Inspired by Brent June 1947

[The Fatadder]

A little more on the D43, which now has underframe trussing soldered on (along with a pair of my battery boxes). 
 

still needs a dyno and vac cylinders, which I will be printing tomorrow now that I’ve updated the drawing.  Hopefully my extra ipa will also arrive tomorrow to aid the washing process.

 I also have a set of parts for a full interior drawn up.  This includes a guards compartment with approximated detail, a compartment wall with one seat and a wall with a seat on either side.   I have a sliced file ready with enough to do the D43 S a test, however it’s a 7 hour print so I want to do as an over night job (and that needs the printer moved to the downstairs loo for added ventilation as I want to run over night)

if this doesn’t work, the drawing will be adjusted to just print the seats.

[The Fatadder]

With the arrival of my Ransom & Rapier crane yesterday, I couldnt resist getting it out of the box this evening.  So far I have fitted all of the etched plates (including the no.16 plate as a temporary measure).  It will need a new set of no19 plates (and a set for the match wagon which for some reason Bachmann missed off).

 

I did have one slight issue in that the access cover used to hide the jib mechanism was jammed in, after a call to Bachmann to confirm I could get a replacement if all went wrong I managed to pull it out with tweezers (thankfully with no damage).  The only problem is that the box wont fit the crane with the jib down, I am debating adding an extra siding on the fiddleyard in which to store it (much like they have at Pendon).  I cant actually fit the whole thing on my photo plank! 

 

I was planning to fit Dinghams this evening, but I cant find the packet...  Instead I have just fitted the very nice etched plates, one of which was a bit of a pain as there is a raised disk where the plate should go (i think this is the end of one of the shafts in the gearbox).  The solution was to find some scrap brass which matched the thickness of the disk, then to glue that to the underside of the plate so that it was a consistent distance from the crane side. 

 

 

Just need to get a tool / mess van to run with it now....... 

 

Edited January 26, 2022 by The Fatadder

[St Enodoc]

3 hours ago, The Fatadder said:

The only problem is that the box wont fit the crane with the jib down

Mine has stayed in its box for exactly that reason.

[The Fatadder]

Just finished my second print, this time containing the revised vac cylinders, dynamos, the battery boxes (printed at a different orientation) and a revised version of the restaurant  cowl.  

 

At first glance I think the vac cylinder is sorted now, this time with the actuator arm printed in situ.  Likewise the dynamo has come out ok (but needs double checking for size).  At first glance I am happy with the cowl, although removing the supports without risking damage is still a bit tricky (definitely a part in which its worth printing a spare).  Finally the battery boxes, it shows an improvement with a lot less layering, however the definition on the hinges / plank lines is not as good as before.  I think it will be worth  having another go, slightly increasing the size of the details.  

 

I now have what will be my longest print (and my first overnight job) running, printing an interior for the D43.  (I am still working on my first modern print for the structure gauging train optical car, but having issues with working out the support structure ensuring everything is supported.

[Neal Ball]

I think the ability to print anything through 3D printing is terrific. 
 

When you say the definition of the hinges, isn’t as good etc…. I suspect you are beating yourself up.

 

Just the process of printing anything like that; plus the vents and cowls is just jaw dropping.

 

Dont beat yourself up - it’s bound to be amazing.

[The Fatadder]

Here is most of last nights output, the D43 interior came out well and is currently curing.   
 

the vac cylinder is nearly there, the change in orientation has lost some size on the bolt heads which will need to be compensated for.  Also the support brackets are very thin and are snapping off when separated from the base.  I’m thinking a continuous extrusion between the two is the answer seeing as you can’t see the detail behind the solebar.

 

im unsure on the dynamo, it looks a little weedy compared to the MJT one.  Really I need to get some actual measurements of a real one.

