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TM2001's Workbench - “Kitbashing” Thomas the Tank Engine


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     Hello everyone! I joined RMweb back in July, but until now I haven't actually shared anything about my own modelling. I got into trains through the first 3 series of Thomas & Friends, which subsequently got me into model railways... the average story of people getting into trains through their childhoods, pretty much. I am still fairly young, so up until this last June all of my products were pretty much "off the shelf" models on a ping-pong table. I decided that for my first project I would try to make my Bachmann Thomas a little more screen accurate, in a similar vein to most other people's modifications. I was just going to replace the face and paint a few details the proper color, when for some reason (I can't actually remember why) I was looking through early TV series pictures and I noticed that the standard Bachmann wheels were too large. The wheels (of all things :rolleyes:) ended up turning this into a much larger and ongoing project, though it's still very enjoyable.

 

     For background, the original TV Thomas model had wheels from a Marklin BR 55, which, using production references, measured to  a scale four feet or slightly under. Thomas retained these wheels through the first 5 series, but, when a new Thomas model was constructed for Thomas & the Magic Railroad, he gained larger wheels, which were later replaced with the original ones in the 7th series (for some reason). The wheels I used came from a dead Bachmann Duck model, and they measure to around 15.75mm, which is really close to the original model's wheel diameter.
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    I did have to repaint the wheels from their original color (black) to blue. I found Vallejo's Deep Sky Blue to be a fairly close match to the blue of the model. This also fixed another issue with Bachmann's model of Thomas: the overall height of the model. Thomas's cab in the show is supposed to be close to the height of the vans used in the show. The Bachmann model's bunker goes to the top of the vans (I forgot to take a before picture), but it is now closer to the correct height. While it's not perfect it's something I can live with.

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    Moving on with height issues, the Bachmann model's running board was also higher than it was on the show when compared to Annie and Clarabel and the trucks. This is also now corrected, however highlights a few other problems with the Bachmann model (will get to that later).
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    Now onto the issues brought with the change. This exaggerates how far down the front bufferbeam extends, which makes the buffers and coupling sit too low. It needs to have a couple of millimeters removed from the bottom and the buffers moved to the centerline of the modified bufferbeam. I may use one of Duck's coupling hooks instead of the oversized one currently on Thomas's bufferbeam or I will get scale ones to use once that is done. Moving on to the rear bufferbeam, it shows that the buffers are sitting too high. In the first seasons of the show, wagon (and Annie's front) bufferbeams were lowered to Thomas's buffer height. Later on, Thomas's buffers were raised instead so that wagons didn't need to be modified to be used with him.
   This modification also introduced a couple of operational issues. The knuckle coupling that I put on the model is now too low to be used, so I will need to cut it out to correct it, although he won't have a rear dummy coupling anymore (I will trade operation for some accuracy). The pickups are also now in the wrong place. Although they still work, I fear that they will break with extended use. One good thing about that though, is that it will force me to use a soldering iron to fix them, which in turn will allow me to carry on with the modifications. Most of them deal with the running board, which I would prefer to remove from the model before I start cutting it up too much (the wires for the pickups fun through small holes in the board, keeping anyone without a soldering iron from easily making modifications.)
    Other modifications to be made include:
-Changing the front lamp's shape
-Moving the rear lamp down
-Rear lining
-A new face
-Guard irons on the rear Windows
-Possibly opening the cab
-Adding other various painted details

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The next thing I did was an early face sculpting test, which was based on this face:

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At that point, I still needed to do some things, such as drill eye holes (and give it less of a creepy color).
I also filled in the holes on Thomas' bufferbeam and rear (the lamp was too high) and began work on the tapers on Thomas' funnel and dome, though most of the refining will be the sanding process. I needed to make the face less creepy as well... It was probably the strangest part of the entire project (so far).

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After being really busy for a few months, I finally started making progress. I put more milliput on the rest of the places that needed it and I began to sand everything down.

