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Dave John

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  1. Dave John

    A Dunalastair 1 part 2

    By Dave John,


    General
    Having got a rolling chassis I turned my attention to the footplate. The one from the kit was unusable so a brass plate cut out and the valance added.

    Next part, splashers. The DJH Dunalastair 1 is a kit for OO. With EM you need about 23 mm to clear the wheel fronts, the cast wm ones were much too thick to be any use. That also made the cab too wide. I rather think that the kit was always a bit too wide, in EM it was going to be far too wide. There was no way the outer splashers would clear the coupling rods either. Out with the brass sheet again.

    It’s a casting. Sort of ….



    Anyway, Progress to date. Needs some cleaning up but its the right size and square.




     

    While I was at it I had a look at the tender. Hmm, not my kind of chassis, and the amount of fettleing it would need to make it the right width was silly. I looked at the parts I would need, added it all up and just decided to buy a tender kit from caley coaches. Ok, it will need a bit of adjustment for a Dunalastair 1 but far less work than the original.

    Hmm, that looks more like it.


     

    Boiler next, lets see….
  2. Dave John
    The latest kit from True Line Models represents a horse box built by Metropolitan in 1870 for the CR. This is a different method for TLM being a resin print. I have used 3d printed parts but this is my first go at a complete 3d printed wagon.
     
    Removing the body from the supports taught me just how brittle resin prints can be. Since I want a practical layout vehicle I decided to reinforce the steps and springs with 0.3 brass wire. Wheels are on MJT internal compensation irons soldered to a copperclad sub chassis.
     
    A view of the underside showing the brass wires. Simple brake from bits of scrap etch. I think that by 1900s it would be piped but possibly not fully braked.
     
     

     
     
    A general view. I’m a bit unsure about the top edge. A coat of primer may push me towards paring the top hinges off and replacing them with brass strip. I’m also a bit worried by the fragile resin buffers, time will tell.
     

     
    The three roof sections made from laminated styrene. The oil lamp is I think MJT.
     

     
    Primer next, might show up all sorts of faults.
     
  3. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, making tracks.

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    I decided to have a think about making track. I have a number of reference photos, including the excellent one of Corsican track kindly uploaded by  5&9 models earlier in the blog. So, timber sleepers, medium weight flat bottom rail held down with track screws.
     
    Firstly sleepers. These are cut from some old mahogany, pretty hard but it saws well.  A scale 2.1 m long which seems like a reasonable average from the info I can find.
     

     
    Track screws next. Sometimes called rail screws or screwed spikes. These are still manufactured by several companies so I was able to get dimensioned drawings. Some experiments later I came up with the idea of using a peco track pin with a 0.5 mm cube of styrene glued to the head. This is the first batch with a coat of primer. Some rejects but enough to play with.
     

     
     
     
    Peco trackpins are 0.4 mm dia. There is no chance of them going through mahogany that tough without a pilot hole. However using any sort of hand held drill is a recipe for snapping drill bits at a rate. So I made a drill machine consisting of a linear ball slide mechanism from the bits box with a flexible mini drill drive clamped to it. Here it is sat on the sleeper drilling jig which makes sure that one inner hole is accurately drilled as a reference point.
     
     
     

     
     
    I painted a bit of scrap 10 mm ply as a test bed. First  sleeper fixed with a track screw on the inside. The rail is peco code 83.  Intended for HO that represents a fairly heavy flat bottom rail, but at 1/50  scale it comes in very close to the drawing I have of typical metre gauge track.  The drill can then make the outer hole and a track screw inserted. The curve is 1 m radius marked out using the bit of string tied to a pencil method.
     
     

     
     
     
    With the inner rail fixed roller gauges are use to position the outer rail for drilling.
     
     

     
     
    Some pictures of the test track. I have tried a bit of ballasting and rail painting at the lh end. Not particularly happy about those, but I will do tests with other ballasts a few sleepers at a time till I find one I like.
     
