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Hunslet 16" 0-6-0 ST


Nick Mitchell
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31 minutes ago, Chris Higgs said:

Once you have the loco in motion you will soon notice if they are centered or not. 

In any case, when the loco is in motion you'll only see them for about 1/4 of a revolution at a time. The coupling rods will be flashing past them the rest of the time. 

 

Jim 

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I have fitted the wheels into the chassis.

Because I had already fitted the footplate support brackets and brake hangers (to facilitate painting and lining the frames prior to installing the wheels) I was unable to employ the 2mm Association quartering jig that I would normally use.

 

To press the wheels home, I couldn't touch the centres and ruin my transfers, so I turned some pieces of tube to push against the wheel rims. They needed to be just longer than the crank pins.

 

The wheels were quartered by eye when they were partially inserted in the muffs, then fully pressed home in the vice.

For the picture below, I have temporarily removed the etched spacers I use (which came with the quartering tool) for ensuring equal gaps between the chassis and wheel backs.

 

IMG_0738.jpg.f85f4a68d5eda512cdec4fbae544c5c2.jpg

 

I will confess that I did have a bit of a disaster. In a moment of incompetence, I installed one of the centre drivers on the rear axle. Removing it was ridiculously difficult, and I ended up bending the frame a bit. Also, the bearing became detached form the frame. Fortunately I managed to make repairs without damaging the lining on the frames... 

 

Once the wheels were on I could fit the brake gear.

If you recall, the shoes are from the kit, and the hangers cannibalised from another kit, as the originals were too fragile.

The operating cranks are included in the kit.

 

As well as the brakes, you can see in the photo below how I have temporarily fitted the motor (secured with blu-tak) for testing.

 

IMG_0757.jpg.0c60e5f8972013ddd06fdaba8610d13e.jpg

 

The kit provides prototypical stretcher bars. As supplied they are two layers, with half-etched recesses to accommodate the pull rods.

To make them split-frame, I used a single layer of the etch and soldered on a layer of thin PCB before gapping the etched part with a razor saw.

I oriented the parts with the half-etched recesses on the bottom side, this just gave enough clearance for the pull rods (0.3mm nickel silver rod) to pass the axle muffs.

The right hand pull rod had to be cranked round the gear on the rear axle.

In the photo below, the stretcher bars are quite wonky, but this is not visible when the chassis is the right way up. They had to fit between the brake hangers, and this is just how they ended up.

 

IMG_0759.jpg.f9b812c8fb8689e56fe0d0a5e63639b7.jpg

 

From low down at the front, the stretcher bar is visible and looks good.

In the past I have only ever used wire with a cut in the middle to represent the stretchers.

The fact that this kit has such fine details is pushing me to go the extra mile with little things like this.

 

IMG_0758.jpg.04dd7176c2a09c843801d76e09d329b7.jpg

 

The coupling rods caused a bit of head scratching.

In the instructions, mention is made of the rods on the main etch only being suitable for the first produced 16" loco, subsequent production having the knuckle joint on the other side of the centre crank pin. The 4mm kit has a supplementary etch with alternate rods, but I do not have a 2mm version of that.

 

After laminating the 2 layers of the coupling rods, I decided to file off the raised detail in the centre of the rods.

Original and filed-down rods are shown below for comparison:

 

IMG_0739.jpg.4d2479fa96846993fb1c27c7cbf8b31b.jpg

 

I then found some half-etched overlays spare from another kit (a Bob Jones Jinty chassis I believe) and soldered these on the other way round.

 

In the photo below, the top rod is original, with the modifies one below. The separate overlay for the other rod is in the top right corner. As you can see, it is much more "chunky", and needed carefully filing down to match the rods once it had been soldered in place.

 

IMG_0744.jpg.92c799b44a64a62dc0e503b04f3c3d50.jpg

 

I needed to fiddle about elongating a couple of the holes on the left hand rod to get the chassis to run acceptably. This is probably a consequence of having mangled the frame.

I also soldered Association crankpin cap washers to the rear of the coupling rod bosses to space them slightly further away from the wheels and stop them either catching on the centre balance weights or scratching off the transfers.

