Churminster & Stowe Magna, Southern Railway

[Tony Teague]

I have too many concurrent projects going on at present - it's called 'bad multi-tasking' - with the result that I am not seeing anything finished, and so I resorted to what I always do in such circumstances - I built a couple of wagon kits!

 

This comes as close as one can get in this hobby to 'instant gratification' - aside of course, to buying something RTR.

 

 

Not that I really need any more wagons you understand, however, I do have a drawer full of kits just waiting for those listless moments.

 

This is, on the left a Slaters MR / LMS 10T ventilated fruit van, and on the right a Cambrian LMS 12T steel van; after just a couple of hours neither is completely finished (roofs are just resting on top), but it won't take long to deal with buffers, brake gear, couplings etc, and then they will probably join a brand new queue of wagons waiting for the paint shop, and for weathering!

 

Still, it does feel like I achieved something!

 

Tony

Edited November 23, 2022 by Tony Teague

[Mick Bonwick]

I know how concurrency works, so you have my sympathy, if that's the right word to use.

 

I continue to be impressed by your rate of work. I have been in the workshop all day (unusually) but have nothing much to show for it.

 

That steel van looks interesting . . .. . .

[Tony Teague]

7 minutes ago, Mick Bonwick said:

That steel van looks interesting . . .. . .

 

Apparently I bought it for just £6 - a steal - must have had it a while!

[Arun Sharma]

Borrowing a scene from Tony Wright's video build of the Midland 3F .....

The C3 now has its splashers - A point discovered the hard way - Make the splashers longer than you might need as it's easier to shorten them than to lengthen them! How did I discover that?

Secondly in this case, make them from thinner  material than the main body etch (these are made from 6thou N-S strip and folded around a 15mm diameter piece of copper pipe). Alternatively half etch the entire splasher which is what I have done on version 2 of the etch.

Thirdly, solder from underneath.

 

Edited February 4, 2021 by Arun Sharma

[Arun Sharma]

Chassis springs, and bits of firebox/ashpan are now in place. Next will be soldering rod laminations and working out where the mounting points for the brake hangers are.

 

 

[Tony Teague]

Great progress Arun!

[Arun Sharma]

Hmm - soldering the springs in place on the inside interferes with the ashpan - also looks a bit untidy. Version 2.1 [currently on the computer] now makes the spring positions more accurate/better defined using slot and tab and the lower ashpan is now a half etch attached to the bottom of the chassis with full height rivets on it (like the lower firebox etch).

This is quite a strange build as the mods discovered en-route mean that it is very much a scratch-build but with preformed parts. Again, the whole point of a test build.

 

The chassis side, with the half etched spots in red, is below:

 

Edited February 5, 2021 by Arun Sharma
addnl info

[Tony Teague]

On 05/02/2021 at 17:11, Arun Sharma said:

Hmm - soldering the springs in place on the inside interferes with the ashpan - also looks a bit untidy. Version 2.1 [currently on the computer] now makes the spring positions more accurate/better defined using slot and tab and the lower ashpan is now a half etch attached to the bottom of the chassis with full height rivets on it (like the lower firebox etch).

 

 

Arun as an inexperienced builder I might be wrong, but I would have thought that on most 4mm scale locos, the springs would form part of the etch rather than being separate parts to be soldered on? See this SEF E6 chassis:

 

 

My point being simply - are you making it harder than it needs to be?

 

Tony

Edited November 23, 2022 by Tony Teague

[Arun Sharma]

Tony - Depending on how the springs are drawn is the problem. It is quite possible to draw them so that with them in place it becomes impossible to have vertically moving hornblocks - i.e., springing on two or all three axles on an 0-6-0. Depending on who is your builder and his/her preferences regarding springing, having separate springs gives maximum flexibility. In any event, the 7mm version will have separate springs so it's a useful exercise anyway. Any EM or P4 version would also have separate springs as hornblock use is rather more common in those scales.