     

     
     
     

     
     
     
     
    Overall I feel that was a worthwhile test. The track looks right to my eye and the wood sleepers have a more natural variation than plastic ones. Similarly the slight positional variation of the track screws adds to the realism. Price wise it isn’t much more than standard OO track, certainly cheaper than O gauge.
  4. Dave John

    A general view of things.

    By Dave John,


    General
    Well, my name is Dave and I am building my second layout themed on the Caledonian Railway in the Edwardian era. The first was called Kelvinbank, and since I live 200 yards from the river kelvin which flows through the west end of Glasgow I think I shall stick to the name.
     
    You may well ask, if he has built one already why is he building another? Simply put, the sky fell in. Not the real sky, but to the 4mm scale figures on the layout half a ton of victorian lime plaster falling from a 12 foot high ceiling probably felt like the sky. Luckily I realised that the skyfall was imminent and managed to get 75 % of the layout details and stock stripped out safely, but it was clear that Kelvinbank 1 was going to have to be scrapped. This happened in May last year, a decision was taken that the smaller back bedroom would become a bedroom and that the new Kelvinbank would occupy the larger front bedroom, ( and some of the kitchen, but more of that later)
     
    So why blog about it ? I have posted stuff online before, particularly in the CRA forums, but that has tended to be specific shots of individual models as the topic arose. Several people suggested I should do a blog covering the more general aspects of modelling. I was a bit reluctant, there are many who build fantastic locos and stock, brilliant buildings, wonderful scenery whose work I am nowhere near emulating. But it was pointed out to me that everyone has to start somewhere and that another modeller adds to the sum total, thus promoting the hobby as a whole. Logically too if it encourages folk to have a shot at EM, pregrouping, preferably Caledonian modelling on the if he can do it so can I principle then all the better.
     
    Enough of me blethering on, a couple of general pictures of the progress to date.
     
     

     
     

     
  5. Dave John
    The 1870 horsebox is now painted and in service.  Once primed I liked the overall level of detail, the top hinges and the dog box end show a slight bowing out but not severe enough  to merit a substantial alteration.  I think it would be in plain coach brown by the 1900s, compartment interior off white and a simple bench seat added. Lettering is from the HMRS sheet.  Some light weathering to bring out the details.
     
    A couple of posed pictures.
     
     

     
     

     
     
     
    The start of a racing day special perhaps. The new horsebox is followed by a CR Dia 73, built 1907 and a LNWR Dia 436 from the late 1890s. Just about plausible then.
     
     
     

     
     
     
    I’m still a bit unsure about resin printing. The model has worked out reasonably but I am concerned about the brittle nature of things like buffers and steps. My preference would be etched brass steps and sprung metal buffers, though I appreciate that would increase costs and might not be viable for low manufacturing volumes. Perhaps too printing a model in a number of smaller sections would result in a greater accuracy ?
     
     
     
  6. Dave John
    The 83 members of the 709 Class 0-6-0 tender engines were built by McIntosh from 1895 onwards. They were the original Jumbos, all Westinghouse fitted for mixed traffic duties. Five members of the class Nos 583 to 587 were fitted with condensing apparatus for working the Glasgow underground lines.
     
     
    The model dates back to the 90s, some of it from a secondhand djh kit, the rest scratchbuilt. Unusually for me it runs on Gibson sprung hornblocks. I noticed that it had developed a squeal when running, time for a bit of an overhaul.
     
    Before and after pictures of the chassis. Better tender pickups cured the squeal.
     

     
     
     

     
     
    Back on the track, a view of the right hand side. Westinghouse pump configured as a brake air compressor in the usual CR manner.
     
     

     
     
     
    A view of the left hand side. This held a second Westinghouse pump configured as a feedwater injector. Hot water in the tanks, or in this case tender, always caused difficulties with steam fed injectors.
     
     

     
     
    Perhaps at some point I might try an improved painting and lining job.
     
