At the end of the last entry, I had just managed to avoid assembling a 1911 engine with a 1925 bunker. I hadn't really expected to make much progress over the next couple of days but things have gone rather well, so I thought a brief update was in order. A search through kit leftovers and other bits and pieces failed to locate any suitable replacement bunkers. In fact, I'm managing to collect a fair number of later cabs and bunkers so maybe sometime Ill have to try building something in 1920s or 1930s condition.
There was nothing for it but to try to scratchbuild a bunker. I approached this with some trepidation as although I've made many detailing parts to add to kits, I've never actually tried to scratchbuild a major component before. So, out came the brass sheet, gas torch, razor saw and various sizes of round bar. Very soon I had the beginnings of the bunker:
This is an approximation to the early flared-top steel box fitted to many GWR tanks up to the later 1880s (RCTS type 31 or type 2A on Mikkel's gwr.org bunker page). During the 1890s these were often topped with coal rails and eventually the rails were infilled with, and later replaced by, fenders. Of course, examples of most of these types seem to have co-existed, but by the time of the first Buffalo pannier conversions in 1911, the latest type (91 or X1) with a beaded fender had become the norm. A few more pieces of brass were cut bent and soldered to produce the basic shape.
Now I'm back to the point that I thought I'd reached in the last entry. The tanks and bunker are still loose and there is more work to do before they are fixed.
The next stages will involve some of the smaller details that will be less accessible once the tanks and bunker are fitted. There'll also be a bit more scratch building as the tank and smokebox front will need to be replaced...
Nick
- 18
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