Signaller69's projects

[Signaller69]

The 4 part lower footboards on the 6 wheeler were vexing me due to the necessary side play on the middle axle, until I realised the outer axles can also twist a little. Thus they were glued in place to the outer axleguards; they are not affixed to the centre axleguard, but instead are guided by it in a form of articulation (I'm sure I've seen the same principle on a RTR continental model in the past). Happily, track testing shows the system works without derailment and is less noticable than I thought on small radius and curved Peco Streamline points. Vac brake gear and a battery box have been shoehorned in too. Some cosmetic footboard mounting struts will be fabricated too.

As can be seen, the buffers have arrived too; they are closest visual match I could find, despite being of NER origin, and just require a slightly deeper collar adding where they attach to the buffer beams.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

Martyn.

[Gibbo675]

Hi Martyn,

 

The foot boards have certainly helped in cheering up the great big brake blocks of the Hornby chassis. I had been wondering what you were going to do with about the brake blocks, an ingenious solution that looks a whole lot better for it.

 

Gibbo.

[Signaller69]

26 minutes ago, Gibbo675 said:

Hi Martyn,

 

The foot boards have certainly helped in cheering up the great big brake blocks of the Hornby chassis. I had been wondering what you were going to do with about the brake blocks, an ingenious solution that looks a whole lot better for it.

 

Gibbo.

Thanks Gibbo, I chopped off the brake blocks on the centre axleguards before coming up with the final plan, even so the clearance for rigid footboards would have been a compromise too far so I'm glad a more aesthetic and practical compromise was found. The ones on the outer axleguards can stay as they are nigh on invisible now in any case.

 

Thanks,

Martyn.

[ISW]

On 22/05/2019 at 19:13, Signaller69 said:

Thanks for your kind words Ian, I don't mind doing a few windows but I doubt I'd have the patience to do passenger coaches by this method to be honest!

 

Cheers,

Martyn.

Martyn,

 

I know the feeling ... I spent weeks & days filing / grinding Lima coach windows to get SE Finecast windows to fit nicely. I did have a fleet of coaches to convert - and there are still more to do.

 

[Signaller69]

I have now fitted the door hinges (tiny pieces of Slaters Microstrip), stovepipe, buffers and footboard supports. The latter are affixed to the footboards or the axleguards rather than the chassis itself, due to the articulation, but the subterfuge isn't too obvious thankfully.

 

The body and roof have had a blow over of grey car primer, only a couple of minor blemishes to sort thankfully. The chassis needs a little more work before it gets a coat of black.

[Signaller69]

After a camping trip to Shell Island, basic liveries have now been applied to the 2 brakes and the bolster wagon. NEM coupling pockets have also been added. Some retouching is still required.

 

[brylonscamel]

.. at the shows, this sort of effort is going to be spotted by only a few fellow modellers. I hope they give you a pat-on-the-back for this loving attention to small things and the accuracy of it all.

[J25]

The SECR van carried a green livery throughout its time on the DVLR. It moved to The Chasewater Railway in 1968 before the DVLR painted everything grey. I have not been able to find out what livery the LNER pigeon van ran in before it was painted presumably BR Maroon.

[Signaller69]

6 hours ago, brylonscamel said:

.. at the shows, this sort of effort is going to be spotted by only a few fellow modellers. I hope they give you a pat-on-the-back for this loving attention to small things and the accuracy of it all.

Thanks for your comments, they are much appreciated and your work always inspires me to try to improve my own efforts. The DVLR is of course a minority interest compared to BR or the "Big 4", but that's partly what drew me to it as a "something different" challenge (along with buying the book, always a dangerous move!) so I expect it will appeal mainly to those with a similar mindset if it gets invited to any shows.

5 hours ago, J25 said:

The SECR van carried a green livery throughout its time on the DVLR. It moved to The Chasewater Railway in 1968 before the DVLR painted everything grey. I have not been able to find out what livery the LNER pigeon van ran in before it was painted presumably BR Maroon.

Thanks David, I've attempted to portray the SECR van in the drab colour it ended its DVLR days in, based on the colour photos in the DVLR book, which of course is always subjective. Earlier photos appear to show a much darker green (as per p.43 & p.121of the book) so I'm guessing it was repainted the lighter colour using cheaply sourced or surplus paint at some point in the 60s? Or just faded very badly in later years maybe?

 

The LNER van appears maroon in photos when it was initially purchased in 1967 but was painted light grey by 1974. I am going on my theory (a slippery slope I know) that it was painted the same "Minerva Grey" as the 2 class 04's, presumably around 1969 when the paint was "to hand" for the locos, but I am happy to be corrected if evidence comes to light. I used the lightest grey automotive paint that I could find in my local car store for the model (Holts HGREY01).

