Ian Smith

I'll second what Jerry said. If it has some couplings by then we could put it to work on Lambourn if you'd like?

Richard,

Thank you.  Is Lambourn DC then?

Hi Ian, just had a chance to watch the video. Rolls along really nicely now. Lots of drama too - bit of a cliff-hanger towards the end :-)

 

I'm full of admiration for your work with this loco. As always, you're not letting anything hold you back in getting the stock you want. A real inspiration for the rest of us.

Mikkel,

Thank you.

In 2mm, if you want to model the Edwardian era, then you have to be prepared to do pretty much everything from scratch :-)  As a taster of what might be to come (if I live long enough), I've dipped my toe in the production of artwork for chemical etching :

Brilliant Ian. Some really ingenious solutions to the problems raised by a tricky loco.

Do bring it along to the AGM, finished or not.

 

Jerry

Fantastic. Really inspirational.

Looks fantastic Ian, really glad you managed to get it sorted!:-). Clever mechanicals aside, you've done a really good job on the boiler fittings, that dome "sits" beautifully.

 

Dave

Nice work and very original, just love it.

 

More please..

Guys,

Thank you for all of the positive comments!!

Dave,

I may re-do the boiler fittings at some point - I don't feel that I've got the flare at the foot of the dome or safety valve quite right (but they will do for now). 

Ian

It would be interesting to see it at the AGM. It did seem to run quite smoothly and it is quite a small loco.

Don

Don,

I will probably bring it along to the AGM anyway.  I thought about entering my saddle tank in one of the competitions (don't know whether it counts as an RTR conversion or a scratch build) :-) and I intended entering my 4 wheelers in the Dreadnought trophy too.  

I'm quite pleased with the way it's running at the minute - I still have to put some lead in the tanks and bunker (but that won't be done until pretty well complete).  It should be obvious from some of the photos, but I have put some top wiper pickups on the drivers that are hidden by the tanks and hopefully help to keep the drivers pressed down onto the track - It's pretty thick phosphor bronze wire as the 0.0044" stuff I have I thought wouldn't be thick enough, but since taking the video I've put some 0.0044" "Simpson springs" acting on the axles of the leading wheels too.  I'll have a chat to the boys at the Midland Area Group tonight to see if any of them have anything a bit thinner than what I've used.

Regards,

Ian

Julia,

I can only echo the sentiments of everyone who has posted above me.  Your postings about Highclere and what was now possible in 2FS were one of the deciding factors for prompting me to return to the fold!  Thank you.

I will continue to follow your exploits on your other blog, I had it bookmarked anyway but since it tended to repeat your RMweb postings I didn't tend to look in very often - I will do now!

Kind Regards,

Ian

Hi Ian, thanks for your good wishes, the shoulder is definitely feeling a lot better this last week. Military modellers seem to be way ahead of us railway aficionados when it comes to figure painting, though whether your brothers 54th scale painting technique tips will translate into 2mm scale is probably doubtful!:-) I'd be interested to hear what type of paint he uses for his figures. I've always painted using enamels, but I know a fair few military guys use oils or acrylics.

 

I hope Modbury is progressing as planed, looking forward to the next update!

 

Dave

Dave,

I wasn't thinking about my 2mm figures :-) , but in 7mm I suspect that the levels of detail could be similar to figures much larger.  As for the type of paint he uses  I know that it can be enamel, acrylic or oil (I think it depends what part of the figure he is painting).  I do know that he builds up the pigment in several thin coats (almost washes).

Modbury progress has stalled slightly - I'm trying to get a Small Metro Tank built, but even that has temporarily come to a halt - rather annoyingly the chassis rolls happily along in both directions on an inclined track but once a motor is connected and is driving one set of wheels the damn thing binds up.  I might give it another look at today, but if I can't get it sorted I'll probably put it to one side and continue with something else as my butterfly modelling technique dictates :-)

Ian

Dave,

Really sorry to hear about your accident.  I hope your road to recovery is as swift as it can be.  Get well soon.

The figures look very nice - I wish that there were some nice Edwardian figures in 2mm!  My brother paints military figures and busts for a hobby, I really must quiz him sometime as to how he does them as the 1/54th scale bust he showed me that he finished a couple of weeks ago looked really good - Museum quality I would have said.

