Bouch's workbench - 7mm Jinty

[Buckjumper]

But now the question. The instructions say to drill out 1/2 etched holes in the buffer beams if modelling an early period where there would be safety chains. I'm considering painting/lettering in GER teak, just because I think it would look great to have a teak vehicle. But, what do these safety chains look like, and when were they removed? That's info which isn't in the instructions. Anyone have any reference photos? (and where would I get GER transfers/decals)

 

The thing that's holding me back from doing that is 1) not really my time period (not that anyone on this side of the ocean would notice, and hey, its my model, I'll build it how I want to) 2) I would have to order the paint from the UK, and the post office isn't keen on shipping paint and 3) it seems, from reading the directions, that early vehicles would be westinghouse braked, while later period woud be vaccuum braked. The kit came with a casting for the westinghouse "K" brake cylinder, while nothing for vaccuum brakes. So, I would have to source out vaccuum brake parts...

 

About the timeframe, I've acquired the etchings for a rake of 5 GWR "clerestory" coaches, old "Mallard models" kits. I'm thinking that the GER teak paint scheme would work tacked onto the rear of that train, so that's the justification for going early period. Of course, I need to get a loco to pull those coaches, (Mitchell "City of Truro" maybe?) but the kits were too good of a deal to pass up...

 

 

Here's the end of a contemporary piece of GER Non-Passenger Coaching Stock (Miscellaneous Stock in GER parlance) - a Diagram 18M Passenger Cattle Van, introduced in 1888, the same year as your Diagram 16M Horsebox. This one is preserved at Mangapps Farm in Essex. The holes for the side chains can be seen in the headstocks, almost halfway between the buffer centres and the coupling hook.

 

_{© Adrian Marks. Ex-GER Passenger Cattle Van}

 

Laurie Griffin sells these, Cat. no. 9-6 @ £6.00 for x2 pairs. He also sells the correct style of screw couplings for GER/LNER vehicles, cat. no. 9-1 @ £10-00.

 

There are no GER transfers available - I'm slowly working on the artwork for some, both pre-1901 and post 1903 styles, as I've half a dozen of these boxes to build, but they won't be ready until well into 2011 at the earliest.

 

Brakes - all were Westinghouse braked, some were fitted with a vacuum through pipe by the GER for foreign line working, and fitted with steam heat pipes from 1910 (not by the LNER as stated in the instructions). The westinghouse equipment was stripped out by the LNER in the 30s. Laurie sells quite a selection of lost-wax vacuum, Westinghouse and steam heat pipes - worth emailing him about to ask which are the correct ones - as you can see in the bottom photo, you'll need to crank the vac pipe. While shopping at laurie's you might also consider upgrading the etched brake yokes in the kit for his cast ones too. Laurie accepts direct bank transfer for overseas orders which should make things easier for you.

 

Another bit of info - a communication cord was fitted through eyelets under the eaves, but between 1902 and 1907 this was replaced by communication/brake tell tale (similar to the GW equipment - CPL products part 2A).

 

^{© Public Domain _{Diagram 16M horsebox c1888. Note communication cord eyelets under roof.} Pre-1902 lettering, pre-1897 running number. Side chains attached to next vehicle.}

 

^{© Public Domain. Diagram 17M horsebox c 1910. Communication cord replaced by tell tale on van end. Westinghouse brake and vacuum through pipe fitted. Post-1903 lettering.}

 

Hope all that helps.

[scotcent]

But now the question. The instructions say to drill out 1/2 etched holes in the buffer beams if modelling an early period where there would be safety chains. I'm considering painting/lettering in GER teak, just because I think it would look great to have a teak vehicle. But, what do these safety chains look like, and when were they removed? That's info which isn't in the instructions. Anyone have any reference photos? (and where would I get GER transfers/decals)

 

 

If it's any help, here are safety chains (on a Caledonian Railway Inspection Saloon)

 

 

The (model) chains are approx 7mm in length plus the length of the hook. Five links. I know not where I got the chain.

 

On the prototype safety chains were a back up in case of coupling failure on coaching stock. They generally went out of use when continuous brakes came into general use (i.e. usually before 1900)

 

Allan F

[Buckjumper]

On the prototype safety chains were a back up in case of coupling failure on coaching stock. They generally went out of use when continuous brakes came into general use (i.e. usually before 1900)

 

Although Allan is correct, we ought to look to the practice of the company in question, and that company being the GER, things are, as usual, somewhat unconventional.