    As we discussed in the last blog these were very unusual. There were oddities such as this, but I can find nothing else in regular use.
     
    https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Ramsay_Condensing_Locomotive_Co
     
     
  7. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, a second loco part 3

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    It has been a bit chilly for modelling but I have pushed on with the details and bodywork to the point that I reckon that is fit for service. Same livery as the first loco with a bit of light weathering. At some point it will need a number and stuff, but I still haven’t decided on that. Seems to be a solid if slow runner, I see it as a heavy shunter and perhaps short trip duties.
     
    Removal of the body for battery changes is straightforward, the cab can just slide back a bit on its magnets. The push button on/off switch can be operated with the body on using a cocktail stick pushed down the exhaust port.
     
    Some pictures;
     

     
     
     

     
     
     

     
     
    I rather like the look of it. Simple unfussy lines. I always liked single cab narrow hood diesels though the challenge here was to get the batteries, uncoupling servo and the electronics into a space just 30 mm wide. Then again the entire point of the 1/50 project is to challenge my abilities.
     
    Finally a posed picture of a bit of a train. Harsh against a white background, but I feel it does demonstrate what I am aiming for.
     
     

     
     
    For the record I reckon the materials to make that cost about £80. Add in various bits from stock, perhaps £100. Thats for about 10 weeks sitting at the bench actually modelmaking. I’ll let folk draw their own conclusions.
     
  8. Dave John
    The whole point of the 1/50 project is to mess about with ideas.
     
    Magnets have always fascinated me. When I was very young I had a home made toy,  a fishing rod with a horseshoe magnet on a bit of string and some cardboard fish with a paper clip on the nose which could be caught in a bucket of shredded paper. These days I suspect 4 year olds would consider that a bit naff, but it kept me quiet for hours.
     
    So, as suggested by Mikkel this is a bit of an experiment to see whether using people with magnetic feet would be feasible in places other than loco cabs. One of those cheap 1/50 figures with 1mm dia 2mm long magnets glued into holes in the feet.
     

     
     
    A bit of ply with 2 strips of 0.25 mm tinplate from a paper fastener and matching card each side. to the rear is a drawing pin, actually steel though brass coloured.
     
     

     
     
    Some test surfaces. L to R 0.15 mm emery as tarmac, 0.25 embossed card setts, 1.25 cardboard flagstones and paper with some flock grass approx 0.3 thick. The drawing pin is covered with some fine sand.
     
     

     
     
    Tests show that with the emery , setts or the fine sand the figure is secure but will still move easily if knocked sideways by a hand. It resists small amounts of shaking of the board but a violent movement sideways will  cause the figure to fall off.   The magnetic effect is negligible through the flagstones, and about half that of the emery through the grass.
     
    Just for interest;
     
     

     
     
     
     

     
     
    I think that the force of attraction between a magnet and a magnetic material varies approximately with the inverse cube of the separation. I learned that a long time ago, subsequent internet searches suggests that is still so for the near field. Clearly distance is the key. For magnetic feet the distance between the feet and the tinplate substrate needs to be kept to a minimum, particularly for small magnets .
     
    Other improvements would be larger magnets in the legs if possible or burying a magnet in the board if only a few standing spots are needed. Naturally with bigger scales this would be easier.
     
    Overall I feel that I would incorporate something similar into any sort of 1/50 layout, if I ever find room for one.
     
     
  9. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, a second loco loco part 2

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    Some progress over the last couple of weeks.
     
    That is all the electrical equipment installed oh the frames. A bit tight but it can be got at and maintained if anything breaks. The connector on the right is for the lights at the cab end, the hood end will be hard wired. Power is switched from a small push button above the uncoupling servo positioned so that it is just under the exhaust pipe and can be controlled with a cocktail stick.
     
     

     
     
    The main body sections. All silhouette cut in 10 thou styrene and laminated. As ever I have made use of magnets to hold the major sections to the frame and attach the roof. The cab floor has some thin tinplate in with the laminations so the driver with magnetic feet can be moved about.
     
