Leaderboard

There are some things which just don’t scale, no matter what you do the real thing looks wrong in model form. Smoke and water are the obvious ones, but I’l add another. Dust. Scaled down they are not particles, they are lumps. So I have been enjoying running the railway a bit, collecting info and deciding what to build next. However I couldn’t help noticing that the station had become a bit dusty and once you have noticed it it sticks in your eye. Time for some cleaning, after all we can’t have the folk from Helensburgh passing through and thinking how mucky Glaswegians are. In previous blogs I have described my penchant for using magnets and the like so that things can be removed for maintenance. Time to put my theories to the test. Notice anything missing? ? There it all is on the bench ready for a really good clean. While I was at it I did a bit of lightproofing using Wenlocks tip of self adhesive foil and added some missing drainage. Windows. There are rather a lot of them. Oh well, box of cotton buds and a bowl of water. Took a while but there they are, all nice and clean. Doing that in situ would be well beyond my eyesight. All back safely in place. Oh, and just for fun. Mind you a few of those net curtains could do with a trip to the steamie.

Is it Armour, is it Railway or both - all I know is it's big for 1/72nd. Brief history of the model, it was first released by Hobby Boss in 2007, the Railway Transporter was released in 2008 (without the KARL), this version was released last year, so it's two models in one. Box-Art Instructions & Colour Call Out. The KARL (you have the option of modelling either 040 or 041) No flash to speak of or any ejector pins in the wrong place. The Railway Transporter. Again no errant ejector pins and just some minor flash on the wheel hubs. Overall it looks to be an interesting and slightly challenging build and some alteration to the build sequence will be needed in order to ensure everything lines up. TTFN James

So I've been thinking about a little 16mm project to keep up my narrow gauge interest while I can't take Fen End Pit out. I don't mean to distract too much from the construction of Clare but just have something extra to work on when I fancy a change. One of my favourite places to visit is the Thelkeld Quarry Museum and I have long thought that the engine shed is full of modelling potential but I've not been sure how I could use its inspiration. What I have been thinking about is building a 'photo plank' which captures some of the Thelkeld building but I'm wondering about turning things inside out, looking at the interior as a basis for a scene. I fancy trying to capture some of the atmosphere of the workshop and clutter. I don't think this is Thelkeld but it is the kind of thing I'm after. I also have a memory of the belt driven workshop at the back of the sheds at the Launceston steam railway. So at the moment I'm thinking about trying to build a 'box' which represents the inside of the shed, along the back I make a variety of workshop tools, ideally belt driven, and a work bench. In front of that I have a line of track set in concrete which goes out of the door. Even though this isn't a big building it will be probably be something like 2'x1'.. So I'm searching for additional inspiration.... Anyone got any nice photos of belt driven workshops or ideas about the best way to layout a belt drive workshop? Thanks David

Look at that, six and a half years since I posted to this blog. Is it worth it? It's not like I've been inactive. I have blogged in the old places, posted on the forum side, and kept active on Facebook too. I just didn't use this blog. Six months after that last post here, I had a nervous breakdown, so my mind was a mess anyway. But I have that mostly sorted out. I still see too many inspirational photos of things that I feel I must model. So my mind is still messed up in the same way it was before. So, rambling thoughts about a baseboard, using a 30" x 20" sheet of cork faced foam core board. First, using 5mm black foamcore, make the frame for the outside of the baseboard. The baseboard will sit on the ledge, hopefully flush with the top edge of the frame, depending on the skill of my cutting. Frames glued in place and pinned whilst the glue sets. A bit of extra bracing underneath, and its a flat, light, rigid baseboard. Not totally 100% sure what I'd like to do with it yet. There's space aplenty for 16.5mm gauge track. Some kind of 4mm scale quarry loading thing perhaps. I found some very interesting pictures of APCM quarries online. Or the same sort of thing in O16.5. Or 1/32... or 1/35... (please excuse the views of the stalled Gn15 project in the background) Then again, so does some 32mm gauge track... So, right now. I don't know. I just don't know.

