SE&CR E1 and a few other loco projects
Just a few brief mentions of some loco projects that have been on and off the workbench this week.
First up, the SE&CR E1 class has had some reworking of its pipework and associated details following
the photos in the David Maidment book on Maunsell 4-4-0s. There's not much left to be done now,
and I've already started filling and sanding in preparation for the painting.
Next up is this Dean Goods which has been featured on these pages before. All I've done to it this week is change the chimney, using a 247 Developments casting, add a smokebox door handle, and put the correct numbers of the buffer beam. I think the loco-tender gap can be reduced a bit. This is one of my favorite models, not least because there was such a fight to get it running the
way I wanted.
Into pure RTR land now, with this Bachmann 4500 class Prairie. This" is one of two GWR-lettered locos (a 4500 and 4575) that I picked up from Totally Trains in Ross-on-Wye about 15 years ago, not long after the initial release of these models. Although both models have had a fair bit of running, they were both still totally out of the box except for the removal of the tension locks. I had
some plates in hand for 4550 so this week I backdated the model by removing the original lettering with T-cut, then replacing with HMRS decals. Light weathering was applied, as well as crew, screw couplings, coal and lamps, and that's your lot. It was only when weathering this model that I got a real appreciation for how intricate the body detailing is. All my Praries still run superbly, and with the body being as good as it is, they easily hold their own with contemporary releases.
Finally, a bit of a throwback. I had an old Tri-ang Pannier chassis lying around, as well as a spare Bachmann Pannier chassis, and I wondered how well the two might be married. A couple of careful hours with a rotary tool had enough of the plastic shaved away to enable a very nice accommodation of the newer chassis. In my case the chassis was one of the older Blue Riband units with a fairly fat can motor, so it should be even easier with a newer unit. I do have some Comet chassis parts squirrelled away, but the Bachmann units are so reliable and rugged that it seems daft not to use them.
Aside from the sentimental value of the old Pannier body, the advantage in going this way is that a non-top fitted Pannier is very easily obtained and - as I hope is evident in comparison with the Bachmann model - the proportions of the Tri-ang moulding are spot on. My plan is remove the crudely done handrails, fill and tidy up various damage, then replace new handrails, details, etc, and finally end up with a nice inter-war Pannier which won't look out of place on the layout.
Cheers!
- 9
7 Comments
Recommended Comments
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now