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An ex-Midland Railway hand crane ?

ROSSPOP

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Thinking a long way ahead towards making a small LMS layout project, I thought it might make a change if I ignored having a stationary goods yard hand crane.

 

It might be more interesting if I had a mobile hand crane , so I searched the web for ideas and information and came up with this photo.

 

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Strictly speaking I think this is an ex LNWR version but there are similar Midland examples and I took a chance on a Meteor Models hand crane truck kit in 7mm , which is based on Midland Railway practice.

 

Rather than bore you all with blow by blow construction I will start by saying that the kit is very much a mixed bag of both reasonable and poor white metal castings. The buffers are supposedly sprung but you have to drill the solid cast buffer housings first.

 

The etched truck had fold up W irons which were badly drawn before being etched. These were replaced with Slaters compensated MR W irons that also had better axlebox castings.

 

The kit had an atrocious piece of tatty wood for the jib, so this was replaced by a suitable size of square plastic, which I sanded to shape.

 

The crane castings, however, were reasonably good. After cleaning up the crank wheel castings and painting all the parts prior to construction, the hand crane actually works!!!

 


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The crane truck finally turned out quite well.

 

 

 

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It has been difficult to establish what colour these cranes and trucks were painted. The preserved example at the Chasewater railway centre is red-brown with a black truck.....

 

It took four evenings to complete and paint so not a huge project and I`m pleased with the model. Still needs more painting to be done and a suitable match truck to be added..........

 

blogentry-17779-0-41678200-1471042177_thumb.jpg

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Compound2632
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That looks very nice! Midland Railway match trucks are on my list to research. The best source of published information is Vol. 2 of Essery's "Midland Wagons" (OPC 1980). You'll need a pair, one with jib rest and one with tool chest and recessed ends to take the overhanging weight runners. These are based on the standard MR 9'0 wheelbase 14'11" over headstocks underframe, although examples built up to 1890 were probably dumb-buffered (? based on a change in drawing number) - though if you are going for the LMS period I expect that's not relevant. The Midland Railway Study Centre holds the drawings. In 7mm scale, the Slater's MR kits would probably be your best starting point - although these wagons are 3 planks high, I'd think of using the 5-plank D299 rather than the 3-plank dropside D305 as the former gives you the cornerplates.

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ROSSPOP
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Thanks for that very usefull info Compound.

 

I have been looking at the Slaters kits and I know they supply a 9` wagon chassis kit but I will consider the D299.

 

The search continues................

 

John

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2mm Andy
That is a superb model. The Midland Railway Centre have a restored crane match truck in their museum. It doesn't have it's jib rest yet but has been very well restored. The hand crane that goes with it is still in the restoration queue and is stored off-track alongside some sidings. I can't work out how to attach photos to this comment, but I've put a couple of photos in a folder in my gallery.
 
 

Hope that is of some interest/use.

 

Andy

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ROSSPOP
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Thanks Andy....... have saved the pic...... that  match looks very scratchbuildable using Slaters chassis parts, which will do for the jib end.  I have now got to consider something much flatter for the counterbalance overhang end!!!!

 

I`d like to track down some etched plates that these hand cranes seem to have attached to the counterbalance box.............

 

Cheers 

 

John

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Compound2632
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Andy, that restored match wagon looks very nice too. I note the lamp iron brackets between the end pillars who now that I look more closely at the photo in Midland Wagons (plate 397) I see they were there from new.

 

John, the wagon for the counterbalance overhang end isn't flat, it's a very similar design to the jib rest match wagon but with a recessed end. The match wagons were mostly built in pairs:

 

Drg. 826 (7 June 1890) Crane Match Wagon with Jib Rest. scale 1 1/2in.

Drg. 826A (7 June 1890) Crane Match Wagon without Jib Rest. scale 1 1/2in.

 

If you like, I could PM you a scan of the relevant page in Midland Wagons if you don't have access to that essential work!

 

Stephen

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ROSSPOP
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Thats very kind of you Stephen as I only have Volume one !!!   ( Mainly as I`m really a GWR modeller )....but I`m learning !!!!

 

 

John

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Compound2632
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BTW the Meteor kit seems to be based on the Midland Railway drawing dated 1910 reproduced in Midland Wagons Vol 2.

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