RosiesBoss

My apologies to all for my blunder over DG wheel sizes! What was I thinking? Early in my preparation for this project, I did, in fact, consider using discarded Mainline DG wheels, but with plastic centres and 3mm dia axles, they didn't fit well with my plans to use Romford 1/8" bearings and gears or Markits crankpins that needed to be soldered. Thank you to everyone who has shown interest in this project. Regards, Rob

G'day everyone, I didn't use a Dean Goods as a starting point for several reasons: 1. The only DG chassis I had were plastic Mainline ones left over from other projects - too flimsy. 2. The DG wheelbase is 7'3"+8''3" - too far away from the 3901's 7’0”+7’0”. The Tri-ang wheelbase was much closer. 3. DG wheels were 4'6" dia: much smaller than the 3901's 5'2" There wasn't much (if anything) that I found re-usable in a DG. Hence the decision to (largely) scratchbuild. Regards, Rob

Thank you, DCB, for your observations. I agree that, in my model, the boiler is a bit larger than it should have been. Ref.5 in my build account shows the Std.5 smokebox (3901 class) to have been 4’2” dia and the Std.4 smokebox (City class) to have been 4’11” dia. In model form, this resulted in my model smokebox diameter being oversize by 3mm. I accepted that, as I have not yet mastered the skills required to fabricate a GWR taper boiler. While researching the model, I prepared an overlay drawing of the 3901 and 45XX classes, aligning the boilers so as to work out whether it was feasible to rebuild a 45XX body. It’s clear that the height of the smokebox centrelines are different: 3901: 8’3”; 45XX: 7’6”. The 3901s were significantly taller. It was also clear that the straight footplate of the 3901 was very different to that of the 45XX which had a drop front end. Had I been able to find a second-hand 45XX to rebuild, I wouldn’t have used much more than part of the boiler. (What a waste!) Apart from the boiler, I did make other compromises: · The correct driving wheelbase should be 7’0”+7’0”; the donor chassis was 6’6”+6’6”. · Chimney & safety valve cover were’nt perfect, deriving from the Std.4 boiler. · Rivet detail was absent. · No cab interior was fitted. As I stated in the disclaimer, this was never meant to be a perfect model – just one that gave enormous pleasure to make and run. As for the anomalous presence of 8103 in one of my images, let me refer you to modellers’ Rule No.1….. Regards, Rob

G'day, Paul, This drawing of the class in their final form shows they made full use of the loading gauge: www.greatwestern.org.uk/drawings/loco/loco121.jpg Regards, Rob

Yet another use for a Tri-ang Princess chassis: Details are here: Regards, Rob

Disclaimer This project is one that includes more than a few compromises! It didn’t produce a fine-scale model, accurate in all respects. Rather, it was just an amusing diversion. Rivet-counters beware! Introduction I’ve been familiar with the Tri-ang Princess class chassis since I was given my first train set in Christmas 1955. Despite many years of “love” and a couple of repaints, the loco still runs: Consequently, when someone gave me an incomplete Princess chassis frame, found under their new house, I gladly added it to my spares box, awaiting inspiration for another day. The wheelbase is not far off that needed for a GWR 39XX. I had plenty of sheet brass and copper, Romford wheels, axles and gears, so began this challenge. For those wishing to do something similar, but in plastic, there was a suitable construction article in Ref.9. Parts List · Early Tri-ang Princess chassis block (Ref.1) and coupling rods · Romford wheels, axles, gears & bearings · Tri-ang X04 motor · MRRC 5-pole armature · Comet LS2 pony truck kits · Alan Gibson 4839H pony truck wheels · Re-purposed 2nd hand camera springs · Airfix City of Truro boiler · Sandboxes from scrapped Tri-ang Dean Single · 3D-printed injectors · Brass & copper sheet · H0 NSWGR buffers & scale couplings · Markits handrail knobs · 0.45mm phosphor bronze wire · Humbrol & Tamiya enamels and acrylics · Jackson-Evans etched number plates · CAL-SCALE 190-606 HO Whistle Construction Unmodified Princess frame, with 4mm scale drawing: Modified frame with new wheels, gears, coupling rods, pickups and rebuilt X04 motor: Pony trucks: Initial fit test of pony trucks: Trimmed, mounted and sprung: Footplate, valences & buffer beams: Paper templates (from Ref.2) attached to copper sheet and roughed-out: Assembled onto footplate after trimming: Boiler before & after surgery: Boiler test fitted to model: Cab roof & steps fitted roughly – model ready for detailing: Details added: Results 3917 passing 4508 (Crownline/Lima) and 8103 (rebuilt Grafar): References & Further Reading 1. http://www.hornbyguide.com/service_sheet_details.asp?sheetid=334 2. Railway Modeller, Nov 1967 3. Model Railways, Apr 1975 4. www.greatwestern.org.uk/drawings/loco/loco121.jpg 5. https://www.devboats.co.uk/gwdrawings/gwrstandardboilers.php 6. Jim Champ: “An Introduction to Great Western Locomotive Development” (Pen & Sword Transport, 2018) 7. Locomotives Illustrated No.33: “The Great Western Railway’s 2-6-2Ts” (Ian Allan, 1983) 8. Anon.: “The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway: Part 5 – Six-Coupled Tank Engines” (RCTS, 1958) 9. Railway Modeller, Apr 1976