     
     

     
     
     
    A handy wooden box and a few components for the controller.
     
     

     
     
    Body detailing next.
  10. Dave John
    Another year passes. At a first glance it might seem progress at Kelvinbank has been slow, a few wagons made and an old loco refurbished. However from the perspective of me enjoying the layout the major step forward has been the building of a lever frame and sorting out the signalling system. So some pictures on that theme.
     
    1 class No. 2 heads east towards Kelvinbank. The home is off if a correct route is set out of the storage yard and the section switches are set properly. The distant is cleared if the signal protecting the crossover at Kelvinbank is off.
     
     

     
     
    The platform home, No.6 is on as the preceding train is still occupying the next section.
     
     

     
     
    A condensing jumbo, No. 283 is held by the signal at Kelvinbank. Looking at photos the condensing pipes were kept well polished.
     

     
     
    The preceding train has now cleared. ( Actually just correctly stabled in the west sidings) So lever No. 6 can be pulled off. Using the duster of course.
     

     
     
    No. 283 can then proceed westwards.
     
     

     
     
    The signal under the bridge is an odd one. The real Partick Central had a signal at the east end of the platform about 20 yards the other side of the bridge. I can’t put one there so I made a Stevens and Sons tunnel signal which the Caley used elsewhere on the underground lines. 29 class No. 203  is held there, The signal is controlled from the lever frame but will not clear until the traverser is properly set and locked.
     
     

     
     
    No. 263 heads west with a short goods. The distant is cleared only when the signal into the west storage sidings is clear. Archibald McGregor hopes it is going to be clear all the way .
     
     

     
     
     
    Building and installing the lever frame has increased my enjoyment of operating the layout considerably. It is something I have been swithering about for a long time, but all the available solutions were either too small and fiddly or too large and would be visually overpowering in that location. Of course none were  cheap. I think the decision to scratchbuild was the right one, the frame just feels to be the right size and the action is smooth and positive.
     
     
    My compliments of the season to everyone, I hope you get some solid modelmaking time.
     
     
  11. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, a second loco loco part 1

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    I think the battery tests have given me confidence to move on to making a second loco. Not sure exactly what yet, but ideas are forming from various photos of metre gauge stock. Back at the beginning of the project @NewFangledNonsense suggested a look at the Derby sulzers site. Well what struck my eye was an early single cab diesel hydraulic on this page.
     
    https://www.derbysulzers.com/outremer.html
     
    Quite modern looking for its 1954 build and fairly compact.
     
    As ever a chassis is a good place to start. Earlier in the year I treated myself to a saw. One of these;
     
    https://www.proxxon.com/en/micromot/27006.php
     
    Makes turning thin brass sheet into loco making sizes much easier. Then some soldering.
     
     

     
     
    A first assembly to make sure I have bogie clearances right. The electronics may be a bit of a squeeze but I will mock up the front hood and see what volume I have to play with.
     
     
     

     
     
     
    I’m happy with that as a bit of progress. Miserable light and too cold for modelling this time of year combined with other things tend to slow me down.
     
     
  12. Dave John

    A Dunalastair 1 part 3

    By Dave John,


    General
    Boiler next. Hmm. I had a look at the DJH one and decided to give it a bash. Well, quite a few bashes. Removed the alignment tags which didn’t align, got it in a jig of scrap wood bits and whacked a lot of lowmelt solder at the gaps. I then filled all the bits that needed filling with lowmelt and attacked the whole thing with a variety of knives, sanders and files.

    Most of the “detail” on the castings was overscale and I would have removed it anyway. So after a fair amount of work I now have a decent starting point. The whole thing has been given coats of gap filling primer between sanding down sessions, the stuff does seem to fill scratch marks and makes it far easier to see where further work is needed.

    It is the first time I have used the gap filling primer. So thanks Corbs, I saw the way you used it to fill and highlight areas for rework and borrowed the idea.

    A bit of an out of focus pic , but you get the idea.
     



