It's amazing how you have captured the complex curves of the ends and roof.

Very impressed. Jimbo

Really looking good Julia - what will the power unit be?

were these things prototypically rounded on the ends? because i thought they were Squarer.

Anyway, it looks spiffingly fantastic can't wait to see it completed.

Bruce.

Did this railcar not have the distinctive ridge down the roofline that the other types had http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1934_GWR_diesel_railcar.jpg ?

Its superb how you've managed to make the complex front shape from the brass scratch aid.

The earlier prototype ones look a bit quaint now I think with their odd stick type buffers.

Hi Guys

Thank you for the comments.

Really looking good Julia - what will the power unit be?

Hi Al.

I will be using a tomix TM-06 chassis.

Missy,

 

A note on lights - working a stopping train between Didcot and Newbury the car would have a single white light showing at the front, the one at the top.

 

It would also have a standard oil-lit tail lamp on the back.

Hello Mike.

It was nice to meet you again Sunday. Thank you for the help with the lights although in this case I think I will not use a tail lamp but rely on the lights on the railcar itself, unless you can think of a way to do it without having 2 tail lamps fitted!

were these things prototypically rounded on the ends? because i thought they were Squarer.

 

Anyway, it looks spiffingly fantastic can't wait to see it completed.

 

Bruce.

Hi Bruce

Thank you. The earlier ones were rounded like my model, they changed to the square ones during the war (as far as I know). Probably because of the work that had to put into getting the curved panels to fit.

Did this railcar not have the distinctive ridge down the roofline that the other types had http://en.wikipedia....sel_railcar.jpg ?

 

Its superb how you've managed to make the complex front shape from the brass scratch aid.

 

The earlier prototype ones look a bit quaint now I think with their odd stick type buffers.

Hi Craig

That one in the link is one of the first ones. My one is a later 'model' and from the pictures in the book the ridge seems hardly noticable. As someone mentioned in an earlier blog post there were so many different models and variants that its difficult to get something accurate. I have found a picture HERE which is the closest I can find to the one I am doing but the windows on the model look nothing like the photo! Hmmmmm.....

Missy

Hi Missy,

This is coming on really well.

Mike is (of course) quite right about the single light. I've added to our earlier discussion of the lights on your 'Part II' entry, hopefully explaining where I think Alex' quote from the 1960 appendix is confusing.

Interestingly, the one in the photo you link to above appears to have had the red light removed and plated over. As also does No 4 in the photo that Craig refers to.

I also agree with you about the 'ridge'. It is only apparent in a very small number of photos of the Gloucester bodied railcars and is not visible under most lighting conditions. Indeed, it may be more pronounced on the Park Royal bodies (Nos 1-4) and is very much more obvious on the later, more angular, Swindon built bodies.

Nick

Hello

Grrr, this is so annoying! The more I look at pictures of the prototype the more I notice how different the shape of the front windows are on the model. I am itching to get back home from work right now to see what can be done to correct it. I dont think I could live with an error like that but I do know for sure that its not going to be easy to modify....

Missy

Hi Missy,

Your link picture is one of the earlier Gloucester cars (5-7); basically the same, but the waistline rises up under the cabs in a bow-shape. Quite why they did this, I don't know 'cos it just looks wrong! It agree that the middle cab windows on the Worsley etches appear to dip a bit too far, more apparent now the rainstrips are in place.

The end of a plastic fibre-optic can be made into a larger lens by carefully heating with a soldering iron - not quite touching of course, just close enough to make it start melting when it will bell out slightly. Incidentally, you can also make very small air horns from 10 thou." plastic rod the same way! Not that strong though.

Bernard

Your link picture is one of the earlier Gloucester cars (5-7); basically the same, but the waistline rises up under the cabs in a bow-shape. Quite why they did this, I don't know 'cos it just looks wrong!

It does look weird, doesn't it? Fortunately, all the pictures of the later Gloucester cars that I have seen show them to have been delivered with a level waistline all round and to have remained like this in BR days (except when painted green).

It agree that the middle cab windows on the Worsley etches appear to dip a bit too far, more apparent now the rainstrips are in place.

Yes, the dip does seem to be too deep on these etches. However, it looks difficult to tell what it should be like. The drawings make it look more pronounced than most photographs. Unlike model photos which tend to be from above and may emphasise the dip, most photos of the originals are taken from a lower level (trackside or platform) and make the upper edges of the windows look almost level, so I wonder whether it was a deliberate design feature to give this impression.