 

I made a short video showing how it now runs on DC before I fit the electonics.

I need to remove the motor again and paint the break gear before that happens though.

 

 

IMG_0761.jpg

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Sorry about the coupling rods, I only noticed this after we had put the 4mm kit into production (I had been looking at the works photo of the first 16" when I drew the rods, this is the only one of the standard Hunslets I don't have the GA for) and we had to add a supplementary etch. When adding the 16" to the 2mm range I forgot about it again....

You seem to have got round it very well though - I'm always amazed at what 2mm modellers can do with these etches.

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Incredible work Nick; although I'd expect nothing less!

 

19 hours ago, Nick Mitchell said:

Some I know would decry this as wasting my time, but we all derive pleasure form different things.

 

Speaking as someone who once let others dictate what I should enjoy (with seriously detrimental effects), I can honestly say that enjoying a process, in whatever form, is never a waste of time.

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Unfortunately this isn't a report on progress with my 2mm model - there hasn't been any!

Instead, here is a photo of the prototype I took last night at Bolton Abbey, at the end of a "Sherlock Holmes Murder Mystery" evening.

Our passengers were in the station buffet, finding out "whodunnit"...

Thankfully I had managed to keep the smoke down and the pressure up, so the murder victim wasn't me!

First coach behind the loco is the 12-wheel LNWR directors saloon, freshly repainted and looking fabulous.

 

20200822_205538-2.jpg.3d0ec992fb379d153052256a0efab028.jpg

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I've been feeling increasingly unhappy about the safety valves on my model.

Comparing it side by side with the real thing, they seem too fat, too tall, and too far apart.

 

1785728334_sidebyside.jpg.f9d461d689c7d1c092a0c93d080abc00.jpg

 

So.. yesterday it was out with the soldering iron, with the large bit fitted, they were quickly removed.

Hopefully they will find a more appropriate home on another locomotive one day:

 

IMG_0928.jpg.bde1a3134f7baa26c0f928516b2fa8dc.jpg

 

I had drilled holes for them using a centre-drill in the lathe (obviously off-set from the centre). This left quite big holes - as big as my smallest centre drill, but I needed to do it this way as the holes impinged on the steel rod up the centre of the dome.

The hole to locate the whistle was just as large, but was lined with a short length of brass tube (approx. 0.8mm o/d, 0.4mm i/d) to hold the whistle stem centrally.

Here's the dome after removal of the safety valves, with 0.8mm holes now in the wrong place:

 

IMG_0929.jpg.59647ac35cb65d0fbde0317791ae821f.jpg

 

To re-position the valves closer to the centre, I couldn't use the same trick with tube.

It would be necessary to plug the holes with a short length of 0.8mm rod, then re-drill smaller holes for more delicate valves on the inside edge of the plugs.

Sounds easy?

The first one went OK, but the second small hole drifted off the mark.

I had to drill out the plug, solder in another one, and try again.

Maybe Tim or Jim will tell me how much like restoring a tooth this is!

The picture below was taken after I'd started drilling out the plug.

 

IMG_0930.jpg.5fa1a09f23effefadeb8a78dc08d468d.jpg

 

Second time lucky, and I now have two 0.4mm holes in roughly the right place.

"All" I have to do now is turn up some much smaller safety valves to plug into them.

 

IMG_0935.jpg.4c9afe42ce09ec1fa4adcac08768dfd6.jpg

 

I hesitate to call this progress, but it is something, and at least I didn't break the whistle off!

 

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I had a bit of spare time yesterday, so went back to the Railway Modeller drawing and re-measured the safety valves.

I'm not sure what happened when I made the original ones. It wasn't a simple case of having forgotten to halve the 4mm dimensions. Maybe I used the wrong dimensioned sketch, possibly the one I made for the Coal Tank.

Anyway, a new sketch was prepared, and new valves turned from nickel silver rod.

Here is one of the new ones next to one of the old ones - quite a difference!

 

IMG_0944.jpg.66bed05b62ea1755756a4de4b4d70f03.jpg

 

And here they are installed on the loco - looking much better.