I've read that some people like blog posts to be fairly substantial, so I'll include a resumé, in this post, of the story so far, before showing photos of my model of GWR No. 184. There are more details in the earlier posts in this series. Background I chose this prototype since it was one of the first standard-gauge engines to run on the GWR, following the absorption of the Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton Railway (otherwise known as the 'Old Worse and Worse'). No.184 was one of six engines built by E.B.Wilson in 1853 and this particular engine survived almost until the end of the 19th century, appearing in several photographs that document its re-builds at Wolverhampton Works in 1871 and 1893 It is also the subject of a sketch by C M Doncaster, which shows it at the head of a train of 6-wheelers approaching Reading Station. I decided that I would like to emulate this scene on my model railway. Method of Construction The first step was to create some drawings of the engine from a mixture of both photographs and drawings of similar engine types. I used these drawings to construct paper templates, so that I could check clearances, etc. for an 00-gauge model. I then cut out the major components from brass sheet and rolled the boiler by hand. The following photographs illustrate the major stages in the construction, together with dates at which each stage was achieved. Because I was working mainly from paper templates, I made very few dimensioned drawings and fitted together the various parts by 'trial and error'. I often cut out a part from paper, initially, and then, after trimming the paper to provide a close fit, I replicated the component in brass. The major components of the engine body fitted together as shown below. Although I was concerned, in the early stages, that the structure felt rather weak, it all became pretty rigid, once the various sheets were soldered together. I was pleased to find that very little filler was needed, since the boiler and firebox fitted closely around the wheel arches. I used some book-binders' glue (which appears to be a tough form of PVA), to fill any remaining gaps. This proved very effective in providing a resilient seal, rather like bath caulk. Chassis I built the chassis from a pair of brass strips, soldered together while drilling the holes for the axles and frame spacers. For more details,see part 6 of this series. Initially, the model will be powered by its tender but I have made sure that there is sufficient space for a motor to be fitted inside the boiler. To achieve this space, I cut away the lower half of the boiler, where it is hidden behind the splashers and the firebox. Top and underside views of the body are shown below: Detailing I made boiler bands from 5 thou brass sheet, cut into strips and stuck onto the boiler barrel using super glue. I also added rivet detail to the outside frames by using the brass detailing strips supplied by 'Mainly Trains'. These were also fixed with super glue. I made sandboxes from small wooden blocks, wrapped in 2 thou brass foil, with a separate brass 'lid'. The springs are white metal, mounted above the footplate on nickel-silver wire uprights. Handrails are, similarly, nickel-silver wire (0.5mm). Outside cranks and coupling rods are from 'Alan Gibson'. Since the main dimensions and appearance of the prototype changed very little throughout its re-builds, I keep in mind the possibility of back-dating my model to an earlier time period. I found that 'RT models' supply 4mm scale brass dome and safety valve cover in the E.B.Wilson style but, for the present, I have installed an 'Alan Gibson' '517-type' brass dome. Painting I decided to paint my model in a representation of GWR 'Wolverhampton 'livery, which I understand to have been based on the former OW&W livery. The Wolverhampton style of painting differed from Swindon, in that all items above the footplate, including splasher fronts and sand-boxes, were the same colour as the boiler, while the frames below the footplate and the wheels were brown. My first step in painting, after a thorough clean-up of all the brass-work, was to apply an overall spray of grey primer. Then, for the boiler colour, I chose to use 'Rustoleum Painter's Touch' dark green enamel, which looked a reasonable match to descriptions of the 'blue-green' colour used at Wolverhampton This is a water-soluble paint,with a rather 'plastic' feel that dries to a 'wet look' finish. I found that it brushed more smoothly when thinned with a little water I am fortunate to have inherited some 'Winsor & Newton' series 3A sable brushes, which have superb paint-holding capacity and super-fine tips. They really make hand painting a pleasure! I think the finish will need some matt varnish in due course, since even 19th-century cleaners would find it had to maintain such a gloss! For the brown frames and wheels, I used 'Winsor & Newton' Burnt Sienna artists' acrylic colour. Again, I thinned the paint from the tube, to produce a smooth brushing consistency with excellent covering power. If any of the 'painting gurus' on this site happen to read this, I should be interested to know why artists' acrylic is rarely mentioned for model painting, since I found it very pleasant to use. For the black areas (footplate, smokebox, etc.), I used Humbrol black acrylic, which I find dries to a good-looking 'oily' sheen. Lining and Lettering . I prepared artwork for the lining and number plate by the methods I have described previously in this blog. Wolverhampton lining was black and white, so I used white inkjet transfer paper. My copy of 'Great Western Way' (1st.ed.) gives few details, except to state that the white edges of the lining were broader than the equivalent orange edging used at Swindon. Another factor to take into account is that the printed black centre lines tend to spread slightly into the unpainted white edges. I made a few test prints to determine appropriate widths that seemed to match the visual impression seen in old photographs. I scanned one side of the model to provide 'actual size' templates of the cab sides and sand boxes, on which I 'drew' the lining on the computer screen, as shown below: For the brass fillet between the boiler and smokebox, I cut a sliver of 1 thou brass shim and attached it to the boiler with PVA glue. Cutting this very thin material produced a natural curl, which I exploited to help hold it firmly against the boiler. The 'Current' Model I cannot describe the model as 'finished', since there are still many additions and improvements that I wish to make, but it has reached the stage where photographs can give a reasonable impression of what I have been trying to achieve. My model of GWR No.184 attached to 2500 gal Dean tender (powered) As I mentioned above, the model is not yet 'self-powered' but can be 'driven' by means of the 2500 gal Dean tender that I described in a previous post. When seen in isolation, it's not easy to appreciate its small size and rather 'antique' feel, so I have taken a couple of photos to set it in context. One of my aims, at the outset of this project, was to represent the scene drawn by C M Doncaster. Here is my interpretation, built around some of the models I have built of GWR 6-wheel coaches: and here it is alongside Armstrong's 'Queen' class express 2-2-2, the first of which was designed 20 years after No.184 was built: GWR No.184 alongside 'Queen' class at North Leigh Conclusion This was the third model that I have completely 'scratch-built' from brass sheet; the others were the 'Queen'-class 2-2-2 and my interpretation of Dean's 4-2-4T, No.9. It proved a trickier build than the others, mainly because of the 4-coupled chassis but, also, the raised firebox and the need to leave space inside the structure to add a motor at a later date. My 'Queen' was only ever intended to be tender-powered, while the 4-2-4T is powered by a 'Tenshodo' SPUD in the rear bogie. Construction took longer than I expected because of many non modelling-related interruptions and I was beginning to get a little impatient towards the end. There are quite a few mistakes that could be corrected in a re-build, especially the shape of the top of the firebox. I've decided, however, to set engine building on one side, for a while, so that I can concentrate on some scenic work, which is badly needed on my layout, if it is ever to represent the sort of 19th-century scene that I have in mind. If anyone else feels moved to have a go at scratch-building a 19th-century type of locomotive, I would recommend starting with a 2-2-2, since these are very straightforward, with none of the alignment problems associated with coupled engines. I feel that, if you can build a wagon, then a 2-2-2 engine is not that different! Also, I have found that brass sheet is an easy material to use – in some ways easier than plastic card, because it can be folded and rolled into curved shapes. Once you've cut your teeth on a simple prototype, you can follow whatever course catches your imagination. I also realise how much I have learned, and absorbed, from various books, and should mention, in particular, Iain Rice's “Etched Loco Construction”, which helped me over many hurdles. Mike

