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Modelling Thai Railways in 1m (1 scale bodies on 0 scale track)


kevsmiththai
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Hi all

 

Many years ago I started to model the railways of Thailand in 1/32nd scale with a view to building a garden layout

 

I started with the well known C56 2-6-0s that were a key feature of the proposed death railway to Burma and were brought over from Japan during the conflict.

 

There are quite a few still in existence in Thailand in various states of repair from the ones allocated to the active steam fleet at Thonburi to a semi derelict one 733 at Makkasan

 

 

733-2.jpg

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The bast one to get up close and personal with was the one plinthed at bangkok Hua Lamphong station which was a short walk off the ends of the platforms

 

714 has some fittings missing but is fairly complete and I shot a lot of detail photos of this one and the two at Thonburi to get it right

 

 

714 hua lamphong.jpg

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Construction started with the frames. These were milled from GFS Steel (Gauge Plate as it is still called by some) Wheels were from my stash of Cast iron 1 gauge wheels and the valve gear was profile milled on my pantograph engraver out of Brass, All the valve gear on the prototype were painted so I wasn't bothered about the brass colour. Tender and body were nickel silver and the boiler fittings were turned from Brass. Tender axleboxes were modified from some Britsh ones. At this stage it was becoming apparent that there was very little room to squeeze a gearbox or motor into the firebox/ashpan

 

 

213977N 013.jpg

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It kept getting put to one side as my Z gauge layouts to preference but I decided to get it finished with a view to writing it up for Continental Modeller magazine

 

Stripped ready for painting. You can see the coil spring suspension on the driving axles and the first attempt at a moto gearbox. Nowhere near powerful enough so a late decision was made to make it tender drive

 

More tomorrow

 

Kev

C56 waiting painting.jpg

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All of the brass was etched in Acetic acid (White Vinegar) and etch primed with Hycote etch primer before a gentle bake in the oven. Black was Hycote Gloss.The Green for the boiler in real life fades very quickly and I decided on Tamiya 'Flat Green' for that.

 

The lettering and numbering was taken off a broadside photo of 713 which was then used to make stencils to hand letter the tender and cab sides

 

 

 

 

C56 713 in the sunshine.jpg

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Rolling stock was a rather simpler process.

 

I used the techniques I used on my British gauge 1. ABS channel underframes with polystyrene bodies. All running on Slaters 0 gauge Coarse scale coach wheels

 

I started with the CF container flats. The channel is behind the flat chassis side. The axleboxes are resin cast from one of my patterns and the couplers are Kadees. The 20ft containers are from old 1/32nd scale truck kits 

2 SRT CF Container wagons.jpg

Thai 1m CF container flat.jpg

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Next up was a CG Van. There are thousands of these on the network and you see them everywhere you go

 

Again I used my resin cast axleboxes but the roof was a piece of thick perspex milled to profile

 

Painted in Hycote grey plastic primer it will need some judicious weathering once lettered

 

 

C.G gauge 1.jpg

Thai 1m CG van.jpg

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The SW Salt wagon was even simpler with its corrugated roof. becuase of the nature of what they carry these rot like a 1980s Fiat car! I made a different pattern for the axleboxes on this with a much shorter leaf spring

 

Seen with the now weathered CG

 

 

 

 

Thai CG van and SW Salt wagon in 1m.jpg

Thai SW Salt wagon.jpg

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So I've been re-inspired in my 1nM Thai railway modelling since I've been adding things to various forums. In addition, with a broken ankle, I can only do modelling indoors rather than in the outside workshop

 

So big plastic modelling will have to be it until the plaster comes off. In the loft was a half started BV four wheel brake van that I could just reach without making my leg worse and also a set of parts cut out for an LS Low sided wagon. Nothing fancy, just Plasticard in thickness from 80 thou down to 10 thou and extruded ABS Channel sections

 

Between 2005 and 2009 I photographed a lot of Thai wagons. Braving the midday heat to wander around the marshalling yards at Bang Sue, Nakhon Ratchasima etc and basically photographing everything on the EOS DSLR and an old school EOS 35mm film camera on Kodachrome