G'day, all, I am one of the large fraternity of modellers frustrated by the running properties of the Airfix/Dapol Hornby 14XX chassis, once they are well run-in. I published a blog describing the replacement of one of these in 2018, but the pictures have disappeared. Here is a pdf of the text and illustrations, which may be of some interest again.GWR 517 Class No 848.pdf Regards, Rob

Carmarthen Junction now has another 4-4-0. Details are here: https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/184200-3436-–-gwr-bulldog-class-4-4-0/

Disclaimer This paper describes the kitbashing of a 00-scale GWR Bulldog class 4-4-0, making use of components already to hand – a kind of “scrapyard challenge”. The resulting model does not pretend to be a fine-scale example, but does represent many of the small-wheeled GWR 4-4-0s. Rivet counters need read no further! Introduction I’ve had a fascination for 4-4-0s for a very long time. I guess it began when, around 1964, a local toy store had a sale of Kitmaster models. I used my pocket money to buy one of everything available: a nice change from making Airfix aeroplane kits. I later added a few Airfix examples. It wasn’t long before I tried to motorise some of them – not very successfully at first, but I did persevere with the City of Truro, inspired by the article in Ref 1. This led to other successful conversions and scratchbuilds, some of which are shown in the appendix. I developed a liking for elegant Victorian/Edwardian era 4-4-0s. Local surviving examples were very attractive, such as 1210 and 1709. When GBL static models were available locally, I bought two City of Truros. One I motorised as 3713; the other I set aside for future use. This was the main source of body parts for a new Bulldog class. Number plates for 3436 were on hand, left over as alternatives for my model of City of Chester. Drawings were found in Refs. 2, 3, 5 and 9. I chose to use a whitemetal LMS 3F chassis (probably K’s or Wills) bought 2nd hand many years ago, which came with Romford wheels, axles and gears, together with a Tri-ang X04 motor in good order. One half of this had the right wheelbase. Parts List · GBL City of Truro static model · Motorised whitemetal LMS 3F chassis · Romford 21mm dia driving wheels · Romford extended axles & cranks · Alan Gibson 13mm bogie wheels · 2mm dia brass wagon bearings (for front bogie) · Hornby Grange tender wheels (X9357) · Airfix City of Truro front bogie · 180gsm card · Small and medium brass handrail knobs · 26 SWG (0.46 mm dia.) phosphor bronze wire · Modelmaster numberplates · PC Pressfix transfers · Humbrol enamel paints · 8BA and 12 BA screws/nuts · Dummy leaf springs (left over from Barry Rly Class D project) · Chimney cap from Hornby pannier tank Construction Model as received: Loco dismantled: Tender dismantled: Footplate stripped: Footplate opened up and with new splashers: Boiler splasher openings reduced: Chassis as received: Chassis shortened and fitted with new wheels, axles, cranks and coupling rods: Bogie mounting details: Body reassembled and test fitted to chassis and Airfix bogie: The donor City class boiler is a Standard 4; Bulldogs had Standard 2 boilers. These were similar, but slightly smaller. Casual observers would notice that Bulldog boilers mounted their safety valves closer to the firebox. The GBL chimney needed improvement and the moulded handrails and smokebox door dart had to be shaved off. After filling the hole left after removal of the valves, the boiler now looked like this: Now restored with safety valves, top feed pipes, handrails, springs, smokebox