Tony Teague

I'll post some pictures next week! Tony

I was hoping that you'd be there....

I promised an update on the ex-LBSCR E6-X which I first mentioned a couple of months ago, when I acquired the 3D body print from Shapeways, so here she is: There are a few little jobs remaining, most notably to add weight within the boiler and tanks - and of course to weather her, but the finish line is now very close and overall, I am very pleased. It is fair to say that under the cruel eye of the camera, the striations of the print process can clearly be seen, however, I weighed up undertaking further preparation / rubbing down of the surface against losing some of the rivet detail and this is where I got to. I think the designer of the body, Javier, has done a great job. This is a Shapeways print in their higher grade "Frosted Ultra Detail" material and clearly we have yet to get to the point where this will compete with brass or RTR plastic injection moulding, but when we are talking about a prototype where there were only two in the class, and two different boilers shared between them (Javier has covered both variations), we are never going to see an RTR model or even a kit, so I feel that what has emerged is a pretty reasonable layout loco at normal viewing distance. The loco body is sitting on a South Eastern Finecast E6 chassis which went together fairly easily (it is only the third I have made), with a Mashima motor and it suns smoothly. I have fitted brass clack valves, smoke box door handles, handrail knobs, sprung buffers and a whistle (all Markits), plus nickel-silver wire hand rails. Aside from being only the 3rd loco that I have ever put together, it was also my 1st experience of a 3D printed body and I have learnt quite a lot in the process, so I will try to jot down the key points and put them in a future post - as well as taking them into account with my next build! - which will be the ex-LBSCR E5-X from the same 3D print designer. So, another one off the list! Tony

Thanks Dave. I'll be on the weathering course at Missenden this coming weekend, so plenty of time to practice as well as some further coaching! If anyone else will be at Missenden, please say hello! Tony

The N is was malachite (out of the box Bachmann). So far I have found it easier to do heavier / grotty weathering, than light and subtle, which certainly needs more practice! I think part of the problem is that when using an airbrush, it can be difficult to see that any paint has gone on, until it dries - so the tendency is to spray more. I think I need to be more patient! Tony

Hi John Pleased to see you back! Thanks for the tip, but what I do is to put the loco upside down in a cradle to paint below the footplate, and then use a PP9 battery to turn the loco wheels about a quarter of a turn between each pass of the airbrush; this avoids the sort of shadow that you are talking about. I learned this technique from Mick Bonwick who is one of the tutors at Missenden Abbey and you can see the approach demonstrated on his blog at: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/2349/entry-21373-peckett-w4-no-883-step-1/ Tony

There is always a big list of jobs to complete around the railway, but I can't always muster up the enthusiasm for doing the ones that might be regarded as the current "priority"; converseley, it is one of the things that I love about the railway modelling hobby that one can switch between multiple tasks that need very different skills to complete. Having just worked through every one of the trains on the layout to fit tail lamps and check head-code discs, I have now diverted from completing the "almost there" E6-X loco to getting a bit of weathering done - this time a few more locos, so I think I have now dealt with about 10 whilst Mick Bonwick has kindly dealt with a couple more for me - so only a hundred or two to go! Here are a few of those recently completed; I have shown them 'warts and all', because I regard myself as a learner in terms of weathering and there is still some way to go before I get it right! 1st a fairly lightly weathered T9, No.305: and then a much more heavily weathered N, No.1854: This OO Works D15 No.467 is only moderately dirty but I am not entirely happy that one can still see the transfer carrier film through the weathering: Finally a pretty dirty Q1, No.C8, where the lower front boiler & tender sides may still need re-working as a "tide mark" from my use of a proprietary cleaner on the wheels after weathering, does not look quite right: Despite any shortcomings, I am certain that all of them look better weathered than not! Next time I should be able to show the finished E6-X which has actually received some attention and is almost there. Tony

I don't think that we can be alarmed about the decline of the hobby, and particularly younger people entering it, if we also decry it being portrayed as fun and enjoyable in a populist format. Most mainstream TV programs portray life in an exaggerated way - more crashes, violence etc than would ever be seen in real life, because just to cover normal, everyday life - as Tony described it above - would be boring and unwatchable. Additionally, we all have to start somewhere, and I personally doubt that anybody starting out in the hobby would know enough to go directly to finescale or to modelling a prototype to the standard of LB - so it comes as no surprise to me that in order to get a viable budget and a prime time slot, the production team have resorted to a populist approach. My personal view is that the programme will attract new entrants to the hobby, which is most welcome, and that perhaps some of those might become the finescale modellers of the future - we all need to remember where we started. Tony

