jdb82

I've boarded out the cab floor now, using 0.5mm oak veneer. Still need to glue it down, probably with superglue. I'm sure it shouldn't have taken anywhere near as long as it did!! Must get round to cleaning it all up sometime soon - it's all rather grubby....

I wasn't going to for this version, as all the cranks & eccentrics for the inside motion etc are all cast for 3/16". I want to get it running as it is for now, as I have everything ready to go. I can't really justify the extra spend right now to re-do the chassis, castings and wheels. On the next version I'll do a 1/8" axel version and then I'll be able to use the HL box. I did think about 3D printing them, and still might try that. I have some metal gears that I ordered from China for next to nothing so I'll see how I get on with them, but a 3D printed box does sound quite appealing, especially if I use some mini roller bearings in there.

And now with beading attached. Also made a start on a custom gearbox, although I suspect this one will be a bit too rough and ready to work very smoothly. Another learning curve in the process of being ticked…

Agreed - the curve on the end of each of the three parts in the flat, has to match that of the curve once the curve has been formed. On the etch I shall be putting a curve on the ends, but I'll not try to exactly match the curve I ended up with, as I suspect everyone will form them slightly differently, even if only by a fraction. As you rightly point out, most people would want enough metal left to fettle, rather than have big gaps to fill.

Several strips of brass later, I have something for the bunker flares that I am reasonably happy with and can reproduce on the etch with what should be minimal work after fitting. Looking at the photos, there's a bit more filling of joins with solder and then filing back needed. I thought it looked ok when I did it, albeit in the dodgy light of my spare room, but apparently not so! Still, for my first bash at flaring, I'm reasonably pleased. I'm afraid it all needs a good clean up - the poor thing has been sat around for a while.....

Thank you gents, I was worried that might be an answer...... what I might do, is follow Bob's method initially, shape/fettle it to fit, then take it off, flatten it all out and see what shape I need for the fret. I know it won't be perfect from the etch, but it will at least give a closer starting point. Fingers crossed! Bob, would love to see the MW when it's done :-)

Alright, my brain has stopped working. I'm currently working on the flared top to the bunker. The flared piece obviously starts off flat on the etch, then is bend around a suitable drill bit to form the curve. The corners are sharp 90 degree corners, and I can't picture in my head the geometry the shape needs to be in the flat, or how to work out how long the top edge needs to be. On my etch, I simpley made a 45 degree angle with a straight diagonal edge. Having come to put it together, it became obvious this isn't right. This is how I did it (wrongly, I think). Flip part 68 upside down - just laid this way on the etch to save space..... Is it just a case of curving the diagonal ends of the pieces with a radius that matches that of the curve? And how can I calculate the length of the longer top edge? Apologies if these are daft questions - I've never done anything with flares before. N.B. Parts 66 & 67 need the shape altering a little so they taper down towards the curved end... Below is what I'm aiming for. Photo's below are of Izzy's (Bob's) model, as you can see what I'm talking about better than any other prototype photos I have - Bob, if you have any problem with me posting them here, just give me a shout and I'll take them down :-) Any suggestions greatly appreciated. I'm sure it's simple - I think I'm just having a brain fade....

Once you've clicked on Profile, look to the right of the screen. Might have to scroll down a bit coz mine was hidden behind the video advert...

It's been a while since I used the bookmark feature, and I can't for the life of me find how to access posts I have previously bookmarked. I've probably looked straight past it several times, but if anyone could point me in the right direction, I'd most appreciate it :-)

When I originally designed the etches, I wasn't sure how well the castings would turn out. So to cover both bases I did fold ups on the etch and did castings too so I could choose whichever looked best. I provided 'fill-in' pieces for the gaps left behind from the fold up section, which could be soldered in place and filed/sanded smooth. The bigger pieces were no problem, but as you'll have seen from the photos, the smaller pieces proved very difficult to solder in place and file back so you can't see them. Somebody else probably could! I'm the perfect test builder..... if I can make something look half-decent, anyone can!! Anyway the castings win hands down. On the next iteration of the etches, the fold ups will be removed, meaning it will be easy to solder the castings on. For this version though, I think I'll have to epoxy them on, as I'll unsolder all the filling in pieces, which were done with low melt solder so the splasher and trims didn't fall off.

