GRANBY JUNCTION - Shunting Siphons for the Up Parcels with a Manor!

[john dew]

You can still keep the Shires Scenes sided Ratio in the centre - and have the K40 bringing up the rear.

 

And a race special with  the K40 behind some horseboxes........

 

I look forward to getting my remaining brass-side projects finished.

 

I need the K40 in the middle......I am trying to do an auto out and back with tankers being detached and attached at Granby and a loco exchange in the storage sidings......adding a BV at the end  would make life very complicated!

 

On the other hand using the 4 wheeler BV with my horse boxes is a brilliant idea......I know its not exactly what you suggested but it would work really well creating a smallish train doing a roundy roundy.

 

England v Australia on saturday and its actually on TV here

[trw1089]

Watching what you do with that coach very closely John, as I've got about 6 coaches to do myself.

 

Cheers

Tony

[john dew]

Hi Tony

 

Having seen examples of your craftsmanship.....you ain't going to learn much from me.....a few chuckles perhaps!

 

Cheers

 

John

 

Edited.....You didnt mention the rugby? After my abysmal World Cup predictions I am not making any predictions......but looking forward to the game.......it's on at 3 am pacific time.....fortunately I can record it

Edited June 10, 2016 by john dew

[john dew]

For a variety of reasons progress has been painfully slow......a snail would have every right to feel disappointed .

All the original ventilators had already been removed by Mr Duck........too many and in the wrong places.
 

Comet provide excellent instructions and their roof diagram showed eight roof ribs but spaced differently from the donor coach. For a brief moment I contemplated sanding them down and putting microstrip in the correct locationhttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_eek.gif. I then quickly decided that ineptly applied microstrip could easily look worse than incorrect spacing!

 

 

 

The K40 Brake Van was not fitted with ATC gear so the moulding representing that had to be removed. The moulding of the jumper cables were also removed because the bag of little bits contained more realistic white metal castings along with proper Brake Van buffers.

Finally, unlike the B Set donor this is corridor stock so I have to fit the supplied corridor connectors. The diagram for the hanging detail looks fiendishly difficult........cant waithttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif

 

 

 

Comet ventilators in place as per the diagram along with side grab rails.  I placed them exactly as per the template but to me they look a little low in relation to the sides.....particularly when I compare them with the Collet Bow Ended Stock

The sharp eyed will note a number of filled pin holes at both ends of the coach. One end of the coach has steps to allow roof access the holes were for the safety rail running alongside the steps.........why both ends then I hear you ask?

 I drilled one set at the wrong endhttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_redface.gif

Why are both sets filled then?  To my embarrassment I realised that I had failed to order a stepped end unit http://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_redface.gif

Andrew at Comet got the pack to Canada remarkably quickly but for whatever reason I had assumed it would be brass which I could overlay on the existing end. In fact it was a rather chunky white metal casting and far too thick to overlayhttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_twisted.gif.

 All this called for a period of quiet contemplation and a small malt to calm my shattered nerves. The following day, never drink and cut, I took a deep breath and carved out the existing end http://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_eek.gif........sadly no photographs......and then after a fair amount of fettling inserted the white metal end

 

Mr Duck you may wish to avert your eyes!

 

Its a bit more bow ended than when it started and the roof is flush rather than overhanging but I am hoping the corridor connector will obscure that.

Work has now come to a standstill while I await the arrival of drill bits  and .45mm wire from Eileen's Emporium........just got a bit concerned that my drill holes are over large........I am hand drilling so maybe I should drill smaller pilots first

Finally I refuse to tempt fate by referring to next Saturdays Australia v England match, other than to observe that I am looking forward to it a great dealhttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_lol.gif


 

Edited November 7, 2022 by john dew
7/11/22 Photos

[M.I.B]

Nice work John.

 

Thanks for sharing.  Braver than me carving and end out like that.  I am just using corridors to detract from what's there......