Edited February 5, 2021 by Arun Sharma

[pete_mcfarlane]

At the risk of cause more hassle with the C3 biold, one thing to watch out for with classes C2/C2X/C3 is the odd reverse curve where the splasher meets the footplate. You can see it in these rather nice photos:

https://thetransportlibrary.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=36313

 

https://thetransportlibrary.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=160871&search=C3&category_id=64&page=1

 

I do like the idea of separate springs on chassis etches. Cutting them off and refitting is never fun.

[Tony Teague]

10 hours ago, Arun Sharma said:

Tony - Depending on how the springs are drawn is the problem. It is quite possible to draw them so that with them in place it becomes impossible to have vertically moving hornblocks - i.e., springing on two or all three axles on an 0-6-0. Depending on who is your builder and his/her preferences regarding springing, having separate springs gives maximum flexibility. In any event, the 7mm version will have separate springs so it's a useful exercise anyway. Any EM or P4 version would also have separate springs as hornblock use is rather more common in those scales.

Arun

Yes I get that, and I realise that you are also aiming at 7mm.

For me personally, I won't be specifying a sprung / compensated chassis - if I have any locos in my fleet that are compensated it is an accident and I don't know about it! - nevertheless, I accept that the prevailing preference in the finer scales will be to have this.

Tony

[Michael Edge]

You'll have to get used to compensation with the ones you get from me, absolutely essential in the case of the 4-4-0.

[Mick Bonwick]

All this talk of compensation is keeping me in suspense.

[Tony Teague]

46 minutes ago, Michael Edge said:

You'll have to get used to compensation with the ones you get from me, absolutely essential in the case of the 4-4-0.

 

No problem - if you hadn't said though, I probably wouldn't have noticed!

Tony

[Arun Sharma]

13 hours ago, pete_mcfarlane said:

At the risk of cause more hassle with the C3 biold, one thing to watch out for with classes C2/C2X/C3 is the odd reverse curve where the splasher meets the footplate. You can see it in these rather nice photos:

https://thetransportlibrary.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=36313

 

https://thetransportlibrary.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=160871&search=C3&category_id=64&page=1

 

I do like the idea of separate springs on chassis etches. Cutting them off and refitting is never fun.

Clearances under the splashers are tight - no question. I was beginning to worry when the wheels weren't going round when I fitted the body and wheeled chassis together but it was just the crankpins sticking out hitting the footplate valance! To be trimmed forthwith!

I do like your photos - 2302, which I believe Tony is interested in, rather helpfully has the ex-B2X tender with the later axleboxes as well as LNER/SR group standard buffers which make life rather easier.

 

Picture of the wheeled chassis is attached. The wheels go round freely! though I will have to remove the protruding bits of crankpin. Using these Markits crankpins and threaded nuts, it almost makes sense to use these when trialling the fit and then use the older type of Markits washer as the final fit. In this case, I will just be prepared to file a little of the nut as required.

Edited February 6, 2021 by Arun Sharma
addnl info

[Tony Teague]

Brief update:

 

 

A more detailed update follows.

[Mick Bonwick]

Hooray!

 

The anticipation is killing me.

[Tony Teague]

Well its more than two weeks since I last visited the railway room - simply because I once again lost my modelling mojo - however, the good news is that after a thorough search, the missing mojo has been found!

 

It was discovered in a neighbour's garden where it had been fed and watered, but it had not occurred to them that I might be missing it - nevertheless it seems none the worse for sleeping rough during the icy cold weather, and after a quick polish and buffing up (if I may use those words on this channel), it seems ready for renewed service!

 

Of course how long it lasts is an entirely different matter - but I shall be optimistic. 

 

So yesterday I decided to start off, as so often, with a wagon build, despite this having failed back in January - and so after rummaging through the 'un-built wagon cache', I came up with three identical Ratio kits for the GWR 12T ventilated van - Mink A; I like to 'batch build' and so these seemed ideal, however, after just 15 minutes I realised that I was out of spoked wheels and would not get very far, so rapidly retreated to the comfort of my study.

