greenglade

direct from Hachete's...you'll probably need to open an account to order.....https://www.hachettepartworks.com/register?ReturnUrl=shop/my-account once registered click on shop and then Mallard, you can choose which issues you require there.... Pete

Hi guys Just a heads up...others may have already discovered this but for those who haven't yet...I took a punt and ordered issue 52 direct online as an extra to see if it would come with the wheels, I was thinking that perhaps they wouldn't due to the cost involved but thought it worth a go. I'm happy to report that the mag arrived this morning with the wheels included....not bad for the £8 something including P&P... Pete

I'm still here, just been a bit busy getting my classic car back on the road and doing a little more work on my live steam 5" pacific....hope to do a little bit more on Mallard over the next few weeks.. Pete

hi guys just to update you all on Hatchette's response to the wheel quartering issue.. quote: It’s been brought to our attention that a small production batch of the wheels had quartering issues so, to guarantee every reader a perfect build, we’ve decided to replace all 6 wheels and axles. The new wheels and axles will come at issue 52 with instructions on how the replace them. Please do not hesitate to contact us should you require further assistance. Yours sincerely, Dudu Dube Customer Care

Hi Ross They look pretty close to the prototype... at first i wasn't too keen on the idea of separate balance weights but I guess the advantage is that at least you can put them in their correct positions, which btw isn't directly opposite the crank throw...there are plenty of pictures of FS's wheels on the web... this picture if for Don Young's designed A1/3/4 set in 5" gauge which is probably easier to compare.. they are very close mike47j...I'm putting on my pedantic hat here so please forgive me... regarding your question on quartering the correct angles for Gresley pacific's are 120, 112.875, 127.125..... although most of us are happy with 120, 113, 127 for the larger live steam models... cheers Pete

well to be fair Jeff you can't really put a price on just one issue, the costs are split evenly over the build, if you look at them individually then yes some would seem very expensive whereas other would seem ludicrously cheap.....I'm more than happy with the end price and so far have been impressed with most of the parts supplied.. Yes some of the back head fittings were found a little wanting but for me that made no difference as I had planned to replace them anyway with Laurie Griffin fittings, just as i will probably replace most of the motion parts but I will wait to see what the kit parts are like first , I would do this with any kit including Martin Finney's so it's no big deal for me.. Oh and the buffers look very nice, received them this morning.. will probably do some more work on the model tomorrow..... Regards Pete

there's a bad photo for issue 31 on eBay... you can just make out the brass etch Pete

never say die as they say.......the good thing about solder is it's easily removed when heated, you can buy cheap solder removing tools which basically suck the solder up when flowing... just be careful not to distort the chassis with too much heat. Another thing to point out... this part will never be seen when built so unless you've a purist ( admittedly I am)... then it doesn't really matter what you put there. good luck Pete

Hi....I just checked to see which parts these are....try using a small engineers clamp to hold the frames closed, this will do two things, one it will hold the frames together and two it will act as a heat sink over the previous soldered parts of 79. Use bakers fluid to help the solder flow and a hot iron, solder the front of part 80 to part 79 first. Now looking at the narrow return tabs on part 80 that need to be fixed to the inside of the frames, adjust the engineers clamp so that it sits below the tabs that you wish to solder first, ie let it drop so that it's over where part 79 joins the frames but not touching the frames where you wish to solder the narrow tabs of part 80 to the frames. This reduces the effect of the heat sink in that area, brush on bakers fluid and solder , do both tabs. Turn the chassis over, re-position the clamp so it now sits over the newly solder parts and the 79 tabs and do the last two narrow tabs. Hope this makes sense and hope I'm not teaching you how to suck eggs, that was certainly not my intention, just trying to explain how I tackle these things, regards Pete

good point john something I have to date forgotten to say... once I get my parts each month the first thing I do is take all the brass etch parts down the workshop and start the paint stripping process without removing them from their etched sheets, only when the varnish has been removed and the parts polished using steel wool do i then remove the parts from their sheets. Pete

The coating comes off easy enough with paint stripper which has no effect on the brass etch beneath, an hour soaking with a brush over with some steel wool will do the job.. Pete

You should be ok Mike...I can't get mine in from the top either, I found the easiest way was to sit the backhead upright on the footplate, twist it at an angle allowing it to push past the windows and then straighten it up. I have a lot more detail to add yet and I need to paint the inside of the cab which is why the roof isn't fixed. What I'm trying to say is yes it's best to leave the roof till later but it's not a total disaster if you have followed the kit instructions. Pete

No Steve.....the kit tender isn't available yet Pete

A bit more progress....valve handles,water gauge glass and regulator handles fitted( which are adjustable) ..the remaining pressure gauges will have to wait until further into the build, I also need to print off some faces for them for which I'll use photo's of Mallards gauges as they are today... lots of cleaning up still to do... it's amazing how messy it looks when blown up yet in real life looks fine...I'll see if I can get the paint to look better later, it's a bit too shinny for me. Oh and the foof is only resting on top, it won't be fixed on for quite a while yet...

I don't think so as I can't see any steam pipes connected to it...I was thinking that perhaps it operated the firebox deflector plate that normally sits inside the firebox just above the fire door but 1: I can't see any mechanism that goes through the backhead to operate it and 2: I'm not even sure if such a thing was fitted to the Gresley pacifics due the the adjustable plate fitted to the fire door itself?? Pete

nice pictures Ozzy...interesting to note the lack of piping in the earlier picture when compared to today...btw does anybody know what the bar with the handle on it's end that runs just above the tray is for? Pete

Afternoon all.... a small update on my build...backhead is about 50% complete.. jobs to do still... regulator handles and bar, gauges, hand-wheels, and lots of small pipework... I may also change the steam valve pipes for a smaller gauge...looked fine until putting the backhead into the cab.....look a bit large now... I'll see how things progress. EDIT: forgot to add I also need to fit the water gauge glass too.. it's cut ready with the B&W diagonal pattern already done... can't do it until the regulator bar has been fitted.

oh and is it sprung??

tender or loco?

I'm up to 23 too... Pete

evening guys...a quick question....some of us here decided to use the Laurie Griffin backhead fittings kit for our builds....is anyone still waiting for their order? I placed mine early January and was told it should be with me end of the month. Alas I'm still waiting, now this wouldn't bother me if my inquiries about my order had been answered, after all things do go wrong with the best laid plans. Problem is I have tried phoning numerous times, left a message and then sent an e-mail....no reply.....this I find very frustrating so I thought I would ask here if anyone else is having the same issue, perhaps Laurie is ill or something. Like I said I'm ok if there's a delay if it's for a good reason, i just want to know the current status of my order? regards Pete

very nice Ian...she's a beautiful locomotive and putting aside a few small parts that aren't the best I'm generally very impressed with the quality of this kit, she'll build up into a first class model.. regards Pete

Hi Ian yes...you can get an A3/4 boiler set from Laurie Griffin...the backhead in the kit is very good so no need to replace this, just ask laurie to supply the fittings alone....they are £27 + £3 p+p.. http://www.lgminiatures.co.uk/ regards Pete

Jeff for removing superglue you are best to use a proper debonder made for the job.... you'll find it's available from most superglue suppliers Pete

Hi Jeff You can buy the backhead fittings from laurie without the backhead, as you say the kit backhead is very good...price for A3/A4 fittings set minus backhead is £27 + £3 p+p Pete