[J25]

I think you are right about the repaint date for the Thompson brake. It was certainly grey by 1971 and a repaint at the time the 04s were purchased seems likely. The SECR brake was probably green when acquired and simply faded over the years. In 1975 I came across loco no. 2 with a solitary wagon. The wagon held gravel, sand & cement and the crew were installing "whistle" signs which were car number plates. This wagon  was effectively a flat but had been a 3 planker . It had a 1921 SECR makers plate. This may have been the green wagon that appears in Mr Stockwells book.  The SECR brake was part of a gas decontamination unit in London early in the war. It was not the obvious candidate for acqusition by a railway in York-except for the existence of the Mustard Gas plant at Cottingwith. I wonder if a decontamination unit was sent to the DVLR because of this plant and was sold to the DVLR at the end of the war. This may explain the presence of a second SECR vehicle on the line and the green livery for the at least one of the internal wagon fleet.

[Signaller69]

37 minutes ago, J25 said:

I think you are right about the repaint date for the Thompson brake. It was certainly grey by 1971 and a repaint at the time the 04s were purchased seems likely. The SECR brake was probably green when acquired and simply faded over the years. In 1975 I came across loco no. 2 with a solitary wagon. The wagon held gravel, sand & cement and the crew were installing "whistle" signs which were car number plates. This wagon  was effectively a flat but had been a 3 planker . It had a 1921 SECR makers plate. This may have been the green wagon that appears in Mr Stockwells book.  The SECR brake was part of a gas decontamination unit in London early in the war. It was not the obvious candidate for acqusition by a railway in York-except for the existence of the Mustard Gas plant at Cottingwith. I wonder if a decontamination unit was sent to the DVLR because of this plant and was sold to the DVLR at the end of the war. This may explain the presence of a second SECR vehicle on the line and the green livery for the at least one of the internal wagon fleet.

 

Fascinating, if the 6-wheeler had been "in situ" as a precaution at the War's end, it would explain the seemingly odd purchase by the DVLR in 1946. I read in the book that it had been based at Bricklayers Arms Shed and could see no connection as to how it came to end up there, but your suggestion would seem plausible. 

 

Thanks for the detail on the flat wagon, handy to know its provenance as I'm hoping to model the few wagons the Railway owned post 1960s; next up will probably be the 1892 Cowans Sheldon 6w crane (ex BR DE902164), purely because I like it, particularly if I can find plans or at least, chassis dimensions. The earlier 4w travelling crane (L'Anson, Darlington built) which lasted until at least 1968 may be attempted too at some point.

[J25]

There was also an ex GCR van in black that spent some time at Sledmere Siding-I will post the photo here.

[Signaller69]

That's the sum total of the lettering done, the DVLR didn't exactly go overboard when it came to lettering their stock! The LNER van had none at all....

 

Looking at photos, the birdcage window frames appear to be roof colour rather than the green of the body. Both vans have had a coat of Matt varnish, and the roofs have had a blast of Modelmates Soot Black to darken them. Just need to add glazing and apply a little weathering along with picking the footboards out in a wood colour.

 

[saxokid]

Just had another good catch up here Martyn

 

 

 

cheers neil.

[Signaller69]

Had a mooch around the Chester Toyfair today and picked up a couple more cheap Bachmann steel open wagons (for the Sugarbeet traffic), along with these bits:

The Bachmann tender chassis (£1) is in for severe butchery to become the 6w crane chassis mentioned earlier, prototype photo link here: https://rcts.zenfolio.com/rolling-stock/lner/hA0FCA755

 

The van will be relettered as the DVR's staff van; it should be a BMC rather than an Austin. May have a go at modifying the front end. Or not.

 

The ancient Triang Level Crossing gates may be detailed and used to mark the end of the line at Dunnington.

[Gibbo675]

32 minutes ago, Signaller69 said:

Had a mooch around the Chester Toyfair today and picked up a couple more cheap Bachmann steel open wagons (for the Sugarbeet traffic), along with these bits:

The Bachmann tender chassis (£1) is in for severe butchery to become the 6w crane chassis mentioned earlier, prototype photo link here: https://rcts.zenfolio.com/rolling-stock/lner/hA0FCA755

 

The van will be relettered as the DVR's staff van; it should be a BMC rather than an Austin. May have a go at modifying the front end. Or not.

 

The ancient Triang Level Crossing gates may be detailed and used to mark the end of the line at Dunnington.

Hi Martyn,

 

I like a good crane build and look forward to seeing how this one goes. My attempts at crane building are mostly  a slight larger being two 30 Ton and one 75 ton Cowans Sheldon type breakdown cranes and for the PW department a Dapol Smith Rodley and one of the Hornby Cowans Sheldon 10 Ton hand cranes. I quite fancy building a Craven Brothers LMS 50 Ton as well although I shall have to finish the ones I have started first.

 

Referencing my copies of Peter Tatlow's big book of cranes, volumes 1 and 3, (not the actual title !), I found In volume 3 a rather similar looking crane drawing for a 10 ton Cowans Sheldon. The one featured had a steel swan necked jib rather than the straight wooden jib of the the one you have linked. Not the same but I had fun looking though !

 

There is an LNER tender underframe in my bits box but that will end up as a ZZA snow plough.

 

Here is a picture from before I became distracted with other stuff:

 

Left, LMS 30 Ton, right BR Std 30 Ton, middle BR Std 75 Ton, on wooden box BR Std 75 Ton (N gauge).