 

Having researched these vans overnight, I was pleased to find that some had been built with 3-hole disc wheels (which I have), and so I resolved to carry on:

 

 

Here is the result after a couple of hours work - both of these will be unfitted examples to dia. V.24 and V.34, however, the third will be fitted to dia. V.23 and it will also have 8 spoked wheels, nevertheless I will aim to complete it next, as well as fettling the two LMS vans started on 26th January - one of these as yet has no brakes, buffers etc:

 

 

So it looks like I might soon have a new line of vehicles waiting for the paint shop - but one can never have enough vans!

 

Then there is the installation of third rail, also started last month and not completed; indeed it may have been that job that caused my mojo to go walkabout!

 

Tony

Edited November 23, 2022 by Tony Teague

[Tony Teague]

Today the 3rd GWR mink A was completed; this is a vac braked example to dia. V23 and has spoked wheels:

 

 

The two LMS vans started on 26th Jan were also completed and so, as predicted, the paint shop queue has started to build again:

 

 

Meanwhile, along at the end of the Churminster headshunt there are three more wagons which, although technically complete (2 are RTR) also require some paint shop attention to their planking prior to joining the even longer weathering queue:

 

 

Once we get a a bit of dry weather I will get on to painting but in the meantime I have also made a little progress with the 3rd rail installation that stalled last month:

 

 

In case anyone doubts the tedious nature of this job, I thought I would illustrate it - prepare to nod off!

 

The 3rd rail is held in place on raised insulators and they come (Peco) on sprues as above; to prepare these you must first remove all of the moulding threads that support each insulator, this:

 

 

Then Paint the bit at the tope that represent the clip holding the rail, but not the white bit in the middle, representing the insulator:

 

 

After that they are cut from the sprue and threaded onto the conductor rail - perhaps the most fiddly and tedioous bit:

 

 

Finally holes are drilled in every 4th sleeper and the insulators lined up with and inserted into them with a bit of glue:

 

 

....and then of course the rail sides will need painting!

 

In this particular, double track section which is just over 2.5m long, I need about 9 lengths of conductor rail, each with around 20 insulators, so 180 to paint, trim, thread and 180 holes to drill in sleepers!

 

I have resolved to do a little at a time in order to prevent my mojo from running out in horror!

 

Tony

Edited November 23, 2022 by Tony Teague

[Danemouth]

I remember a friend of mine saying how tedious it was, he made a jig to place the conductor rail the correct distance from the running rails.

 

Dave

[Mick Bonwick]

It looks good when it's finished, though.

[thegreenhowards]

3 hours ago, Tony Teague said:

Today the 3rd GWR mink A was completed; this is a vac braked example to dia. V23 and has spoked wheels:

 

 

The two LMS vans started on 26th Jan were also completed and so, as predicted, the paint shop queue has started to build again:

 

 

Meanwhile, along at the end of the Churminster headshunt there are three more wagons which, although technically complete (2 are RTR) also require some paint shop attention to their planking prior to joining the even longer weathering queue:

 

 

Once we get a a bit of dry weather I will get on to painting but in the meantime I have also made a little progress with the 3rd rail installation that stalled last month:

 

 

In case anyone doubts the tedious nature of this job, I thought I would illustrate it - prepare to nod off!

 

The 3rd rail is held in place on raised insulators and they come (Peco) on sprues as above; to prepare these you must first remove all of the moulding threads that support each insulator, this:

 

 

Then Paint the bit at the tope that represent the clip holding the rail, but not the white bit in the middle, representing the insulator:

 

 

After that they are cut from the sprue and threaded onto the conductor rail - perhaps the most fiddly and tedioous bit:

 

 

Finally holes are drilled in every 4th sleeper and the insulators lined up with and inserted into them with a bit of glue:

 

 

and then of course the rail sides will need painting!

 

In this particular, double track section which is just over 2.5m long, I need about 9 lengths of conductor rail, each with around 20 insulators, so 180 to paint, trim, thread and 180 holes to drill in sleepers!