Although this may seem a short post, it represents a very big step for me! I had been seriously concerned that I would not be able to construct a chassis with sufficiently well-aligned axles, within the constraints of my own abilities and my lack of any real workshop facilities - just a desk and Dremel drill on a stand. My work-desk When one builds a kit, the designer has already made lots of difficult decisions for you. A scratch-builder has to think out every little step for himself - what metal to use for the frames, where to position the spacers, and so on. I decided to cut my frames from 1mm x 6mm brass strip and to hold them apart by three Markits-type spacers. Since one of the driving axles is close to the centre point of the frames, I had to decide where to place the 'middle' spacer. I chose to put it ahead of both driving axles, in case the space between them was needed for motor mounting purposes. Next decision was how to align the frames for drilling the axle and spacer-mounting holes. I have read the suggestion to solder the two frames together, so decided to follow this approach. My iron is a fairly basic Maplin 'solder-station' and, by trial and error, I have discovered that a temperature setting of 285°C works well for me, when using lead-free solder, without too rapid tip-oxidation while 'standing -by'. I've no idea how accurate the temperature read-out is, so other irons may differ. There are convenient buttons on the controller, to switch to pre-set temperatures, and I usually switch to 200°C if I'm not using the iron for a reasonable period. This keeps it warm between uses, without much oxidation. I clamped the frames together, applied some phosphoric acid flux to the ends, and soldered them together. This was fine for holding them when drilling the 2mm pilot holes but, when it came to opening out the axle holes to full size (1/8"), the drill tended to push the frames apart a little, so perhaps I should have soldered them together all along their length. I wasn't sure that my iron had the 'beef' for that and whether I would get them apart again! I measured the positions as accurately as I could with a metal rule (marked in 1/2mm graduations), scribed guidelines with a small diamond scriber, and then centre-punched the holes for drilling. I used a 2mm drill in my Dremel mini-drill, mounted on its vertical stand. I aligned the drill by eye and held the parts in position with BlueTac and adhesive tape - supplemented by my fingers. Eye protectoirs are essential, since tiny specks of brass do fly about when drilling. I applied a drop of very light oil, which seemed to help the drill to go through quickly and cleanly. Once all the holes were completed and I had checked that they all seemed to be in the right places, I applied the soldering iron again, to separate the two frames. Then I cleaned up all the faces with needle files. The spacers screwed in easily and seemed to be well-aligned (I have yet to counter-sink for the screw-heads) but I knew that the acid test would come when it came to fitting the axles through their bearings. I had to use a larger power-drill to open out the axle holes to 3.5mm and then I used a circular needle file to open out the holes very carefully, until the bearings were a firm push fit (with pliers). I smoothed off the ends of the (Alan Gibson) axles and gentle tapped them into the bearings. Everything worked --- they slid into position smoothly between the frames. To say I was relieved would be a great understatement. Actually, I was b----y amazed With that hurdle crossed, I can turn my attention back to the 'body' and , in particular, to obtaining the various fittings that need to be added. One very prominent fitting on many of these early engines can be seen just behind the chimney. I remember, many years ago, that I found it quite difficult to identify this item, so I'm happy to pass on that it is a displacement lubricator for the cylinders. It was placed in that position for ready access to a steam supply but later, the fitting moved to the sides of the smokebox. Later still, these lubricators were controlled from the cab and led to another fitting that puzzles some visitors to GWR footplates. There is an item in the roof that looks rather like an electric cooker element but it is not there for crew comfort - it is the condenser for the displacement lubricator in these early 20th-century engines. Mike Continue to next part

