T0ny

How about that old fashioned curtain tube? It's a bit like the cable tubing used for bicycle brake cable.

Can I just say how much I have enjoyed/enjoy reading your blog, from the historical research, the various travails with Fusion 360 (that I am attempting to come to terms with), your experiments with model building and all the asides that you add to the series. I find it inspiring, educational and instructive. Keep up the good work. We can all learn something from it all. Well done.

So do I. Great work with the handrails. You can now go into mass production! I can thoroughly recommend early retirement, although you will never have been as busy. Tony

I am basing most of my work on this photo:

Thank you for this. The only information I have regarding actual sizes is from the BRatabase site which states that the wheel diameter is 3' 8". Anyway I shall investigate your sources. Tony

Hi there everyone. It is good to see the progress being made with these excellent models. Since there are several M&CR knowledgeable people on here, does anyone know the footplate width of M&CR 0-4-0 dock shunter's Numbers 2 or 3? I am endeavouring to build a model from photographs but cannot find a suitable one to scale the width. I am basing it on a width of 7' 3" since I have no other dimensions to go on. Thanks in advance. Tony

Regarding motors, can I just add Tramfabriek motors, and for other related equipment. They have a range of small motors etc. I am just a satisfied customer. http://tramfabriek.co.uk

There are a lot of ruling pens advertised on Amazon, Etsy and Ebay, probably other places as well. I can't vouch for the quality but there is a selection available.

Thank you for your prompt reply. I will go with that and see how it goes.

"Maybe I'm missing something, but if they are pinpoint bearings does it really matter? " No, they are inside bearings on a chaldron wagon and so will need to be sized correctly. They were used from the 13th century (obviously not with steam powered locos, horses) until the middle of the 20th century, being the (theoretical) maximum that a horse could pull.

Hello everyone, I am away from home for a little while and cannot get access to my materials. Can anyone tell me what diameter the axles are on Bachmann split spoke wheels? I am trying to create a 3d model of a chaldron wagon and need the diameter for the bearings. For all I know all wagon axles are the same diameter, 1.6mm?, but I have seen some diagrams that suggest otherwise. Thanks in advance. Tony

"I've followed @Jol Wilkinson's suggestion and used brass on a couple of recent builds and it's a huge relief!! It's more work - I don't have suitable bending bars so I use a variety of household objects of smaller diameters and a variety of pads and soft surfaces - but you know it won't change shape later and the best thing is that if it's a brass body, you can solder the roof in place from the inside, which also adds to the body rigidity considerably..." I'm following this wonderful blog/article and am in awe of the standard of work. Makes me realise how poor my efforts are. However have you thought about annealing the brass before forming it? It should make the curve easier to make and remove the springiness. Tony

"Good job its a passion and not a livelihood :) " Exactly this. Very few people are going to make a living from their work, especially if you realistically price your time, minimum wage anyone? Multiply your time by the minimum wage in your area and come out with a price, add on costs of all the other costs, heating, lighting, equipment etc and the actual cost will be too high to sell at a realistic price. People create these models because it is their passion. if they make a bit of money then that is a bonus. There is some fantastic work out there but the majority of it will never sell for a living never mind a profit.

"brambles, using dried leaves that had been put in a blender and ground down to small flakes." Have you thought of using herbal tea? There are many shades of various leaves that if suitably sized, ground, sifted could be used effectively. I use chamomile for autumn coloured trees.

I am sorry the EE has closed, it was a good site to get all sorts of odds and ends from. Jackson's Models, wigton, Cumbria (https://www.jacksonsmodels.co.uk/) have a good selection of models and other materials etc. No conection except that it is just up the road from me.

Thanks for that. I will see how I get on with it. Onwards and upwards.

i know this topic has not been addressed for quite a while, but how do you add surface textures of weathered wood to the planks in Fusion 360?

I was just looking at their site. I see that they say that the embossed detail needs to be a minimum of 1mm. I am looking at somewhere around 0.3mm (1" in 4mm), so I might need to investigate further. However, the products you have shown us are of excellent quality. I am still learning how to use Fusion 360 to produce a model of a chaldron waggon. We shall see how that goes. Thanks for your response. Tony

Thanks for your prompt reply. I shall investigate further when I get my efforts further developed. Keep up the excellent work. All the best. Tony

Excellent work. I am impressed with the results. Can I ask who you are using to print your work, and with what material?

That is fantastic. The results are very good. Do you have any links to the tutorials?

"I use a business software package and on occasion, it tells me that a particular customer is a somewhat similar number of days late paying. I worked it out once and it was something like 173 years overdue! I haven't even been self-employed for 20 years yet." Do you charge interest on the amount by the day or month?

Anger? Ok. Substitute frustration and impatience. The site is being restored as quickly as possible. I, at least, am grateful for the progres that has been made.

Why all the anger directed towards someone who is trying to restore this wonderful site back to its correct state? It will take time and, with alimited staff, could be delayed. Yes, it would be lovely to have everything up and running as it used to be, but that won't happen immediately. There are worse things in life and at least we get to read the articles and will be able to see the pictures eventually. Thanks for all you have done and are doing. Tony

Even if the layout is not going to exhibited, I hope we continue to hear and see it on here in the future. It really is an awsome achievement. Tony