CooperCraft by Cambrian Model Rail

[Compound2632]

@Phil Parker recently closed the old CooperCraft topic with a photo of some of the lineside kits now available from Cambrian. I thought it might be worth starting a new topic, which I'm kicking off with a quote from a post on my wagon-building topic, made after ExpoEM a couple of weeks ago:

 

Quote

 

I had an interesting chat with the Cambrian Models man about his progress with the Coopercraft kits. He showed me a sample of the sprue from the GW wagons that has the solebar, brake gear, etc. His machine works at a lower pressure than the molds were designed for (whereas Mr Dunn's had been a higher pressure machine), with the result that the plastic isn't flowing perfectly into some of the finer parts such as the brake lever and the axleguard keeper plates. So, work in progress. 

  

Watch this (and other) spaces! I'm sure we all wish Cambrian well with the revived range:

https://www.cambrianmodelrail.co.uk/

 

I think I ought to know the Cambrian Models man's name but haven't been able to track it down easily...

 

No connection other than as a satisfied customer of Cambrian's other products, a couple of which I bought during the conversation.

Edited May 29, 2023 by Compound2632
Mod identity corrected!

[Steamport Southport]

Graham Taylor isn't it?

 

Not the old Watford manager.

 

 

Jason

[woodenhead]

Closed at the weekend

 

My O level German came in handy.

 

But Graham Taylor and Judy Stevenson are the owners of the new business

[Phil Parker]

The 16mm wagons are built, and will be reviewed in the July issue of Garden Rail.

 

[The Evil Bus Driver]

On 29/05/2023 at 19:42, Phil Parker said:

The 16mm wagons are built, and will be reviewed in the July issue of Garden Rail.

 

Looking good Phil!

[Fair Oak Junction]

Is there any news on when the 4mm Coopercraft wagon kits will be available again?

[Steamport Southport]

7 hours ago, Obsidian Quarry said:

Is there any news on when the 4mm Coopercraft wagon kits will be available again?

 

Not seen anything, but if they were in a similar state to the Kirk Kits then it might be a while.

 

https://www.phoenix-paints.co.uk/news/kirk--mailcoach-update

 

 

 

Jason

[Fair Oak Junction]

Fair enough, these things do take time.

Luckily I've now sourced an old Coopercraft kit for what I need off ebay, but am very much looking forward to seeing the range return.

Edited November 4, 2023 by Obsidian Quarry

[Pint of Adnams]

Exchanging information with Mr Cambrian & Coopercraft over the weekend, first he has the Cambrian range to maintain in production, to keep up with high demand (good for him and his partner) and the issues with the Coopercraft kits lie as explained above - i.e. a moulding machine that operates at 50% of the working injection pressure than the moulds were designed for such that certain parts are not always fully formed. No mention was made of the moulds being in anything other than a good state, so the comparison with the Kirk moulds as described by Chris Stapleton of Phoenix does not appear to apply - and that is good news.

 

Work continues to overcome the moulding pressure issues, hence the Coopercraft range will not be reintroduced until it is 100% sure that production can be sustained.

[Fair Oak Junction]

Excellent, thank you for the update. The range is definitely in very good hands 👍

[Compound2632]

On 06/11/2023 at 09:10, Pint of Adnams said:

Exchanging information with Mr Cambrian & Coopercraft over the weekend, first he has the Cambrian range to maintain in production, to keep up with high demand (good for him and his partner) and the issues with the Coopercraft kits lie as explained above - i.e. a moulding machine that operates at 50% of the working injection pressure than the moulds were designed for such that certain parts are not always fully formed. No mention was made of the moulds being in anything other than a good state, so the comparison with the Kirk moulds as described by Chris Stapleton of Phoenix does not appear to apply - and that is good news.

 

Work continues to overcome the moulding pressure issues, hence the Coopercraft range will not be reintroduced until it is 100% sure that production can be sustained.

 

i had a chat with Mr Taylor (if that's his name) at the Warley show on Saturday, in which I reminded him of the conversation we'd had at Bracknell about the Coopercraft wagons; he'd shown me a trial moulding where the axleguard keeper plate hadn't been properly formed. He said he had tried a different plastic, which had worked better but is both translucent and more brittle, also a blend of this with his usual plastic. His current plan, which he is working himself up to, is to make some modifications to the mould - deepening the rear of the axlebox keeper plates and removing the mount for the Peco simplex coupling. The former would be no bad thing, as it's the keeper plate that can be almost guaranteed to break when stripping the paint of an Ebay rescue wagon, even if it's not already broken. The idea with the latter is to reduce the load on the machine - less plastic to be forced into the mould.