Thanks for all the suggestions - I'll have a play around with a few methods with some scrap :-)

I should get myself a tin......Although in my haste, I have since soldered the tank to the boiler, making that somewhat harder I had been thinking of cutting under the top overhang, grinding down the central section to a more suitable height and then reattaching the top portion. There's also a part of me that say that this is just a test build - it could stay as is for this particular build and be altered easily for future versions, however the traditionalist in me might not allow that to happen!

Thanks for that Ray. I think it must be to to the crosshead driven pump then, as I can't see anything injector like on the drawing. The pipe disappears down between the frames somewhere, so seems likely :-)

Here's the tank completed, ready for soldering to the boiler. I've added the handrail knobs and the injector fittings. On second thoughts, I'm not sure if it's an injector per-se, or if it's just a pipe junction into the tank. It is just a single pipe out of the tank, and I'm not sure if the early old class i's (which this is) had injectors or not. I just (blindly) followed the drawing! Answers on a postcard, and apologies for my lack of loco anatomy knowledge..... Whilst the tank filler seems to be correct when compared to the drawing I have, I think it looks too bulky/tall in comparison to the tank itself. I may well (try and) remove it and 3D print a replacement. So if anyone knows how to remove Devcon 2 ton epoxy (yes I know.....belt & braces etc.) without completely wrecking the thing, then let me know ;-)

These are brass nuts, and as you say, because they will be hidden I have used plenty of solder. I reckon they'll last for a while.

Straight forwards construction of the smokebox, with a front, rear and base (with fixing nuts for attaching to the running plate), with a riveted wrapper around the outside. The castings for the smokebox door and chimney are solid, and so unusually for me, I decided to epoxy these in place rather than solder, as I feared the heat needed would make everything fall apart. The flare on the chimney needed a bit of altering - I'll do this on the CAD file before I get another set cast. It's still not perfect now, and will need a bit of filling. And just staged for a quick photo to show the state of play so far. The boiler is a length of nickel silver tube. Tank next......

The wire is a good idea - I hadn't thought of that. It's not too late to add it. Hopefully there won't be a problem - as long as the screws aren't overtightened!

Having discussed different methods on various platforms to forma lateral curve in half-round beading above, here's a quick comparison. The first image of the right hand side was formed by soldering 2 pieces of beading back to back to make a round wire. The curve was formed around a drill bit of suitable size, and the 2 pieces were separated, and soldered to the cab side. In the second photo of the left hand side, I soldered the beading on whilst the cab side was in the flat, and then formed the curve. Whilst the net result is very similar, the second method I found considerably less fiddly, and much easier to clean up.

Any tips on bending half round brass wire laterally through a 2.5mm radius, 90 degree bend? Is it just a case of annealing it? Whenever I try, it just ends up bending round the flat side.....

Date night with the firebox & back head. There's pipework and a couple of other details that will be added after painting.

If only I had a lathe.......

Yep. I'll see how I get on with things......version 2 might see a bit of a redesign based around the smaller axels.

Indeed not....that what what I was hoping for, but not so. The gears used in the HL box are 0.4MOD, which are available elsewhere with a 4mm bore, which would still need opening out a bit, but might be possible. This however would be for a 40T spur gear rather than the 20-something provided, and so would need the framework adapting. Not sure I would back myself to do that accurately enough to mesh well, without producing a new set of etches which I don't really want to spend the money on right now.

That's why I'm working on the body at the moment! The gearbox I think is going to have to be from scratch as I haven't managed to find anything that will fit the space, as well as accommodate the 3/16" axels. HighLevel's Hump Shunter fits the space, but not the axels. So if anyone knows a good source of suitably sized gears, please let me know! I've restricted myself with the size available for the gearbox by hiding it in an enclosed ashpan, but with the chassis frames being so skimpy, I really didn't want to see bits of gearbox through the sides. I'll probably either etch or laser cut the framework for the gearbox for accuracy.

Starting to build upwards now with the bunker. This is formed from one piece folded up, with the two end sections curved and soldered in the middle. The join is an overlapped half-etch, so it needs flooding with solder and then filing back to smooth. Inevitably, there's plenty of solder on show, which once painted you'll never know is there, but still..... In the final iteration of the etches, I might change the curved section to be a separate piece - it might just make things a bit neater. There is a half-etch strip around the top of the bunker where the bunker flare will be seated against. I don't want to put this on just yet, as I suspect it could be a bit susceptible to damage whilst construction is still ongoing. Also made a quick start on the firebox by soldering the trim around the backhead. Castings to be added later this week. Or maybe the wrapper first? Decisions.....