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Focalplane

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  1. Focalplane
    I have placed my pre-order for the recently announced Dave Jones / Hattons King Henry V, 6019.
     
    There is a wide range of choice, so why this model? Well, it was shedded at Wolverhampton Stafford Road in the mid 1930s which coincides with the time period for the Shipston Branch. But 6019 was severely restricted as to route availability, so it won't be showing up at Shipston on a reality basis!
     
    My affection for the King 60XX Class goes back to my early days as a train spotter, certainly before I was ten years old. Platform 7 at Snow Hill was the place to be.
  2. Focalplane
    I think I have finally found a prototype loco for renumbering my Midland 3F. Though this is not without some uncertainty. Today I received my copy of Middleton Press' "Branch Lines around Towcester" which is a strange title for a book dedicated to the Stratford upon Avon and Midland Junction Railway. Obviously the authors had leanings toward the eastern end of the line.
     
    However, there is a photo of a Midland 3F, No. 3529 at Fenny Compton, hauling a Stratford bound train in 1939. This is Plate 86 in the book. Meantime, Mike Musson of warwickshirerailways.com fame (yes he should be famous!) has revisited and tweaked the photos of Stratford Shed and posted them on the site. His image smjsa77b has been significantly improved and two numbers have been re-interpreted as 3077 (inside the shed but not a Midland 3F, but a 2F) and 3322 on the road to the side of the shed. The only problem with 3322 is that it may have been scrapped before the photo was taken. This is indicated on railuk.info
     
    http://www.railuk.info/steam/getsteam.php?row_id=27598
     
    to have been withdrawn in 1926. This would be before the new engine shed was constructed.
     
    So, what to do? I took a long hard look at Mike's improved image and decided that I could see 3529, not 3322. Anyone who remembers the movie "Blow Up" will understand the potential errors in making this judgment. But since I have the evidence of 3529 at Fenny Compton, I still have a genuine candidate for the model which is currently in the "paint shed" awaiting its transfers.
  3. Focalplane
    In my previous post I noted that the Woodland Scenics medium grained cinders seemed to look more like coal. But what does the ground look like around real outside shed roads? If my memory serves me well, then the ground was black, often wet, and much finer grained than typical track ballast.
     
    I recently read (in the latest Heritage Railway, I think) that many heritage railways have now restricted access to their engine sheds and workshop areas, citing the usual H & S dogma. Accidents can and do happen, so this is understandable.
     
    So, back in time to 2006 and a photo of City of Truro being prepared for a Fire and Drive day on the G&WR. I got there early and helped to clean the loco as well as take a few early morning photos. This shot has been enhanced a bit, using a trial version of Intensify Pro. Very memorable for me as I later fired and drove the legend as part of a 60th birthday gift from my Better Half. However, in this post the ground under the loco is a useful guide.
     

     
    It confirms my memory of fine grained texture but there is a scattered mix of brown stones in there. Damp areas show up as well. So this will help to get the ground surface right. Also worth noting are the very fine grooves made by the wheels - this will not be possible to emulate given the relative coarseness of even fine scale wheels in OO gauge.
     
    EDIT!!
     
    I now remember another shot taken a few years ago of 7802 Bradley Manor at the SVR engine shed at Bridgnorth. This also has some useful features, though some may not be representative of the 1950s.
     

     
    The concrete hard standing alongside the loco may be a modern concept but the color variations are interesting. As is the surface between the rails, for here the tops of the sleepers are just visible, unlike at Toddington above.
  4. Focalplane

    3F stripped!

    By Focalplane,

    Research RMWeb and you will find lots of advice concerning the removal of pad printed details on modern RTR products. In this case the Bachmann Midland 3F 0-6-0.
     
    People can get quite heated over what to use and what not to use. To be fair, the latter are remonstrating against those techniques that could cause lasting damage to a plastic model.
     
