Dettingen GCR might have been layout

[richard i]

Trying my hand at casting with blue stuff.

Cut into chunks and put in hot water.

After a minute take out and make the mold

In this case some bogie sides which are difficult to get for pre grouping stuff so I thought I would practice on ones for the Gresley stock. No loss if they do not work.

Make the second half of the mold just a couple of minutes after the first. I have a feeling making four smaller molds here may have been a better idea, we shall see.

Then put together

And now wait three hours to see if it has worked. The guide on you tube suggests expo you putty is better than milliput as it has no mess. I had some milliput to hand so tried it. It is messy so will head out and get expiry putty for the second try.

It certainly is easy and has a lot of potential.

Richard

[Clive Mortimore]

Plywood / metal. The important thing is you were dedicated enough to make it subtly different.

The Thompson is the MTK kit. I actually really enjoyed building it. Does that make me weird?

Hi Richard

 

No, it just means my mate is a good modeller. :locomotive:

[richard i]

Hi Richard

 

No, it just means my mate is a good modeller. :locomotive:

Really Clive we are British, we don't do praise.

[gr.king]

How do we British spell mould?

[richard i]

How do we British spell mould?

God knows I have severe dyslexia and so resigned myself years ago that I would never be sure. If spell checker does not pick it up, I leave it alone. I even had to use spell checker to get the spelling of dyslexia correct. Probably why I model rather than write books. To make things more complicated I have USA spell checker now which vomits Zs on to the page. I know they are "wrong" so I try and hunt them down at least.

We all have our crosses to bear. I am just grateful mine is only that my brain reverses letters in my head sometimes and does not tell me it is doing it.

Richard

[richard i]

The result of the casting.

One came out okay.

The rest were poor. I should have pressed the more important detail side down first as on this print the backs are nearly perfect.

The milliput made a mess of everything and it all, needed a huge clean up.

Having said all that it shows huge promise and so I will go out and get epoxy putty and try again.

Never got anywhere by giving up.

Richard

[richard i]

Round two

Went for single sided version as they are only cosmetic sides. Lest see how these turn out after I have got the epoxy putty this afternoon.

Richard

[gr.king]

Dyslexia is of course completely excusable and I didn't mean to have a go at you for that. I was (not for the first time) fighting the good fight against Americanisation / Americanization of the English language. It's a funny thing about those zeds, which are definitely not zees of course, as I'm told that the hallowed Oxford English Dictionary prefers "...ize" rather than "...ise". Of course, we Britsh don't all live in or around Oxford and don't therefore all use the form of English declared by Oxford academics to be "correct", do we?

Edited August 12, 2017 by gr.king

[Caley Jim]

....... I was (not for the first time) fighting the good fight against Americanisation / Americanization of the English language. Its a funny thing about those zeds, which are definitely not zees of course, as I'm told that the hallowed Oxford English Dictionary prefers "...ize" rather than "...ise". Of course, we Britsh don't all live in or around Oxford and don't therefore all use the form of English declared by Oxford academics to be "correct", do we?

All power to your elbow!!   My pet hate, to the point of loathing, is 'Auld Lang Zyne'.  'Syne' is the Scots equivalent of 'since' - no-one says 'zince' do they?

 

Jim (Scots and proud of it, but also British)

[richard i]

Dyslexia is of course completely excusable and I didn't mean to have a go at you for that. I was (not for the first time) fighting the good fight against Americanisation / Americanization of the English language. It's a funny thing about those zeds, which are definitely not zees of course, as I'm told that the hallowed Oxford English Dictionary prefers "...ize" rather than "...ise". Of course, we Britsh don't all live in or around Oxford and don't therefore all use the form of English declared by Oxford academics to be "correct", do we?

Don't worry didn't feel you were having a go. I fight against Americanism every day with language too.

[richard i]

Now the casting phase.

I have in the photos the new attempt using green stuff this time. If this does not work I might try resin, as that will flow, but if it gets hot it might melt the imprint so I end up with a blob of resin rather than a bogie. It says green stuff sticks to everything, but the blue stuff. ( their actual names) says nothing sticks to it. Let's hope the latter is true.

One other thing on the mat is the only milliput casting that vaguely worked. I cleaned it up to convince myself this was not a complete waste of time.

If you turn over the work you can check if it has gone into all the parts. One advantage of it being clear.

Now wait five hours. ( read overnight) to find out if it has worked.

Richard

[richard i]

Much better results this time.

The green new ones on the right look so much more promising than the cleaned up milliput ones on the left.

Now to clean them up. Sand them back and fit them to the parcels stock.

Richard

[richard i]

Cleaned up. Sanded down on the back. Drilled to accept the bearings.

Photo with the original which I was loathe to file the back of so I could reuse it. Besides I thought it would be easier to file back epoxy putty rather than white metal.