 

The GER was one of the earliest proponents of continuous braking, and plumped for the Westinghouse system in 1878, long before the 1889 Act which compelled all railway companies to adopt automatic brakes. As Allan quite rightly points out, the adoption of the Westinghouse brake should have brought to an end the use of side chains on the company's stock, but that wasn't the case. Locos, carriages and NPCS were all still built with side chains as standard up to and beyond Grouping.

 

So were they left on as decorative pieces?

 

No. the revised instructions for slipping coaches in the Appendix to the Working Timetable No.9, dated 1st Jan 1891, thirteen years after the adoption of the continuous brake specifically mentions that at the last stopping stations the side chains must be taken off and hung up indicating that they were still being used in case the coupling failed.

 

By the time of Appendix No.19 in 1906, the only mention of side chains relates to Main Line stock, and refers to Rule 171b in the Book of Rules & Regs and states that side chains on Main Line stock should not be coupled, but must be hung up and used as emergency couplings. The instruction was not applicable to gangwayed stock when connected and in use. the The implication here is that side chains were still being used on suburban and other local traffic.

 

As an example of the longevity of side chains on the GER, Ferry Vans built to LNER Diagram 25598-3, the drawings of which were prepared in the dying days of the GER in August 1922, were fitted with side chains, and perhaps more surprising is that even the last batch of the B17 4-6-0s, delivered in 1935, locos numbered 2843-2847, were delivered with side chains on the tenders, although to be fair, by this time the LNER was stripping side chains from tenders and carriage stock when they came in to Works...but that contrariness is all part of the beauty of the the (ex)GER.

 

A little beyond the OP, but perhaps of interest is that the latest example I've found of a working ex-GER loco still fitted with side chains was in 1955, and as far as NPCS goes, an ex-GE Pooley van still wore side chains in the 60s.

[scotcent]

Re Side Chains:

 

Thank you for the amplification. My field of knowledge is, as you might deduce, North of the border, and I wouldn't presume to any knowledge of the GER (God's Eccentric Railway.........!) We have recently had some inconclusive discussion on this topic amongst modellers of the Caledonian, which also had its eccentricities. The remarkable thing is that I haven't seen anywhere a picture showing safety chains in use.

 

Allan F

[Buckjumper]

Allan

 

Likewise, my knowledge of the Scottish lines is patchy at best, though I'm not immune to the charms of the Callander & Oban line and its branchlines. The NB in the Borders is also a favourite, and I think Marchmont would make an attractive model. Both areas were childhood holiday haunts and I actively sought out the remains of the railways.

 

Anyway, I digress, side chains in action; look no further than horsebox No.84 in my first post above. I suspect that there are few photographs showing them in use simply because the subject matter is mundane and photographic emulsion was expensive.

[Mike Boucher]

Laurie Griffin sells these, Cat. no. 9-6 @ £6.00 for x2 pairs. He also sells the correct style of screw couplings for GER/LNER vehicles, cat. no. 9-1 @ £10-00.

 

Thanks for that info. I'll have to give him a call

 

There are no GER transfers available - I'm slowly working on the artwork for some, both pre-1901 and post 1903 styles, as I've half a dozen of these boxes to build, but they won't be ready until well into 2011 at the earliest.

 

I'd be interested in a set of "post 1903" transfers, if you make them available. I'm assuming the horsebox was painted brown by that time?

 

Brakes - all were Westinghouse braked, some were fitted with a vacuum through pipe by the GER for foreign line working, and fitted with steam heat pipes from 1910 (not by the LNER as stated in the instructions). The westinghouse equipment was stripped out by the LNER in the 30s. Laurie sells quite a selection of lost-wax vacuum, Westinghouse and steam heat pipes - worth emailing him about to ask which are the correct ones - as you can see in the bottom photo, you'll need to crank the vac pipe. While shopping at laurie's you might also consider upgrading the etched brake yokes in the kit for his cast ones too. Laurie accepts direct bank transfer for overseas orders which should make things easier for you.

 

Another bit of info - a communication cord was fitted through eyelets under the eaves, but between 1902 and 1907 this was replaced by communication/brake tell tale (similar to the GW equipment - CPL products part 2A).

 

Good info to have. I can see in the photo with the tell tale that the post 1903 car still has safety chains. I think I'm narrowing on a timeframe to model, even if it'll be somewhat anachronistic with the rest of my models...

