airnimal

I have decided to paint the pipe with black from a rattle can. I won't glue it yet just in case I have repaint it later. I came to fit the buffer heads only to find the cast buffer bodies had been drilled off centre. I bought them at an exhibition years ago already drilled and wasn't expecting them to be drilled by hand. I wished I had checked them before I glued them to the body. I may still replace them because they are not good quality with poor bolts lacking any definition. The only thing I could do was turn a small brass sleeve and to counteract the offset and glue them in. They are not perfect but they are better than they were because one was pointing up and one was pointing down. I have still to make up the screw couplings and then weather everything.

The NSR wagon book states that these wagon had " through train pipes ". I don't have a very technical mind set to understand much regarding brakes. I am just a simple model maker and not much else. I much prefer a simple wooden brake block acting on one wheel. I don't do modern ! I have drilled both ends for these white metal pipes and cut a length of brass tube to connect them together. Before I glue them and paint them can anyone say if this is right or not.

Glad to be of help with the ink, one of the reasons we are all on here. I have found my white metal vacuum pipes which I will probably use because they are so well cast. I don't think I could make them myself from brass that good. I have glued on the axleboxes and springs and painted the roof. If I keep going at this rate I could finish everything this weekend. I am pleased at the fit of the roof. Now I will spray on some matt varnish and fit the buffer heads and couplings. Does anybody know if vacuum pipes were painted a different colour than the body colour ? I seem to remember that the ones on the LNWR were painted red.

Kit PW, this is the ink I am using for the hand lettering. I don't know if it is ink or paint but if flow's well and it water soluble. Is ink water soluble? I have done the other side now so I can get on with the axleboxes and springs.

I have now painted in the knot and the scrip lettering with ink and applied the tare weight from tranfers. I used a fine nib to go over my pencil lines. It's not perfect but under a coat of grime it might not look to bad. I can see the finishing line but there is still some way to go. But my other half has dropped a bombshell on me ! She wants the entire house decorating baring the living room which was only done 2 years ago. 3 bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom and the stairs. Why when there is hardly anything wrong with the rooms as they are ? My argument is that we should spent what money we have going on holidays ( remember them ) and not the house. I have said when we are in our rocking chairs in a old people's home we won't look back with fond memories of carpets and curtains but will remember travelling in a old American car in Cuba with cocktails on the beach and other great times. I don't think I am going to win this one.

I have put the outline in with a white pencil used for writing on glass. All I have to do now is draw it in with ink. Easier said than done.

I have started to letter my cattle wagon with what ever available tranfers I have. These numbers and letters are not NSR but they fit the bill perfectly. I have run out of the North Staffordshire knot so I will have to do them free hand. I have done them before but it does take many attempts to get right. If anyone has any spare methfix knot's that they don't have use for, I would be glad to accept any. Perhaps I have some on my sheets that someone else doesn't have and we could trade ? Looking at the small amount of photographs of these cattle wagons there are a few things I have missed off including a vacuum pipe and rail strips on the roof. With there not being a great deal of information about these wagons, there is always going to be a certain amount of guesswork to building models 125 years after the original's were built. I have some white metal castings for the vacuum pipe but I am reluctant to use them because of there softness. I find things that stick out tend to get broken very easily. I may attempt to make a couple out of brass.

I wasn't going to assemble this wagon for a few days but the desire to get it finished was to great. There is still plenty to do on it but at least I am on the home straight. There is a bit of glue on the bars on the left that will have to be removed because I glued them in back to front before I noticed and had to remove them before glueing back them in again. Hospital tomorrow for a blood test before I go and have a beer with my brother and the rest of the cycling friends. I am not a football fan, but my eldest brother's wife is Italian. I think there will be a lot of commotion and arm waving going on in there house on Sunday.

Finally finished all the building work, so on to the fancy bits. After cleaning everything I put all the metal parts in Birchwood black before washing a second time and spraying with matt black from a Halfords rattle can. The grills I didn't paint because they will have lots of lime wash on them once all the paintwork is finished. I will leave everything for a couple of days before I put it all back together again. The body was again sprayed with a Halfords rattle can of red oxide.

CKPR, I am pleased the information about Masterclub bolts and rivets was of use to you but will you still be as pleased when you get to drilling several hundred holes to place them in ? You may end up swearing at me for ever telling you about them. I still use small cubes of plasticard when I want square bolts but the Masterclub bolts for hexagonal bolts are something else. They certainly make a huge difference in 7mm scale , the drawback is they double the time it takes to build a wagon.

I've managed to drill and fit all the bolts on the end. Now I've got to do the other end and side. Oh joy ! I have noticed that amongst the bolts from Masterclub I have had a few of different sizes in one packet. Not very often but it has happened a couple of times which has nearly caught me out. I don't know how they cast them or how they do them for the money, but it's a small price to pay for such good quality. The Doctor phoned this morning to tell me I have to have a kidney function test and another C.T scan. So nothing to bother about. My wife asked me why I have to have a kidney test ? I didn't ask the Doctor so I got a flea in my ear for not asking ! Can we ever win.

