1/43 BR road runner crew van

[ChrisS]

My main interest is in O gauge BR blue/ sectorisation. I have a small layout which continues to be a work in progress - link in signature. Ive not done much to it in 2022 as i broke my hand at the start of the year and sort of lost my mojo. 

 

I seem to have many small projects on the go and every so often look for something different to keep me occupied, and in this instance get me modelling again.

 

An impulse buy at the recent Guildford O gauge show saw me come home with a Steve Beattie Leyland road runner chassis and crew van kit. 

 

 

I noticed a couple of issues including a bent floor for the crew van body which I'll have to sort later. The rear of the cab had a crack in it too, but was easily solved with a bit of glue. 

 

 

I've made a start tidying up the parts and gluing the separate chassis halves together. A bit of filing was needed to get the cab to fit but I'm relatively happy with the look of it. I'm not looking forward to installing the windscreen though.

 

 

 

Still quite a bit to do, but its looking quite good so far.

 

 

 

That's all for now.

 

Chris

[Dava]

Good luck, SB kits don’t have th best reputation for parts fit & quality.

 

One way of fitting windscreen & other windows is to trace the outline of the window from the  outside onto a sticky label On the glazing sheet, then cut out with a 0.5mm+ margin and finally trim to exact shape, fit with canopy cement. 
 

Dava

[37114]

Will be interested to see how you get on with this, I built an SB Leyland National bus which was a rewarding challenge. 

[jcarta]

Yes... certainly interested at the end result

 

Good luck

[ChrisS]

21 hours ago, Dava said:

Good luck, SB kits don’t have th best reputation for parts fit & quality.

 

One way of fitting windscreen & other windows is to trace the outline of the window from the  outside onto a sticky label On the glazing sheet, then cut out with a 0.5mm+ margin and finally trim to exact shape, fit with canopy cement. 
 

Dava

 

Thanks for the tip re glazing Dava. I sort of knew it would need some work when I purchased the kit.

 

12 hours ago, 37114 said:

Will be interested to see how you get on with this, I built an SB Leyland National bus which was a rewarding challenge. 

 

9 minutes ago, jcarta said:

Yes... certainly interested at the end result

 

Good luck

 

Thanks both, I think this will be a bit of a challenge too - but hopefully worth the effort at the end.

 

Chris

[Merfyn Jones]

This is a kit I built from another maker's kit, who I no longer remember.  The kit was of a Leyland DAF 45, but I replaced the cab with a Roadrunner from a die cast model.  I hope you can make a good job of yours, look forward to seeing the finished job. 

[BernardTPM]

Is that the 1980s Matchbox King Size cab?

[Merfyn Jones]

6 hours ago, BernardTPM said:

Is that the 1980s Matchbox King Size cab?

No Bernard, it is a more recent model , possibly one of those dealer sold items, it came with a long wb. chassis and box van body, which I am going to use with the DAF 45 cab.

[ChrisS]

A bit of progress has been made. This is turning out to be a bit of a challenge. I spent quite a bit of time sanding, filing and gluing bits to the chassis. 

 

I wanted to spray some primer earlier in the week but it's been ridiculously cold in my garage, and I didn't want to waste money trying to heat it up a bit. Anyhow, today it warmed up a bit - a barmy 1 degree Celsius. So I warmed up the spray can and model in the house, ran outside to the garage, gave it a dusting with the primer, and quickly returned back to the house to dry and warm up again! The primer has helped show where some further work is required.

 

 

From a distance it looks ok, but there are a few issues that my OCD will need to try and resolve.

 

 

 

One of the challenges is the crew van floor. It's a bit......

 

 

So I decided to make a replacement. I cut off the relevant bits and have added them to a new plasticard floor. This is still a work in progress.

 

 

The next challenge appears to be trying to mate the crew van body to the chassis. Though not obvious in the photos,  there appears to be a droop in the rear of the chassis, which messes with the fitting of the van body. I'll somehow need to modify it to make everything fit.

 

Till next time.

[ess1uk]

Looks like an interesting build

[ChrisS]

A little bit more progress - seems to be a cycle of test fitting and tinkering to try and get it to look reasonable.

 

I finished making the replacement floor, and the bits I salvaged are located in the same positions as the original. I've glued in a couple of additional supports too. I'd like it to be removable in the future so just need to think of a way of achieving this.

 

 

When it came to test fitting the crew body, it didn't look right to me. The rear lockers were too close to the rear wheels. There was no room for minor adjustment due to the location of the rear lights. I only needed a mm or two, so I decided to cut them off - to be re-secured later. I also discovered I needed to build up one side of the framework to get the crew body to sit level. 

 

 

 

 

After some sanding and filing i've primed the crew body. It highlights where more work is required - there are some diagonal dents which will need some further filling. However I'm more happy with the spacing of lockers and wheels now.

 

 

 

That's all for now.

 

 

 

[Merfyn Jones]

Coming along nicely.  Some pics to help with the finishing.

[ChrisS]

1 hour ago, Merfyn Jones said:

Coming along nicely.  Some pics to help with the finishing.

 

Thanks for the photos - they are better than some I've found.

 

The crew van I have has a tail lift - not sure when tail lifts first appeared on a BR crew van? Just need to find some interior photos to get an idea of what they actually looked like. 

 

Happy New Year everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Merfyn Jones]

Tail lifts appeared later than the C reg. ones in the photos.  H reg. with one, not my pic.  D reg. one looks like the year they started fitting them, (again from my collection)

Interiors are from a P reg. Terrier but they didn't change much over the years (Pics. BRB from my collection)

[ChrisS]

21 hours ago, Merfyn Jones said:

Tail lifts appeared later than the C reg. ones in the photos.  H reg. with one, not my pic.  D reg. one looks like the year they started fitting them, (again from my collection)

Interiors are from a P reg. Terrier but they didn't change much over the years (Pics. BRB from my collection

 

Wow, thanks for the photos - really appreciate the input. 

