AlfaZagato Posted December 24, 2019 Share Posted December 24, 2019 Seeing threads such as yours and others always makes me realize how much I need to start soldering. It would have taken me a week at least to do in plastic what you've managed in an evening. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold chris p bacon Posted December 24, 2019 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 24, 2019 5 hours ago, Michael Edge said: Finished J27, grit blasted and ready for painting. That is a lovely finish Mike, what do you use to grit blast? I have a small grit blaster but I'm not sure whether it would be too aggresive. Maybe I'll give it a try on a test piece. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted December 25, 2019 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted December 25, 2019 Nothing special, it's just a small air brush type, runs off the same compressor. The finish on white metal is useful, shows the faults in a similar way to a coat of primer but the main purpose is to blast the cr**p out of all the corners before painting. The model is washed with Cif, rinsed in distilled water and thoroughly dried before gritting. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buhar Posted December 25, 2019 Share Posted December 25, 2019 I presume the grit size and pressure are both important. I have a Lidl/Aldi one which I plan to use on some painted sandstone but I wonder of it might come in handy for modelling. Alan 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkNJ Posted December 26, 2019 Share Posted December 26, 2019 Hi there, I can strongly recommend grit blasting. I have been doing it for the last 35 years and find it makes painting a breeze even on brass. I do not have access to the various etching primers I read about on the forums so had to find another way to make the paint stick (especially to brass) and grit blasting was the answer. The fear of paint lifting when removing any masking was eliminated. I use a Paasche air eraser with their aluminium oxide grit or Badgers. Mark 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Portchullin Tatty Posted December 29, 2019 Share Posted December 29, 2019 I'm a fan of grit blasting too but find it is imperative to put the model in an ultrasonic bath afterwards - even with a really good clean under a hot tap, you will find loads of dust, grit and crud comes off in the ultrasonic bath. I promise you, once you have used one you will not understand how you did without it before! I purchased a fairly large bath (sufficient for a 4mm bogie coach) for about £60 and it has a warming element too. I find this really helpful for ensuring that any last flux is washed away - again the tap is not always as good as you might hope. A few more details here. 1 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted December 29, 2019 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted December 29, 2019 I've not tried using an ultrasonic cleaner (yours wouldn't be big enough for 7mm work anyway) but I do make sure the models are clean and dry before grit blasting. Most of the grit is blown off at the end of the process - same equipment, just air/no grit - and then I rinse again, scrubbing with an old toothbrush into the corners. I don't think there's much left after this. 2 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted January 6, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted January 6, 2020 Back to work after the Christmas break, still on with the 7mm ROD. The Westinghouse pump is a nice casting from 62c models, some piping still to add, boiler fittings are leftovers from previous Gladiator builds. The just visible reverser is another casting from 62c, reach rod still to be made. Mudhole doors and top washout plug covers machined and fitted, the lower washout plugs made by the usual lead sheet/ square brass method. Cladding bands and cleats are my own etches - half etched .015" brass. Not much more left to add now before finishing the frames and running gear. Smokebox door, front platform and cab steps next, I'll leave the front steps until the motion bracket and slidebars are finished. The only remaining difficult job is making a pattern for the French style buffer housings. 14 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post Michael Edge Posted January 6, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted January 6, 2020 Last weekend saw 40936 finished, just got to paint it now. Loco frame ready for painting. The crosshead etch worked perfectly on the 1mm square slidebars (I wouldn't do them like this now but this job was started last century), there's a half etch rebate on the inside of back and front pieces. Two thicknesses of .015" connecting rod pack these out to a sliding fit on the bars, pin soldered between them and the two halves united by the piston rod. The Compound brake gear is a bit complicated, the pull rods should be narrower but these are about as small as I can drill .5mm holes in. Balance weights on this late LMS example are built up rather than cast crescents. The rest of the loco ready for grit blasting, some additional rivets added with Super Steel epoxy. The etched overlays (produced for an earlier 7mm job) fitted the cab side but not the driving splashers - I said this was started from a notoriously inaccurate drawing. Mudhole door covers are insulation tape punched out with a leather punch, most of the cladding bands left off - they will go on with the lining. Frames after painting - Halfords etch primer followed by Hycote satin black. The motor and gearbox are taped up but the paint doesn't really do much even if the gearbox can't be covered. This is the inner tender frame after cleaning the paint off the wheel treads and fitting pickups. These are .35mm phosphor bronze wire soldered to two double sided sleeper strips which were previously soldered to the brake cross wires in the frames. I used to put pickups on all the wheels but have found that the outer ones are enough - pickups on the centre wheels tend to make these stick a bit instead of revolving. Plug and socket attached to the pcb strips, wire will go to the loco pickup pcb strips. The whole loco ready for testing, buffer heads temporarily fitted, they will be removed for grit blasting then re-fitted for painting. The con rods are fitted inside the coupling rods (because of the size of the outside LP cylinders) so the rods are spaced a long way off the wheels. The rods are actually in the correct place, just the 00 gauge wheels are too close together - the con rod passes very closely behind the leading step. 24 7 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Rowsley17D Posted January 6, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 6, 2020 Lovely job, Michael but those high-sided tenders and ejector pipe did the compounds no favours. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Blandford1969 Posted January 6, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 6, 2020 I'd still love one of those tenders, lets hope others ask as well and it becomes, at some point a reality Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted January 7, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted January 7, 2020 I quite like this tender with the Compound, gives it a much more modern look, I like the GNR(I) 4-4-0s with high tenders as well. I didn't notice the exhaust injector until 40936 was nearly finished, most of my photos are of the driver's side. If anyone really wants one of these (it only ran with (40)936 and 40933), keep pestering. If anyone can find a photo showing the fireman's side of the front to verify that there was a fire iron tunnel it would be useful. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Blandford1969 Posted January 7, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 7, 2020 (edited) I will if it works. Do you mean like these for the fire iron tunnel? - For clarity I own the negative of 40933 entering Euston and the image of 936 is from my photo collection and has no attribution on it. Edited January 8, 2020 by Blandford1969 clarity on images 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted January 7, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted January 7, 2020 Thanks for those, it looks just as I supposed (but only after I had built the thing!). I notice that the tender sides in the photo of 936 are nowhere near as flat as mine - and it looks like new here as well. It's very difficult to get a model to wrinkle in exactly the right places though so I usually aim for flat. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post Michael Edge Posted January 17, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted January 17, 2020 ROD 2-8-0 now finished, ready to go for painting. Quite a few small differences from the GC version, as well as the obvious Westinghouse pump. The French style buffers were fun, I had to produce a pattern for the buffer housing. This was moulded in resin and buffer heads (somewhat modified) from NMRS fitted. 20 16 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Dave John Posted January 17, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 17, 2020 Thats a very interesting and very impressive version of the ROD. Is it getting finished as one of the examples hired in by the Caledonian? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted January 18, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted January 18, 2020 No, it's as delivered to France for war service but many of them looked much like this on hire or subsequently purchased for home use. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Dave John Posted January 19, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 19, 2020 Thanks, the 63 that the Caley hired in were the same as those which were shipped overseas, and after they went off hire some did get sold off. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post Michael Edge Posted January 21, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted January 21, 2020 With the ROD finished I started something a little different. This is another Dowlais loco to go with the little Beyer Peacock 0-4-0ST I built a couple of years ago. It was immediately obvious that the wheels were going to be a problem with very distinctive T section spokes. The only possibility from Slater's was to use 7851 tender wheels with an overlay on the back and create a crankpin boss. The back part of the spokes was etched easily enough, next to modify the wheels. Each wheel was mounted inside out on an axle and machined out at the back, the plastic rags up quite a bit doing this (and makes a mess on the lathe) but it's easily cleaned up with a scalpel - unlike old cast iron wheels which need a lot of filing for the same reason. From right to left, both sides of a wheel straight from the lathe, spokes cleaned up, overlay glued in (superglue) and finished wheel - apart from the crankpin boss. Fitting the overlay wasn't quite as straightforward as I had first thought, the etch had the spokes precisely placed radially, the wheels didn't. One position round the wheel fitted better than other possibilities though and they all had to be in the same place relative to the square hole for quartering of course. The front face of the wheel has another etched overlay, after machining down the existing boss it is gllued in place, lined up with a 10BA screw and nut. the 10BA screw is soldered to the back face and will be the basis of the crankpin. The space between the etches is made up with filler, this moulds round the screw and should lock everything up securely. Frames and footplate assembled now, the cab floor will be on the frames as in my usual practice with tank locos. It uses my usual compensation system, the two trailing axles are linked, the leading one rocks under a knife edge. The etched beams will have thickening pieces (machined brass) added later, this will do for now until the body is complete. This will probably be a fairly long term job, other work will take over for a while. 