I could do with finishing this cattle wagon now, I am getting a bit fed up with it. When things take so long to make my enthusiasm drops off towards the end. How does one keep going on a long build ? I have spent most of the day helping my youngest daughter with her car. She phoned last night to say she had a puncture and the car was booked in for a service at 10 this morning. So up bright and early to sort her out and follow her to the garage with the grandsons. Then look after the little ones for 3 hours before taking her back for the car. Had a letter last week from the Hospital saying my condition was stable with no treatment necessary just yet. Today I got a text from the Hospital saying the Doctor wants to talk to me and he is going to phone tomorrow. Perhaps he wants to know how to build some wagons ?

Nearly finished the majority of the work just the small matter of the drilling of the holes to accept the hex bolts. Trying to keep the holes in the middle of the ironwork is not easy. I have changed the glue I use from superglue to Wellbond. I am not sure what this glue is but it looks like resin W. I hold the hex bolts with some tweezers and dip the tip in the glue before placing them in the holes and pushing them home. This is a very slow process and I can only do a few at a time before taking a break.

Not being a football fan I am making the hinges on the doors from some Evergreen I- beam. I could have used some 80 thou channel but I didn't have any. So I filed down one side to leave me with the channel I wanted. Once it had been applied and left to dry I filed it down to the shape I wanted. Close up are very cruel but once it has been painted I hope it won't be to bad.

Having posted the last photos I decided to see if I could solder the retaining pin on the bottom of the chain.

I have been playing around with twisted wire for the chain on the brake rack. At the normal range of vision it doesn't look to bad but close up photos are cruel. The smallest chain in my box of bits looks very heavy when draped over the wagon next to the twisted wire version.

I was unhappy with the W-irons and my attempts to add rivets, they were not quite in line. Several more goes at making new ones led to a complete lack of mojo. So I left modelling on the back burner for a few days and did other things. I relayed some flagstones outside the front door that had moved and were sticking up causing a trip hazard. Not having done any physical work for many years it comes as a shock to the old body moving heavy flagstones around. But I am pleased with the result only to be told by my other half that I had made a good job but could I not relay all the others ! Can we ever win ? Good news from the Hospital, my condition is stable and is not requiring treatment at present. So after some positive news and seeing our grandchildren which always makes me feel better I had another go at the W-irons. This time I am satisfied with the outcome. Once I get this cattle wagon out of the way I can put my mind to other things.

I am getting close to finishing this NSR cattle wagon now with most of major work done but the thing that takes a fair few hours are all the detail work. I found a plastic roof amongst my collection of bits from some unknown wagon kit that just needed to be cut down. I am surprised how small my 7 ton van from the same company is compared to the cattle wagon.

I had to revisit the V-irons because they didn't sit right. So I unsoldered them and placed them back to back only to discover that they were different even from the same sheet of etch. They were hand drawn many years ago before CAD was available. I put them together and tidy them up taking a few thou off one of them to make them a better match. Anyway I took the opportunity to cut a bit of plastic to locate the behind the solebar which makes for easier fixing later. I always use metal for brakegear. How many times at exhibitions do you see wagons on second hand stalls for sale with bits of broken plastic brake parts. I must admit it is one of my pet hates.

I have soldered the brake gear up and put the safety loops on but one is slightly wider than the other so I will replace that tomorrow. I have spaced the V-irons apart with a bit of tube soldered together. To prevent it all falling apart I turned down a cocktail stick to go through them while I soldered it all up. I will tart it all up tomorrow but the majority of it is done.

A small amount of work has taken place this morning to my latest cattle wagon. There is a tie bar on the inside just above the ones on the sides. A start has been made on the brake gear from bits of etch found in my bits box. I have screwed a piece of angle to a batten on the floor and soldered each side of the brakes to it. I have left them over long to be trimmed to length when I fit the V-irons and the tumbler.

I managed to get a bit more done today even with having one grandson here again. I made a pair of spacers for the wheelbase to locate the wheels. Easy to make just by clamping together and drilling as one from a couple of pieces of 60 thou plastic. This cattle wagon may stall for awhile because I might start on a couple of patterns for some resin wagon bodies for a friend. I didn't want to get in producing them myself but having discussions with my friend, we may produce a small run for ourselves.

Things have been slack on the modelling side of life lately. Grandad duties have been to the forefront quite a bit and will be for the rest of the week. But I did get into the workshop for an hour while one of the little ones had an afternoon nap. Managed to get the other side done and the end stanchions on. The top of the doors need putting in and all the timbers want chamfering.

Black 5 Bear, yes indeed it is or was the Crown in Stockport. A brilliant beer house around 20 years ago that had not to many alterations other than one wall removed. It was extended about 20 years before that into the house next door where the landlady use to live.

In post 68 I posted pictures of one of my favourite pubs where I had a couple of pints of cherry porter. Alas the end has come to this good old fashion boozer. To be fair it has been going down the pan for the past 10 years when the last landlord took over. I don't like speaking ill of the dead ( the landlord died on new years eve ) but he managed to upset most of his regulars who move on to other watering holes. The pub went from 16 hand pumps down to 6 over this period. Out went the cheese night on Mondays, the folk night on Tuesday and the quiz night on Thursday. All the music at weekends also came to an end. In the end covid was the last nail in the coffin. I am told after the landlord died the pub was broken in and the place was trashed. I don't think in the present climate this pub will ever be a pub again and I wouldn't be surprised it the building was demolished.