Jump to content
 

Michael Edge's workbench


Recommended Posts

  • RMweb Premium
3 hours ago, Barry O said:

I will have to avoid that number when I build mine...

 

Baz

 

61705 and 61710 are good options for late condition B7s which cropped up both sides of the Pennines very late in their lives.

 

61705 with LNER on the tender at Sheffield Victoria can be found here : https://www.lner.info/locos/B/b7.php

 

61710 here:

 

https://thetransportlibrary.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=83636

 

Simon

Edited by 65179
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

With the GER T26 out of the way, I started on the next 4mm job.

IMG_0483.jpg.c743dd22e939052d738b95671b1a7224.jpg

This is the Southern 0-8-0T Hecate, originally purchased by Colonel Stephens but swapped for an Adams Radial tank later. It was of no possible use to the colonel for his lightly laid twisty branch lines, one can only presume that either Hawthorn Leslie had a super salesman at the time or they were flogging it off cheap.

This will be in its later condition with a replacement LBSC boiler.

Just squeezing into the picture above is another 8 coupled loco.

IMG_0482.jpg.22a061ed9d34790f92867faf285db950.jpg

This is for me, although I have no possible use for it but I collected all the parts well over 30 years ago and recently etched some frames and motion parts as a space filler on another sheet needed urgently.

The photo illustrates how I set up cylinders and motion brackets with a tube or rod passed through and lined up on the driving axle centre. No springing or compensation on this, I've no idea where it might run.

IMG_0481.jpg.aa76f26835cf54a62dc274ea3cd3fc37.jpg

This shows how I deal with radial axleboxes, it is possible to etch and make working ones but this arrangement gives the same geometry and works a lot better - it looks just the same on the outside. The frames are joggled inwards behind most radial trucks, this gives more than enough clearance for 6ft radius curves and the axle is carried in an internal pony truck. In the absence of drawings of the axleboxes for this loco I calculated the pony truck radius with Baldry's rule.

IMG_0480.jpg.ae9a41f489107777ee29bcddcc1ed990.jpg

View from above, the pivot is an 8BA screw, the axles move in an enlarged hole in the mainframes and the internal truck hits them before the wheels touch.

Anybody care to guess what it is?

  • Like 13
  • Informative/Useful 1
  • Craftsmanship/clever 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium
22 minutes ago, Michael Edge said:

one can only presume that either Hawthorn Leslie had a super salesman at the time or they were flogging it off cheap.

 

Wasn't it built for an extension over the Downs which never materialised, but which was expected to have a 1 in 40 gradient in it?  

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

Buying a loco for a line which hadn't been built sounds a bit too extravagant for the colonel. He was always strapped for cash, bargain sounds more likely, in any case it was fairly useless on his railways. The Southern got quite a bit of mileage out of Hecate though, it just managed to become BR property but never renumbered.

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium
13 hours ago, 65179 said:

 

Sharp Stewart 0-8-2T? Possibly a Port Talbot Railway one?

 

Simon

Correct! It could be a Barry Railway H at the moment but I think it will be 1358.

 

10 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

Possibly on the NCB Yorkshire Area Barnbow East line?

It's going to be slightly out of gauge for that John - it's 7mm scale.

  • Funny 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

On the basis that imitation is the sincerest form.....

 

I want to thank you for the super-simple bogie design that you shared a couple of pages ago. I've now built my own pair in just a few hours over the weekend, and am very pleased with them. For gears I used the new 'small' Romfords - 40:1 but with a gearwheel that's little enough to work with small wheels. (Bought from Branchlines).

 

IMG-20210221-WA0000.jpg.dcdafb2248d4cedf7f56ec01a5ed270b.jpg

 

 

  • Like 5
  • Craftsmanship/clever 5
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

Yes, I was looking closely at photos for that - are you certain about it? Easy enough to take those off and remove the flanges.

Just found another photo which shows it clearly - shame it's that axle though, it's the second one I'd like no sideplay on but it won't be a problem in 00 gauge.

  • Like 1
  • Friendly/supportive 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium
3 hours ago, Michael Edge said:

Yes, I was looking closely at photos for that - are you certain about it? Easy enough to take those off and remove the flanges.

Just found another photo which shows it clearly - shame it's that axle though, it's the second one I'd like no sideplay on but it won't be a problem in 00 gauge.

Info on missing flanges here - also confirms what I said earlier about why the loco was ordered: 

https://colonelstephenssociety.co.uk/light railway modelling/light railway modelling-2.html

 

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

Back to 7mm for work last week, this is progress on the Midland 2F

IMG_0484.jpg.164059d1461f4d6b69177cf7bbf1bebb.jpg

 

Not much etched for this one, mostly sawn out of sheet in the old fashioned way.  The only etched parts here are the cab front and window rims, the rest is steel shim, mostly .012", .010" for the footplate and .025" for the frames. The boiler is mostly .010" brass, much easier to roll. The space in front of the cab is a bit of a mystery to me - how far does it go down? I've put the bottom of it at the height of the splasher boxes inside the cab but I can't find any photos looking down into here. The beading on the top is mostly T section with wire added round both sides of the cab opening. The roof angle is fabricated in place from a flat strip and another one soldered on vertically, roof vent still to be fitted.

This one had leading and trailing sand so the operating rod is visible through the frames at the front.

IMG_0485.jpg.c233c0ca287ebb44e467f77cdc925a6a.jpg

Boiler and smokebox built up separately, cladding bands and two of the fasteners fitted now - the one next to the smokebox would be invisible and the one next to the firebox is on the top.

IMG_0486.jpg.9c74186e9a81bfb9d57784a7ca5820ad.jpg

Boiler fitted to frames and firebox, this is the point I like to get to, all downhill from here.

IMG_0487.jpg.f9e088e6d3b2a96846fd72adc7fa3125.jpg

Fastened together on the test track, working in steel requires quite a lot of repeated cleaning up, it will look a lot tidier before it goes to be painted.

This (22940) is the only one I've found with the leading end of the frames this shape - seems to be the same as the earlier Kirtley 0-6-0s - the piano front still has to be made and fitted, it will cover the sander rodding.

 

  • Like 17
  • Craftsmanship/clever 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

Phosphoric acid flux and keep the steel clean. The acid tends to produce a crusty layer on it which is why I mentioned that repeated cleaning up is required. The steel shim is very nice material to work with though, stays flat even ta these thicknesses and presses out into neat rivets.

  • Like 1
  • Informative/Useful 3
Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Mike,

 

Many years ago Iain Rice advocated using steel strapping for 4mm frames. I was always dubious and bothered about the possible effect  on the open frame motors. On one engine I built with a steel cab pins and small nails become attached to the cab.

  • Interesting/Thought-provoking 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...