I feel it is time for an update on progress with my model of GWR No.184. After a rather static period, when I did little actual modelling but thought quite a lot about the details of this engine, I have at last been cutting metal. In fact, apart from the fact that it is now made of brass, I have made few changes to my initial paper template. My method of construction followed that used on my first scratch-built model (GWR 'Queen'-class - described in Railway Modeller July 2014). In summary, I cut out the components from scale paper drawings and stuck these (using a glue stick) to 10 thou (0.25 mm) brass sheet. One simplification that I made, following experience with 'Queen' was not to make a double-fold in the main chassis in order to mount the splasher fronts, but instead to provide tabs on the splashers 'module', to fold under the chassis sides. The main components that make up the body look like this: As before, I had little difficulty with rolling the boiler, although I suspect that it helped to have a paper layer stuck to the outside of the brass sheet while rolling. This seemed to help with the smoothness of the curvature and also protected the surface of the brass from scratching. Since the prototype boiler had a diameter of 4' 2", I calculated the scale circumference (3.142 x diameter) and then cut out a rectangle of brass, to roll into a cylinder. I made this tube the full length of firebox + boiler + smokebox, to provide a rigid structure and then added the raised firebox and smokebox as simple wrappers. The stages in assembly are shown below: I used a diamond slitting disk on my mini-drill to open up the apertures for the wheels in the floor plate. For the photograph, I've just rested a chimney and safety-valve cover in place, to make it look a bit like a locomotive (!) and have not bought a dome yet - probably a 517-type. The next step will be to fit 'cosmetic' outside frames with embossed rivet detail and then use thin (5 thou - 0.125 mm) brass sheet, to form the curved running plates between the outside frames and the splasher fronts. Anyone who read my last post on this engine might remember that I had planned to begin with the chassis but, in the end, I decided to repeat the part that was already familiar, having done a very similar body for 'Queen'. I may produce a simple rolling chassis that can be pushed along by my 2,500 gal. motorised tender. I find that tackling a job in easy stages helps to keep up motivation, when I see the outline of an engine start to appear, and allows me to consider different options as I start to add the details. So far, the outlay on brass sheet has been minimal but costs start to rise once all the detailing components are added, especially wheels, gearbox, and motor. At this stage, I feel that there is a reasonable chance of producing a model that will have at least a passing resemblance to its prototype. GWR No.184 in 'Wolverhampton' livery As an aside, I have mentioned before that many interesting old books can be downloaded from the Internet Archive website. I recently found that Ahrons' classic 'The British Steam Railway Locomotive 1825 - 1925' can be downloaded and, although I have a facsimile copy, it is useful to be able to copy drawings directly from the digital version. Another interesting find was Sekon's 'The Evolution of the Steam Locomotive 1803 - 1898', which has lots of fascinating detail about many very early engines, and many anecdotes about events during their trials and early use. Mike Continue to next part

Part 4 already, and I've not actually touched any metal yet! My thanks to all who have given encouragement by their 'Likes' and a warning not to expect any 'model engineering' in this thread - it's more like cut-out scrap-booking - but I enjoy it and it might lead to a working model. Since my last post, I've re-visited the cab area, so that it can accommodate the rear pair of drivers. On my paper model, I've cut slots in the front of the cab and floor, to allow for the 14.4mm back-to-back separation of 00-gauge wheels. It seems reasonably firm and I can build up the wheel-boxes inside the cab, in the final model. The following early view of the footplate of a Dean 2-4-0 shows the 'look' that I wish to achieve, with its very simple backplate. A more tricky problem is posed by the boiler. It was easy enough to roll a tube of paper to the correct dimensions. After a few trials, I decided to make the tube extend the entire length from the front of the smokebox to the cab. Photographs of the real engine indicate that, although the top of the firebox casing is raised, the sides are flush with the boiler cladding, so I could add the firebox as a 'wrapper', fixed to the sides of the boiler. I'll leave the problem of creating the shaped fillet needed between the firebox and the top of the boiler for later. The immediate problems begin, when trying to fit the boiler assembly between the wheels. As I discovered when building my 'Queen' model, the real boiler diameter scales to something larger than the 00-gauge back-to-back dimension, so some cut-outs are essential. This proposed model raises the additional problem of how to accommodate a motor and drive unit. For this, I turned to the 'High Level' website , from where you can download a very useful 'Planning Sheet', with scale drawings of motors and gearboxes. By copying the relevant drawings and pasting them over my own scale drawings of the engine, It appears that I should be able to accommodate a 'RoadRunner' gearbox with 'Mashima 1220' motor, within the profile of my model. I've also indicated how it should fit within my paper template My plan is to cut away the underside of the boiler, where it will be hidden behind the wheelarches and firebox sides, sufficiently to allow the superstructure to be lowered over the motorised chassis. I have not scratch-built a working chassis before, so intend to keep it as simple as possible. I shall use my kit-built model of a Hudswell-Clarke 0-4-0 (TVR 'S'-class) as a basis for the design. The kit chassis consists of two brass strips, separated by Markits-type spacers. Providing that I can manage to drill the holes in the right places, it does not look too difficult, though when I look at Snitzl Works amazing Wheel Quartering Jigs , I wonder if I might be fooling myself. I feel that I had better turn my attention to trying to build a working 0-4-0 chassis, before I do any more on superstructure design Mike Continue to next part

