Wright writes.....

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, D.Platt said:

Good morning Tony 

I’m wondering , hoping that yourself or others can help me out , after finishing my DJH Britannia I have at long last started my two DJH A3s , these are both with the GNR coal-railed tenders ,  as you know the kit comes with alternative parts for the body , but not for the tender , again as you will know the tender bulkheads were modified to suit the change over to L/H drive , so far the only photo I can find is of 60041 on Cowlairs works after the removal of the boiler and cylinders , it’s not the clearest of photos to try and make a new bulkhead from .

Did you modify yours Tony or leave it ? 

Dennis

Good afternoon Dennis,

 

I just altered the angle of the front bulkhead on the DJH GNR tender to the vertical. From memory, just a twitch needs taking off its base, otherwise it's too tall. 

 

Though I've built DJH A3s with GNR tenders for customers in the past, those so-equipped on LB were built by others. 

 

 

 

Both the above were built/painted by Alan Hammet and (I think) weathered by Tony Geary, to whom they once belonged.

 

 

This one was built/painted by Steve Naylor, and weathered by me, after I'd renumbered/renamed it (though I should have altered that cab side lining).

 

On all three, the tender front bulkhead is, correctly, vertical for the period.

 

The South Eastern Finecast A3's GNR tender is designed to be fitted vertically......

 

 

Painted by Geoff Haynes. 

 

 

As is the LNER high-sided, new type tender for A3s (it always was vertical).

 

 

As it was with the other type of A3 tender; the streamlined non-corridor type.

 

Another Geoff Haynes paint job.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

 

 

[Bucoops]

3 hours ago, t-b-g said:

 

It is real. Just small.

 

Or is it just far away?

[D.Platt]

Thanks Tony , the real visual appearance with the bulkhead in the kit is the white metal casting of the semi circle cut out for the brake handle , would I be correct basically to copy the bulkhead from the high sided tender ?

It’s a disappointment to read the DJH instructions where they proudly claim to have covered the alternative parts for the different versions of the loco , and then add they hadn’t done this for the tender .

Apart from that the two tenders are built and I’m looking forward to building the locos , 60106 with deflectors and 60074 without.

Will you be at Wigan this October ? If so be good to have a chat with you.

Dennis

[St Enodoc]

4 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

A lot of the older cast metal loco kits were designed with an XO4 or its derivatives in mind, resulting in a too large gap underneath the boiler.

The Wills 2251, a really old cast kit, was designed to fit a Tri-ang Jinty chassis, which had a large chunk of mazak above where the valve gear should have been. It also came with a curved infill piece for the boiler bottom that you could fit if you used Wills' own chassis. When I built mine, over 50 years ago now, I combined the two by cutting the mazak away and fitting the infill. You could still see the worm but it looked much better overall. Later I fitted Romford wheels (too small, in my ignorance) but it's never been converted to DCC so doesn't run on the layout nowadays.

[Woodcock29]

41 minutes ago, St Enodoc said:

The Wills 2251, a really old cast kit, was designed to fit a Tri-ang Jinty chassis, which had a large chunk of mazak above where the valve gear should have been. It also came with a curved infill piece for the boiler bottom that you could fit if you used Wills' own chassis. When I built mine, over 50 years ago now, I combined the two by cutting the mazak away and fitting the infill. You could still see the worm but it looked much better overall. Later I fitted Romford wheels (too small, in my ignorance) but it's never been converted to DCC so doesn't run on the layout nowadays.

I did similar with a J39. But it's so long ago now I can hardly remember the details. We sold it back in the 80s I think.

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, D.Platt said:

Thanks Tony , the real visual appearance with the bulkhead in the kit is the white metal casting of the semi circle cut out for the brake handle , would I be correct basically to copy the bulkhead from the high sided tender ?

It’s a disappointment to read the DJH instructions where they proudly claim to have covered the alternative parts for the different versions of the loco , and then add they hadn’t done this for the tender .

