of my question regarding wheels, I have replaced the spoked wheels of the first of my Minfit conversions.

 

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Last job tonight was to try my new solebars. They were a touch too deep so needed a slight fettle..

 

Here's the first one in...

 

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and the second...

 

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Here with the 'chassis' sat in place to space out the axle guards. I will give the solebars a slight rounding off on the lower edge and the very hint of surface texture. I'm hoping to add cubes of styrene to represent the bolts though the solebar, not done that on an O gauge model yet.

 

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I'm thinking of making the underframe as a separate sub frame, with the facility to remove wheelsets if required. Before the axle boxes are added I will push the bearings in to remove any sideways slop in the wheelsets. Now to browse the pictures to see if I can find one with spoked wheels..

Edited by The Bigbee Line
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Real life trains have eaten my time this week.  A trip on Sunday behind Oliver Cromwell to Rowsley was a long day, back at Thetford after midnight.  Picked up a couple of books though and some inspiration.

 

Thinking on the idea of the sub-frame I had found that I needed a couple of extra layers to get the buffer height right.  As the main sheet is only 20 thou it is quite flexible.  Hmmm, brain ticking over here.  If I used a bit extra and supported the sub-frame only in the middle:

 

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I could get the axle guards to stand proud of the solebar by 1mm.  The sub-frame then flexing under the weight of the wagon. 

 

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I then wondered if under the constant compression the plasticard would settle in the compressed position.  I then thought about rocking the axleboxes on one side as in the Lionheart models. 

 

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Reasonably easy to do as long as the beam was rigid, thinking of a plastic L girder with maybe a metal rod spliced in for rigidity, a horizontal pivot completing the job. 

 

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The big question is what would I gain on a 10' wheelbase wagon.  Maybe better off keeping the wheelsets level with the capacity to remove the axleboxes on one side for wheelset and bearing attention.

 

These are the basic components.  They could be fixed with a small self tapper at each corner.   Then when setting up any low corner can be accurately packed to get the wagon 'rock' free.....

 

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In my quest to change the wheels on the second of my Mineral chop jobs I found a set of 3-hole disc wheelsets in the odds and ends box (I have many of those.....).  The axle ends would not fit in the bearings fitted, but would fit those from a Parkside kit, so a handy set of those were fitted.  One axlebox fell in half during the process.  That was replaced along with my bodge box with a spare pair of Parkside boxes:-

 

Shown with the film protectors to stop it all getting glued solid...

 

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Here with the wheels in.  Brakes next me thinks...

 

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Having only one screw to hold one side of the axle boxes in makes maintenance easy., no risky bending of the axle guards to remove wheelsets.

 

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While searching through the odds and ends I came across a set of coarse scale wheels:

 

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Looking at them a bit closer the actual flange was not a "pizza cutter", the tread was like a steam roller though.  Hmm, that thinking moment.  Maybe I could turn them down in the battery drill.  I had a go, but it just seemed to polish rather than cut.  No messing out of drill and up against the bench, set to with the file, partial rotation after each 3 strokes.  A few minutes later a reasonable wheel and a pile of brass filings...

 

This is the filing position...

 

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This is after...

 

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This shows the modded wheel, not too bad, even though I say it myself...

 

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Just back from a trip to Swanage.  We had a trip behind a Standard 4 tank and 4 mark 1 coaches.  When I was a kid, the garden backed onto the line between Brighton and Falmer.  Apart from the frequent service of green electric trains there were short passenger trains probably hauled by standard tanks.  I can't remember what colour the coaches were....  So a bit of nostalgia.

 

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Once home I needed a modelling fix.  I drilled some holes to fix the axleguards, using some self tappers from various dismantled items.

 

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Once screwed on, a buffer height test was carried out, here against a Lionheart Mineral, not too bad.

 

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What I did notice was that there was considerable sideways slop in the wheelsets.  So some packers were drilled and cut out.  The pushed onto the bearings..

 

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Here with the packed bearings in place.  The piece of plastic pushed in on the left hand side was to compensate for some rocking on the wheelsets...  The wheelsets are nice and snug, but still spin nicely.

 

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What I did notice was that once one solebar was screwed into place, the axleguards weren't completely vertical, bu99er.... So I decided to loosen the screws and pack the axleguards until the were nice and vertical, then out came the cement, a bit brutal, but axleguards 'on the wonk' (a Norfolk term) won't do...

 

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These are the screws I've used.  I would like to know where they could be purchased....

