RMweb Gold Zero Gravitas Posted January 16, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 16, 2015 Adam, probably a bit late now, but during a clear-out earlier today I chanced upon the January 83 edition of RM, which includes an article on the mineral rebuilds to coil wagons, and includes drawings and photographs of the cradles. It's yours if you would like it - PM me if you'd like me to post it to you. Best Regards, ZG. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HGT1972 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Don't forget the Coil H carried tinplate coil in stillages so didn't head for the same customers as the Coil C/Js. They were common (if you can say common about such a tiny fleet!) visitors to Trostre, Velindre and Ebbw Vale for loading and Metal Box plants, even locally to Neath, for unloading. All three types could be seen together at Ebbw Vale but, as mentioned, in different flows. The wagons, by the way, look great! I'm tempted to add a few more to my Morfa Bank fleet now you've inspired me! Hywel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 Thanks for this Hywel - knowledge of the way in which the traffic actually worked is something I lack, equally, the whole rake will be running empty, on a layout where they have no rightful place so that's a secondary issue at present. Would a Coil H be a likely pairing with, say a Shochood B in the same traffic? Adam Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HGT1972 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 The Shochood Bs were often used for coil, more usually the thinly sliced stuff, but could be seen regularly with Coil C/J sometimes as fitted heads on Llanwern to Newport Docks export traffic. The Coil Hs tended to hunt either in short rakes of their own kind or with the other tinplate coil carriers like the 20 diagram 1/451 Coil R (later JRV) former Bolster E fitted with three compartments for carrying stillages just like the Coil H. These originally had individual hoods over the compartments rather like steeply peaked tents but lost them in the mid 1970s. Another location for the Coil H I've just remembered - the Reed can factory at Rhymney, and the Coil Rs also worked there. Hope that helps! Hywel 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 (edited) That's great Hywel, I'll sub the shochood into the rake instead. There's no way I'm building another Coil H, but a Coil R sounds an intriguing (long-term) possibility, despite the hoods, which they would have had in my period. You wouldn't happen to have a picture of them in that form? I assume that they had the same sort of three bar hood as the shochoods and like everything else seemed to have in about that period? Coil Rs are the subject of a Paul Bartlett gallery I hadn't seen before: http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brcoilr (thank you again Paul) which is compelling in itself and which provide far more information than I had to do the Coil H. Too many projects... Diolch yn fawr! Adam Edited January 18, 2015 by Adam Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HGT1972 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 The only decent view I know of with the hoods was an early David Larkin shot, but not a published picture. If you find the OPC book 'The Power of the Peaks' by Keith Montague then you can see two with three Coil H at Ebbw Vale in 1975 in plate 165. Although a bit distant you can see the hoods. They really resemble a small ridge tent with quite a steep angle to the peak. They were removed from around 1976 and the stillages sheeted instead. The photo illustrates another type of wagon you can run with them - Shocvans. They were also used for tinplate (in large numbers - 800 were allocated to Ebbw Vale in 1975) but carried flat parcels rather than coils. I'm going to model some Coil R but so far the time has eluded me! Hywel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted January 18, 2015 Author Share Posted January 18, 2015 (edited) Thanks again Hywel, that's really helpful, hope that the refit of the inspirational Morfa Bank Sidings is going well? Here's the current state of play with my Coil C: On page 82 of http://www.barrowmoremrg.co.uk/BRBDocuments/BRFreight2Issue.pdf can be found a dimensioned sketch of the Coil R, quite detailed by the standards of these things and plenty good enough for the job. Time for a sacrificial Cambrian Turbot or two in good time... oh, and some more shocvans. Also of interest in there are some more detailed drawings, with numbering, of Mincoils (pp. 46-7). Lots of other good and useful stuff too. Adam Edited January 26, 2015 by Adam 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HGT1972 Posted January 18, 2015 Share Posted January 18, 2015 Hi Adam - a most useful diagram indeed! Perhaps a few Coil Rs might move up the 'to-do' list sooner rather than later...it nicely illustrates the steep peak of the hood too. Thanks for that! Your Coil C is looking good - if you need any details of any other coil wagons please pm me and I'll help if I can as they've always been a favorite. The Morfa Bank rebuild has reached the end of the dismantling