 

Chris

[Merfyn Jones]

On 02/01/2023 at 14:16, ChrisS said:

 

Wow, thanks for the photos - really appreciate the input. 

 

Chris

What RMweb is all about Chris.  Helping each other with our modelling. 

[ChrisS]

A slight set back. I spent a couple of hours filling and sanding dents in the crew body and cab - only to discover that when I washed the body and with my usual Cif cleaner (prior to spraying), that the filler dissolved! So I've picked up some milliput fine and will try again.

 

In the meantime, using the earlier photos as inspiration, I made a start on the crew cab internals. No tables are provided with the kit so I made a couple with some plastic scraps.

 

 

It's still a work in progress but I'm quite happy with it. I've installed the dividing walls into the body, which makes it easier to mate the floor with the body.

 

Not too sure you'll be able to see much detail but at least I know it's there. In the long run I might install some lighting, and maybe a figure or two.

 

 

That's all for now.

 

Chris

 

[fodenway]

Bad news about the dissolving filler - For years I've used Squadron Green putty with no issues, although now that it's unobtainable I tried Deluxe brand filler - it's the first time I've used it, and I normally wet-sand the final finish prior to painting, which was a big mistake this time - almost all the filler turned back to paste and washed out, a few hours of shaping and finishing ruined. To be fair, it works fine when dry-sanded, something I'll have to remember when using it in future. No problems with Milliput, another old favourite of mine, however.

[ChrisS]

32 minutes ago, fodenway said:

Bad news about the dissolving filler - For years I've used Squadron Green putty with no issues, although now that it's unobtainable I tried Deluxe brand filler - it's the first time I've used it, and I normally wet-sand the final finish prior to painting, which was a big mistake this time - almost all the filler turned back to paste and washed out, a few hours of shaping and finishing ruined. To be fair, it works fine when dry-sanded, something I'll have to remember when using it in future. No problems with Milliput, another old favourite of mine, however.

 

Snap - it was a Deluxe brand filler I used too. Maybe it's user error or not using it for its intended purpose. Whilst it says you can clean up with water after application, i didn't expect it to disolve away when preping to paint - even after allowing several days to dry. Maybe the Cif cleaner was too good!

 

I once used milliput to good effect to fill the rusty rear wheel arches on my dads, hand me down, Austin Maestro in the mid 90's! 

 

[ChrisS]

Hello all, it's been a while but I have made some progress. The chassis is nearly there. I made some rear mud guards as evident on many of these vehicles but not part of the original kit.

 

 

I've secured the crew cab floor to the chassis and still have the ability to remove the crew cab body and cab. Black does not photograph well, but I've painted the chassis a satin black. I made the mistake of using a humbrol water based varnish to seal the black and its as tough as a chocolate fire guard. I'll start picking out other details such as wheel hubs and lights. The driving cab seats are currently black but will probably pick out in grey.

 

 

I have an exhaust pipe to fit but can't spot from photos where it typically exits. The kit instructions don't give you a clue either.

 

 

For a bit of fun with a negative filter. 

 

 

There is one major stumbling block with this build and it's trying to fill and sand the crew cab body and cab. I'm losing the will to live with this aspect of the model. I've been using miliput fine which gives a nice smooth finish with a bit of work.

 

As seen on many of the real vehicles I've made a crash barrier under the crew van body on the left side. I've not done the otherside though, as I've got to figure out what it looks like and how to secure it.

 

 

Another part of the kit I've modified is the crash barrier at the base of the tail lift. The original was too big and interfered with my aim of allowing the crew van body to be removed. I've not fixed the tail lift to the body till i've sorted the body out - at this rate it might be quicker to fabricate a new one from plasticard!

 

 

Oh well, back to some filling and sanding - till next time.

 

Chris

 

Edited February 18, 2023 by ChrisS
Typo

[37114]

Looking good! I see Steve is at MIOG at Crewe so will be interested to see what he brings.

[ChrisS]

A little bit more progress to report.

 

I was finding it really difficult to spot the flaws in the crew cab body and cab, partly due to the filling, sanding and use of a white primer to date - as seen in earlier photos.

 

Prior to the recent snow, a quick blast with grey primer and good natural light still showed where work was required!

 

 

 

Some more milliput fine was applied and the process of sanding started again. A little bit of milliput went a long way.

 

 

 

A couple of hours sanding and another dusting of grey primer and I'm a lot happier. The lighting in my house is poor but I think I'm nearly there. I finally have flat surfaces. 

 

 

 

I've also painted the wheel hubs, battery and rear light clusters.

 

 

Still some very minor adjustments needed to appease my OCD, but finally getting close to applying a yellow coat. I'll probably first prime in white again though.

 

 

That's all for now.

 

 

Edited March 11, 2023 by ChrisS
Typo

[PhilJ W]

I would have left the rear O/S corner as it was as 'accident damage'.

[fodenway]

8 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

I would have left the rear O/S corner as it was as 'accident damage'.

....I was just about to say that!

[37114]

It is really coming on Chris and will look nice when finished. I was looking at the SBT website earlier as I think I may have room for one if these on the layout extension, one thing which I have only just noticed is the top of the cab windscreen on the model curves down at the corners whereas it is flat on the real cab. It maybe something you can live with but from recollection Steve supplies glazing oversized so you could file the corners a but and redo the beading?