Mikemeg's Workbench - Building locos of the North Eastern & LNER

[mikemeg]

LONDON ROAD MODELS LNER B16/1

 

With no more excuses for slow progress, there has been some advance on the second of these B16/1 builds. The motion work has now been fitted and tested for free running and a start has been made on the final detailing of this model. I did spend quite a bit of time getting the slope of the slide bars to exactly match the slope of the cylinders which entailed moving the motion plate downwards by around  .020" (.5 mm) from it's supplied position. This then allows the extrapolation of the line of the piston rod to pass through the centre of the driven axle, as per the prototype.

 

The loco is still in several sections - chassis, footplate, boiler/smokebox assembly and cab assembly so these sections are merely resting one on another. Nonetheless they do now give the impression of being a locomotive.

 

So a photo of the second of these London Road Models B16/1 kits; this one embodying all of the additional etches to represent one of the last fifteen B16's to be built - in 1924 by the LNER - and with the later LNER designed 49A boiler.

 

I guess that the North Eastern Class S3's - later classified as B16's by the LNER - would have been the North Eastern's equivalent of the later LMS Black 5, though they would have been Black 6's as they were later classified as 6MT's by British Railways.

 

Cheers

Edited November 10, 2019 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

LONDON ROAD MODELS LNER B16/1

 

Now for the one piece handrail which travels from one side of the cab to the other via the boiler and smokebox. I've seen a few postings, on here, with different methods of forming this handrail, including producing it in two pieces meeting in the front handrail stanchion. My own preference is to produce this handrail in one piece and thread the front smokebox stanchion/top lamp iron onto it, prior to fitting.

 

I should perhaps add that I fit and fix all of the handrail stanchions to the boiler and smokebox sides before fitting the handrail, such that the finished handrail is simply slid into the already orientated and levelled handrail stanchions.

 

I produce the handrail with all necessary radii, from a simple drawing and also check that the distance between the two parallel sides of the handrail is the correct distance across the fitted handrail stanchions on the boiler sides. This means that there is no correction, or distortion, made to the profile of the handrail when it is slid into place.

 

The sequence of curves is :-

 

1) The large radius curve over the smokebox door.

 

2) The side curves, in the same plane as 1) above, restoring the handrails sides to the horizontal. The vertical distance to the top of the large curve can then be checked against the drawing. If this is wrong then the handrail will slope upwards or downwards, in front of the furthermost forward stanchion on each side.

 

3) The curves which turn the sides of the handrail through 90 degrees. These must be formed so that the two sides of the handrail are parallel after this operation. In making these curves work properly, the ends of curves 2), above, are then curved here as part of curves 3). It is curves 2) and 3) together, which produce that characteristic flowing, compound curve around the front of the smokebox and down the sides. 

 

Each of these curves 1), 2) and 3) use formers which are some 1 - 2 mm diameter less than the required curve diameter as it is far easier to ease a curve out than to ease it in and also to account for the residual springiness of the brass wire, which prevents it from exactly following the radius/diameter of the former. With this handrail, the formers were :-

 

Curve 1)    20 mm diameter

Curve 2)      4 mm diameter

Curve 3)   2.5 mm diameter

 

The final stage is to stand the handrail on its front, checking that each side stands truly vertical and that they are parallel to each other, thus ensuring that the front curved section will be parallel to the smokebox front.

 

Just to put this into context, this handrail (in the photo below) took about twenty minutes to form, adjust and check. This posting, which is really quite long, to cover this process, took longer to do including about twenty (twenty one, twenty two ….. and rising, as I remember something else!) separate edits to add the description!!

 

The photograph shows the profiled handrail for this B16/1 before it is slid into place and fixed. The wire used here, as on all of these boiler handrails, is 0.4 mm brass wire; supplied in 300 mm lengths.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

Edited November 22, 2019 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

LONDON ROAD MODELS LNER B16/1

 

And then voila; slid into place and the smokebox top stanchion and lamp iron fixed into the top of the smokebox front.. The other hole, above the front handrail stanchion is to accept the end of the vacuum pipe. I think the process on the one piece handrail was worth it? The ends of the handrail protrude around 1.5 mm into  the cab, so are securely held by the cab front.