stage and the bits and ideas for the rebuild are well advanced...hopefully something shall soon be rising, phoenix like, from the ashes! Hywel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted January 24, 2015 Author Share Posted January 24, 2015 Here's the last of the Coil Js (for the moment, anyway) converted from a tippler of the 10' wheelbase variety. The body is from the chassis that is now the Coil C described above, the chassis is an etch from AMBIS, axleboxes spares from a Parkside underframe, springs 51L, buffers MJT and the whole now wants a coat of primer. Adam 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 (edited) A bit further along now and all are painted and most of the way weathered. The final touches will be added after I've lettered them all. The Coil C (left) seems to have had metal strips protecting the baulks and these seem to have been treated to a dose of red oxide primer. The Coil J's just had plain wood... I'll add some notes on the weathering approach later if anyone is interested? Adam Edited January 30, 2015 by Adam 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Zero Gravitas Posted January 30, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 30, 2015 A bit further along now and all are painted and most of the way weathered. The final touches will be added after I've lettered them all. Coil_pair_1.gif Coil_pair_2.gif The Coil C (left) seems to have had metal strips protecting the baulks and these seem to have been treated to a dose of red oxide primer. The Coil J's just had plain wood... Coil_J_4.gif I'll add some notes on the weathering approach later if anyone is interested? Adam Hi Adam - coming along very nicely! Yes please to the weathering approach - it's always good to get a different perspective. Best Regards, ZG. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 (edited) Thanks to those who clicked the various buttons, OK, well for these wagons, where rust and paint were in the balance - wholesale repainting was not part of the conversion, but touching up was - what I did for the bodies was to apply a coat or a couple of coats of overall rust (Humbrol metalcote gunmetal and matt 100) which was allowed to dry for a few days before a rough coat of matt light grey was applied over the top. There is precious little visible bodyside that wasn't covered with black patches for numbering so fine rust effects would probably have been a waste of time so splodged grey was what I went for. See Paul Bartlett's gallery of the type: http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brcoilj A day or two later, the whole was 'damp-brushed' (like 'dry-brushed', but with more paint) with the same rust mix to represent the scratches, chips and rust bloom of the real thing. Some more of the mix was thinned to produce the streaking visible. Once this was dry, a bit of Rail Grey was added to cover the areas of repair and re-lettering. The lettering will be a mix of mapping pen and transfers, but only when the paint is properly dry. Adam Edited January 30, 2015 by Adam 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 A concerted effort over the last few days has seen a varied collection of wagons lettered. There are more that I couldn't fit on the desk and more still to be done. The pair of Coil S (the brown ones!) been featured before and look much better for their identities. The Coil J marathon is ongoing, two more left. The slightly rough effect is deliberate: these '60s conversions seem to have been re-lettered by whoever was to hand capable of waving a 1" brush and the way I achieved this is to use a Modelmaster sheet derived from '80s period Cambrian dry print transfers; the artwork was hand drawn and gives exactly the rough effect I was after. I'll need some more sheets, and the word 'COIL' a dozen or so times... Time for a cuppa. Adam 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Adam, Tidy job! You've captured the essence of the South Wales of my youth perfectly. I can almost smell the sulphurous fumes from the Port Talbot blast furnaces...Those Wire Coil wagons behind are very tasty as well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted February 3, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 3, 2015 CWA. Cracking Wagons Adam. Mike. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted February 15, 2015 Author Share Posted February 15, 2015 (edited) I didn't mean this to happen, but, Coil R, two off. The sketch in the diagram book (noted above) is actually to scale and can be photocopied down to 4mm which means the key bit, the hood dimensions, are known. The 'body' is a fairly straightforward fabrication from 40 thou' plastic, the main chassis 30 thou' sheet and Evergreen 1/8" channel with Rumney Model's brakegear and trussing for the Bogie Bolster E. In the hooded form, almost no body detail is required: it's hidden! The bogies will be from Cambrian and whole should be quite easy, hopefully. Adam Edited February 16, 2015 by Adam 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin parks Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Hi Adam an intriguing wagon you are building there! Excuse my