Down_Under

5050, I really like that pick up plate, I will be replicating on my Janus. I was trying to work out how to stop the pick up wires dragging on wheels too much and you look to have solved it. Very nice rebuild! Do you have any closer up pictures of the 'removable' fixed axle? Cheers from down under! J

G'day All, Its been a while, and like everyone else, making the most of the Covid-19 lockdown and change in jobs to make some progress. My apologies for the slow progress/updates I think way back to August last year, we had a rolling chassis...now we have a fucntioning loco. Wins all round. JE/Oxford Rail Janus Springing - I used the 'compensated spring' method, using standard high level hornblocks + space saver tabs. It works great, but even with S4 spacers, it was a little tight when it came to the gearbox. I've used a High level Load hauler Compact+ 80:1 + 1220D + 10mm x 6mm flywheel. I am not sure the flywheel actually does anything, but its not doing any harm I guess. It is tight. In future I think I'd just use the Load Hauler part. I had to file the drive extender to allow some movement and the main gearbox itself to clear the hornblocks (not sure if this is normal?). In the end I had little space: Marking where to file back the carrier, so it didn't foul the hornblock I think in part this was to do with how I sprung the chassis - I am sure know what I know now, I would do things a little different - using shorter handrail knobs and slimliner hornblocks for example. Gearbox in, wired up and run in on (in?!) the vice a'la Iain Rice. Rudimentary pick ups - blue tacked in for some test runs. Inspired by a flick through Iain Rices' Loco Chassis Construction. I will use a 14BA nut and bolt to hold these in, plus a trim and a tweak. Will add a third pick up to the remaining axle, but I was pleasantly surprised how it ran with just the 4 pick ups. I cant ever imagine it would ever struggle over the largest (I tried a 3mm rail gap) gap. I weighted the loco to 300g and it was a bit of a Brut - fully compensated and low gearing, it had heaps of traction, crawling over some pretty knarly trackwork, and then hauling some weighted and very un-free running hastily re-gauged hoppers without a problem. Wired up on the test track, Torque link in (used 0.6mm wire and 0.8mm tube soldered to the frame. The torque link is slightly z shaped, to allow the natural springyness to hold it into position. You'll notice I haven't used any bushes - yet - These are Gibson wheels with Gibson crankpins - I will bore out the outside to take the bush with the thread, and then that will leave enough space for the roller bearing cover....that will be the next chapter. Quick question on DCC - Should I recycle the old PCB board? Or hard wire in a board +decoder? Suggestions on a post card please? Janus Brake Gear Next chapter - the tedious task of the brake gear. The brake gear on a Janus is fully compensated - meaning technically it is not 'hung ' from above, and it has dual shoes on each wheel (check out some photos here) - but to make it easier to remove to maintenance, I have. It has 2 shoes per wheel equalling 12 shoes in total. With the JE etch you get a shoes with the hanger plus a half etch lamination. You also get representation of some of the pull rod gear/brake rigging. The OR Janus comes complete with all 12 shoes, linkage and air cylinders, if a touch undernourished. You could simply recycle these if you chose, but I have decided to combine both. The brake gear to me is a pretty defining part of the bulk of a Janus, so I've decided to have a go at best recreating it as I can. Yours truly in action JE rigging top, OR below... I opted to add some more meat to the JE brake hangers by soldering some spare etch to the top and bottom, drilling and filing to shape. Top modified, bottom original. Well worth it I think. Check out the prototype and you'll notice that extra "meat" The JE laminated etches and OR brake cylinder. I have decided to use a mixture of 0.5mm tube and 0.4mm wire to represent the pull rod and turn buckle adjuster to give a little more depth to the brake rigging. One quarter down three to go.... Impetus 165 DE Dug this out the 'stash'. It was a eBay pick up - home brewed attempt at CSB springing and it came busted Mashima 1220 motor ( the commutators had been blown of the back and it ran like a 3 legged dog). As i slowly stripped it - it turned out that the CSB spring points where in the correct position, but the chassis was out of square by a good 1mm and the horn cheeks not square. I discard the home made spacers and used at set of spare P4 society 15.5mm gauge ones.Coupled with the the 0.8mm thick frame gave a respectable back to back of 17mm for P4. It came with a 54:1 roadrunner, that i've coupled to a low revving Mitusmi. I may change my mind and stick a 80:1or 108:1 humpshunter in there. Watch this space. What we start with - everything bar the motor Only later, while browsing an old MJR I found its of 1987 vintage! No price, but I would have paid about double its original price, but that included gearbox and wheels (+broken motor). Judith Edge make the earlier version, which I will be getting my hands on shortly. I have decided which it to be, maybe Barrington Cement? Or maybe a suitable NCB prototype - suggestions anyone? Started with a half built chassis....homemade hornblock and all I had hoped that just replacing the hornblocks with some High Level ones would suffice, but daylight is a bad (especially for vampires...) So apart it came - soldered the hornblocks to the chassis which is mostly the reverse of what the books say, but it had already been cut out Some careful alignment and we have a square chassis. Maybe slightly unorthodox, but it worked New spacers, new motor and off we go! Started on the buffer beams following Mike Edges' advice - pinned the lamination together with toothpicks and then ran solder around the edges Some filing tidied this up nicely Next step is the brake gear and then body work....watch this space. Hornby 4wd Sentinel Drop in Utrascale conversion + extreme etching laser glazing. Relatively straight forward conversion. I ended up rewiring this loco, cutting out the DCC socket and FM AM?) resistor thing. It runs much better now. No idea why. I also found it was poorly assemble and the worm was not engaging with the main gear. After a good hour of back and forth on a 2m test track to bed the motor in it runs OK. Despite its short wheelbase and no compensation whatsoever, it does very well on my ropey and uneven test track, even managing a wheel in the air without problems! Nothing to exciting here Awaiting some glazing At some point I'll need to learn weathering and build a layout Hornby OC Sentinel P4 and OIC Conversion So following Porcy Manes conversion, I've had a crack at my own. Except I've used a spare set of Ultrascale wheels, instead to black beetle solid N/S discs. In future , id use the solid N/S discs, purely on the ease of tweaking the original pick ups. To add (also see West Halton Sidings) - RT Models Sides and Buckeye coupling pocket, plus laser glaze to add. Undecided to make this a 'girl' (unvac braked) or a boy' (Vac Braked) at this point More to follow on this one That is all for now. Hoepfully between all the action thats going on this forum I'll be able to get some more modelling done J

