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Hercules - A Great Western Story


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Ladies and Gentlemen,

​I am a Great Western modeller returning to the hobby in the past year or so but unfortunately only for a couple of hours a week and maybe a cheeky wet Sunday every now and then. I don't have the wealth of knowledge that some here do nor the superb modelling skills for locomotive, stock and structure making but I do try. I have spent much time 'lurking and learning' on this forum and I would just like to thank everyone for all of their comments and articles as it is for me and many others a great source of information, inspiration and, at times, humour. I have posed a few questions and received a great number of replies of which I am greatly thankful to all.

​Right to the matter in hand;

​This probably should be posted in a blog but I wanted for everyone to use this posting as a discussion base rather than a story about my build. I will of course update periodically and add pictures but welcome everyone to add thoughts and to let the discussion meander. I am writing this having built a lot of what is being described a couple of months ago. As I said I don't have much modelling time so wanted to make sure I had a bank of pictures and build already made to comment on so I would not leave huge delays between update postings.

After coming to terms that I could not sensibly build all the kits I had amassed I had to reduce my collection of unbuilt kits. Listing a Wills kit for an open cab pannier tank kit I received a number of questions regarding how incomplete the kit was. So I checked off the parts against the parts list to ensure I was providing the correct information and low and behold I realised I had a nearly complete kit and after a little web searching found I could obtain the parts. Flipping through some old pictures I noticed a familiar looking pannier engine but with a difference, something I had forgotten but all too suddenly this memory was brought to the forefront and thus a herculean project was born. Well, not really a huge project as the description suggests but more to a hint at the project.

​The picture I discovered was one of the Western Pannier tank crane - Hercules.

Having recently read a number of posts regarding the 'build a loco' challenge and posted a query regarding the availability of commissioned etched name plates, (thank you Phil Bullock and Stephen from Narrow Planet for your help), the project was a go!

​Listing deleted, additional parts and name/number plates ordered I set about the construction of the Wills pannier kit as far I could. I made the kit as far as possible so I could start planning the parts required for the crane body. The main body was planned to be constructed out of plasticard (as I have little metal work experience) and I knew I had a Cambrian kit of a GWR crane, just had to work out how to fix it all together. Is the crane to be a working model or totally fix and static? Another question to which I did not have the answer to. I am also not very good on the computer so need to find a way to reduce my picture file size before uploading it.

​The picture that started it all (again);post-18130-0-85367900-1479330962.jpg

​Thank you for your time and interest. I will continue very shortly, feel free to discuss.

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That would certainly wake a few people up if appeared at an exhibition.   The wheelbase looks a bit like the Hornby Dublo 0-6-0T but the other way round.   Making the crane work would be good, control should be a doddle with DCC

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  • RMweb Gold

If you have 'Paint', which is often bundled in with the basic software, click on your photo to select it - go to 'Open with - click on - Paint. It should then open on the Paint screen. Choose the Home tab at top left. Look for the Resize button - click on it. Choose the Pixels button. and then enter the horizontal size you want - 1024 pixels is a fairly standard size and will get you under the 1MB limit. Then go back to the top and choose the 'File' tab - go to 'Save as' and I would recommend saving it as a new file name - perhaps the original name with  XXXXpx - to show it is as a different size file.

I hope that helps. If you think I can help further you can reply here or send me a message. 

Your project seems an interesting first choice. Good luck with it.

Phil

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If you have 'Paint', which is often bundled in with the basic software, click on your photo to select it - go to 'Open with - click on - Paint. It should then open on the Paint screen. Choose the Home tab at top left. Look for the Resize button - click on it. Choose the Pixels button. and then enter the horizontal size you want - 1024 pixels is a fairly standard size and will get you under the 1MB limit. Then go back to the top and choose the 'File' tab - go to 'Save as' and I would recommend saving it as a new file name - perhaps the original name with  XXXXpx - to show it is as a different size file.

I hope that helps. If you think I can help further you can reply here or send me a message. 

Your project seems an interesting first choice. Good luck with it.

Phil

 

Thanks Phil, brilliant.

I have resized the first few pictures that I took after remembering I should document this. So a little de-construction in order to take everything back as far as possible without wasting too much time.

I had planned this project with a couple of Mainline 57xx's but after looking at the Wills kit it seemed a too good opportunity to miss out on even though the wheel alignment is slightly out I am having to employ a little modelling licence throughout the build anyway.

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The coal bunker has been cut in half and flipped into the cab area either side. the filler caps repositioned along with the hand rails and steps along to body. Filing in any unrequired holes with solder and smoothing back to near flush with the model. The white plasicard pieces are the starting point for the crane main body.