Adds a bit more interest to the end of the van, although it is another casting I'll have to acquire...

 

Hope all that helps.

 

Helped a lot! Those are the first two prototype photos I've seen...

[buffalo]

...Another bit of info - a communication cord was fitted through eyelets under the eaves, but between 1902 and 1907 this was replaced by communication/brake tell tale (similar to the GW equipment - CPL products part 2A)...

In that third photo it appears that the mechanism is connected to both brake systems. I know that the GWR vacuum arrangement opens a small valve to allow a restricted air flow into the vacuum circuit, but how does it work with the Westinghouse system? Is it just a similar valve that releases air from the system to apply the brakes?

 

Nick

[Buckjumper]

I'm assuming the horsebox was painted brown by that time?

 

 

Not necessarily. The Diagram.16M horseboxes were in production between 1888 and 1902, and GE practice was to release passenger stock to traffic in varnished teak. Stock would have retained this livery for about a decade, during which time it would be stripped and re-varnished twice. Only after this, once the visual quality of the wood had deteriorated,would the vehicle be painted in a golden teak brown. This colour wasn't close to the LNER 'teak paint' which was much more muted and brown. Therefore, some D.16m horseboxes could have been seen in teak up to and possibly beyond 1912.

 

 

Good info to have. I can see in the photo with the tell tale that the post 1903 car still has safety chains. I think I'm narrowing on a timeframe to model, even if it'll be somewhat anachronistic with the rest of my models...

Adds a bit more interest to the end of the van, although it is another casting I'll have to acquire...

 

 

Which period do you model?

 

 

Helped a lot! Those are the first two prototype photos I've seen...

 

Glad to have been of help.

[Buckjumper]

In that third photo it appears that the mechanism is connected to both brake systems.

 

 

The systems were independent of each other, except in the connection to the tell tale, and only one system was used at any given time.

 

I know that the GWR vacuum arrangement opens a small valve to allow a restricted air flow into the vacuum circuit, but how does it work with the Westinghouse system? Is it just a similar valve that releases air from the system to apply the brakes?

 

In a nutshell, that's exactly it. Triple valves on each vehicle supplied air to auxiliary reservoirs, and the flow of air to the brake cylinder on the vehicle. The reduction of the air pressure (70psi) by the driver (or guard, or emergency cord) caused each triple valve to move, forcing compressed air from each auxiliary reservoir in to the adjacent brake cylinder.

 

The system was essential on the smartly timed suburban trains as deceleration was much greater than the vacuum brake (GER suburban train could hack into the station at 30 - 40 mph, the driver throw on the brake as he passed the platform ramp and stop in the correct place, donkey pump working furiously to get the brakes off in 30 seconds.) Most vacuum-braked railways could do no better than muster 21 inches of vacuum - about 10psi. The GWR, as you will no doubt be aware, was proud of the fact that it could raise 25 inches of vacuum - about 11½ psi, but in a perfect world the vacuum brake could never exceed atmospheric pressure - 14.7psi. With these figures it seem astonishing that the vacuum brake was given any credence at all, and when the LNER decided to strip the Westinghouse equipment from all ex-GER stock, even they admitted defeat on the suburban stock as it was found to be impossible to keep time with the sluggish vacuum brake.

[buffalo]

Thanks, Adrian. That helps to fill in some gaps in my knowledge about braking on other (i.e. not GWR) railways.

 

Nick

[Mike Boucher]

Not necessarily. The Diagram.16M horseboxes were in production between 1888 and 1902, and GE practice was to release passenger stock to traffic in varnished teak. Stock would have retained this livery for about a decade, during which time it would be stripped and re-varnished twice. Only after this, once the visual quality of the wood had deteriorated,would the vehicle be painted in a golden teak brown. This colour wasn't close to the LNER 'teak paint' which was much more muted and brown. Therefore, some D.16m horseboxes could have been seen in teak up to and possibly beyond 1912.

 

OK. Looking at the photo, it appears to be a pretty even hue, which made me think it was painted. I would think even in B&W, you would see the tonal variations present in varnished teak Just in case I decide to not do teak, do you have a good paint for the golden teak brown the GE used?

 

Which period do you model?

 

Mainly LMS in the 40's. But, being over here in the US, not many people will notice and/or complain if I mix and match eras. The "City of Truro" (I want) and 5 clerestory coaches (I already have) would be good example of that

[Mike Boucher]

The systems were independent of each other, except in the connection to the tell tale, and only one system was used at any given time.