Oooh yes please Chris. In P4 and i'd be up for a couple of them . James Perth, Australia

Hi Mike, Many thanks for posting all these construction pictures. I have learnt so much from watching the way you do things. My go to resource on the web. Cheers James

Hadn't seen those - That could work - Thanks, Southern Pride had slipped my mind - found my way to spares and this is what I am after - individual seats that I can work with That was my last resort to cut up some of these to get the seats - looking to put them in a Judith Edge EMU.

A quick question - I don't seem to be having much success with google Where/whom are the best suppliers of seating for inside of coaches? I see that DC Kits do make some, but without any pictures it is hard to know what they look like. The Peco seats are not really what I am after and I don't fancy having to slice up some replica interiors. I was looking for 58 double row seats, with a low back. I was hoping that someone would make either some white metal castings or injection moulded plastic. Cheers and thanks in advance James PS - I tried googling; Carriage interiors OO gauge; Coach interiors OO Gauge; 4mm Scale Carriage seats etc...without much luck

This caught my attention - good stuff! Fingers cross for HE 1446 /1929 J

Glad it was not just me that finds/found it hard to swap over the anvils and get them centred after. The only way I found was to really push down with some force and then very gradually tighten until the sweet spot between the anvil rotating out of centre and tight enough to hold it in place. Thanks for the heads up on the rolling machine - yet to try.....