13 1 15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted February 6, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted February 6, 2020 Last week's job was another Gibson (ex M&L) GWR kit, this time an 850 0-6-0ST Not as easy to build as the 0-6-0PT I did last year but it's gone together fairly well. A few handrail holes needed plugging for the loco wanted (1941) and the injectors had gone missing - I made these up from brass and copper wire. I used a Springside safety valve cover, this took some effort to form it round the shape of the tank, other fittings are the Gibson ones except the leading sandboxes (also missing). A few additional rivets added on the front with Super Steel epoxy. Next job, back to easy kit building - a 7mm EF1 from one of ours. Following the instructions for once (i did write them though) the first job is to construct the platform. This is a fairly substantial item once it is all soldered up - top layer, solebars, end plates and the bottom flange which is etched in one piece. The base for the body is bolted on to this with 10 12BA screws and nuts, cab ends are the first components to be added in half etched grooves. Slightly out of sequence I have assembled the inner bogie frames and pivots so I have something to set it on while building. View of the platform from underneath, bogie pivot plates added. The bogies have the usual compensation system with swinging arms and a rocker for the inner axles. The drive will be on the outer axles with chain connection to the inner ones. Wheels are Slater's 7133 on 1/8th axles. 17 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted February 11, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted February 11, 2020 Deviating from my own instructions I tried out finishing the sides before attaching them. Same side, inside and outside, this made it a lot easier to add the locking handles on the equipment doors at least. The North Eastern must have used more handrail pillars than any other railway - ten on each side as seen here and another eleven on the top of each end. Basic body assembly done, roof curved and just laid in place here. Next job to fasten the roof on and build up all the various stiffening angles and pantograph rails, I might get on with that this afternoon while I'm waiting for the two gearboxes to arrive, at which point I'll finish the bogies. 17 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post Michael Edge Posted February 18, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted February 18, 2020 The gearboxes arrived promptly (as always) from Branchlines. Branchlines 30: RU with the Mabuchi motor bolted on. It fits at a slight angle but the holes match up. Chain drive between axles added, plenty of room at the side of this 4mm gearbox and for once the chain is perfect for length with 10 tooth sprockets. Pickups and brakes added, everything but the mechanism sprayed black. The outer frames locate on the brake hanger wires and with half etches on the end stretchers, the long "tags" hanging down will have the sandpipes attached to them. At this point I remembered that the inner ones are only required for the EB1 (rebuilt No.11) which had even more sandboxes. The two completed bogies on the test track but not wired together yet. Buffer beams are laminated from five layers, I found the white metal buffer housings in the bits box but don't know where they came from. They needed drilling out in the lathe and heads machining from brass - anyone know whose they might be? Moulded sandboxes and axleboxes glued on, the brake rigging and sandpipes added. The riveted angles on the inner stretchers are visible but may yet need to be reduced in size when the cab steps are fitted, those on the buffer beams are omitted since they are almost completely hidden by the sandboxes. Back to the body now, the pantograph rails have to be built up on the roof, a half etch on the top and the sides seen below simulate the channel section of these rails. The tops are squeezed together and soldered to form the pantograph pivots. Vertical part of the rainstrip angle and the cross reinforcing angles added - this is one job which has to be done from the outside hence the unusual amount of cleaning up I had to do. The end handrails aren't too difficult, the lengthways pillars are fitted first with straight lengths of wire. Then the final handrail is formed in one piece, it curves down at the end as well as round the corners, three pillars threaded on the wire before soldering everything up. Most of the loco on the test track, before the buffers were fitted. Steps and lamp brackets next and the just the pantographs to build - this will be the last job to avoid damage as they are built up in situ. 17 14 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PenrithBeacon Posted February 18, 2020 Share Posted February 18, 2020 May I ask where you source your chain drives from? Cheers 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Michael Edge Posted February 18, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted February 18, 2020 I usually get it from Branchlines but others sell it as well. Sprockets come in various sizes, only the smallest two (8 and 10) are available for 1/8th axle, others for 3/16th, chain by the foot. 1 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
decauville1126 Posted February 19, 2020 Share Posted February 19, 2020 11 hours ago, Michael Edge said: I usually get it from Branchlines but others sell it as well. Sprockets come in various sizes, only the smallest two (8 and 10) are available for 1/8th axle, others for 3/16th, chain by the foot. Also available from here: https://www.ebay.co.uk/str/Leisure-and-Hobby?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 I've used them for many years for delrin chain supplies. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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