    Anyway, I decided upon the IPA (Isopropyl alcohol) method which can be time consuming and therefore prone to a "hurry up and spoil" result. Advice on RMWeb is plentiful and I noted that one successful method is to use cocktail sticks to assist the removal of the painted details after soaking in IPA. I can advise that this works!
     
    However, IPA tends to leave a residue. A simple approach is to use a pencil eraser and this worked for me. However, I added a piece of my own invention, a simple application of a soft brush on my Dremel. This seems to have assisted the eraser and then some:
     

     
    So now I can apply some transfers!
  5. Focalplane

    A Stratford Midland 3F

    By Focalplane,

    During the 1930s the staple locomotive power on the S&MJR appears to have been the Midland 3F 0-6-0 and several were allocated to the Stratford Old Town shed. As we have come to expect, Mike Musson's warwickshirerailways.com has plenty of evidence of various locomotives but generally the actual numbers are not legible on the older photos. There is one:
     
    http://warwickshirerailways.com/lms/smjsa77.htm
     
    which shows several 3Fs on shed. The one to the right matches the Bachmann model, but the number is not legible. I have asked Mike to check for me and he is going to see if the original has higher definition. Finger's crossed. Here is the Bachmann model which will be transformed into the Stratford prototype:
     

     
    The Midland tender has a stiffening frame running down the center of the tender.
     

     
    I was wondering how the three letters L M S should be applied. Old photos generally show the M to be to the rear of the strap, so that is where the transfer(s) will be applied. Incidentally, I don't know how the tender coal rail got bent but it seems reasonable to leave it that way!
  6. Focalplane
    I have just taken delivery of two 1980s era Hornby Clerestories. In good condition they have already received scale couplers but will need decent wheels and bearings, and some form of improved corridor connectors. These coaches were made in Margate and the quality of the printing, etc. is excellent.
     
    The length of the coaches may be considered a bit over the top for the branch line but my excuse/reason for including them is that the Stratford based Dukedog, 3207, will run a twice daily service between Shipston, Stratford and Birmingham, via the North Warwickshire Line. As a semi fast, the service would stop at Stratford (both stations), Henley, Earlswood and Shirley. A morning and evening commuter service, stabled overnight at Stratford. This has set me off thinking about designing a timetable for services to and from Shipston. Life has never been so busy.
     
    As an aside, my father, who never learned to drive, commuted from Earlswood to Birmingham from 1936 to 1956, so it would be fitting for me to inaugurate this service, albeit somewhat late in the day.
  7. Focalplane
    The plastic handrails provided by Peco have two problems. First they are overscale. Second, they are brittle and easily broken. But the stanchions are OK, so my simple solution is to use the stanchions but use 0.70mm wire for the railings.
     
    Here is a comparison:
     

     
    This OK for one side of the bridge, but the other side now has a small extension for the electric control panel. The control panel box has yet to be sourced, but it will have approximate dimensions of 4' x 2' x 1-1/2' (H x W x D). So some modification of the railing was necessary and this proved to be relatively easy to make:
     

     
    One point. In all the research photos I could find, working turntable railings were bent, twisted and generally bashed about. So I purposely made a few mistakes in drilling holes in the stanchions, etc. There are times when preservation and museum photos don't give the true picture.
     
    The control panel needs to be added (the operator looks a bit lost at the moment!) but I am waiting until Warley before committing to designing a custom job. Incidentally, a survey of all current working turntables in the UK showed tremendous variety, so there really isn't a standard design to follow.
  8. Focalplane
    Earlier this year I bought my third (!) Peco turntable kit. My earlier attempts at motorizing were slowly moving in the right directyion but the spindle on the bridge had been damaged along the way. So this weekend, while suffering from a bout of recurring bronchitis, I made No.3.
     