 

My roof wires looked odd until I painted the roofs.

 

I wholly approve of the malt, and also of the "dont drink and Dremmel"

 

Please have a Speysdie or an Orkney malt for me.  Scapa was my favourite when I left.

[john dew]

Nice work John.

 

Thanks for sharing.  Braver than me carving and end out like that.  I am just using corridors to detract from what's there......

 

My roof wires looked odd until I painted the roofs.

 

I wholly approve of the malt, and also of the "dont drink and Dremmel"

 

Please have a Speysdie or an Orkney malt for me.  Scapa was my favourite when I left.

 

Thanks for the encouragement MIB........thats very civil of you.....where do I send the tab?

 

Without tempting fate I hope I will be enjoying another Islay or two on Saturday!

 

A question for all but particularly you, Gwrrob and Mr Duck........the sides are marked out for door stops.........all 42 of them........should I bother? How obvious will their omission be when painted up?

 

Hope the trip is going well

 

Best wishes

[gwrrob]

I never fit door bumps but some swear by them or swear at them.

[john dew]

The drill bits and wire took somewhat  longer to arrive from the UK than usual but once they got here I was able to fit all the end fittings surprisingly quickly.

 

I took your very sound advice Rob and didnt bother with door bumps........and what a great idea that was.......thank you (and MIB)

 

 

 

There are recesses in the doors for door handles and grab handles. These have been backed with styrene and predrilled. Both types of handles are finished brass so will be fitted after painting.......that looks like being a real picky jobhttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif

Here is the non step end

 

 

 

White metal jumper cables and corridor connector. Grab handles from brass wire and lamp holders (not supplied in the kit?) from a long abandoned Perseverance (sadly I didnthttp://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_wink.gif) kit.

 

 

Close up of the corridor connector hangar assembly. This was the fitting I was not looking forward to at all but it went together surprisingly smoothly.......not perhaps exactly the same geometry as the diagram but it is still far more detailed than most of my RTR stock

 

The kit only came with only one corridor end door but this van will be marshalled in the middle of a milk train so I modified a second door using a spare from my new Collet Bow end coaches

Here is the step end with curved hand rail and the supplied end door

 

 

 

The bogie step board is on only one side, I am still unsure whether to fit them.......they dont look very convincing and because I am using the unmodified donor chassis they are a total pain to fit. I suspect will not last long in operation.

So the next step is priming and painting.......but before that everything has to be cleaned and degreased........Comet recommend a thorough scrub with household cleaning product called Cif (used to be Jif) followed by a wash down with a solution of vinegar and water

I have no idea what Cif or Jif is (Mrs D has a vague recollection of the latter) We are thinking of using a local product called Simply Green ......non abrasive we use it on stoves, BBQs and the boat..........any suggestions or advice will be much appreciated.

 

 

Regards from Vancouver

 

John


 

Edited November 7, 2022 by john dew
7/11/22 Photos

[M.I.B]

CIF (Jif in old money) is a very abrasive compound - a bit like VIM in a cream carrier solution.  Good for doing the top of the cooker after the milk pan has boiled over etc.

 

I am not sure which part of CIF does the work on brass soldered kits. Whether it is the scouring part or the strong alkali part.

 

When I painted my sided RTR, I wiped the units over with Iso Propyl Alcohol just like you would use Panel Wipe on a car before painting. Just to take the grease from fingers off.

 

Then I used aerosols to prime.  Standard car type primer.

[john dew]

I am afraid I havent updated this thread for a while.

 

Apart from the normal summer diversions.......gardening is so time consuming..... we have had to cope with some family issues.

 

I found time to do some modelling but had some problems  getting paint to adhere to the brass sides of the Brake van. Hopefully this is sorted and I can shortly post some photos that will not horrify Mr Duck.

