mikemeg Posted October 7, 2012 Author Share Posted October 7, 2012 Just by way of a slight digression, I was on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, last Sunday, for their Autumn Steam Gala. Our train, from Pickering to Grosmont had been hauled by a Black 5 - 45428 - leaving on time and maintaining perfect time throughout; this on a glorious early autumn afternoon through the stunning scenery of the moors. We duly alighted on platform 2 of Grosmont station, along with the rest of this packed train and walked across to Platform 1, where another train was awaiting its locomotive for its run to Pickering. The locomotive was clearly visible at the southern end of the tunnel at Grosmont; the unmistakeable outline of an A4. After a few trills of the chime whistle, the A4 moved into the tunnel to draw back onto its train waiting in Platform 1. By now several hundred people with an almost equal number of cameras amongst them, waited expectantly for the locomotive to appear. There was a couple stood just in front of me, both perhaps late thirties, perhaps fortyish. The husband (well male partner) followed the progress of the locomotive through the dslr viewfinder of his camera, while his wife (female partner) stood somewhat disinterestedly by. As the locomotive drew side on to this assembled audience, this lady fixed her gaze on it, let out an audible gasp, turned to her male partner and said, for all around to hear, 'Oh, that is just beautiful.' For me and my generation of railway enthusiasts, these things were iconic. Seemingly, they still are. So I resolved that a BR blue A4, preferably the most recent Hornby model, would have to be acquired and P4'd for Hessle Haven. A visit to see Leaman Road, and my telling of this tale, yesterday, resulted in Tom F producing an unused, but new, Hornby A4, in BR blue with single chimney and corridor tender which was surplus to his needs (oh Tom, you'll come to regret that). So before Tom could change his mind, a price was agreed, handshakes exchanged and the deal done, Tim Easter had removed the number (60011) but not yet the plates, so a quick check of Yeadon for an English based A4 (for some reason - might be the distance or the complete absence of any operational need - Haymarket based locos seldom, if ever, got to Hull!) of this configuration (in 1950) resulted in identifying 60026 - Miles Beevor, then shedded at Grantham, as a suitable candidate, whereupon Tim rapidly produced an HMRS sheet of BR numbers and half changed the identity of this model, before my very eyes. What is this affliction which Great Northern (Gilbert) admits to suffering from - locoholism? Seems that Tim and Tom are both carriers of this same disease and are infecting many folk with whom they come into contact. Particularly virulent is the 4-6-2 strain of this bug, which can strike very quickly and for which there is no known cure! Just as I was leaving Leaman Road I mentioned that I must also, one day, add a model of a Peppercorn A1 in BR blue, for Hessle Haven. I'll not bore you with the details but I left with two models yesterday and, had I stayed much longer, could quite easily have left with a 'full house' of East Coast Pacifics for the A2 and A3 were probably lurking somewhere, just awaiting a new owner. And, Tim was trialling a part completed A2/2 which is, I believe, destined for Gilbert's Peterborough North layout and which, even in its raw plastic, resin and brass state, looked stunning. So now my "I've bought this to convert to P4" collection is restored to two, both pacifics, both in BR blue as per June 1950. The A1? That has to be what I still believe to be the most evocative name ever given to a steam locomotive - 60116 Hal o' the Wynd. Damn you Tom and Tim and many thanks to you both. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 8, 2012 Author Share Posted October 8, 2012 And sliding through Hessle Haven never to return, for this is to be renumbered as 60116 - Hal o'the Wynd. I don't know when 60161 was actually completed but it must have been sometime around mid 1950? I'm sure someone with the relevant Yeadon can tell me. This was the second of the two models which I bought from Tom F, while visiting Leaman Road and is now third in the queue for conversion to P4 and a little weathering. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 8, 2012 Author Share Posted October 8, 2012 And the first in the "to be P4'd " queue is this one. This locomotive was actually blue by mid 1950, so will be re-numbered as 60124, which was still green at this date - June 1950. I've posted this photo, on here, a few times but it is still one of my favourites. The light on here is sunlight. there is no substitute for it. And even though the depth of field got lost on this photo, somehow it seems to work. Early Morning A1 - A Peppercorn A1, 60114, coasts under Hessle Haven's shipyard bridge into the early morning sun of a glorious late spring day in 1950. The process of converting this to P4 will be covered on another thread in this section. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 9, 2012 Author Share Posted October 9, 2012 Just couldn't resist setting up a photo of the A4, coming through Hessle Haven. Shame that the layout, beyond the bridge, isn't yet built, so I fear for the fate of this A4 if it proceeds much further. The apparent lack of parallel between the decking of the gantry and the bridge is due to the bridge being slewed at 25 degrees from perpendicular across the tracks; the gantry is perpendicular to the tracks. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judge Dread Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Just to square the circle, the talk of Jubilees in Hull reminds me of a sighting of mine of 45565 "Victoria" with nameplates still attached in Seven section, adjacent to "Tin Can" bridge. She, of course, was awaiting final passage to Albert Draper's yard. Sad days. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