 

The handrail stanchions, on the B16, needed to be longer than the Gibson short handrail knobs and shorter than the Gibson medium handrail knobs, so I used the medium size and turned the shoulder off each one to allow it to sit around .5 mm further into the cladding. This turning was simply done in an old pin chuck, twisted by hand, and which is used exclusively for these turning operations.

 

Both models are still a number of unfixed sub-assemblies, and will remain so until all of the detailing is completed. As said earlier, I have held off the final assembly and painting of the first build in order to check back, cross check, etc. the same assemblies on the second build.

 

As an aside, I do like taking the photos from a low down angle i.e. with the camera at somewhere around footplate level. Somehow, even in 4 mm scale, it seems to convey the massiveness of these things. So I took a similar photo of t'other one. It is quite noticeable how the moving of the dome  2' 8" backwards, on the 49A boiler (the later LNER designed boiler) on the first photo, does change the appearance of the locomotive; appearing to produce a more modern and balanced outline.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

 

 

Edited November 29, 2019 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

LONDON ROAD MODELS LNER B16/1

 

With the addition of the brakes, footplate steps and a few other details, then this second build of the London Road Models B16/1 kit is almost complete. A few handrails, pipes, washout plugs, lubricators, steam reversers, etc. to add plus more detailing inside the cab and then both builds will be painted and finished in BR mixed traffic lined black.

 

I think this kit captures the essence of these locomotives very well.

 

As my house move has been delayed by a week or two, I might get the B16/1's done before the year's end.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

Edited December 10, 2019 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

When I posted the photo, above, something jarred with me; something was not quite right. It took about ten minutes of scrutinising to determine what it was. The front left buffer has a slight chip in the casting of the buffer head; that's what it is.

 

Anyway, that buffer casting has now been replaced with another, fully intact casting.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

[rowanj]

21 minutes ago, mikemeg said:

When I posted the photo, above, something jarred with me; something was not quite right. It took about ten minutes of scrutinising to determine what it was. The front left buffer has a slight chip in the casting of the buffer head; that's what it is.

 

Anyway, that buffer casting has now been replaced with another, fully intact casting.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

Catastrophe, Mike. Scrap the whole thing and start again....

 

But seriously, the B16/1 is an excellent build, and knocks spots off my PDK version..the first etched kit I ever built.and if which I am still proud. I take my hat off to you.

 

John

[mikemeg]

35 minutes ago, rowanj said:

Catastrophe, Mike. Scrap the whole thing and start again....

 

But seriously, the B16/1 is an excellent build, and knocks spots off my PDK version..the first etched kit I ever built.and if which I am still proud. I take my hat off to you.

 

John

 

John,

 

Well, perhaps not a catastrophe but it did take a little while to identify what was wrong. All of my models attempt to depict locos as they were in mid 1950 and, of course, by then many of them displayed all sorts of aspects of years of wear and tear - bent footplates, buffers out of line, pipes bent, etc. Yet, if we try and embody this wear and tear in the models they just look wrong.

 

Thanks for the kind words re the build(s). Part of this is confirming the integrity of the kit and part is marketing, which is why they take time and why the photographs are quite carefully set up and lit. That said, the experience gained in doing these test builds was long ago extended to all builds and I count myself very fortunate to have been afforded the opportunity of doing these test builds. I guess an interest in photography, more generally, also helps.

 

Like the old school report comment  'Has achieved a reasonable standard but could still do better', so I keep striving for better. But for any of us, if the activity and end result gives pleasure and satisfaction, then that is all that counts!

