Royal42

Hello all, I would like to make a start on constructing the north section of New Street Station and this incorporates the Queens Hotel and station entrance. The builidng was demolished in the mid-1960s and I've only got a few Googled images and 'Britain from above" views which are too far away for detail. Does anyone have any actual plans or dimensions of this large and ornate building that I could use please? I'm looking for heights of the different floors and windows, depth from street front to hotel frontage (through the arches) etc. I could guesstime by using nearby people and items; however, I would like to try and get the actual details if any are available. Cheers, Mike

Hello Mike, that is good news and thank you for advising us. Mr Parker doesn't seem to advertise anywhere and our only updates are by word of mouth, so to speak. I have ten of his vehicle kits already and have just placed a fresh order for nine others, including his three latest, as a result of your post. cheers, Mike

to the start

Hi Ray, yes, I have 15 or so of their models; including 7 Bedford RL's. They are printed in FDM which leaves very hard layers/striations and I find it very difficult to smooth them down to a good finish; the models also have solid windows, hence why I want to print my own in smooth UV resin. I can then either use Glue 'n Glaze for the windows or print my own glazings in clear resin. cheers, Mike

I've just read that and it is interesting news. Perhaps other old station buildings that are still existing around the country should be surveyed/checked for other potential finds like these. Mike

Thanks Andy, quite a bit of damage there but I think I can follow the rail lines to the dock. I was thinking of doing a scenario where torpedoes are being brought to the dock for u-boat replenishment; before the bunkers were built. Anyone have any images of a standard French flatbed or other truck that would carry torpedoes? cheers, Mike

You really got me - The Kinks 1964

I am planning to build a dockside diorama of a French port, possibly Brest, St. Nazair or Lorient and am looking for information on the types of locos, rolling stock and track that would have been found at these ports in the 1940's. Being a dockside, I am presuming that the track would be sunk in the ground. Can anyone please advise whether the locos and rolling stock would have been all French or a mix of French and German etc? Can anyone please let me know of any links to images and scenes of these areas around the wartime period? I would like to get the track layout correct and also the dockside buildings, warehouses and cranes to look correct also. cheers, Mike

Hi Steve, I have been using the basic solid menu for my vehicles but, after watching that video, I now find that I should be using Sculpt/Form mode as you suggest. Thank you very much for the link. So far, my models have have been drawn and printed using Create, Sketch, followed by Extrude, Filter and Pattern etc. and these have worked fine for fairly straight angles such as these below: I can now see that this method would probably be more difficult to achieve the rounded edges of the Bedford RL's cab and bonnet, whereas the Form method looks to be much more appropriate. I shall have to watch that video again, perhaps a few more times; just to get the hang of this way of doing things. Onward and upward! Cheers, Mike

Can anyone please help or advise me on how I can draw the cab of this Bedford RL to make a decent print? section of Mick Bell plan I have drawn a few vehicles in CAD and been able to 3D print them to N gauge without a problem; however, I am finding that the shape of this cab is currently beyond my skills in Fusion 360. I would be grateful to hear of any practical advice on how to draw the cab in Fusion 360 in order that I can make a print. I've tried Loft, Filter and Chamfer but the curves just don't follow the sketches I've drawn and I really would like to know where I am going wrong with this. cheers, Mike

Thanks Mike, I shall ask over in the 3D forum. Mike

Here you go Richard. Mike

Slightly OT but can anyone please help or advise me on how I can draw the cab of this Bedford RL to make a decent print? section of Mick Bell plan I have drawn a few vehicles in CAD and been able to 3D print them to N gauge without a problem; however, I am finding that the shape of this cab is currently beyond my skills in Fusion 360. I would be grateful to hear of any practical advice on how to draw the cab in Fusion 360 in order that I can make a print. I've tried Loft, Filter and Chamfer but the curves just don't follow the sketches I've drawn and I really would like to know where I am going wrong with this. cheers, Mike

Hi Mike, I have the same machine as you and would agree with njee about the vent holes. When you get to the stage just before slicing, there should two icons in the toolbar top left stating 'hollow' and 'punching'; use those to hollow out the inside and then make some punch holes underneath to allow the unused resin to drain out after printing. Mike

Hello Kris, thanks for this link. I think their size of 305mm x 660mm should fit my cutter. I shall check those out. I believe I have enough info to be able to source the plastic sheet I need now. Thanks to all who responded. Cheers Mike