clecklewyke Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Just to square the circle, the talk of Jubilees in Hull reminds me of a sighting of mine of 45565 "Victoria" with nameplates still attached in Seven section, adjacent to "Tin Can" bridge. She, of course, was awaiting final passage to Albert Draper's yard. Sad days. I remember hearing what sounded like the laboured breathing of an enormous dying animal. It was an A1 or A2 being dragged cold along the High Level to Draper's - too far away to identify. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
69843 Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Now officially jealous-an A4 and the best named A1? You certainly are lucky Mike. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 10, 2012 Author Share Posted October 10, 2012 Now officially jealous-an A4 and the best named A1? You certainly are lucky Mike. I have to say that coming across both the A1 and the A4 in exactly the right state and livery for my model setting (mid 1950) was a stroke of luck. That both models should be new and unused and the owner of both models should want to sell them was, perhaps, another stroke of luck. Tom F, from whom I bought both models, was also intending to change the A1 to 'Hal o'the Wynd' and so had the 247 plates for this loco which were included with it - perhaps another stroke of luck. All in all, not a bad day! Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Remember Chris Pendlenton's all-singing, all-dancing 60116 in MRJ28 and 29? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 10, 2012 Author Share Posted October 10, 2012 Remember Chris Pendlenton's all-singing, all-dancing 60116 in MRJ28 and 29? Aye, ah think ah dae, lyke (attempt to write Geordie), I wonder why so many folk choose this particular A1; there were forty eight others? Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon hudson Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Mike yee need larn ya'sell geordie man y'kna wat ah meen like Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Just as well Jimmy Nail never had an A1 named after him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 10, 2012 Author Share Posted October 10, 2012 Just as well Jimmy Nail never had an A1 named after him. Aye, reet enough, canny lad, or that "Auf wiedersehen, pet" woren't a winner o' one of the classic raices! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timara Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Hello Mike! Tim Easter had removed the number (60011) but not yet the plates, so a quick check of Yeadon for an English based A4 (for some reason - might be the distance or the complete absence of any operational need - Haymarket based locos seldom, if ever, got to Hull!) of this configuration (in 1950) resulted in identifying 60026 - Miles Beevor, then shedded at Grantham, as a suitable candidate, whereupon Tim rapidly produced an HMRS sheet of BR numbers and half changed the identity of this model, before my very eyes. What is this affliction which Great Northern (Gilbert) admits to suffering from - locoholism? Seems that Tim and Tom are both carriers of this same disease and are infecting many folk with whom they come into contact. Particularly virulent is the 4-6-2 strain of this bug, which can strike very quickly and for which there is no known cure! You've hit the nail bang on the head there Mike. I think the locoholism bug bit me years ago and I'm still suffering for it now. One's sanity gets questioned when one has more than 20 of one class of loco (in my case, 27). Even then, over ten of one class comes close.... Glad the A4 has hit the spot anyway . Just as I was leaving Leaman Road I mentioned that I must also, one day, add a model of a Peppercorn A1 in BR blue, for Hessle Haven. I'll not bore you with the details but I left with two models yesterday and, had I stayed much longer, could quite easily have left with a 'full house' of East Coast Pacifics for the A2 and A3 were probably lurking somewhere, just awaiting a new owner. And, Tim was trialling a part completed A2/2 which is, I believe, destined for Gilbert's Peterborough North layout and which, even in its raw plastic, resin and brass state, looked stunning. That "full house" is almost there now, so I'll look forward to seeing Minoru gracing your thread(s) in the not-too-distant . I'm happy to say that Gilbert's new A2/2 proved itself to be reliable enough on Tom's trackwork, so it bodes well for his own forthcoming A2/2 next year. Seeing as his is going to be exactly the same chassis and tender specification, it made sense to see how it behaved! Damn you Tom and Tim and many thanks to you both. Cheers Mike Our pleasure Mike! Only too happy to have been partly to "blame" for your parting with hard-earned for the sake of something