    So far everything is working well and the movement is smooth and relatively quiet. I think some additional lithium grease and maybe some soundproofing around the Meccano motor could lessen the noise but actually the sound is representative of an electric motor so the logic here is to assume that Legge Lane was one of the sheds that the LMS had installed an electric drive turntable. Given the design of the track plan this also makes sense as the turntable is used in place of switches/points to convey the locos through the valeting process.
     
    So here are some comments that could save other modelers from buying multiple Peco kits:
     
    1. It goes without saying that Peco's instructions should be followed to the letter (but note exceptions below)
     
    2. Make sure that the bridge wheels rotate easily; there is nothing worse than having three rotate and one not
     
    3. When testing the rotation of the bridge DO NOT FORCE the mechanism; the spindle is quite brittle and can easily shear
     
    4. Do not attach the motor and gears to the underside of the plastic well; it is too flexible and needs additional bracing which I could never get right
     
    5. Instead, put the motor and gears on a separate plywood board underneath the turntable.
     
    6. My experience is to forget the cheap motorizing kit that is available (the one with the red plastic gear) and go for the more expensive Meccano option.
     
    6. Screw down everything tightly but test that the gears and bridge are not binding anywhere before finally tightening the grub screw on the Meccano gears.
     
    7. If you use the plywood mounting board under the turntable you will not need the plastic retaining collar supplied by Peco (item 20); this means you can easily unmount the bridge when moving the layout - a very good option.
     
    8. Only mount the handrails when everything works to your satisfaction
     
    9. Once everything is working (I have assumed you have cut the required hole in the baseboard) then and only then lay the track. Peco supply only so many 75 and 100 code plastic adaptors but will send more if you request more.
     
    My turntable will next receive some detailing. I am currently working on the handrails, using the original posts but replacing the piping with 0.60mm wire. Very fiddly to do but I will show what I have done and how in a future post. There is no room for a control panel on the bridge, so I have made a small side platform which the customized railing will go around. I will need to make a suitable "box" to house the controls; so far my research for good photos of an LMS style electric control box have turned up a few blurs - most photographs have the loco hiding the control box which is no surprise.
     
    The photo shows the current status of the turntable:
     

  9. Focalplane
    A few extras added:
     
    The rear screw link coupling, one of the brass ones by Romford. It needs some painting to fit in:
     

     
    And a thin veneer of coal has been added. What a difference:
     

     
    Next we have to tackle the double chimney. This is what it looks like now:
     

     
    Black paint might be enough but I am tempted to drill out and ream the rear chimney before painting.
     
    Another project, now waiting on the mail, is to replace the Hornby name plates. So this is a "before" shot:
     

     
    The close up photos really do justice to the model's detailing. My few add ons are really just icing on the already iced cake!
  10. Focalplane

    An old Scot gets DCC

    By Focalplane,

    Several years ago, one of the first locos I bought for this project was a very reasonably priced Bachmann "original" Royal Scot. I feel sure it was cheaper because, as I found out, it was not "DCC compatible".
     
    Actually, there is no such thing, "compatible" being a euphemism for "easy". I feel sure there is no OO gauge locomotive that cannot be modified to have DCC. But some might take a lot more modifying than others.
     
    The problem with the Bachmann Scot is that it is of the split chassis design. So the left side of the chassis feeds one terminal on the motor and the right side feeds the other:
     

     
    So the first thing to do is insulate the motor and the wires that will eventually feed the motor from the decoder (in this case a somewhat bulky TCS unit):
     

     

     
    With the chassis put back together, the leads from the pickup and the leads to the motor have been wired up to the harness. Note that if I were to do this again I would use a smaller decoder and hard wire it inside the boiler. Back then the decoder more or less had to be placed in the cab, as you will see:
     

     

     
    Of course, there are no lights so only four wires are needed. All in all a relatively easy project.
  11. Focalplane
    So, it's been a while and a quick update is in order. The photo has brought out all the as yet untouched blemishes, etc after meddling with the Hornby shell. But the progress is there to see. Loco brake rodding, smokebox dart, spare lamp brackets and top rear tender lamp bracket.
     

