Dapol O gauge wagon assembly methods

[Lissadell]

The first O gauge opens I saw from Dapol seemed to consist of individual sides and ends, glued at the corners and then mounted (glued?) to the chassis.

 

When the 9ft opens were released, I think I remember seeing that the bodies were one piece mouldings(?)

 

Where is this leading?  ……………………..

Well, what I was hoping was that colleagues on the forum might be able to tell me - from wagons in their possession - whether any of these Dapol  wagons are assembled in such a way that the body can be split from the chassis without significant (any?) damage.

 

Thank you in anticipation.

 

Adrian

[Happy Hippo]

I attended one of the Dapol Collectors Club events at Chirk.  We assembled a salt wagon.

 

The chassis was screwed together.

[brossard]

I recall my first Dapol wagon was a disappointment.  So bad in my view that I replaced the running gear with Bill Bedford parts.

 

 

The picture shows the disassembly.  Solebar cover layer prised off and axleboxes removed with a great deal of effort.  No screws in evidence, my guess is the body a single piece moulding.

 

I call this Gen. 1.

 

Since then, with the Lionheart partnership, the quality of running gear and wagon overall has improved greatly.  These would be Gen.2.

 

My Lionheart wagon, the "model" for current Dapol wagons does have screws in the corners.  I think the chassis is diecast.

 

John

[Hal Nail]

1 hour ago, brossard said:

I recall my first Dapol wagon was a disappointment.  So bad in my view that I replaced the running gear with Bill Bedford parts.

 

 

The picture shows the disassembly.  Solebar cover layer prised off and axleboxes removed with a great deal of effort.  No screws in evidence, my guess is the body a single piece moulding.

 

I call this Gen. 1.

 

Since then, with the Lionheart partnership, the quality of running gear and wagon overall has improved greatly.  These would be Gen.2.

 

My Lionheart wagon, the "model" for current Dapol wagons does have screws in the corners.  I think the chassis is diecast.

 

John

Here is an ex Lionheart in bits. Solebars slot onto the chassis block which screws to the body.

 

 

 

[brossard]

5 hours ago, Hal Nail said:

Here is an ex Lionheart in bits. Solebars slot onto the chassis block which screws to the body.

 

 

 

 

I haven't disassembled my LH style Dapol wagons because there is no need.  They are close to perfect.  I did tinker with underframe brake system detailing on fitted wagons.

 

John

[Hal Nail]

4 hours ago, brossard said:

 

I haven't disassembled my LH style Dapol wagons because there is no need.  They are close to perfect.  I did tinker with underframe brake system detailing on fitted wagons.

 

John

The brake cylinder as modelled would pull the brakes further away from the wheels so I took it apart to fix that - slightly easier to poke the glued lugs from behind than try and pull the parts out I think.

 

Edit: in fact sorry John, my original reply should have been to the OP but I got confused!

Edited September 5, 2021 by Hal Nail

[brossard]

You're forgiven Hal.  I always like to stick my oar in.

 

 

This shows the mods I made to my Dapol BR 5 plank open.  Slater's springy vaccum pipes and bent brass tube to connect them.  There's a connection from the pipe to the cylinder.  Also, Slater's instanter couplings.

 

John

[hmrspaul]

Have you filled the holes in the solebar? 

 

Paul

[Lissadell]

Thanks very much to colleagues who provided useful information.

 

May I draw the matter to a close by seeking clarification, specifically of the PO liveried open wagons with 9ft wheelbase chassis

 

Happy Hippo mentioned in his reply that the Salt wagon bodies are screw fitted to their chassis - these are 9ft wheelbase vehicles.

Hal illustrated the underside of an LH 16T mineral, clearly showing screws in each corner.  Sorry, I don’t know their wheelbase.

 

So, if I buy a PO open wagon with the 9 ft wheelbase chassis, will it reveal screw fitting?

 

Or do only some of these 9ft wb wagons have this feature?       Hope not!!

 

Adrian

[brossard]

If you buy a later Dapol PO wagon, which have the same construction as the steel mineral and my BR open, you will see the 4 screws.  There are still some of the earlier (Gen 1) PO wagons about.  These can be identified by brakes shoes being miles away from the wheels.

 

 

This is the wagon I showed above just out of the box.  Note the brake blocks.  I don't recommend these.

 

John

[Hal Nail]

2 hours ago, Lissadell said:

 

Hal illustrated the underside of an LH 16T mineral, clearly showing screws in each corner.  Sorry, I don’t know their wheelbase.

 

So, if I buy a PO open wagon with the 9 ft wheelbase chassis, will it reveal screw fitting?

 

Or do only some of these 9ft wb wagons have this feature?       Hope not!!

 

The 16T minerals are 9 foot but a BR type chassis and therefore different to the recent 9 foot private owners. That doesn't mean the arrangement of the model is different, just that it's not conclusive proof!

 

I'd find a photo of one in someones thread on here and drop them a personal mail to ask.

[brossard]

I am still puzzled as to why these wagons need taking apart at all.  I can't think of a reason other than curiosity.

 

John

[Western Star]

14 hours ago, brossard said:

I am still puzzled as to why these wagons need taking apart at all.  I can't think of a reason other than curiosity.

Think S7....

 

The conversion often requires removal of the wheels and sometimes removal of the wheels requires that a solebar is removed for access to the bearings.  Some of the Dapol wagons have been issued with the cast baseplate from the Lionheart mineral wagons and those baseplates have alternative holes for the break gear (used for Lionheart wagons assembled for S7)...  access to the top side of the baseplate is advantageous for moving the brake gear from the O-FS position to the S7 position.

 

 

regards, Graham

[Hal Nail]

14 hours ago, brossard said:

I am still puzzled as to why these wagons need taking apart at all.  I can't think of a reason other than curiosity.

 

John

As i said earlier, to fix the incorrect brake gear in my case.

 

Also for the sake of taking a few screws out made it easier to re-spray as i was backdating various later ones when the early versions had sold out.

Edited September 7, 2021 by Hal Nail

[brossard]

32 minutes ago, Western Star said:

Think S7....

 

The conversion often requires removal of the wheels and sometimes removal of the wheels requires that a solebar is removed for access to the bearings.  Some of the Dapol wagons have been issued with the cast baseplate from the Lionheart mineral wagons and those baseplates have alternative holes for the break gear (used for Lionheart wagons assembled for S7)...  access to the top side of the baseplate is advantageous for moving the brake gear from the O-FS position to the S7 position.

 

 

regards, Graham

 

Good point about S7, however, Adrian didn't mention that.

 

9 minutes ago, Hal Nail said:

As i said earlier, to fix the incorrect brake gear in my case.

 

Also for the sake of taking a few screws out made it easier to re-spray as i was backdating various later ones when the early versions had sold out.

 

Yes, it is dead easy to take the body off so if that makes work to be done easier, go for it.

 

John