Edited by No46
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  • RMweb Gold

The coal bunker has been cut in half and flipped into the cab area either side. the filler caps repositioned along with the hand rails and steps along to body. Filing in any unrequired holes with solder and smoothing back to near flush with the model. The white plasicard pieces are the starting point for the crane main body.

It seems to be going well. I made up several white-metal kits back in the 1960s, when the choice of assembly was with solder or Evostick. I don't think we got two-part epoxy resin until a bit later. I am only just getting back into modelling, but as I still have some of my efforts from 40+ years ago and don't want to outshine them with new r-t-r versions, I am working on what will effectively be a static diorama for them to be displayed in.

Keep up the good work!

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Thanks Phil, I have not tried either of those methods straight in with soldering. I have made a couple of brass wagon kits a few years ago so decided straight away to go done that route oh and of course plastic kits. In fact I made a few whilst thing one was on the go. I will speed a few of the stages through to try and get up to current time ASAP. Next came fashioning the cab front with the lower roof profile and square windows. I had planned to use glue & glaze to make the windows (so practiced on a spare piece of plastic) but I have a concern over the tackyness of it when dry. White metal whistles from the Wills kit re-shaped and attached through drilled holes and fixed with superglue.

The crane body sides shaped and now connected. I noticed a fine should all the way around so using micro strip fashioned something. I use Plasticweld and this was worked very providing very strong joints but it does dry rapidly and also it seems to evaporate in the open bottle fast as well. As you will see from the pictures I have marked a couple of key points in pencil on the crane body using Russell's pictorial guide.

You will notice I have constructed a Cambrian bogie and is positioned under the proposed rear extension for the crane. I was not brave enough to try and produce my own from scratch although this bogies will look completely different from the original I just wanted the correct spacing, height and springs visible.

Next up working on the crane body........

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Detail positions on the crane body marked out and research into creating rivets started. The main and most helpful source being RMweb, thank you again. I decided my choice would be either Archers rivet transfers or to try making my own using glue. Quick search for the transfers resulted in no suppliers anywhere near me and the one I email did not respond, imports at the time seemed very expensive for something I have not actually seen. So I experimented on a spare piece of plasticard using a cocktail stick and superglue. Pleasing result but when I touched them they all came off! I tried a different type of glue; Glue 'n' Glaze and this seemed to work as well and stayed when touched.

Further details have been added to represent various mechanisms of the crane. I main issue I still had was to make the crane working or static.

 

 

Pleased with the overall effect of the glue rivets, especially as they will be painted completely black anyway. I have since purchased some Archers rivets with the view of removing mine to replace with professional ones. After comparing them I decided that the model would not benefit much from the removal and replacement, possibly having them all absolutely in a straight line but not much all and I certainly will be able to use these transfers on the buffer beams, footplate extension and bogie.

 

 

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Edited by No46
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Now to make a representation of the inner workings of the crane itself. I have one picture in Russell's pictorial vol2 only so used this to mock something up. Again, in the knowledge that everything will be black and this especially will only be visible from the rear.

 

The crane arm, borrowed from a Cambrian GWR crane kit, has been employed with minimal adaptions although I had to replace the main lifting part of the arm, fashioning some thin straight plates out of plasticard. I had finally made the decision that the arm can move. which in turn meant that the crane lifting mechanisms and the chain would require moving parts. The associated details on the body were removed and holes drilled to create space for the rolling type mechanisms that pull/release the chains to either lift the crane arm or the actual hook. New arms for lifting the crane arm created from plasticard and attached to the top of the arm and rear of the body has to have moveable fixings so they could flex with the movement of the arm. Holes drilled through each paired held with tape to ensure flush holes when separated for fixing. Then a shaft put through to secure in location. One pair for the rear and one for the front of the arm. Pulleys made from the reversing the buffers of the Cambrian kit and plastic weld together, providing a nice pivot either side to sit in pre-drill holes on the holding mechanism to allow rotation in situ.

With little to no room to place or hide a motor the physical actions of the crane remain manual.

 

Next up the steam pipes and grab rails......

 

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That would certainly wake a few people up if appeared at an exhibition.   The wheelbase looks a bit like the Hornby Dublo 0-6-0T but the other way round.   Making the crane work would be good, control should be a doddle with DCC

Thanks, unfortunately my layout is still very much in the infantile stages and non DDC but I am hoping to make the crane manually active. As for an exhibition appearance I don't think it will be up to that standard and I don't know anyone with such a layout. My layout, (Chippenham, Wiltshire), is still in an infantile stage and a non-running. The research side of things has taken quite sometime but I am getting there with building dimensions etc.

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The main steam pipes have been fashioned out of a large paperclip as I had no other wire thick enough. very pleased with the resulting pipework for this and very robust. Holes drilled either end to locate and glued in. I have noticed small brackets which I will need to add. I think I will make these from tape as many do for gutter downpipes or boiler bands.