 

In a nutshell, that's exactly it. Triple valves on each vehicle supplied air to auxiliary reservoirs, and the flow of air to the brake cylinder on the vehicle. The reduction of the air pressure (70psi) by the driver (or guard, or emergency cord) caused each triple valve to move, forcing compressed air from each auxiliary reservoir in to the adjacent brake cylinder.

 

Would this tell tale simply tell the groomsman that the brakes had been applied, or was there a way for the groomsman to activate the brakes?

 

The system was essential on the smartly timed suburban trains as deceleration was much greater than the vacuum brake (GER suburban train could hack into the station at 30 - 40 mph, the driver throw on the brake as he passed the platform ramp and stop in the correct place, donkey pump working furiously to get the brakes off in 30 seconds.) Most vacuum-braked railways could do no better than muster 21 inches of vacuum - about 10psi. The GWR, as you will no doubt be aware, was proud of the fact that it could raise 25 inches of vacuum - about 11½ psi, but in a perfect world the vacuum brake could never exceed atmospheric pressure - 14.7psi. With these figures it seem astonishing that the vacuum brake was given any credence at all, and when the LNER decided to strip the Westinghouse equipment from all ex-GER stock, even they admitted defeat on the suburban stock as it was found to be impossible to keep time with the sluggish vacuum brake.

 

I gotta admit, as an American, I never quite understood why the Brits used vacuum brakes over the Westinghouse system.

[buffalo]

Would this tell tale simply tell the groomsman that the brakes had been applied, or was there a way for the groomsman to activate the brakes?

The communication cord runs along either inside or, in some earlier cases, outside the vehicle at or near cantrail level. When the cord is pulled by a passenger/groom the bar across the end of the vehicle rotates. This has the butterflies or tell-tales on each end. They are there for the guard to see which vehicle was responsible for applying the brakes.

 

Edit: looking back at Adrian's old photos, he pointed out the communication cord on the side view.

 

I gotta admit, as an American, I never quite understood why the Brits used vacuum brakes over the Westinghouse system.

Probably just an early example of the 'Not Invented Here Syndrome'.

 

Nick

[Buckjumper]

OK. Looking at the photo, it appears to be a pretty even hue, which made me think it was painted. I would think even in B&W, you would see the tonal variations present in varnished teak Just in case I decide to not do teak, do you have a good paint for the golden teak brown the GE used?

 

Re No.84 that's down to the vagaries of the early emulsions and the fairly lo-res quality of the image. Even brand new GE coaches often looked flat and painted, although we know they weren't. The finish on the D.17 has either been either flattened down by traffic dirt (and they got very dirty) or is indeed an early example of the type in painted brown. There is no remaining colour sample of the GE teak brown to work from, though we know it was mixed to match the golden colour of the GE teak. You won't go too far wrong if you mix up something equating to the colour of the solebars and headstocks of the restored LNER Quads:

 

http://www.nnrailway..._after_holt.JPG

 

Mainly LMS in the 40's. But, being over here in the US, not many people will notice and/or complain if I mix and match eras. The "City of Truro" (I want) and 5 clerestory coaches (I already have) would be good example of that

 

My only thought was that these horseboxes lasted until 1948, and by the 40s had had the Westinghouse equipment stripped out, vacuum through pipes retained, brake lever on one side only acting on a single brake block; no yokes, no clasps, dead easy, and all topped off in painted Stratford brown, of which there were seven shades

 

IIRC Cambridge Custom Transfers do the relevant decals. If you decide to go this route I've a couple of photos which might be of use.

[Mike Boucher]

Well, its been quite a while since I updated this thread. There was a few months where I didn't get up to the workbench, but the past few weeks I've had some time. My club putting on its annual show this weekend helped with the inspiration, as I wanted to show some progress. When we last left off, I was filling in the places on the buffer beam with it was etched through to help with the folding. I don't know why the designer had these etch through rather than a 1/2 etch, but it took a bit of work to get them filled in. I used .030 dia brass wire, and filed it down. Still didn't come out great, but its a lot better than it was... (Look at the earlier photos to see what it originally looked like...)