ignorance of the subject, but what are the hoods which cover most of the wagons going to be made of? All the best, Colin Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted February 16, 2015 Author Share Posted February 16, 2015 (edited) No problem Colin. The hoods on the real thing were nylon sheets, tailored for the job. Because if this, most of the normal techniques don't work, so what I will do is to build up the tent shapes from plastic sheet as a former, add the sheet rails and then a couple of layers of tissue paper.The ends will be built up from either more tissue or Miliput as I did with my earlier Shochood and Coil H wagons. The sheets on these come down quite low so tissue might just work.I always use two layers of tissue for this job and treat them to a good coat if PVA; nylon sheet doesn't have discernible texture 1/76th full size!Adam Edited February 16, 2015 by Adam 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KalKat Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I've made plastic tarpaulin from the inner trays of chocolate boxes. Warm it up 'till pliable, then pull over a former. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted February 17, 2015 Author Share Posted February 17, 2015 An interesting idea that, though I would have to substantially upgrade my chocolate consumption! Maybe worth a test in the future, but these models are being built with the method I know I can make work in mind: the pair if wagons will have six hoods between them so I need to make sure that I have a workable solution. The next stage is to get the wagons on their wheels (temporarily) and to complete the visible detail. Adam Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arthur Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 I've made plastic tarpaulin from the inner trays of chocolate boxes. Warm it up 'till pliable, then pull over a former. Interesting. Do you mean the, usually, brown material which is vac formed into individual compartments each to hold a chocolate? If so, I'm just struggling to envisage it flattening out to make a tarpaulin. On a tarpaulin/chocolate theme, I use the wrappers which Cadburys used to use on their 'Caramel' bars. It was a thickish silver foil inner, bonded to a printed paper outer. By scrunching it up, the foil retained creases, whilst the paper outer took acylic paint rather well. Probably better suited to traditional tarpaulins rather than the more modern plastic ones. Cadburys no longer use it but I took the precaution of building up a stock. I had to up my chocolate consumption too but, in my case, that was no hardship...... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 The Reverend Lewis did some hoods for a Coil A and Coil B using a technique called 'impasto', where thick paint is applied with a small palette knife, which is then used to model creases and folds. The substrate was fairly thick tissue. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KalKat Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 RE the 'chocolate option' Yus, it is the tray that holds the chockies. I find it softens at lower temperatures than styrene. I sometimes use the leftover heat from the oven (on a tray on paper) a hair dryer, the iron (between paper). Localised reheating can be done with a soldering iron held close. I have tarped loads that have held enamel for more than 20 years. I don't know about acrylic though Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted February 17, 2015 Author Share Posted February 17, 2015 (edited) Thnk you for the interest and the various button clicks and Kalkat's suggestion about tarps - I'd be interested to see a picture of one Kalkat (if that's possible please?), but in the meantime, here's work to date and one of the wagons now sits on its wheels. I'm awaiting the delivery of a second set of bogies at present. First up, headstock details. The Rumney Models etch includes a nifty little jig to drill holes for the vac' pipe dummy and lamp iron. Both are on the etch and will be attached with little pins of 0.3mm wire soldered to the metal components resulting in a nicely detailed result. Normally I'd make functional pins through the headstocks and add the detail in plastic afterwards but since the bits are there on the fret... As you can see, it folds up to an angle and the end aligns with the edge of the headstock. This almost certainly prolonged the life of the tiny drill though it has since succumbed. The standard Cambrian bogie fixing can be seen here: The screws are epoxied into the mouldings and once that went off, two layers of 40 thou' were added to reinforce the joint with the floor. As noted I've only got enough bogies for one wagon at present but I had a set of bogie fixings in stock so the wagons remain in step. As a prelude, however, here's the first one popped temporarily on its wheels: Adam Edited February 17, 2015 by Adam 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted February 18, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 18, 2015 Looking wheely good Adam. Mike. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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