    Oh , and I painted some wheels…
     


     

    Now the fun of getting the boiler and footplate fitted together.
  13. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, Batteries and another loco

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    I was looking for batteries for my old phone on the cheap end of the net. The direct from china end. This thing popped up and I had one of those “hmm, I wonder” moments. Add to basket.
     
    Essentially they are Li batteries stacked to form a pp3 size with all the gubbins for charging inside, even has a bi coloured led to say when they are charged. Twin pack with a neat twin usb charge lead for 12 quid. Easy to lift the lid off a loco and swap them out.
     

     
    But are they any use? Well, 9V 1200 mAh . 9V is a bit low really, but two in series would give 18V at over an amp for an hour. In theory. So a bit of prototyping on the bench to test them. I was reasonably impressed, chop the 18 v down to 5V for the radio gear and constrain the mark- space ratio of the motor drive to about 66% to give 12 V equivalent to the motors gave a practical run time of about 2 hours under load. Realistically that would be a playing time of well over that.
     

     
    Some old wheels and a bit of brasswork.
     

     
     
    I’m not entirely sure where this is leading. A few vague ideas. Cardboard mockup time.
     
     
  14. Dave John

    A Dunalastair 1 part 4

    By Dave John,


    General
    Getting the boiler and footplate fitted together was a time consuming task. Try, file a bit, try again, file a bit more. When in place I could make the spectacle plate and get the whole thing looking a bit like a D1.

    So here it is actually sitting on the track. Also seems to pass the push along through points and curves without the wheels fouling the body test. In theory that means the Gibson wheels will be fine.


     

    From the rear with the motor and gearbox in for a trial fit. There is room for some weight above and to the sides of the motor which I think will be needed. The centre of gravity is ahead of the leading driver due to the boiler and it wants to come back to between the drivers.



    Ok, this is the backhead from the kit, together with the wheel and worm drive cover. Hmm.



    A bit of help from the silhouette produced a styrene laminated one which is pretty close to the drawing and can be detailed reasonably easily. Also it can go in after the rest is painted.
     


    Since I have slimmed the width down to about scale size the DJH roof is now too big. It is too thick as well, so I thought it was simpler just to solder one up from bits of brass.


     

    Should be a fair bit of free time next week so things should get progressed at a better rate. Happy new year to all and I hope your modelling goes well in 2019.
  15. Dave John
    The furniture van wagon is now painted and in service. Slight weathering to bring out some of the detail. I do think that the masterclub bolt heads are better defined than a transfer rivet though from much more than a few inches away it is hard to see.
     
    I added a pair of crossbeams pegged into the holes in the sides to which the van is lashed. The relatively new looking sheet may have had a few more ropes in practice, though that was fiddly enough.
     
     
    A few posed pictures;
     

     
     
     

     
     

     
     
    Passing through Kelvinbank in a mixed goods train.
     
     

     
     
     
    I’m still not absolutely sure about the sheet. It looks right to my eye although I accept that photographic evidence of these wagons in use on the CR is not available. Perhaps in time one will turn up.
     

  16. Dave John
    There is a photo in “Caledonian Railway Wagons” by Mike Williams of one of these wagons of which it it thought nine were built from 1878 onwards. No drawing but they were known to be 18’ long on a 11’8” wheelbase, enough to reasonably estimate the other dimensions.
     
    Construction is from styrene sheet and section. Metal strips on the top of the sides had a series of holes for roping pegs, though I think they may have been threaded for an eyebolt. Perhaps a bar was pegged across the wagon to chock the wheels of the load ? There were also sheet hooks under the curb rails.
     
    The little grey dots are masterclub bolt heads. They are tiny, drill a 0.3 mm hole and glue them in. It is the first time I have tried them in 4mm scale so it will be interesting to see whether it is worth the effort. perhaps after painting they might just be a dome and a rivet transfer would have been simpler, we shall see.
     