 

IMG_0951.jpg.ba744c147ef206fd7c173e21139e3e13.jpg

 

IMG_0953.jpg.6cd50dfafd8d4118c961d87c3b96dc94.jpg

 

Today I've been playing with full size trains.Not Beatrice this time, but Cumbria, a Hunslet Austerity. 

 

cumbria.jpg.061f35d5333eb25a903dc168438b8df7.jpg

 

While similar in some respects, the Austerities are nothing like as refined. As pretty as she looks, Cumbria is not the best Austerity I have fired or driven. She certainly has the strength required to pull the long heavy trains at Embsay's Beer Festival today, but the limiting factor on the 2-mile 1-in-100 climb out of Bolton Abbey is the ability to get water into the boiler fast enough. The 16" locos have lifting injectors, but Austerities have the flooded type (visible under the cab).They are s.. l.. o.. w.. and use a lot of steam.

 

ready_to_depart.jpg.f5059895db04e153933c144aa3db50d0.jpg

 

My shift on the footplate finished at 4.30pm (only 10 hours), but as I type this, She's still out there, slogging away with a series of evening trains.

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Inspired by the article in the latest MRJ, I had a go at making and fitting a Stay Alive module.

 

There is only room in the bunker for 2 tantalum chips. I found some on eBay recently with 330uF capacitance in the same size package as the 220uF units I have been using up to now, so I have used a couple of these. It is still a very tight squeeze. The photos below show the set-up.

 

The decoder is a cT Elektronik DCX77L. It sits nicely in the top of the tank. I've wrapped it in Kapton tape so there's no chance of any bit of it shorting against the inside of the loco body.

You can still get these decoders, but you need to order them from Austria. Buying 3 or 4 decoders at once mitigates the high postage cost.

 

For this installation, I removed the orange and grey motor wires and soldered the motor leads directly to the decoder (fewer connections, and therefore less chance of something shorting). The wires, where they emerge from the motor, were reinforced with epoxy. I also removed the yellow and white decoder wires, as the function outputs will not be used.

 

IMG_1033.JPG.2ded9caaf94c011544cae4471082ae89.JPG

 

The power feed wires are soldered to the inside of the frame extensions, and will be hidden within the firebox.

The blue and black wires for the stay alive are routed round the gears and under the cab floor.

The stay alive block is epoxied to the frames, and is leaning back at a jaunty angle to fit along the back of the bunker and avoid the shelf in the back of the cab.

 

IMG_1034.JPG.829228d82617ce3d02aca39c123412b9.JPG

 

IMG_1035.JPG.e42288b4a0e4eb286b4897208dab7237.JPG

 

Once I'd tested everything to make sure it worked, I wrapped the stay alive block in Kapton tape before fitting the body.

The capacitors come up to just below the top of the bunker. A good load of coal will render them invisible.

A representation of the backhead, plus crew, will go some way to disguising the gears which protrude slightly into the cab.

 

IMG_1038.JPG.7bef089a25ec0e024bc65eaac4e60f95.JPG

 

IMG_1039.JPG.0e143fcaafab52d2c6115409f24f1754.JPG

 

I've made a rough and ready video so you can see how she runs on DCC. So far I haven't altered any of the CVs on the decoder.

(In case anyone is wondering, the pink post-it flag on the wall marks the spot where the roof of my Fowler 2-6-4T fell down the back of the book case, and is a reminder that I need to retrieve it!)

 

 

Speaking of videos, somebody has put a really nice video on YouTube of Cumbria at Embsay - mostly shot on the same day as the photos I included at the end of my previous post. The "Clag!" in the title is unfortunate. When I arrived to light up at 6.30, I found half the brick arch on the floor next to the loco along with the remains of the previous days fire. In case you care, the brick arch lengthens the path of the air between the fire grate and the tube plate, giving the volatile gases more time to burn in the firebox. Half a brick arch means more un-burned particles going up the chimney (as black smoke) and less heat per lump of coal. Consequently, and with over 200 tons to shift, we were having to fire rather heavily. It looks good on film.