Ian

Andy,

That is looking really nice.  I look forward to seeing the completed thing next Tuesday!! ;-)

Ian

Never been a huge fan of the large metros, much prefer the small tanked ones, but she does look lovely!

Ian,

Very nice.  I agree about setting the signal into the landscape (as yours is) - so often one sees a model signal on a plate and they just really shout "model!"

Ian

If you've got the space to do so, I think keeping the motor and worm shafts physically disconnected, as you originally intended, is a good principle. The peg and bar arrangement is tolerant to misalignments and deflection in the axes of the motor and worm shafts, and, depending on the peg and bar axial initial positions, allows the motor to start 'off-load'. If the motor itself can be mounted on or in something resilient, the peg and bar connection will help reduce noise transmission. (I've used the arrangement with some success, although I used a twin-peg and twin-bar mating for greater symmetry and balance, the pegs sticking out of a flywheel on the motor shaft.) I might have a diagram somewhere.

 

I guess your decision hinges on how easy/difficult the ergonomics of securing the gearbox to the chassis block will be, and whether this will be made more or less difficult if the motor was attached to the gearbox.

 

615 is gorgeous.

Miss P,

It was my intention to fit a flywheel to the motor shaft, and have the peg poking out of that - I only drew it as I did to help Andy's understanding :-)  

I agree that 615 is gorgeous - the Small Metros are one of my personal favourites, and when finished in full Edwardian splendour I think they are particularly attractive.  I only hope that I can do her justice!! 

Will significant misalignment of a peg and bar drive be noticeable as a variable velocity within each revolution at the wheels? 

Rich,

That was one of my worries.  However, if my calculations (and drawing chassis/motor to scale, and cutting out the parts) is correct, the difference in the axes of the motor and the worm will be negligible (I hope!)  Although I do need to get the body to a point where I can site the boiler (and fit the motor within it) so that I can check these axes!

The chassis looks great Ian.

 

I'm sure that you're on the case with the body too... although I must admit that you lost me a bit there. I'm sure it'll become clear when it goes together.

 

Regards, Andy

Andy,

Sorry I lost you :-)  I wonder if it started with my "Peg and Bar" connection between motor and gearbox?  If so, this is what I originally intended to do :

Julia,

That whole section is looking really effective.  I love the "somethings" (potatoes) in the field, they are particularly effective and not something I've seen modelled before.  The clipped trees around the station also look well tended.

Ian

Andrew,

The chassis on my saddle tank became twisted when I used 2 bolts to hold the body on - not by very much, but enough to upset the pick up.  As a result, I now dispense with the bolt at the front so the body is only held on by the single bolt at the back (although it is an interference fit at the front where the Farish casting behind the (replaced) buffer beam fits between the 2 sides of the chassis.  Electrical isolation between chassis and body being made by supergluing cigarette paper around the body casting above).

Ian

Another great thread posting Ian. I do think this is the way to go for 2mm chassis with all that weight low down, particularly smaller protoypes. I have a significant birthday approaching and have asked for one of the little Proxon mills so will be having a go at one myself - an Ilfracombe goods for Tucking Mill.

 

Jerry

Jerry,

Having seen how well Andy's Manor runs, I also think that a solid chassis is better than one from 0.010" sheet (OK it won't have the spring detail, etc but I see no reason why if you're desperate for that sort of thing why an overlay couldn't be attached - I won't be although I have ideas about adding brake detail).  That's not to say that an etched chassis is a bad thing - I'm perfectly happy with the way my saddle tank performs and it's haulage is remarkable (at least 6 bogie coaches on St Ruth without slipping).

I was looking at those Proxxon Mills at Kidderminster and really surprised how small they are.  If I could have justified one I might have considered it but had already invested in a vertical slide for my Peatol lathe a few months ago primarily so that I could try this method of chassis construction.

Ian

PS Look forward to seeing how you get on with your Ilfracombe Goods (and Mill) :-)

Nice robust chassis design, food for thought, Ian.