Apart from that the two tenders are built and I’m looking forward to building the locos , 60106 with deflectors and 60074 without.

Will you be at Wigan this October ? If so be good to have a chat with you.

Dennis

Good afternoon Dennis,

 

I'll need to check on the drawings to see how the different bulkheads are configured. 

 

I will be at Wigan, by myself. It was always Mo's and my intention to reduce the amount of shows we attended (we did 20 in 2019!), and she's now attending fewer than I am. She's been a great support, but a life beyond model railways is something she deserves, and she'd like to get the autumn tasks completed in the garden.

 

The Wigan Show promises to be as good as ever and I'm looking forward to it.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, St Enodoc said:

The Wills 2251, a really old cast kit, was designed to fit a Tri-ang Jinty chassis, which had a large chunk of mazak above where the valve gear should have been. It also came with a curved infill piece for the boiler bottom that you could fit if you used Wills' own chassis. When I built mine, over 50 years ago now, I combined the two by cutting the mazak away and fitting the infill. You could still see the worm but it looked much better overall. Later I fitted Romford wheels (too small, in my ignorance) but it's never been converted to DCC so doesn't run on the layout nowadays.

Good afternoon John,

 

I was talking about the old Wills kits to a friend only yesterday. At the time (in the 1960s!) they enabled a modeller to increase his/her stud by offering bodies to fit on proprietary chassis, thus getting over the (often difficult) hurdle of obtaining a running loco. From memory, Wills tender locos designed to fit on to a Tri-ang 'Jinty' chassis comprised four - one each from the Big Four; the 2251 you mention, an SR Q Class, a 4F and a J39. I doubt if the Tri-ang chassis had the correct wheelbase for anything, and probably even less likely for those bodies; which meant that splashers were in the wrong place, and anyone making a correct chassis found that the wheels didn't fit. Even where splashers were not present - on the 'Crab' or K3, for instance, the recommended Tri-ang BR Standard 82xxx was most unsuitable. 

 

Still it meant one had running locos, and they were a splendid learning curve; as were others - my first attempt at loco building was gluing (yes, horror of horrors) together a BEC J11 to fit on that 'Jinty' chassis. I even considered myself a 'scale' modeller at the time because I bushed the frames and fitted Romford drivers. Where it is now, I have no idea, nor wish to know!

 

I did succeed in finally making a reasonably accurate Wills J39...........

 

 

Well, it's actually a bit of a cheat (or rather a lot of a cheat).

 

My first Wills J39 attempt appeared as a 'Locomotive of Leighford', and it was already old by then. It really was awful, so I took it apart (another glued-together abomination) and combined some of its parts with a Jamieson kit for the same (which had the accurate wheelbase). There's still a nasty cut-out beneath the boiler; one day I might get around to filling it, but this oldy never gets used on LB. 

 

J39s were not that common between Grantham and Peterborough anyway, so I really only need one.......

 

 

And this one suffices perfectly; built from an Anchorage kit by Alan Hammet and painted/weathered by Tony Geary (all I've done is to make the lubricator drive).

 

It's ex-Charwelton and is a beautiful runner.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

 

 

 

[D.Platt]

Hi Tony

Quick update , I’ve found on brassmasters website the drawings for the modified tender , thanks for going to the trouble of showing us your A3 photos , hopefully I’ll be able to show you mine in a few months , I’m not as quick as yourself.

Dennis

[St Enodoc]

7 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

my first attempt at loco building was gluing

The 2251 was assembled, as recommended, with UHU. It's still in one piece (well, almost...).

[Barry O]

The Wills Flatiron kit fitted onto a Triang Jinty chassis. I bought the kit and chassis from Bill Stott of Nusto.. then Nucast. It was my first kit built loco. I still havebit with Romford wheels fitted but it still has its X04 motor. Lined LMS maroon and not often taken out of its box.