I've re-titled this thread, so that it doesn't read as though I'm building a whole fleet of engines - one at a time is enough for me! My first attempt at scratch building was a 'Queen'-class 2-2-2. I chose it on the grounds of simplicity, since building an uncoupled 2-2-2 is little different from building a wagon. My first step was to draw the constituent parts and then cut these out as a series of paper templates, so that I could check the fit of the parts and explore different assembly techniques, before committing to cutting any metal. I described the approach in more detail in my article 'Simply Victorian', in Railway Modeller, July 2014. The 'Queen' (or 'Sir Alexander') model did,indeed prove very straightforward to construct,being little more than a cylindrical tube for the boiler over a folded flat plate for a 'chassis'. The cab was a simple folded brass sheet sat on the chassis behind the boiler and the flush firebox and smokebox were 'wrappers' around the boiler. It was natural then for me to start No.184 by copying the same methods. Previous posts described how I managed to produce some reasonable line drawings from available photographs. So, as before, I copied segments of these drawings to represent the outside frames and other main component of my proposed model. I then printed these drawings on a sheet of ordinary file paper. I cut out the individual components with scissors and a scalpel, and then stuck the parts together, using PVA adhesive. I find that hair grips are an indispensable aid to assembling paper models like this. Now that I can visualise the 3D assembly, I can start to explore ideas on how they might fit together in a metal model. It soon became apparent that a model of No.184 will raise a number of difficulties that were not present in 'Queen'. The coupled wheels are an obvious complication but there is also the fact that these wheels intrude into the cab, which means that this can no longer be seen as a completely separate component, simply 'plonked' on the chassis at the end of construction! Instead, I shall look at a means of construction where the cab will be integral with the rear-wheel splashers. The compromises associated with the 'narrow' 00-gauge also come into play, since these mean that the intrusion of the wheels into the cab will be much greater than in the prototype. The backhead will need to be modified, to accommodate the narrow wheel spacing. On my 'Queen' model, the outside axle boxes were all dummies and, from some angles, the large gaps between these and the 00-gauge wheels were all too obvious. The new engine will require extended axles for the coupled drivers and outside cranks so, hopefully, these will hide the discrepancy to some extent. I've not started to plan the superstructure yet but it is clear that the boiler will be a more complex construction than 'Queen', mainly because of the raised firebox, which will have to be a separate component. Since I am also hoping to include a motor and gearbox in this engine, rather than in the tender, as before, I shall have to think about clearances for housing these components, especially as I want to keep the footplate clear of any further intrusions! So, I have a lot more templating to do before I can be sure that I have a viable plan - that is a subject for future posts. I recently bought a book on the OW&WR (Jenkins, OW&WR Through Time, Amberley 2013 ) and, while the title is somewhat misleading, as it is really about the Cotswold Line to Hereford, it contains several photographs appropriate to my area, including an excellent one of a 182-class locomotive (OW&W 21-class), in original condition, at Evesham Station in 1863. This is especially useful, since it shows the back of the tender that I had not seen in other photos. I have another book in the same series about the Fairford Branch (Jenkins, The Witney & Fairford Branch Through Time, Amberley 2013 ) and this includes useful information about the planned lines around Witney. From this book, I learned that the route via North Leigh (the subject of my own layout) arose as part of a spate of schemes during the 1840s, including the `Oxford, Witney, Cheltenham & Gloucester Independent Railway', which obtained an Act of Parliament for the construction of a `mixed ­ gauge' line. In the parallel universe inhabited by my layout, where all this came to pass, it is now clear that the wide spacing of the tracks through North Leigh station is the result of this broad gauge heritage. Mike Continue to next part