nice and Blue. Cheers, Tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 10, 2012 Author Share Posted October 10, 2012 Hello Mike! You've hit the nail bang on the head there Mike. I think the locoholism bug bit me years ago and I'm still suffering for it now. One's sanity gets questioned when one has more than 20 of one class of loco (in my case, 27). Even then, over ten of one class comes close.... Glad the A4 has hit the spot anyway . That "full house" is almost there now, so I'll look forward to seeing Minoru gracing your thread(s) in the not-too-distant . Cheers, Tim If not a "full house", a "prile" (of Pacifics) isn't a bad deal. I haven't made mention of 60062 - Minoru - until I pick it up. So, Tim, if you or Tom have any spare A2's lying around, just hide em away, next time I'm up at Leaman Road, especially if they're in the LNER apple green livery with BR markings. And I'm running out of space on the naming bars for this thread; I've already had to update it twice Now back to building North Eastern locos and painting them black (except the Tennant, of course). Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 11, 2012 Author Share Posted October 11, 2012 As I seem now to have concatenated (now there's a word right out of an IBM manual) these various P4 conversions onto this thread then it seems sensible to continue to use this thread to record the progress (or lack of it) of the process of actually doing these various conversions. I've re-titled this thread and amended its description to reflect the fact that I seem to have had a recent spate of acquisition of suitable models for P4 conversion, so they'll all be described on here. The first one bought and the first one to be converted is the Bachmann A1 - nee 60114 though to be 60124, sadly without its name, for t'weren't named until it became blue. So duly whopped through my letterbox, this lunchtime, were two packages; the one containing the chassis conversion kit, the other the various wheelsets from Alan Gibson. Might be worth recording (usual disclaimers here) just how prompt the mail order service from Alan Gibson is, just a couple of days from ordering to receipt. The instructions for the EasiChas are very comprehensive, backed up by a CD with literally dozens of photographs of each of the various stages, so I won't repeat those instructions on here. Now I've scratch built a few locomotive models and kit built a few more but the dismantling of this Bachmann model was actually quite daunting, though surprisingly easy. Daunting only because I've never done this and one is taking a fully assembled, painted and working model (albeit that it won't run on my layout, cos it's 'OO') and stripping it back to its major sub-assemblies, setting aside various bits (wheels, coupling rods, front bogie) for discarding as this dismantling process procedes. Anyway, the dismantling process was done without problem and I now have a box full of A1 pieces. The instructions do emphasise the need to carefully record and mark where each of the srews belong, as the dismantling process procedes, so I used those little plastc bags, from Alan Gibson, which I save and re-use. Once again I use a cradle to support the chassis; there are some very fragile sand pipes which can easily be deformed or broken. Just look at the size of that motor. No wonder that this model is described as 'very sure footed' after conversion, in the instructions. Now to move to the assembly of the new chassis. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 Earlier in this thread, someone asked why I'm using the EasiChas approach in preference to using the Dave Bradwell kit? Two reasons; the EasiChas approach is far easier and quicker but, secondly, I intend to do at least one A3 and A4 as well. To my knowledge there is no Dave Bradwell kit for either of these two prototypes; there is an EasiChas for both the A3 and A4. So to maintain consistency of detailing level, then the FlexiChas approach seemed the sensible approach. This second reason wasn't a consideration until I acquired the A4 and, shortly, the A3, both of which I'll cover on this thread. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iak Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 Well some Easi tips on these beasties new under gubbins will go down well here. Having a stash of Gresley greyhounds is one thing but I'll bet this chassis concept is going to get bigger as time goes on... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 The kit, itself, consists of two etched sheets, both in nickel silver, and a set of brass hornblocks and springs. Also the printed instructions and instructional CD. I hate photographing nickel silver as in anything other then pure, natural light it seems to adopt the colour of brass. So these two photographs have been photo shopped a bit and they still look like brass. Anyway, hopefully this conveys enough of what's on the etches. If you want full details of what these kits contain, just look on the Brassmasters website. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 Well some Easi tips on these beasties new under gubbins will go down well here. Having a stash of Gresley greyhounds is one thing but I'll bet this chassis concept is going to get bigger as time goes on... Ian, With the sheer quality of the current generation of r-t-r locomotive models, I think you're probably right. I can still remember when I bought this green A1, getting it home, taking it out of its box and just marvelling at how good it was. Similarly, the current Hornby A4 (not the Railroad version) is just simply superb. Why would I want to build these prototypes when models of this quality can be bought off the shelf - and the finish; only the very best could finish them to this standard. I should perhaps make clear, at this point, that I have no connection with Brassmasters or with the EasiChas concept other than discussing this with John Brighton - the originator of this idea - many years ago, when John showed me a very early mock up. Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
