Wright writes.....

[queensquare]

19 minutes ago, Barry Ten said:

Perhaps of interest to Atso (Steve), as it's a bit of N gauge modelling?

 

I have three of these Model Power locos with die-cast bodies:

 

 

They are very nice-running locos especially in the more recent versions brought out under the MRC brand, with better pickup and onboard sound.  The valve gear and detail around the chassis is among the best I've seen in N. However, I can't live with moulded-on handrails! They catch my eye every time and if anything the fine detailing elsewhere on the model only makes them more obtrusive.

 

Having obtained some handrail knobs and wire from N Brass Locos (excellent service), I decided to have a go at tackling one of the locos. The one I'm working on is a USRA Pacific rather than the Mikado above, but the body shells are identical. Although not exactly right, the Southern's Ps4 locos were very similar to the USRA design, with the main difference being 73 inch rather than 80 drivers.

 

These Model Power locos are fiendishly difficult to take apart, but after some internet research I found out how to get the body off and remove the can motor which sits inside the casting. I didn't want to risk drilling through to the latter or end up with metal dust anywhere near the motor. With the body separated, I then ground away the cast handrails with a combination of abrasive tools in a mini-drill, files, and sandpaper. There are some tricky areas where boiler detail is close to the handrails so I had to accept good enough in these parts.

 

 

What I didn't' anticipate was how hard it would be to drill into the casting. Whatever alloy is used for these, it's much harder than white metal. The N Brass stanchions have very thin stalks so there was no chance of drilling accurate, tight holes for these, not at the way I was going through drill bits. The only way I can see to proceed is to drill oversize holes and then back-fill with a softer material such as plastic or filler, sand back smooth, and then re-drill these with smaller diameter bits in a hand vice.

 

 

I'll get there in the end but this is one of those jobs that's proving nowhere near as straightforward as I thought it would be.

 

Al

 

 

Hi Al, for jobs like this I drill a larger hole then slip slivers if brass tube in place before filing back. This casting type metal is the death of tiny drills

 

Jerry

[Tony Wright]

2 hours ago, Atso said:

 

The only thing I'm a self appointed expert in is ignorance. 

A pity there isn't a 'disagree' button Steve.

 

What you build is the complete antithesis of 'ignorance'.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Tony Wright]

2 hours ago, gr.king said:

 

As far as I've noticed Steve, you use your time discovering by experience the practical ways to produce models for which there is no RTR option, rather than using your time telling other people how it should or should not be done. That must make you an expert in ignoring unhelpful, time-wasting distractions.

I agree Graeme,

 

However, what should one do if a request for help/information is received (on here or anywhere)? 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Dunsignalling]

20 hours ago, FarrMan said:

Still no joy. Must be my PC.

 

Lloyd

Or maybe your browser? Opens up instantly using MS Edge.

 

John

[Barry Ten]

2 hours ago, queensquare said:

 

Hi Al, for jobs like this I drill a larger hole then slip slivers if brass tube in place before filing back. This casting type metal is the death of tiny drills

 

Jerry

 

Great idea. I'll see how I get on with the tubes in my stash.

[gr.king]

4 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

I agree Graeme,

 

However, what should one do if a request for help/information is received (on here or anywhere)? 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 A relevant point Tony. Perhaps a distinction can be drawn between, on the one hand, showing others how things can be done or providing potential answers to questions, and on the other hand telling people that they need to do things in only one particular way?  The latter is often a waste of time in my case as I'll do things in an unconventional way anyway, just to find out whether that works...

Edited November 16, 2021 by gr.king
Punctuation

[Bernard Lamb]

In the light of a recent topic.

Who left the Peco cleaning block on the track?

Bernard

[polybear]

Link courtesy of @Canal Digger on another thread....

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=401732644827874

[grahame]

10 hours ago, gr.king said:

 

Perhaps a distinction can be drawn between, on the one hand, showing others how things can be done or providing potential answers to questions, and on the other hand telling people that they need to do things in only one particular way?

 

Yes. There is usually more than one way to skin a whatever or to undertake a modelling project.

 

My take is that because there is generally not only just one correct way to undertake a modelling activity or project it is best to suggest a number of potential techniques and recommend those that you have found successful. It's always best for modellers to check out alternatives, consider the options and for individuals to choose the most appropriate for their abilities, budget and resources.