 

battery boxes, as with the vac cylinders it’s lost some thickness on the raised details (the handles printed perfectly again thankfully). While I’ve avoided the layering on the previous drawing there are some odd extra lines added.  Will need to speak with someone more knowledgeable than me to get an idea as to what went wrong f here.  The other change to the brackets worked perfectly however 

[The Fatadder]

Now that it’s been cured, here is my modular interior parts set up for the D43.   The next step will be drawing up a seat /wall for a first class seat and a first / third combination.   A restaurant seat will also be done later once I’m ready to start doing the inside of the centenary set (I think the h26 is missing seats as well…)

the parts will now be tided up before adding a comet corridor wall.  Then I need to print 5 more plus two ends for the top light third that’s also on the bench 

 

I did think about a fully modular approach making hole compartments that glue  together, but rejected it part in terms of time (in that it takes a lot more room on the printer for a complete compartment than a simple wall/seat) and wall thickness (in that for strength of part the compartment wall thickness would have to double). I think this is a perfect compromise 

[The Fatadder]

 

quick test fit of all the components, will glue it together later and move onto the next one….

[The Fatadder]

I had a delivery with some POW sides transfers today, with the all important Milk train to London transfer for the O13.  It also had a set of conflat transfers which I have needed for a long time.  
 

The O13 transfers were fine, the van now just needs some handrails adding and it’s ready for service.

 

the conflat on the other hand were awful, first up the transfers were very close together making them tricky to use (rub downs being a pain at the best of times).  Worse the critical transfer for the lettering is really poorly printed.  I wasn’t happy with the numbers so these were removed and replaced with HMRS transfers

i think once weathered they will be good enough for  mixing in the middle of a long freight (after all the eye is really drawn to the first and last vehicles in a set), but annoying none the less.

[The Fatadder]

More cad work,

I have now drawn up a corridor connection (although I am in too minds on this, particularly seeing the etch / card combos elsewhere).  My intention is more that this gives a placeholder (with a card flex gangway added to the end). 
 

more useful is a set of buffers, this has been drawn from photos (along with verifying with model dimensions).  Really need to get to Didcot to take some prototype dimensions and verify properly.    I am going to run a test print later and see how it compares with the Comet ones as a start point (at least if it matches those it’s as good as what I’m currently using)

 

 

 

I’ve ordered a screen protector for the printer and have decided no printing until it arrives, (my logic being that I’d be so mad if I had a failure which damaged the screen during the time waiting for the protector to arrive!)

 

I have been looking again at photos of H26/H29 in Russell, as I’m hoping to use some of the components I have drawn up to improve it.   I will also be drawing up the restaurant seats to finally finish the interior on it as part of this years push to finish interior detailing.

[Siberian Snooper]

What do you think of the corridor connections on the O11 thread?

 

There's the prospect of them being produced as a separate item.

 

 

[The Fatadder]

On 05/02/2022 at 08:58, Siberian Snooper said:

What do you think of the corridor connections on the O11 thread?

 

There's the prospect of them being produced as a separate item.

 

They do look rather good, looking forward to seeing how I get on with building the the on the kit before making a decision as to exactly how I will tackle the wider usage.   This is part of the logic for my 3d print, I can get something on the ends of my coaches as a stop gap which can then be upgraded over time.  I tend to apply this logic in a lot of areas with coach building, there is a "complete" state which has  full brake detail, full end detail, curtains (where required), passengers, and flexible corridor connections.   However the majority of the fleet fall somewhere below this standard, good enough to look right on the layout but missing some of the final refinements which will be added over time.  Now that I am approaching the point of having more complete rakes than I have fiddleyard space for I can start removing a set at a time and giving it an upgrade.   

 

The first to get this treatment will be the Centenaries, which are currently lacking brake detail and interiors, this will be replaced with the Plymouth - Paddington rake which is currently on the workbench awaiting painting.

 

Speaking of the Plymouth - Paddington rake, this is the current state of play:

70ft Brake Third - Concertina - Washed ready for primer tomorrow 

Composite - Sunshine Stock - paint stripper

Dining Car - H33 - final detailing / roof improvements

Composite - Hornby Bow End (needs roof painting grey / rebranding)

Third - Toplight - requires underframe finishing and an interior

Brake Third - Either Hawksworth or Sunshine Stock (the latter being in paint stripper)

Slip - Sunshine Stock - Washed ready for primer tomorrow 

 

 

I am torn as to the second brake third, I need to double check what brakes are currently on the Sleeper set as with two sunshine stock coaches currently in the set I'd rather have something else.  My next coach build is probably going to be a large window brake third, so the spare Hawksworth (intended as part of the Plymouth section of my down Riviera set) can be replaced.

 

The two Sunshine Stock coaches were put in paintstripper at lunch today to get rid of the ruined varnishing from last year, with the aim to spray the Sunshine BKT, CK, Slip, Concertina BTK and an A30 Autocoach all at the same time. 