 

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This is a great attempt at a model and looks much better than many I have seen at exhibitions. The only issue is the donor loco is a 4'7" and Hercules was a 4'1" but I bet at your average exhibition only the most boring pedants would spot this.

 

For me there is only one jarring issue with the model, you have a round top boiler backhead on a Belpaire boiler loco, the backhead inside the cab should be no higher than the tank top with a straight top.  Maybe there is one in your scrap box?

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This is a great attempt at a model and looks much better than many I have seen at exhibitions. The only issue is the donor loco is a 4'7" and Hercules was a 4'1" but I bet at your average exhibition only the most boring pedants would spot this.

 

For me there is only one jarring issue with the model, you have a round top boiler backhead on a Belpaire boiler loco, the backhead inside the cab should be no higher than the tank top with a straight top.  Maybe there is one in your scrap box?

 

Many thanks for your kind comments. I agree regarding the sizing but before I started I knew I would have to accept a few compromises and this like the chimney I can live with especially in OO scale.

I had not realised about the backhead as I had been concentrating on the crane body and movement. Thank you, really appreciate your 'spot' and I will have to arrange something to change it before finalising the body works. 

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The rear protection or safety cage has been made by forming brass wire around an automatic pencil shaft for the horizontal ones and the vertical wires needed careful locating. I had failed to consider the location when initialling building the sides and adding the steam pipes so had to be real care when drilling locating holes; one to get the placement symmetrical with both sides and also so when place vertically they located as close to the edge of the plat as possible whilst still holding the vertical. Once this had been mark satisfactorily small holes drilled to run the vertical through the platform up to and into the main connecting bean adjacent to the steam pipe locations and supergluing. All rails then soldered at every crossing point to give the impression of rail connections. Cut excess and file flush. To neaten up things the solder was filed as cleanly as possible.

To create the side grab rails and piston protection I used brass wire and a couple of hand rail knobs. Bending the wire around a small paint brush shaft to create the rounded area protecting the pistons and a pair of pliers for the more angular bends. Hand rail knobs have locating holes marked and drilled, held in place with superglue.

For the crane I think I have now finished the build just have to smooth some Das clay and drill a hole through it, for the weight on the rear of the crane.

Everything will need a spray of primmer and then in black. Once dry all hinged parts and weight will need reattaching. Dry brush a little white over the warning plate on the left hand side to highlight the raised text.

It appears the weight is a different colour to the crane body so will have to investigate this, could be a stone type or concrete construction, not sure yet. Will post a picture of the completed part.

 

I have glued a nut to the underside of the platform as part of the fixing to the base and bogie and added liquid gravity to the base for extra weight (just visible in picture one). We are no totally up to date with the project so postings will probably be a little sporadic, mirroring my modelling time.

 

Next to complete the bogie sides and that backhead as previously mentioned.....

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  • 2 weeks later...

Finally the crane body has been primed. On the way to priming I dropped it luckily I just had to replace a hand rail and the crane has been detatched, (although this is good news as it would have been in the way when paiting).

The primer, I think, has shown the rivet detail in a much better light than before, as too the warning sign located on the bottom right of the left hand side.

Priming threw up a few intersting areas that I had not considered. I used a rattle can for priming and without support the aresol blew the model over due to the narrow base. Additionally something to be very careful of when spraying will be not to apply too much paint near any hinged areas that move. If too much added then they wont move and due to the delicate nature of the arms these could break and make for a huge job in trying to replace without further damage.

Chains will be added after painting.

In the pictures you will notice that the counter weight has been finished and added to the rear. made using Das clay rolling and forming by hand then drilling through the centre and filing with a fine file. I am yet to start painting this as I need understand why it appears to be a different colout to the locomotive in most pictures I have found.

I believe the locomotive and crane to be completely black.

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After studying the pictures in Russell's Pictorial of the three cranes I believe I have muddled the two similar designs combing features from both. A school-boy error but one that can be rectified. A couple of options now present; firstly I could re-order new name and number plates so to keep the backhead and an open rear set of safety rails but research further into why the counterweight appears a different colour to the rest of the locomotive or remove the backhead replacing with the correct Belpaire version, paint the counterweight the same colour, keep existing name and number plates but create a plated screen to the interior rear of the safety rails possibly losing the open cage like effect.