Count me in Mike J

Home made 'Ruston' transfers?

Hi Stephen, Mike Edge has pointed me your way as I mentioned a similar area of interest to him. I am note sure how I have managed to miss this impressive collection of photos and information that you have managed to amass. I was having similar thoughts of modeling (but in 4mm) the BR line where it emerged from the former Waterloo Goods Depot and crossed the dock road and headed towards riverside. I have been so far limited to having a play trying to work out curvature and space required, or should I say what could be reasonably fitted into say 6-8ft. I have geo-referenced a few screen shots to try and establish radius of some of the MHDR pointwork and riverside branch. Not sure but this appears to be a pre LOR and Riverside connection so pre-1893 image from old-maps. When I measure the circled point I get from nose to end of switch blades of about 25ft.Some of the curves look to be about 2 chains, maybe a touch less. Estimates so far, from measuring the line and remnants would suggest the BR line was somewhere between 4 to 4.5 chains radius. I am not sure if you have during any of your information gathering measured or come across any dimensions? Secondly - when did the BR style signals appear (with the weight and signal wires running along the wall) - like those that controlled the access across the Dock Road - where these after the demise of the LOR? Cheers James

On a side note - nice library Ruston! You never fail to amaze me how quickly you seem to crack on with these layouts/scratch build/detail projects. Top work. Looking forward to this one James

Sign me up for a steel works and NCB variant Mike! One to add to the collection ofcv0-8-0 beasts J

Liking the transfers and what you are doing James. Will have a few orders from me Cheers James

Hey Mike, I don't know of any. During my research for mine, I found this thread where James suggests using 2mm handrail knobs for the door catches. This is what I was gonnna try - nbrass 2mm has some in stock (handrail knobs that is). Its been a while while since I was researching this so they might be other options? https://westhalton.wordpress.com/tag/janus/ J

It is on Flickr Dave, https://www.flickr.com/photos/64619687@N02/albums

My applogies John, you are correct. It was the way the last "S" of Stewarts and first "L" of Lloyds appear in the middle creates a bit of a optical illusion.

Stumbled across these images the other day of some wooden Stewart & Lloyd ore wagons - no doubt carrying iron ore given the lumpyness and the fact the wagons are only 3 planks high. Image courtesy of the BGS - Taken by J Rhodes in 1933 Thought I would add it to this thread I found while googling more about the wooden PO wagons. Looks like wooden U-frames, up-rated buffers, and fixed ends. Bit of a optical illusion of the S&L had me thinking that they had been repainted, but as pointed out, they have not been. Are there any drawings of these in one of the many PO wagon books? James

HI Gibbo, Very much liking this Would you have any more information on how you built this? (A build thread?) Did you start with a Corgi Coles crane? Do you have drawings? I've thought about using the Nonneminstre Models as a basis, or maybe just to measure the panels and and use the cab - but a lot of hacking would be involved. James

Thanks for getting back to me. If you ever decide to continue with it let me know. In the mean time I'll tinker with some tube. Cheers J

Thank you for those. So, looks like with renumber, the RB(R) in B+G can be used to represent RB's in B+G.

Thanks for the update Gordon. I would be keen to get two sets of additional etched parts/castings/3D prints for the pair that I have. Cheers James

Hi Bill, Do you have any of the axle hung motor mounts etches kicking about? I would be looking to purchase a couple of packs/etches Cheers J.

If the RB related to the earlier diagram 24 does that mean that the RB(R) most likely represents diagram 33? which were turned out post 1970? and thus from looking at the Parkin book should have a slightly different door layout? (as they came from a variety of sources?)

Thanks Flood, perfect. Just what I wanted. Just picked up a Mk2 BSO (the correct one thankfully!). I'm finding that many are advertised as "MK2" but are in fact MK2A according to part numbers. Thanks once again! James