MikeOxon

I doubt the head would carry the weight, as Andy has written! Perhaps some sort of flexible drive from a fixed motor might be feasible. It would have to be long, though, to allow for the full traverse of the head.

For interest, which was which? It would be interesting to know which is more flexible and which more 'snappable' Mike

Thanks again, Mikkel. I do find a computer is one of the most useful bits of modelling kit! It's great to be able to visualise a model before actually building it! I often make coloured images, to explore liveries and so on, before I start painting. I have too many 'pending' tasks at the moment, as a result of all the possibilities opened up by the Silhouette cutter, so these little design studies are keeping my mind ticking over, until all the bits I need finally arrive.

In my very first post in this blog, I mentioned converting an old K's 14xx to a fair representation of a 517 class. Since the 517 was a very variable class, it's impossible to select a 'typical' version - they vary from the earliest tiny saddle tanks, with a short wheelbase, to the final re-builds, which were very similar to Collett's 14xx series. Nevertheless, there were significant differences between even the latest of these engines and the 14xx - most obviously in the cab but also the 14xx has a higher-pitched boiler and longer smokebox. That's why I said a 'fair' representation, since an accurate model would require a complete re-build! Superimposing drawings of a late 517 and a 14xx, shows both the similarities and differences. In fact, if you 'scale up' the 517 drawing by about 6%, then they become very close indeed, so I comforted myself by thinking that a small difference of scale is hardly noticeable in a model! The K's model is a simple white-metal body casting, which includes plates below the footplate, to carry dummy outside-bearings for the trailing wheels. As I wanted an inside-bearing model, it was simply a matter of removing these parts. The next 'removal' was more difficult, since the front toolboxes on the 14xx model are cast integrally with the front splashers. It needed careful work with a saw to separate these without damaging other parts of the model. Cutting away the cab was relatively simple, leading to the stage shown below. I then made a new spectacle plate from styrene sheet and rear extensions to the tops of the side tanks, in the same way. I cut out part of the original cab sides and fixed them to the new tank tops and spectacle plates with superglue. A new cabroof completed the model -a pretty quick and easy conversion. Since the original model had a Belpaire firebox, I needed to find a prototype 517 with both this type of firebox and inside-bearings on the trailing wheels. Fortunately, Russell's 'GW locomotives' contains a photo of No. 835 with these key features, so I numbered mine accordingly. With modeller's licence, I decided I also wanted smokebox 'wing plates', since these are a nice 'Victorian' feature and also disguised the drum-type smokebox. To shape these, I took a head-on photo of my model and then scaled and printed this as a template for cutting out styrene sheet. I also needed new sand boxes so, as I have mentioned in another forum, I made these out of the ends of a couple of nylon cable-ties: As I pointed out at the outset, there are plenty of detail errors but I think No.835 takes its place very well alongside my 'Stella' conversion. Mike addendum - since writing this post, I have started a thread covering the variations within the '517 class' at http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/92797-george-armstrongs-masterpiece/&do=findComment&comment=1668654

I would rate 1, 2, 7, and 9 as particularly creative, mainly because of their juxtaposition of shapes, textures, and colour. The first two make something 'different' out of the Great Gathering - the colours and lines in Mallard are particularly striking. Mike

Thank you, Castle. I'm not familiar with Comet sides but the N6 horse box that I built earlier : http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/1405/entry-12276-turning-back-the-clock-2/ used a similar system, with tabs in the inner shell fitting through slots in the outer. In my opinion, it works well and I used a scalpel (very carefully) to remove paint from the tips of the tabs, to let the bright brass show through, when finished, Mike

Thank you for the comments. I'm hoping that when I manage to complete my own coaches, I will get the undulating roof lines that are so often mentioned as characteristic of the old GWR. Mike