 

I chose to keep the name and number plates. I have attempted to reproduce a sheet steel safety screen to fit in the rear of the crane to protect the operator. After reading an article in the latest BRM about creating various stages of a barns life I noted the use of kitchen foil to create corrugated iron sheets for roofing, I thought maybe this could also aid me in creating a fine, thing yet strong sheet required. After folding a small piece carefully twice I had four layers of foil. Cut to shape ensuring the fold was at the top to create a nice smooth edge of the visible end. Each leaf was then lifted and a small amount of glue used to sealed and fix the sheets together. The sheet can be smoothed using the handles of metal scissors on a piece of glass to make sure the surface is smooth and without any dust/dirt. This provides really smooth finish to the foil, removing any creases made when folding or cutting. Left overnight to make sure everything had dried properly it can be rolled around a suitable sized cylindrical object to create the gentle curve required. The glued sheets seem to have also gained a little more rigidity from the layers whilst proving an extremely thin appearance. This will require painting along with the counterweight that has now been filed to shape. My intention when fixing the sheet to the rails is to secure at corner points only and along the base.

The original backhead has been removed and the surrounding area cleaned up. Thankfully I soldered the kit and the removal and clean up was not too dramatic. Thank you to those who have offered information on sites to source appropriate backheads.

The attached pictures are not very exciting but illustrate my ramblings and hopefully highlights how thin the actual rear plate is, remember that is four sheets of foil back to back and glued.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thank you to everyone for their generous comments and support.

 

The foil was primed and after a little reduction in width attached with a few tiny blobs of superglue to the inner rear of the rails. I am very happy with the appearance produce by using kitchen foil to make the thin protection screen. The counter weight also primed, then.........

 

I have finally plucked up the courage to paint the crane body. The previous couple of plastic kits I have put together have been (in my opinion) ruined by disappointing paint results. Nothing to do with the actual paint quality just lack of user skills and/or experience.

So here we go; sprayed completely in black, as I believe the prototype, allowed to dry and then brush touched up with more black paint in a couple of difficult to reach places when spraying. Also the pulleys and winding reels could be manipulated to show any areas missed when spraying.

I thought the warning plate on the crane side would be relatively straight forward. Just a little dry brushing with white paint to highlight the raised areas simulating lettering. Well I was totally wrong. The raised plastic is not adequate enough and thus the paint went everywhere. So repaint with black and start again. A little dry brushing with white to high for me areas to be covered. Then using a tiny brush add the white whilst using black (slightly watered down) to correct any wobble and to run through the line where the white merged to one wide line when should have been two. End result, (after about an hour or so!), not perfect, a little amateurish but I think I am happy with it. I will give it a couple of days and return to it then, I find a little time away usually helps as the eye is less concentrated on the small errors and overlaps.

 

Finally, if the paint work is to remain without further touching up, the lifting and jib chains need to be added.

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Hi No. 46,

 

Despite my predilection to generally only Modelling locomotives and stock that are preserved, I always had a desire to have a go at this beast because it is just such a bonkers design! I have to say that you are making an absolutely top notch job of it too so very well done. I really like watching the effort and craftsmanship you are putting into this and I can't wait to see it finished!

 

Keep up the good work sir!

 

All the best,

 

Castle

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Thank you to everyone for their very kind and supportive comments, I really appreciate them and all the advice/input received.

 

I am not totally happy with the finish of the instruction/warning sign but if I tinker too much I know it will only become worse so best left especially as it would be foolish to ruin everything over a little black and white paint. I will be making a start on completing the rear bogie which also acts as the crane attachment to the footplate. I have not forgotten the Belpaire backhead. I have a couple of Mainline and Bachmann non-running panniers that I had put by for this project before I realised the potential of the Wills kit. We will see what I can find before looking elsewhere as previously suggested.

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  • 3 weeks later...

It has been a little while since my last update. Unfortunately very little work on Hercules has taken place. A few seasonal distractions as well as a GWR ‘Beetle’ kit bringing construction to a mindful halt. I will chain up the crane later but now I will focus on the main locomotive and additional bogie. I believe I has a suitable backhead to put in place, after some re-sizing.

The said bogie is part completed having semi constructed a Cambrian one suitable for the job, can be seen in previous pictures. I will add the additional plating that protected the prototype using thin plasticard and possibly some of the Archers rivet transfers recently purchased.

As for the footplate and base for the crane mounting I am a little stuck. Initially I had cut a piece of plasticard to fit and to connect via the raised footplate of the pannier kit (shown in previous pictures). This is where the nut to attach the chassis is sited and a little higher than the side. My original idea was to continue this but sanding the plasticard down to meet the sides giving an impression the footplate was all one level, especially as everything is black. Now I am thinking do I cut into this raised area reducing the height to match the true footplate but potentially losing the anchoring site for the chassis. A possible disastrous cutting job but one if completed well would benefit the overall appearance.

If there was no question in the fact that I knew I had the appropriate tooling and an easy replacement if things should go wrong I would probably not even think about it and go ahead cutting away but I don't have this luxury so a little hesitant. 

 

Alas; should I stick or twist?! I have been asking myself this for two weeks now, each time coming up with a different answer and solution.  :scratchhead: 

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