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I was also able to put the model in it's first coat of primer so that it would be easier to see if there are any other areas that needed to be sanded more. The top of the boiler still needs some, from where the raised stripes used to be, and there are a couple of places that need actual filler before I finish painting the model.

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At this point, I decided that I would rather finish Thomas off as he appeared in Season 1 rather than 3, because I really liked all of the care and effort that was put into making the Series as close to The Railway Series as possible. I also decided that I would get real UK cosmetic couplings as well as brakepipes and that I would build more "fine-scale" stepladders. I hoped to do a better face as well, because the first one I tried ended up with a few problems along the way. I was really excited at this point at how well the model was turning out (for a first project), so I didn't mind the extra work that I was creating for myself. After the first coat of primer, I ended up being really busy again and didn't have much time for modelling, which catches us up to the current part of the project: The opening/rebuilding of the cab.

 

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I have found something that eliminates the need for the eye mechanism, which should be here by the end of the month. I removed the unnecessary gears and cut out the empty part of the gearbox, which allowed me to put the remaining part of the gearbox in backwards, freeing up the space for an open cab. I have taken measurements of the original TV model's cab using the production references, and hope to begin building an open cab soon. I hope you enjoy reading about this project, even if it is a little unconventional. All TV series images came from the Thomas & Friends Wikia page.

-TrainMan2001

Edited by TrainMan2001
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  • 2 weeks later...

I now present to you, interchangeable faces... just, not painted yet.
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     These were made by Sudrian Junction on ShapeWays, along with two other packs, which I didn't buy. The two piece thing on the left is the eye plate, which means I should be able to pose the eyes in any way I want. I am pretty excited about this, especially since they all represent faces from the 1st Series, something you'll see better once they are painted. I have an idea on how to easily attach the faces to the smokebox, which hopefully will work.

     I removed the moulded coal from the bunker and shortened the front of the smokebox saddle. Then I put some plasticard over each spot. The bunker will eventually be filled with more realistic coal.
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     I also made the scale cab footsteps. I need to file them a little bit, but they are mostly done. The original is on the right and the new one is on the left. The markings by them are for a quarter inch (or several eighth inches). These were kind of fun to do. I eventually had to swap my pliers for tweezers just so I could get more control over each little piece. I am pretty sure that now you guys will think of me as insane because of this. :P It was necessary.

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Here's one more photo showing the shortened smokebox:

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I also got started on the new cab sides and bought wire for the cab interior. I looked at the original close-up model's cab, and thought it was unnecessarily complex, until I looked at real cab interiors on the internet... so this'll be quite the ride. I also wasn't sure about the wheel size again, and thought I would need larger ones, but I found out that by taking measurements of the real model (through the production photos) at 10mm/ft rather than 9.5mm/ft and scaling it down to OO, it is spot on to the Bachmann model and the smaller wheels that I have, so it's fine.

-TrainMan2001

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  • TrainMan2001 changed the title to "Backdating" Bachmann's Thomas the Tank Engine - A "Finescale Thomas" Project

Alright, now that everything's working, I wasn't pleased with how the smokebox saddle had turned out, so I decided to make a new one that's actually to scale (not done yet). The good thing is that this will also allow me to open up the area between the splashers and tanks. I also solved my problem with sourcing 6mm eyes by rolling some out of milliput, and I began work on the cab detail. I would have done more, but I found out the hard way that I don't have suitable wire cutters, so I will need to get some. I also began work on the way the face will be held to the smokebox. I made a mock-up of the cab to show what the detail looks like through the window, and posed the majority of the project so far together to see what it looked like.
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Painting the eyes is going to be a priority for my next work session.
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And here's a picture of the actual model's cab interior.
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Over reading the past few days, Compound2632 coined the phrase "fine-scale Thomas." I am hoping that my project is getting close to working with that sort of title. I know that a few people on the internet have done similar things to what I've done so far, but I am trying to go further, in hopes that it at least comes a little close to the efforts of chuffinghell and Nile, since they're my main inspiration for this project. I am planning on adding brake and sanding gear, since I don't feel that they are particularly obtrusive and would more subtly add to the model. Anyway, what are your thoughts? My goal is to make it look fine next to a standard-RTR OO model. Do you guys think I'm on track for that? Anyone have any suggestions on how to add brake gear?