 

In the yard I found BV 15107. One of the squat, stubby brake vans but unlike many of its class mates in almost ex-works conditon. I'm modelling this using Wim's drawing that was in Continental modeller magazine blown up to 1/32 and lots of detail pictures

 

You have to be careful, there are a lot of detail differences including two different type of Duckets and one class that has a sliding side door but I've chosen 15107 as the one to do

 

 

Thai Railways BV Brake van 15107 at Nakhon Ratchasima  2009 edit.jpg

 

Nice to have a clear shot of the lettering

Thai Railways BV Brake van 15107 at Nakhon Ratchasima  2009 ex works condition.jpg

 

The mesh on the ducket windows needs to be quite fine

 

Thai Railways BV Brake van 15107 at Nakhon Ratchasima  2009 ex works.jpg

 

I doubt it stayed this clean for too long

 

More soon

 

kev

Edited by kevsmiththai
typo
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Tonights picture of the SRT BV brake van model. You will probably wonder at the technicolor look but I have always used different colours of plasticard as I add details to highlight the construction process. A lot of this detail is hidden when the model is painted. Although you can't see it on this picture the ,rather rudimentary, toilet is fitted ( Thai train toilets were always , err, interesting) I rode on one of these vans from Khon Kaen to Tha Phra on an empty sugar train and had to use the facilities only because I couldn't hang on any longer

 

Window frames need tidying up and I'm going to cheat and use a round air tank rather than elliptical underneath. The extra effort isn't worth it really and when it is running around the garden no one will know

 

Axleboxes are heavily modified GIMRA ones that need the link suspension and axlebox covers added

 

All the photos I have of these show the interiors totally tidy. Not a loose thing anywhere, no paperwork, Litter, emergency equipment etc

 

When I built my Gauge 1 W&LE Caboose I could go nuts on the inside details

 

 

 

W&LE cabooce Gauge 1. interior.jpg

 

All the benchwork is in, the doors slide. The widow frames need tidying up on the corners. I'll use Archer waterslide resin rivets for the rivets on the bodysides

 

Thai Thai Railways BV Brake van 1nM (32nd scale  Gauge 1 on 0 gauge track.jpg

 

Now a question. Planning on doing a covered High side wagon after the LS. This will have a scribed wood body on a channel underframe but, what the hell is that metal hinged thing on the end? I've found it on a number of photos but can't work out what it is for. And... Is there one at both ends?

 

Covered high side wagon SRT.jpg

 

More soon

Edited by kevsmiththai
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The LS low side wagon bits turned up and I realised I had got a lot further with it than I thought. Looking at the photos I have taken it seems no two are the same, even from the same batch/lot numbers

 

I wanted to represent a typical one. i.e one where the drop sides no longer line up due to the battering they get,  with a goodly amount of corrosion like 1492 at Nakhon Ratchasima in 2009 so the three drop sides on each side were misaligned and the bump stops given a suitabily battered alignment. Still have to add the vacuum brake gear and I've run out of hangers and brake shoes at the moment

 

 

 

LS low side wagon 1492 at Nakhon Ratchasima 2009 edit.jpg

 

the BV elliptical roof has been rolled and bent from 16 thou aluminium. I HATE elliptical roofs and this one is not perfect. This wagon has turned out to be a complicated little beast and there is still much to do. The sliding end doors now run smooth and the treadplate has been added to the stes and end platforms. Both of these wagons have modified GIMRA oil axleboxes fiotted

Thai railways LS open wagon and BV Brake van scratchbuilt in 1nM edit.jpg

Edited by kevsmiththai
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Last nights' photos

 

