Chris Higgs

2-240 and 2-241. The first was a BR specific diagram, although it is a lengthened version of an LMS design (P52A/B). The second is more interesting. It is a Swindondesign which traces its origin back to Loriot diagrams G1 and G2 from the 1890s. I am hoping the kit will build all the various permutations. I even found a photo on the Bartlett site of an original G2 still in service in 1984. Chris

The MR coaches I did originated from Alistair Wright (5522 Models). They are the same diagrams as done by Worsley Works. On my virtual workbench are two new kits of Lowmacs. My real workbench will trump anyone elses for clutter. Chris

Filing the Vs really isn't that difficult, even without the jigs Grahame mentions. The rail is so small in section it hardly takes any time. What I do find tedious and a bit tricky is filing the point blades to a nice fine taper. I'll be interested to see if how that is tackled. Chris

I would give it a try. I have had a piece of the 2mm finescale equivalent track on my bench for a couple of years and I happily use it to test N Gauge models as well. Only a very small number of them foul the chairs with their flanges. Some of the very old Grafar do, but they look rudiculous on the track anyway. If it's rolling stock, you can also buy some of the newer Farish wheels to do a swap. Chris

Alan Smith and I have been talking over new 2mm chassis using brass blocks and etched extras. The 4MT 2-6-4T is on the list somewhere. But I expect we will wait and see the new Farish retooled offering before proceeding. You missed the Masterclass Thompson suburbans. They have been and gone. DItto with the D1964 which was one of my first coach kits. Chris

I often visit this shop when in Bourton with my children. Take care though, not open every day in winter. Chris

My guess is that it was down to some residual flux from the soldering. Chris

The centre drive one might work with a small motor. The problem with the rear drive version is that Dapol have their motor clipped into the tanks, and it only just fits. So either a motor towards the front must be in exactly the same position as the Dapol one, or major surgery is require to remove material. The Dapol motor is already small (the same dimensions as the flat can we now sell) and anything smaller isn't going to pull nowt. I am looking into a solution that perhaps uses etched frames as overlays to the existing Dapol chassis block, as Brassmasters are doing in 4mm scale. But to be honest, this loco is easily enough converted to 2FS without use of anything more than etched coupling rods and brake rodding, and our standard wheels, axles and muffs. Chris

This turns out not to be the case. It seems that Farish subtly moved the tanks on the Pannier higher to accomodate their motor. Dapol have modelled it to scale height - you can see this is comparison photos. So the chassis design for the Farish body leaves the motor too high to accomodate it within the Dapol body. A redesign will be necessary. Chris

I reckon I might tempt you yet. How about an etch to build an outside framed and open cabbed 1076 class? Chris

Err, yes, you are right. That's a bit embarrassing. However, no serious harm done, they are not destroyed and I simply pressed them back into the wheels. They remain horribly oversized compared to the 0.5mm diameter crankpins we use in 2FS though. But there are possibilities I can see by soldering in a piece of brass rod to form a smaller diameter crankpin. Or perhaps just filing the crankpin flush with the face of the wheel to allow the hole in the coupling rods to be smaller. EDIT: I have amended the original posting in this thread so that no-one will read that alone and make the same mistake I did. Chris

The Dapol one is surprisingly heavy. They have done a pretty good job of filling the tanks with weights. I believe it is 35g as against a Farish model weighing 47g One amazing thing is how Dapol have left the cab area totally free for the DCC chip. So if you wanted to model an open cab Pannier using this as a basis you could. Chris

After thinking about it, I'm going to go for option 2. I don't think I can live with retaining the horribly oversized crankpins and coupling rods that option 1 would imply - unless I make up some special crankpins (which is possible) and then use etched coupling rods. To solve the pickup problem with Option 2, I'm going to replace the brass bushes that are fitted in the Dapol chassis. These are 3mm I/D, 3.78mm O/D. They will be replaced with some which are 3.2mm I/D (1/8" in old money) which are just standard 4mm scale axle bearings that I happen to have for a 3mm scale kit I do. They have the same O/D as the Dapol ones. I can then use the 2mm SA drive bushes (item 3-112) which are 1.5mm I/D, 3.2mm O/D as sleeves on the axles. Not sure if I will fix these to the wheels or the chassis yet. Combined with the 3mm O/D muff and the gear, the conversion will be done entirely with standard components. And with almost no soldering involved, it makes it open to the maximum number of fellow modellers. I could of course go out the lathe and make myself some custom bearings of 3.78mm O/D, 1.5mm I/D. But it's mighty cold this time of year in the workshop where the lathe resides. Chris