dart and modified chimney: Tender chassis – fixed wheels ground off and replaced by new ones: Handrails and tension-lock couplings fitted to tender: Ready for paint: Results The model was generously ballasted with lead weights in the boiler and firebox, as well as in the tender, which lightly bears down on the rear of the loco. It runs well, although a little noisily due to the X04 motor. It can haul around 4 Hornby Collett coaches or a similar load of 4/6 wheelers. This was a relatively low-cost project, using mainly second-hand components as well as those bought during sales. I calculated that it cost me around A$80-100 overall – about one third of the eBay price of similar models. Here’s another view – this time with other contemporary 4-4-0s: 1043, 3265, 3283, and 3713: References and Further Reading 1. Railway Modeller, May 1961 2. Railway Modeller, Jul 1997 3. J.N.Maskelyne: “Locomotives I have Known” (Percival Marshall, 1959) 4. Anon.: “Locomotives of the Great Western Railway – Part Seven: Dean’s Larger Tender Engines” (RCTS, 1954) 5. Great Western Railway Journal No.26, 1998 6. Locomotives Illustrated No 50: GWR Double-framed 4-4-0s (Ian Allen, Nov-Dec 1986) 7. https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/96216-motorise-gbl-city-of-truro/ (Text only) 8. https://www.rmweb.co.uk/topic/182588-gwr-ex-barry-railway-class-d-0-8-0/ 9. www.greatwestern.org.uk/drawings/loco/loco21.jpg 10. https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/147726-bodging-a-bulldog/ (Text only) 11. Jim Champ: “An Introduction to Great Western Locomotive Development” (Pen & Sword Transport, 2018) Appendix – Some Other 4-4-0s 1043 – Scratchbuilt body & chassis, Tri-ang/Bachmann tender (Model built 2017) 3265 Tre Pol and Pen – Kitbashed Airfix body, Tri-ang chassis block, Tri-ang tender (Model built 1993) 3283 Comet – Re-motored K’s whitemetal kit (Model built 1973) 3297 Earl Cawdor – Scratchbuilt body, Tri-ang chassis block, Airfix tender (Model built 2016) 3440 City of Truro – Kitmaster body & tender, Tri-ang chassis block (Model built 1970)

Here's a list of some short wheelbase 0-6-0 chassis from my references: Bachmann Salty: 4'9"+4'9"; 3'6" wheels Electrotren H0 0-6-0: 5'0"+6'0"; 3'6" wheels Hornby Toby: 5'6"+5'6"; 4'3" wheels * BR Class 03: 4'6"+4'6"; 3'7" wheels Bachmann Thomas: 5'9"+5'9"; 4'3" wheels * Bachmann Junior 0-6-0ST: 6'0"+6'0"; 4'3" wheels * Terrier 0-6-0T: 6'0"+6'0"; 4'0" wheels * * Used for some of my own models. I hope this helps. Regards, Rob

G'day, Steve, Thank you for your observations. I trimmed the chassis block as much as I dared, leaving just enough "meat" around the front screw holding its 2 halves together. As this ends up right behind the leading driver, I chose to leave Nellie's skirts in place to hide it. Use of the Nellie bodies provided a short cut alternative to fully scratchbuilding the body over the Thomas chassis. Even then, the offending screw would still have needed a skirt or some other way to hide it. The Nellie bodies could have been used over a scratchbuilt chassis without the skirt, but I had been storing most parts in my "to do" pile for several years and so chose the approach described above to avoid the cost of purchasing a new motor and gearbox. Regards, Rob

G'day, all, Carmarthen Junction has absorbed yet another loco: Construction details are here: https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/183628-gwr-944-0-6-0t-project/ Regards, Rob

Another variation on a Nellie theme: Details are found here: https://www.rmweb.co.uk/forums/topic/183628-gwr-944-0-6-0t-project/

