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Adventures in kit and scratch-building.


sej
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Thanks everyone; the trouble with the pesky things is the time it takes to do all the test builds and then go back to tinker with the drawings then wait for the next etches and build them and then real life happens! All very enjoyable though and I'm still in awe of 2D drawing; it's like metal magic from a cloud!

The 1400 is overtaking the Spinner at the moment but I intend to have something to show at the NGauge do in Warwick in September. I'm demo-ing at the 2mm stand on the Saturday.

Meanwhile, big splashers!

 

First I bolted the boiler to the cab and the smokebox. I find it's easier to be able to take things apart when doing fiddly things like splashers. (This photo was taken after the splashers were fitted.)

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The half etch splasher strip fits into a slot in the cab front after a quarter bend has been made.

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I marked the start of the reverse curve and bent it round a drill after testing for a good fit.

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Then the final big bend was made with a bit of brass tubing.

When it all fitted properly I could solder it mostly from the inside. The splasher is held in place by the slots in the cab front and in the footplate and also where it touches the firebox and boiler as the etched boiler bands stop short of the edge leaving little steps for it to locate against.

I checked everything was square and true.

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And took the boiler off to clean up and adjust things. It look as though it's ready to pounce: quite insect-like!

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Cheers

Simon

 

 

 

 

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  • 1 month later...

And back to the 7mm Tilbury tank...

 

I beefed up the PCB spacers with some U-channel.

 

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Then soldered up the chassis using my Hobby Holidays jig held on its side.

 

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With the jig back the right way up, a quick test run wih the motor and driving wheels...and, oh joy, those self-quartering Slater's are so nice to use!

 

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And then a think about how to add the rear wheels and front pony truck.

 

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I'm going to pick up through the wheels using insulated axles, so I'll need to adapt a few more of those. The compensation on the drivers is by two seperate beams to avoid shorting across the frames.

 

Cheers

Simon

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  • 1 month later...

Another diversion...here's Geoff Hayne's beautiful paint job on my scratch-built MSWJR 4-4-4 and 2-6-0 tender for Stephen Duffell's lovely Roxey "Galloping Alice"...such a great name for a loco!

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Cheers

Simon

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  • 1 month later...

After having successfully plugged in a Dapol O gauge 08, I thought I'd have a go at some proper DCC wiring as my scratchbuilt Armstrong Whitworth doesn't have a plug!

I had a long email conversation with John at YouChoos (other DCC manufacturers are available). John is very patient...and after considering his advice I chose a sound-chip with a hefty capacitor as the loco is a rather short wheelbase 0-4-0 and I wanted belts and braces as well as the bells and whistles...

 

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There's a nice big speaker inside on the right, smack in the engine compartment and the chip is stuck up under the bonnet. The original small capacitor is still attached.

 

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I took that off and added the SuperCap,making triple sure I got the + and - terminals correctly wired to prevent small expensive explosions.

 

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The metal casing of the capacitor needs to be insulated, I used some Kapton tape (I think it's Kapton...), anyway it works well. And the capacitor was secured inside the front of the bonnet.

 

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The main wiring uses microconnectors so I can take things apart if I need to. I made double sure everything was insulated before putting it all back together as the inside of the loco is basically a bare metal box. All the components are held in place by "Black Tack" which is both sticky and rubbery!

 

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And there she goes.Marvellous! My first home wired DCC sound installation.

 

 

Great fun although I drove everyone quietly mad playing with it at last night's meeting. Next; to learn how to tweak the CV settings, including the fantastic sound volume.

 

Anyone interested in 7mm modelling or learning or more about stuff like this, there's a West Midlands Workshop Day supported by the Gauge O Guild coming up in March!

 

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Cheers

Simon

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  • 1 month later...

Some more adventures in DCC, this time courtesy of the fabulously patient Kevin at Coastal DCC. I wanted to fit a stay alive to the J27 which has a small chip and loudspeaker fitted in the tender. Kevin supplied a charging circuit and nice big capacitor. The charging circuit manages the power from the capacitor and I had no idea how to wire everything up. I'm not good on circuit diagrams and the terminology involved and I couldn't understand the instructions; so on the phone to Kevin with lots of simple questions and a pad and pencil at the ready. And Bingo! Success! Thanks Kevin!