 

How strong is the Milliput for holding threads?  My instinct would be to press in a plastic insulating rod and tap that but if Milliput is up to the job, then seems a lot easier.

 

Mark.

Mark,

I'll let you know!!  It seems to be OK at the minute, but I'm not intending to be assembling and de-assembling regularly.  Obviously so long as it's good enough to hold the two chassis parts together securely then it's probably good enough.  Clearly I need to be sensible when tightening up the bolts so as not to over-tighten and strip the thread in the milliput - I believe that Nigel used 24hr araldite in his Cambrian 0-6-0.  If I decide that it isn't up to the job then a plastic plug will be a sensible replacement.

Ian

Looks really good Ian. Looking forward to seeing it in action.

 

Regards, Andy

Andy,

So do I !! :-)

I do like this idea. I have a chassis kit for a manor (Nigel Ashton) which uses the same principle. It seems even more sense for a Metro tank. Did you do the cutting out on a mill?

Don

Don,

It was Nigel's Manor and his articles in the 2mm magazine on his Cambrian 0-6-0 that gave inspiration for this project - I've pretty well copied his ideas/direction throughout.  The cutting out was on my lathe with the vertical slide for milling in place.  A chuck adapter was fitted in place of the 3-Jaw chuck, and a Jacobs chuck used to hold drills and milling cutters (not best practice using Jacobs chuck for milling but I was only doing fairly light cuts as i wasn't in too much of a hurry).

Ian

Hi Ian,

 

I'm coming late to this but wonderful to see things moving on your baulk road. Turnouts and loco both! As Dave says, with the transoms in place it's really looking the part now.

 

Regarding crews in locos: Will you make their heads turn when running bunker first? Should be a doddle for someone like you! :-)

Mikkel,

Thank you for the positive comments.  I hadn't really thought about making the crew heads rotate - I was putting all of my energy into getting the fireman's arms to shovel coal :-)

Seriously though, just to get a crew in there would be good - although I'm currently giving the track work a rest for a couple of days while I try to get another loco chassis up and running.  This time for a Small Metro tank, obviously in 2mm weight is key (to aid both traction and pickup) so I'm trying to mill out a solid brass chassis (albeit split frame).  Another blog entry is probably on the horizon for this :-)

Regards,

Ian

Dave,

That's coming along rather nicely!  I'm disappointed that you haven't hollowed out the middle of the finial ball ;-)

Ian

Andrew,

I'm glad you managed to give this a new home, and wish you well in it's restoration.  I look forward to seeing the progress.

Ian

Those transoms look excellent, I'm sure IKB would be most impressed!

 

Dave

Dave,

Thank you.  They're taking a little time to cut exactly to size and fit, but I think that it has really made the difference - It's starting to look like Brunel's Baulk Road now!!  

I want to find something fine for the ash ballast after they're all in, on my test track I've experimented with DAS modelling clay pressed into place and stippled with a decorating brush - the effect is quite nice and the white stuff I've used accepts well watered down water colour paint allowing a depth of colour to be built up by adding successive coats of black/grey/brown.

Ian

Julia,

Can't help with the siting of the token apparatus but the ballasting looks superb!  As others have said really shows up the point rodding, and as I mentioned in an earlier blog it just looks to scale which is rare especially in 2mm I think.

Ian

Are you worried that in a slightly warmish hall (Oxford 2010 for those who remember...), or on a hot day in your shed, all of your points are going to throw themselves without any current being applied?

 

Chris.

Chris,

I hadn't really given any serious thought to it.  It would have to be uncomfortably warm at 30 odd degrees, and if it was that hot I don't think I would want to be in the shed anyway.  Perhaps an experiment holding one of my test actuators a little way over the spout of a kettle (central heating not on otherwise on top of a radiator) will show if it's likely to be an issue.  I'm more concerned about the temperatures the regulator and resistor are reaching - I will speak to John about it when I next see him.

Ian

I see in one of your brass attachment pieces the attachment hole is a slightly elongated hole, presumably for some adjustment?

 

Where did you get 0.026" solid guitar string from? - the largest solid I've encountered is 0.024".

