DLT's SR Locos - Lord Nelson Craftsman Kit

[2ManySpams]

Gibson order arrived today, and the first thing I did was fit the trailing wheels.

It was test-run at high speed bunker first on some of the pretty ropey track on Charmouth without derailing on the facing points.

 

Cheers, Dave.

 

PS  I had a look at the C2X on the DJH website; and apart from sitting a bit high it looks pretty good.

Interestingly the list of SR loco kits has dwindled to three:  http://www.djhmodelloco.co.uk/sr-kits/

Morning DLT, that's still 3 more than their 7mm range!

[2ManySpams]

Took these photos to get a better look at the latest details, in particular the sandpipes and lampirons:

 

P1070230 small.jpg

 

P1070236 small.jpg

 

Hmmmm, do the sandpipes look a little too hefty?

Looks the dogs watsits Dave, superb result - not far off a scratch build really.

[gz3xzf]

Hi Dave

 

The sandpipes on the M7 are about 2" diameter, so 0.7mm should be the wire size. I notice that there appears to be another pipe running alongside, does this loco have steam sanders?

 

Your work as usual is stunning, I wish I could get mine to look that good!

 

BTW, the discussion earlier about the lumps on top of the tanks, I have realised that the sandboxes are under the tanks, could the lumps be the sandbox fillers?

Edited June 3, 2017 by gz3xzf

[number6]

No complaints here. I would err on the side of robust over scale and perhaps that is an argument against Gibsons as well? I have locos running on both. I tend to think the bigger the driving wheel the greater the swing toward Gibsons. I built a bit of a wobbly Terrier on Gibsons and have a second running beautifully on Romfords but the former definitely had the edge in looks. Some disguise to the wheel boss perhaps is worth it on a Romford but there is so much to else to distract your attention on the E5X.

 

I built this I3 a while ago and decided to use Gibson wheels under it because of the size of the drivers - the Romford versions of the wheel just didn't look right. And then half the wheel ends up hidden so perhaps not worth it after all? I would also say that they require much more fettling to run smoothly through 00 pointwork because of the inherent slop in the gauge coupled with the thin tyres and shallow flanges. They have to be set quite wide on the back to backs. I'll also put this image here to prove why Dave is better suited to built the E5X than me! 

 

 

 

Dave and I have been discussing how to fit kadee couplings [yes I know - sacrilege on a model like this] but I can report that the distances are fine between fixing and buffers for me to fit them.

 

Cheers

Raphael

[DLT]

Morning Gents, thanks for all the comments.

 

Wheel-wise, I'm usually happy with Romford or Gibson drivers; they both have advantages and disadvantages.  On this particular loco, they are so far under the sidetanks that the wheel centre is not obvious in normal use on a layout.  

And once everything is blackened and dirtied its even less obvious.  Besides, Romfords where the wheels provided by the owner!  The more visible they are, the more I would opt for Gibsons though.

Here is the U I built a while ago with Romfords:

 

 

 

Quote

 

The sandpipes on the M7 are about 2" diameter, so 0.7mm should be the wire size. I notice that there appears to be another pipe running alongside, does this loco have steam sanders?

BTW, the discussion earlier about the lumps on top of the tanks, I have realised that the sandboxes are under the tanks, could the lumps be the sandbox fillers?

 

Thanks Bryan, Yes I reckon the extra pipes are to do with steam sanding.  On top of the tanks are what appear to be two little tubes with lids on sticking up, that I think MAY be the sandbox fillers, they certainly line up with the boxes (which are tucked right up under the tanks and inaccessible for filling)  I thought the big lumps might be the sandboxes at first, but I'm going with fixing brackets as I can't see any other fixings, and they don't line up with the pipes.

 

All the best,

Dave.

Edited September 5, 2022 by DLT

[DLT]

One more point re wheels; I will always use Gibson tender/pony/bogie wheels on locos, not only do the look WAY better, they have a better profile and run better.

