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7 minutes ago, MPR said:

I can’t think of a good use for one on locomotives (except, maybe, for securing ballast weights) but they are great for rapidly fixing scenic  formers - using cheap foam board the hot glue partially melts the core and then sticks hard to the card skins. 

Much less soggy than PVA...

 

Good for securing LEDS, wiring looms inside models, too. Also good for fixing foliage onto near-vertical slopes, as PVA doesn't have enough grab.

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29 minutes ago, Tony Wright said:

A hot glue gun?

 

Never used one.

 

Plastic Padding?

 

That makes more of a stink than flux fumes!

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

Disregarding the smell, Plastic Padding is very useful for fixing poorly fitting white metal components. I use a technique rather similar to bricklaying, thickly butter the edges of the part to be fitted and push it firmly into place. If the right amount has been applied the Plastic Padding will squeeze out all through and round the joint, now wait and watch carefully (and hope the phone doesn't ring!) until the PP has just started to go off but not completely hardened. At this point the excess can be easily and cleanly pared away with a scalpel, leaving a clean join with no gaps in it. If you leave it too long you're bu99ered though, hence the comment about the phone....

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49 minutes ago, Clive Mortimore said:

Hello Tony

 

Even gluing plastic kits can have its downside. In the past I have used my normal Revel Contacta solvent to put together a DC kits DMU. A few weeks later I went to do some more work on it as I picked it up, it fell apart.  I was back to stage one in the building process. They are made of a very strange plastic that needs a particular solvent.

 

I have in the past used a soldering iron to weld plastic together, repairing some broken toys and household items, not modelling. I had to be quick and I am not too sure the fumes where healthy.

 

You mention fixing pick up pads with adhesive, that is something I have had go ping more than once where the sticky stuff ain't sticky anymore. The next chassis I solder up I am going to use double sided PCB and solder the top side to the chassis.

'You mention fixing pick up pads with adhesive, that is something I have had go ping more than once where the sticky stuff ain't sticky anymore.'

 

Thanks Clive,

 

The 'trick' with gluing pick-up pads is two part in my experience..............

 

1. Always roughen-up the brass support beforehand with a coarse file.

2. Use 'verro-board' for the pick-up pads, not just plain PCB. The verro-board is laid in thin copper strips, with masses of little holes in it. When adhesive (epoxy) is applied, it squeezes up into these holes, making the bond immensely strong. I've never had one come loose.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

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1 hour ago, Clive Mortimore said:

Hello Tony

...a DC kits DMU.  ...... They are made of a very strange plastic that needs a particular solvent.

 

ABS plastic, the same as the original Plastruct - use Plastic Weld solvent.

 

Regards,

John Isherwood.

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Tony is completely right as well as Wright, soldering is an essential skill to acquire.  Unfortunately mine is flaky at best; my 40w iron seems reluctant to melt the solder whatever solder I use.  I can make a soldered joint for wiring purposes, and am happy to use it on seams inside Comet coaches, but it needs in my case to be kept away from anywhere it can be seen, so I use glue as well and sometimes in situations where Tony's eyes would rolling at some considerable rpm.  

 

I use liquid poly cement on Parkside kits, liberally applied with a brush and allowed to penetrate seams which it seems willing. enough to do.  Most of the rest, including metals, is superglue and here I use 2 basic types.  Any joint that is going to have to be load bearing or subject to movement is glued with good quality thick gloopy superglue, and I also use pound shop superglue to secure things in place temporarily.  The joint can be broken easily enough when a permanent solution, good superglue or solder, is needed.  

 

There is another application where superglue is completely unsuitable; fixing glazing, because it fogs the glazing.  There is a limit to how much I want to evoke the atmosphere of a rainy day by having my coach windows all misted up!  Here I find the best thing is 'Glue 'n Glaze' or similar.  This is supposed to be used to glaze small windows such as loco spectacle plate windows, and is very effective for that, but it can also be used as a normal glue,  I have successfully glazed Comet brass, RTR plastic, and K's whitemetal coaches with it, and it has the advantage that it dries clear so if you get a tiny bit where you shouldn't you usually get away with it!

 

I suggest that Tony goes and has a lie down in a dark room to recover from the horror of considering all this bodgery.  My skill level is that I can just about manage a Comet coach or a fold up loco chassis.  I deal with electrical connections (except to track) with crimp/spade connectors assisted with solder and terminal screw blocks.  In view of past wiring disasters, I've kept matters as simple as possible on Cwmdimbath and use insulfrog turnouts; the less connections there are the less chance there is for things to break down, and my running is pretty reliable (but you have to be meticulous in track laying, especially near turnouts), but I'm about to mess all that up with Dapol working signals and some platform lighting...