     
    I still have those pesky lamp brackets to fit on the buffer beams and smokebox top.
     
    The connecting rods need to be permanently fixed in place but there will be one more teardown of the wheels and motor before final assembly of the crankpin "nuts".
     
    The Hornby shells will be given a thin coat of grey primer which should reveal any remaining imperfections after a final cleaning up. Then off to the work's paint shop. I have the decals (oops, I mean transfers!) but not the brass plates as yet.
     
    The two black wires have been connected directly to the motor and everything runs nicely with no binding at all. The motor has been fixed in place so as to clear the interior of the boiler without needing the shaft extension to be cut off.
     
    The slow progress has been for a reason - I have become a house painter during the past few weeks. Wednesdays at B&Q (10% senior discount) have been the over-riding priority!
  12. Focalplane
    A quick update. Back in England and some progress has been made. Smokebox dart fitted, a great improvement. But the brass fret of lamp brackets, oh dear, so small and fragile and my eyesight not good enough and my fingers like lamb chops. I need to buy a desk lamp for my workbench before trying again.
     
    I finally bought some Isopropyl alcohol at Maplins and have removed the BR lion, lining and number. I have also fitted the Comet PCBs for eventual electrical pickup.
     
    Once the lamp brackets are in place (and I can always use some 0.7 wire as an alternative) it will be primer and dirty engine black on the chassis and body.
     
    I have also bought a second hand copy of the Great Western Railway Locomotive Allocations for 1934. This has helped me to identify potential numbers for the roster of locomotives:
     
    Dean Goods - 2551 (Worcester 85A in 1934 and 1947)
     
    Collett 48XX - 4804 (Worcester 85A in 1934)
     
    57XX - 5724 (84E Tyseley in 1934)
     
    Dukedog/Earl - 3203 (Tyseley in late 1930s)
     
    I am hoping I can get brass plates for all four from 247 Developments.
  13. Focalplane
    Well, the Dean Goods may be in France but some of the key parts are still in England, hence the hiatus.
     
    But I have managed to test the motor and gearbox and everything is OK. Except that I need to add those all important extra washers to keep the gear in the correct position above the worm. I also need to add a couple of PECO fiber washers outside the frame to limit the sideways play, but I can't seem to locate them (they must have been left behind), so I am reluctant to start dissembling the drive axle just yet.
     
    I have developed what is appearing to be a crazy notion that I can have two workbenches, more or less fully equipped, so that I can simply carry a plastic food container with the actual model in it and carry on as if I hadn't moved. This plan is going to need some refinement.
     
    So this really isn't an update rather than an explanation.
  14. Focalplane

    Track Plan

    By Focalplane,

    More on the turntable saga later, as mentioned in my last post. Here is a sketch of the track plan. The diorama is 186cm by 40cm.
     

     
    Note that the ash plant wagons run straight across the turntable, an important consideration I think. In fact it would probably be only one wagon at a time. The coaling stage is as shown in a recently posted photo but I am considering a typical wagon-to-tender affair with water tank over as seen at Monument Lane. The wagon siding would be slightly elevated to allow hand shoveling of coal across into tenders/bunkers. A nice compact arrangement though hard on the shed staff.
  15. Focalplane
    Bank Holiday Weekend, cold, cloudy, oh well, what to do?
     
    We drove over to Burton Dasset and then selected a random area to explore, namely the crest of the Oxford Canal near Fenny Compton. Fenny Compton was where the GWR and the S&MJR lines crossed and we were just south of the twin stations, neither of which now stands. The Oxford Canal is considered to be one of the country's most scenic and in this area it certainly lives up to its reputation.
     
    As at Watford Gap, the canal, railway and road all use a similar easier path through the Jurassic escarpment, though the M40 planners chose a separate route just to the west. The railway(s) and canal run close to each other, though with the summer foliage it was hard to see one from the other.
     
