Castle Aching

[Regularity]

Bl00dy hall, that’s impressive.

Edited October 20, 2018 by Regularity

[Edwardian]

Superb. I'm in no position to quibble over the width of the corbelling! 

 

I'm sure a day with the horses will provide modelleing inspiration too - how are horses handled in and out of horseboxes? I'm sure the same principles apply for road or rail vehicles. And do take a measuring stick to provide a reference dimension for scale horse-droppings.

 

As ever, Tricky just pretends to model in order to disguise the fact that he has developed both a time machine and a miniaturising machine.

 

Consistent winner of my "model most likely to convince me I'm actually there" award.

 

Still cannot get over his bubbles.

 

Guy Rixon of this parish was contemplating more 3D printed accessories and I opened my big trap to suggest that some door vents were quite bulbous, like those on the GER 4-wheel coaches, for instance. This might be an area, thinks I, where new media allows mixed media to better represent the prototype than the use of flat etched components.

 

No sooner had the suggestion been made, then Guy started to work his magic.

 

Guy has already produced an accessory pack for these coaches: axle boxes, springs, buffer guides and gas lamp tops (they were converted to gas).  

 

Here are Guy's vents.

 

My positioning is sloppy and it can be seen that I have failed to trim the sprue off properly, but it can be seen that they fit both the Eveleigh Creations and Peter K GER 4-wheeler sides. 

 

I washed the vents with ink, otherwise the detail would not have shown up at all.

 

I understand that they will be available via Shapeways shortly.  Big thanks to Guy.

 

They are the business. All I need now are the right tools (any suggestions welcome) and to be wearing my Magic Brave Pants!

 

OK, finding Brave Pants and a broom handle is my problem, but I do need two things: a suitable iron and a tool for detaching parts cleanly from the etch. Suggestions for either, including where to buy, would be most welcome.

[jcm@gwr]

As ever, Tricky just pretends to model in order to disguise the fact that he has developed both a time machine and a miniaturising machine.

 

Consistent winner of my "model most likely to convince me I'm actually there" award.

 

Still cannot get over his bubbles.

 

Guy Rixon of this parish was contemplating more 3D printed accessories and I opened my big trap to suggest that some door vents were quite bulbous, like those on the GER 4-wheel coaches, for instance. This might be an area, thinks I, where new media allows mixed media to better represent the prototype than the use of flat etched components.

 

No sooner had the suggestion been made, then Guy started to work his magic.

 

Guy has already produced an accessory pack for these coaches: axle boxes, springs, buffer guides and gas lamp tops (they were converted to gas).  

 

Here are Guy's vents.

 

My positioning is sloppy and it can be seen that I have failed to trim the sprue off properly, but it can be seen that they fit both the Eveleigh Creations and Peter K GER 4-wheeler sides. 

 

I washed the vents with ink, otherwise the detail would not have shown up at all.

 

I understand that they will be available via Shapeways shortly.  Big thanks to Guy.

 

They are the business. All I need now are the right tools (any suggestions welcome) and to be wearing my Magic Brave Pants!

 

OK, finding Brave Pants and a broom handle is my problem, but I do need two things: a suitable iron and a tool for detaching parts cleanly from the etch. Suggestions for either, including where to buy, would be most welcome.

 

I didn't realise you were modelling them with roller shutter windows!

[Annie]

We creep forward with the drill hall.  We are all going out for the day today (horses, not trains, alas), so I doubt I'll have that much more to report by the end of the weekend.

 

It has been a busy week and a half at work, made busier by the need to catch up post-'flu (still full of sniffles), so I lost even my usual weekend modelling time.  Never mind.

 

Some compensation will come on Tuesday, when I will bunk off work to spend the day amongst Preservationalists. I anticipate quite a bit of pre-Grouping interest will be encountered, so I look forward to reporting from the field in due course. 

Absolutely brilliant craftsmanship James.  I went and found my best ladies steampunk hat with the aviator goggles just so I could take it off to you.  Excellent modelmaking of the highest order bar none.

 

[webbcompound]

.

 I do need two things: a suitable iron and a tool for detaching parts cleanly from the etch. Suggestions for either, including where to buy, would be most welcome.