Cheers, Dave.

[Michael Edge]

Morning Gents, thanks for all the comments.

 

Wheel-wise, I'm usually happy with Romford or Gibson drivers; they both have advantages and disadvantages.  On this particular loco, they are so far under the sidetanks that the wheel centre is not obvious in normal use on a layout.  

And once everything is blackened and dirtied its even less obvious.  Besides, Romfords where the wheels provided by the owner!  The more visible they are, the more I would opt for Gibsons though.

Here is the U I built a while ago with Romfords:

 

P1050346Small.jpg

 

 

Thanks Bryan, Yes I reckon the extra pipes are to do with steam sanding.  On top of the tanks are what appear to be two little tubes with lids on sticking up, that I think MAY be the sandbox fillers, they certainly line up with the boxes (which are tucked right up under the tanks and inaccessible for filling)  I thought the big lumps might be the sandboxes at first, but I'm going with fixing brackets as I can't see any other fixings, and they don't line up with the pipes.

 

All the best,

Dave.

 

Yes, sand fillers on top of the tanks, Brighton ones were quite small diameter compared with other railways. I think sanding was air rather than steam with an air supply on the loco for braking. 

[gz3xzf]

Yes, sand fillers on top of the tanks, Brighton ones were quite small diameter compared with other railways. I think sanding was air rather than steam with an air supply on the loco for braking. 

Now that's interesting, not thought of air sanders on Brighton locos, logical really, I would have thought they were more reliable as well.

[DLT]

Looks like its time to start the finishing and painting stage, but one thing I need to do is add a line of Archer Rivet Transfers.  

There is a ring of rivets around the rear of the smokebox.  (the boiler was pre-rolled, so I couldn't use a riveting tool)  The transfer instructions say apply them under the paint, but does that mean they can go on the bare metal after blackening?  Or would it be better to apply them on top of the grey primer?

Thanks for any advice, I've not used them before.

Cheers, Dave.

 

PS  Just found this thread:   http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/73272-archers-rivet-transfers/

Edited June 4, 2017 by DLT

[Nile]

Transfers usually stick better to a painted or primed surface. If you are going to paint over them you don't need to worry about them silvering.

[number6]

Agree with Nile. The one issue is if lots of paint is going on then sometimes they can begin to disappear a bit. I've put them on a first coat of black then added a second lighter coat afterwards. Another thing to watch out for is a single rivet going missing in the process!

[DLT]

A couple of photos showing the underside, not sure how well the details and fixings etc can be seen though.

 

The hole nearest the front bufferbeam is a mounting point for the Kaydee coupling, and underneath it a corresponding hole under the footplate to provide clearance for a screw-head.  

The hole slightly further back is for the chassis fixing screw.

 

 

I have beefed-up the brakegear out of necessity; two pull-rods make for a much more stable assembly than the correct single central rod.  As first built this was even more flimsy than usual, and would bend every time you breathed on it...

 

 

Cheers, Dave.

Edited September 5, 2022 by DLT

[Daddyman]

Re Archer's, the problem with applying them on black is that you can't see them, as I learnt to my cost on the D20. The lighter, matter weathered colour revealed they were not quite straight, so I had to scuff them off and repaint the smokebox a lighter colour to be able to see what I was doing, then repaint the black topcoat. The best surface I've had them stick to is U-pol etching primer, which dries quite satin, and can be burnished before putting the transfers on. I'd always put the Archer's on the way I put all transfers on, by wetting them with Transfix (no water). But I found them very difficult to position. Having wasted line after line of them like that, one day I read the instructions (!) and tried applying them with water - made them much easier to position, but they don't stick as well, so need Microset afterwards. Best to apply them in 10mm lengths, too, so they don't get too unwieldy. 

[DLT]

If all else fails, read the instructions...! 

[Daddyman]

If all else fails, read the instructions...! 

Believe it or not, I usually do! 