The parts I need to complete building my 6-wheel coaches have not yet arrived so, in the meantime, here's one that I made earlier! I've mentioned before that one of the factors that triggered me into thinking in terms of a 19th century layout was that I'd already built the three types of 'Ratio' GWR 4-wheel coaches. I then came across a photo, taken in 1911, of a short train behind a 'Stella'-class locomotive at Leamington station (see http://www.warwickshirerailways.com/gwr/gwrls826.htm ) The mixed formation of coaches comprises a van, a brake composite, and an all-3rd, and I felt that I would like to create something similar, for use with my own 'Stella' (converted from a Dean Goods). As I actually had a duplicate brake-3rd, I decided to turn it into a V5 passenger brake van, by using the Shire Scenes etched brass sides. These are attractive for a beginner in etched-brass construction, since they are designed to be glued to the existing Ratio chassis, roof, and ends. The only aspects that I found a little difficult were forming a smooth 'tumble home' to the sides, and folding and attaching the guard's look-out. It was not immediately obvious to me which way round the inner drop-light surrounds should be fitted, since the etched side is actually towards the inside of the coach. The key is that the holes for the door handles must line up with the main side panel. The folded tabs form the door 'hinges' when pressed through the sides. The guard's look-out has long side tabs, which are tricky to align with the slots in the sides. Because the etched sides are thinner than the original plastic sides, the ends are folded back to create a double thickness where they meet the coach ends. I made the joins with superglue. The V5 sides are intended to be used with the shorter version of the Ratio chassis, whereas I had the longer one under my brake 3rd. Since the wheel base is the same in both types, however, it is not difficult to remove the excess length from each end. The roof is a bit more difficult as, in order to retain the rain gutter shape, it is necessary to remove a section from the centre of the vehicle and then butt the two halves together. I managed to cut them very cleanly with a 'Silky' saw and then cemented the ends together with liquid poly, but there is still a fine line showing. The completed coach makes a good companion to my 'Stella', to make a rough replica of the scene shown in the Leamington photo. Mike

As this tutorial has developed, we have now seen examples of what this software can do. In many ways, what can be done is governed by the user's imagination. Each CAD product has its own way of doing certain things (such as rounded corners) and some users may prefer one method over another. Once you are familiar with one particular software, it is usually best to stick with it, unless you find there is something you simply cannot do. That is the point to start looking for alternatives. (as an aside, that is why Microsoft is having so much difficulty in persuading people to move from Windows XP - it does the job for most people) The big difference between a 'free' program and high-end stuff, like AutoCad, lies in the robustness and reliability of the software. There are very detailed procedures that have to be used when designing and compiling software that may be used for 'safety critical' applications, which have a huge impact on the cost of development. It would be very unwise to use Inkscape to design internal parts for a nuclear power station, whereas AutoCad is used for such tasks. If your model coal office is 'out' by 0.1 mm somewhere, it is something that can be quickly fixed with a scalpel, but that might not be so easy inside a nuclear plant Mike

Many thanks, both. It seems to me that the main concern is trying to use longer blade settings to cut thicker materials, which strains the machine. I liked the idea of cutting from the back so as to avoid raised edges on the front-surface Mike

Thank you, Peter. i agree that images can look very different on different computers. It's one of the reasons for colour-calibrated 'professional' monitors (which I haven't got). The 'auto' correction in Photoshop sometimes works very well but, at other times, can be disastrous! I often try it first and then turn to the 'levels' control instead, for more subtle adjustments. In your case, it's done a good job, as viewed on my netbook screen.

Does this caution apply to the Ali CB09 cutters? What references have you seen? Mike

Looks nice - what exactly did you do? Boosted contrast? Mike

At present, it only seems to be available in the UK from one supplier - always a concern when it comes to buying replacement parts in the future! I had a quick look around on the web and couldn't find any hard facts, such as blade pressure or dimensional accuracy. I note that it can read in computer image files, via a USB memory stick, but only in Brother's own custom format, though they do provide an on-line converter from SVG files. At present, I can't see any advantages over the existing machines, if you plan to work from computer-drawn precision images. Scanning sounds a good idea but we need to know the cutter precision and how it deals with scanned lines that will, inevitably, have a finite width. This problem already exists when trying to use the 'trace' function in other machines, since, at some point, a scanned image has to be converted to vector instructions to the cutter. Mike

Sounds like you have the basis for a lucrative business there! Much better than trying to sell bits for model railways Mike

My drawing included small holes for grab and door handles, which the cutter has marked. They also act as registration marks through the three layers. I have seen a brass fret of grab handles somewhere, so plan to add these eventually. My ideas area still evolving, so it may be some time before I realise all these things but it's exciting to be on a new course Mike