 

Regards

 

Mike

 

Edited December 12, 2019 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

And once the two B16/1's are finished then I really must get around to finishing this painting. In the style of a 1950 railway poster, it is Penzance on the highest of high summer days.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

Edited December 12, 2019 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

LONDON ROAD MODELS LNER B16/1

 

Next job is the bending up of the vacuum pipe which goes from the smokebox to the cab. Here I make reference to the Isinglass drawing to establish the profile and make the various bends, one at a time, checking the profile after each bend, against the cab and boiler assembly, to ensure :-

 

a) The pipe sits against the boiler, where it should.

 

b) The pipe is parallel to the handrail for its full length.

 

c) The pipe passes out to the cab front at the appropriate angle and distance, and through the cab front without deformation.

 

d) The pipe passes out to, and through, the smokebox without deformation.

 

If a) to d) are fulfilled, then the pipe is correctly profiled and the unions, on the front of the pipe (shown separated on the photo), can be added. On the B16's, even though the boiler and smokebox were exactly the same diameter, unlike many earlier North Eastern locos, the vacuum pipe is still slightly 'stepped out' over the smokebox.

 

I should add that on these models, as on all of my models, the vacuum pipe is fashioned from 0.8 mm brass rod.

 

Both builds shown below.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

 

 

Edited December 13, 2019 by mikemeg

[John Tomlinson]

3 hours ago, rowanj said:

Catastrophe, Mike. Scrap the whole thing and start again....

 

But seriously, the B16/1 is an excellent build, and knocks spots off my PDK version..the first etched kit I ever built.and if which I am still proud. I take my hat off to you.

 

John

Hmm, this knocks a lot more spots off my DJH version!!

 

A really lovely build, and a shame to add paint.

 

John.

[mikemeg]

20 hours ago, John Tomlinson said:

Hmm, this knocks a lot more spots off my DJH version!!

 

A really lovely build, and a shame to add paint.

 

John.

 

John,

 

Many thanks for the kind words. It is now almost thirty years since this kit was first drawn and etched, and is now recently released. With care (and the appropriate Isinglass drawing, which I recommend is used as a data source) this kit really does make up into a very convincing model of the NER Class S3 / LNER B16/1.

 

For me this has been a very enjoyable project and I now have two LNER B16/1's; both yet to be painted. As remarked earlier, I think the B16/2 and B16/3 will now join the ever growing list of locos yet to be built.

 

Regards

 

Mike

 

Edited December 13, 2019 by mikemeg

[18131r]

Hello Mike

 

I have been watching your thread as a guest user of  RMweb for some time, from  your G5 builds, I thought it was about time I joined so that I could add my comments for what they are worth.

These B16's are great, your build quality and attention to detail on all of your builds has been and is marvellous.

Your descriptions of the your builds have been very helpful to this reborn modeller, after nearly 40 years of not doing I took the plunge and bought a J77 kit (Fletcher cab) from Arthur Kimber. It is a runner now but the pickups are not great could I ask which type of pickups you use, its the one thing I have not found a reference to on your thread.

 

What is next on your build list to tackle will you be going back to the B1?

 

Keep up the good work you ceratainly have inspired me.

 

Regards

 

Richard

 

 

 

[mikemeg]

On 14/12/2019 at 14:03, 18131r said:

Hello Mike

 

I have been watching your thread as a guest user of  RMweb for some time, from  your G5 builds, I thought it was about time I joined so that I could add my comments for what they are worth.

These B16's are great, your build quality and attention to detail on all of your builds has been and is marvellous.

Your descriptions of the your builds have been very helpful to this reborn modeller, after nearly 40 years of not doing I took the plunge and bought a J77 kit (Fletcher cab) from Arthur Kimber. It is a runner now but the pickups are not great could I ask which type of pickups you use, its the one thing I have not found a reference to on your thread.

 

What is next on your build list to tackle will you be going back to the B1?

 

Keep up the good work you ceratainly have inspired me.