 

I have to work within the constraints of my abilities, and while there is much to be said for extending those abilities and trying to learn new techniques, I cannot afford expensive mistakes and my eyesight and steadiness of hand are not what they wunce woz and will only deteriorate over time until I am withdrawn from service and scrapped; there will be no spare parts worth saving.

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7 minutes ago, Jamiel said:

For those starting with soldering, of which I am still one, it does become easier to work with and has overtaken plastic for manyv builds for me for ease of use.

 

I think the biggest thing I found when learning to solder models was that buying good solder is essential and that Maplin electrical solder is just really hard (impossible) to use for soldering etched brass.

Liquid, acid flux dabbed on also makes soldering so much easier.

 

I guess the other thing is that you have to get used to holding something hot, and relying on tweezers, jigs and things to hold the parts. You also gradually develop Tony’s disregard to uncomfortably hot finger ends.

Once you overcome that, make a few kits, soldering becomes easier than gluing for many parts. Lamp irons, brake hangers and other really small parts are so much more solid and fix so much better. I have also found making brass bodies for bought powered chassis is a good way to go as you don’t have to make something that works, but just something that looks good and sits on the moving parts. I like making DMUs so that was a good option, the unpowered units are just coaches with a cab on them.

 

I am sure others can make recommendations on kits to start with, don’t do signals, they sound like an easy option but are really fiddly. I did a coach (Comet kit) rather than a loco, still trying to finish my first loco. Making odd detail parts was also a start before the coach, front bogies for some steam engines. My soldering has improved a lot, but still has a long way to go. I am still frightened by soldering motion, but am sure it will come.

 

First steps, bogie on the right.

9FTruck12.jpg

 

First full kit, still, being finished right now, but was a big step. Should be finished by the end of the week.

Saloon09.jpg

 

Brass uppers, and frames on the unpowered units.

Class120_34.jpg

 

Being ambitious, but I am sure it will get there.

Black5_34.jpg

 

The other thing is watch one of Tony’s videos and follow what he says and also if you make a mistake you can always heat it up and start again much more easily than with plastic and weld/glue.
 

Jamie

This is splendid stuff, Jamie,

 

Many thanks for showing us (though, just one thing, 9Fs - or eight and a half Fs in the case of the Crostis - have ponies, not bogies). The difference between the one on the left, still with that ghastly pocket, and the proper one is incredible. Even though some folk remove the even-more-ghastly coupling, they still leave that obese (and very prominent) pocket visible below the 'beam. Who makes the replacement, please?

 

Regarding my DVDs/videos, when they were finally put together, a large number of disclaiming sub-titles had to be added, because of my disregard for 'elf-'n'-safety'. Nothing holds tiny (or larger) parts more securely than fingers and thumb for soldering. I've just developed asbestos fingers, and bear the pain! At least, should I consider a future career in breaking the law, I'll leave no fingerprints. 

 

This hobby is inherently dangerous. We use things which get very hot, will cut, choke anyone with fumes from flux or solvents, and poison folk if ingested. So, if one can't stand pain, can't stand the sight of blood, has bad lungs (which might have been fine to start with) or a sensitive stomach, I suggest another pastime.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

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I have (yet another) request, please.

 

Does anyone know of a source of the tiny fibre washers which fit over Romford/Markits crank pins; the ones which act as perfect solder insulators? 

 

They're perfect in assembling valve gear, and I'm down to my last few. Romford made them, but, having phoned Markits just now, they're no longer stocked.

 

Thanks in anticipation. 

 

Tony. 

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8 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

This is splendid stuff, Jamie,

 

Many thanks for showing us (though, just one thing, 9Fs - or eight and a half Fs in the case of the Crostis - have ponies, not bogies). The difference between the one on the left, still with that ghastly pocket, and the proper one is incredible. Even though some folk remove the even-more-ghastly coupling, they still leave that obese (and very prominent) pocket visible below the 'beam. Who makes the replacement, please?

 

Regarding my DVDs/videos, when they were finally put together, a large number of disclaiming sub-titles had to be added, because of my disregard for 'elf-'n'-safety'. Nothing holds tiny (or larger) parts more securely than fingers and thumb for soldering. I've just developed asbestos fingers, and bear the pain! At least, should I consider a future career in breaking the law, I'll leave no fingerprints. 