 

 

Edited November 17, 2021 by grahame

[Tony Wright]

Regarding 'ways of doing things', I always try to make clear that whatever I do is 'my way', 'a way', but never 'THE way'. 

 

I've garnered techniques down the years from far better modellers than I'll ever be, sifting, selecting and choosing what I think will work best for me. 

 

This evening, friend Nick Logan popped over with a 'problem' chassis for a V1. He'd erected one side of the valve gear, but it was jamming. Having ascertained that it was the valve gear (not the coupling rods) which was causing the problem, I part-dismantled it, tightened up the clearances (with hope, prayer and a quick in and out with the iron) and then it was cured. I explained what I'd done, showed him how to do it, gave him some spare bits (with a donation to CRUK from him) and away he went, happy; how he erects the other side will be the acid test. 

 

I certainly would never dream of telling anyone a way was the ONLY way to do a job. Just the ways which work for me, and, I hope, for him. And others.

[Chas Levin]

Hello Tony and everyone, here are a couple of pictures of where I've reached with my current build, the London Road Models GNR C2. I've just finished doing the white lines of the boiler bands, using a compass bow pen to follow the edges of the bands themselves and I'm leaving them to set fully for a while before filing in the black, so the next job will be making a start on lining the side tank and bunker:

 

 

 

The white of the bands is a little bright at the moment, but I've found that adding black next to white inevitably results in tiny amounts of black being deposited on the white in the course of cleaning up the edges of the black, which tones down the white - you can see that effect in the first picture, around the buffer beam edges. That's also why the 'land' along the boiler bands, between the white lines, hasn't been cleaned up as carefully as the boiler surfaces adjacent to the bands, because it'll be filled in with black, likewise those sections of side-tank and bunker beading where black has gone where it shouldn't.

 

Progress has been slower over the last two or three months, partly due to a couple of minor health issues and partly because lining takes me a lot longer than almost anything else. I'd done yellow lining on a few teak coaches before, but this is much more exposed and high contrast, not to mention the multiple colours.

 

Slow work, but very enjoyable: happy modelling to all!

Edited November 17, 2021 by Chas Levin

[Barry Ten]

Lacking any brass tube of the right diameter, I filled the holes in my loco body with plastic tube which I then cut and sanded back. Once the plastic had set, I drilled it with the smallest bit left in my micro-drill selection.

 

I threaded eight handrail knobs onto a length of wire (also supplied by N Brass) and then crimped over the ends to stop the knobs sliding off. I trimmed down their stanchions by a mm or two using a Xuron cutter then began working them into position, front to back along the loco. I had a slight bend to make between the boiler and smokebox. I used a cocktail stick to apply dabs of cyano to the plastic just before pushing the knobs into position.

 

 

This all went well but one side of the engine was more than enough's work for an evening, so I decided to call it a day before tackling the other side.

 

Al

[EHertsGER]

3 hours ago, Bernard Lamb said:

In the light of a recent topic.

Who left the Peco cleaning block on the track?

Bernard

“Zo, now veknow who iz ze railway modeller in ze camp. Ze tunnel has come up under the locomotive…”

[FarrMan]

15 hours ago, gr.king said:

 A relevant point Tony. Perhaps a distinction can be drawn between, on the one hand, showing others how things can be done or providing potential answers to questions, and on the other hand telling people that they need to do things in only one particular way?  The latter is often a waste of time in my case as I'll do things in an unconventional way anyway, just to find out whether that works...

And many thanks to all those on this thread who do suggest rather than tell. Knowing what works for others is a great help to those of us very much at the beginner stage and wanting to develop skills. Knowing what to avoid from mistakes made by others is arguably even more helpful.

 

Lloyd

[FarrMan]

11 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Regarding 'ways of doing things', I always try to make clear that whatever I do is 'my way', 'a way', but never 'THE way'. 

 

I've garnered techniques down the years from far better modellers than I'll ever be, sifting, selecting and choosing what I think will work best for me. 

 

This evening, friend Nick Logan popped over with a 'problem' chassis for a V1. He'd erected one side of the valve gear, but it was jamming. Having ascertained that it was the valve gear (not the coupling rods) which was causing the problem, I part-dismantled it, tightened up the clearances (with hope, prayer and a quick in and out with the iron) and then it was cured. I explained what I'd done, showed him how to do it, gave him some spare bits (with a donation to CRUK from him) and away he went, happy; how he erects the other side will be the acid test. 