 

 

 

The next thing I did was a deviation from the instructions. They called for soldering a nut to some body cross members, so the chassis could be bolted to the body. I wanted to do this the other way, have the screw soldered to the body. Looking at the floor and the cross members, the holes etched were too small for the screws to fit through, and the ones in the floor were too close to the buffer beam for the nut to clear. (as it was, the lower fold of the buffer beam had etched in clearance for the screws, so the designer knew it was tight fit...) So, I enlarged the hole in the cross member for the screw, and elongated the ones in the floor to provide clearance for the nuts. (not the prettiest holes ever, but they get the job done...)

 

 

Then I held the floor together with the body to ensure that the cross members would be in the right place to match the holes, and I noticed a problem. The body was longer than the floor by close to 1/10 of an inch. I didn't think that was quite right. After some inspection, I determined that I could take about .050" off the the end with the fodder compartment, and that would make the trimwork on both ends approximately the same. So, I detached that end, filed both sides back, and reattached the end. Here's what it looked like after that

 

 

 

(if you look closely at the earlier photos of the body, you can see that it is slightly shorter)

 

So, I held the body together with the floor again, having the floor "centered" on the body. The body is still longer than the floor, but not by much, and the cross members do an amazing job of stiffening up the body. I still have to shorten the screws to they're not visible below the solebars, but that'll be pretty easy...

 

 

 

Now on to the chassis. The chassis is compensated in having one set of W irons fixed to the floor, and the other is a folded up unit which rocks side to side. I folded up the pivoting unit and the fixed W irons, and held them in place with clamps and held the wheelsets in place to ensure I had clearances, and I noticed the next problem... The holes etched in the W irons were WAY oversized for the slaters bearings. I could almost pass the bearing thru the hole. I took some scrap etch and drilled some .106" holes in them (the slaters bearings measured .103"), and soldered those to the inner face of the W irons. They're visible in this pic of the W irons attached to the floor (and you can see the difference in the hole size).

 

 

 

And also in this pic of the pivoting unit.

 

 

 

One minor issue with this pivoting unit. The 1/2 etched fold lines didn't go across the entire width, and when I tried to file one with a triangular file, it kept catching the "sides", and bending them away. In the end, the unit didn't have the nicest folds, bit as its hidden I'm not too worried about it.

 

When I went to attach the pivoting unit to the floor, the instructions say its held in place by "turning over tabs to retain". I have no clue what he meant by this, so I bent up a piece of .030 brass wire and soldered it to the floor to use as a retainer...

 

 

 

You can see it working here,

 

 

Now the inner solebars were attached, and the chassis can sit on its wheels! (realizing that pic was taken before I soldered the pivot unit retainer in place)

 

 

 

And attaching the body to the chassis, and it looks like a horsebox!

 

 

 

Well, that's where I am as of this morning. I'm off to my club's show in about an hour, so I'll be able to show some progress since the last time we exhibited (back in November). After that, the next steps are to attach the 1/2 etched solebar overlays and cobble together the Westinghouse brake rigging. The instructions have a diagram for the brake rigging, but the parts are not included, so I'll have to do some scratch building there.

[Mike Boucher]

No pictures, but last night I got the 1/2 etched solebar overlays on the chassis. To make a short story long...

 

A few years ago, a friend had bought a resistance soldering unit. He only used it a few times to try to build turnouts, and didn't like it, so he sold it to me for less than 1/2 of the new price. I never used it, just thought with all those etched brass kits building up in the "to do" pile, it might come in handy. A thread on the 7mm Yahoo list a week or so ago strongly suggested that using an RSU was the easiest way to attach solebar overlays, so I decided to give it a try.

 

First, I used my 80W iron to tin the backs of the overlays. I held the overlays in place using small wooden clothespins, making sure the holes aligned correctly. Took the tweezers from the RSU, squeezed them in the middle of the solebar, and hit the foot switch. A second later the flux was bubbling, so I let off the switch, waited a second, and released the tweezers. Lo and behold, the solder had melted and overlay was firmly attached at the center. Worked my way out from the center, and in less than a minute I had both overlays attached. Wow, that made life amazingly easy!

 

Definitely happy I got that RSU. Might have to start playing with it a little more...

[Mike Boucher]

Quick photo to show the progress in the past week...

 

I put the solebar overlays on, and then the spring stops, step and the overlay where the "J hangers" attach to the solebars. Most of this work was done with the RSU.

 

 

 

(using the flash was the best way to get light so I could see the details of the solebars in the photo...)