 

Regards

 

Richard

 

 

 

 

Richard,

 

Apologies for not replying to this sooner but a combination of events (Christmas) and other pressing demands (problems with the roof on my current house and an impending house move) have left very little time for accessing RMWeb or for modelling.

 

However, as regards pickups I use a number of different approaches depending on whether the loco is a tank or tender type and whether the loco is four, six or eight coupled. Perhaps the easiest way of showing this is to use photographs, so I'll take the body off one or two of the models and photograph the chassis'.

 

As an aside, I think I've mentioned before that I do intend, sometime not too distant, to build one or two examples of LNER locos from other constituents of the LNER, most notably the Great Central and Great Northern. To that end, my old mate Mick Nicholson provides me with black and white photos and a few colour photos of likely subjects. Anyway, this one arrived a few days ago and reminded me that one of the first on the list of such types is the ex GN C1. This photo was taken at Doncaster works in 1936 and really does show just how impressive these locos were.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

 

Edited January 20, 2020 by mikemeg

[18131r]

Mike

 

Thank you for the reply, I am looking forward to seeing the inside of a few of your chassis.

 

The C1 is a handsome looking Loco, many years ago I built a white metal kit of one in 00 gauge. I can't remeber the make of the kit but I do remeber it was a so and so to get running, there wasn't enough clearance for the bogie and pony wheels, the running plate was paper thin by the time I had gouged it out  to get the clearances.

 

Looking forward to following your build.

 

I hope you have managed to get your roof sorted.

 

Richard

 

[18131r]

Mike

 

Your photo of the C1 reminded me of a good photo of C1 No 4444  on page 88 in a book titled "LNER ALBUM" VOLUME 1 by Brian Stephenson.

The photo shows the right hand side of the loco if it helps any.

 

Richard

[brylonscamel]

On 12/12/2019 at 10:05, mikemeg said:

And once the two B16/1's are finished then I really must get around to finishing this painting. In the style of a 1950 railway poster, it is Penzance on the highest of high summer days.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

 

Nobody commented on the painting! .. it deserves a mention as I love the pastel block-colours, sharp detail and graphic feel. Add a chirpy slogan, a rail company logo and you're ready to paste it on the local station billboard.

[mikemeg]

On 21/01/2020 at 22:02, brylonscamel said:

 

Nobody commented on the painting! .. it deserves a mention as I love the pastel block-colours, sharp detail and graphic feel. Add a chirpy slogan, a rail company logo and you're ready to paste it on the local station billboard.

 

Many thanks for the kind words. The block colours of the pre-war art deco railway posters have always fascinated me; it was and is just a lovely design style. So here's another one, again based on that railway poster style.

 

A cool, clear winter's evening in 1934 as the LMS Railway's SS Picard sets sail from Tilbury bound for Dunkerque, borne on a sea of light. The picture is simply called 'Evening Sailing'

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

 

 

Edited February 28, 2020 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

Or, perhaps, this one which is still work in progress. Again the subject is a ship; this one the Southern Railway's MV Falaise 'butting cross the channel on a mad March day' to quote a line from John Masefield's poem - 'Cargoes'.

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

Edited January 22, 2020 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

52F MODELS LNER T1

 

Here's a photo of one which I haven't featured on the thread, so far. This is the assembled body of the 52F Models LNER T1 4-8-0 tank. I built this year before last - 2018 - and, when I bought the kit, I bought an extra set of etches for the chassis, much of which I used to update my scratch built T1. This is basically quite a good kit but I did have to add and adjust one or two things i.e. the brass ring between boiler and smokebox wasn't present and the shape of the dome for the later LNER designed boiler was just wrong and required re-profiling. As always, I spent quite a time ensuring that the seating of both chimney and dome was tightened to avoid gaps.

 

I still have to add handrails, lubricators and a few other details but the loco superstructure is largely complete. There is a little filling to do at the bottom of the smokebox wrapper and a couple of other issues to address, which will be done once I've moved house!