 

I certainly would never dream of telling anyone a way was the ONLY way to do a job. Just the ways which work for me, and, I hope, for him. And others.

And it is VERY much appreciated. It may not suit everyone's skill set, but it has been proved to work, so well worth considering copying.

 

Lloyd

[gr.king]

11 hours ago, Chas Levin said:

Hello Tony and everyone, here are a couple of pictures of where I've reached with my current build, the London Road Models GNR C2. I've just finished doing the white lines of the boiler bands and I'm leaving them to set fully for a while before filing in the black, so the next job will be making a start on lining the side tank and bunker:

 

 

 

The white of the bands is a little bright at the moment, but I've found that adding black next to white inevitably results in tiny amounts of black being deposited on the white in the course of cleaning up the edges of the black, which tones down the white - you can see that effect in the first picture, around the buffer beam edges. That's also why the 'land' along the boiler bands, between the white lines, hasn't been cleaned up as carefully as the boiler surfaces adjacent to the bands, because it'll be filled in with black, likewise those sections of side-tank and bunker beading where black has gone where it shouldn't.

 

Progress has been slower over the last two or three months, partly due to a couple of minor health issues and partly because lining takes me a lot longer than almost anything else. I'd done yellow lining on a few teak coaches before, but this is much more exposed and high contrast, not to mention the multiple colours.

 

Slow work, but very enjoyable: happy modelling to all!

 

Out of interest Chas, what main colours are you using in that beautiful livery please? I think I've selected a suitable locally available brown for a forthcoming attempt of my own at GNR livery, but I still have time to reconsider.

It obviously could be an error in the way that the colour is rendered on my screen, but the green on your loco looks a bit whiter or "less rich" than I would normally expect for Doncaster green.

[Tony Wright]

I received an email yesterday from the Railway Enthusiasts' Club telling me that they will no longer be holding any exhibitions. I've attended the event at Woking for several years now (up to lockdown) and would like to thank the organisers and the whole club for making me and Mo so welcome and for putting on such a good show.

 

The reasons are all too familiar, and do not bode well for the long-term future of the hobby. The average age of the membership increases each year, and with an ever-dwindling band of volunteers it's just not possible any more to stage the event. Add on to that the ever-increasing costs of suitable venues, plus the uncertainties of future restrictions, then an event might lead to a club actually folding - with considerable debts. Many clubs just won't take the risks. 

 

It's happened to the Wolverhampton exhibition and also to the Southwold one; again, mainly due to age. In their 30s, 40s, 50s, even 60s, for members moving hundreds of tables and chairs, lugging around barriers and generally having to be busy all the time is not a problem. Into the 70s and 80s, hang on! 

 

I'm convinced the coming years will see more and more (well-established) shows just disappearing. 

 

Food for thought. 

[Atso]

Tony and Graeme,

 

While my comment was largely (by not totally) tongue in check, thank you for your kind words. Graeme, now if only I could become an expert in ignoring 'unhelpful, time-wasting distractions' in general life...

 

Anyway, I've been working on some more CAD work. I'm going to guess that Mr King, Mr Wealleans or other members of the Grantham team can identify where I'm going with these.

 

 

 

 

[jwealleans]

Liking the tinted windows on the D245.....

[Chas Levin]

2 hours ago, gr.king said:

 

Out of interest Chas, what main colours are you using in that beautiful livery please? I think I've selected a suitable locally available brown for a forthcoming attempt of my own at GNR livery, but I still have time to reconsider.

It obviously could be an error in the way that the colour is rendered on my screen, but the green on your loco looks a bit whiter or "less rich" than I would normally expect for Doncaster green.

Hello Mr K, well, the brown on the frames is Phoenix Precision's GNR Frames Chocolate, brushed on straight as it comes.

The green in the photos is a cellulose aerosol, matched by an automotive paint maker from a sample of PPP's GNR Loco Green (the Ivatt & Gresley one). I wasn't happy with the first match they did (which certainly was much cooler and closer - I thought - to LNER green) but this one seems to my eye to be pretty close.

Aside from the colour itself, I would agree that the sprayed version lacks a degree of richness that the brushed version has - I took that to be a consequence of the delivery method and I think it only shows when the two are side by side: I touched in a tiny area under the boiler with the PPP GNR Loco Green straight out of the can and the difference was perceptible there.

