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A powered Armstrong Whitworth D9 - plans included.


JCL
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  • RMweb Gold

I'm coming towards the end of a long build of a Barnum coach. It's the first full coach that I've put together, and I've learned an awful lot along the way. I'm at the painting stage (give or take) on that, so I thought I'd think about doing something a little easier (though that remains to be seen!).

I've seen a couple of threads on here about the A-W D9 diesel loco. A prototype was released to the LNER in 1933 for a series of trials in the north east. Now, I model the east coast of Lincolnshire so technically this is out of my area, but it's a small loco, and, apart from the curved roof ends doesn't seem to be too complicated (which is definitely needed!)

As it's the first time I've done a powered diesel loco, this is going to be in the realms of bodge, rather than finescale! For the power I've found that the Hornby Class 31 bogie that has a similar wheelbase. The power bogie has a 54.4mm wheelbase while the 1-co-1 has a 57mm wheelbase in 4mm scale with a middle wheel that's off centre. The photo below hopefully shows what I mean.

post-14192-0-70278200-1395790476_thumb.png

As you can see there's loads of room in there for the bogie, and the good news is that the bogie is a complete unit and is happy to run off on its own. :) One other bodge is that, at least until my skills get better, my intention is to keep with the class 31 wheels for the three in the middle instead of changing them to spoked, that might change as I go along. My only trepidation is with the curved roof ends. I've read around and there seems to be a few ways of doing it, so I'll get into that later.

My plan is to use plasticard and the Inkscape computer program to produce the parts, some grill that I picked up in my local hobby shop for the grill on the roof, and spoked bogie wheels that I have in a drawer that look to be the right size.

As you can see, the middle of the body is wider than the two ends. I intend to keep the strength of the loco there by using a .040" layer of plasticard to pad out the middle section on each side over a .020" layer that will have the details in it.

Apart from the threads on here, I've also found information in the sites below, and an in depth book by Brian Webb.

If anyone's been following the Barnum build on the Wainfleet thread you'll realise that I take an age to get things done I'm afraid, but I do try to get things finished right to the end. I'll upload the Inkscape files when I'm at a stage where I think it's about right in case anyone's interested in them.

Edited by JCL
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Hi JCL

 

When I build my diesels I laminate the roof from 40 thou (1mm) plastic card. I copy the drawing and then mark 1mm lines across the roof area of the end. These lines give me the width of each layer of card at its bottom. The side view is used to get the end shape of the roof.

 

post-16423-0-25368900-1395791632.png

 

Once the sections are cut and fitted to the loco I then file off the edges, slowly the roof takes shape. Any gaps are then filled with Miliput and smoothed off.

 

post-16423-0-86902700-1395791138_thumb.jpg

post-16423-0-21582100-1395791191.jpg

post-16423-0-82468600-1395791223_thumb.jpg

 

Sorry for the quality of the photos but they were to hand.

 

Good luck with the project, the D9 is one of the 14 mainline diesels not yet produced (or planned) as RTR.

 

Missing locos are

LMS/NBL 10800 or Brush rebuild 10800 "Hawk"
LMR/Fell 10100
Clayton DHP1
Brush/Cuban National Railways 2534 hp Co-Co (they ran trails on the MR Derby -Britsol route) numbers 2501-10
Armstong Whitworth D9 1-Co-1 800hp 'UniversaL' locomotive (ran trails on the LNER between Newcastle & Carlisle in 1933)

This could be 16 locomotives if the English Electric 500hp 0-6-0 trail locomotives D226 and D227 (later D0226 and D0227) were included as they worked ECS in and out of London, Liverpool Street, that's nearly main line.

 

 

 

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  • RMweb Gold

Thank-you Clive, I saw your post on a different D9 thread and thought your rooves looked great. I think they will be the way to go if I can make them symmetrical!

 

cheers

 

Jason

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  • RMweb Gold

Hi there

 

In my spare time I've managed to start putting some plans put together. I'm going to build the 1-co-1 using layers of styrene cut by the Cameo and glued using Testor's MEK which I've found works on the Barnum (I can't use the lemon based solvent other here). Here's where I'm at at the moment. As you can see, There's a whole mess of windows, holes and doors. There are five layers. The first layer runs the entire length of the loco, while the other four layers are laminated to

the middle of the first layer to form the main part of the body (which is .060" wider on each side than the two ends. The layer at the very top is the "beading".

 

The first thing I'll do is cut the whole lot in plain card to make sure that everything lines up, and if they do, then to cut in styrene. The outer two layers at the top will be in .010" and the rest will be in .020". I'll add some more parts to stiffen up the cab sides, but its not looking bad at the moment.