Xacto knife chisel blades from Eileens Emporium (and no doubt other places). Also excellent for carving/planing unwanted detail from plastic kits.

 

And yes Mr Rixon is a saint. I floated a problem with making short wheelbase brake gear on another forum. Without me asking he had the design posted  the same day, and I ordered the parts from his Shapeways shop within a week.

[Martin S-C]

Is it possible please to have a link to Guy's Shapeways shop?

[Regularity]

Xacto knife chisel blades from Eileens Emporium (and no doubt other places).

 

I have usually resorted to a ham-fisted reaching for the nearest thing, such as a Stanley knife with a piece of MDF underneath the etch, but the suggestion that a chisel knife blade be used is much, much better, and even if our host doesn’t use it, I will!

 

As for the iron, Mr. Edward Ian, I suggest one with plenty of heat, at least 40W. For structural joins, use standard 60/40 tin/lead solder, but for attaching overlays, 145 is your best best. With clean surfaces, liquid flux and a hot iron, you should have little difficulty but do remember to tin the surfaces first. Then all you should need is flux and iron.

[Compound2632]

Always use the minimum amount of solder.

[Regularity]

Always use the minimum amount of solder.

Oh yes.

Not to save money, but to reduce cleaning up.

 

After I tin, I quickly wipe the surface whilst it is still hot with a bit of Scotchbrite, to remove most of what’s there but leave a very fine film.

[Guy Rixon]

Is it possible please to have a link to Guy's Shapeways shop?

 

It's in my signature.

[Guy Rixon]

The best soldering thing I ever bought was a 40W soldering station, from Maplins a few years back. It cost £38 in a sale. You can find similar on-line if you don't mind waiting while they are shipped from China.

 

This station has temperature adjustable from 150C to about 450. 150 nominal is about right for whitemetal and I usually set 300 or up for 60/40 solder and about 200 for 145 solder. The temperature at the sensor, inside the iron, is higher than on the outside of the tip and anyway the interface temperature needs to be a bit higher than the melting point of the solder in order to heat the work to above that temperature.

 

If I wanted something cheaper than £38 I'd slap myself until I came to my senses and then if I still wanted cheap I'd buy an Antex XS25 at a bit less than £30. Cheaper than that it's a complete gamble as to whether the iron does anything useful at all. I once bought a £15 iron from a DIY warehouse and it was utter rubbish.

 

If more money is available then the Antex 75W soldering-station is a decent upgrade from the 40W kind. More power is always better (channelling Jeremy C. here, but in soldering it's actually true).

[Regularity]

I have an Antex 660TC iron, a model no longer available, and its purchase was one of the two things which revolutionised my soldering. The other was purple Scotchbrite for physically cleaning before tinning, during tinning and after soldering.

[nick_bastable]

As ever, Tricky just pretends to model in order to disguise the fact that he has developed both a time machine and a miniaturising machine.

 

Consistent winner of my "model most likely to convince me I'm actually there" award.

 

Still cannot get over his bubbles.

 

Guy Rixon of this parish was contemplating more 3D printed accessories and I opened my big trap to suggest that some door vents were quite bulbous, like those on the GER 4-wheel coaches, for instance. This might be an area, thinks I, where new media allows mixed media to better represent the prototype than the use of flat etched components.

 

No sooner had the suggestion been made, then Guy started to work his magic.

 

Guy has already produced an accessory pack for these coaches: axle boxes, springs, buffer guides and gas lamp tops (they were converted to gas).  

 

Here are Guy's vents.

 

My positioning is sloppy and it can be seen that I have failed to trim the sprue off properly, but it can be seen that they fit both the Eveleigh Creations and Peter K GER 4-wheeler sides. 

 

I washed the vents with ink, otherwise the detail would not have shown up at all.

 

I understand that they will be available via Shapeways shortly.  Big thanks to Guy.

 

They are the business. All I need now are the right tools (any suggestions welcome) and to be wearing my Magic Brave Pants!

 

OK, finding Brave Pants and a broom handle is my problem, but I do need two things: a suitable iron and a tool for detaching parts cleanly from the etch. Suggestions for either, including where to buy, would be most welcome.

have  you tried solder paste ?   but if using conventional solder use a suitable  flux

 

Nick

[Compound2632]

The other was purple Scotchbrite for physically cleaning before tinning, during tinning and after soldering.