I spent quite a lot of time on the green question - I won't clog up Tony's thread with it all but I posted some comparison pics earlier in the year on my own thread, where I also tried matching it to the panel in E. F Carter's Britain's Railway Liveries (as recommended by Ian Rathbone in his excellent book) and it seemed a fairly good match for that too; I hadn't realised before researching it for myself just how difficult it is to be sure about colours, pre-grouping especially.

You may well be right too about either your screen or, more likely (as you're probably used to errors on your screen and subconsiously adjust for them) errors with my phone camera, which reacts very differently to even minor lighting changes. Looking at those two pictures, I'd say the boiler in the first one and the cab roof in the second most accurately reflect the reality of the model, and the fact the you can see variation in those two photos between various parts of the body as the light falls on it differently shows how subject it is to that effect.

Apologies, probably too much info but hope it helps!

Edited November 17, 2021 by Chas Levin

[Tony Teague]

Tony

Hearty congratulations on what must  now be 50,000 posts!

An amazing achievement.

Tony

[Tony Teague]

3 minutes ago, Tony Teague said:

Tony

Hearty congratulations on what must  now be 50,000 posts!

An amazing achievement.

Tony

 

Well it seems I got that completely wrong!

I thought there were 20 per page but there are 25, so actually when we get to the end of the page that will be 62,500 - which will be all the more amazing.

So for the time being I'll just say that was very late to mention the achievement of 50k!

Apologies!

Tony

[zr2498]

1 hour ago, Chas Levin said:

Hello Mr K, well, the brown on the frames is Phoenix Precision's GNR Frames Chocolate, brushed on straight as it comes.

The green in the photos is a cellulose aerosol, matched by an automotive paint maker from a sample of PPP's GNR Loco Green (the Ivatt & Gresley one). I wasn't happy with the first match they did (which certainly was much cooler and closer - I thought - to LNER green) but this one seems to my eye to be pretty close.

Aside from the colour itself, I would agree that the sprayed version lacks a degree of richness that the brushed version has - I took that to be a consequence of the delivery method and I think it only shows when the two are side by side: I touched in a tiny area under the boiler with the PPP GNR Loco Green straight out of the can and the difference was perceptible there.

I spent quite a lot of time on the green question - I won't clog up Tony's thread with it all but I posted some comparison pics earlier in the year on my own thread, where I also tried matching it to the panel in E. F Carter's Britain's Railway Liveries (as recommended by Ian Rathbone in his excellent book) and it seemed a fairly good match for that too; I hadn't realised before researching it for myself just how difficult it is to be sure about colours, pre-grouping especially.

You may well be right too about either your screen or, more likely (as you're probably used to errors on your screen and subconsiously adjust for them) errors with my phone camera, which reacts very differently to even minor lighting changes. Looking at those two pictures, I'd say the boiler in the first one and the cab roof in the second most accurately reflect the reality of the model, and the fact the you can see variation in those two photos between various parts of the body as the light falls on it differently shows how subject it is to that effect.

Apologies, probably too much info but hope it helps!

As you have just mentioned Ian Rathbone, I would like to add that yesterday I signed up for Ian's Painting & Lining course at Missenden, March 2022.

The residential spaces are fully booked but still plenty of non-residential places.

https://www.missendenrailwaymodellers.org.uk/

Dave

 

[Bucoops]

10 minutes ago, Tony Teague said:

 

Well it seems I got that completely wrong!

I thought there were 20 per page but there are 25, so actually when we get to the end of the page that will be 62,500 - which will be all the more amazing.

So for the time being I'll just say that was very late to mention the achievement of 50k!

Apologies!

Tony

 

Your post is number 64295

[Chas Levin]

1 hour ago, zr2498 said:

As you have just mentioned Ian Rathbone, I would like to add that yesterday I signed up for Ian's Painting & Lining course at Missenden, March 2022.

The residential spaces are fully booked but still plenty of non-residential places.

https://www.missendenrailwaymodellers.org.uk/

Dave

 

I'm sure that will be very interesting and informative: as well as the book, I learned a great deal from Ian's Missenden 2020 videos, which are still available on the site. There's enormous value in actually seeing someone in action when it comes to something like how to apply paint: if a picture's worth a thousand words, perhaps a video's worth several thousand...