David Andrews Princess - Princess Marie Louise 6206

[Rob Pulham]

Well with a proper two forward one back amount of progress I think that I am now back to where I was pre Stafford.

 

When fitting the replacement combination lever I really struggled with the pieces of brass wire which I had previously cut and peined over to hold the various rods in place. After the 4th or 5th pinged off into space I got fed up and chucked up a length of 1.9mm nickel rod in the lathe and turned down some small pins. These combined with some etched washers that I found on a spare etch now retain the rods in place.

 

 

It was just prior to refitting that I thought that I had best remove the other combination lever and beef it up as I didn't want lightening to strike in the same pace twice.

 

After soldering another strip of nickel to the back and filing to shape I happened to place the two combination levers together on the bench where I realised that the replacement was longer that the one that snapped. As luck would have it I was able to solder a small piece of scrap etch into the bottom end of the fluted section and then drill through to the correct length. The last job was to cut of the over long bit and file the round on the bottom.

 

 

These are the four stages of the operation but the good news is that it's all now reassembled and I am subject to test running back to where I was and ready to fit the return cranks.

[Rob Pulham]

A few more micro fixings later saw. a major milestone both mentally and build wise.

 

These are the pins which hold the eccentric rod to the bottom of the expansion link. Initially I made the two fully threaded versions but then realised that it would be better if they were only partially threaded (14BA).

 

 

 

I had already fitted the return cranks and after this it was a short step to getting the full motion running.

 

 

 

[Rob Pulham]

Still beavering away making slow but steady progress. Next up were the front bogie top bearers (or that's how they are referred to in the instructions) and the fitting of the bogie itself. The former were easy, tin with 100 degree solder and use the RSU to heat from inside the frames.

 

The bogie fitting was a little more challenging. My fitting of the representation of inside motion had scuppered using the method that the kit provided. At Guildex I had a chat with Nick about how he had done his and he confirmed what I had thought would have to be the solution. Which is do it like the prototype (simplified of course) and fit a plate to the bottom of the frames. This proved challenging because of my seeming inability to drill a hole in the middle of a rectangular plate... It took three attempts before I got the hole in the ruddy middle. Actually, I am being a bit hard on myself. The first one was in the middle it’s just the plate was too small…

 

With the part finally ready to be fitted I turned my attention to the mounting screw and the 'nut'. The kit comes with a nice turned elongated top had type bush which is threaded 6ba in place of a conventional nut.

 

I had already made the side control springing block to accept this threaded bush so I wanted to use it. However now that the fixing point was much lower in the frames.

 

What I couldn’t work out was whether the bus was threaded all the way to the bottom of the hole or not because I didn’t have a long enough 6BA screw to check. So rather than trying to shorten the existing bush I thought it easier to turn up a new shorter version. I also turned the first 0.45mm to just fit tin the hole in the mounting plate which is slightly larger than the screw.

 

Despite my messing about for quite some time with a stack of washers trying to work out how long the shortened bush needed to be, it ended up slightly short.

 

Thankfully I had the foresight to leave it attached to the rest of the stock so once I worked out how much longer it needed to be, it was and easy job to turn another 2.5mm down to the same diameter. A short length of spring allows the bogie to float up and down by about 1mm.

 

 

 

Having got this far there doesn’t seem to be much in the way of swing before it hits the inside of the cylinders but this may change when on track and the side control does its job. Time will tell whether I need to cut back the cylinder wrappers.

 

[Rob Pulham]

I am working my way along the chassis adding the remaining details as I go. Two quite prominent features are the injectors. The kit included a nice brass casting for the live steam injector. This just needed some of the 'pipes' extending so that I can attach it more securely.

 

 

The exhaust injector was another matter as I couldn't find a casting for it so I had to buy one in. I had a look on Ragstone and LG Miniatures and the LG one seemed nearest to what I needed. Living out in the sticks as I do I was most impressed that I ordered it on Monday morning and it arrived yesterday lunchtime.

 

 

This is what you get from Laurie and the image below is what I need it to look like. 

To completely misquote Eric Morecambe, 'Most of the right bits, but not necessarily in the right order'.

 

 

Sadly this means a bit of butchery is in order to get pipes facing the right way and one pipe joint that needs removing. The hardest thing about doing things like this is actually holding things to work on them. Luckily there are plenty of holes and spigots on the casting so a bit of work on a few offcuts of brass later and we have a few handles soldered on temporarily.

 

 

The small hex nut fitting is a part on one end that wasn't present in any of the castings, so I filed a hex on the end of a bit of rod and turned the spigots on it.