I am pretty much a novice at loco building and I found it immensely useful. Tony

Hi Andy Looking good! The snifting valves were all removed between 1946 and 1950 with the majority going in 1948 - around nationalisation which is the end of the era that I model ('38 - '48). On this basis the snifters should go in and I will pop a set in the post. Given that we are going with plain black livery with sunshine lettering, that gives us a loco set between early 1940's and 1948, depending upon the precise number. The Markits clacks should do the job but I have no problem with re-using the T9 versions if they can be removed reasonably easily - and yes, happy with your choice as to when to fit them. Most grateful for your continued efforts. Tony

Jack Great work, and nice to have you back! Tony

No idea, but worth a try. This is taken using a tiny GoPro camera and because it has quite a wide angle lens, one difficulty is keeoing non-railway background out of shot - e.g. windows etc, but I am learning. Tony

Chris There certainly seems to be a lot of interest in LSWR stock. I looked at the Loddon L11 before finding he Martin Finney kit: Thanks for your kind comments and continued support. Tony

Having recently posted Andy Sparkes' video of the LSWR / SR L12 under test, I thought it might be about time to post some further video footage of the railway. I'd welcome any comments as to whether these are interesting or not, and if so, will take some further footage. This one was taken a little while ago: The excellent stock is all by the now defunct Northstar (Adrian Rowlands) and might perhaps benefit from some very light weathering. My video skills are primitive and I find that whatever speed I run trains at, they tend to look too fast on video - but I am learning! Tony

I had thought that you might say "how about weathering the entire fleet?" - but as you know that has started. As you know I'm already using 3D printing but I like to have a metal chassis as a minimum and I haven't yet found chassis solutions for those that are left; these may perhaps have to be drawn and etched? (2nd thoughts, perhaps you meant the road vehicles!) Tony

A very good question - except that some of those listed are going to be pretty darn difficult, so I may not live long enough! All dreadful suggestions , and there are other possibilities: 6. A model of every loco of certain named classes - Schools, Arthurs, Nelsons, spam-cans 7. One of every class in each of the three liveries prevailing at nationalisation and although Andy mentioned the scenery and the NG bit, he didn't mention the Faller road system for which no prototypical period vehicles exist.... Tony

Incidentally, have just noticed that I started this thread exactly 2 years ago today! Thanks to all of those who follow it, make comments and give feedback, we are up to 22,450 views which I am pretty pleased with. Tony

Hi Chris Yes, a good looking loco - I haven't yet managed to give her a good run but I should manage that over the next couple of days I don't know of the Center Models kit but I can imagine what the whitemetal chassi block would have looked like! Tony

A new arrival today from loco builder Chris Phillips was this model of East Kent Railway No. of the "Victory" class: This loco was one of 10 built by Kerr Stuart in 1917 and was first owned by the Inland Waterways & Docks Dept, and used for shunting at Richborough Port in Kent; it was transferred to the East Kent Railway in 1919 where it worked local services to the Kent collieries. Technically it never came onto the Southern Railway's books as it passed from EKR to BR upon nationalisation where it was given no.30948 which it never carried. It was scrapped in 1949. For me it is a "nice to have", having been serviced at Ashford Works in 1948 - so it will probably remain in near pristine condition. Only after taking the pictures did I notice that the top lamp bracket has got bent in transit - it will be rectified! The model is from a kit by CSP Agenoria and is another one off my "missing" list, so here is a progress update on that topic: Missing locos where the solution is now in hand (4): LB&SCR Billinton E5X (4) - 3D printed body now available + SEF E5 chassis kit held for assembly to start as soon as the E6-X is complete LB&SCR Billinton E6X (2) - assembly almost completed (by me) per previous posts, from 3D printed body + SEF E6 chassis kit LSWR Drummond L12 (20) - assembly by 'thegreenhowards' very advanced from parts produced by Arun Sharma + Hornby T9 RTR chassis SECR Kirtey R (18) - assembly (by me) at advanced stage from SE Finecast R1 kit Missing locos where a potential solution has been identified (10): SECR Wainwright B1 (16) - a Jidenco kit exists but I can't find one (and it may not be that great!) LB&SCR Billinton B4X (12) - potential solution through a 3D printed body under exploration LSWR Drummond C14 (3) - potential solution = CSP / Agenoria kit announced years ago but yet to be delivered LB&SCR Marsh D3X (1) - potential solution through indication of a forthcoming 3D printed body, chassis to be sourced LB&SCR Billinton E4X (4)- potential solution through a 3D printed body + RTR Bachmann E4 chassis under exploration SECR Wainwright F1 (9) - solution = Jidenco kit held but not yet in build (& may be difficult / lacking accuracy) SR Maunsell I1X (18) - potential solution through a 3D printed body explored + Alan Gibson milled chassis frames obtained LSWR Drummond S11 (10) - potential solution to use Arun Sharma's cast L12 parts + modified SE Finecast T9 chassis under consideration Soton Dock Co. 0458 (1) - possible solution to modify CSP Agenoria kit CSP 04 identified & kit now obtained DS75 (1) - exploring possible solution vianewly drawn etches Missing locos where no solution has yet been identified (3): LB&SCR Marsh C3 (8) KESR 0-8-0T Hecate (1) Fowler diesel shunter (2) So in summary, there is still a way to go, but there are solutions available for the majority of the missing locos - any additional or alternate solutions welcomed! Tony