 

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Looking at various pictures, I found a Paul Bartlett image of DE179608.  Looking at the brakework the V hangers are inside the solebars, so a separate assembly with the inner brake blocks on their truss bars might be the way to go.  The outer blocks can go on smaller sub assemblies.  

 

http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/lnercoveredmerchandise/h24519606#h3c43b78a

 

 

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Today was mostly work with a brief session playing with couplings.  Encouraged by receiving some Stenson Models RCH drawhooks...

 

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Scaled from the original drawing the are made by carefully folding the etch to create a double width hook.  With .9mm wire used for links, the addition of a gedges flat on one of the links will let you slide the top link into the gedges slot.  Then when the loop is hanging, it is retained by the slot.  Really clever.

 

Not being able to find my vernier (now there is a surprise...) For the test I used the links from a slaters 3 link coupling.  The magnetic links are quite hard, so I roughly filed one link to get it in the slot.  I then moved it round so the curved part was in the hook.  It hung really nicely and had a nice action, no binding at all.

 

Illustrated in a Lionheart Mineral.

 

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Now coupled to another wagon,  Both drawhooks are the Stenson RCH's.  The action of the couplers is very smooth.

 

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I need to find some suitable wire to make scale links and get them nicely soldered.  Not my usual rough and ready soldering.

 

I see the Instanter Links are now available on the website http://www.stensonmodels.co.uk/product/instanter-coupling-link-7mm-sm27d/

 

Here with some 0.9mm links...

 

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I really like the drawhooks and instanters but I'm puzzled! I followed the link to Stenson's website but it only lists the instanter links in 7mm scale - no sign of the drawhooks ... or am I being 'thick'?

Ray.

Not at all. They've only just arrived. I'm sure they'll be listed very shortly.

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Not at all. They've only just arrived. I'm sure they'll be listed very shortly.

 

As the person who drew these, up can I just paraphrase Monty Python Life of Brian and say 'Ernie's been a very naughty boy!' here. The RCH coupling hooks shown are prototypes only and he should not have put them up here, as they require a slight adjustment to the drawing. This has been done, but it take a longer than very shortly to get them listed.

 

regards

Phil

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Pressing on with the idea of having the brake work on the Fruit Van as a separate assembly.

 

A piece of scrap plasticard was cut to be a snug fit between the solebars.  It will be secured by a single self tapping screw.

 

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I looked at the brakework as supplied in the kit.  Positioning of the components is a bit hit and miss.  I need to work out the distance of the centre line of the brake shafts across the wagon from the solebar.  I can then make a jig to allow the V hangers to be set correctly.  I've already made a rough jig for the centres of the 2 shafts.  This is based on one of the mouldings in the kit...

 

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Is there a dimensional drawing in the public domain with some dimensions on?

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They say you shouldn't model a model....  I looked through various books and could not find a drawing showing the LNER style V hangers.  So I resorted to getting some basic dimensions from a 4mm Bachmann wagon...

 

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I then glued in a pad to support the plate that will tale the brakework.

 

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I've used my simple jig to align the 2 vee hangers and to add the joining levers.  Just need to wait until the cement dries...

 

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Monkey see, Monkey do.

 

Using my OO model as a guide I have started building up the brakework...  Using this to get the basic dimensions (using a divide by 4 and multiply by 7 rule).  I am not worrying about the odd millimetre, going mainly on looks.  If your not careful you can give yourself a hard time looking for measurements then beating yourself us if you're a millimetre out.  Luckily I'm beyond that, I think...

 

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So far I have added the brake cylinder, then removed the 2 V hangers from the jig, trimmed some material off the bottoms of each hanger.  The off cuts are used to locate the hanger on the plate.  All then cemented and centralised between the axleguards.  Note the clear film to stop the different elements getting glued together.  Additional small blocks of scrap plasticard are then added to reinforce the joints.

 

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The brake cylinder was reduced in height by 3mm and cemented straight onto the plate.  The kit had 2 cylinders, so there is one spare and the ring removed will have a use I'm sure...

 

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Here is a cruel close up from the side.  These close ups show the 'warts and all' of the model, but are useful as they show things I find difficult to see in normal conditions.

 

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I'm thinking of attaching the brake levers and their slides to the solebars, then letting the pivot end of the lever sit on the end of a brass cross shaft. The brakework plate can then be removed if required by taking the screw out and springing out the levers.

 

 

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The last bit on the van tonight was to add the brakes to the other side.