 

This hobby is inherently dangerous. We use things which get very hot, will cut, choke anyone with fumes from flux or solvents, and poison folk if ingested. So, if one can't stand pain, can't stand the sight of blood, has bad lungs (which might have been fine to start with) or a sensitive stomach, I suggest another pastime.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

Hi Tony

Your encouragement is greatly appreciated.

 

Apologies for the pony truck - bogie mistake.

 

The pony truck is a bit of a hybrid. I bought a Brassmasters Ivatt/BR standard truck not realising that it is EM gauge, not OO. I also found that the Brassmasters etches are very thin and quite hard to work with for a beginner. I only realised this when I tried to put OO gauge wheels in there.

 

I then bought a Comet LS2 bar frame pony truck which I found much easier to build, it is a thicker etch and a much simpler build.

9FTruck05.jpg

 

It is not as detailed though, so I filed down some of the Brassmasters etch to fit OO width and soldered those parts over the Comet frame.

9FTruck08.jpg

 

The guitar strings provided with the Brassmasters etch really do make wonderful springs. I must nip down to a music shop and get right string for more detailing. The wheels are Alan Gibson.

 

The Bachmann pony truck does look clumsy compared with the Comet/Brassmasters hybrid, but it is beautiful compared with the Hornby Railroad Crosti original one.

9FTruck11.jpg

 

This was my early soldering so please believe me that it has got less clumsy than this example. I have bought pairs of Brassmasters and Comet etches to use for my Ivatts and BR Standards, I do think it makes the ‘face’ of the loco look so much better.

 

Here is a later one I did for one an Ivatt4MT. There is a tiny bit of Evergreen plastic tube added at the front as well.

Ivatt03.jpg

 

Ivatt01.jpg

 

Ivatt02.jpg

 

As regards safety, I played the drums for many years, so perhaps my fingers were already a little numb from those times when I caught my fingers or thumbs between the sticks and the rims on the drums. That is why drummers pull those expressions.

 

Jamie

 

 

 

 

Edited by Jamiel
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I've been re-visiting some of the N/2mm buildings I've made over the last year and starting to finish them off - well, mainly fitting missing windows/glazing and completing the ground floor frontages which were left unfinished when originally scratch-built. I've tackled Emblem House, 29-33 Tooley Street, Colonial House, Battlebridge House and most recently 81-85 Tooley Street, all of which will be at the back of the layout behind other buildings and the railway viaduct. Here's the latest on 81-85 Tooley Street which includes the 'Duke of Clarence' pub (left end which needs detailing such as frosted windows, brewery signs and so on) and 'Clarkair International' (which was a travel agents/offices - I think):

 

DSC_8119.JPG.a773dd97622dfbe423eb14ff744ae7da.JPG

 

And, after all the recent posts about V2s, here's mine and the prototype it is modelled on. It was fitted on the thin end of the SER offices (London's flat iron building) as an advert for the 'London at War' museum housed in it. However, it looked more like a Russian Soyez spacecraft rather than a Nazi missile. The model rocket is less than 1.75 inches tall and completely scratch-built (I must sort out the V2 lettering on it) :

 

DSC_5962cr.jpg.6a52375f676533364d308a68178bbede.jpg

 

DSC_8319.JPG.3053467c828ee6b9e6f981054991f51e.JPG

 

 

G

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30 minutes ago, Jamiel said:

 

The pony truck is a bit of a hybrid. I bought a Brassmasters Ivatt/BR standard truck not realising that it is EM gauge, not OO. I also found as that the Brassmasters etches are very thin and quite hard to work with for a beginner. I only realised this when I tried to put OO gauge wheels in there.

 

I then bought a Comet LS2 bar frame pony truck which I found much easier to build, it is a thicker etch and a much simpler build.

 

It is not as detailed though, so I filed down some of the Brassmasters etch to fit OO width and soldered those parts over the Comet frame.

 

The guitar strings provided with the Brassmasters etch really does make wonderful springs. I must nip down to a music shop and get right string for more detailing. The wheels are Alan Gibson.

 

The Bachmann pony truck does look clumsy compared with the Comet/Brassmasters hybrid, but it is beautiful compared with the Hornby Railroad Crosti original one.

 

This was my early soldering so please believe me that it has got less clumsy than this example. I have bought pairs of Brassmasters and Comet etches to use for my Ivatts and BR Standards, I do think it makes the ‘face’ of the loco look so much better.

 

Here is a later one I did for one an Ivatt4MT. There is a tiny bit of Evergreen plastic tube added at the front as well.

 

 

Impressive. Especially for the start of your soldering career.

 

G

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1 hour ago, Tony Wright said:

I have (yet another) request, please.