Meantime by way of light relief and completely off topic here is an illustration of the unexpected hazards of gardening in Canada

 

Three of us were beavering away (as one does here http://yourmodelrailway.net/images/emoticons/icon_lol.gif) noisily shifting a load of gravel.........we looked up and about 15 feet away we saw:

 

 

 

He was quite brazen and it took a lot of shovel banging and shouting before he moved off to pastures new

 

 

You can see that he is quite street wise.....walking on the correct side of the road.

Edited November 7, 2022 by john dew
7/11/22 Photos

[Edwardian]

For a variety of reasons progress has been painfully slow......a snail would have every right to feel disappointed .

 

All the original ventilators had already been removed by Mr Duck........too many and in the wrong places.

 

 

1 Roof.jpg

 

Comet provide excellent instructions and their roof diagram showed eight roof ribs but spaced differently from the donor coach. For a brief moment I contemplated sanding them down and putting microstrip in the correct location. I then quickly decided that ineptly applied microstrip could easily look worse than incorrect spacing!

 

 

2 End.jpg

 

The K40 Brake Van was not fitted with ATC gear so the moulding representing that had to be removed. The moulding of the jumper cables were also removed because the bag of little bits contained more realistic white metal castings along with proper Brake Van buffers.

 

Finally, unlike the B Set donor this is corridor stock so I have to fit the supplied corridor connectors. The diagram for the hanging detail looks fiendishly difficult........cant wait

 

 

4 Grab Rails.jpg

Comet ventilators in place as per the diagram along with side grab rails.  I placed them exactly as per the template but to me they look a little low in relation to the sides.....particularly when I compare them with the Collet Bow Ended Stock

 

The sharp eyed will note a number of filled pin holes at both ends of the coach. One end of the coach has steps to allow roof access the holes were for the safety rail running alongside the steps.........why both ends then I hear you ask?

 

 I drilled one set at the wrong end

 

Why are both sets filled then?  To my embarrassment I realised that I had failed to order a stepped end unit

 

Andrew at Comet got the pack to Canada remarkably quickly but for whatever reason I had assumed it would be brass which I could overlay on the existing end. In fact it was a rather chunky white metal casting and far too thick to overlay.

 

 All this called for a period of quiet contemplation and a small malt to calm my shattered nerves. The following day, never drink and cut, I took a deep breath and carved out the existing end ........sadly no photographs......and then after a fair amount of fettling inserted the white metal end

 

Mr Duck you may wish to avert your eyes!

 

 

3 End 2.jpg

 

 

Its a bit more bow ended than when it started and the roof is flush rather than overhanging but I am hoping the corridor connector will obscure that.

 

Work has now come to a standstill while I await the arrival of drill bits  and .45mm wire from Eileen's Emporium........just got a bit concerned that my drill holes are over large........I am hand drilling so maybe I should drill smaller pilots first

 

Finally I refuse to tempt fate by referring to next Saturdays Australia v England match, other than to observe that I am looking forward to it a great deal

 

 

 

 

Excellent project, and one I must undertake too if I want to complete my 1930s GW coach collection properly.

 

I am glad to find someone prepared to admit to an approach to such projects similar to my own; bold strokes launched from screwed up courage, punctuated by bouts of nerve-serrating terror.

 

Look forward to more.

[john dew]

Thanks James

 

Yet another occasion when one needs a multi. Button......in the end I settled for " funny" .........I do like your sense of humour.

 

Kind regards

 

John

[john dew]

Thanks, as always, for the likes guys.

 

The snails pace progress of the K40 Full Brake has if anything slowed! As I wrote above a number of outside factors limited modeling time but I also ran into assorted problems with the actual painting.

Having scrubbed the van with diluted vinegar it was washed with the Canadian equivalent  of Jif/Cif and then rinsed. As I was using Vallejo Acrylic for the top coat I brush painted a single coat of their surface primer. Given hindsight, that invaluable gift, I may have been better to spray on a standard primer from a rattle can. At the very least I should have applied a second coat of primer and spent more time rubbing down.