 

This was made easier by the use of some brass rod threaded through the holes.  You can see if the rod is level and at right angles to the wagon side.  Luckily the piece trimmed from the bottom of the V hanger when cemented to the plate wedging it nicely together.

 

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Mineral Wagon Door Bangers

 

I'd been thinking that the mineral wagons needed finishing off.  One job was the door bangers.  Looking around for some brass section I looked at the parkside etch for the coupling hooks.

 

A section was cut from the side of the etch and the small foot reduced with a file to give the necessary length.

 

 

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Here getting compared to the Lionheart banger

 

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To give strength they will be mounted from inside the body.  A hole was drilled.  The brass can then be 'let into' the floor with a soldering iron.. The gaps being filled to give a solid mounting.

 

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Here are a couple of views of it roughly in position.

 

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The door needs some filler before the topcoat of paint is applied...

 

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IMG_5547 jig.JPG

 

Is there a dimensional drawing in the public domain with some dimensions on?

Although there are published drawings - Tatlows LNER series and our BR wagons book, the reason I encouraged the HMRS to publish Doug Hewsons book is that these sort of details are just what the drawings in his book are about, and they are not easily found elsewhere.

 

Paul

Edited by hmrspaul
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The first set of brake hangers were fitted to one side.  I had a couple of goes to get the drop right.  When the other side are fitted I will use the long piece of brass wire as a guide through the holes for the truss bars, to get it all nice and square.  I'd had an idea to make the safety loops out of wire and by magic I found a roll of small diameter garden wire on the bench..  So I straightened a section and bent a piece to shape.  The piece of wire forms the loops on one side of the wagon with a joining piece that will be trapped under some scrap plastic onto the main brakework mounting plate.  The outer brake beams will each be on a small sub-base.  This could be fitted after the centre plate and also secure the outer ends of the safety loops.

 

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The garden wire is just to test my idea for fitting, I have some brass wire being delivered next week, so that should be better.

 

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This shows the safety loop to catch the rod between the 2 V hangers.  Pictures of the real thing are a triangular loop, so might make one from thin wire.

 

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Not much modelling today.  Just had time to fit a brake hanger from the 'second side'.  Looks like the wheels need a good dusting....

 

There is a sliver of plasticard giving the required

 

 

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I also added some white to my grey matt paint, gave if a good mix, then gave the 2 Big Big conversions another coat.  The colour is getting there.  Also shown if the Lionheart model for comparison

 

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HYMAC EP Perhaps...

 

Good evening.  I have decided to keep the wagon posts together...  More disciplined and all that.

 

My latest 'can't resist' purchase from Ebay was 4 spares of repairs O gauge wagons; 2 cattle wagons, a CooperCraft GW Machinery wagon and a Machinery wagon....

 

attachicon.gifhymac job lot.jpg

 

It arrived and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality.  A change from some purchases.  The stranger is the machinery wagon.  It has whitemetal headstocks, side frames, axle guards and curb rails.  The deck is scribed plasticard.  It's very heavy and has no makers identification that I can see.  The white metal parts appear soldered together.

 

attachicon.gifHYMAC EP.JPG

 

It has been lettered E906245 LOWMAC.

 

I cannot find much reference at all other than in my book ; British Railway Goods Wagons in Colour by Robert Hendry.  There is a diagram on page 89 giving details of the HYMAC EP, of which 6 were built at Lancing Works.  B906000 - B906005, So I might trawl my Southern Wagon books.

 

The wheels in the diagram are shown as 2'9" and I suspect it had ordinary wagon size fitted as the buffer height is a bit on the high side.

i think we were both bidding for this lot   LOL

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Good afternoon

 

I had a bit of lunch break modelling today.  The last inner brake hanger in position and added bits of wire in the locations of the truss bars or A bars, depending on where you come from. 

 

The outer hangers next, then the linkage from the centre cross shaft out to the various levers and rods at each end.  Just need to think what each part will hang from and still allowing it to come apart if required...

 

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O gauge. More bang for your buck...

 

When doing my lunchtime modelling I picked up the 00 gauge steel high fit, compared with the O gauge Van it looked like TT scale....

 

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Tonight I fixed two outer brake hangers to a cross piece.  I might need to make a U shaped base to allow room for the drawgear.

 

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The last 2 hangers trimmed ready for tomorrow.

 

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Finally I had a trial at glueing bolts on.  These are just test pieces.  Quite easy really, just need to find a piece of square section Evergreen to cube up into nuts and bolts

 

post-2484-0-71721100-1508797888_thumb.jpg

 

 

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