Father Dougal

With a few days holiday I have found time to get on with my 37/4. The body shell and chassis are now painted. I need to build the cab interiors, fit lights, snow ploughs and finish the bogies. They are built, but I need wheels before I can fit the side frames. Oh, and a sneak peek at my next build. Dougal.

After finishing my chores today, so that Mrs Doyle gives me my pocket money. I finished off fitting a decoder etc to my kit built 08. I built this in 2019, but it was plagued with running issues. I rebuilt the chassis 3 or 4 times. Over the couple of months I have built a new chassis and side frames. I also stripped the body back for a full repaint. Now she is done and she runs faultlessly. Got there in the end! Dougal.

Thanks for the reply. Would an industrial siding have 2 lights- red & white or just white for each direction? Dougal

A bit more progress..... The CDA has been painted. I have run out of ECC logos so I need to order some. I will then add a very light dusting of clay powder. The saddle tank is coming along nicely. The body shell needs cleaning up and a bit of filler then I can paint. The chassis is almost done, I have yet to add the brake gear. She runs nicely. I had to modify the boiler to fit the gear box otherwise the build has been ok. I must admit, shaping the boiler was less fun and led to a spot of colourful language. The 37 hasn’t had much done lately. Once the saddle tank is done I will build the chassis and bogies. Dougal ps- can anyone advise what lights would be on a saddle tank?

Ok so, Not loads of modelling done lately as this little fellow below has been keeping Mrs Doyle and I quite busy! I finished my CDA build today.This is a Buzz model kit with a PRMRP CDA top. Goes well with my other CDA’s. I will order some sprung buffers from Roxey. I am awaiting a delivery of Mr Putty- I can fill a few gaps and then paint. I received a Slaters 40:1 gearbox today. I will fit this to a saddle tank I am working on. a few photos

Very impressive Mike.

Interesting subject. I spent a while looking at Carl’s videos of CAD design using the fusion 360 software. I don’t plan to print Loco shells or big wagons, more leaning towards detail pieces such as wipac light clusters or vac pipes, cab interiors to complement the kits I build in Brass. I like Carl’s videos as they focus on simple shapes to build up confidence. Looks like I will need a new PC as our current one is likely steam powered it is so old. Most videos and recommendations here suggest the same printers, which is reassuring. So, I need to save a few pennies first then I will give this 3D lark a go. Dougal

Thank you for the replies. Didn’t realise we had a separate 3D printing thread. I like the look of the wagons modelled. being a bit of a PC numpty, I wonder how hard it is to down load and tweak the files to the printer. I gather there are loads of free downloads out there. I like using the iPad, I expect this would be comparable with some printers. Dougal

Hi, now that prices are coming down, I am thinking about buying a 3D printer. I work in O gauge and I would like to print parts and accessories to make wagon and loco building a bit easier. I understand you can print in resin or various plastics. Does anyone have experience of using a printer? I would be very much a beginner. thanks Dougal

Gosh that brake lever is quite high. Interesting prototype.

All done now and back in service. Fitting the Zimo mx696ks decoder was tricky as the cast metal chassis and space for a decoder was 2mm too small. I fitted into the underside after modifying the speaker housing. She runs really well again and those brass gears should last a while. The snowploughs are great. The sound file is good as well. I have yet to tidy up the weathering and remove more on the tail end. Dougal

In between restoring my 33, I have begun building a 37/4. The body shell is pretty much done now, but I have yet to decide where the chassis will be secured. My class 14 continues to see lots of service. Here she is propelling a few short postal vans to number 2 siding. Ever since I added that extra nose weight I have had no issues over curves or points and she just runs as I want her to. Dougal

Ok so, Decoder, stay alive, speaker on order, as well as the ultra micro LEDs to illuminate the head codes and cabs. The decoder will just about fit in the recessed box. But I might place it in the fuel tank instead and have the chunky speaker above. The drivers are fitted. The tail lights are ready to go. The Snow ploughs and vac pipes are being painted. Hopefully next weekend I can put it all back together and get back to playing trains.

A little running session this morning. 9529 busy shunting a solitary MOGO to the bagged clay facility. meanwhile 47148 passes on a diverted engineering duty. Dougal.

Hi, thank you for your kind comments. I followed your thread. You made a nice model. Did your 14 have any issues with going over curves? Dougal

I decided to splash out and get a decoder. Digitrains only had a sound file compatible with Loksound, so I went ahead and bought it. Not used loksound before. Nice sound file but no dynamic brake key like I have with my Zimo decoders. I added a little more weight in the front as sometimes derailed after a curve into a point. Now runs fine. I have never owned a 14 before and I am surprised at how big she is. Here are a few shots and my new toy- a WiFi unit for Prodigy advance so I can also use my phone to play trains. Dougal.

Yes, so I understand. I am using a big dollop of modelling licence. Dougal

That looks really good. Dougal

Oh yes! Weights added and she can run around set track curves without incident. Very pleased with the result. finished as 9529 in BR Blue. Lights and decoder to follow. I just need to paint and fit the driver and control console. Dougal

Getting there. The body shell is painted, weathered and decals added. The chassis has wiper pick ups. I swapped out the motor to a more beefy version as the tiny motor I first used didn’t have enough oomph. I now have a Canon motor with a 30:1 gear box. Testing on the layout it appears that a long wheelbase loco with a central axle drive really doesn’t like the peco curves at all. The solution is clearly weight (and a shed load- around 400g front and rear axle) Then she runs really well. I tested this using my lead weights- sadly these are the wrong shape to fit inside the body shell. so, almost a Kg of liquid gravity ordered. more to follow, Dougal

Feeling pretty pleased with myself today. The chassis is now built and running smoothly. I had a lot of hassle with clearing the white metal horn blocks etc and ended up grinding a considerable amount off. As they can’t be seen when the wheels are on I now wonder why I bothered fitting them! The body is being painted and a few bits need to be attached. I have run out of BR Blue and Chevron decals so a spot of shopping is in order now.

More progress to the body shell. Loads of detail added. Fitting the individual steps was a pain. My soldering will never win an award for neatness but everything is fitted soundly. I have modified the end pieces to be plain with no head code boxes as my prototype doesn’t have them (not shown in these photos). Buffer beams next. Dougal.

BR Blue for this one. I expect I will need to add some liquid gravity to add weight, but I need to see how much space is left once I have fitted the sound chip, lights, speaker and stay alive. The Bonnet ends are cast metal so that should help. Dougal

Ok so, kits arrived. I have made a tentative start on the class 14. The cab is soldered to the running plate. The roof will be removable. The engine cover thingies will be soldered once I have drilled a few holes in the cab walls to take the wiring for lights. Dougal

A few photos around the layout. Denise shunts a quarry working for pick up later. GPTRAMM ready for departure. A collection of scrap wagons.