Nick

Hi Missy,

I do wonder whether Allen Doherty hasn't manage to combine features from several different versions of the railcars in his etches. The photo of railcar number 8 here (6th photo down) shows front windows pretty close to the way the etch is done (perhaps the dip of the top edge of the window in the photo is a bit less), but another photo here of am unidentified car shows a flatter top to the front windows. It all seems a bit of a minefield to me!

hth

Andy

Hi Guys

Thanks for the comments. Its really helping to get peoples opinion on this. One thing for sure is there definately seems to be quite a few variations of railcar which certianly shows how useful it is to try and get pictures of the actual prototype you are modelling to make sure you get things right.

Hi Missy,

 

I do wonder whether Allen Doherty hasn't manage to combine features from several different versions of the railcars in his etches. The photo of railcar number 8 here (6th photo down) shows front windows pretty close to the way the etch is done (perhaps the dip of the top edge of the window in the photo is a bit less), but another photo here of am unidentified car shows a flatter top to the front windows. It all seems a bit of a minefield to me!

 

hth

 

Andy

Hi Andy

Thank you for the pictures, they seem to be few and far between online and I have been struggling to find any so those ones are very useful. I think out of the two the second picture is a better one as it seems to be taken at roughly the same height as the front windows (although not square on) so I would rely on that one more.

Those pictures helped me decide the course of action to take so much I started to chop one end up last night to adjust the window shape. Of course pictures will follow in the next blog post (probably at the weekend).

Thank you.

Missy

Missy

How did you hold the flimsy brass shell whilst you shaped the roof end, I always find it difficult not to distort the shell?

Peter

Missy

 

How did you hold the flimsy brass shell whilst you shaped the roof end, I always find it difficult not to distort the shell?

 

Peter

Hello Peter

I started by soldering the sides to the solid PCB floor along its length. Once this was done I then soldered the 3 partitions in place and this held the whole thing in place enough to form the basic shape of the ends. I found it easier to form the curve around the buffers out of a sheet of brass instead of the parts that come in the kit which was soldered in place then sanded down flush with the sides. Another thing to check is the partitions at the ends supplied in the kit were slightly too high and because of the windows and curved sides it would have been tricky to file down so I made them from brass sheet instead. Once all that is in place then it should be possible to form the cabs.

I hope that all makes sense?

Missy

Thanks for clarifying its a Gloucester one you're modelling, i'd agree they have a flatter roof looking at the pictures posted.

While your playing with windows, and I'd agree with modifying the front ones a little may I suggest dropping the front of the triangular windows a little as the front bit seems to be slightly lower than the front windows at this point not higher as it currently seems to be on yours.

I think all of the rain and rivet strips will make a difference to the look of the front of this though. It'll be great to see a finished version of these earlier Bananas!

Hello Peter

 

I started by soldering the sides to the solid PCB floor along its length. Once this was done I then soldered the 3 partitions in place and this held the whole thing in place enough to form the basic shape of the ends. I found it easier to form the curve around the buffers out of a sheet of brass instead of the parts that come in the kit which was soldered in place then sanded down flush with the sides. Another thing to check is the partitions at the ends supplied in the kit were slightly too high and because of the windows and curved sides it would have been tricky to file down so I made them from brass sheet instead. Once all that is in place then it should be possible to form the cabs.

 

I hope that all makes sense?

 

Missy

Complete sense, thanks.

Peter

Hello Folks

Thanks for clarifying its a Gloucester one you're modelling, i'd agree they have a flatter roof looking at the pictures posted.

 

While your playing with windows, and I'd agree with modifying the front ones a little may I suggest dropping the front of the triangular windows a little as the front bit seems to be slightly lower than the front windows at this point not higher as it currently seems to be on yours.

 

I think all of the rain and rivet strips will make a difference to the look of the front of this though. It'll be great to see a finished version of these earlier Bananas!

Thank you Craig for the help. I am tweaking the windows so I waill look into that too.

Complete sense, thanks.

 

Peter

Hello Peter.

Im glad that did! I struggle to explain things sometimes.

I miss read your original question a bit so apologies...

I found that once I had the roof together with the brass, PCB, and plastic it 'clipped' into place and with the partitions too it made the whole bodyshell quite rigid. I never held the bodyshell in a vice or anything but rather clamped it between one hand and the table with just enough pressure to hold it while shaping the roof and ends with the other hand. I would guess that it might be possible to clamp the bodyshell lightly in a vice or similar on the body where it is soldered to the floor (but I didnt risk it).

Hi Missy,

The end of a plastic fibre-optic can be made into a larger lens by carefully heating with a soldering iron - not quite touching of course, just close enough to make it start melting when it will bell out slightly. Incidentally, you can also make very small air horns from 10 thou." plastic rod the same way! Not that strong though.

 

Bernard

Hi Bernard.

I missed this little gem so apologies.

When I did the moggy minor I used that idea to do the lights which works really well. I didnt know you could do it to plastic rod too which is very useful as these railcars seem to have quite a few airhorns so thank you.

Missy