The Vallejo acrylic top coats went on really well and appeared to cover a multitude of errors and dried with a nice dense matt finish. However, prior to applying transfers,  I brushed on a protective coat of Vallejo matt varnish. Not good is an understatement........every brush stroke and defect were cruelly exposed......fortunately I only did one side. After more than a few choice words I bit the bullet and started to try and sand down the blemishes using 2000 wet and dry. In part this worked but in one section the primer started peeling away like a rubber mask. Eventually I had to strip the entire section back to the bare brass which then took forever to re prime

I finally finished the painting a few days ago.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally a rather flattering full frontal.......you aint going to get any closer!

 

 

 

 

Rather than try again with the varnish I sprayed on some of the artist's fixative that I use to protect my Scalescene printed sheets

I am quite pleased with the satin-like finish. The surface is by no means perfect but the van certainly passes the 3' rule......it almost scrapes past the 2' rule

Next job is to apply decals, followed by glazing. I got some very nice delicate etchings of security bars from Roxy......they are designed for Southern Vans but they will work ok. I do have a question for the experts......the horizontal bars for non opening windows are straightforward but I would like confirmation that that the grilles were attached directly to the drop lights rather than the aperture itself........so where Phil has set some drop lights half way open I should only show half a grille? 

 Regards from a rather cloudy Vancouver

 

John
 

Edited November 9, 2022 by john dew
8/11/22

[Edwardian]

Thanks, as always, for the likes guys.

 

The snails pace progress of the K40 Full Brake has if anything slowed! As I wrote above a number of outside factors limited modeling time but I also ran into assorted problems with the actual painting.

 

Having scrubbed the van with diluted vinegar it was washed with the Canadian equivalent  of Jif/Cif and then rinsed. As I was using Vallejo Acrylic for the top coat I brush painted a single coat of their surface primer. Given hindsight, that invaluable gift, I may have been better to spray on a standard primer from a rattle can. At the very least I should have applied a second coat of primer and spent more time rubbing down.

 

The Vallejo acrylic top coats went on really well and appeared to cover a multitude of errors and dried with a nice dense matt finish. However, prior to applying transfers,  I brushed on a protective coat of Vallejo matt varnish. Not good is an understatement........every brush stroke and defect were cruelly exposed......fortunately I only did one side. After more than a few choice words I bit the bullet and started to try and sand down the blemishes using 2000 wet and dry. In part this worked but in one section the primer started peeling away like a rubber mask. Eventually I had to strip the entire section back to the bare brass which then took forever to re prime

 

I finally finished the painting a few days ago.

 

Paint 3.jpg

 

 

 

Paint 2.jpg

 

 

 

Finally a rather flattering full frontal.......you aint going to get any closer!

 

Paint 1.jpg

 

Rather than try again with the varnish I sprayed on some of the artist's fixative that I use to protect my Scalescene printed sheets

 

I am quite pleased with the satin-like finish. The surface is by no means perfect but the van certainly passes the 3' rule......it almost scrapes past the 2' rule

 

Next job is to apply decals, followed by glazing. I got some very nice delicate etchings of security bars from Roxy......they are designed for Southern Vans but they will work ok. I do have a question for the experts......the horizontal bars for non opening windows are straightforward but I would like confirmation that that the grilles were attached directly to the drop lights rather than the aperture itself........so where Phil has set some drop lights half way open I should only show half a grille? 

 

 Regards from a rather cloudy Vancouver

 

John

 

 

Ah, the Agony & the Ecstasy!

 

I undercoat everything (from plastic soldiers to coach sides) with grey car primer (Halfords).  So much cheaper than any alternative. 

 

Like the Artist's Fixative idea for varnish.

 

I have found the Games Workshop spray varnish pretty reliable.

 

Anyway, looks good so far ...

[john dew]

Ah, the Agony & the Ecstasy!

..

 

Thank you James.  The agony I can readily relate to........ecstasy is, perhaps, a little over the top.

