Some LNWR wagons in P4

[garethashenden]

No progress on my particular wagons, due to professional travel, family travel and illness, but I have just noted on Shapeways a body for a LNWR D2 wagon.: https://www.shapeways.com/product/CHLTWKZWB/4mm-lnwr-d2-wagon?optionId=61030036&li=marketplace 

 

This is interesting. Firstly, the price is fairly high (Brexit *spit* *cuss*) but not crazily high. Secondly, it's printed in the black acrylate, not in FUD (for the lower price presumably), so the quality is unconfirmed. Since Chris Higgs is the seller, I'd expect it to be at least OK. Thirdly, it's one of the types due to be produced by Mousa Models "sometime" as a resin moulding. If the Mousa kit ever happens, it will doubtless be excellent and the complete kit will possibly be not much more in price than the Masterclass print. But the Masterclass print is here, now.

I didn't expect the black acrylate to be cheaper than FUD or FXD. The quality is supposed to me much higher than either of those, and from what I've seen it is.

[Compound2632]

No progress on my particular wagons, due to professional travel, family travel and illness, but I have just noted on Shapeways a body for a LNWR D2 wagon.: https://www.shapeways.com/product/CHLTWKZWB/4mm-lnwr-d2-wagon?optionId=61030036&li=marketplace 

 

This is interesting. Firstly, the price is fairly high (Brexit *spit* *cuss*) but not crazily high. Secondly, it's printed in the black acrylate, not in FUD (for the lower price presumably), so the quality is unconfirmed. Since Chris Higgs is the seller, I'd expect it to be at least OK. Thirdly, it's one of the types due to be produced by Mousa Models "sometime" as a resin moulding. If the Mousa kit ever happens, it will doubtless be excellent and the complete kit will possibly be not much more in price than the Masterclass print. But the Masterclass print is here, now.

 

 

I didn't expect the black acrylate to be cheaper than FUD or FXD. The quality is supposed to me much higher than either of those, and from what I've seen it is.

 

I should finish my home-made D2 based on the Ratio underframe - not as crisp-looking as the 3D print I'll admit, and with a different pattern of rivets (apparently not bolts) on the corner plates. I've ordered some Coast Line Models 3D-printed LNW grease axleboxes to substitute for the oil axleboxes in the Ratio kits - thereby squeezing more nineteenth-century wagons out of my stock of kits; the postage being nearly as much as the axleboxes, I thought to get more for my postage by adding the Furness Railway 6 ton 1 plank wagon to my order but Shapeways couldn't print it: 'Given the nature of 3D printing, every now and then we catch designs that are too fragile to create in certain materials. Though we do our best to identify these issues as early as possible, some are only found during the manufacturing process.' - this was FUD. Anyway the axleboxes will be my first experience of 3D printed components. I could of course have got the same number of grease axleboxes by buying another couple of Ratio underframe kits for about the same price but then I'd have had even more unused solebars tempting me on...

Edited October 28, 2016 by Compound2632

[Guy Rixon]

Returning after a break from the bench, I have finished one of the D3 wagons. The second one has a complete body and is waiting for running gear and brakes.

 

 

The body build was unremarkable, apart from the trial by Pressfix. Having more than one body in process make the lettering process more efficient. I did the transfers on one face of each wagon, then varnished those faces immediately. Since Pressfix transfers are only held on by faith, I find it much safer to varnish within minutes of application. Thus, it took four evenings, including drying time, to do all the signwriting. More wagons in the batch would have been more efficient, but I need to buy more transfers before going on: I'm out of 5's.

 

The brake gear is somewhat more interesting. Nothing in the Ratio kit suits D3, as the brake must be a direct-acting (no push-rod), single, wooden block. The brake lever is longer than those in the kit because the pivot is nearer the wheel than the level for the push-rod brake. Further, the lever is cranked vertically at the end to clear the headstock; D3 wagon did not have cut-away headstocks like D2. (Yes, the model headstocks are cut way. I didn't notice the difference in time.)

 

I made the brake lever and guard from a 51L part, their "type F". The lever is cranked horizontally to clear the axlebox, which is easily done with pliers. It's cranked vertically at the handle end roughly as per prototype and this is much harder to do accurately. I managed it by holding the length of the lever in the vice and heaving on the free part with pliers, then flattening out the buckling by squeezing in the vice. The result is OK-ish, but the bends are not quite tight enough and not quite accurately placed. At least it vaguely resembles the prototype photos.

 

 

The brake shoe and hanger are scratchbuilt. I whittled the shoe from 0.040" plastic and made the hanger from fret waste. There is a slight set in the hanger just above where it meets the shoe.

