Havenhouse - the reboot

[JCL]

Me again. Before I do anymore lattice work around the bridge, I've come to realise I need to get the steps sorted out and the handrails put onto them. I could measure them up, but to be honest, I've decided it's probably more accurate to scan them in and work off that. This will also mean that I'll get the angle of the steps correct (I don't want railing posts to come out other than vertical.

 

So below is a photo of the steps. The longer set is the set of steps that come unadulterated in the box, the shorter one has been cut to provide me with a set of steps from the top to the landing halfway down.

 

 

Then I increased contrast and rotated the steps so that the platform at the top of the main set are horizontal. I also overlapped the steps from the plans to give me the size of the landings. I had to change the steepness of the steps to match those of the Hornby footbridge. This isn't necessarily a bad thing because I'll need to find less space.

 

 

It looks a mess at the moment, but like the foggy morning I woke up to this morning, the sun will come out and the distractions will fade away later on. Two things I see at the moment, is that the handrail rods on the plan are too close together, I'll be doing one rod per step, and the step sides on the plan are slightly too narrow and part of the steps will be showing if I don't thicken it up a bit.

 

Here's the tracing that I've done in the plotter software. I've deleted the background image for clarity. I'll add it back and then put the posts in. Oh, it's balustrade, isn't it? I'm going to make all of the handrails the same length and tidy them up. When I come to apply them to the sides of the steps, I'll just just them off at the bottom end to the right length and put a newel (?) post in. (It's all coming back to me now). That's the idea anyway.

 

 

I'll be up early morning Thursday, as my dog, Austin is going to the vet for that once in a lifetime operation. So, unless he sleeps a lot in the afternoon, I'll probably not do much more until Friday. While he's in there I'm off to Lethbridge to see if they still have a model shop, otherwise I'll be putting the Hornby columns into a dremel or something and sanding down the capitals. The new capitals are keeping me awake. There's every chance I'll be using a Biro end if I can't find anything else/

 

Catch you soon.

[JCL]

Hi Al

 

As an aside, I'm thinking about the columns as well as I'll have to get the tube on mail order (none the right size in Lethbridge). I have 2mm/.080" styrene rod (product code 212) that's a good fit for the column diameter. On your build I remember you used 2mm rod as the core of your columns when you reduced their overall thickness. What size tubes did you do to go round them? I've been looking on the Evergreen site but I'm afraid I just can't work it out.

 

In the meantime, here's the prototype stair rails.

 

 

I don't normally colour the parts in, but I thought it would make it easier for you to see. The blue is obviously the rail and balustrades, and the green is the bottom edge that will be glued against the steps. The balustrades will be longer than I need so that they will overlap the bottom edge and are joined together by a big blue tab at the bottom.. The red lines will be cut and show how far up the balustrades the green edge will be glued. I'll glue them down and then cut the bottom off. This will mean that the balustrades will be parallel. The bottom light blue pieces will be glued either side of the top rail to provide a bit of strength.

 

That's the theory anyway. I'll print the whole lot first to make sure I have the sizing right, then I'll cut them out. That's a job for tomorrow though!

 

cheers

 

Jason

Edited October 24, 2013 by JCL

[Alister_G]

Hi Jason, That's looking brilliant!

 

For the columns, I used Plastruct #90859 2mm round rod.

 

For the capitals I used Plastruct #90604 3.2mm tubing. The interior hole on this tubing is too small - it's about 1.8mm - but there's enough meat on the wall of the tube that I successfully drilled it out with a 2mm drill.

 

Then the next size up is Plastruct #90605 4.8mm tubing which is an interference fit internally for the 3.2mm tubing, and finally the outer top layer is Plastruct #90606 6.4mm tubing, which is again an exact fit internally for the 4.8mm stuff.

 

Hope this all helps,

 

Al.

Edited October 25, 2013 by acg_mr

[JCL]

Yep, that's great! I can easily get the 3.2mm tubing here, I'll have to go to the information superhighway for the others. The great thing is that I can get on with the build using the original columns while the tubing is on order.

 

Back to the handrails today. My puppy had a bad night (as well he might), so I don't think we'll be going far today.

[JCL]

Here I am listening to Katy Perry for the first time, looking at the first lattice that I've put together. Unfortunately its wavy. I suppose I could save it by gluing on the top rail, but I'd like to get it right instead of cleaning up something like this. Luckily I can recut the lattice as I kept the file. Reading up on the interwebs I've found out that I've made an oh, so common mistake, which is to treat the Ambroid pro weld that I'm using as if it was tube glue. This has never been a problem in the past, but it seems that you can't do it when laminating. I've read two ways of doing it:

1. tack down one end, dry, glue a bit, press, dry, glue, press, dry and so on to stick the layers down. Finally putting weight on them to keep them flat while they dry.
2. clamp the lattice together, leaving a bit open at the top, then brush the top with glue so that it flows between the layers. Once the top is dry, turn the lattice upside down and do the bottom.