 

Gibbo.

 

 

[Signaller69]

2 hours ago, Gibbo675 said:

Hi Martyn,

 

I like a good crane build and look forward to seeing how this one goes. My attempts at crane building are mostly  a slight larger being two 30 Ton and one 75 ton Cowans Sheldon type breakdown cranes and for the PW department a Dapol Smith Rodley and one of the Hornby Cowans Sheldon 10 Ton hand cranes. I quite fancy building a Craven Brothers LMS 50 Ton as well although I shall have to finish the ones I have started first.

 

Referencing my copies of Peter Tatlow's big book of cranes, volumes 1 and 3, (not the actual title !), I found In volume 3 a rather similar looking crane drawing for a 10 ton Cowans Sheldon. The one featured had a steel swan necked jib rather than the straight wooden jib of the the one you have linked. Not the same but I had fun looking though !

 

There is an LNER tender underframe in my bits box but that will end up as a ZZA snow plough.

 

Here is a picture from before I became distracted with other stuff:

 

Left, LMS 30 Ton, right BR Std 30 Ton, middle BR Std 75 Ton, on wooden box BR Std 75 Ton (N gauge).

 

Gibbo.

 

 

Cheers Gibbo, I know what you mean about distraction, too many projects and not enough time! At least you will have a nice collection of impressive cranes when they are finished. This one is rather smaller; the hand operated prototype dates from 1892 apparently and lasted into BR days before finding further use with the DVLR into the 1970s. I have a box of kit parts which has some unmade yard type cranes of varying manufacture, which will hopefully provide enough bits to make a reasonable copy of the real thing.

 

Martyn. 

[Signaller69]

The longer end of the tender chassis has been cut and shut to give equidistant axle spacing and the body mounting lip along the top edge removed, along with the footsteps etc at each end and much in between what are now the axleguards. Next job will be to make the heavy solebars, buffer beams and floor as one unit to drop over the chassis. 

 

The van is for size comparison, the chassis being only a fraction longer (less than it looks in the photo). Need to hunt for some 12mm spoked wheels too.

[Signaller69]

And now it has the rest if the chassis, a simple drop on box structure which sits on top of the axlebox springs, with just enough space inside for a proprietary weight, all being well.

 

It's going to take a lot of rivet transfers to make the solebars look like cast iron/steel.....hey ho.

Edited June 3, 2019 by Signaller69

[Signaller69]

The folding floor extensions have been assembled but will probably only be fitted once assembly is largely complete, as they are fairly fragile. A rummage in my old kits & bits box has produced lots of crane type parts, such as winding gear etc but it remains to be seen how much is useful for this project.

[Signaller69]

A busy week has not left much time for modelling, but slow progress is better than no progress. I have started assembling the crane itself from various bits, built around a base of Plastruct 'C' section. Buffers and a few other small details have been added to the chassis too.

The whole assembly will sit on a pivot which will lift it clear of the deck. The plasticard box will be the counterweight, which on the prototype had small wheels attached for movement along the frame to balance different weights (although it will likely be fixed in place). Not sure if this should have a top or if it was open and, if so, what the innards looked like; nor whether it was moved by hand or a more precise screw mechanism. Answers on a postcard please....

[Signaller69]

The crane is getting there slowly, in between doing bits on Dunnington, such as the Grain Dryers buildings and the Sugar Beet loading bank...

I couldn't find a piece of steel thin enough to use as a ballast weight under the floor so the crane's ballast weight is exactly that, crammed with "liquid lead" sealed with epoxy resin, which gives the whole thing a nice weight. Still some details to add....

[Gibbo675]

9 hours ago, Signaller69 said:

The crane is getting there slowly, in between doing bits on Dunnington, such as the Grain Dryers buildings and the Sugar Beet loading bank...

I couldn't find a piece of steel thin enough to use as a ballast weight under the floor so the crane's ballast weight is exactly that, crammed with "liquid lead" sealed with epoxy resin, which gives the whole thing a nice weight. Still some details to add....

Hi Martyn,

 

Fantastic bit of building there, I do like to see a model crane or two.

 

Gibbo.

[Violets49]

Re, MacBraynes Lorries.

The 'crests' on the cab doors are the 'Royal route' emblems and are available from sunrise transfers @ £1 for a pair. The reason for the change of livery is that after MacBraynes was wholly nationalised as a result of the 1968n Transport Act (And the desire of Caost lines to get rid of their share) The bus operations was given to 'Highland' and the lorries were formed intom a stand alone company 'MacBraynes Haulage Ltd. within the Scottish Transport Group. This was layer sold to Billy Walker and became 'Kildonan MacBraynes Ltd.' After the change, the Royal Route emblem was replaced by a highlander. George (Sunrise) make highlanders but they are intended for buses and are too big for the lorry cab doors. Mabex make smaller versions which may fit the doors. Hope this is of assistance.

Edited June 19, 2019 by Violets49

[Signaller69]

The DVLR (ex LNER) Hand Crane and ex LMS Runner have been lettered and weathered; the 2 Brake Vans have had a light coating of grime too, but still await glazing.