 

 

The pivot for the brakes is right next to the spring shoe of the nearest wheel. The full-size wagon had, IIUC, a combined casting for the pivot and spring-shoe. I kept the Ratio spring-shoe, which is moulded on the axlebox/spring parts, and added the pivot from 0.040" plastic.

[Penlan]

Some 30+ years ago I did a couple of Dia. 33 vans and painted the diamonds a plank lower than shown in the OP.

 

I was told that my diamonds were incorrect - by those who know........  

The diamond should be on the 4th plank above the bottom of the (sort of) 'V' - as per the OP Van.

So to limit the on-going criticism, I repainted the Diamonds a plank higher.

Looking for something else the other day, I came across this view of a Van (the actual photo size area for this is approx., 5mm x 5mm) and I am vindicated....

My original 'Diamonds' are a plank lower, so there where at least some Vans in traffic 'wrongly' painted......

 

So the OP picture.

Then the standard Official Photo...

 

And the original (c 1900) photo one I copied from some 30+ years ago ...

Edited February 27, 2017 by Penlan

[Compound2632]

I was told that my diamonds were incorrect - by those who know........  

 

Diamonds are a LNWR enthusiast's best friend...

[Penlan]

Diamonds are a LNWR enthusiast's best friend...

... and expensive if you've been engaged more than once.... 

 

It has been pointed out to me in a PM,

that the view I'm hanging my faith on .....

..... may be a LNWR 'Dundalk, Newry & Grenore' Van, e.g, LNWR 'Broad Gauge'...   

Bagger !!!!!  

Edited February 27, 2017 by Penlan

[Guy Rixon]

Having invested my modelling time on other projects (and wasted much of it on earning a living), I have finally circled back to the LNWR stock.

 

Firstly, the D54 with the sanity-eating Exactoscale brake-gear finally got some attention. I waited until I was calm and centred and working in good light with no distractions ... and it was still horrible to build. However:

 

The result is not too bad. I would not build another kit like this, not that I'm ever going to get a chance since born-again C&L has discontinued them.

 

The trick with the laminated brake-blocks was to ignore the instructions and to make them up on soldered-in stubs of wire for the pivot with the push-rods, then to fits the pivot with the hangars as the blocks were mounted.

 

The wagon finally came out like this:

 

 

 

[Guy Rixon]

I have also been building a brake van, a D16 from the LRM kit. Many of these have been shown in other threads (better built than mine), but I did discover something about the footboards that may be of interest.

 

As noted elsewhere, the up-stand on the footboards is difficult to fold, because the metal is quite thick. Being foolish and clumsy, I tried to force mine and it bent where the supports join the up-stand. The support then snapped off when I straightened them.

 

I made replacement supports out of 0.7mm wire, which I mounted behind and under the board. I flattened the tops of the supports with pliers, to represent the part that was forged flat, and glue it to the solebar.

 

Not too bad, considering. Except: it seemed to stand out too far from the side of the van.

 

I measured the half-width of the model and it implied a full width over steps of about 9' 6". This is out of loading gauge and won't do. Even allowing for the wire supports being overscale and not fitted very tightly to the back of the boards, I couldn't see how this could be put right. I looked at the official photo of a full-size van (image credit: LNWR Society)...

 

...and couldn't see a solution. My wife then applied beginner's mind and pointed out that the step supports are in front of the up-stand (you can see the shadows in the photo). Presumably the LNWR also had width problems.

 

Therefore, I made new supports on both sides by drilling the boards 0.5mm and soldering in 0.45mm wire. At the top, I drilled obliquely - about 30 degrees off vertical - into the solebars, then made a set in the support wires and glued them into the solebars. (In fact, on the second board, I glued the wires into the solebars first and soldered the boards on after: this was marginally easier.)

 

The flattened tops of the step support were then represented by microstrip (0.010" x 0.030") with nuts cut from finer strip.

 

I call that a win. The width over steps was now down to scale 8' 6" which may still be a little width but at least it will fit past platforms. This modification was hard to retrofit to a built van, and I didn't get the solebar holes perfectly lined up with the footboard holes. It would be far easier to do this before the kit was assembled and I would happily do so I I build another.

 

The final photo above also shows how I extended the brake parts so that the push rods actually reach the shoes. I cyano'd a stub of 0.020" plastic rod to each shoe to represent the pivot then plated a length of 0.010" x 0.030" strip onto the cast centre-crank+push-rod part to bridge the gap. It's bodged up with epoxy, for strength, on the inside where it doesn't how.

 

Photos of the finished van to follow, when my 'phone is charged for photography.

[Jol Wilkinson]

Guy,

 

I think that the Exactoscale products formerly sold by C&L may remain the property of the person that commissioned them under the Exactoscale name. That seems to be the situation with the wheels. Hopefully these will become available again, certainly as far as the C&W wheels are concerned.