Hi Huw, thanks for the link. They do appear to have the type I need and at the price I would expect to pay. Unless I hear any better recommendations, I shall probably place an order with them. cheers, Mike Hi Phil, Thanks for the link; however, I've just checked their site but they only seem to sell sheets at the size of 220mm x 330mm, whereas the sheets from 4D Model Shop above has sheets at 660mm x 340mm which are nearer my size requirements and much better value. cheers, Mike

I use a lot of styrene sheet for my scratchbuilds, plus I have a cutting machine that can take A3 size sheets; however, the owner of the LHS I used to get my supplies has retired. Can anyone recommend an on-line supplier of styrene sheet, the type that can be adhered with Revell Contacta and Tamiya extra thin, that provides good value for money? cheers, Mike

But bound by the international alliance of NATO, of which France is one of only three nuclear weapons states; the others being the US and ourselves. Mike

I watch videos like that to learn and I enjoy watching them. It sounds like you are watching to criticise rather than learn and that reminds me of those who get agitated at films and TV when the wrong loco, plane, tank or ship for that era is used. If you are not learning from watching the videos then the simple answer is don't watch them. Mike

Building facilities like that can take decades, not years, waiting for any results could have unprecented impacts.

Thanks Nigel, The instruction sheet does look to be somewhat dated, so I shall go with your recommendation. Another query, I've seen comments about tires; are these to go on wheels and, if so, would I need any? Hello Simon, I am planning, not very confidently, to buy more than one loco's worth. I had been trying to get a loco kit for months then suddenly a raft of them became available and mostly from helpful members here. So far, I seem to have amassed the following: part built Grafar 0-6-0 Austerity - to be used to learn kit assembly. Class 08/11 shunter kit - for learning how to build a complete kit. Jubilee chassis and body. Britannia chassis kit. Battle of Britain chassis kit. Stanier Black 5 chasis and body kit. Coronation 'City of Leicester' body - to be used as City of Birmingham for static diorama. The Austerity and Class 08/11 kits are somewhat daunting for me, as a complete newbie; however, slowly but surely I shall get these built. If I fail with the actual running gears then I can always use them on my static dioramas. No misunderstanding Andy, although I've probably confused myself. the wheels for the Coronation will be for the City of Birmingham and it will be a static model. I have acquired some 3D wheel prints from Nigel and will be planning to rescale them for this build. Thank you to all, for your interest and help with my queries. Mike

Can anyone here please help me on how to know which wheels to order from the 2mm SA site? I have used the site many times now, for other items, but the descriptions on wheels don't always match the references I've found. For example, I need to get some bogie wheels for the FS chassis for the Jubilee kit but I cannot find any reference to loco bogie wheels, only coach bogies. I have three loco chassis kits which I need to order wheels for: Jubilee class - Nigel Hunt chassis. Bogie Wheels - 4 x 6mm Driving Wheels - 6 x 13mm............2mm code 3-015? Tender Wheels - 6 x 8mm Coronation class (Farish?) - data taken from Wikipedia Leading wheel - 4 x 6mm Driving Wheels - 6 x 13mm Trailing Wheels - 2 x 7.5mm Tender Wheels - ? x ??mm Battle of Britain class - Worsley Works chassis Leading Wheels - 4 x 6mm Driving Wheels - 6 x 12.36mm Trailing Wheels - 2 x 6mm I am concerned that I may end up ordering the wrong wheels or sizes and I cannot afford to do that. I really would be grateful if anyone knows the actual 2mm association list numbers I need and can advise me of them. That way, I shall have more confidence when placing my order. All the best, and thank you in advance, Mike

Thanks for the clarification. Mike

I've only just come across this wonderful thread and noticed the comment here. I believe this was mainline to the ferry wharf, rather than a tramway? cheers, Mike

Thanks Bernard. The OO/HO Princess Royal was the only train (set) that I ever had, it was for my tenth birthday, and I still have fond memories of that. As to the Coronation, the loco won't be an RTR as it is needed for this diorama: 46235 "City of Birmingham" being transported to the science museum in Birmingham. photo copyright of Terence Dorrity. Message sent to Terry advising of using the image and asking for permission. I will order the body from Farish Spares and will probably scratchbuild all the other components. Being a non-runner and on that trailer, I won't have a need to get pure accuracy underneath. cheers, Mike