 

On the 3d printing side of things, I have made another revision to the vacuum cylinder to improve the detail, along with a revision to the dynamo (increasing the size).  Once the screen protector arrives I think the printer is going to have to run 24/7 to get through the backlog.  I am particularly keen to see how the buffers come out, as if this has worked well I will be adjusting the drawing to get an oval buffered version ready for when the O11 siphon kit is ready.

[Penrhos1920]

On 05/02/2022 at 08:47, The Fatadder said:

More cad work,

I have now drawn up a corridor connection (although I am in too minds on this, particularly seeing the etch / card combos elsewhere).  My intention is more that this gives a placeholder (with a card flex gangway added to the end). 
 

more useful is a set of buffers, this has been drawn from photos (along with verifying with model dimensions).  Really need to get to Didcot to take some prototype dimensions and verify properly.    I am going to run a test print later and see how it compares with the Comet ones as a start point (at least if it matches those it’s as good as what I’m currently using)

 

 

 

I’ve ordered a screen protector for the printer and have decided no printing until it arrives, (my logic being that I’d be so mad if I had a failure which damaged the screen during the time waiting for the protector to arrive!)

 

I have been looking again at photos of H26/H29 in Russell, as I’m hoping to use some of the components I have drawn up to improve it.   I will also be drawing up the restaurant seats to finally finish the interior on it as part of this years push to finish interior detailing.

 

 

Are there sprung?

[Neal Ball]

2 hours ago, The Fatadder said:

They do look rather good, looking forward to seeing how I get on with building the the on the kit before making a decision as to exactly how I will tackle the wider usage.   This is part of the logic for my 3d print, I can get something on the ends of my coaches as a stop gap which can then be upgraded over time.  I tend to apply this logic in a lot of areas with coach building, there is a "complete" state which has  full brake detail, full end detail, curtains (where required), passengers, and flexible corridor connections.   However the majority of the fleet fall somewhere below this standard, good enough to look right on the layout but missing some of the final refinements which will be added over time.  Now that I am approaching the point of having more complete rakes than I have fiddleyard space for I can start removing a set at a time and giving it an upgrade.   

 

The first to get this treatment will be the Centenaries, which are currently lacking brake detail and interiors, this will be replaced with the Plymouth - Paddington rake which is currently on the workbench awaiting painting.

 

Speaking of the Plymouth - Paddington rake, this is the current state of play:

70ft Brake Third - Concertina - Washed ready for primer tomorrow 

Composite - Sunshine Stock - paint stripper

Dining Car - H33 - final detailing / roof improvements

Composite - Hornby Bow End (needs roof painting grey / rebranding)

Third - Toplight - requires underframe finishing and an interior

Brake Third - Either Hawksworth or Sunshine Stock (the latter being in paint stripper)

Slip - Sunshine Stock - Washed ready for primer tomorrow 

 

 

I am torn as to the second brake third, I need to double check what brakes are currently on the Sleeper set as with two sunshine stock coaches currently in the set I'd rather have something else.  My next coach build is probably going to be a large window brake third, so the spare Hawksworth (intended as part of the Plymouth section of my down Riviera set) can be replaced.

 

The two Sunshine Stock coaches were put in paintstripper at lunch today to get rid of the ruined varnishing from last year, with the aim to spray the Sunshine BKT, CK, Slip, Concertina BTK and an A30 Autocoach all at the same time. 

 

On the 3d printing side of things, I have made another revision to the vacuum cylinder to improve the detail, along with a revision to the dynamo (increasing the size).  Once the screen protector arrives I think the printer is going to have to run 24/7 to get through the backlog.  I am particularly keen to see how the buffers come out, as if this has worked well I will be adjusting the drawing to get an oval buffered version ready for when the O11 siphon kit is ready.

 

This sounds great Rich, although your "to do" list now sounds longer than mine!

 

I managed a bit of spraying this afternoon - it was hot in the sun - I had a rattle can of white and just wanted to do the interiors of the H44 and H57 - I still dont think its warm enough to get the spray gun out just yet though. 

 

Goos luck with all the plans, looking forward to seeing the updates.

[Neal Ball]

Shameless plug - please excuse the incursion Rich @The Fatadder hope this is ok.

