Blackstone Workbench 2.0

[AVS1998]

After almost a week of settling in at my parents' house, my new job, and having tidied my room, I decided to have a look at some of the coach kits that have been lurking in boxes and work out how far along they are. 

 

I remembered I had a Mouza Models 6 wheel SER second which I had begun, but struggled with - I think this was when I was still getting to grips with soldering to begin with. The most I seem to have managed is fitting some of the droplights to the coach sides, and trying to work around the chassis (which had compensation!) As I recall, the kit came with no instructions (it was a second-hand eBay purchase). 

 

 

 

It's just taped quickly onto a Hattons full brake there to get an idea of its presence - I'm determined this year to get to grips with soldering and try to sold-ier (leave the punnery to the professionals, Alex) at least one kit over the summer. Who knows, it may well be this one. 

 

Also in the boxes were a pair of birdcage brakes, one is a third, the other, a corridor composite. The composite is in a much fuller state of completion, though still needs a lot of work, and I must say, the previous owner has done a nice job, albeit an awkward one - there's not really any space to fit an interior, or to fit some of the inside-to-outside details (such as end steps). I'll find a way. I'm still debating joining Pontefract MRC; if I do, they may have some members who can help and advise. The brake third, on the other hand, is still virtually flat and the sides and floor are a one-piece etching. It's tempting to cut the sides away and build the chassis separately, to have them divisible (it would make painting and creating an interior much easier.)

 

Squirrelled away in another box is a set of etchings for a GWR E95 brake composite, to be used on through portions. I remember buying it, and starting it, to go on a PC Models chassis, but I didn't get very far (again, likely due to confidence and knowledge). That might get resurrected this year. 

 

Etched kits (and whitemetal, for that matter), are things I'm still building up confidence to work on. If anything, I think the part I've struggled with more than anything has been a lack of knowledge around condition of the metal you're trying to solder. Though every tutorial or instruction set says to 'clean' the area for soldering, it's not always been too clear what exactly that means. I think I understand it now, and reading around the forum, there's some good tips I'm tempted to try in time. I also need to look at buying some better solder (I have some leaded but not a lot left of that); the rest of my solder collection seems to be for small electrical jobs, unleaded and with a narrow core. 

 

Most of all, really, soldering just looks fun! And I'd love to advance my skills (not that I don't like working with plastic, I really do, but I want to do more). 

[Caley Jim]

I would steer clear of unleaded solder. Useless for assembling etched kits in my experience! It doesn't flow adequately, at least not in my hands. I use 188 solder paint mainly, with the iron set at 300°C .

 

Jim

[bbishop]

Alex, two recommendations.

 

1. Get hold of a booklet entitled Carr's Soldering Handbook.

 

2.  If you see Tony Wright demonstrating at an exhibition, sit down and have a chat with him.

 

Everyone discovers their own technique.  I sort of have three "rules".  The iron must be the right wattage for the job - I mostly use Antex variable temperature irons, one for brass / nickel silver and another for whitemetal.  Use the correct solder, ie "70" for whitemetal, "145" for wet jobs and "188" for dry jobs.  Use fluxes that suit your technique, I mostly use Powerflow, in the knowledge that it must be cleaned off the job otherwise it will ruin the future paint job.  I know Tony will give you different advice so consider alternative ways of doing a job and find your own technique.  Oh, a dry joint is concave and a wet joint is convex. 

[Northroader]

With the etched brass kits, polish them up with emery paper before you start to detach bits. You need to apply plenty of flux, but then everything needs a really good clean afterwards. Tin both the pieces you’re joining before bringing them together. The tip of your soldering iron can get clogged up with gunge during the job, which needs clearing off, and once it starts to get corroded and deeply pitted, change it. Try not to leave the iron on after each element of the job, switch it off or it will overheat.

Edited May 5 by Northroader

[St Enodoc]

1 hour ago, Northroader said:

With the etched brass kits, polish them up with emery paper before you start to detach bits.

I use one of those abrasive blocks that ladies use for buffing their nails. Each face is progressively finer so by using all four in turn you get a lovely smooth and shiny finish (on the brass as well as your nails).

 

1 hour ago, Northroader said:

You need to apply plenty of flux

Everybody I know recommends phosphoric acid flux.

[Caley Jim]

6 hours ago, Northroader said:

Try not to leave the iron on after each element of the job, switch it off or it will overheat.

This is not a problem with a temperature controlled iron as it will hold the temperature at whatever you've set it to. I have an ERSA 80w which also switches itself off after a period of inactivity. Also, don't use too small a bit. I use a 2mm wide chisel bit for most jobs to get good heat transfer. The only time I use a pointed tip is when I'm attaching wires to decoders. 

The best thing for cleaning the tip is one of the pot scourer type cleaners. Never file, or use an abrasive on, the tip as this will remove the plating and result in the corrosion of the underlying copper mentioned by @Northroader above. 

 

Jim

[AVS1998]

It's funny how much you can change the 'feel' of a model by fixing a small thing. In this case, the ride height of the Stroudley bogie first: 

 

 

 

 

I began by swapping the wheels for 12mm (these bogies are only for testing the 'image', ride height etc), which helped instantly, but there it still sat too high. Adding a pair of buffers to one end to assess buffer height was definitely the right move. The Ratio chassis' bogie mounts were ground down flush with the sides of the frame, bringing it down further still. It's possibly a twitch too high, but I'm happy enough with how it sits now. 

 

A comparison with one of the clerestory cars really highlight how dinky Stroudley carriages were! 

[AVS1998]

https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co8233444/petition-staff-of-south-eastern-railway-company-requesting-permission-to-grow-moustaches-petition I was looking for something entirely unrelated to facial hair, but this cropped up (Hah, cropped), and I couldn't resist sharing it with you all! 

[Dana Ashdown]

Why didn't we hear about this during COVID. It would have saved us from buying all of those masks!🫠

[AVS1998]

Wee bit of work on the O1 this afternoon. I'd removed the brake ties, just to make things a little easier to access. The rear of the donor chassis was sawn away, and will need dressing, but as it stands, it's a nice friction fit. 

 

 

The inside of the body had a very large resin block which I've ground away, with much dust to contend with, allowing the chassis to fit almost perfectly snug inside. A little more grinding here and there, and it should be a much better fit. I'm still toying with repositioning the splashers to match the chassis properly. I also did a little tidying of the tender, fitted a weight and am looking for some bearings for the wheels. I'd like to carry over the DCC setup and pickups from the donor tender, too. 

 

The ride height still looks ridiculous, but I think I can keep tweaking it until it looks right. Otherwise, I'd like to try a 3D printed R1, which I believe could use the chassis; the O1 would take the prescribed generic chassis. Not what I'd like, but it's better having something that runs than a project in a box?