Does anyone have a preference or better way of doing things?

 

Apparently you can hear Katy roar; which is nice.

[JCL]

Right, I've rejigged the rails for the stairs. I realised that one balustrade per step wasn't enough, so I've changed it to two per step which has turned out a lot better.

 

If anyone is reading this in the future and would like the settings, what I did was this:

 

1. Took a sheet of .010" styrene/plasticard sheet
2. Drew out the rails to be .080" wide
3. Cut them out with the following settings: speed: 1, thickness 33, blade depth, 10, double cut = yes, mat = yes

I also realised after I'd done the cutting that I had mistakenly copied the rails and pasted them over themselves. This meant that the rails were actually cut four times, not two - this made a huge difference, and is better than just running the cutting program twice. This is the first time I've been able to actually cut shapes in styrene without having to go around the edges with a knife.

 

Here's a photo of the second try with the rails cut from styrene and the prototype below them cut from card.

 

[Alister_G]

That looks really good.

 

Is Ambroid Pro Weld the same sort of thing as Mek-Pak - a styrene solvent?

 

I have found in the past that joining flat layers together tends to cause some warpage, so what I normally do is plonk something heavy on top to keep it flat until the solvent has completely evaporated.

 

Al.

[JCL]

I believe it is, it's a bit faster by all accounts. I've already re-cut the lattice, so I'm going to do exactly that. I think I'll pop down to the local glass cutters and get a couple of pieces to make sure that I can square everything and flatten it without it sticking.

[JCL]

Hot dawg! As they used to say in these here parts thirty or so years ago I've managed to glue up the two rails without them warping.

 

The rails themselves were fixed to a board to keep them flat using double sided tape. Just as a reminder, they are .010" thick plastic. I then I glued some .015" x .040 " strip to the inside and outtsude of the upper edge of the rails to add strength. After each gluing I held them down with a thick ruler for a while to dry. After that I glued the balustrades on the other end to the bottom rail and left them to dry for quite some time. Finally I glued the two halves of the steps to the bottom rail. In the post above you can see both the top and bottom have rails. After the balustrades have been glued to the side of the steps I cut the balustrade off a couple of millimetres above the bottom edge of the step sides. Then it''s just rinse and repeat for the other side. Finally I've just a bit of patching to do of the balustrades that didn't glue properly.

 

So I've another two to do like that, then, because of lack of space, the last one won't have the landing half way down and will be just a straight set of steps.

 

 

Looks like I managed to knock the signal box roof slightly :-O

 

 

We had our first flakes of snow in town today, so I'm currently enjoying Tom Baker as Doctor Who on the TV. The sci fi channel has been running a series of "biographical" programs leading up the 50th anniversary programme I assume. Each edition culminates in an example of each doctor's adventures. Pyramids of Mars this evening!

[Alister_G]

That looks bloody brilliant!

 

Wonderful bit of work, well done.

 

Al

[JCL]

As an aside, I've been cutting some awning tests. The awning has an unusual edge in that it's in pairs of planks, and one is longer than the other. Also, it appears that the planks are slightly different widths Like the handrails on the footbridge, the cuts were made into .010" plasticard. I had to unscrew the bottom of the knife to make sure that there wasn't any debris in there before I started, and because there are lots of cuts at different angles and I was using an off-cut of plastic for the test, I had to use some tape to make sure the thing didn't move around.

 

The first image shows the cutting pattern. I created a unit (on the right) that I could duplicate as many times as I needed. Each colour is a different cut. The red line is 5.2mm long.

 

 

This photo shows the two tests that I did. The upper test piece is 65lb card to see if it the machine could handle this detail. The cutout below that is also card to show what one pair of planks looks like. The card I used got fairly fluffy, so the slots weren't too great. The photo also shows that I didn't cut along the top and release the planks from the surrounding material.

 

The set next to the ruler shows the same cuts in the plasticard. The photo has been blown up somewhat, and to the eye, the slots are pretty neat looking. Certainly from a couple of feet away and painted they'd look ok.

 

 

cheers

 

Jason

[JCL]

It took a couple of false starts, but managed to get three of the four sets of steps done.

 

 

You can see now that the steps into Wainfleet town centre won't have the landing (unlike the prototype). You can also see how tight the space is between the steps and the signal box.

[Alister_G]

That's looking great, you've made an absolutely excellent job so far.

 

Well done mate, it's brilliant.

 

Al.

[JCL]

Thanks Al, I take it you're on a late one again. I'm recutting the last set of steps as I type this. Then I'll glue them up and put everything away.

 

I remember doing an upgrade test in dev. It took 24 hours to run, and involved about 6 different processes, each of which had to be set off manually. Unfortunately it tended to crash 22-23 hours in. And about the manual, when I asked for one from the supplier and they tore off a piece of paper from a notepad and wrote the password on it. That was pretty much it.   By the time the project had finished, I gave the supplier the manual I'd written through trial and error. Heady days. Nice people as well.