 

I've launched a Poll on the GWR sub forum to canvass opinion about a new R-T-R Pannier loco. There has been a call for a while about Pannier locos that span a greater time frame and specifically from those modellers that focus on the pre-WW2 period.  Details of the poll are on the link below, with my rationale on page 1 just below the poll questions.

 

 

[The Fatadder]

No problem at all Neal, my vote has already been cast...

 

Ive just set the revised roof cowl to print, so hopefully I will have something to show for it in the morning...  I went out to the garage this evening to check what spare coaches I have, and while out there spotted that my H26/H29 is missing the cowling so will sort that while I am at it.  I'm pretty sure it is also the wrong diagram for the coach which ran in the Riviera in 47 and should be on 4 wheel bogies, so I might give it a bit more of an overhaul while I have it inside...

 

A Hornby Collett compo was found which will be perfect for the Plymouth - Paddington that I have been working on (or at least it will once I have the roof repainted).  While a pair of D95, along with an LMS period 3 brake and an LMS 12 wheel diner will be left boxed up for a future project.  I suspect one of the D95 will end up a BCK eventually.....

 

Just need to photograph the rest of the passenger rakes now to properly work out the state of play.

 

 

[Neal Ball]

28 minutes ago, The Fatadder said:

No problem at all Neal, my vote has already been cast...

 

Ive just set the revised roof cowl to print, so hopefully I will have something to show for it in the morning...  I went out to the garage this evening to check what spare coaches I have, and while out there spotted that my H26/H29 is missing the cowling so will sort that while I am at it.  I'm pretty sure it is also the wrong diagram for the coach which ran in the Riviera in 47 and should be on 4 wheel bogies, so I might give it a bit more of an overhaul while I have it inside...

 

A Hornby Collett compo was found which will be perfect for the Plymouth - Paddington that I have been working on (or at least it will once I have the roof repainted).  While a pair of D95, along with an LMS period 3 brake and an LMS 12 wheel diner will be left boxed up for a future project.  I suspect one of the D95 will end up a BCK eventually.....

 

Just need to photograph the rest of the passenger rakes now to properly work out the state of play.

 

 

Thats still quite a list to work through….

 

Thanks again for the cowling and vents, look forward to seeing them off the printer….

 

Im pleased that so far the Centenary sides for the Brake 3rd and 3rd corridor are still in their packets! I hope they stay there a while, I’ve other pressing things to finish!

 

Have a good evening.

[The Fatadder]

 The paint on the two sunshine stock builds has been particularly hard to shift, a long soak in IPA followed by a longer soak in oven cleaner should have had all the paint off in no time.  Instead at best maybe a third lifted easily and the rest had to be removed with a fibreglass brush.  
 

the brake third is now complete, the composite is about 3/4 done and will be finished tomorrow evening.  They then need the grab handle holes drilling out before gluing the coaches back together.   
 

Mind numbingly dull work, but at least it’s nearly done after putting off for quite a while 

[Neal Ball]

6 hours ago, The Fatadder said:

 The paint on the two sunshine stock builds has been particularly hard to shift, a long soak in IPA followed by a longer soak in oven cleaner should have had all the paint off in no time.  Instead at best maybe a third lifted easily and the rest had to be removed with a fibreglass brush.  
 

the brake third is now complete, the composite is about 3/4 done and will be finished tomorrow evening.  They then need the grab handle holes drilling out before gluing the coaches back together.   
 

Mind numbingly dull work, but at least it’s nearly done after putting off for quite a while 

Oh no! The IPA attacks the glue as well? Yet didn’t shift all the paint… just because some transfers didn’t take. Nuisance to say the least.

[The Fatadder]

With these two the one with replacement sides I had already removed the sides from the roof /ends.  In the case of the composite (brass sides/ends with Mainline roof) the glue bonds held up ok. 
 

these were the pair where after lining and lettering the coaches I ended up with a greyish cloudiness to the varnish that I couldn’t repair. 
 

the print looks like it came out ok, currently in the wash unit so will get a better look at lunchtime once it’s been cured. 

 

edit: I should add that IPA is particularly effective at removing glue without damaging plastic, I know of people who use it specifically for that purpose in that you can soak a RTR coach in the stuff and then easily remove the glazing without any damage.