However, how to get a flat back to an open cast without lifting it away from the inside of the mound?

Richard

[richard i]

I want to say it. Is complete.

The really shiny paint is supposed to be dull black from prescision paints. all other of their paints have been great. Is this from a duff batch?

I will continue to tone it down . Have started to do so with pastels.

Richard

[Edwardian]

You can, very successfully, make the moulds out of Greenstuff.

 

Once the Greenstuff mould has cured, apply baby oil evenly with a paint brush. It will act as a release agent, enabling you to press fresh Greenstuff into the mould.  

[Clive Mortimore]

I want to say it. Is complete.

IMG_3340.JPG

The really shiny paint is supposed to be dull black from prescision paints. all other of their paints have been great. Is this from a duff batch?

I will continue to tone it down . Have started to do so with pastels.

Richard

Hi Richard

 

I see you have sourced a supply of Marmite in that far off colony you reside in, is that an empty jar being used for something else.

[richard i]

Hi Richard

 

I see you have sourced a supply of Marmite in that far off colony you reside in, is that an empty jar being used for something else.

We can pick up Marmite but have to travel 45 minutes to get it. Closer to the big smoke than the rural area we are in. It is the water container for the acrilic brushes cleaning.

[richard i]

You can, very successfully, make the moulds out of Greenstuff.

 

Once the Greenstuff mould has cured, apply baby oil evenly with a paint brush. It will act as a release agent, enabling you to press fresh Greenstuff into the mould.  

This sounds interesting, do you not find the green stuff too flexible? have i mixed it poorly. I might give it a go. Best to have several options to chose from.

Thank you

Richard

[Edwardian]

This sounds interesting, do you not find the green stuff too flexible? have i mixed it poorly. I might give it a go. Best to have several options to chose from.

Thank you

Richard

 

I should have added "well done" on the progress so far with the moulding experiments.

 

You can make the Greenstuff a little stiff by adding slightly more blue.  Makes it a darker green, as you'd imagine.  Will tear more easily if too much blue.

 

I have found the flexibility helpful when used for moulds, because it makes it easy to peel away from the moulded component.

 

Undoubtedly, though, Greenstuff works best - as mould and moulded material - for smaller items.  

 

For bogies, I think it would be worth trying cold-curing silicone rubber moulds with low-melt lead alloy.

[richard i]

I should have added "well done" on the progress so far with the moulding experiments.

 

You can make the Greenstuff a little stiff by adding slightly more blue.  Makes it a darker green, as you'd imagine.  Will tear more easily if too much blue.

 

I have found the flexibility helpful when used for moulds, because it makes it easy to peel away from the moulded component.

 

Undoubtedly, though, Greenstuff works best - as mould and moulded material - for smaller items.  

 

For bogies, I think it would be worth trying cold-curing silicone rubber moulds with low-melt lead alloy.

I have used resin as a casting material, but not lead alloy. Now where do I get a ready supply of that in the states?

[Caley Jim]

I have used resin as a casting material, but not lead alloy. Now where do I get a ready supply of that in the states?

Plumber's solder?

 

Jim

[Edwardian]

Richard,

 

In the US there must be any number of suppliers of silicon-rubber moulding materials so that you can make your own moulds, e.g. https://www.alumilite.com/store/pg/19-Products-Alumilite-Mold-Making-Casting-Materials.aspx

 

For the metal, one source is Prince August.  They have distributors in the States.  They sell moulds for wargames figures, but they also sell bars of casting metal ideal for your purpose (low melting point) and will provide the various accessories needed. 

 

Try:

 

NOBLE KNIGHT GAMES

2242 Kennedy Rd

Janesville, WI 53545

U.S.A.

Ph: 608-758-9901 | 608-758-7360

 

Web: http://www.nobleknight.com/ViewProducts.asp_Q_ProductLineID_E_2137420247_A_ManufacturerID_E_1094882797_A_CategoryID_E_16_A_GenreID_E_ - see bottom of page for metal.

 

 

For the UK, Alec Tiranti is probably a good one-stop shop.  In my youth I used their products to cast my own 20mm scale wargames figures. I should really re-visit this method for model railway accessories, so thank you for prompting me to re-visit white-metal casting.

 

I used to drip molten metal all over my mother's hob! Of course, these days I have a stupid electric induction hob, which is useless, so I guess I'll need to invest in a camping stove.

 

Castability, that's the beauty of gas!

[Andy Hayter]

Plumber's solder?

 

Jim

 

Probably not.  I think it all changed to non-toxic lead free recipes years ago.

[Caley Jim]

Probably not. I think it all changed to non-toxic lead free recipes years ago.

It's my understanding that that only applied to electronic solders.

 

Jim

[richard i]

All food for thought thank you gentlemen