-TrainMan2001

Edited by TrainMan2001
Accidentally turned the last paragraph into a link. Not sure how to fix it.
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Cool to see someone else trying this, and actually seriously rather than getting angry the moment someone corrected them like last time. As someone who is a kitbasher in his own right, your work is thoroughly impressive so far. If I can give you any help whatsoever, I will.

Edited by RedGemAlchemist
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5 hours ago, RedGemAlchemist said:

Cool to see someone else trying this, and actually seriously rather than getting angry the moment someone corrected them like last time. As someone who is a kitbasher in his own right, your work is thoroughly impressive so far. If I can give you any help whatsoever, I will.

Thanks! You wouldn't happen to have any experience with adding brake gear, would you? Any advice would be wonderful.

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On 02/02/2020 at 03:12, TrainMan2001 said:

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1 minute ago, Nearholmer said:

please paint the faces soon, especially those bug eyes.

Agreed. At this moment in time he looks less like Thomas and more like one of the aliens from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

 

24 minutes ago, TrainMan2001 said:

You wouldn't happen to have any experience with adding brake gear, would you? Any advice would be wonderful.

You can find many people selling various forms of braking equipment for OO locos online. It's just a case of what style you want and then just sticking it on however you see fit.

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I have a question for anyone who can help. I am looking for buffers like the ones pictured on Thomas below. I know that OO scale buffers like that exist, as their currently seen on Tony Wright's topic where he is building the Isinglass pigeon van (Pg. 1685, a little more than halfway), however, I have been completely unsuccessful at finding them. Thanks.

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Alright, I didn't have much time this weekend for modelling, so I didn't get much done. I started making things to fill the gap between the tanks and splashers, and I also decided it would be nice to accurately recreate Thomas Goes Fishing:sclerosis: Why not?... The little hole in the tank was already there, and I'll be enlarging it. Thanks to dud spud, I was able to look into Parkside kits, and I ordered the LMS CCT van (which has the same style of buffers), because I figured it'd be more likely to end up in the North Western region than a Southern one would. I also ordered the Hornby small coupling (screw-link) accessory pack. Unfortunately, I won't have time to model next weekend, but maybe during the week I'll be able to do a little bit.

-TM2001

 

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On 07/02/2020 at 00:32, TrainMan2001 said:

I have a question for anyone who can help. I am looking for buffers like the ones pictured on Thomas below. I know that OO scale buffers like that exist, as their currently seen on Tony Wright's topic where he is building the Isinglass pigeon van (Pg. 1685, a little more than halfway), however, I have been completely unsuccessful at finding them. Thanks.

 

 

Have you looked at the Dart Castings / MJT range? These LNER buffers might be right - they might represent the same design as on that pigeon van: https://www.dartcastings.co.uk/mjt/2332S.php.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Alright, I am back with a little more progress. I began building the new smokebox and splasher tops. The cuts in the side of the smokebox are to fit the coverings for the wheels, and will be hidden by the splashers when it's put together. I also figured out that I'll still be able to use the original motor even with the space between the splashers and tanks modelled, which makes this project a lot easier (and cheaper). I'm hoping to be able to add more detail to the cab soon as well.

-TM2001

 

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Time for an update, though this one will be a bit different. I realized that any attempts to keep the original motor set up would make the model at least a little bit unsatisfactory in my eyes, mainly because I want to get it (excepting my ideas for additional detail) as close to the television series model as I can. The cab is also proving at least somewhat troublesome in that regard as well. Although there's certainly room for a fully open cab, the fineness of the cab sides would probably leave it somewhat flimsy working with plasticard. Conversely, any attempt to remotor the model is outside of my skill range and budget. There is also the factor of time. Come June, I will be graduating from high school and I will be moving to the next stage of my life, which means I won't really be able to do modelling for at least two years. To do everything I'd want to with this project (including thoughts of EM Gauge) would probably leave it unfinished for a long time.

