Will J

Hi Andy, it seems pretty good, with minimal shrinkage, though it depends on how minimal your idea of minimal is.... The CAD model has a length of 66.04 mm, the model measures 65.89 (with callipers) The CAD model has a width of 21.68 mm, the model measures 21.45 (with callipers) I'm not sure whether Shapeways give the dimensions a tiny boost pre-production to keep things accurate, I suppose it would be quite an easy thing to automate if the effects of the casting process were predictable. The fractions of a millimeter involved are not going to be visible, but of course affect the fit of small interlocking parts, I am going to try some printed small gears which will test how well the brass parts perform in a more 'engineered' application. One thing I noticed was that the same Kato chassis fits snugly in the plastic bodyshell, but had to be 'encouraged' more forcibly to fit into the void in the brass version. This might have to do with the shrinkage, but remember that the plastic version is also much more flexible which is probably the bigger factor! Edit: decimal point in the right place in the dimensions!!

Hi everyone, in yesterday's blog, TomE asked 'Is there any sign of the original 3D printed mould on the final brass models? Tom.' See: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/351/entry-16019-3d-printed-brass-objects-n-gauge-class-139-and-z3-gauge-hunslet/ To answer your question Tom, there is no sign of the original wax that the 'master' was printed in, it seems that the brass artifact is very thoroughly cleaned before it leaves Shapeways. Looking very closely, you can discern the 'stepping' on curved surfaces that you get in any printed material, to different extents. For the following photos, the usual disclaimers apply... ..in that it looks much nicer to the naked eye! In the moments since the bare brass body has been cleaned some more, and given a tentative dusting of grey etch primer, which adds to the realism while sadly eliminating the brief jewel-like 'bling' effect..... I'm thinking that with some gentle sanding and a few coats of paint, the stepped effect can be almost eliminated but rest assured, from any normal viewing distance it is not that apparent anyway. The next step is the livery. I'm tempted, having already got a decent looking prototypical London Midland version, to do a version more suited to a Cornish branch line. With Kinlet Wharf appearing at Taunton later this year, http://somersetrmc.org.uk/Rail-EX/layouts.html it would be nice to have a 'Great Western' version, perhaps in FGW deep blue, or perhaps an interpretation of the forthcoming DfT specifified GWR livery. Does anybody know if this is still going ahead, and what colour would be used for branch line services? Anyhow, here are the cruel close ups... Stay tuned for more on the little Hunslet.

Thanks all.. Mikkel, couplings are still a mystery for the narrow gauge stuff, my usual bent paperclip solutions are going to look hellishly big! I do, however, have an etched brass coupling for the front of the Class 139, if you look at the prototype, there is a little red tongue sticking out of its mouth on the front valance, which allows one vehicle to rescue the other if it gets stuck down the branch. Tom... photos to follow (extreme close ups)!

You may recall in a previous episode I was pondering the best scale combination to use T gauge mechanisms and track to represent narrow gauge, balancing a 1:148 scale carriage on 3mm track. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/351/entry-15589-n-gauge-narrow-gauge-0165-009-this-must-be-n3/ It turned out a 1:148 model of a 2' gauge carriage was a bit large on what scales as 15-18" track. So a plan B has emerged, using Shapeways' 'Raw Brass' printing service, I have created a 1:220 scale quarry Hunslet, or at least the modern incarnation with cab as seen on many preserved lines. Stuck to the back (about to be Dremmeled off...) is a vaguely Corris-esque carriage with bench seats inside (honest). http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/351/entry-15589-n-gauge-narrow-gauge-0165-009-this-must-be-n3/ The process (which took about 2 weeks) starts off with a 3D print in modern casting wax, then takes a pleasingly old school diversion through traditional lost wax casting to produce the finished product. At the same time, I also got a nice, heavy version of my N Gauge Class 139 body printed/cast in brass as well. The extra weight should aid pickup as well as provide a better final paint finish, hopefully...

No brick detail to report on I'm afraid. The texture of the brick is very smooth on the real thing, so the walls are smooth and bricks will be suggested with paint. The flat surface will be broken up with plenty of posters etc... Photographed and then stuck on separately. I may use a similar trick for the tiles on the roof.

A little while ago I mentioned I was drawing up a 3D model of Arley station (as preserved on the Severn Valley Railway) and the results have arrived from Shapeways, rendered in the relatively coarse 'White Strong and Flexible' material which was the same thing I used for the stone abutments on N Gauge Victoria Bridge... All scaled from the very useful drawings in Barrie Geens' very useful book 'The Severn Valley Railway at Arley'. Nice to see the drawing apparently rising up from the surface of the page! In the 3D model I left the door to the gents' loos slightly open.... for no other reason than 'because you can'.... other details like the post box on the other end came out crisply, able to accept little 2mm/ft letters.... Next step... make a start on painting it, and create a station around the building. Some interesting challenges lie in store like the smart Hawksworth 12 wheeled sleeping car which provides volunteer accommodation in the yard. Back to mini Victoria Bridge, a wonderful weekend was spent (with the station building 'fresh' from the printers on show) in Arley waiting room itself in March for the unusually spring-like Spring Gala. I really enjoyed being a small part of an excellent event and it was great to meet such an appreciative crowd at Arley. I will have Victoria Bridge, and the beginnings of mini-Arley, on show at Wyre Forest MRC's 40th anniversary event in Stourport on Severn (a short hop from Kidderminster and Bewdley) on the 25th April. See: http://www.wyreforestmrc.com/exhibition.html Please come along and support the show if you are in the area. It is a small local event bringing layouts for all tastes, N gauge, OO modern image depot, 009 micro, big 009 layout, scenic 0-16.5, even bigger Canadian HO scale, drawn from our club members collections. We will have layouts on shelves and ironing boards, up to something more ambitious in scale: http://cprailmmsub.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/great-canadian-model-railroad-in-england.html