 

When I do get around to building the chassis, then this will be fitted with a Mashima 1430 (would be a 1630 if I could get hold of one) with a flywheel, and a High Level 120 : 1 gearbox, which should ensure that it just crawls along!

 

Now, I'm going to make a plea to those folk who use mobile phone cameras to photograph their models. Please try and get the photos in focus! I've seen so many model photos which are woefully out of focus; some even blurred. There is an old marketing saying - 'Perception is reality', so if the photo of the model is out of focus and badly lit, what does that imply about the model?

 

So, pose them appropriately, select a suitable neutral background, where necessary, and light them with diffused light! Only takes five minutes but it makes a huge difference to the quality of the resulting photograph. Digital photo editors are also extremely useful in straightening and cropping photos as well as the colour intensity enhancing features which sharpen the image and add contrast!

 

This image, like all of my photographs, has spent some time in the Photoshop!

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

 

Edited February 26, 2020 by mikemeg

[rowanj]

The T1 looks excellent, Mike. Having just about completed the Little Engines version, I am painfully aware I must do better, both in the modelling and photography front.

John

[mikemeg]

On 26/02/2020 at 16:02, rowanj said:

The T1 looks excellent, Mike. Having just about completed the Little Engines version, I am painfully aware I must do better, both in the modelling and photography front.

John

 

Thanks John,

 

This was a relatively quick build - around two to three weeks - though obviously only half of the job is done; it still needs the chassis.

 

Like you, my models are '6' and '9' intensive, so I have two or three sheets of the HMRS BR numbers and logos sheets with oodles of 3's, 4's, 5's and 7's left, but no 6's or 9's. Though I did manage to buy six sheets, the last time they had stock. However, building so many tank engines does very quickly exhaust the small lion and wheel emblems on the sheets. Hence, on this T1, it will carry the 'BRITISH RAILWAYS' legend in full, as was used in 1948 and 1949.

 

One day, I might tire of building these ex-North Eastern big tank locos, though I seriously doubt it. I still have the A7, A8, N8, N13 to build and there may yet be another A6, J73 and J71.

 

Regards

 

Mike

 

Edited March 2, 2020 by mikemeg

[mikemeg]

And now a question. Is there a way of viewing the postings on this site without the adverts appearing down the right hand side.

 

Yesterday, the postings were the full width of the screen; today we have these damned adverts, in which I have absolutely no interest.

 

So can I view the postings without the advertising?

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

[david65061]

Dear Mike

 

you need to put an addvert blocker on to your browser. If you are using chrome you can use Ad blocker. see link below. It will remove most adds from most wed sites.

 

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/search/ad blocker plus

 

it goes on as an extensions which you can find in more tools, found from the three dots in the right hand corner.

 

hope that helps. It can't be that hard as I managed to install it.

 

kind regards

 

David

[Daddyman]

Another vote for AB Plus here, Mike - been using it for years. 

[mikemeg]

Firstly, thanks guys for the ad blocker info; I'll give it a try.

 

In one of the postings, above, re the 52F Models T1 4-8-0 tank, I did say that I would fit this loco with a Mashima 1630 motor, if I could find one.

 

Now I've mentioned before that I am about to move house and, of course, that entails packing everything up which needs to move. Part of this exercise obviously also entails checking all of those odd boxes, tins, etc. which contain 'things which might come in handy, but haven't yet' . Things which have been accumulated over and have lain around, for years, and which I might be able to discard or at least cull the contents.

 

So, in one such cardboard box, long since forgotten and laid at the back of a shelf, I found this; unopened, unused and, on checking, in perfect running order. It's not a 1630 but it is a 1628!!

 

Serendipitous!! Needless to say, every other modelling 'container' is now being rigorously searched and inventoried, to see what else may be lurking there!!

 

Oh and I also found around a dozen HMRS transfer sheets, including five No 14's - British Railways steam era numbers and emblems - and all of them, methfix!!

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

Edited March 2, 2020 by mikemeg