Whats on your 2mm Work bench

[CF MRC]

Tricky streamliners.

The streamlined P2s had an A4 front end, but originally I hadn't quite realised that the cladding went down to the running plate at ninety degrees behind the external blast pipes. This can be seen clearly in the first attached image of Lord President (sorry, not sure where this came from).

 

My P2 front end had not taken this into account when the boiler/smokebox/running plate were made three years ago. I therefore removed the cast running plate behind the blast pipe position. This left a nasty gap, as can be seen in the second photo.

 

The good thing about low melt solder is that you can puddle it around quite easily with plenty of phosphoric acid flux and a hotish (270 degrees) iron. It can then be re-shaped with burs and scrapers (like a white metalled bearing). So I filled in the defect and also fattened up the front end a bit, also adding to the chimney base at the sides. I think the P2s were a little bit 'fuller' looking at the front end than the A4s.

 

The final photo shows the changed front end. I am much happier that this will now looks like a P2, rather than an A4-P2 mongrel. I think I can safely say that this front end has been carved from white metal.

 

Tim

Edited December 14, 2015 by CF MRC

[2mmMark]

I've remodelled & repaired faulty white metal castings with ordinary 60/40 tin/lead solder but the margin between success and disaster is narrow.  I think the low-melt was a wise choice in this instance as the area to be "reflowed" was quite large.

 

Lots of subtleties with Mr. Gresley's engines!

 

Mark

[CF MRC]

Not quite there yet.

Whilst the back bit of the streamline casing was sorted out, I wasn't happy with the front, especially where the smokebox front meets the buffer beam area just next to the lamp brackets. It wasn't sharp enough. Phil had scribed in some lines to represent the cod's mouth but I thought they were too close to the edge. The prototype can be seen in the first wonderful picture (again, I can't remember the source),

 

So, out with soldering iron to fill up the grooves and give me some more metal to play with at the front end, as seen in the second picture. In the last post I had glibly mentioned scraping the white metal to get the correct shape. I thought it might be useful to show some piccys of how to do it, rather than making a mess of your files. A sharp scalpel can shift white metal very easily but needs to be held carefully. The third photo shows a 'potatoe peeling' grip. This gives great control and is safe - Jim will know all about such grips...

 

The fourth photo shows a stiff lozenge-shaped steel graver being used to smooth the surface near the chimney. If you want to get a smooth surface then rigid & sharp tools are a must. Again, notice that the thumb is acting as a steady to avoid slipping. When scraping you should keep changing direction very slightly to avoid a rippled surface.

Edited December 14, 2015 by CF MRC

[CF MRC]

The scraping continued to give a flat (L-R) front to the smokebox. This was then smoothed further - using a potatoe peeling grip- with the back of a scalpel: that part of the blade is dead straight and hard edged.

 

Third photo shows the shape roughed out, but no corner curves added to the smokebox. It is easier to appreciate the geometry of this complex shape by working in hard lines.

 

The whole surface was smoothed with various grades of carborundum paper and a fibre glass brush right up to crocus paper: aiming to get the light reflecting in the correct places. Scraping was still used for most of the very fine adjustments and then finished with abrasive paper. The next challenge was to re-instate the cod's mouth joints. A piece of insulating tape was cut to size and this was then used as a guide for a gramophone needle carefully run along its edge. This cut a groove in the white metal very easily indeed.

 

The final photo shows the P2 front just as I think it should be. The hinges are simply extra scratches in the right place. These work on the principle that disrupted light reflections can fool the eye. George Mellor used to provide dimples rather than pimples to represent rivets on his white metal kits.

 

Hope these ramblings haven't taught to many grannies to suck eggs.

 

Tim

Edited December 15, 2015 by CF MRC

[Donw]

Nice work Tim. I learnt to move lead around with a blowtorch and a moleskin but have never tried it with whitemetal for success the material need to change from solid to liquid over a range of temperature so if goes through a soft malleable phase before becoming a flowing liquid

Don

[CF MRC]

Don, I think the secret of this work is that the low melt solder and white metal are very closely matched. I can't tell one from the other when carving. The solder freezes instantly when placed on the white metal. However, you have to put on quite an excess as the heat ends to pull the white metal alloy to the iron, potentially leaving a recess at the margin. Solder always moves to where the heat is.