Disclaimer This paper describes the kitbashing of a 00-scale 0-6-0T inspired by GWR 944, making use of components already to hand – a kind of “scrapyard challenge”. The resulting model does not pretend to be a fine-scale example, but does represent many of the absorbed 0-6-0Ts which ran in the Welsh Valleys. Rivet counters need read no further! Introduction What do you do with redundant Nellie bodies left over from using their chassis for such projects as 3297 Earl Cawdor or 3717 City of Chester? Answer: Adapt them to another GWR model, using a modified chassis of a Bachmann Thomas 0-6-0T. GWR 944, absorbed from the Llanelly and Mynydd Mawr Railway has a generally similar design with the same wheelbase. This loco was sold in 1928 into colliery service and remained in use as Hatfield No.4 until 1968. Photos seem to indicate that, as Hatfield No.4, the loco was reboilered, as the GWR safety valves disappeared and were replaced by pop valves mounted on the dome. The parallel GWR chimney was replaced by a taller tapered one. I chose to model it generally as seen in an image taken in Llanelli MPD, where “Great Western” may just be seen on the tank sides: Where possible, I have used components from my scrapbox or fabricated my own parts. Parts List · Bachmann Thomas model · 2 x Tri-ang Nellie bodies · Brass sheet · Handrail knobs – Markits · 0.45 mm phosphor bronze wire · Chimney, dome & safety valve: Home-turned brass · Whistle: Cal-Scale 190-606 · Buffers – from Thomas · Scale couplings – Ozzy Brass #75.2 · Tank fillers: made from brass tube and plastic sheet offcuts · Front sandboxes – home-3D-printed · Finely-ground sodium bicarbonate plus super glue – used as filler Construction The Bachmann model was stripped: The body and footplate were set aside for another project. The motor/gearbox unit is too high for this project and contained redundant gears used for the moving eyes, so was modified to fit the rebuilt model. As the motor/gearbox is designed to be screwed to the (discarded) body and thence to the footplate and chassis block, another system needed to be designed. I chose to make a new, rigid brass footplate which would include suitable brackets to hold the gearbox. This would also facilitate assembly of the body shell using Nellie components. The Nellie body, from the side tanks back is a reasonable match to 944, although the cab front windows need correcting. The boiler needed extending, hence the use of a second body. Bodies joined and some old details removed: Cab roof and boiler join smoothed, smokebox gaps filled with epoxy, test fitted to footplate: Splashers (salvaged from Thomas) fitted to footplate: Redundant beading, whistles, chimney, dome & tank fillers removed; cab front altered: Chimney, dome & safety valve were turned from brass, using the technique detailed in Ref 4: Buffers, couplings, handrails, boiler fittings, beading and tank fillers added: Sandboxes, steps and lamp brackets added: Finishing The body was spray-primed. The chassis and wheels, as well as the steps were painted with Tamiya NATO black. The footplate, tank tops and splasher tops were painted in Humbrol satin black enamel. The smokebox and cab roof were painted with Humbrol matt black enamel. Tank sides and bunker were painted with Humbrol GWR green acrylic. Buffer beams were painted with Humbrol matt red enamel. “Brass” details were picked out in Humbrol “gold” enamel. GWR lettering was made using HMRS Pressfix transfers. Cabside numbers were home-printed. After allowing time for transfers etc to stabilise, the model was varnished with Humbrol satin clear. Results Reflections The model is by no means a perfect representation of 944, but has made possible the use of many otherwise unused items from my scrapbox. It runs superbly and has more than adequate pulling power. References & Further Reading 1. RCTS “The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway – Part 10 – Absorbed Engines 1922-1947 (RCTS, 1966) 2. J.H.Russell: “A Pictorial Record of Great Western Absorbed Engines” (OPC, 1978) 3. http://www.gwr813.org/GWR944a.htm 4. Guy Williams: “Model Locomotive Construction in 4mm Scale” (Ian Allan, 1979)

G'day, Camperdown, Thanks for your query. I'm afraid the Barry and NSWGR locos just look generally similar in style. They are different in detail as seen when comparing GA drawings: I hope this clarifies things. Regards, Rob