 

Baz

[Coach bogie]

Here is one of a pair of Wills 2251 built in the 1960's by my father with Evostick. After he died it was one of the items I chose to resurrect. It had Romford's but Mazak on one side with a groove worn in over 50 years use. I gave it a complete rebuild with some loose parts soldered back on.

 

Still has the same X04. Why? He taught me 'if it aint broke' don't fix it'. I cleaned it up, put a new magnet and brushes in and it runs well.

 

Tender is a K's ROD replacement as the original had been dropped and was twisted and I...well could not be bothered to fix when I have a box of spare tenders.

 

No prize winner but it is a family history as far as I am concerned.....and it works!

 

Mike Wiltshire

[gr.king]

20 hours ago, Bucoops said:

 

Or is it just far away?

Saved me asking the very same, Ted.

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, Coach bogie said:

Here is one of a pair of Wills 2251 built in the 1960's by my father with Evostick. After he died it was one of the items I chose to resurrect. It had Romford's but Mazak on one side with a groove worn in over 50 years use. I gave it a complete rebuild with some loose parts soldered back on.

 

Still has the same X04. Why? He taught me 'if it aint broke' don't fix it'. I cleaned it up, put a new magnet and brushes in and it runs well.

 

Tender is a K's ROD replacement as the original had been dropped and was twisted and I...well could not be bothered to fix when I have a box of spare tenders.

 

No prize winner but it is a family history as far as I am concerned.....and it works!

 

Mike Wiltshire

Great stuff Mike,

 

Thanks for showing us.

 

One question: is that a 'Silver Jubilee' Triplet Third I spy in the background? 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Chamby]

22 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

 

...Why not start an equivalent thread, with a GWR bias? 

 

 

I would be comfortable with seeing more Western stuff being posted on WW, as long as it is comparable to the current top quality content.  Same goes for Crimson Lake or Malachite Green stuff too... as long as it doesn’t take over!  

 

One can only follow so many threads.

[St Enodoc]

3 hours ago, Coach bogie said:

Still has the same X04. Why? He taught me 'if it aint broke' don't fix it'.

I have to confess that mine doesn't. It, together with several other early locos, was fitted with a 5-pole replacement during the mid-1990s. I got these from Bob P in Stafford, whose name appears in this topic from time to time, but I don't know whether he did the conversions himself.

[Barry Ten]

6 hours ago, Chamby said:

 

I would be comfortable with seeing more Western stuff being posted on WW, as long as it is comparable to the current top quality content.  Same goes for Crimson Lake or Malachite Green stuff too... as long as it doesn’t take over!  

 

One can only follow so many threads.

 

Agreed Phil. I don't follow all that many threads on RMweb, but this one is a constant inspiration, not just because of the kitbuilding side of it, but also the ever-present backdrop of Little Bytham and the trains running on it.

 

The other thing is that although the thread is understandably LNER-centric, there is a lot of general modelling and prototype expertise on tap which is applicable to other regions.  After all they are all choo-choos in the end and mostly run on the same gauge?

 

Al

Edited September 16, 2022 by Barry Ten
typos

[Barry Ten]

On the subject of GWR locos, these are all models that have been on WW before, but some not for a while.

 

 

61XX from the Finecast kit, with DJH motor/gearbox.

 

 

Another 61XX, this one using the Airfix RTR body (but with bits of the Airfix/Kitmaster/Dapol kit body spliced in) over a Comet chassis and DJH motor.  Sound-fitted and firebox glow for added fun.

 

 

Bird Class (Bullfinch) from the Branchlines kit based around the Kitmaster/Airfix/Dapol City of Truro.

 

 

The City from the same source.

 

 

Banbury Castle, modified Hornby (ex-Airfix) body and tender on Comet chassis, DCC. I reprofiled the cab roof, modified the front cylinder casing and repainted it.

 

 

Cambrian 2-4-0T from the Gem/Mainly Trains kit. A delightful little loco in my opinion.

 

 

27XX from the Hornby model, with splashers moved to accommodate the correct wheelbase

Comet chassis. Branchlines motor. The brake rods aren't quite right as they suit the 57XX but close enough for

me. I've not done anything else to the body other than separate handrails.