 

Tim

Edited December 14, 2015 by CF MRC

[CF MRC]

Sorting out the cab.

The cab on the P2 is a 'lost plastic' casting derived from a Farish plastic moulding. This has some pleasant rivet detail on the roof and the centre raised bit is a tricky shape. It was quite straightforward to modify the pattern a little, invest it and cast it in students alloy (a type of brass used by dental students when they are learning to make crowns). Getting it to fit the Wooten firebox on the P2 took quite a lot of doing and the sides needed considerable thinning to look respectable.

 

At the front, the windows in the spectacle plate are close fitting against the boiler cladding and quite large with brass frames. The original moulding/casting did not represent these at all well. The boiler was turned from gun-metal and the firebox sides bent up from thick brass and silver soldered to the boiler. This is visible half way up the firebox in the second photo.

 

So brass window frames were needed. Some thin brass strips were guillotined and bent up as can be seen in the third photo. I made about eight before something passable emerged, with the floor being particularly hungry this evening. They were sweated onto the cab and boiler with a very hot iron! The brass front window frames are quite conspicuous on LNER engines.

 

I need to spend a bit more time cleaning up to get rid of the scratch marks: the iPhone 6 has an incredibly good close up camera that doesn't take prisoners. The cab interior will probably be made as a plastic pattern and cast in brass alloy. If anyone wants any cab mouldings, I have some spare.

 

Tim

Edited December 20, 2015 by CF MRC

[CF MRC]

Fettled the cab-firebox area a bit more in the cold light of day and reduced the size of the cab window frames. There is a bit of porosity in the silver solder, but this lines up with the ejector pipe. Next thing to do will be the running plate, which isn't as simplest as it looks because there is an integral set of sloping splashers over the driving wheels and some natty little brackets to support it.

 

Tim

[Atso]

Fettled the cab-firebox area a bit more in the cold light of day and reduced the size of the cab window frames. There is a bit of porosity in the silver solder, but this lines up with the ejector pipe. Next thing to do will be the running plate, which isn't as simplest as it looks because there is an integral set of sloping splashers over the driving wheels and some natty little brackets to support it.

 

Tim

 

 

That is looking exceptionally good Tim! Please tell you that you ARE going to bring this beast to the St. Albans show.

[queensquare]

That is looking exceptionally good Tim! Please tell you that you ARE going to bring this beast to the St. Albans show.

If it is far enough advance to balance on its wheels I will endeavour to get a picture of it on Tucking Mill - it will rival the Shay in the unlikely visitors to the North Somerset Light Railway stakes!

 

Jerry

[Branwell]

Just about finished Lightcliffe signal box - just got the nameplate to sort.

 

[Kylestrome]

So brass window frames were needed. Some thin brass strips were guillotined and bent up as can be seen in the third photo. I made about eight before something passable emerged, with the floor being particularly hungry this evening. They were sweated onto the cab and boiler with a very hot iron!

Tim

Tim,

 

I'm amazed that you managed to bend those strips laterally! Wouldn't it have been possible to make the frames with wire and then flatten them?

 

David

[CF MRC]

If you look in post 1077 David, you'll see that the window frames are bright brass on the prototype. Using wire could be an option, but I didn't have any brass that was appropriate (maybe should drink some Rioja) and flattening afterwards is a bit hit and miss. I wanted a flat surface to solder to the cab front and then be able to file it back to the correct thickens and dimensions. Soldering on wire wouldn't quite give that effect. The brass strip is a bit oversize and is quite soft so it will bend sideways if it's held tightly in well ground pliers and equally good pliers used to move the free end. I have a lot of experience in bending bits of brass sideways on CF.... If you look carefully, you will see that the corners of the unfitted frames are rounded. Once sweated into place the inside and outside edges of the frames were trimmed with files to the correct size and the front face filed down to thickness. A sharp scalpel can also be used to chop off any bits of brass in the wrong place. When the engine is painted, the brass will be exposed. Glazing them will be fiddly!