 

However, this does not mean that I am abandoning the project. Since I believe I can finish the running plate in the time I have left, I am planning on combining the running plate, wheels, and faces with my second Thomas model so that I can at least finish off with a more acceptable model. I will push back the other modifications to the original Thomas until I can figure out a way to do them in the way I want to. I'll still update this thread with the mods I'll be carrying out to the new Thomas (which is basically just a repeat of the first half of the first page). At least this way I'll be able to apply what I've learned the first time. So now I suppose it's more of a semi-finescale project.

-TM2001

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well, due to unforseen Corona Virus issues causing a break from school, I can actually continue the project. I have been told on another thread that plasticard should work for the cab sides once it's all put together. To add, I've also ended up deciding to combine elements of the original TV model, the Railway Series illustration, and the E2, which I'm hoping produces something more realistic but along the lines of the Railway Series illustrations. The TV elements will mainly be the faces, some minor details and the length, which is more like the RWS illustrations, rather than the stretched version people usually do. The Bunker in the RWS also has coal rails rather than the half-rail + sheet thing the TV model has. I will be doing the RWS style bunker in hopes of it making Thomas seem like the smaller type of E2 he is. Hopefully doing all of this will make it better than the CGI render below. I am currently in the process of cutting all of the pieces for the cab. I will post once that's (mostly) put together. All pictures that aren't obviously my own came from the Thomas the Tank Engine Wikia.

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  • 1 month later...

I'm guessing that changing minds probably happens a lot when you have a project that becomes considerably larger than originally intended, but I have finally settled. There is a guy on YouTube who builds his own 16mm scale Skarloey Railway models named Sudrian Railway Modeler. Something he does is build a base-model with the proportions of the original TV model's, but adds some details from the RWS and the real Talyllyn locomotives. I have decided that I'll follow a (somewhat) similar pattern with my Thomas model.

 

After frustrations on figuring out how I could possibly get a motor to fit through the 10mm gap that would be in Thomas' smokebox saddle, I remembered that most British outline small tank engines usually have the underside of the boiler separate so the motor can rest on that. Considering that would be extremely helpful for my project, I am going to do the same thing (it's a good thing Thomas has such large splashers). I also found a Speaker that would be able to fit inside Thomas' side tank if I go along the DCC Sound route. I plan on fitting the decoder in the bunker (I'm assuming that there will eventually be a custom sound decoder that will fit in there if there isn't one already, considering the technology is getting small enough for sound in Bachmann's 009 Baldwin).

 

I also think I figured out a way to emulate opening water-filler caps, since I don't think I could do real hinges that small. I hope the blueprint makes some sense as to how that would work.

 

Lastly, I have begun painting the faces, too! They're not quite so creepy, now. Work still needs to be done on the eyes, however.

 

As you can see, this might be the most overboard project ever (especially for a Thomas model). I'm not crazy, right?:crazy_mini:

 

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Edited by TrainMan2001
Forgot something
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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, this may not have context to my last post, but I worked on finishing the eyes. I got them to be round and to 6mm so they actually fit the eye plates. Unfortunately, while I was outside, one went missing... figures. I ended up making a new eye plate out of Milliput (no association) and the eyes are now primed. Hopefully they still fit after that.

 

I also began putting the final coats of paint on the faces. I have found that 2 coats of Vallejo Sky Grey work well (no association). I'm not sure if others may need to thin the paint or not. I didn't, but it seems like it's thinner than other Vallejo colors I've worked with. I even got one face completed! Not related, but I did find a steel ruler, so hopefully I'll be able to do cleaner cuts in plasticard now.