 

I have resolved to do a little at a time in order to prevent my mojo from running out in horror!

 

Tony

 

 

Sounds like a good reason to avoid modelling Southern Railway to me!

[Tony Teague]

3 hours ago, Mick Bonwick said:

It looks good when it's finished, though.

 

I agree - I'll post some pictures once it's all in place and painted.

After this stretch there is just about one metre left round by Churminster Junction, plus some fiddly bits at the entrance to the terminating bay platforms at Stowe Magna; the rest is all complete.

 

7 minutes ago, thegreenhowards said:

Sounds like a good reason to avoid modelling Southern Railway to me!

 

Yes, or at least keeping to non-electrified lines!

[Arun Sharma]

The Marsh C3 proceeds - It seems slow because it is just one of several contemporaneous design and build projects viz, 7mm class 309 EMU, Class 43 power car, Sacre 12AT and of course the 4mm B2X tender that will go on the C3. As Tony might agree, swapping about different projects stops the mojo from wandering too far!

At present I am assembling the brake gear on the C3 - Because these engines were built with steam pumps + Weir pumps as part of the system for pre-heating the water in the tender, there was limited room between the frames and this meant that the 'longerons'  connecting the transverse spreaders were on the outside of the wheels unlike their near cousins the C2X where the longerons were in the more common position on the inside.

As this build is of a non-motorised, unpainted 'proof of concept' model, I don't have to concern myself with working out which bits should be painted and in which order.

The brake hangers are my own lost wax castings - I am considering whether to produce a 3D print version for insulation reasons but arguably a smear of epoxy on the brass brake shoes will work just as well and may well be far more robust.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 18, 2021 by Arun Sharma
addnl info

[Tony Teague]

Meanwhile, through a tunnel beyond Stowe Magna station.....the engineering possession continues and there is slow but steady progress with the 3rd rail installation.

 

So far, all insulator pots have been painted, 6 of 8 full length 3rd rails have their pots attached and two of 8 rails are fitted into their final position - so about 25% done.

 

At the same time, and in order to maintain variety........

 

.......you may perhaps recall that back on p.42, at the end of December, I took delivery of a kit of parts for the SR Waterloo & City Line shunter DS75 - again, courtesy of Arun Sharma:

 

 

It is a very tiny loco that will sit over a 'spud' motor bogie, and so there are not a huge number of parts, conversely, it is not a "kit" in the normal sense and there are no instructions, but I decided it was time to make a start.

 

The first problem I encountered (back in December) was that I was unable to obtain a Black Beetle / Spud bogie of exactly the right length (8' 6") and so after due consideration I went for one that is about 1 or 2mm too long, on the basis that you can hardly see the wheels anyway.

 

Arun had provided two small holes on each body side into which the axle ends of the motor bogie would fit; they dont' have any particular function - they are not bearing points - other than to line up the bogie with the body correctly; so my first task was to elongate each of these very slightly, so as to allow for the over length bogie - you can see how small the difference is in this shot:

 

 

Incidentally, my camera seems to have immense difficulty focussing on the white 3D printed material from which the body is made, so my apologies if some of these are woolly!

 

Once this was completed and a snug fit achieved, I considered how best to mount the bogie under the body and decided to fit a plasticard falsefloor, which was then cut to size:

 

 

The motor has a small protrusion at the top from where it can be fixed in place, but this will not be possible for this loco; once the two halves are glued together with the floor in place, there will be no way to access the interior of the body.

 

Rather than attempt to remove the 'protrusion' I decided to cut a hole in the false floor to allow for it; this will enable the floor and body to sit snugly on top of the bogie to give the correct ride height.

 

 

And thats where I got to today!

 

Before I can stick the bodywork together I will now have to paint the inside because of the lack of access later; indeed, I will also have to glaze it, which mean painting the outside as well, but unless someone has a bright idea, I can see no alternative.

 

Tony

Edited November 23, 2022 by Tony Teague