 

More to follow when I have it back to together.

[JeffP]

Now see, there's the difference between someone who knows what he's doing, and dabblers, (me).😁 

When you mentioned problems holding stuff, small parts etc, my mind immediately pictured one of those mushroom-shaped things with moveable pins.

Actually soldering something in place as a handle never occurred to me...but what a brilliant idea.

Thanks Rob.

[Rob Pulham]

I am almost at the point of reassembly of the exhaust injector, having added bits, chopped other bits off and repositioned the main elbow bend.

This is a small taster of what I have been up to.



First I milled a square section on the end of a piece of brass rod and drilled a 1.6mm hole in the middle and then a 0.6mm hole at each corner before taking it back to the lathe to part it off. This is the basis for a very visible pipe flange.

 

 

Then I made up some miniature fixings and soldered them to the copper pipe. The much magnified photos make it look much messier than it is to the naked eye.

 

[Chas Levin]

I've just been making some very small parts too Rob; I found myself wondering why it's so enjoyable and satisfying making things in miniature... 🤔

 

Lovely work btw, almost forgot to say that!

[Rob Pulham]

Hi Chaz,

 

For me, it's because I enjoy making things as opposed to just assembling the parts that others have made. - if that makes any sense.

[Chas Levin]

On 08/11/2023 at 21:33, Rob Pulham said:

Hi Chaz,

 

For me, it's because I enjoy making things as opposed to just assembling the parts that others have made. - if that makes any sense.

 

Makes total sense Rob and so do I, hugely.

 

What puzzles me though is why we apparently enjoy making things in miniature so much? Why is executing a model of something very large, in a very small scale, so satisfying? Look at model ships, all that rigging, or walschaerts valve gear...

 

Life's mysteries... 🪐

Edited November 12, 2023 by Chas Levin

[Rob Pulham]

This morning saw the injector back in one piece with all the right notes in the right order - for this loco at least.

 

 

 

This was the set up for attaching the copper pipework using my RSU and cheapo self locking tweezers. Unlike many RSU users I don't use a steel plate to solder on to, much preferring to clip a smooth jawed crocodile clip to the part or the tweezers holding it. 

 

 

I do have one thing to work out and that's the bracket below. There are etched slots in the rear frame assembly for it but I am not sure at the minute how it attaches to the injector itself to allow it to mount. The other bracket which I have already attached is quite visible in the photo above to no issues with that one.

 

 

I also see from the photo that I need to clean up the etching cusp from it too if I plan to use it.

 

[Rob Pulham]

A friend advised that the spurious bracket was a generic item included in quite a few David Andrews Kits to aid in fixing the exhaust injector casting. 

 

In the end I elected to do without it and drilled and tapped the main pipe. I will probably do the same to the flat on top of the bracket too because I have fixed one problem and create another - where it needs to sit there is nothing above it to screw it to. I will add a small plate under the main plates that fit under the cab to extend it and allow me to fix to it.

 

Hopefully it will make sense when I have done it and taken photos. I have also added the missing control rod on top of the universal joint.

 

 

The screw is slightly on the wonk but it won't be seen and I have used a countersunk screw to help compensate for it not sitting perfectly flat

 

[Chas Levin]

Rob, when you're working on something this small but with this many soldered parts, do you find it more prone to having earlier soldering loosen when adding pieces? Do you use the same temperature-type of solder throughout and which temperature(s) solder(s) do you use for something like this?

[Rob Pulham]

Hi Chaz,

 

Yes, I do try to minimise this by using several different melting point solders. on this item I used 296 degree for the first fixings on each of the two main parts, melted with the microflame. Then I used 188 degree and then finally 145 degree and the RSU to attach the brackets. When joining the two main parts together I initially soldered then with 145 but having forgotten something I ended up loosening the joint with the heat so used some Loctite 638 to still them together.

[Rob Pulham]

Well things have moved on somewhat since my last update prior to answering Chaz. I did get the injectors fitted.

 

 

Then I moved onto the sandpipes which are almost the last bits for the chassis (unless I find something that I have missed. I say almost because there are also the bottom halves of the sandbox fillers to fit to the chassis, they are split at footplate level.

 

 

I started with the brackets which come as a hockey stick shaped etch. Looking at photos they need to be bent into handed pairs. where they fit around either side of the wheel.

 

 

Next in order to make the fittings for where they pass through the brackets and combine with the steam pipes I soldered two different diameter microbore tubes together.

 

 

I cut half a dozen lengths at 2.5mm and another eight at 1mm using a pin chuck a ruler and a piercing saw

I also created a hex on some thick walled tube to make nuts from. Again cutting lengths off with the piercing saw

 

 

From all the photos that I have, there are only six sand pipes fitted so I have two spare brackets.