The Dapol is an expensive option. 55 quid at the moment as against a tenner for a Farish body plus 15 for the etched chassis. The way the motor is mounted in the body tanks instead of attached to the chassis probably limits the resale possibilities of the Dapol innards. Chris

My Dapol Pannier arrived today. After admiring it for a minute or two – it’s a little beauty - I proceeded to strip it down to its component parts! For those who feel the same urge, here is a sequence which works – it is not necessarily the one I followed though. Unclip the outside brake rodding. Unclip the couplings. Remove the gear cover plate from the bottom of the chassis, which includes the coupling mounts. This has clips to the front and rear of the wheels. If you are careful, you do not have to cut any of the piping that is found below the footplate to do this. This reveals a small screw under the footplate at the front. This bolts the footplate to the tank and boiler assembly. Unbolt this Remove the cab, having first unclipped the main tank handrails as well as the rear vacuum pipe from the cab. This is as per the instruction sheet. Then remove the DCC chip blanking plate There are two clips which hold the rear of the tanks to the footplate. Unclip these and lift the tanks until two screws are revealed each side of the chassis where the wires are attached. Unscrew these, as well as two on top of the blanking plate socket. This now allows the tanks to be fully removed. Whilst doing this be careful to detach various bits of pipework as needed without damaging them. There is a screw at the rear on top of the footplate. Unscrew this, and the chassis can now be removed from the footplate. Remove the crank pins. They are a knurled fit into the wheels, and can be prised out using a combination of small screwdrivers and pliers (and patience). Undo the crankpin nuts using the tool provided by Dapol in the accesories pack. Remove the coupling rods. The wheels can be detached from the plastic axles by prising them off. The wheels are metal wheels with half axle, which has an outside diameter of 3mm and internally a 1.4mm square hole which fits over the axle, ensuring quartering - provided you don't remove the axles themselves from the chassis. You can separate the two halves of the split-frame chassis by undoing the two screws in one side of it. Be warned, at this point consider carefully if you will have the skill to reassemble it with all the gears in the correct positions. Having got this far, I can see three possible options for converting the loco to 2FS. Get the Dapol wheels turned down. They are quite a fine profile (1.7mm thick, 9.45mm diameter with 10.65 diameter over the flange, flange thickness 0.5mm) and I think just removing some metal from the rear of the flange to reduce it to 0.3mm thickness would produce a working result. Attempt to replace the wheels with 2FS ones from the shop. The 9.5mm drivers (shop item 3-008) could be used, and a standard ‘metric’ muff of 3mm diameter (3-102b) would run in the bearings of the Dapol chassis - assuming there are no wear issues with an acetal muff running in brass bearings. The gears on the driven axle are 20 tooth MOD 0.3 gears (3-393). The only problem is that there is then no pickup from the wheels! Fit a replacement etched chassis. I believe the rear axle driven frames that were provided with the Farish pannier chassis would fit the Dapol body, and the centre axle drive type might do so also, although it is far from an ideal solution. I am also thinking of a new variant with centre axle drive but with the motor facing forwards instead of back.

See my new thread.

Jerry, Obviously you were not very diligent in your spotting. I used to write down the numbers of the loco hauled coaches as well. And to think I tell my son off for wasting his time away playing Minecraft. Chris

Your lad is only having limited influence then Tony if he is choosing stock that was around when we were all kids. Now a Bachmann Voyager would be more like it... Chris

That was some trainspotting trip! Puts what I was doing at the same time in the shade.

Yes they did. There are photos on the Paul Bartlett site of both diagrams in blue. K41s up to the mid-1970s at least. Chris

If you can afford them you should. I find them as a reference much better than the main books with almost all diagrams covered. There are quite a few mistakes in there though. The Michael Harris book 'Great Western Coaches' is excellent also. It has a full list of the lots built in the back, but the text also explains in more detail than the Russell books about how the coaches were built. Chris

More can easily be printed with a quick turnaround. Chris

These all seem to be photos already found in the Russell books - 109 is from the main book volume 2 and the other three are in Part 2 of the appendix. Chris

Have you bought our new and wonderful book 'Track'? If you are not a member, then not as it's only on general release in the new year. That will tell you all sorts of tiebar mechanisms, plus more or less everything you could ever want to know about 2mm trackwork. However, soldering to a moving sleeper is still very much a valid method. The solder joints have to be small but strong. Chris

Based on photos in Russell, continuous rainstrips were applied to a number of different coach types built in 1937, mostly suburbans. They do not seem to appear after that, so were probably not deemed a success. Chris