My first post in this series described how I produced a working drawing for a model of GWR No.184. Now, it's time to consider the tender and, for this, information is less readily available. Wet and windy weather has kept me indoors, so that progress has been rather quicker than I had anticipated. The various photographs of No.184 show it partnered with a variety of different tenders, so I decided to try to model the tender shown together with its 1893 re-build. I have not found a broadside view of this engine/tender combination, so have had to work from the oblique view shown in my previous post. In a forum thread on Estimating Dimensions from Oblique Views , I described a technique for correcting the effects of perspective by using the tools in the photo-editing program 'Photoshop Elements' (PSE). This program can adjust the magnification across an image, to correct for the angle between the subject and the camera. Once this has been done, it becomes possible to compare the distances between different points on a photograph, providing these points all lie in the same plane. In order to use this method on the photograph of No.184, I first identified some parallel lines that are as well-spaced as possible in the image. I chose a line along the top of the boiler and the line defined by the rails below the engine, and marked these in red on the photo, as shown below: The next step is to use the 'Perspective' tools in PSE, to distort the image until these two lines are made as parallel as possible,. ( I use an early version of PSE but the principles remain the same in later versions, although the menus may differ in detail.) First select the whole image (Select | All) and then select 'Transform | Perspective' in the Image Menu. Use the mouse to drag the handles that appear around the image, to offset the effects of perspective by enlarging the more distant parts of the image, as shown below. It helps to turn 'on' the grid display, when judging when the lines have become parallel. Once the image has been 'squared up' in this way, it is possible to compare distances measured along the frames of the engine and tender. The coupled wheelbase of No.184 is known to have been 8 feet, so I used the 'Line' tool to draw a line between the wheel centres, in the plane of the engine frame, and measured the length of this line in pixels. On my image, this length was 188 pixels. I then drew similar lines between the tender wheel centres, which both measured 130 pixels. The 'real' distances between these points are in direct proportion to these lengths, giving an estimated tender wheelbase of 130/188 X 8 feet, or 5' 9" between each pair of axles. Unfortunately, the photograph does not show the entire length of the tender, so I could not use this method to determine the overall dimensions of the tender frame. There is, however, a rather similar type of tender, shown behind GWR No. 244, in Part 3 of the RCTS "Locomotives of the GWR" (Fig.C60), which appears to have the same 5' 9" + 5' 9" wheelbase. ( * This is not certain and is based on my assumption that the wheelbase of this re-built engine was 7' 0" + 8' 0" ). This tender scales to 19' 3" platform length. I have used the side-on photograph of this tender to produce a line drawing. First, I increased the Contrast of the photo, using PSE, and then selected 'Stylize | Find Edges from the Filters Menu, to produce the rough outline shown below. I used this outline as a template to draw a more refined outline drawing and also included some of the details shown in photos of No.184. I adjusted the sizes of both the engine and tender outline drawings, such that 40 pixels correspond to 1 foot on the real engine, and set the scale to 100px/cm, so that they will print at 4mm/foot scale. I then pasted the two drawings (engine and tender) together, to provide an overall impression of the complete 'system' that needs to be modelled: Now that I have some scaled sketches, I can start to design the main parts for a model engine. My first step will be to draw, and then cut out, some paper templates, which I shall use to explore a feasible method for construction, and to check clearances for (00-gauge) wheels, motor, etc. In previous models, I have cut out these templates by hand but, this time, I intend to use my Silhouette cutter. Mike Continue to next part * My assumption is supported by the ratio between the wheelbases being extremely close to 7 : 8. I used a spreadsheet to find that the most precise match to my pixel ratios lay at 6' 10" + 7'10", which would yield a tender wheelbase of 5' 8". The tolerances in my measurements are, however, greater than ± 1" so I have kept my initial estimate.