 

Does anyone know of a source of the tiny fibre washers which fit over Romford/Markits crank pins; the ones which act as perfect solder insulators? 

 

They're perfect in assembling valve gear, and I'm down to my last few. Romford made them, but, having phoned Markits just now, they're no longer stocked.

 

Thanks in anticipation. 

 

Tony. 

 

 

Hi Tony,

 

Are these too big? I think they may be:

 

https://eileensemporium.com/eileens-emporium-products/category/1072-h-i

 

edit: 2mm i/d definitely too big, ignore!

 

Edited by Bucoops
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1 hour ago, grahame said:

 

 

And, after all the recent posts about V2s, here's mine and the prototype it is modelled on. It was fitted on the thin end of the SER offices (London's flat iron building) as an advert for the 'London at War' museum housed in it. However, it looked more like a Russian Soyez spacecraft rather than a Nazi missile. The model rocket is less than 1.75 inches tall and completely scratch-built (I must sort out the V2 lettering on it) :

 

DSC_5962cr.jpg.6a52375f676533364d308a68178bbede.jpg

 

DSC_8319.JPG.3053467c828ee6b9e6f981054991f51e.JPG

 

 

G

Appalling bad value for money that museum: I mistakenly took the children to it years ago.  It’s loss would not be missed. 

 

Tim

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25 minutes ago, CF MRC said:

Appalling bad value for money that museum: I mistakenly took the children to it years ago.  It’s loss would not be missed. 

 

Tim

 

I was never enticed in, although many years ago I did visit the nearby London Dungeon. But it's gone now, along with the building which is a shame as it was an interesting Victorian polychromatic structure and included the SER offices.

 

G

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11 hours ago, rowanj said:

Of course. The Q1 goes without saying......

 

Interesting that people find small 0-6-0's designed as pure workhorses "attractive" - I do too. I like the look of the J6 and J11, but they are "chunkier" than the J25. No votes for a J15?

Yes, J15 (bothe GE and the Irish varieties), also rebuilt Ilfracombe goods for me.

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4 hours ago, grahame said:

I've been re-visiting some of the N/2mm buildings I've made over the last year and starting to finish them off - well, mainly fitting missing windows/glazing and completing the ground floor frontages which were left unfinished when originally scratch-built. I've tackled Emblem House, 29-33 Tooley Street, Colonial House, Battlebridge House and most recently 81-85 Tooley Street, all of which will be at the back of the layout behind other buildings and the railway viaduct. Here's the latest on 81-85 Tooley Street which includes the 'Duke of Clarence' pub (left end which needs detailing such as frosted windows, brewery signs and so on) and 'Clarkair International' (which was a travel agents/offices - I think):

 

DSC_8119.JPG.a773dd97622dfbe423eb14ff744ae7da.JPG

 

And, after all the recent posts about V2s, here's mine and the prototype it is modelled on. It was fitted on the thin end of the SER offices (London's flat iron building) as an advert for the 'London at War' museum housed in it. However, it looked more like a Russian Soyez spacecraft rather than a Nazi missile. The model rocket is less than 1.75 inches tall and completely scratch-built (I must sort out the V2 lettering on it) :

 

DSC_5962cr.jpg.6a52375f676533364d308a68178bbede.jpg

 

DSC_8319.JPG.3053467c828ee6b9e6f981054991f51e.JPG

 

 

G

 

That wall in the prototype photo looks just like brickpaper.

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10 hours ago, landscapes said:

Hi Tony

 

I do fully agree with your soldering comments, the thought of soldering up hand built turnout points scare the daylights out of me.

 

At present I have 14 points to solder with another 15 still to be built once phase two and three of my Haymarket layout are completed, and to do this all I need is an additional 10 feet in length more space to accommodate the five additional baseboards.

 

Regards

 

David

Bite the bullet David and have a go. Your first point will be rubbish. Your second will work but might not look too good. From the third onwards you will never look back.

 

Before you start though, make sure you have got a good set of consistent gauges.

 

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23 hours ago, rowanj said:

Of course. The Q1 goes without saying......

 

Interesting that people find small 0-6-0's designed as pure workhorses "attractive" - I do too. I like the look of the J6 and J11, but they are "chunkier" than the J25. No votes for a J15?

What about the (LNER) J21s?

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11 hours ago, t-b-g said:

 

That wall in the prototype photo looks just like brickpaper.

Doesn't it just?