    Three photos of S&MJR remnants. First the bridge carrying the S&MJR over the Oxford Canal towards Towcester:
     

     
    More detail:
     

     
    Next what remains of the overpass of the old S&MJR over the GWR (Chiltern) main line. Fine Staffordshire Blue brick in evidence:
     

     
    We then returned home via Edge Hill and found evidence of the EHLR incline (1 in 9) up the escarpment before being able to stop at what may have been the original iron stone workings:
     

     
    There's a lot more to see up there though the lower part of the old EHLR is entirely off limits within the MoD Marlborough Barracks. Satellite imagery suggests the original lines have been completely erased for the new complex of lines built in 1942 and apparently still in use (using the only 5 miles of S&MJR track left in place).
  16. Focalplane
    All the research is slowly coming together, though there still remain some leads that may help sort out details.
    Given the upgrade of the entire tramway to steam operation in the 1930s (probably late 1930s as this allows for a wider selection of available rolling stock), and with the GWR afforded running rights into Stratford and beyond, most of the line’s locomotive power would have been GWR origin though with some inevitable running from the LMS motive power at Stratford 21D. It is probable that both Worcester (85A) and Tyseley (84E) sheds could have provided locomotives, some being allocated to Tyseley’s sub-shed at Stratford.
    Shipston’s own engine shed would have continued to operate and might have had an allocation from Worcester, continuing the pre-WWI heritage of a Class 517 0-4-2T. Such an arrangement would allow an early morning train to start at Shipston. Without the Stratford branch being converted to steam power, the Shipston loco would have been provided from Worcester, but this of course could easily have changed as most authors agree that Shipston tended to look to Stratford rather than Moreton. Where would Shipstonians want to travel at 7 am in the morning? My guess is that Stratford would have been their destination, much as it is today.
    So, on to the trains themselves. First passenger workings.
    The GWR 14XX 0-4-2T autotrain - a given since I have the models!
    A GWR diesel railcar (Flying Banana)
    A Dukedog plus carriages for through workings from Birmingham
    LMS 3F 0-6-0 for passenger workings from Stratford when GWR locos not available
    Next, Mixed passenger/goods workings.
    GWR Dean Goods 0-6-0 plus GWR 4 wheel coaches and assorted wagons, with GWR TOAD brake van
    LMS 3F 0-6-0 plus Midland 48ft Suburban coaches and assorted wagons with LMS brake van
    Finally, Goods only workings.
    GWR 57XX 0-6-0PT plus assorted wagons and GWR TOAD brake van
    LMS 3F 0-6-0 plus assorted wagons and LMS brake van
    Next I need to allocate specific locomotives to each of the classes above.
    The 14XX continues to be a bit of a puzzle, though Worcester did have two, 1408 and 1418, in 1948. They would have been 4808 and 4818 back in the 1930s.
    The GWR diesel railcar could be any one of the early models as this is a very fictional option!
    The Dukedog could be either 3203 or 3215, both of which have been photographed at Tyseley after WWII.
    The LMS 3F seemed to be the locomotive of choice at 21D in 1948, so there are a few to choose from. More research needed here.
    For the Dean Goods, I have postwar photographic evidence of 2458 at Shipston.
    The GWR 57XX poses a bit of a problem, as 7750 was the only one in class at Worcester in 1948. Tyseley did, however have a few of them in 1948 that were built in the 1930s. Again, more work required to narrow the search down.
    Sourcing these 6 locomotives is or will be relatively easy. I have the 14XX, albeit in bits at the moment. The diesel railcar has been announced by Dapol (there was a K’s metal kit many years ago but the Dapol version should be much more detailed). Bachmann has already made the Dukedog and the GWR version has DCC installed; however, a second release is promised sometime “soon”. I have an LM® 3F at the other layout but this is BR and has sound* fitted, so an LMS model needs to be sourced. I have all the parts to make a Dean Goods with Comet chassis (actually the Comet parts are in the mail) while the GWR 57XX is in its box, ready to run. I have several spare TCS decoders.
    * Legge Lane locos will eventually all have sound but for Shipston I have decided to go with just DCC.
  18. Focalplane