Miss P,

I made a mistake, the guitar string is actually .26mm not .026" (a B-2nd), the wire on the actuator is a G-3rd (0.016", 0.41mm).

Hi Ian, your trackwork and TOU look impressively neat!

 

Just one question occurs to me, not knowing too much about memory wire; what temperature is the wire at when the point is thrown to the sidings?

 

Best Regards, 

 

Chris.

Chris,

Thank you.  I've just checked the temperature of the memory wire (I have a temperature sensor that I use in RC Racing to ensure that I don't cook my motors by over-gearing) and after a couple of minutes it is at 34 degrees C.  The resistor is around 100, and the regulator a little less (so needs a heat sink really)

A couple of photos showing the area around this first working turnout now with the transoms in place (Plastruct 1mm x 1.5mm section) :

Great stuff Ian although the ability to be able to play trains is liable to slow progress!

 

jerry

Jerry,

Thank you.  Given that I've only got the one turnout in the 3' length that works at the minute I think that "playing trains" will get a bit boring after a couple of movements :-)

How's the action on the memory wire?  I ended up using a 1.5v AA battery on the sole memory wire turnout I've done so far as with higher voltages, the contraction was much quicker than the current-off expansion.  Going down to 1.5v equalised the movement speed.  I use a normal zinc-carbon battery, a rechargeable delivers too much current which permanently changes the wire...

Mark,

The action of the memory wire can be seen in the video I've attached.  The close up of the switches was edited in, and shows the movement in real time in both directions.  The "Normal" position of the switch is the straight through road (controlled by the spring), the movement to the curved road is actioned by the memory wire, so the first movement in the sequence is memory wire operated, the return movement is spring operated.  I had to beef up the spring after I'd built the unit as the return was considerably slower than the memory wire pull.  I have a power supply that I use in my other (Radio Controlled Car Racing) hobby that delivers over 13 volts (at up to 15 amps) for charging the battery packs, I intend to use this to power all of the actuators I will have and supply the juice for the controller too.  The single actuator draws about 0.3 amp while the memory wire is activated.

Very neat Ian. I hadn't thought of having the tubes to take the wires outsie of the stock rails. I have been experimenting with these things as part of the track tests I have been doing. The whole tou looks very neat and I see you have elongated one hole so can adjust the spacing of the tubes.

Don

Don,

Thank you.  I didn't even consider trying to put the tubes inside the switch/stock rails!!  I thought there would be too little room and I also needed the switch connector wire to lie beneath the stock rails to prevent them lifting with a loose heel switch.  Whether the elongated hole was strictly necessary I don't know as I could potentially have just angled the tube slightly but it seemed a better engineered way of doing it ;-)

Regards,

Ian

Well Ian, It reminds me if that song......"Smooth Operator" (Sade) Now you'll have to get a sound decoder rigged up to make the sound of the turnouts clanking as they move ! Seriously though, well thought out piece of work, well done. Best Grahame (Currently still in deepest Kernow)

Grahame,

I have seen others make their TOU's in the same fashion, I just added a memory wire actuator :-)

Fantastic. Only thing that needs mentioning is that the absence of a crew is very apparent in that engine...

Gareth,

I know!!  Before I fit a crew I need to make a backhead (and the injectors) - It's on my list of things to do (hopefully before the 2SA AGM), but there are only so many hours in the day even for a retiree :-)

I see in one of your brass attachment pieces the attachment hole is a slightly elongated hole, presumably for some adjustment?

 

Where did you get 0.026" solid guitar string from? - the largest solid I've encountered is 0.024".

Miss P,

You are quite right, one of the uprights has an elongated hole to allow for some adjustment - I should have mentioned that ;-) they are attached with 10BA bolts, one of which was left over long so that I could use it to act upon the micro switch for polarity switching of the crossing (ultimately I intend to build a lever frame, and will use a micro switch there to switch on the current to the memory wire).

You may be right, it might be 0.024" (although the bit sticking out of the end of my memory wire actuator is thicker than the switch connectors).  I bought a pack of 6 strings from e-bay, 3 solid, 3 wire wound.  If I remember tomorrow I'll check the make (and the thicknesses of the 3 solid wires).

Ian