 

Cleanliness is next to godliness, in soldering.

[Charlie586]

We creep forward with the drill hall.  We are all going out for the day today (horses, not trains, alas), so I doubt I'll have that much more to report by the end of the weekend.

 

It has been a busy week and a half at work, made busier by the need to catch up post-'flu (still full of sniffles), so I lost even my usual weekend modelling time.  Never mind.

 

Some compensation will come on Tuesday, when I will bunk off work to spend the day amongst Preservationalists. I anticipate quite a bit of pre-Grouping interest will be encountered, so I look forward to reporting from the field in due course. 

 

I'm about 450 pages behind (and also trying yet failing to follow current posts) but just had to say the drill hall looks fantastic. A cracking piece of modelling.

[Martin S-C]

Cleanliness is next to godliness, in soldering.

Soldering is a Dark Art to me.

 

 

I sorely need some tutoring in the subject.

[NCB]

 

 I do need two things: a suitable iron and a tool for detaching parts cleanly from the etch. Suggestions for either, including where to buy, would be most welcome.

 

A Xeron sprue-cutter will be fine for a lot of etched parts. Antex soldering irons are quality and good value for money; I use a 25W a lot. For soldering etched kits I use mostly Carr's 188 solder and Carr's Green Label flux; flows nicely and doesn't form blobs, great for running down seams.

[RedGemAlchemist]

Soldering is a Dark Art to me.

 

 

I sorely need some tutoring in the subject.

Same. What's the spell to make it do itself?

[Compound2632]

Same. What's the spell to make it do itself?

 

Practice.

[Guy Rixon]

Same. What's the spell to make it do itself?

 

Eheu, ferrum malum, metallum maladictus. Fornicate! Fornicate! Flux!

[Edwardian]

Absolutely brilliant craftsmanship James.  I went and found my best ladies steampunk hat with the aviator goggles just so I could take it off to you.  Excellent modelmaking of the highest order bar none.

 

 

A special thanks to Annie for that.

 

I must say, I was feeling a little unenthusiastic about returning the drill hall, but I have to say that the positive ratings have very much restored my motivation.  Thanks, chaps.

 

Thanks also for the excellent advice re chisel blades and soldering irons.

 

Now, what did the North British have by way of dual fitted coaching stock running in the early 1900s?  Third class, I should think.  Very interesting feature of fish lassie specials in the latest GERS Journal.

[Guy Rixon]

OK, finding Brave Pants and a broom handle is my problem, but I do need two things: a suitable iron and a tool for detaching parts cleanly from the etch. Suggestions for either, including where to buy, would be most welcome.

I use a chisel blade as already suggested. I have to careful with the pressure as my current stock of such blades break easily. The plastic-modelling crowd who post to Youtube seem to prefer a rigid surface on which to cut etches: they suggest glass.

Edited October 20, 2018 by Guy Rixon

[Regularity]

The GER had running powers from Doncaster to York, where it could exchange with the NER, which in turn connected with the NBR at Berwick.

Dual fitted stock not required.

[Compound2632]

Now, what did the North British have by way of dual fitted coaching stock running in the early 1900s?  Third class, I should think.  Very interesting feature of fish lassie specials in the latest GERS Journal.

 

The Midland & North British Joint Stock, along with the Midland's fleet of sleeping cars, were dual fitted as the North British was a Westinghouse line. Presumably the ECJS was also dual fitted. There must have been a certain amount of dual fitted NBR stock as some did find its way south of the border in Midland trains - though I suspect the majority would be vehicles for specialised classes of passenger, such as family saloons and fish trucks.

[Edwardian]

The GER had running powers from Doncaster to York, where it could exchange with the NER, which in turn connected with the NBR at Berwick.

Dual fitted stock not required.

 

These services, which seem to have been of GNoS and NB stock ran on many routes: ECML, GE&GN Joint, Midland and GN lines to M&GN and via LNW (Nene Valley).  Practically every way you can imagine of getting from the north of Scotland to Lowestoft and Yarmouth.

 

North British dual-fitted stock was specified in some of the special train notices.

 

No good for CA's planned flora, as they generally ran in early October.