I had hoped to have moved a lot further with No.184 but, unfortunately, have made a very elementary mistake! I knew that one of the problems with 00-gauge is that it is, in fact, a narrow gauge, with implications for fitting the boiler, etc., between the wheels. I think this had lulled me into a false sense of security with the outer dimensions, but these do become rather important in the case of an outside-framed locomotive with outside cranks! I 'got away with it' on my earlier scratch-built 'Queen' locomotive, because it didn't have these features. My 'Queen' locomotive in photographic grey, showing excessive clearance outside 00-gauge wheels My silly mistake was not to allow for the thickness of the metal, when folding the footplate structure. I had marked it out for 7 ft (28 mm) width but, of course, the 10 thou brass sheet is, itself, 0.25 mm thick, which, doubled-up both sides, is another 1/2mm, plus a bit because the fold isn't quite 'tight'. Once the cosmetic outer sides were added, I'd run out of clearance for the outside cranks on 32 mm extended axles (which actually measured at only 31.7mm). Fortunately, my rectangular footplate is simple to re-make to a nominal 26 mm, between the fold lines, but I mention this, in the hope it might save others who may be tempted to follow my very basic approach to model-making. Another poor aspect of the design was that the large cut-out in the footplate, to accommodate the driving wheels, had weakened the structure very markedly. With my 'Queen' model, there were large areas of flat plate both in front of and behind the single drivers and these provided firm platforms on which to place the cab and smokebox. My solution for No.184 was to design the raised firebox such that it includes strengthening lugs, passing between the drivers to the outside frames. Once fixed to the front of the cab, which is itself soldered to the insides of the rear wheel splasher faces, the 'rear end' of the engine became much more rigid. Underside view (temporary fixings with 'Blu-Tack') With these 'improvements', the main components of the engine body have fitted together quite well and the overall dimensions lie close to my initial drawing, as shown in the photo below, where I have super-imposed the drawing. There is still a lot of rather 'fiddly' construction to do, including fitting the tops of the splashers and the splasher 'boxes' inside the cab. After that, the tasks change, as it becomes a matter of adding all the components, such as springs, axle boxes, and boiler fittings. Only then will the 'character' of this particular locomotive become apparent. Photo of current stage of model, with drawing super-imposed One pleasing event is that I think I have found a paint to represent 'Wolverhampton' green. I have been scouring the shelves of various suppliers and recently spotted 20 ml jars of 'Rust-oleum' 'Painter's Touch' enamel in my local 'Homebase' store. Conveniently, this paint is packaged in clear jars, which enabled me to judge that their 'Dark Green' colour had the bluish-green shade that I was looking for. I've not tried using this paint yet but I'm looking forward to seeing the effect on my model. I expect to take a break from modelling over the Christmas period so wish all members of RMWeb a Happy Christmas, with the hope that Santa proves to be a railway fan Mike Continue to next part

Pleased to report that I'm back on track Railway Modelling, after my gentle excursion into 1/35th scale Military modelling I've been building a WEP etched brass wagon kit of a G.W.R. 2 plank wagon, to add to my wagon fleet. WEP 2 plank wagon kit The kit parts fit together well, with very little fettling needed to get a good result, although I had to use some Milliput Putty to fill a few gaps particularly around the top plank join. The kit also incorporates a rocking axle, so the finished wagon is compensated and will hopefully run well Body Chassis Finished Build I replaced the white metal buffers that were included in the kit as they were fairly crude castings. with some sprung ones from Slaters. I'm not convinced I've improved things and really need to find a prototype photograph of G.W.R. two plank wagon! I've had a look through my book collection and the only likely candidate that I found was in "Ewardian Enterprise" https://biblio.co.uk/book/edwardian-enterprise-norris-john-beale-gerry/d/630504055?aid=frg&utm_source=google&utm_medium=product&utm_campaign=feed-details&gclid=CjwKCAjwm_P5BRAhEiwAwRzSO2UnhOzqACv40NBOKoufgC9kkn88Xsj2k0gGd_I3Fow58XKhiuLTSBoCO4UQAvD_BwE I've posted a cropped version of the picture here, which I hope wont infringe copy right. If anyone can help with a better picture of an appropriate two plank wagon, I'd be delighted to hear from them! The picture also shows the wagon carrying a furniture removal container, something that I would like to model Many years ago I built this wagon, which is obviously far to modern to run on Sherton Abbas, but I'm thinking about reusing the container. Container on Match truck The container was built from an etched brass kit, that I found in a car boot sale, the instructions had been lost, so I've no idea of it's parentage. The transfers came in the kit, so I can take no credit for the lettering, but it does beg the question if it's a suitable load for an Edwardian layout! A Google search shows that Pickfords are a very old removal company https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickfords#:~:text=Pickfords is a moving company,Porters Society was founded earlier. but if anyone can shed any light on whether my example looks Edwardian would again be much appreciated. Sorry for so many questions, but there are some very knowledgeable people on the forum Best wishes Dave

It was gloomy yesterday so I turned the layout lights on and tried running a few trains in the dark. Daft, but oddly fun. Anyway, a few random pics of variable quality. The station in general, I need to lightproof the roof more next time it is off. This is a lucky pic. I cant really see the from of the station building so its just done by point the camera at the mirror on the end of the layout and hoping. The resultant image is then reversed in preview. Through a window. Atmospheric, a bit....

It seems like every time I look there's another bit I've overlooked! Hopefully though, the south end up to the signal box is now down. Good old geometry stuck it's oar in now and again, yet while not claiming perfection I'm happy with the results - a bit of paint will hide the anomalies. He said. In a hopeful sort of way. Oh, signal wires - that's going to be fun. Also, the banner repeater now has the correct black handrails. And the Bobby's Defender has arrived (from under the scarily high stack of invoices) :-) And the signal box steps got weathered, as did the non-brick bits of the box. Forgot to weather the woodwork on the repeater though.... sigh.

