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S7 scratch building


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It may only be a simple wagon but there is still a lot of nuts and bolts to put on. From the photo I am using there appears to no square nuts on this wagon only hexagonal ones so I am using my stock of MasterClub .8mm on the solebars and .7mm on the body.

I have chamfered the bottom of the body and put 3 tie down on the solebars made from brass pins filed down in the mini drill.

The buffers were rescued from a old scrap wagon I built years ago. They were modified white metal one with a flat filed in the top to act as a step. The photo I am working from show 5 link couplings rather than the usual 3. I will have to see if I have any smaller links in stock or see if I can make some. Smaller details like that justs give the wagon an individual look to them. The brake gear will have to be scratch built bar the Ambis brake rack.

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On 21/02/2020 at 13:03, airnimal said:

I have cut out the end plank and headstocks and replaced with new plasticard. I clamped the new ends in and flooded it with mek. I will leave it all to dry and go and have some dinner and come back to it latter and file it all to shape when it has hardened. 

I am pleased to say it now measures 14' 6" inside exactly.

 

 

 

 

You have my sympathies as I built a rake of 4mm LNWR hopper wagons about 30 years ago using only a drawing in Beal's "Modelling the old-time railways". As a result, I initially built them as per NER hopper wagons i.e. like a normal open wagon with internal hoppers.  A few years later, I saw a photograph in "Cumbrian Railways' that showed that they were actually proper hopper wagons with extended sides and so had to carefully remove the erroneous false ends and install all the end framing in situ. I managed to do this successfully for all five wagons , which certainly taught me to read drawings more carefully before cutting the plasticard !DSC01283.JPG.391e866f3378724d07a744df64656af9.JPG

Edited by CKPR
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CKPR,  I am not on my own then with mis-reading drawings. But you would think after so many years I would know better. 

Edward Beal's "Modelling the old time railway" was my essential reading when I was a teenager and I forever had it on loan from my local library.

 

Last night I cut out the brake block from a large brass washer that was in my metal stock. It was one of those thinks that i never throw away,  I knew it would come in useful one day. 

I solderd a bit of scrap etch for a hanger with a couple of lace pins for the rivets. I bent this to shape and solderd it to the w-iron. I was able to get it very close to the wheel without it touching it,  one of the benefits of S7.

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I have cut a bracket from a length of T section brass that holds the brake handle where it pivots on the solebar and this was filed to shape using the photo as a guide. The handle was cut from brass sheet and a Ambis brake rack completes the assembly which is unusual because the handle sits inside the bracket rather than outside.  Just another little item that makes it a little different to most wagons. 

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I decided that the brake pivot bracket was a little on the small side.

 So I have made a new one from the same piece of brass T section but only bigger that looks more like the photo.

I blacken it before fitting .

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One little improvement I always do is run a scalpel around the inside of the wheels before I blacken them and remove a small amount of plastic. This makes the wheels appear a little slimmer. The wagon photo I am working from has the wheels with tyres so worm that they look almost as they are about to wear through.

I would like to be able to turn the tyres down but I am unsure how far I could do this safely without breaking through the rim. 

I wonder if anybody has tried to do this and what was the outcome ?

The wheel on the right has been treated with the scalpel. You can see the black plastic is reduced near the rim.

 

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Mike,

 

Here is a photo of a Slaters driving wheel tyre in section.  It has been turned down from fine standard profile to S7 and you can see that there is still a lot of metal which could be removed to reduce the tyre thickness. The limiting factors are the groove and how you hold the wheel to reduce the diameter.

 

The wheel got damaged so I thought I would have a look at the design of the tyre. 
 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Ian.
 

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Thank you Ian, there doesn't look like there is a lot to play with. I think I will just trim the excess plastic where I can, I don't want to risk any breakthrough. 

I have had the rattle cans out this morning and given a quick coat of red oxide and black. Still have to paint the brake block a wood colour.

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Mike,

 

Here is a photo of a Slaters driving wheel tyre in section.  It has been turned down from fine standard profile to S7 and you can see that there is still a lot of metal which could be removed to reduce the tyre thickness. The limiting factors are the groove and how you hold the wheel to reduce the diameter.

 

The wheel got damaged so I thought I would have a look at the design of the tyre. 
 

Hope this is helpful,

 

Ian.
 

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Hi Mike,

 

I don’t know how my reply has repeated out of sequence!   I have been out all afternoon and not online.

 

The photo doesn’t show too well, just taken on my iPad, but I measured it tonight and there is just over 1mm of metal between the bottom of the recess and running surface so you could reduce the tyre diameter by almost a scale 3 1/2”.  That would go a long way to reproducing that well worn look!

 

Ian.

 

 

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Thanks Ian,  I may try and turn a old pair of wheels down at some time. I have a small Perris lathe with a face plate that I have only used a couple of times. I am sure I could rig something up and have a go.

In the mean time I have had my sheet of Methfix tranfers out to letter this N.S.R wagon. Unfortunately I have only enough to letter one side so I will have to get the brushes out for the letters on the other side. I will have to do the small letters with the brush on this side also. I have put a white mark down where the small letters will be with a pencil that can be used on glass. 

The second photo is of a 3 plank wagon that didn't make the grade. This was scraped and the buffers used on this latest wagon.

It does look nearly finished but there is still a good few hours left in this yet. 

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3 hours ago, airnimal said:

Thanks Ian,  I may try and turn a old pair of wheels down at some time. I have a small Perris lathe with a face plate that I have only used a couple of times. I am sure I could rig something up and have a go.

You won't need to do much, and this link (which I wrote 16 years ago, it seems!) might provide pointers.

 

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3 hours ago, airnimal said:

Well I have had a go at the small letters ( about 15 attempts ) if the truth be told. I don't think I am going to get it any better. I think l will have accept this and give a good dose of weathering to hide my sins.

Stop beating yourself about the head, Mike.  That is d****d good!!

 

Jim

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I've learned a great deal reading through your posts in this blog - not least, that working to such high standards can be done and is very worthwhile, sign writing included... now back to my Simat lathe which I think is an ancestor of your Perris machine (and invaluable!).

Kit PW

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Kit PW,  I am pleased that you find my rambling of interest. I do try to show different aspects including blunders and warts because not everthing goes according to plan. I am never afraid to scrap something that I don't feel comfortable with. 

This wagon is going reasonable well but I have just made a mess painting the interior woodwork. Two steps forwards and one step back. So I have rubbed most of the paint off and I will try again tomorrow.

 

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I decided to letter the other side of the Buxton Lime Firms wagon today but with a bit more of a worn appearance.

This will still need a lot more lime stains on the interior.

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Not having cast axleboxes or springs I have had to modify some Midland one from Slaters plastic kits.

They are not 100% correct but under a coat of paint they will be hopefully pretty near.

One slight problem is that the springs are very slightly off centre, not that many people will notice.

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CKPR, thanks for the comments. 

When I do the floors I put some texture in the plastic with coarse sandpaper or a wire brush. I then use a series of different foam backed abrasive clothes to smooth out the flat surface. A quick brush with a old toothbrush gets rid of the waste out of the grooves.

When the wagon is finished and washed and painted with the base body colour put on I give it a couple of thin coats of Humbrol 103 or 121 and leave to dry for a day to go hard.  Just recently I have tried Tamiya XF-57 with similar results but I prefer Humbrol.

After a day I then brush dark coloured powders in to the surface. That's all. 

I have tried to do wood other ways including following Martyn Welch's The Art Of Weathering but without success. This wagon has had a couple of thin coats before the powders being applied.

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