 

Regards

 

John

[Mallard60022]

Well done that man. Can't wait to see it on the tracks and looking like it has always been there.

You can see why I only ever offer part builds as the 'faff' usually comes upon one when trying to finish the damn things off. How Larry G and Co get such good looking stuff is a mystery to me.

What's next then Jon?

Vans Arus

[Mallard60022]

Thanks, as always, for the likes guys.

 

The snails pace progress of the K40 Full Brake has if anything slowed! As I wrote above a number of outside factors limited modeling time but I also ran into assorted problems with the actual painting.

 

Having scrubbed the van with diluted vinegar it was washed with the Canadian equivalent  of Jif/Cif and then rinsed. As I was using Vallejo Acrylic for the top coat I brush painted a single coat of their surface primer. Given hindsight, that invaluable gift, I may have been better to spray on a standard primer from a rattle can. At the very least I should have applied a second coat of primer and spent more time rubbing down.

 

The Vallejo acrylic top coats went on really well and appeared to cover a multitude of errors and dried with a nice dense matt finish. However, prior to applying transfers,  I brushed on a protective coat of Vallejo matt varnish. Not good is an understatement........every brush stroke and defect were cruelly exposed......fortunately I only did one side. After more than a few choice words I bit the bullet and started to try and sand down the blemishes using 2000 wet and dry. In part this worked but in one section the primer started peeling away like a rubber mask. Eventually I had to strip the entire section back to the bare brass which then took forever to re prime

 

I finally finished the painting a few days ago.

 

Paint 3.jpg

 

 

 

Paint 2.jpg

 

 

 

Finally a rather flattering full frontal.......you aint going to get any closer!

 

Paint 1.jpg

 

Rather than try again with the varnish I sprayed on some of the artist's fixative that I use to protect my Scalescene printed sheets

 

I am quite pleased with the satin-like finish. The surface is by no means perfect but the van certainly passes the 3' rule......it almost scrapes past the 2' rule

 

Next job is to apply decals, followed by glazing. I got some very nice delicate etchings of security bars from Roxy......they are designed for Southern Vans but they will work ok. I do have a question for the experts......the horizontal bars for non opening windows are straightforward but I would like confirmation that that the grilles were attached directly to the drop lights rather than the aperture itself........so where Phil has set some drop lights half way open I should only show half a grille? 

 

 Regards from a rather cloudy Vancouver

 

John

 

Sorry, I missed your grilling question. Don't know that one; suggest ask Rob S!

P

[Mallard60022]

You have inspired me to dig out my Kit for this van. Then I will probably look at the parts, scan the instructions and put it away again. However, it (and many others) need to be done.

Phil

[john dew]

Well done that man. Can't wait to see it on the tracks and looking like it has always been there.

You can see why I only ever offer part builds as the 'faff' usually comes upon one when trying to finish the damn things off. How Larry G and Co get such good looking stuff is a mystery to me.

What's next then Jon?

Vans Arus

 

Thanks Phil

 

Still got a lot to do ......Grab Handles and Door Handles for instance!!  So the next challenge is some way off although I have the donor's sister so I may eventually try and repeat the whole exercise from scratch.

 

I will ask the grille question on ANTB

 

Regards 

[john dew]

Its far too hot to do any gardening so I have pressed on with the decals and glazing under the welcome shade of a very large sun awning

First a word about livery. The K40 Brake Vans were built between 1931 and 1933 ie prior to the introduction of the shirt button livery. However at some stage in the mid-late thirties a number of these vans were painted in overall dark brown. I opted to use this livery primarily for convenience but also I think it will look more appropriate on the daily milk train.
 

 

 

There is a lengthy thread on RMWeb about The N gauge society's model of a slightly different van of the same era with a lot of very useful detail about livery......including the offset shirt button.

 I was so glad the GWR limited the numbering to two digits........not sure if its old age or what but the number transfers seem much smaller than when I last used them. Drove me scatty trying to line up "43" at each end.