 

One thing I've found while looking at the photographs is that the two body sides don't appear to be exactly the same. There are foot holes only on one side, and on the other side there are louvres between the two top windows (which I need to re-edit!). While this stage takes time, hopefully it'll mean that the build is easier.

 

post-14192-0-70971200-1395955369_thumb.png

 

I'd just like to add that I found this thread really useful, http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/62954-armstrong-whitworth-d9/ , and I'd like to thank Michael Edge for allowing me to put up images showing his plans. The original post showing them can be found here: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=35571&hilit=Armstrong+Whitworth

 

 

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  • RMweb Gold

Hi there

 

I've finished the drawings and separated out the layers to create two cutting files. One is for .010" styrene, the other is for .020" styrene. I cut the .020" parts out earlier this evening and, because of their complex shapes (especially the chassis sides), they will need a bit of filing and sanding. Just before I went to bed I set the .010" file cutting. You can see the confetti I made below :)

 

post-14192-0-32749800-1396076994_thumb.jpg

 

Generally there's the outer layers for the sides and chassis, springs and axle boxes, beading and some other assorted stuff. I'm pretty pleased with how it's all come out, but here's a tip, if you are going to use a cutter to create grills or simulate louvres, use a blade and not an engraver. An engraver will just push the styrene down and stretch it.

 

Onwards and upwards :)

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  • RMweb Gold

Hi again

 

It's been quiet as I've been going over the files again to completely redraw large sections, making sure that everything lines up. Even so there are a couple of parts that I've got wrong so I'll have to recut them. It's easy to miss bits! Bum. Anyway, the .010" parts came off the mat really well.

 

post-14192-0-91132100-1396370179_thumb.png

 

The first thing I'm tackling is the chassis sides. They are made of laminated styrene. The top two layers are .010" sheet. The absolute top one has no detail, but the one underneath has small holes in it. Taking Mike Trice's lead, I glued the sides together and use a spike to push the styrene out from the back to give a representation of rivets.

 

post-14192-0-00227500-1396370252_thumb.png

 

I've put in all of the rivets that I can find. There are some that I can cross reference on the diagram, but most are from peering at the photos. :)

 

post-14192-0-71176500-1396370248_thumb.png

 

I've also taken a saw to the Hornby bogie, and the sides are now off. The cuts were made as close to the sides as possible to give a good length to the four tabs on each side. I'll use the tabs later with some L angle to attach the sides.

 

post-14192-0-66714000-1396370511_thumb.png

 

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  • RMweb Gold

Hmm, in theory, the second one will always be the better one as all the build issues would be ironed out, but in this case, there can be only one. Even though it was set up for multiple control, only one was ever built. This means that some bits I'm doing more than once, but I'm getting there, and it has still been easier than the Barnum coach so far. :)

 

The next bit is the radiator. You can see there are three different colours in this diagram excerpt. The diagonals are printed first, and are scribed lightly with the blade, then the yellow lines are scribed slightly more heavily, before the black lines are scribed with the scriber before being cut more deeply with the blade.

 

post-14192-0-02903500-1396413864_thumb.png

 

This gives the following:

 

post-14192-0-06838100-1396413862_thumb.png

 

The photos of the D9 show bolts or something similar in a channel above and below the radiator. To do this, the radiator layer has slots above and below. In the next layer down the cutter creates a number of holes that I open out with a drill before turning the whole lot upside down and glue in short pieces of .020" rod as shown below.

 

post-14192-0-10695800-1396413859_thumb.png

 

Next up the "beading" is glued on. Here I recut the beading in .010" with a wide border around it so that it will keep its shape as much as possible.

 

post-14192-0-55221800-1396413856_thumb.png

 

Then a spray of undercoat to see how the whole thing looks.

 

post-14192-0-14450300-1396413853_thumb.png

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Pretty good representation of the radiator elements, though there were no diagonals visible; on the drawing they may represent something behind the visible parts. Incidentally, the steps/handholds are little pull-down affairs. If you look carefully, they can be seen in the folded out position in this photo.

Edited by BernardTPM
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  • RMweb Gold

Cheers Bernard, well that's a pain on the radiator - I was just assuming the light wasn't right so they weren't clear.. I think I'll restore the verticals with a scalpel, which will hopefully reduce the visibility of the diagonals.

 

The steps might have to stay as they are though and I'll have to live with them - I'll have a think about that one.

