Warren Branch

[Alister_G]

12 minutes ago, chuffinghell said:

I’ve possibly over weathered it

 

Nope...

 

 

Al.

[chuffinghell]

25 minutes ago, Alister_G said:

 

Nope...

 

 

Al.

cheers Al

 

I wasn’t sure because all the photos I’ve looked at are of lovingly preserved stations with pristine signage etc

 

 

Photos of working lines of the period tend to be in black and white

 

So I acted on the advice of someone who once said that soot and dirt gets everywhere but I’ve kept the lettering clean as if someone has given them the once over with a rag

 

I scaled my drawing off another photograph which may explain it looking too big? I was also limited to the font available

 

Edited May 28, 2020 by chuffinghell

[Alister_G]

Yep, I'm quite sure they were cleaned regularly, but over time there would still be a build up of grime which you wouldn't shift.

 

I think you've got it about spot on.

 

Al.

[chuffinghell]

18 minutes ago, Alister_G said:

Yep, I'm quite sure they were cleaned regularly, but over time there would still be a build up of grime which you wouldn't shift.

 

I think you've got it about spot on.

 

Al.

that’s why I’ve kept the lettering clean(ish) assuming they’ve been wiped over with a rag

[chuffinghell]

I’ve got a couple of Coopercraft benches to build

 

I bought two packs about eighteen months ago as well as a few packs of their platform trolleys since then they appear to be as rare as rocking horse poo so I was lucky to get them when I did

 

Are Coopercraft no longer trading?

 

Edited May 28, 2020 by chuffinghell

[St Enodoc]

7 hours ago, Stubby47 said:

I can get 3 wheels to touch the ground

PSMT...

[MrWolf]

Stubby47, being a bit old school, I build my wagons on a small piece of glass out of an old picture that I fixed a bit of mounting card to the back of and protected the edges with insulating tape. (Because I can be a bit savage at times) I then know all is well in one plane and use a cheap 3 inch engineers square for the verticals.

Or you could spend the price of a good night out on one of those new fangled jigs.

[MrWolf]

4 hours ago, chuffinghell said:

 

Are Coopercraft no longer trading?

 

To cut a long, convoluted and frankly tedious saga short...

 

No.

 

Apparently the original moulds were bought up by someone who was going to continue making the kits.

 

Which is like a lot of the vintage motorcycles I come across. Lots of talk about doing them up and using them again and no way are they for sale.

 

Which translates as: They are rusting beyond use in a damp shed.

 

Which is why people are asking and presumably getting £25 +post for the old W5 cattle wagon kit.

[sb67]

The Station Nameboard look fantastic Chris. I don't think it's over weathered at all, I'm sure even if cleaned it wouldn't take long to get a coating of grime. 

[Stubby47]

5 hours ago, MrWolf said:

Stubby47, being a bit old school, I build my wagons on a small piece of glass out of an old picture that I fixed a bit of mounting card to the back of and protected the edges with insulating tape. (Because I can be a bit savage at times) I then know all is well in one plane and use a cheap 3 inch engineers square for the verticals.

Or you could spend the price of a good night out on one of those new fangled jigs.

I have a thick glass plate, with chamfered edges and little rubber feet.

It doesn't make any difference. 

 

I made a 7mm 16t wagon which had independent sprung wheelboxes on each corner, guaranteeing all four wheels would touch the ground - I managed to glue one of the sprung units up so in no longer sprung....

 

I know my limits.

[Gopher]

12 hours ago, chuffinghell said:

I’ve got a couple of Coopercraft benches to build

 

I bought two packs about eighteen months ago as well as a few packs of their platform trolleys since then they appear to be as rare as rocking horse poo so I was lucky to get them when I did

 

Are Coopercraft no longer trading?

 

There are some other good alternatives for GWR benches.  Metcalfe do a nice etched wood kit, which are similar to the Coopercraft version, Dart castings offer the longer versions in white metal.  Maybe I should flog my Coopercraft benches if thy are that much in demand.   

[chuffinghell]

3 hours ago, Stubby47 said:

I know my limits.

I keep pushing mine and inevitably get frustrated 

[MrWolf]

3 hours ago, Stubby47 said:

I have a thick glass plate, with chamfered edges and little rubber feet.

It doesn't make any difference. 