Edited February 8, 2022 by The Fatadder

[The Fatadder]

Back from the gym I had a quick check on the parts before work, everything has come out without failure (always a good start).  The key parts (buffers, dynamo, cowls) have all come out ok.  The buffers need a further inspection and checking if they are fit for purpose, after which I plan on a bit of destructive testing.  I want to see how fragile the resin printed buffers are in service, the most logical way to do so is to fit them to a scrap coach and do some impact testing...

 

The print also includes two types of corridor connection (with and without the X bracing on the side), these are more of a proof of concept which with the lack of a drawing have been sized based on the Comet mouldings but slightly thinner.  The idea is that you would have a moulded part glued to the coach and then add the card flexible part to the end to fill the gap between it and the next coach.  Again I am planning to use my old Hornby / Comet D95 bodies as a test to see how it looks before deciding if its worth continuing to refine the drawing to get closer to scale dimensions.  The plan is to also draw up an alternative in the retracted position, (and also to test if its possible to integrate the mounting brackets as part of the print.  Seeing as it worked fine for the actuator arm on the vacuum cylinder I see no reason as to why it wouldnt work for the corridor brackets...

 

Tonight's print will be the interior for the toplight third.

[The Fatadder]

I have achieved a fair bit of progress this evening, first up the slip and concertina have both been primed. The former is ready for paint while the latter needed some rework (that I was expecting) around the doors.

 

the Sunshine Brake Third and Composite have both been fully stripped of paint, washed and are now awaiting a coat of etch primer (probably in the morning).  The BTK has also had the sides glued back onto the roof /ends.

 

I can’t find the W irons for the Toplight third (they have been put somewhere safe) so there’s a slight delay on that under frame being detailed.  Instead I have dug out the 70ft H27 RC for the riviera set.  This should be H26 9571 however somehow I ended up with the wrong kit a long time back and built without noticing that it has flat rather than bow ends.   I have no interest in building another near identical coach, so instead finished as H27 9572 a photo of which is in Russell.  At the time I had no photos, so built the roof as per Comets instructions.  Naturally this means it’s completely wrong as their instructions only show it in BR condition! 
 

the roof has been improved with my cowl print added, roof handrails, roof ribs (which admittedly are a a little too wide) along with drilling the holes for the end handrails.

 

the holes have been drilled out for the missing door handles / handrails, the steam heat pipe and steps were added to the solebar and my vac cylinders and dynamo were added to the underframe.

 

it still needs the aforementioned end handrails, new gas tanks that are the right size (I will need to draw up a 3D print for these), fitting the door handles etc, a repair to a window that fell out while drilling the handles, corridor connection brackets, bogie brakes fitting and of course some paint. I’ve omitted the destination board brackets as it will have boards fitted post paint.

 

while adding the roof ribs I spotted that I’ve missed the long rainstrips from the concertina, so these will have to be glued on tomorrow before I spray the primer 

Edited February 8, 2022 by The Fatadder

[The Fatadder]

Moving on with the H27 this evening I have added the grab rails and door handles to the side, along with the end handrails before painting.   The coach is now ready to return to the layout (at least until I have drawn up some replacement gas tanks that are the right size).

 

Moving on, last night I printed the interior for the C28 Toplight Third.  Something odd has gone wrong here, the seat on the left was a spare when I printed the interior for the concertina. 
The one on the right is from last nights print, same drawing and same supports (although I cant recall if the direction on the build plate was the same, I think last time I had them in two different directions).  The new prints have a number of vertical ribs across the panel (though oddly not on the seat).  These are not in anyway on the drawing…..

taken before adding the toilets (again using the slaters part.)

 

Moving on there has been a fair bit of priming, with the F24 slip, D121 brake third, E155 composite, and D43 concertina all primed.  The F24 and D43 will both be in chocolate and cream (as will the A30 autocoach), the other two will also probably end up in wartime brown.  There is a photo in Russell of A30 189 which claims that it is at Brent, I would dispute this as there are several details which don’t look right for Brent station.  Painting will start tomorrow if the weather stays dry

concertina (has now had a second coat of primer)

F24 slip

D122

A30 was originally going to be in wartime brown, but I can’t find a suitable photo so will be chocolate and cream

E155

[Bluemonkey presents....]

Fantastic, great job(s). You really are giving it an even bigger push since you have your printer.

[Siberian Snooper]

The concertina looks exquisite.