 

 

 

Dean Goods. Ex-Dapol model on Comet chassis with Comet motor/gearbox. After many tribulations, it's settled down to being very smooth and powerful.

 

 

King George I. Lima body on Comet chassis, Comet gearbox and DCC sound.

 

All the pre-nationalisation models are DC only, whereas BR-era ones have at least DCC and sometimes sound.

 

Hope these are of some interest.

 

Al

 

[Coach bogie]

4 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Great stuff Mike,

 

Thanks for showing us.

 

One question: is that a 'Silver Jubilee' Triplet Third I spy in the background? 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

Yes it is. I built it for my dad ( I like building coaches, whilst he preferred locos) which passed on to my son when he died along with his LNER locos. He liked building locos of all regions as well as his love of all things Swindon (son of an Swindon GWR driver). He was the only one of the family who did not work for the railway, yet had the greatest interest.

 

Here is my Dad, Brian Wiltshire with my son Jamie (now 19) with his SEF Hush Hush.  

[Staffordshire]

   Could not resist it, a kit built GWR/BR 47xx  loco .....

[Barry Ten]

17 hours ago, Staffordshire said:

   Could not resist it, a kit built GWR/BR 47xx  loco .....

 

Looks lovely. Is it 7mm?

Edited September 17, 2022 by Barry Ten

[B15nac]

18 hours ago, Staffordshire said:

   Could not resist it, a kit built GWR/BR 47xx  loco .....

Roy bromwell model? Excellent model builder 

[Tony Wright]

Seeing Barry Ten's (Al's) locos on the last page, reminded me that he brought some of them over in 2015 to run on LB....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's always wonderful to have friends' locos guesting on LB. Was it really seven years ago (in the main)? 

 

Much has changed/developed on LB since then (see my next post). 

 

 

[Tony Wright]

When Al brought his locos to first run on LB, scenes like this were coincidental.............

 

 

Bob Dawson had still to build the M&GNR bridge carrying the 'horse road' to Grimsthorpe Castle. 

 

 

The original M&GNR girder bridge was still present, and I still relied on Airfix ex-LMS carriages for some MR services (like my original fudged bridge, they've all now gone as I've kit-built replacements). 

 

 

I'd completed 60155 (started by Phil the Duck, and painted by Ian Rathbone)), and the Nu-Cast O2/3 has since been sold-on. 

 

Just in view are a B16/1 I built for Grantham and my part-built D&S ex-GE RF (now, of course, finished).

 

 

I experimented with some telephoto photography, with conspicuous lack of success! Isn't that bridge awful? 

 

Another Grantham loco, a C2, gets into the picture.

 

 

Ian Rathbone had painted this DJH A2 I'd built some years earlier. 

 

 

There's still very much to be done on LB seven years ago.

 

 

Though at least the Down splitting starter was built and installed by Graham Nicholas during the year. 

 

 

However, the station, footbridge and signal box were still just mock-ups.

 

 

Bachmann had brought out its D11, which I immediately detailed/renumbered/renamed/weathered. Re-Gauged by Ray Chessum, it's now a native of Retford. 

 

 

A new carriage I made/painted was this Southern Pride/Bachmann/Trice Thompson RTP. 

 

 

Another loco I sold-on in 2015 was this much-modified Bachmann A1. 

 

 

Another loco painted by Ian Rathbone for me was this Jamieson V2 (which I built in 2014). 

 

Looking at the above images, I'm delighted how much LB has progressed in these past seven years (now to the point of completion). 

 

 

[Barry Ten]

It's great to see the progress on Little Bytham.

 

Incidentally., following the advice of Frank and Tony, I've soldered in some brass to fill that gap in the 2021's boiler. It does look better for it.

[St Enodoc]

9 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Isn't that bridge awful?

No. Other than being the wrong bridge for the location, I actually think it's pretty good.