 

I made a 7mm 16t wagon which had independent sprung wheelboxes on each corner, guaranteeing all four wheels would touch the ground - I managed to glue one of the sprung units up so in no longer sprung....

 

I know my limits.

I do get that. I can repair and re-solder a 1920s motorcycle petrol tank, I can make a wiring loom from scratch, I can make control cables and solder the fittings to the ends.

Can I solder dropper cables to a piece of Peco track?

 

No.

 

'Er indoors did it and she has never used a soldering iron in her life.

[Rowsley17D]

8 hours ago, MrWolf said:

I do get that. I can repair and re-solder a 1920s motorcycle petrol tank, I can make a wiring loom from scratch, I can make control cables and solder the fittings to the ends.

Can I solder dropper cables to a piece of Peco track?

 

No.

 

'Er indoors did it and she has never used a soldering iron in her life.

 

Phosphoric acid (dilute) flux and decent solder works for me.

[MrWolf]

That would be it, I usually use Bakers or some other flux that is so old I am not sure what it is and industrial solder (Thrown out years ago by BAe as non conforming) for wiring and cables or sticks of tinsmiths solder and tinning paste for sheet metal work. I have been using cored solder from one of the big electronics suppliers and it's been driving me mad. But it worked with miss first timer because she didn't know it was cored and dunked it in the flux tin.

[richbrummitt]

2 hours ago, MrWolf said:

That would be it, I usually use Bakers or some other flux that is so old I am not sure what it is and industrial solder (Thrown out years ago by BAe as non conforming) for wiring and cables or sticks of tinsmiths solder and tinning paste for sheet metal work. I have been using cored solder from one of the big electronics suppliers and it's been driving me mad. But it worked with miss first timer because she didn't know it was cored and dunked it in the flux tin.

 

I use fluxite with cored solder 

[chuffinghell]

I use superglue and colour it in with a silver pen 

[MrWolf]

2 hours ago, richbrummitt said:

 

I use fluxite with cored solder 

 

That's the stuff I couldn't recall as the tin is grubby and at least 50 years old. I don't think that I have ever actually bought a tin of flux!

[MrWolf]

1 hour ago, chuffinghell said:

I use superglue and colour it in with a silver pen 

 

Inhaling all the time!

[St Enodoc]

6 hours ago, richbrummitt said:

 

I use fluxite with cored solder 

Fluxite every time, for every job.

[St Enodoc]

3 hours ago, MrWolf said:

 

That's the stuff I couldn't recall as the tin is grubby and at least 50 years old. I don't think that I have ever actually bought a tin of flux!

It does last a while. Last year I finished a tin that I'd bought in about 1984.

[MrWolf]

5 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

It does last a while. Last year I finished a tin that I'd bought in about 1984.

I seem to find half a tin of the stuff every time I clear out an old shed or garage.

Are you old enough to remember when everyone's grandfather had a shed or garage that contained a workbench and tools that actually got used by someone with practical skills?

As they faded away, so did industry and our ability to fend for ourselves.

 

We model makers might just be the last real men on earth.

The ladies might swoon over some one trick pony pretty boy, but if they need a tyre changing or a war fighting, it's down to us....

[chuffinghell]

The best flux is a flux capacitor

 

 

The only problem is it requires 1.21 gigawatts 

[polybear]

16 hours ago, MrWolf said:

That would be it, I usually use Bakers or some other flux that is so old I am not sure what it is and industrial solder (Thrown out years ago by BAe as non conforming)

 

Ah yes - the same firm that has been known to put shelf life expiry stickers on bags of screws.  And no, they weren't anything special.....

 

2 hours ago, MrWolf said:

I seem to find half a tin of the stuff every time I clear out an old shed or garage.

Are you old enough to remember when everyone's grandfather had a shed or garage that contained a workbench and tools that actually got used by someone with practical skills?

As they faded away, so did industry and our ability to fend for ourselves.

 

We model makers might just be the last real men on earth.

The ladies might swoon over some one trick pony pretty boy, but if they need a tyre changing or a war fighting, it's down to us....

 

The one trick pretty boys can't do DIY - they'd chip their nail varnish.....

[simonmcp]

20 hours ago, chuffinghell said:

I use superglue and colour it in with a silver pen 

My type of soldering. Just want to say your layout and quality of work is inspiring, absolutely top hole stuff. I will have to up my game, it will now probably take me longer than Pendon to make a building which will be at least a thousandth of the quality.

 

Simon