Thank you Bob! There was talk of maybe a return visit for the Autumn Gala, hopefully something can be arranged!

Ah, you never know. Both venues have been chosen for their supply of excellent cake... Which may be about as rock'n'roll as it gets!

I am planning a small 'tour' of local venues with mini-Victoria Bridge. More to come, but in the meantime.... March 21st and 22nd Firstly, the SVR Spring Gala.... I will have the layout on show inside Arley station on the Saturday and Sunday of the event, if you are travelling on the train on the day, do arrange a stop at Arley and come and say hello! http://www.svr.co.uk/SEItem.aspx?a=65 April 25th Then, on the 25th April, an anniversary show is planned by Wyre Forest MRC in a community centre in Stourport. It is a small local event but you will all be made very welcome, Victoria Bridge will be among the layouts, more news to come. http://www.wyreforestmrc.com/exhibition.html

Cheers Tom, speaking of small cars, any progress on the car park at Ropley? I'm sure it could host a Triumph parked at an abrupt and unexpected angle... PS. looking at the lower of the two pictures, the carriage seems to float a little high on its bogies so I have lowered it a bit, correcting a slight lean it had which would not have aided stability!

Hello everyone, right, determined to get back blogging and true to the title, another truly random tangent of N-gaugery, this time going narrow gauge. A while back as a sheer impulse buy I picked up a 2mm/ft static model kit of a GWR era Vale of Rheidol railway carriage from NBrass. I have to confess this has sat for a year or two on a shelf but inspired by some 009 carriage-bodging I had been working on (more of this soon) I wondered if it could be made into something vaguely 'operational'. As I have mentioned in the past, I have a bundle of T-gauge equipment but have yet to work out a plan for what to do with it. There have been a number of interesting layouts and models built representing various narrow gauges alongside N, usually employing the fairly wide 6.5mm gauge track adapted from Z gauge. I did a bit of maths and figured that 3mm gauge (as denoted by the T in Tgauge) in scales around the 1:150 region works out at near enough 18" gauge, so in theory good for representing railways at the larger end of 'miniature' but a bit short of a proper 'narrow' representation. In fact to represent 2' gauge in theory you are better off modelling at 1:220 scale where you can at least borrow scenic bits and bobs from established Z gauge suppliers. However I reckon it is not quite that simple, and that this T-gauge stuff can be used to represent 2' gauge in N. Remember that the T gauge flexi track (as illustrated below) has quite 'chunky' section rail so the overall impression is of a track wider than the nominal gauge suggests, add to that the height (..code) of the rail and it does look more substantial in a 1:150 gauge context than a lightly laid 18" line. Are you keeping up with all this waffle, well done if you are! So, to cut a long story short, I stuck together said carriage kit and mounted it on a plain T gauge 'adjustable' truck chassis. Happily, it was about the right length without needing adjusting so saved me the bother of hacking it about. The couplers are no longer of any use but they are not too clever in the way they couple anyway, so I will have to rethink joining vehicles together. And you know what it kind of works. I think i'd rather the narrow gauge track beneath it was too narrow than too wide (as in the case of N6.5...) and sat on some track, it is not as unstable and wobbly as I'd imagined. I will continue the research!

Looking good....! (I'm only jealous as it would look handsome, in an ugly way, on my Victoria Bridge..). I wonder if it is the first 'Flying Pig' to be fashioned in N gauge, keep up the good work..!

Thanks chaps! You can tell I have spent the last few months relearning the island of Sodor with young Harvey, last years Thomas was very much an old school 'railway series' painting whereas exposure to the modern cgi animated series shows in Oliver's facial features. I actually quite like the new 'virtual' version but I still have a great affection for the paintings of Peter and Gunvor Edwards who featured prominently in the storybooks of my youth.

Hi All, A quick post from me, you may remember from last year http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/351/entry-13002-merry-christmas-a-tank-engine-and-a-brief-ramble/my Christmas present preparation for the younger members of our family involves producing paintings. After Thomas last year, I have just been putting the finishing touches to Oliver and Toad..... Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all on RMWeb. Thank you for all of your kind comments over the year, especially after my appearance at RMWeb live, the encouraging words really mean a lot. Hopefully more progress on mini-Victoria Bridge and maybe mini-Arley in the not too distant future!