 

I also think I've found the type of layout I want to build (probably 10+ years in the future, I'm beginning real life soon). I'm thinking I'll try to evoke a sense of the Lewes Road Viaduct and the Kemptown Branch, probably around the late 40s or early 50s. Of course, it is subject to change over that time. I don't think I'll make it exactly to prototype, but I remember reading once that good layouts don't necessarily need to be a real place, as long as they feel like where they're said to be based on. I just need to figure out a justification for why Thomas is there.

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Edited by TrainMan2001
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Just before posting the revised plan for Thomas, I figured out that the Bachmann running plate is 2mm too long and the curve isn't properly profiled, which means that it's flat too far forward. That leaves a 4mm space between the splashers and the beginning of the curve in the running plate, which should be minimal, probably around 0.5-1mm. I tried to build my own attempt at the running plate, but I can't cut the curve as well as I need to. I tried to do both sides, and although I drew them the same, they both turned out differently. Does anyone have suggestions for how to cut them cleanly? I don't have a silhouette cutter, nor the money needed to get one. Thanks for any help you can give!

 

Here's a couple of pictures of my attempt:

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EDIT: I found a running plate on ShapeWays that appears to take care of the problem. Is it cheating to think of taking the easy way out?

 

Also, what's the general thickness of the cab sides for a RTR 00 gauge locomotive?

 

EDIT 2: I guess I have a lot of questions today. What do you guys usually do to add rivets?

Edited by TrainMan2001
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Hi Trainman there's a U.S. firm called Archer transfers that makes transfer sheets of rivets, 3D ones built up in resin I think. You cut out what you need in a strip or whatever and slide it into place like a regular transfer. Now I must admit I've never used them but others on here have and they seem to be well liked.

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If the easy way works, It's generally a better idea than faffing around with plastikard for hours on end - trust me it isn't worth it.

I say, if the shapeways running plate works, take the opportunity for an easy solution and get it.

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  • TrainMan2001 changed the title to "Backdating" Bachmann's Thomas the Tank Engine

Can I get a few opinions on this (or at least a second one)?

 

As you may know, a lot of the bigger changes I decided to make to Thomas were due to the wheels needing to be smaller: around 16mm (4') to be exact. However, I know that Terriers are supposed to have wheels of 4' in diameter as well. This is where I'm confused. (Pictures of everything will be at the bottom). Stepney, in the show, has wheels that don't appear to quite match the 10mm scale that I thought the models were scaled to. What makes it worse, is that, when you look at James and Edward's leading wheels (their driving wheels are the same as Thomas), they are very near 10mm scale 3 feet and are just slightly smaller than the wheels on the various wagons in the series (in real life, I believe someone said they have wheels of around 3' 1"). Another strange thing is that Thomas in the show, is the same height as GWR rolling stock (the cattle wagon and the van with two vents on each side (12 ton?), but the Bachmann model I have of that van, even after the modifications (with the smaller wheels) would still be a couple of mm taller than the van. Another thing about James and Edward is that their tenders (the ends after the dip in each side) are supposed to line up with the top of the 7 plank wagons, but because the Bachmann model's were made with the same erroneously large wheels that Thomas got in Series 6 (a modification only he got, which means that he should technically have larger wheels than James and Edward), they were scaled up accordingly with the wheels and their Bachmann models have tenders that are a couple of mm too tall (alongside the two of them being too large altogether). To summarize (I guess) if they had larger wheels than Stepney, like the references suggest, they would just be too big for all of the rolling stock. Basically, it seems like everything except Stepney is scaled to 10mm scale.

 

I really hope all of this makes sense.

 

I might be over thinking this, but I'm confused. Thanks to anyone who can help make sense of this, or who tells me not to worry so much about it.

 

(Credit goes to the Thomas the Tank Engine Wikipedia for the images).

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Edited by TrainMan2001
Hopefully for some clarity
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