 

Jol

[Guy Rixon]

This is the decorated D16. It's not quite finished: the roof needs to be less brilliantly white and to be glued down.

 

The chimney casting in the kit is too narrow. The GA on the LNWRS site shows that the stove pipe is wider than the side framing. The frame timber is marked as 4.5" wide, so the pipe is about 6" in diameter. I made my chimney 7" because I had that tube in stock.

 

Also built recently, a D2 from a Bill Bedford kit.

 

This is one of the recent kits with the printed body (c.f. moulded resin on the earlier kits). The body comes with some printing flaws in the sides and ends that need to be filled and sanded: I used Squadron green putty and 600-grit abrasive. The body preparation takes about 20 minutes of work and a few extra hours elapsed while the putty dries; it is not a big deal. The finished sides are flatter than my paint work. There is no problem of quality in printed wagons, provided that the right printing gear is used. Overall, the kit is superb (but you knew that already).

 

[Compound2632]

I have also been building a brake van, a D16 from the LRM kit. Many of these have been shown in other threads (better built than mine),

 

Not mine - you've made a much cleaner job of sides-to-ends - mine's about 0.5 mm too wide over the body  as a result of my unsatisfactory (inexperienced) whitemetal soldering.

 

I did discover something about the footboards that may be of interest.

 

As noted elsewhere, the up-stand on the footboards is difficult to fold, because the metal is quite thick. Being foolish and clumsy, I tried to force mine and it bent where the supports join the up-stand. The support then snapped off when I straightened them.

 

I measured the half-width of the model and it implied a full width over steps of about 9' 6". This is out of loading gauge and won't do. Even allowing for the wire supports being overscale and not fitted very tightly to the back of the boards, I couldn't see how this could be put right. I looked at the official photo of a full-size van (image credit: LNWR Society)...

Diag16.jpg

 

...and couldn't see a solution. My wife then applied beginner's mind and pointed out that the step supports are in front of the up-stand (you can see the shadows in the photo). Presumably the LNWR also had width problems.

 

I folded the step=boards up using mu bending bars, a section at a time - placing the thinner part of the piece in the end of the bending bar to get maximum clamping. I've just braved the cold of the garage and can report width over steps is 35 mm, 8' 9". Roll on Vol 3 of LNWR Wagons but I suspect the true dimension should be nearer 8' 6". I wish you'd got cracking and finished yours before I'd finished mine!

 

 

I measured the half-width of the model and it implied a full width

 

You're not into spectroscopy by any chance?

[Compound2632]

 

Also built recently, a D2 from a Bill Bedford kit.

IMG_5179.jpg

 

This is one of the recent kits with the printed body (c.f. moulded resin on the earlier kits). The body comes with some printing flaws in the sides and ends that need to be filled and sanded: I used Squadron green putty and 600-grit abrasive. The body preparation takes about 20 minutes of work and a few extra hours elapsed while the putty dries; it is not a big deal. The finished sides are flatter than my paint work. There is no problem of quality in printed wagons, provided that the right printing gear is used. Overall, the kit is superb (but you knew that already).

 

It looks as though you've chemically blackened rather than painted the brass W-irons? It tried this on a batch of Bill's D299s but wasn't so happy with the appearance so ended up painting over. I possibly hadn't been scrupulous enough in cleaning the brass first.

 

Has yours staid straight-sided? Mine bowed inwards a bit, which I've cured with a block of wood forming the load (then sheeted).

[Guy Rixon]

You're not into spectroscopy by any chance?

 

Yes, although I haven't done any serious observing in the last 3 years.

[Guy Rixon]

It looks as though you've chemically blackened rather than painted the brass W-irons? It tried this on a batch of Bill's D299s but wasn't so happy with the appearance so ended up painting over. I possibly hadn't been scrupulous enough in cleaning the brass first.

 

Has yours staid straight-sided? Mine bowed inwards a bit, which I've cured with a block of wood forming the load (then sheeted).

The axleguards were blackened with, IIRC, Casey Gun Blue, which I sponged on with a cotton bud. This sort-of-works, but the finish is not all that. I need to paint over at least the bridle strap. It looks better at normal magnification, of course.

 

More recently, I made up a set of BB axleguards for a PO wagon and I dipped them in Carr's Metal Black (after masking off the areas where the bearing carriers must rub). This was vastly better. An even coating was formed in seconds and sealed in with matt varnish.

 

I don't know if the difference is in the product used or the method of application.

 

The D2 has very slight bowing, but I need to squint down the length of the wagon to detect it. I'm not bothering to try and fix it.

Edited December 16, 2017 by Guy Rixon