 I now realise that on one side I stupidly put the "Luggage" lettering on the wrong double door......should be on the door with a handle. I think I have spares but unsure whether to bother changing them.

Here is a very cruel close up

 

 

 

 

The grille on the drop light does look a tad clumsy in this shot. Phil suggested hand drawing but knowing my drafting skills that would have been even clumsier.
 

 

 

 

The Roxy etchings are designed for Southern Vans but work well on this model with closed drop lights  however on half open windows the thicker base is exposed.......lesson learned for next time.....dont drop drop lights! 

  Last and final job:  door and grab handles.....now thats something I am really looking forward to!

Edited November 9, 2022 by john dew
8/11/22 Photos

[M.I.B]

John

 

Nice work on the K40.

 

I didn't get up to much in 4 weeks off because I was busy doing things.........so don't be upset that you haven't done much recently.

 

I worked on the premise that drop lights on K stock dropped leaving the grill in place - otherwise an open window is a security risk.  Some K stock only had bars or grilles on the doors anyway,

 

I have only been back at work for a day so not yet had time to write up the stuff I did manage to get done.

[john dew]

Hi MIB

 

Welcome back.....you have been missed.

 

You are very kind about my progress with the K40......I know from Cranford how adept you are in the paint shop so I suspect you are flattering me ,nevertheless it's still very encouraging.....thank you!

 

You are correct about the drop light grilles.....I asked the question on ANTB and got a couple of definitive responses . So I have modelled them that way......the problem being that on dropped drop lights the Roxy SR grille doesn't look quite right......as I said above next time I will not have open windows....one lives and learns

 

Best wishes

 

John

[M.I.B]

Thanks John.

 

I genuinely like your K40.  The ends are better than mine for sure.

 

I think I only have one open window on a K van and that is a K36 which doesn't have a grille on the door window.  Seen here with a guard leaning on the drop light top edge.  That's how I got around this conundrum.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 23, 2016 by M.I.B

[john dew]

Hardly done any modelling since my last post......I think I may have added at most two grab handles to the brake van!

 

So wildly off topic I thought I would show you some photos of the trip we have just made through the Canadian Rockies with some friends from Harrogate.

 

You can do this trip in three ways......by rail, the Rocky Mountaineer which is I believe fantastic but very expensive, by coach, less expensive but somewhat inflexible or by car. We opted to go by car, more flexibility and with 4 people more economical.

 

We flew to Calgary from Vancouver and met up with our friends who flew in from Heathrow. We rented a car and took a week driving back to Vancouver where we returned the car when they flew home.

 

Brilliant trip......thoroughly recommend it. If you are hesitating these photos (albeit shot with an ipad) may tip the balance

 

Calgary to Banff takes less than two hours. Its a great overture as the Rockies suddenly emerge from the flat Alberta prairies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The drive from Banff to Jasper took over 4 hours but was absolutely spectacular. The constantly changing vistas on the Icefield Parkway as we drove past the Columbia glacier were the highlight of the trip

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a couple of days in Jasper we drove back to Lake Louise

 

 

 

Thats the view that the guests at Chateau Lake Louise get every morning!

 

 

 

 

 

We stayed one night in Lake Louise.......not at the Chateau I hasten to add (if you want read about the low point of the trip check out our reviews in Trip Advisor of the Deer Lodge Lake Louise)

 

Its a the long drive back to Vancouver........... The train and coach trips break the journey at Kamloops which is not a particularly attractive town.

 

We chose to travel a little further to the south and spend a couple of days in Kelowna and the Okanagan wine country

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes life is just too tiring and stressful........I will post some more vineyard shots tomorrow once Mr Gates has stopped updating my comutors

 

Best wishes from a sunny Vancouver

 

Edited November 9, 2022 by john dew
8/11/22 Photos

[mullie]

Stunning photos and a trip I hope to make one day.