 

Brick paper is a much underused model building material these days in my opinion. On many brick buildings/structures, the mortar course is either flush or very shallow indeed - too shallow to insert a finger length-ways, for instance. Yet, many embossed plastic card sheets are used to represent brickwork, with has far too deeply indented mortar. What is the scale indent on a mortar course, in 4mm scale, say? A tiny fraction of a millimetre? Certainly nowhere near as deep as some plastic sheets suggest. In that respect brick paper is much nearer scale. 

 

It's almost as if there's a 'prejudice' nowadays against the use of the stuff. Yet, a friend from my Wolverhampton days, David Amias, used brick paper to wonderful effect on the buildings on his magnificent Wellington (Salop) in EM. 

 

I used it on Stoke Summit for just about every building/structure.

 

830019219_60117tunnelnearerlarge.jpg.2a9adaae670249b4f027363050e8e8fb.jpg

 

For Stoke Tunnel's south portal, using Prototype's engineering brick paper. 

 

1667315544_60117atbox.jpg.ebbf7edf1f3e97b15935ab5d4664bcaf.jpg

 

60506.jpg.8c08aae55e57333c9790517bed86cd10.jpg

 

And for Stoke 'box. Pat Ryan built the sub-structure, and I finished it off, using red brick paper from SuperQuick. 

 

629810946_StokeSummitEEType4onPullman.jpg.8adee4c430b129afc755bd6337d67fde.jpg

 

And the tall bridge (the shape, cut out in thin ply by Norman Turner), I clad in the same red brick. 

 

Little Bytham has seen extensive use of it, too.

 

550704916_PlatformviewsA1160113.jpg.cb51b270413859ca541e2cbaed1dff2a.jpg

 

The brickwork on the footbridge and on the platform walls is all brick paper of different sorts. 

 

I think it's a most-versatile and inexpensive medium, which is dead easy to use.

 

Of course, what must be remembered is that none of the above examples is at the 'higher' end of architectural/structural modelling (though Bob Dawson's and Scott Waterfield's architectural work on Bytham is wonderful). It all could be classed as 'layout structures' I suppose. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

Edited by Tony Wright
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Modern brick paper is terrific stuff, and looks marvellous on well constructed buildings and structures.

 

Its not like the multicolour brick papers that infested so many published model railways in the late 50s and early 60s which, unless it was due to either the photographic emulsion used or the printing process, DID look atrocious!

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Nearly all commercial brick styrene sheets are over-scale in texture, especially the Slaters products. The brick outline is too rounded.  On CF, when we use the Slaters sheet, it is sanded horizontally so that the brick courses almost disappear: it is then better for painting. On high spec buildings we make our own brick sheet from an original zinc hot plate given to us many years ago by Dave Hammersley.  With careful painting the effect is pretty good because you can select bits that are irregular. 

D6DD117E-3AAA-4F94-AC70-36EECDB553CB.jpeg.a9d47464fc1b62694c3b40466b2666a2.jpeg

I do like brick papers as well: one only has to look at Buckingham and Totnes to see how good they can be.  I am currently experimenting with a project involving their use. 

 

Tim

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Even with MS paint you can create your own brick paper and buildings. I have a basic drawing of bricks which I superimpose the building drawing on to.

1807127969_factory6a.png.f9b649977d36fe5b8b9b488201cfba9d.png

This was developed into a very low relief building as part of the back scene of Hanging Hill.  

 

71466223_PigLaneWRoffices.png.218b36f61e9d794667a97fed107563e1.png

These were temporary paper buildings used on Pig Lane (Western Region), mainly to get a feel of things would look before making the plastic card models.

 

factory1c.png.7b8979a04a8534a65daea73d43431a78.png

With a bit of work weathering can be included, again part of the back scene for Hanging Hill.

005a.jpg.2a1b6434ae74b12b63414899296886da.jpg

The Pig Lane trial building in use as a trial building on Sheffield Exchange.

Edited by Clive Mortimore
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Hello Tony, Everyone!

While I cannot argue against the logic of brickpaper being closer to scale (because it is!) and (maybe) more realistic and you guys have certainly shown some wonderful examples, I have to argue against the like of Metcalfe kits and so on.

Why?

Most folk simply assemble them as is, leaving the flat surfaces completely without texture or additional colouring AND also leaving those dreadful uncoloured corners, ugh! I can't stand to see them, sorry.

I far prefer plastic card or even plastic mouldings BUT I must fill in the mortar lines and add 'weathering' and relief to my structures, this latter is actually done by my dear wife, I admit as I haven't quite got the hang of doing this. The technique consists of adding several subtle changes in shade from the original colour, possibly not easy or possible on paper?

I was just about to show pictures of my buildings but I've discovered I haven't any 'online', back shortly.

Cheers,

John.

 

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