micklner Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 They are doing a A2 version as well soon ? it has disapeared from their site? There are lots of pictures on the Brassmasters site too. I have used the detail A3 A4 bits for OO!! and the only thing I havent been able to use are the front irons on the A3 as the bogie wheels hit them. I have a A3 with add on bits nearly done at mo Winsor Lad .Highly recomended and cheap too. !! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 They are doing a A2 version as well soon ? it has disapeared from their site? There are lots of pictures on the Brassmasters site too. Mick, I half wish you hadn't mentioned that. The lack of a similar chassis, for the A2, was one self induced reason for not buying one. Now, with that reason contradicted, I have no excuse. It will be interesting to see which of the A2 variants this chassis will cover? Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
micklner Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 I agree also what detail parts they will produce too ?, Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemeg Posted October 13, 2012 Author Share Posted October 13, 2012 So, it took just over an hour to read through the loco dismantling instructions and then to dismantle it, down to the level where the chassis block is as per the photo above. A further fifteen minutes was spent reading through and then executing the dismantling of the tender. The instructions do mention that quite a lot of force is needed to remove the tender wheelsets; I can atest to that. Basically, the tender side frames have to be prised apart to remove these wheelsets, so care does need to be exercised in not damaging these side frame. So far, then, I've spent around 1 and 1/4 hours reading instructions and dismantling the model. All dismantling is now complete. The fold up centre mainframe section was next removed, from the etch, after having taken out and stored, the various components which utilise the spaces in the mainframe etch. The etching tabs were then cleaned off this component with a very fine, and worn needle file; one which doesn't drag too much. Even with this thickness of nickel silver, it is possible to bend the component if the file is too coarse or if the piece being filed is not held as close to the filing action as possible. Folding up the centre mainframe section is not difficult but care must be taken to hold each section absolutely flat. This etch is all .015" nickel silver, so though the fold lines are half etched, there is still quite a bit of force needed to make the folds. Once the two sides are parallel and both 90 degrees to the bottom, then the tops of the mainframes can be folded over. Here only some 1.5 mm of width is being folded, so I used a pair of long nosed pliars and gently eased these sections into their fold, bit by bit. Folding bars might help - I don't have them - and even then placing them might be difficult. These top folds (and there are six sections to be folded) which effectively produce the spacing pieces from the Bachmann chassis block, took around thirty minutes to do but they are straight. parallel and at 90 degrees to the sides. A further half hour was spent easing the Brassmasters axleboxes, on their slots, so that each travelled the full extent of the slots with no binding. I also marked each axlebox with the location where it had been adjusted i.e. LH front, RH centre, etc. The keeper plate is, again, a fold up etch. There are a number of rivets which must be 'pressed through' on this component. The holes marking the positions of these rivets are only very lightly etched in; they are not half etched. I used a 0.4 mm drill and, after re-inforcing the mark with a 'pop' from the slightly blunted compass point, gave each mark around half a dozen twists of the 0.4 mm drill in a pin chuck. This made a considerable difference to how much downward pressure was necessary to press out the rivet and made for a much more defined rivet, rather than just an identation in the metal. Once all of the rivets had been pressed, the brake hangar brackets were folded up as per the instructions. So about three and a half hours into the 'build', I am here (see photo) about to check the Alan Gibson axles in their axleboxes and then begin the process of adding and quartering the driving wheels. Aha, a photo of nickel silver which looks like nickel silver! Cheers Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted October 13, 2012 Share Posted October 13, 2012 Dave Bradwell did tell me he was thinking about an A2 chassis kit in the same style as his A1. Expect gestation period to take a few years... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.