Since my last blog post, I've been spending a lot of time familiarising myself with the Silhouette cutter. I think one of its best features is the 'print and cut' facility, which means that you can print an image, with filled colour and details, to your regular home printer and then feed the printed sheet into the Silhouette, to cut out around the printed image. I have been experimenting with different materials, including card, HP Photo Paper, and styrene sheet. As described in posts in the Silhouette Forum, I've had some success with printing onto styrene, by using hairspray to create a surface that will accept the ink. See http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/79025-a-guide-to-using-the-silhouette-cameo-cutter/?p=1303230 for more info. Later, I also tried using white aerosol car primer as a foundation for printing, which gave brighter colours but the sharpness of the printed details did not match what I could achieve on HP Photo Paper. In addition to the difficulty of printing on styrene, I read several posts, in the same thread, which described difficulties in laminating several layers of styrene without distortion. As a result, I've decided to make my first coaches from Card and HP Photo Paper, over an inner layer of transparent acetate, rather like the N-gauge models shown in the article by Andrew Duxson, in 'Railway Modeller', Feb 2014. The use of laminated layers provides the surface relief that is necessary at 00-gauge. Each layer is pre-printed, so there is no difficult painting needed, in order to outline the multitude of panels characteristic of 19th-century coaches. At first, I spent a lot of time carefully removing the chads from each panel, using the tip of a scalpel, then I discovered that I could simply peel off the main 'structure', while all the chads were left behind on the tacky surface of the mat! I could hardly believe how simple it was and, afterwards, I simply scythed off the chads into my waste bin, using a scalpel. The photo above shows side strips for the clerestory roofs of two coaches that I am currently building. One is the U29 composite, described in earlier posts, while the other is a family saloon, shown in Fig.23 of Russell's GW Coaches Part 1. I know very little about this coach but the photo seems to be taken in exactly the same location as Fig.18, which shows the U29 composite. Apparently, this family saloon was a re-build of one of the first broad-gauge sleeping cars but I do not know the diagram number [EDIT - see footnote]. I could have built a G20 saloon but these are relatively 'commonplace', with preserved examples at Didcot and South Devon and, of course, the example at Farthing, complete with entombed Weasel. My Family Saloon will be used by the Lord of the Manor for his annual trip to London, for the Season, in a special train, to include my N6 Horsebox and to-be-built Open Carriage Truck (with carriage). Since I only had a photo, plus the information that the overall length was 29 feet, I made a copy and scaled it as a background image in AutoSketch. I then drew over the framing, windows, and droplights, using the various drawing tools, and saved the result to both a PDF file and a DXF file. I coloured the PDF image using Photoshop and saved the result as a TIFF image. I then opened the TIFF image in the Silhouette 'Studio' software and copied it to the clipboard. Finally, I opened the DXF file in 'Studio' and pasted in the image from the clipboard, as a background. After carefully aligning the photo image with the cutting diagram and adding the alignment marks, I printed the image on my HP inkjet printer and placed the sheet into my Silhouette Portrait for cutting. I have ordered Cleminson chassis for both coaches from 'Brassmasters', so that they will be able to negotiate my small-radius curves. On scaling the Russell photo of the U29, it is clear that the wheelbase is longer than the usual 19 feet - more like 22' - so the adjustable nature of the Brassmaster chassis will be needed. Mike Next Post EDIT: Thanks to information provided by Mikkel, I now know that this coach was diagram G13, converted from BG to standard gauge in 1891 and re-numbered 76.

Here's a cable tie masquerading as a sand box. Being another 'impressionist' modeller, I think it's fine Mike

Please do! Much more interesting to see some invention instead of just another RTR

Yes, I've seen photos of that loco so I guess it was in my sub-conscious somewhere but, explicitly, I was thinking of the Nord pacifics and the streamlined Canadian national locos. After all, the GWR had experience with French locomotives.

Thank you for the e-book with its many ideas. Using the perspective tools in Photoshop to square up the building is good but you have to be wary when some parts jut out or are recessed. As an example, windows can look offset in their frames so don't take the result too literally! Not a criticism but just something to watch out for Mike

I think there are many lessons for all modellers in your post. In particular, I think it is good that you have made all the extra bits yourself. So many railway modellers never think of doing this but try to find white-metal castings for everything! I'm not trying to put all those 'cottage industries' that support the hobby out of business but, sometimes, a little initiative can solve a problem. As an example, I've found that the ratchet bits of nylon cable ties can make excellent sand boxes Mike

While most people agree that the GWR attempts at streamlining were a mess, what if they had tried a little harder? I was doodling with Photoshop and thought that a much simpler treatment could have produced a modern and purposeful-looking locomotive from Manorbier Castle. I think there are some French and Canadian influences in my sketch and I also thought that the centre of the smokebox was a good place for a 'shirt button' logo. A return to Indian Red wheels and black and white lining provides a merger between old GWR tradition with thirties 'nouveau' style. Perhaps the GWS could play with some sheet metal at Didcot Mike

Glad you like it

Actually, I built my own first time but am going to try the Brassmasters one to see if they're better! I tend towards using materials that mirror the real thing; so, metal for chassis and card for coach bodies. Mike