 

The step somewhat confounded me. The steps were etched as 1 piece with the attaching bars. The attaching bars where 1/2 etched the whole length, and there was also a short 1/2 etched tab in between with no obvious purpose. I wasn't sure which way I was supposed to fold the bars, and no clue what the tab was for. In the end, I bent the bars "up" (that is, the as if there was only a 1/2 etched line to fold, and filled in the bend with a drop of solder) This made the steps sit a little above the bottom of the solebar. I decided that the tab was some form of spacer, but it held the bars too far away from the solebar, so I filed it back until the bars reached the solebars, and soldered everything in place. Don't know if that's what was intended, but its done...

 

On to the brakes...

[Kenton]

No need to tin with an RSU - just use solder cream instead: a tiny tiny drop of paste hold parts together add 1 drop to edge by capillary action and pfzzz - job done. You will never look back.

 

Those steps - without looking at a prototype, and without instructions, it sounds to me as if the etched bits were below the solebar and the full thickness under it, that would make the cross-piece the step. But it is always guesswork without a clear photo of the prototype or exploded diagram from the designer - who is supposed to know what is going through his mind?

 

Is the double shoe braking something peculiar to the GER - I don't recall having modelled it before.

[Mike Boucher]

No need to tin with an RSU - just use solder cream instead: a tiny tiny drop of paste hold parts together add 1 drop to edge by capillary action and pfzzz - job done. You will never look back.

 

That's one thing I don't have. Tinning was simple enough, but it sounds like I should hunt down some solder cream and try it to see if I like it...

 

Those steps - without looking at a prototype, and without instructions, it sounds to me as if the etched bits were below the solebar and the full thickness under it, that would make the cross-piece the step. But it is always guesswork without a clear photo of the prototype or exploded diagram from the designer - who is supposed to know what is going through his mind?

 

The instructions are sparse, and I've noticed some steps skipped completely, as well as a few typos (it was obvious that he used a typewriter when writing them). Maybe he's changed them since I bought the kit (about 10 years ago!). There's nothing obvious from the diagram, which basically an isometric drawing showing most parts with dotted lines where they do, but the steps are shown in place against the solebars. The instructions simply say "bend up and attach spring stops, steps, and J hanger plate" If I'm wrong, I can take solace in there are very few people on this side of the Atlantic which will a) notice and B) be able to prove it...

 

Is the double shoe braking something peculiar to the GER - I don't recall having modelled it before.

 

The GER used Westinghouse brakes, hence the brake shoes on both sides of the wheels.

[Mike Boucher]

Been a long summer without much progress, but I've managed to get back to the workbench a little bit lately, so I thought I would update this thread.

 

When we last left our interpid builder, the body had been formed into a box, the chassis was on the wheels and I had added the brake shoe/hanger etches as well as the brake lever and the pivot which applied the brakes when the lever was pressed. Next step was to finish the brake rigging.

 

Unfortunately, the kit didn't come with anything for the Westinghouse brakes, neither etches nor castings, so I was left to cobble something together.

 

Dan was nice enough to provide a isometric view in the instructions of how Westinghouse brakes were installed on this horse box, (but didn't have a step for "add brake rigging, if desired") but left the builder to his own devices.

 

That's where I hit a mental block, trying to figure out something not overly complex that would get the point across and not look too bad, knowing that it would really only be visible when I flipped the horsebox upside down.

 

I tried some .030 wire, but that didn't have any "heft" to it, looked way too spindly. My next idea was to take some scrap etch and file it down so it was about 1.5mm thick strops, which would represent something around 3" thick in real life. Might be a bit heavy, but its certainly with reason. I figure once its painted black it'll tend to disappear.

 

I then cut, bent, and twisted pieces. I didn't want butt joints when making up the triangular operating yoke, so I filed the ends to close to 1/2 thickness and soldered the overlapping joint together.

 

After a bit of cobbling, here's what I came up with, shown on the fixed axle.

 

 

The swing link might be a bit long, as the "outer" yokes seem to hang lower than I would think they should, but measuring the clearance between the yoke and the axle, its only a scale 6-8", so its closer to the axle than it seems.

 

Now for the view of the entire chassis. The activating rod a the pivoting axle of the brake cylinder is cut off just before the pivot assembly, its held in place purely by soldering to the cylinder casting.