The LS has been done as a vacuum braked example. Both vac pipes are on the same side of the wagon  and the hoses are some tight wound tension springs . I bought 500 of these from a place called Whistons years ago and still have hundreds left. They are flexible enough to actully pipe the train up in service. The drop side bump stops are also mounted a bit wonky as they have a really hard life in reality. There seems to be a bit more variation of colours on these. There was a blue one at Nakhon Ratchasima. Red ones at Bang Sue and Nakhon Ratchasima and also one with white,orange and green horizontal stripes. I also have seen a photo of one painted yellow loaded with a water tank and a large pile of firewood that looks like a Steam loco support wagon

 

It is going in the ultrasonic cleaner to get all the dust and grease off ( this also finds any loose components as they will fall off!). The Kadees should arrive in todays post

Thai Railways LS Low side wagon edit.jpg

 

LS 1130

LS 1130 at Nakhon Ratchasima.jpg

Edited by kevsmiththai
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The BV is also nearly complete. The suspension hangers have been added to the undeframe and the air tank and brake cylinder. The roof has had the gutters fitted since these photos were taken. The roof is held on by four 10BA countersunk screws with a 1/32 x 1/4" tiny rivet in each corner to stop the end framing moving. The window shutters are fiddly and will be posed in different positionings. Again, there are a lot of detail differences on these with some being painted the same grey as the body, some silver ( Galvanised?) or a mixture of both. The toilet window is slightly opened. I think the first coat of primer, Hycote acrylic plastic primer, will reveal a lot of tidying that will need doing. The handbrake wheel is not the finished item but will do for now. one of the sliding doors needs straightening. I was saying on one of the other forums that in all the years I have modelled brake vans and cabooses, in nearly every scale from Z to gauge 2, This is the first one I have made with no stove and no stove pipe, for obvious reasons

 

 

Thai BV edit.jpg

 

This one is dual braked. Vac and air so has one of each hoses at either end

 

Thai BV Brake van edit.jpg

 

more soon

 

Kev

Edited by kevsmiththai
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The Archer waterslide rivets have been added  but to be honest they look pretty insgnificant Kadee 820 couplers fitted with the pin cut off. The interior needs the brake pipe pressure gauga adding to the brake valve and the upper blinds added where required. These are the same grey as the main body colour

 

 

BV Brake van interior res.jpg

 

The end framing looks wobbly until it is pegged to the roof

 

Thai Railways BV Brake van in 1nM res.jpg

 

LS has also had the Kadees fitted. Still toying with the idea of doing is as one of the red ones. I realise now that the blue one I saw was a crane runner for the Nakhon Ratchasima breakdown crane

Thai Railways LS wagon in 1nM res.jpg

 

More soon

Edited by kevsmiththai
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Still making steady progress

 

The LS is starting to get lettered. The Bump stops are proving to be a bit vulnerable so are going to be modified so they are pinned as well as glued. The wagon will be heavily weathered so the slightly oversized lettering won't be that apparent

Thai Railways BV Brake van and LS Low side in 1nM edit.jpg

 

The BV needs some paint lines touching up. The wonky shutters are all in and the sliding end doors work. With roof screwed on and pins location the end framing it is quite rigid now

inM BV brake van and LS low side edit.jpg

 

As I can't get into the loft until my leg comes out of plaster I got our Brooklyn to go up and get the C56 2-6-0 out

 

More soon

 

kev

Edited by kevsmiththai
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Ignore the track. It is my 00 photoboard but it was all I could reach with my Gammy ankle

 

But...

 

BV lettered in both Thai and English scripts. haven't done the tare and loaded weight paneks yet

 

 

Thai BV Brake van in 1nM edit.jpg

 

LS lettered and waiting for some serious weathering

 

Thai LS Low side wagon in 1nM edit.jpg

 

The pair together 

Thai BV Brakevan and LS low side in 1nM edit.jpg

 

More soon

 

Looks like I might do the Hunslet 0-6-0DH next. I've got the wheels turned already and still have the crankpin hole drilling jig so I can make the flycranks. I'v got a very nice Sagami motor gearbox the right width to go in between the frames ands once the pot is off my leg I can get the Pantograph engraver fired up to profile mill the frames and coupling rods

 

Kev

Hunslet 27 Makkasan.jpg

Edited by kevsmiththai
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