 

Apologies if this sort of thing doesn't interest you... but if you like to see ex-industrial tank engines working hard and putting on a show, you might enjoy this. (The opening shots are from a different day, but for the most part it is me doing the firing. In the clip that starts at 5:26 I'm driving.)

 

 

 

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38 minutes ago, queensquare said:

Could you post a link to the new capacitors please.

 

 

Hi Jerry,

The eBay seller I bought them from is not currently listing any.

A quick search found an alternative source - about double the price I paid, but hardly expensive:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2PCS-7343-SMD-Chip-Tantalum-Capacitor-330UF-337C-16V-D-Case/123792119692?hash=item1cd295d78c:g:N8wAAOSwUwdc6I1q

 

 

 

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28 minutes ago, Caley Jim said:

I take it the signals are purely 'cosmetic' at the moment and you were running 'one engine in steam' ?

 

The Stoneacre box is switched out, signals cleared for both directions, and the staffs for the two sections Embsay - Stoneacre and Stoneacre - Bolton Abbey are padlocked together. At Embsay these will be exchanged for the Embsay - Bow Bridge staff, as running round at Embsay requires entering the section.

Embsay box can close in-between the first and last trains of the day and we can run Bow Bridge - Bolton Abbey with all three staffs, but this doesn't happen very often. Without a signalman at Embsay, the loco can't access the shed or, more importantly, the water column. Whether we terminate and run round at Embsay or go the extra 1/4 mile to Bow Bridge and back again is determined by operational needs.

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3 hours ago, Nick Mitchell said:

 

 

Hi Jerry,

The eBay seller I bought them from is not currently listing any.

A quick search found an alternative source - about double the price I paid, but hardly expensive:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2PCS-7343-SMD-Chip-Tantalum-Capacitor-330UF-337C-16V-D-Case/123792119692?hash=item1cd295d78c:g:N8wAAOSwUwdc6I1q

 

 

 

 

Thanks Nick, I've just ordered some.

 

Jerry

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I think this is quite amazing, however I should point out that the bolts on the tank/smokebox angle shouldn't line up, they are staggered. The point about the cut out for the chimney base is correct though and some 15" locos have this angle in two separate pieces anyway. Yes, that part was the cab roof ventilator.

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10 hours ago, Nick Mitchell said:

The fit of the capacitors into the bunker is an incredibly tight squeeze. When fitting the body, the capacitors have to slide in almost all the way first, then the front can lift up. 

I have the same situation with my Jubilee Pug.  There are not just the capacitors in its bunker, but the chip as well!  I wrapped it all in PTFE tape to insulate everything from the bunker, which also has a layer of tissue superglued to the inside - belt and braces!

 

Great work as always, Nick.

 

Jim

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5 hours ago, Michael Edge said:

I think this is quite amazing, however I should point out that the bolts on the tank/smokebox angle shouldn't line up, they are staggered. The point about the cut out for the chimney base is correct though and some 15" locos have this angle in two separate pieces anyway. Yes, that part was the cab roof ventilator.

 

Perhaps somebody should tell the good folk at Embsay that the bolts on the smokebox/tank angle on the real Beatrice are wrong!

 

Maybe it is a preservation era alteration.

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7 minutes ago, Michael Edge said:

Perhaps I should have were staggered - these things are routinely done differently in preservation, it's the sort of fitting that easily rusts away and gets replaced.

 

Beatrice has had many modifications in preservation to make her really efficient and easy to operate, plus some cosmetic tweaks as well - but I am not convinced this is one of them. Primrose (another 16" that lives at Embsay) and Darfield (which visited a number of years ago) also have the bolts in line rather than staggered. There are photos on the web of Beatrice (and others) in industrial service with the bolts aligned, and I have even seen published Hunslet works photos of 16" locos with the bolts aligned this way (3855 is one such loco).

Maybe this was something that evolved over the long period of time the class was in production?

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I've just had another look, they obviously did it differently sometimes - HE 1438 Fitzwilliam and HE 1982 Ring Haw had them staggered, HE 2705 Beatrice did have them in line. I did start off with good photos of Fitzwilliam (the first 16") and this led me into another error - the coupling rod knuckle joint was in the rear section, all the others had it in the front section.....

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