 

 

You can see that I took 2 pieces of etch to make the clevises where the rodding attaches to the cylinder. I filed down where the 2 pieces join to a taper to hide the joint. I'm thinking should try to do the same thing with other joints while I'm cleaning up the excess solder.

 

While its not even close close to "contest quality", nor the prettiest thing, that wasn't my ultimate goal. With a little cleanup and paint, it'll look like brake rigging while the van is sitting on the tracks. Just to prove it, I put it on a small display board, and nope, can't see much of any of it. You won't know its there unless I pick it up to show you, but that's true of a lot of parts on a model's chassis.

 

 

Next up, whitemetal axlebox/springing castings onto the w-irons and solebars, then the buffers, safety chains, and screw couplings and the chassis will be done and ready for primer. Hopefully I'll get that done before Christmas and start working on adding the details to the box itself...

 

BTW - over the summer, while thinking about how to make the rigging, and while I had maybe 5-10 minutes here or there where I could "sneak in" some workbench time, I was able to build a Slaters "Saxa Salt" kit. If I had 5 minutes, I would go up to the workbench, cut 1 piece off the sprue, and glue it in place. Got maybe 2-3 pieces glues per week, but over the course of time I got it finished. Those times where I had between 10-15 minutes and an hour+, I would mutilate and solder brass strips building brake gear... I'm now doing the same thing with another plastic kit, slowly building a Slaters 10T Midland van to diag 378, 1 piece at a time.

[Mike Boucher]

12:45 AM local time (GMT -5), and here's tonights update: Just spent over an hour attaching the spring shackle castings to the solebars. They put up quite a good fight... The problem was that the holes etched in the 3 pieces which were all overlaid (the solebar, solebar overlays, and another overlay) were all significantly larger than the actual whitemetal casting. I'm estimating the gaps at .015" on either side. I was having a devil of a time, as the 70 degree solder would just stay on the iron, it didn't want to fill in the gap at all. Since I didn't have any extra castings, I was intent on NOT melting any, so I couldn't keep the iron in place for too long, which also made it hard to keep the solebar up to temp. I managed to get all 8 of them on, but there are still some large gaps which need filling.

 

Here's a picture which shows one of the gaps

 

The axlebox/spring casting is not soldered on, its just put in place so I could see how it looked. Amazing how much of a difference those castings make to the overall look of the chassis.

 

So, the question is: anyone have any good suggestions for either how to get low temp solder to fill a gap, or a good gap filler which adheres to brass?

 

BTW - here's the aforementioned Saxa Salt wagon. Still needs weathering, but its complete...

 

[James]

On the prototype safety chains were a back up in case of coupling failure on coaching stock. They generally went out of use when continuous brakes came into general use (i.e. usually before 1900)

Interestingly they are still in use on some industrial railways; Scunthorpe steelworks have fitted to a number of locos (hooks only) and to various wagon types.

[cheesysmith]

Vacuum brakes had several advantages over air brakes. It was cheaper, did not freeze in winter, as any deltic fan will tell you the stop cocks cannot be closed by flying debris in service, causing lack of braking when you approach a station, and I think it was easier to create a vacuum with a steam loco.

 

PS-wasn`t the vacuum brake developed by the mslr? When you main line is 42 miles long, half uphill and the other half downhill, you will think about brakes.

[Buckjumper]

Vacuum brakes had several advantages over air brakes. It was cheaper, did not freeze in winter, as any deltic fan will tell you the stop cocks cannot be closed by flying debris in service, causing lack of braking when you approach a station, and I think it was easier to create a vacuum with a steam loco.

 

I know I often seem to write with invisible ink, but I refer you to my post above and the merits of the Westinghouse brake over vacuum on the GER system.

[Buckjumper]

 

So, the question is: anyone have any good suggestions for either how to get low temp solder to fill a gap, or a good gap filler which adheres to brass?

 

 

I'd suggest letting the solder do its job of keeping the parts together and using a filler to pug the gap. In such a situation it's all too easy to get heavy handed with the solder and it obliterating everything. I use Holts Cataloy knifing putty from Halfords, one of our high street auto parts & paints sellers - it's an acrylic based smooth putty in a squeezable toothpaste-type tube and apply it with wax carving tools and the like. It's supposed to take an hour to dry, but I always give it at least 24 hours before sanding - longer if the gap is more than a few mm across. It works very well (and there's no mixing like model fillers!) and happily takes cellulose, etch or auto acrylic primers.

 

I'm sure there will be something very similar in the States.