Here'sthe original set-up with the charging circuit and capacitor already and waiting...

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The charging circuit can be trimmed to size as I only needed one set of connections. The side shown in the photo is called the top, the underneath is the bottom.

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I wired the charging circuit and the capacitor from my sketches as described to me by Kevin. A start has been made on insulating the contacts, I covered everything later in the translucent tape I used with the Lady Armstrong.

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Then everything was wired to the chip...the blue wire and the "ground" which turned out to be one of the unused tabs on the chip. I removed some of the plastic and very carefully soldered the remaining wire. I zoomed in on this photo to check that the solder hadn't strayed.

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Then everything was checked and insulated with yet more tape, then eased back into the tender. I forgot to take a photo whilst doing this and I'm not taking it apart in a hurry but it does work very nicely! Here's a link to a swift video... www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUFfG4jviHo ...

Cheers Simon

And of course, don't forget about the West Midlands Workshop Day!

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  • 4 months later...

Here are a couple of quick piccs of my O gauge Tilbury build (with it's 4mm cousin close by...) before I move to my new house with workshop and garden! Heaven!

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I got a copy of you first book last week I have learned a lot. Loved the Armstrong 0-4-0DE, I have always wanted one. We have planed to go up to Tanfield next month with a tape measure and a camera.

 

Marc  

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Thanks very much Marc. I've always wanted to visit the Tanfield railway and see the loco. If you don't mind sharing them I'd love to see some photos, particularly of inside the cab if possible. I'm about to start building another one!

 

Cheers

Simon

 

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  • sej changed the title to Adventures in kit and scratch-building: currently, an O Gauge Tilbury tank.
On 28/06/2019 at 16:46, sej said:

Thanks very much Mark. I've always wanted to visit the Tanfield railway and see the loco. If you don't mind sharing them I'd love to see some photos, particularly of inside the cab if possible. I'm about to start building another one!

 

Cheers

Simon

 

I will post as soon as I visit. its not going to be for a few weeks as I have to get most of the way through the orders for Telford be for I'm allowed out.

 

Marc  

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Thanks very much Marc, hope you have a good time when you're allowed out! And Jerry, house move successfully accomplished and new workshop being untidied, I hope to get on with some editing of various drawings this year (plus hopefully a GNR 2-4-0). I'll be demonstrating at the N Gauge show in Leamington and I'll try to post a bit more regularly on here!

 

Cheers

Simon

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So, generally in 7mm scale the rules are; if you scratchbuild something, then someone will bring out a kit and if you build the kit, then someone may eventually bring out a ready to run version. So I'm just waiting for one of these to arrive as r-t-r. This version of "The Lady Armstrong" is built from the excellent new Alphagraphix kit, with some extra detailing and using Slaters spare wheel centres for the jackshaft. It makes up to be a very nice looking little loco, ideal for a minimum space layout.1088414046_P1120229(2).JPG.8f7aef0440a487654cbac43fd401ead4.JPG

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40 minutes ago, sej said:

So, generally in 7mm scale the rules are; if you scratchbuild something, then someone will bring out a kit and if you build the kit, then someone may eventually bring out a ready to run version. So I'm just waiting for one of these to arrive as r-t-r. This version of "The Lady Armstrong" is built from the excellent new Alphagraphix kit, with some extra detailing and using Slaters spare wheel centres for the jackshaft. It makes up to be a very nice looking little loco, ideal for a minimum space layout.1088414046_P1120229(2).JPG.8f7aef0440a487654cbac43fd401ead4.JPG

Very nice!

 

Just one little thing - the connection hose on the front should be Westinghouse, not vacuum: Wright's book says just "air brake equipment." 

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  • sej changed the title to Adventures in kit and scratch-building.

My latest lock-down project almost completed - a 7mm Hull and Barnsley horse-box from a very nice MSE kit. Added detail and painted following Mike Trice's excellent methods. A very enjoyable build, the first vehicle for my projected garden line!

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  • 5 months later...

Another lock-down project; a GER F4, LNER condition, in P4. Detailed Gibson kit with a Marcus Burrow's chassis.

Near ready for the paintshop...

 

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