In the photo below you can see the assembly order of the various bits of tube, bracket and nut. I will have to trim all the pipe ends to the same length

 

 

[Rob Pulham]

I forgot to add that I also got the frame section of the sandbox filler pipes fitted too.

[Rob Pulham]

This week has been about adding small details to the body work starting at the front, I added the smokebox door dart, and the handrail above it. The LMS design of handrail has the rail ending in a button at each end. I have heard of people making these from microbore tube but I didn't have any nickel silver tube so I put a short length of 1.4mm nickel rod in the lathe and drilled it out to fit over the handrail at either end and then fitted the rod into a pin chuck to chop of the appropriate length soldering on to the hand rail and filing to finish. From the photo I still have a bit of cleanin up of excess solder to do on the handrail knobs.

 

 

One detail that is quite prominent on the smokebox door but absent from the kit is the door latch. It is included in the GA reproduced on the front cover of the Wild Swan volume so I was able to import this into Fusion 360 not only to get the length and spacing of the handrail and knobs but also the outline and dimensions of the latch.

 

 

 

The latch itself was filed up from a strip of scrap etch which I doubled up at the thicker end to file to shape to accommodate the curve of the smokebox door.

The brass rod will be the stay which fits into the front ring. It's 2mm x 1mm bar and I popped it in a 1-2mm ER 25 collet to turn the spigot on the end. The fun bit will be soldering the latch onto the door. But more of that when I have achieved it.

 

[Rob Pulham]

Still plugging away at the small details but it's moving forward and that's what matters.

 

I got the top feed fitted to the boiler which in the period being modelled is domeless so one less bit to worry about. Then I added the covers for the pipework underneath and two circular covers on top of the boiler. - Since starting to post this I have re-read the instructions and realised that I have fitted the wrong etched covers under the top feed so they will have to come off and be swapped.

 

 

I still have the pipes to fit where they come out of the sides but as they disappear into the centre splashers I need to wait until the boiler is mounted to fit those.

 

Next I have been working on the front end of the footplate where there is a surprising amount going on and photos are invaluable here as the instructions are not that easy to follow.

 

 

Initially I fitted all the lamp irons the same way around but noted that the two outer ones are in fact reversed. Fitting the steps to the curve of the footplate was fun. The first one went into place really easy and first time. I tinned them and used the RSU from the back with the footplate on it's edge and clamped to the workbench to stop it moving away as I held the footstep in position. The second one took three or four attempts to get it in the right place...

 

 

Looking at a 1935 photo when Princess Marie Louise was built, I thought that I would have to make the earlier style sandbox filler lids which had a knob on the top rather than a recessed bar. However, when I looked at a 1936 photo taken when the coal pusher tender was fitted I noted that it had already had the later style filler lids which are included as casting as in the kit. One job less There is still much to do, but we are getting there.

 

[Chas Levin]

Getting there indeed Rob! Wonderful detailing all round IMHO - and those injectors look superb now they're fitted.

[Rob Pulham]

Progress has been inhibited somewhat by another bout of cold but I have been working away at the sand box fillers which are mostly fitted but I have forgotten to take photos of them and the many oil boxes that are dotted about the footplate. I haven't got them fitted yet, or to be more accurate I haven't even finished piping them all up yet.

 

This is the process I went through to get the pipes fitted to them.

 

 

Starting with the castings, I cut them from the sprues and cleaned them up making sure that the backs were flat.

 

 

Next I soldered them to some lengths of coarse scale nickel rail that I have.

 

 

It was at this point where I realised that I had yet another sprue so the process started again...

 

Once soldered to the rail, the rail was supported on a parallel and held in place in the vice with a small offcut from a brass plug pin.

 

 

Initially I tried to drill out the cast 'nuts' on the bottom of the oil boxes but they were so misshapen  that I ended up filing/milling them down to witness marks and redrilling. I soldered in short lengths of micro bore tubing which I had filed to a hex and them some lengths of 28 gauge brass beading wire. 

 

 

In hindsight I am not sure that on most of them it was worth the effort of filing the hex but I know it's there...