     
     

     
     
     
     
    A view of the other side. The photo in the book shows the side with no brakes. I think I can just see the bottom of  a brake block on the far side, so a standard Caley type Scotch brake seems a safe bet.
     
     
     

     
     
     
    A furniture van wagon needs a furniture van. An approximation of one.
     
     
     

     
     
     
    Some paint next.
  17. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, A low loader wagon

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    I have been running trains on Kelvinbank. Some cleaning needed but things are running smoothly with one slight annoyance. That tool/riding van I butchered from a Hornby brake. I got annoyed with the wheel flanges hitting chairs and rattling so I swapped the wheelsets out for a proper pair of 51L EM  ones. Ahhh, much better…..
     
    That left me with a pair of 14.2 mm 00 wheels rolling about on the bench. Not going to be used on Kelvinbank, but in 1/50 th thats 710 mm dia. Perhaps a bit small, but that got me thinking about wagons with small wheels. For instance low loaders.
     
    A sheet of styrene through the silhouette, masterclub rivets and bolts, some bits of brass tube and wire.
     

     
     
     

     
     
     
    I reckon that looks reasonable. A nice relaxing build, inexpensive, bit of imagination thrown in. Gets those wheels off the bench too.
     
     
  18. Dave John

    A Dunalastair 1 part 5

    By Dave John,


    General
    I have got on fairly well with some free time over new year. The last difficult bit of the body was getting the roof soldered on neatly and adding the cab handrails. The spectacles were giving me a bit of grief, and awkward thing to form in brass. So I stopped and thought about it. 10 minutes later I had enough to do a fleet of engines thanks to the silhouette. The dome and chimney from the DJH kit fettled up reasonably, safety valve and whistle are from Caley coaches.



     


    So next step chassis. Calculate the shims needed, carefully clean and paint the frames first. Rear wheels and gearbox in without problems and nicely square. I sometimes find quartering problematic but this one required very little adjustment. The backscratcher pickups are from my bits box of very small springy contacts taken from old electronics. they actually are double contacts but are only the width of the rear of the flange.



     
     

    So, put it under the body and stick it on the track. This is where you normally find the coupling rods foul at the top of their travel, but lo, it ran. This is a dry run, not even oiled it yet. A bit grainy wthj me just holding the camera, but it gives the general idea.
     

    Most of the tender is done too, getting there .
     
  19. Dave John
    Once I had the frame painted and assembled I made up a mounting plate from 3 mm ply. All the connections are via a 37 way connector from the spares box so that the whole module can be easily removed from the layout to the bench if maintenance is needed.
     
    It was a bit of ply from Eileens, some brass sections arrived taped to it so I’m glad it got used for something constructive.
     
     

     
     
    A front view. I have followed the Caledonian practice of fitting a description board behind the levers. The switch and dimmer on the right controls the signal  lamps.
     
    Mikkel challenged me to incorporate a cocktail stick into the design, note that neat little peg on the left hand side.
     
     

     
     
     
     
    A view of the module in place. It plugs into an interface board that connects to the layout wiring and has some relays for electric interlocks.
     
     

     
     
     
    From the other side. The little cocktail stick peg is for the signalman to hang the duster on. A Caley blue one of course.
     
     
     

     
     
     
    So, it looks fine but how is it in operation ? Well, I had a good operating session today, ran about 20 trains. I am pleased with the way the levers feel, a smooth action with positive locking. They are about the right size, comfortable to use but without intruding on the layout.
     
    In the past I have posted videos with signalling errors. Hopefully the mix of mechanical and electrical interlocking means I can no longer do so. It certainly forces me to try to plan moves and signal them properly.
  20. Dave John
    Some progress.
     
    The nine levers have been cut from 2mm brass. The other parts are fabricated from tube and section. I used a pair of buffer springs to assist gravity on the stop block to give a positive feel to the action.
     