    The SonA Toad

    By Focalplane,

    Classic Train and Motor Bus sponsored a special Bachmann TOAD guards van, modeled on one stationed at Stratford on Avon, which will look right on the expanded Shipston Branch (it may have even got there anyway, via Honeybourne and Moreton). Here it is with 3 link couplings, fitted this afternoon during a thunderstorm.
     

  19. Focalplane
    Visited Mark at Classic Trains and Motor Bus in Leamington this afternoon. Lots of useful information about the branch line and some future contacts who may have more. Bought a Hornby Dean Goods (new) as well as two second hand 4 wheel GWR composites, the sort that would have been around in the 1930s, having been relegated to one of the company's least important branches. Also a GW horse box. Mark has commissioned another Bachmann wagon which will be available "soon". A local Leamington coal merchant is the PO.
     
    I also started my "what if" recreation by buying a Skaledale GWR signal box. It will need quite a lot of detailing to match the other buildings. I know where it should go on the track plan, the question still remains as to whether this is the right thing to do. But since the baseboards are still some way off being constructed the final decision can wait a while.
     
    A heads up for Shakespeare Lovers! No, not a play, but the Rood Ashton Hall set will be out soon from Bachmann. At around £130 it is a must for a Warwickshire man!
  20. Focalplane
    A couple of wagons for the future "coal hole".
     

     
    Only light weathering (so far); the coal is real, collected from an abandoned surface working above the town of Graissessac, Languedoc, France. The sieving process is not quite right, the scale "lumps" are possibly too small to be prototypical.
     
    I should add that Graissessac is almost a ghost town since the mines were closed. I understand from friends who live nearby that many of the miners were Polish. One of the ironies of the area is that wind turbines have been erected on one of the old surface workings. The valley would make an interesting French layout with either steam or diesel motive power, depending on the era.
  21. Focalplane
    After several attempts, I have finally reached a reasonable solution for motorizing the Peco turntable. The two pictures show the arrangement:
     

     

     
    Basically I gave up with attaching the motor directly to the plastic well and created a strong plywood substrate. The need to reinforce the plastic well now seems to be unnecessary, so those three holes in the plywood are no longer used.
     
    Meccano parts did indeed come to the rescue. The motor is noisy but not as noisy as the previous kit and the gears run nicely with an application of lithium grease. The DCC control uses a TCS decoder and speed is easily controlled at a realistic level.
     
    There are still several cosmetic touches to finish on the top side but these can wait while I re-jig the coal hole/water tank that will be scratch built later this year.
     
    If I was to start over again, I would seriously consider an indexing kit
  22. Focalplane
    Thanks to rmweb.co.uk I have been able to meet a fellow member SteveNCB7754 who lived in Shipston and measured many of the old station buildings and then made beautiful models of them. They were without a home but now have one as I picked them up today. They will appear from time to time in future posts and I will always remember to give the true origin of the artisan workmanship that went into them. Thank you, Steve, for getting in touch. I have a lot to live up to now.
  25. Focalplane
    This blog is an offshoot from my Legge Lane MPD blog, which is established and semi-operational. I grew up with memories of steam on the Western Region, so an old Airfix 14XX tank engine has reminded me that I can run both, albeit in different countries!
     
    So far I have a plan, two Airfix 14XX tanks which may produce one that will work, a new Bachmann 57XX pannier and an auto coach brake van and coal truck. The time period will be c. 1935, the prototype location a mash up of Oswestry and West Midlands, both areas I train spotted in the 1950s.
     
    The layout will consist of three 3' boards, one being the fiddle yard. It will be DCC with sound, etc. but there is a lot to do! Stay tuned.
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