[Nick Holliday]

Now that's interesting, not thought of air sanders on Brighton locos, logical really, I would have thought they were more reliable as well.

I don't think that the LBSC used air sanders. Certainly both Stroudley and Billinton fitted steam sanding gear when the locos were built. Air sanding would probably had difficulty handling damp sand, and the Westinghouse pump was designed to create and maintain a set pressure, rather than providing a supply of compressed air. I would also suspect that there would have been a severe loss of pressure in the system if a large quantity of air was diverted for sanding purposes, resulting in a sudden brake application, which wouldn't help the loco get its feet.

[DLT]

Sorry for lack of recent updates, but he E5X is now fully painted, and lining is in progress using a brand new sheet of HMRS Pressfix BR Loco Lining .  I will put some photos up when its done.

 

We decided to do without the ring of rivets round the rear of the smokebox; I tried Archer Transfers for this job but found them a huge struggle!  

There's not enough glue so they dont stick (often a problem with Waterslide), backing too fragile so constantly breaking and high wastage rate, poor formation of the actual rivets...  etc.

 

I used the method that I use with Mabex lettering transfers, that is mounting them on wet varnish, but even after painting they were very delicate and I doubt they would have survived the weathering process.  

Anyway the upshot was that we are doing without them.  I should have flattened out the boiler to start with, used the riveting tool and re-rolled it.  It would have been a lot quicker and WAY more effective.

I can see the need for transfers of this type, for adding the sort of detail that couldn't be done any other way, but my experience here was somewhat negative.

 

Anyway, moving on...

Cheers, Dave.

[Michael Edge]

Have you tried my method of adding rivets? Super Steel epoxy, applied with a cocktail stick. It shrinks to a hemispherical shape as it hardens and as long as you apply the same amount each time you get a row of identical rivets - and it sticks.

[DLT]

Have you tried my method of adding rivets? Super Steel epoxy, applied with a cocktail stick. It shrinks to a hemispherical shape as it hardens and as long as you apply the same amount each time you get a row of identical rivets - and it sticks.

 

Hi Mike,

 

No I haven't, but I will !  I've not come across Super Steel before, I guess you get it from car-parts shops?   I've tried blobs of pva, but with poor results.

 

Cheers, Dave.

[Michael Edge]

I get it from Halfords, there are two epoxies called super steel though, this one is from Plastic Padding. It's a very useful epoxy adhesive as well, it's not sticky or stringy like Araldite but it does harden very quickly. It's a very dark grey colour and I use for insulating sandpipes/brake hangers as well - a thin smear near where the wheels might go and cause a short circuit. I've seen PVA used like this as well but it's nowhere near as viscous and is quite difficult to control.

[BSW01]

I have used the Plastic Padding version which I buy from my local small DIY shop. I've used in my other hobby, building model boats, where I've used it to glue deck beams to the side of the hull and it's very effective and strong.

I've also used it successfully to cast axle boxes after I'd inadvertently melted one.

Edited June 21, 2017 by BSW01

[DLT]

Right, some progress to show at last.  All painted with Halfords matt-black, and lined out with HMRS Pressfix transfers.  As per usual, most of it was straightforward but fiddly, but the splasher was a .......!  Splasher still needs some tidying up and finishing off.  The lining looks very bright, but a good dose of grime will take care of that.

 

 

 

Chassis still needs doing, it will be dismantled and blackened, and given a gently waft of black, just enough to get the weathering to stick.

 

Cheers, Dave.

Edited September 5, 2022 by DLT

[gz3xzf]

Looking good Dave, Imposing looking beast isn't it.

[DLT]

Looking good Dave, Imposing looking beast isn't it.

 

Thanks Bryan, yes it looks quite a bruiser to me.

[number6]

Definition of 'Beauty in the eye of the beholder!'

 

Most excellent. I was rifling around for some transfers the other day and the remains of some sheets are painful memories of major struggles. Just one small curved corner left over or every straight section missing.