Ooh, LMS... something to do with 'Pigs', N Gauge...... Flying Pig? (Just imagining one on my Victoria Bridge)

Looking forward to seeing 'modern' Highbury at Warley. Are you looking to populate the lanes with a sprinkling of appropriate vehicles?

Just a quick note to say that I really like the way you present your ideas, will be watching with interest, welcome to RMWeb!

Hi Mikkel, some kind of trackside shed or similar structure would be a good starting point and very achievable using something like Sketchup. With a couple of sheds designed you could then move on to wagons, which are in truth, just slightly more complex 'wheeled' sheds.... More atmospheric shots to come, though I'll introduce them gradually for the sake of your knees!!

Not much has developed on the 3D printed Arley front over the last couple of weeks, but with a few nights away from home looming, CAD design does make for a tidy way to create modelling output in a hotel, so watch this space! I have had chance to have a good look around the real thing however. On Sunday Arley was basking in spots of sunshine and a slice of lovely branchline-ish ness... Modelling challenges include the picnic area, which I know very well.. the site is busy and requires a number of less glamourous additions like big bins etc.. which are well hidden, and will want to be equally well hidden on the model: Cake! (& excellent sandwiches) Whenever I see this building I feel hungry... I also took a couple of pictures of the rarely photographed 'river' side of the station building, though from a respectful distance as this is the more private side of the residential part of the station building. I wonder if there is an etiquette to modelling 'from life' when dealing with a private house? I'd been wondering about this when pondering a model of nearby Northwood Halt, another scene dominated by a substantial private dwelling. With that in mind, I'll not reproduce the pictures here, but use them to get the one side of the building near enough right. The station is of course host to a procession of exotic machinery and long trains. That said, it looks very 'proper' with a 14xx (Sunday just gone) or a railcar (Railbus gala a few years ago). This might point to a way of creating a small diorama based on the station building without the need (yet) for a large layout around it... but ready for extension...

See here http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/90905-shapeways-price-change/ for the full story, not a problem despite concerns over WSF costs. It will cost between 40Euro-50Euro depending on how clever/brave I am with wall thicknesses etc. A bespoke scale station building for the price of a bargain bucket loco seems good! (Phew)

An interesting point in the process will be uploading it to Shapeways and seeing what it would cost!! I have designed it with bog-standard 'White Strong and Flexible' material in mind, which ought to keep costs down. For some reason I have been putting it off... (!!!) but that needn't be the case, once the basic shape is roughly sketched out you could upload the shell and get a pretty close 'ballpark' cost. Any subsequent addition of details would be cancelled out by the hollowing out of windows etc..

Hi All, yet again, I find myself a bit square eyed after a CAD session figuring out the intricacies of my N Gauge Arley. Here are a couple of screenshots of progress so far: Project Arley will need a fair bit of traditional scenic modelling too, especially around the beautifully tended gardens: http://www.arleystation.org.uk/asgardens.html http://www.arleystation.org.uk/gagardens.html Which always remain friendly, colourful but in keeping with the surroundings. PS. On the subject of Arley and Victoria Bridge, yet another 'prototype for everything....'! https://www.flickr.com/photos/30895774@N02/15184037648/in/photostream/

In the case of the Black 5 Farish went beyond plastic coal, giving us a hefty slice of metal coal to aid adhesion on the tender drive. I tried putting some glue on the metal coal and giving it a light dusting of 'yer actual' coal dust, however I overdid it and the tender appeared to be wearing an elaborate coal 'hat'..... still working on a plan B.

Interesting stuff Tom, thanks for replying to my pondering...... Weathering on models of preserved stock is an interesting subject. While the frequency of cleaning (especially for the more common 1948-68 'look') is higher, the odd converse effect is that a locomotive might actually spend longer carrying a livery than it did when in 'front line' service. Due to this, the effects of sun bleaching, and presumably plenty of polishing, add up! A favorite of mine, was the SVR's Bradley Manor, which I recall appearing as a gleaming freshly restored example in 1993 ish, then building up a distinct patina of not dirtyness, but well loved fadedness, over the next two decades. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bradley_Manor_7802_5.jpg Bradley Manor presumably carried elements of this paintwork for far longer than any 50's / 60's decoration. 7802 has now faded from the limelight to be made all rather spick and span and new again, hopefully my patronage of the owning group's shop at Bewdley will help a little!

Just a short entry today, have spent rather too long staring at a screen, here are the results: A number of people at RMweb live asked if, having 'printed' Victoria Bridge, I could print an Arley station to go with it. One way to find out....! The drawings in the Wild Swan 'Severn Valley Railway at Arley' have proved invaluable. It may yet form the basis of an extension to the Victoria Bridge diorama, as country stations go, it gets quite busy, see: https://www.flickr.com/photos/31339850@N06/15310859962/in/photolist-eaLmcr-6kZfbj-p3uUte-pjYafb-meXfGS-o6uM1h-pkJTdz-aDVdja-eQYSWK-dLVENo-m5puX2-akCPhJ-ddMhVR-ddMjWu-fYZQDz-aubfEL-9AE8Br-aubc5d-9wSYMm