     

     
    The frame made up from silhouette cut styrene, 3 ply. It will become stiffer as more is added but tests show that it is heading in the right direction. I chose a spacing of 15 mm for the levers. That gives about 28 mm as a gap for moving a lever; my thumb is 24 mm wide. Feels about right.
     
     

     
     
    Microswitches in place, the spacers are actually old meccano nuts, slightly thinned.
     
     

     
     
    This is a locking bar. The captive pin arrangement allows them to be removed.
     
     

     
     
    Test assembly with the locking in place. It isn’t as comprehensive as a full locking system, but it does prevent the point levers being moved until the signals are properly set. The overlap is such that the microswitches will not trigger until a lever is properly unlocked, I think in practice there would be more, possibly a fpl on the point leading to the sidings since it could be worked both ways. I will also have some electrical locking for the ground signals. Certainly signalling was simpler in the early days, more complications as time went on.
     
     

     
     

     
    A pic  of the front. I will add a front sheet and some beading.
     
     

     
    Next stage, take it to bits and do some painting.
     

  21. Dave John
    I have never been entirely happy with the control of points and signals on Kelvinbank. Three way switches allow a signal to be set to on, off or auto. Switches set the points, in auto mode they also control the signals via short timers. It is vaguely interlocked, but not perfectly. All workable but somehow not in keeping with the period feel of things.
     
    So. Lanarkshire and Dumbartonshire section of the CR during the Edwardian era. Built in the 1890s. Boxes would have a Stevens & Sons frame. Like this one;
     
     

     
     
     
     
    Some research on the model frames available showed that none were really what I was after. I only need a frame of nine levers to work Kelvinbank the way I want. The very good ones are expensive and none have that Stevens & Sons geometry, with a lever about 4 “ long. A long lever pulled forward from the vertical rather than an over centre arc.  Hmm, diy time
     
    I have never scratchbuilt a lever frame. Starting with the above sketch it seemed like a good idea to have a mess about with a styrene mockup. Here is the third attempt.
     

     
     

     
     
     
    I think that is what I am after. The stop block is sprung, gravity doesn’t quite scale. I bought some v4 roller microswitches off some lot called temu, 30 for 5 quid and they seem perfectly ok.
     
    Bear in mind that I am not trying to make a scale model of the frame, rather a practical working frame in the style of Stevens & Sons. The lever spacing has to be overscale to avoid getting my fingers stuck.
     
    Next stage, cutting nine levers from 2mm sheet brass.
     
  22. Dave John
    According to the 1907 wagon census the Caledonian had 1861 pig iron wagons, of which 1300 were to Diagram 16 in various build lots to either 8 or 14 tons.  Certainly the CR moved a lot of pig iron from furnaces to steelworks and foundries, but these wagons were used as a sturdy one plank dropside for anything that needed moved. One of those wagons that turned up everywhere and is very useful for forming short rakes on the layout.
     
    These two are from the whitemetal 51L kit, they go together easily. Designed for fixed W irons, but I prefer etched W irons on a copperclad chassis, the wheelsets can be left out for painting and it gives somewhere to mount the aj and the buffer springs.
     
    A photo of the underside to illustrate that ;
     
     

     
    Posed for a photo ;
     

     
     
    A slightly elevated view. The pig iron loads are removable, made from old plastic kit sprue stuck to a bit of styrene.
     
     

     
     
     
    I have various modelling ideas in the pipeline but various things have to be done round the flat first.
  23. Dave John

    A Dunalastair 1 part 6

    By Dave John,


    General
    I made up most of the tender body and then spent a while getting things level. Set the buffer heights and shim the compensation beams so the footplates are lined through. Then place the loco and tender on the tightest curve I have ( about 48 inch radius ) and that gives me the minimum length for the tender - loco drawbar. The Caley coaches tender kit includes these, but the size I needed was between the two. Easily adjusted. I put the whole thing together and ran it up and down for a while. Tender needs a bit of weight but apart from that smooth.

    It is always satisfying to see what is essentially a scratchbuild run well. But something was niggling at me. The overall look was right, but somehow the line of things was broken. I went back and looked at photos of the real thing.