 

Jason

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Well, lying here thinking about it (it's still early here), there's no point doing half a job, so I'll redo that side as there are a couple of things I'm not really keen about. I either need to do a better interpretation of the louvres, or get some of those 3D transfers as the ones for example. The side won't be wasted though as I'll be able to practice sanding a beveled top for the roof fitting.

 

I'll be modelling the footholes in the up position shown here http://www.derbysulzers.com/aw800yard.jpg

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OK, I'll be changing the side to this. The outside will be scored (blue), and the small hole in the middle will be cut out. I've also scored a small line under the hole to hopefully show the bottom of the hinge.

 

post-14192-0-88603500-1396455107_thumb.png

 

I hope this isn't too boring on the detail, but I thought I'd put a lot in so that when I put the file up at the end, if someone wants to have a go they've got all the instructions/pitfalls ahead of time.

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Thanks Bernard.

 

I have to say that that's an interesting exercise you did there, and I can certainly see it's in the A-W style (that book really is very good). If it wasn't for the war maybe we'd have been moving over to diesel a lot faster.

 

I've redrawn the side and done some test cuts. I think I'll be able to make the louvres more prominent without having to spend $18 on a postcard size sheet of them. The outer sides in .010' have already been cut, so I'll cut the other layers in .020" over the weekend. I'll put them together next week as I'll not have much else to do then. I have a completed end already and semi completed underframe sides which were straight forward, so hopefully the body sides won't cause any problems. I have to admit that I'm getting a lot faster putting in the bolt heads from .020" rod as I've had good practice now!

 

Watch this space next week.

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A bit of bad luck last night. I set the cutter going, and the first two passes (one score, one cut) were great. I decided to do one more cut, and to my horror the cutter must have got caught! The last cut became off-set and ruined the whole sheet.

post-14192-0-21099800-1396853132_thumb.jpg

I thought that that was the last of my .020" card, but luckily I found two more sheets in the drawer so I've been able to give it another go.

The moral of this story is 1) when cutting small holes in styrene with Silhouette Cameo, don't go over them a second time and 2) use a roller to make sure there is good adhesion between the styrene and the mat.

Edited by JCL
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If anyone's been following the Barnum build on the Wainfleet thread you'll realise that I take an age to get things done I'm afraid, but I do try to get things finished right to the end. I'll upload the Inkscape files when I'm at a stage where I think it's about right in case anyone's interested in them.

 

It's not that you take an age, it's that you've been too busy teaching the rest of us how to use the Cameo !

 

Dennis

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  • RMweb Gold

Thank you.

 

I'm in Calgary this week, so I'm modelling in a hotel, hence trying to get all of the cutting redone ahead of time. Now, I'm ex-IT, so I should know better than to upgrade some software just before doing a rush job, but I did do that, and although I had problems up front, the new software (Silhouette Studio) has actually made things easier.

 

Anyway, I've mangled to get the sides redone, and I'm much happier with the result. The first photo shows the sides as they came from the cutter. The base layer is .020", and has had the holes drilled out with a pin vice and a .025" bit (pretty much because that's what I have), the second layer is also .020" and includes the radiator, and finally the bottom and outer layer is .010" and includes representations of the louvres.

 

I think I mentioned this before, but I glued the base and middle layers together, then poked .020" rod into the holes one at a time to recreate bolts. I found it was easiest to cut a 3" piece of rod as a full length one was unwieldy. After poking, gluing, resting and cutting, I used a scalpel with the blade flat to the side and shaved off any bumps before flipping it over and, again using the blade, realigned the bolts to be central in the slots.

 

post-14192-0-03880900-1397000495_thumb.jpg

 

I ended up with the side in this photo:

 

post-14192-0-02769300-1397000518_thumb.jpg

 

The compromise with the louvres is that I had to remove every other one, so that they could be cut without shredding the plastic. They came out much better than the first attempt, so I'm happy with them as they are.

 

The light areas around the windows are caused by the fact that those areas are only .010" thick. They will not show when the model is painted.

 

Although the radiator looks very set back into the side, there is only the .010" sheet above it. I'll need to lightly deburr the edges. The foot holes have been modelled in the up position, as, looking again at the photos I have, this seems to me to be the way it travelled.

 

With regards to colour, I'm near a couple of model shops so I can get some dark blue paint, I'm thinking of CSX blue at the moment, or MO blue, which is slightly darker.

 

http://www.badgerthayer.com/modelflex.html

Edited by JCL
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This is a mockup with the middle section resting on the main side, resting on the chassis side

 

post-14192-0-09019500-1397002019_thumb.jpg

 

You can see from where the middle axle will be that I made a bit of a mess there, so this may end up being used for testing if I can't make it good. That said, there will be axle boxes and springs covering it, and it'll be black, so it might make it through.