I recently purchased a copy of Roy Link's new Crowsnest Chronicles book. An very good read full of inspirational modeling. This finally inspired me to get my, not quite completed, Slater's 16mm Simplex kit out of the cupboard where it has been languishing for a year or more. I'd been frustrated by not managing to get the cooling fan to work with the DCC decoder. The loco also had rather a lot of emotional baggage attached as I'd bought it as a present to me shortly after receiving a nasty shock a couple of years back. I had purchased a Nigel Lawton 12v motor to drive the fan and wanted to drive it from one of the function outputs from the DCC chip. Obviously if I just connected the motor between the common negative and the function output the motor would work but be much too fast. If I used the 'dimming' function of the chip it uses Pulse Wave Modulation which meant the motor went slower, heated up and made a heck of a noise. I tried just adding a resistor into the circuit, but if I used a value that made any difference to the speed there wasn't enough current to give the motor enough torque to turn the fan. This weekend I finally cracked it, using a lower value (100 Ohm) resistor in series with the motor and a 100nF capacitor in parallel with the motor. The capacitor smooths the pulses from the chip and I can now dim the output without the motor making a nasty humming noise and getting hot. I also upgraded the bearing in the fan to use a pair of tiny 2mm ID ball races, this greatly reduces the friction. I painted up a figure as a driver (still a work in progress) but I'm very much happier with the project than I was before. The loco is now flaunting itself on my desk rather than hiding in the cupboard. I'm mulling over a 16mm narrow gauge 'side project' to give some variety while working on the Stour Valley - more details soon..... There is a clip on Youtube in all its noisy glory. Enjoy with the sound turned up. David

After a couple of deviations into other projects i completed the Bogie B...or at least got very near! For a kit that is so detailed and packed with borderline pointless etches (door hinges!!! What a nightmare) the kit is strangely lacking window grilles. Luckily Roxey mouldings do an etch. I hadn't anticipated that modelling some drop lights in the open position would cause me problems but the grille etches are not quite wide enough so some slight bending was required. I am happy with the outcome of this kit and would recommend to anyone wanting an immersive but achievable piece of rolling stock. Next comes weathering into a "borderline disgraceful" state.

After completing the main structure of No.184, I have been adding a number of rather awkward parts, in order to complete the 'brasswork'. This is the last chance to show the model, before adulterating it with white metal and plastic components, and then seeing everything disappear under a coat of grey primer! The fitting of these additional parts is difficult on a locomotiive with lots of flowing curves that are hard to measure accurately. My method has been to make paper templates, cut out by a process of 'trial and error'. First off were the splasher tops, which I tucked under the footplate in front of and behind each wheel arch. Fitting these around the cab sides was particularly awkward but, once the paper parts had all been marked out, it was then easy to transfer the measurements to brass sheet. I found that 'Cornwall Model Boats' supply assorted packs of thin brass sheet in 1, 2, 3,and 5 thou thicknesses. (their website is worth a look, as they have many items potentially useful for railway models) I used the thickest of these sheets (5 thou - 0.125 mm) for both splasher tops and footplating, while the others have been used for various small 'finishing' jobs, I was pleasantly surprised to see that very little 'filling' was needed between the splashers and the boiler - the gaps had looked much larger when the wheel arches were 'open'. At the same time, I didn't experience any problems with wheel clearances, so this part of the construction went very smoothly. The next step was to add the curved footplating. I first filled the curves behind the cosmetic outside frames with 'Milliput' putty and then, once again, used paper strips, laid over the curves, onto which I marked the positions for cut outs, to accomodate the splasher fronts and cab sides. After transferring the pattern to 5 thou brass sheeting, and cutting it out with a scalpel, I used super glue to fix the sheets in position on each side of the engine. I started to lay the sheeting at the front end of the chassis, pressing it down firmly, to follow the curves over the driving axles, and ensuring a straight edge, overlapping the cosmetic outside frames. The join between the raised top of the firebox and the boiler was my final problem, which I wrestled with for some time! I first fitted boiler bands in front of and behind the area where the parts needed to be joined. I used jewellers' snips to make several short cuts into the leading edge of the firebox, where it is raised above the boiler, and then carefully folded these down to make the curved joining fillet. Finally, I cut a sliver of 1 thou brass shim to cover over the curved 'fingers' that I had made with the snips. It is not perfect but I hope that it will be adequate, one it has been painted. I added the other boiler bands, once the boiler and firebox had been joined together. In some places, the side frames, formed by folding the sides of the main platform, were deeper than the cosmetic outside frames. I found it helpful to make a series of snips along the excess depth before using a sanding drum on my mini-drill to trim off the excess (10 thou thickness) metal. So far, everything seems to fit and the chassis rolls freely, so here is a last look at the structure in its shiny brass finish: There's still quite a long way to go but I can now be confident that a 'rolling' model will be achieved In the first instance, I shall power it with my 2.500 gallon Dean tender but I have left plenty of space between the frames, with openings below the boiler, to accommodate a motor in due course. Mike Continue to next part