    It dawned on me. Cab doors. The Caley liked cab doors hinged on the tender side plates and opening out. In the shut position they covered the lower half of the cab handrail. They shut them. Looking at pictures of engines out on the mainline they are well and truly shut. Well, they would be. The ballast is a long way down and going past rather quickly. Doors are a good idea.

    Ok, I then wondered how everyone else had tacked the issue. I searched, I looked, I went away. You see cab doors on tender locos are one of the modelling worlds little secrets. We ignore them, particularly in the smaller scales. I am as guilty of this as the rest, I have built tender engines and quietly ignored the gap. In rtr terms the gap is often the size of the grand canyon to get the thing round train set curves but even in more accurate layouts they seem to be quietly ignored. The problem is simple, models go round tighter curves than real trains so the door would either be too big of too small. Even with my 48” curves the door would have to shrink and expand by 3mm ish.

    Time for a bit of a think. I ran the D1 and its tender up and down a while and had a tidy up of the bench. A thought struck me, the doors don’t have to shrink and expand, they just have to appear to shrink and expand from a normal viewing distance. Sliding doors in effect.

    I dug out some fine brass tube, 0.8 mm od, 0.4 id. 4 sections about 20 mm long were inserted into the tender as parallel to the body as I could make them. Ok, the top two intrude into the coal space, but thats where the coal will be.



    Next I made up some doors, 10 thou brass with 10 thou spring steel wire as the runners.



    These slid into the brass tubes like so. The hooks at the front go round the lower part of the cab handrails.



    So with the tender and loco together at the biggest angle between them you get this sort of telescopic action.
     
     

     

    The proof of the pudding is in the watching…..
     
     
     

    I’m actually quite pleased with that. It’s probably been done before, so I wouldn’t claim to be original. Just a first for me.

    Paintshop next. Might take a while.
  24. Dave John

    The 1/50 project, A Tank wagon, part 2

    By Dave John,


    The 1/50 scale project
    Given that it is just a background project the tank wagon has come on well.
     
    I spent a bit of time faffing about wondering how to make something that looked like the clamping straps and hawsers that hold the tank on. Eventually it dawned on me, at 1/50 the simple answer is just to make some straps and hawsers and hold the tank on with them.
     
    So I splashed out a tenner for 50 m1 nuts and bolts.
     
    Some bits of brass and m1 nuts and bolts. Five strands of 5A fuse wire for the hawsers, bit of soldering. I have tried to  model all the brake gear, reservoir, cylinder and triple valve all piped up.
     
     

     
     
     
    Rather a fancy paint job, but why not. I decided to keep the sand colour for the tank, makes a nice contrast to the general dark grey of the rest. Since both Mikkel and I rather like it that makes it a committee decision.
     
     

     
     
     
    A couple of pics with a figure to give a sense of size.
     
     

     
     
     

     
     
    I’m happy with the way that has worked out. Perhaps a bit crude, but solid and workmanlike. One of my objectives for the 1/50 project is to enjoy some model making  without breaking the bank. I estimate that tank wagon has cost less than 20 quid to build. A lot of simple fun on the bench for that price.
  25. Dave John
    The body needed a fair amount of sorting out, a lot of bits fell off when it was being stripped. It isn’t the best paint job, but painting is not my favourite activity. As ever with the CR a lot of awkward brightwork but I have tried to tone it down a little to give a practical in use look. I also simplified the lining a bit.
     
     
     

     
     
     

     
     
    The main reason for the rebuild was to improve running. So a bit of video showing 263 on a trip working. It now seems to run fairly smoothly.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    The lining for that was from my last sheet of Modelmasters LNER / CR lining and it seems to be out of stock everywhere. The issues with Modelmaster have been discussed elsewhere on rmweb, so I don’t want to go into them here. Suffice to say it seems I’ll have to find an alternative source with sufficient radii to fit CR locos.
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