 

You can't see them, but there are rivets all over the chassis side! Poking a tiny stick in a tiny hole to make rivets is remarkably therapeutic!

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This is the same chassis side as before with the extra detailing added such as springs, axle boxes, etc. as a first test, it doesn't look too bad, although the brake rodding (.020" rod), and the attachment point on the extreme right are a bit too proud. Easily fixed though, so I'll see if I can't do that tomorrow.

 

post-14192-0-36221800-1397023335_thumb.jpg

 

Sorry about the quality of the photo, it's getting late...

Edited by JCL
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  • RMweb Gold

The very first, innermost layer doesn't include the frame sides. I'm kind of thinking solebars, but I don't think it is, while the second layer foes. This allows me to use the ledge created to site the floor when I do it.

 

post-14192-0-73910900-1397104914_thumb.jpg

 

You can see in the photo that I've scored lines for the doors. There is an extra line in each side, in from the door, which is used to locate the middle wall section so that I know everything lines up perfectly.

 

post-14192-0-06522500-1397104891_thumb.jpg

 

This photo shows how I built up the axle boxes from six sheets of .010" styrene squeezing with tweezers to line everything up.

 

Finally, the photo below shows I've now got both sides finished. It shows all of the slight detail differences between the two sides. I think the louvres and rivets should show if thou click on the photo.

 

post-14192-0-30192200-1397104902_thumb.jpg

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  • RMweb Gold

Thou? Where did that come from?

 

On the blue thing, unless anyone says otherwise, I think I'll just go for the darkest one I can find.

 

Unfortunately I'm confined to the house today as I've a sick dog that needs constant attention (not dangerously sick, but he can't go outside for a long period and needs to be watched, good job I'm on holiday). On the up side I'll be able to do the other end, and I should be able to fabricate the floor. This might take a couple of goes, so I think I'll do the first one in cardboard as a pattern.

 

Cheers

 

Jason

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  • RMweb Gold

Well, that's the floor done. As promised I cut a rectangle of card, measured up the the bogie, and then started cutting away. Eventually I ended up with this:

 

post-14192-0-08590200-1397167505_thumb.jpg

 

Which was pretty snug with the motor, but not so that it would cause problems.

From there I used the card to cut out the floor proper:

 

post-14192-0-75253100-1397167518_thumb.jpg

 

Then, I started gluing the sides to the floor using some .080"x.080" as bracing before adding the chassis sides to the underneath. Luckily I was able to insert some .015"x.060" strip along the edge of the floor and then butt the chassis side up to that. This ensured that everything was as square as I could make it.

 

post-14192-0-35103700-1397168041_thumb.jpg

 

Then I added some strip to the top of the secondary motor housing at the end, and some .040" sheet to the front. This was then used to give the motor housing cover something to glue to. In this case I grabbed some .010" sheet, scribed two lines into it at 1cm intervals on the cork sheet. This gave an embossed effect that will hopefully look like the ridges on the prototype. Hopefully they will still show after painting.

 

post-14192-0-51353500-1397167528_thumb.jpg

 

This is where I am right now

 

post-14192-0-37206700-1397168490_thumb.jpg

 

And with the motor in there (propped up on tiny bricks at the moment).

 

post-14192-0-22301100-1397168788_thumb.jpg

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  • RMweb Gold

A quick question if I can, what height should the buffer centres be above the top of the rails? Unfortunately I meant to have a spare wagon or something to check with, but I forgot it. Is it about 12mm?

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  • RMweb Gold

Thanks Tren, that's good to know.

 

Once I've jacked it up the the right height, I'll be putting a bevel on the thicker part of the sides and starting on the roof. Probably no updates next week though I'm afraid as I'll be out of range.

 

Here's another question if I can, at the moment, the two outer wheels will be spoked as the will come from a Hornby A4 bogie, but the inner wheels are solid as they are from the Hornby 31. Also, I've noticed that the middle wheel on the Hornby bogie has a smaller diameter than the other two. Finally, the axles have cogs on them. My question is, is there any way I can replace the middle disc wheels without too much swearing? Ultra scale do replacements, but I think that these are disc wheels. Or, should I just go with the idea that they are 75% hidden behind the side frames?

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You might just be able to pull the disc wheels off and replace them with spoked from somewhere (another A4?), but check the axle height allows this without creating a rock.  Otherwise it might be a leave it alone jobbie.  No useful advice on the swearing issue, you're probably OK so long as its Lincolnshire dialect. :)

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