 

Tim

Edited December 20, 2015 by CF MRC

[CF MRC]

Made a start on the running board plates. These were made from 8 thou nickel silver strip, but needed the 'splasher' bent downwards at the back. This was achieved by scoring the bend line with a scalpel blade on both sides, then placing it in the vice: the score is line just visible in the picture. I then use a file to push the metal over to the required amount. You can also use this technique to cut a straight line in metal. The score lines need to be a bit deeper and the metal is then moved backwards and forwards to work-harden the joint and then snap it.

 

There are details to go on these running plates such as lubricators and a rear edging strip to prevent the engine cleaners from slipping down the slope of the splashers. It will be much easier to make these with the plates separate from the engine. The final photo shows the plate sitting passively on the engine. The splashers will need careful adjustment to clear the drivers. In the end, I don't think they will be very visible, but at least I'll know they are there.

 

Tim

Edited December 21, 2015 by CF MRC

[RichardW1]

Looks lethal to me. Sort of thing Tommy would have whittled from a spare cartridge whist waiting for a bit of action!

[CF MRC]

It's the depleted uranium core in the boiler that will make all the difference.....

 

The running boards are now nearly complete, apart from Wakefield lubricators on the LHS. They needed some careful scoring and bending to make the splashers clear the wheels. A good way of holding small pieces of sheet metal is to put them on a file (the tang of the file is visible at the bottom of the picture) and then clamp down - the teeth on the file will stop the metal from slipping. This can be seen in the photo prior to scoring.

 

The other photos show the boards and the last shows the RH one in place.

 

Tim

Edited December 21, 2015 by CF MRC

[RichardW1]

It's the depleted uranium core in the boiler that will make all the difference.....

The running boards are now nearly complete, apart from Wakefield lubricators on the LHS. They needed some careful scoring and bending to make the splashers clear the wheels. A good way of holding small pieces of sheet metal is to put them on a file (the tang of the file is visible at the bottom of the picture) and then clamp down - the teeth on the file will stop the metal from slipping. This can be seen in the photo prior to scoring.

The other photos show the boards and the last shows the RH one in place.

Tim

You've got too much time on your hands!!

[CF MRC]

Lubrication

The streamlined P2s have very clean lines and running plates but on the near side were two Wakefield lubricators. Many years ago I bought some neat little castings and thought they would serve. However they were a bit too big, so I turned up some square brass rod to represent the oil reservoirs and hand wheels. Unfortunately, I haven't found a way of reproducing the operating linkage, spokes on the wheels or the oil feed pipes...

 

Tim

Edited December 24, 2015 by CF MRC

[CF MRC]

Blast(ed) pipes by name and nature! These little blighters took a whole evening to make and fit. The first go looked OK but was just a bit too far back, so they were taken off and repositioned forwards a touch. They were made from some copper wire of the correct diameter. The anti-slip areas were also re-scribed: an advantage of making the front end from white metal.

 

Tim

[Donw]

It is a real pleasure seeing these photos showing the build of the P2. Rather above my skill level but very inspiring.

Don

[Caley Jim]

It is a real pleasure seeing these photos showing the build of the P2. Rather above my skill level but very inspiring.

What you must remember is that Tim has spent his professional life sculpting materials, in both their plastic and solid states, into complex non-geometric shapes, often in somewhat restricted locations!

 

Jim

[CF MRC]

Nah Jim, the dentistry is just a hobby!

 

Tim

[Caley Jim]

Nah Jim, the dentistry is just a hobby!

But a very good source of modelling tools!  Wouldn't be without my No15 K-flex files or my Adams pliers!

 

Jim

[CF MRC]

Up market Brio?

 

Tim

[2mmMark]

An incredibly complex dum-dum bullet.

 

But what else could we expect from a man of your calibre.