Hmmm.... the primer is not as magical as you think, and there are some fairly rough areas which will need attention before it gets a 2nd coat. I am awaiting some very small sanding sticks to get into small corners. You are right about the haulage capability; fortunately the E6-X will take a lot of lead inside the boiler and side tanks, and it will need as much as I can get in there, because the body is light as a feather. I think the truth is that this print is about as good as 3D printing gets at the moment - and it is worthwhile for the odd prototype for which no alternatives exist; the "assembly" work has been minimal and the cost is not much more than for a standard kit. In the end I hope to get the finish to be good enough from "normal viewing distance" but it certainly won't stand close scrutiny against the finish of a modern RTR loco. The experience I have gained on this will certainly be helpful as Javier has now finished a bit of re-working on the E5-X and will shortly move on to other locos that are on my "missing" list. Well done on Stowe! If I was nearer I'd be keen to join in and I am certainly keen to see it in steam! Best wishes Tony

Andy (thegreenhwards) has provided me with a progress update on his work on my LSWR / SR L12 loco. The steps are now fitted and he has added the trim around the cab windows, smokebox door dart and Markits spring buffers, plus a coupling and lamp irons; he has also been fettling the fit of the body to the chassis and having moved the attachment point back 0.5mm and filed some brass off the inside of the splashers it now fits nicely with no shorting. The loco is seen here performing a test run with 10 coaches on Andy's layout - haulage capability looks vastly superior to that of the T9 which donated the chassis and motor, probably because of the greatly increased weight of the white metal body: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqqstRvwGrw Some detailing work remains before painting - addition of trim to the cab roof, fitting clack and snifter valves, plus handrails etc. The loco will be finished in wartime black + sunshine lettering - another one from the "missing list"! Tony

Some further progress with the E6-X ! Having 'parked' the chassis whilst waiting for missing bits, I moved over to the body and fitted brass / nickel silver handrails, clack valves, smokebox door handles and a steam pipe; the cab door-side handrails were particularly tricky as the 3D print is very thin in that area - so I was careful, but not careful enough and managed to break off both sets of rear steps! I have yet to decide whether to re-attach them or to use nickel-silver ones that were included on the chassis etch; I also have brass sprung buffers for the loco but will not fit them before painting. I think the "face" of the loco is looking pretty reasonable: I have given the body a first undercoat which shows that a little more cleaning up is required. The steam pipe on the left side looks a bit like a banana in the picture - it is better in real life but probably needs a little more work! I now need to get the chassis completed - which is mainly about the rear wheels, plus the brakes, and then work out more precisely how the body will be fixed to the chassis - I am reluctant to drill the 3D print for a bolt! The loco will be finished in unlined black and then weathered, and I am keen to get this one finished as the E5-X is waiting in the wings! Tony

Is that a slug on the roof? (Hope it's not a live one!) Tony

Stunning modelling Simon - and the end will justify all of the effort that you have put in. Tony

Have not been idle since my last post and will soon post a further update but in the meantime, I have been going through the archives and came across this faded shot taken on Stowe Magna shed! Tony