[Rob Pulham]

A one step forward and two back moment this morning. Yesterday I spent some time finishing off piping up the rest of the 2 port oilboxe castings. This morning I pored over photographs to see where on the footplate these things were fitted. the upshot was that I was quite dismayed to find that of the 10 or 12 2 port oilboxes only possibly 2 of them were piped from the bottom as in the castings. The rest were piped from the back or inset into the footplate. I need to see if I can find a clear shot of the rear of the bracket supporting the front 4 port oil boxes as the instructions show a 2 port mounted to the inner side of the back of this bracket but I don't know whether this was fitted by 1936 or if it's a later addition. BR period photos show what appear to be two 4 ports back to back but they may be a 4 port on the front and two 2 ports side by side on the back.*

 

Now I need to decide whether I file off all the pipes and 'nuts' that I have added to those that don't need them or whether I make some replacements and put the piped up versions in the spares box. I did a quick check through my spares box and kits to see if I had any suitable castings that I could swap them out for but I don't.

 

Decisions, decisions...

 

Edited to add that I found a photo and I do need a couple piped up from the bottom.

[Chas Levin]

My 2c worth would be to keep the ones you made and make replacements - pity to scrap that work...

[Rob Pulham]

Thanks Chaz,

 

That was definitely my view but since then I have been doing a bit more research and unless I have made a mistake in scaling a GA, it seems that the kit supplied castings are a bit overscale. So I have decided to cut my losses and use those that are piped as needed and modify those that aren't. 

 

It serves me right I should have checked first before piping them all up.

[Rob Pulham]

I have managed to make steady progress over the festive period despite the setback of a power cut all day on Christmas Eve.

 

I now have all the oilers repiped and soldered to their respective brackets or direct to the footplate.

 

 

 

This was the setup that I used to solder the pipes into the rear of the bracket mounted two port oilers. An oak block with a hole drilled in it to accommodate the leadscrew f the handvice. The hole is quite a snug fit so that when the block is clamped to the bench the vice itself doesn't move. The brackets were clamped in the vice with a piece of square bar supporting them which seemed to make up for the third or fourth hands that I could have done with when soldering pipes to the others.

 

 

 

I won't fit the bracket mounted ones until I have the firebox and boiler fitted in the next couple of days or so. I have also done work on a few other details but I am not ready to share them yet as they aren't completed yet.

[Rob Pulham]

Progress since my last post has been steady with a number of small details added to the build.

I added the door latch and the lamp iron to the smokebox door. It looks slightly wonky in these views something I will need to double check.

 

 

 

As I mentioned earlier I had added the wrong covers for the pipes leading from the top feed so these were removed and replaced with the correct ones.

 

 

Finally for this post I also fitted the cab seats after adding a stay which allows them to be lowered into position.

 

 

 

 

[Rob Pulham]

I am trying to get all the small details at least made into sub assemblies before I add them to the footplate once the firebox and boiler have been attached. I have worked on the firebox print and got that to sit down nicely. I needed a bit removing from the underside of the cutouts in the ring that fits inside the boiler to get it to sit down over the rear splashers.

 

I also assembled the reversing levers which was an exercise in clumsiness n my part. The various parts are all held together with rivets but I decided to turn some nickel pins to do the job instead backing them up with some etched washers.

 

Using some 2mm nickel rod I fit it in a collet and having the smallest stick out that I could I attempted to turn them down to 0.8mm. I broke the first three off, trying different tools (carbide insert first and then a round nosed HSS tool). Lastly and successfully I tried a new sharp edged HSS bit straight out of the packet. As supplied it had a diamond shaped grind on it with the leading point towards the chuck.. Running the lathe at approx 2000 rpm I managed to make the four different pins needed for this part of the build.

 

I mentioned clumsiness on my part as I was starting to assemble the various bits on to the turned pins I thought it a good idea to pop a few etched washers onto the longest pin to make filing of the etching cusps a bit easier. No sooner had I got them threaded on than I dropped the thing on the floor. Or rather I dropped it onto my apron where it rolled to the edge, hesitated for a second then dropped off. Could I find it, not a chance. despite moving various items stored under my bench and wiping over the laminate floor with a cloth.

 

Back to the lathe I went and turned another. I got most of it assembled when I happened to bend down to pick up a file that I dropped and found the missing pin complete with washers. However not 30 seconds later I managed to drop the last pin that I was fitting almost a repeat of the first where it dropped into the ether after slowly sliding down my apron. Thankfully the one that I found has allowed me to escape having to turn yet another.

 

Below is the reversing levers all assembled but not yet fixed in place.

 

 

Lastly I returned to the lathe to turn down the spigots on the bottoms of the safety valve castings so that they would fit in holes drilled in the top of the fire box as they came of the sprues the spigots were anything but round or parallel.

 

 

I wrapped each casting in a slice of aluminium drinks can to protect it and popped it in a collet. Then I faced the ends of the spigots off and turned them all to 1.7mm diameter.