[Jaz]

Hi saw your ratings today on our page and came to look, and when I saw your craftsman clever didn't think much on it, but now looking at your work I take it as a real compliment. Your bridge is coming along nicely (hi acr_mr and Westhamstation   ) another scratch build modeller.............bliss. (Not that I have had time to do much on the scratch build but I am reading and learning from other gifted modellers) of course my watch list needs to add another one.

[JCL]

Thanks For the compliment Jaz! A fair bit of work to do on it, but I'm getting there. I have to say that joining the rmweb is the best thing I could have done. The advice you can get on anything and everything is just fantastic.

[JCL]

So, work is on going on the footbridge. All four sets of steps now have rails on them and I'm thinking about the columns before I can do the bridge lattice. My idea is to cut off the hexagon at the bottom of the Hornby columns (see the photos above), then drill a 2mm hole into it so that I can insert the .080" rod. This will have a sleeve around the bottom of .125" dia. tube. The capital, I'm still not sure about, but pen "nibs" - the cone at the end - seem to be favourite right now. My problem is finding a 2mm drill bit, but I think I have an equivalent of 5/64" that'll work.

 

I can't take any photos this evening of my column ideas, so I've included some photos of the gate wheel at Wainfleet. This was removed a while ago to a private collector who has kindly sent me come photos of it. It'd make one helluva corkscrew! It's a great looking piece of machinery. I'm just wondering how I'm going to put one together I do have half an idea, which is 100% more than I usually have!

 

Edited November 1, 2013 by JCL

[JCL]

Do you know how much ink a ball point pen throws out when you drill out the cone end? More than "some"? I think I have a cunning plan for the pillars.

 

What I did on the column below was:

1. Cut of the base of the Hornby column
2. Drill a 2mm (actually .080") hole in the top
3. Ram in .080" piece of rod
4. Surround the rod with some .125" tube that had been drilled out Ali style
5. Drill out a pen nib to .080"
6. Push it onto the rod
7. Push .125" tub to the top

 

The tube will be glued to the rod then sanded to form a flat plane that the girders will be attached to. Obviously the whole thing will be vertical proper like when I'm done.

 

Luckily I've only got eight to do.

 

Edited to outline the cunning plan

Edited November 1, 2013 by JCL

[Jaz]

quote 'sounds like a plan'unquote

[JCL]

Well, 3 or 4 inches of wet snow tried to foil the plan today, but I've made a bit of progress.

 

I had to resize the girders at the tops of the columns (I made them the size they should have been, not the size they need to be because I'm using Hornby footbridge bits) which I cut into .010" plasticard. Each set of girders was then laminated so that they are a bit sturdier. As per Al's thread, I also reamed out the middle of the .0125" tube so that I could pass the tube over the .080" rod to make the thicker part of the column. The capital has changed a bit in that I'm using a different type of pen. The first pen nib was made of nylon or polythene or something and I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to either glue or pain it. A quick trip to the dollar store and I had 16 new pens for $3.50 - enough for all the columns and some left over in case I made a mess of things. Oh, and I can still use the pens.

 

 

Got to work out what I did to the snow blower tomorrow. I've a winch that winds in but not out, which is only useful once.

[Alister_G]

Those capitals look great, far better than my handmade ones, I wish I'd thought of using pen bodies, they look spot on.

 

I may just have to steal copy that idea for the canopy supports on the station building!

 

The columns and girders look just right, lovely job.

 

Bril mate, it's going to look amazing.

 

Cheers,

 

Al.

[JCL]

Cheers mister!

 

Must get a fan in the kitchen for the next time I open the glue bottle. Woooooooo...

[westerhamstation]

Hi Jason,

            The footbridge is looking really good, I like the use of the pens, and yes the ink does go everywhere, great work as usual, and best of luck with your snow blower.                         

                                                                                                     regards Adrian

[JCL]

Thanks very much Adrian. I didn't use the whole of the tip as that'd have been much more applicable to 0gauge. Also, changing pen meant that I could separate the barrel from the ink and nib, so I've been pretty lucky to not have ink problems since that first trial.

 

I'm going to do a push today to make a bit of progress. I bought some Testers glue the other day which has made life a lot easier. It dries a lot slower than the weld I've been using. I've been putting a dab of the Testers on the part, putting the part in place, nudging it, and then using the weld to make sure that the part will then stay where it should be. I've also put some H rod under the deck to help strengthen it when I add the signal. Oh lord, I forgot about the signal until just then. I also need to find some lights as I saw they really tarted this structure up !

 

The PVA adhesive is a red herring, I promise I haven't been using it on the footbridge!

 

I think one of the main skills a modeller needs is the ability to squint effectively!

 

 

[Alister_G]

Those capitals look the business, don't they, really good. Much better than mine

 

Excellent job mate, a combination of high-tech (the frames) and low-tech (the pens) works a treat!

 

 

Al.