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TurboSnail

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  1. TurboSnail
    I've recently finished 3 new wagon kit designs, an SER ballast wagon, an SER coal/goods wagon and a few variants of an LBSC steel-framed Open A. I've been trying out a few different constructions methods and doing a load of test building - they're not perfect but I am pretty happy with them now. Wondering where to go next, probably an SER d1553 brake, but I've got a few locos to finish too. After about a month of issues with the 3D printer it's good just to get some prints working reliably now so I can get back to CAD work (and adding stuff to my new layout baseboard).
     
    If anyone would like one (or more!), more info on all three is available here, along with contact details: https://ts3dmodels.blogspot.com/p/wagons.html
     

     

  2. TurboSnail
    I've recently finished testing a kit of the SER ballast wagon (D1741/2), which lasted up to the 1930s in some areas. I can make a set of prints available for £9 + P&P, it just needs wheels, bearings and coupling hooks to complete. Drop me a message if interested!
     

     

  3. TurboSnail
    I think I might be addicted to the SER/SECR/SR R and R1 classes...
     
    From left to right:
    -standard Wrenn R1 body (will become an R class someday)
    -Wrenn R1 body with 3D printed cab detail and cab window infill piece
    -R1 body being converted back to R class with new boiler and cab
    -R/R1 class 3D printed chassis (currently in development), will go under the R class conversion
    -detailed Wrenn R1 body on the first test print of the 3D printed chassis (unpowered)
    -original R1 in SR olive green, which has sentimental value hence why it hasn't been messed about with!
     

  4. TurboSnail
    Models available!
     
    In very limited numbers, mind. This is a bit of an experiment, to see what people's appetite for 3D printed kits is like - I'm quite nervous about it! I have a couple of kits for the Hunslet 4wDM 'Courage' available, for the princely sum of £25. This gets you a set of prints (body, chassis, roof and exhaust), to which you can then add wheels, a motor, gears, pickups, coupling hooks, plastic strip and handrail wire to make a working model (the cost of the additional bits is around £35-40 depending on what specification you'd like). Links to where the other parts can be bought will be sent out with the prints.
     
    The prints may need some light surface preparation, depending how much of a perfectionist you are  - the model in the photos and videos below has had very little surface prep, mainly on the roof. 3D printing is not perfect - you will need to do some trimming and fettling, just like you would with any brass or whitemetal kit. Performance is not the best at slow speed (see video below), but for a model of its size and (lack of) weight, there's nothing else like it IMHO. Alternatively, you could build it unmotorised and use a powered wagon or similar. Please drop me a message at ts3dmodels@gmail.com if you would like one. If they all go, I can print more, so don't worry if you miss out!
     
    The Prototype
     
    The loco itself was built in 1935 and is (supposedly) the smallest UK standard gauge diesel. It uses a 22hp engine and several similar locos were built for light duties, the most famous being 'Courage' which worked the Courage brewery and is now preserved at the Middleton Railway, Leeds. Testing video and build video linked below (apologies in advance, I'm really not a TV presenter!).
     
    Raw prints (i.e. you get one of each of these parts in the kit):
     

     
    Finished model:
     

     
    Running video: 
     
     
    Build video:
     
     
  5. TurboSnail
    I've recently finished a model of the Middleton Railway's Hunslet 22hp 4wDM, nicknamed 'Sweet Pea'. Allegedly the smallest standard gauge diesel in the UK! Which made it somewhat of a challenge to motorise... see size comparison photo with the Terrier. The roof hasn't printed perfectly but the rest of the body has come out pretty well. It's got a micro motor driving both axles, and a tiny flywheel that I'm not sure does anything to help. Runs a bit quickly but considering the space I had to play with (or lack thereof), I'm quite happy with it. 
     

     

     
     
  6. TurboSnail
    Plenty of people have heard of REL Maunsell's forays into diesel shunter design, with no.s 1, 2, and 3 being developed in 1936/7 with 350hp engines to compete against the Z class heavy steam shunters. What is less known is that late into the design, it was also decided to trial a smaller 0-4-0 version with a 200hp engine, to replace the likes of the A1X and R1 classes in smaller dockyards and branch lines. As such, the design was outsourced to an industrial manufacturer (there are very limited records of this engine, so the identity of said manufacturer has been lost) with instructions to maintain the key features of the larger 350hp engines, including the distinctive angled lower cab windows, step/handrail locations and the outside frames. Only one locomotive was produced, no. 4, finished in 1938, and immediately sent to the Elham Valley line where it proved useful but at higher maintenance and running costs due to the unfamiliarity of the crews with the new technology and the cost of getting diesel to the rural location. After the breakout of war, it was transferred to the Q port at Richborough, which is where the trail stops. It is possible that it was sent across the channel as part of the war effort, but given it was a non-standard class, I think it is more likely that it would have stayed there as a shunter and that any further records of it's actions were kept classified or lost, leaving the enticing (but unlikely) prospect that it is still out there somewhere... Only one known image was taken of it, believed to be somewhere on the Elham Valley line.
     

     
    Of course, that's all complete rubbish, this post was supposed to go up on the 1st April, but I'm nothing if not willing to jog along several hundred yards behind the bandwagon...
     
    The loco in the badly photoshopped pic above is based on the backstory above, but never actually appeared in real life. I needed an excuse to practice with 3D printing, without people pointing out all the prototypical inaccuracies that would go with an existing locomotive! You can see more of the results in the video below - please excuse the 'advertising', I'm not expecting many people to want a model of something that never existed...
     

  7. TurboSnail

    Hornby H Class (again)

    By TurboSnail,

    Time to have another go at getting a H class in SECR livery, now the Hornby collectors club has the Bluebell one available. The H is one of the ideal motive power options for my Kent branch line based shunting plank. I tried to get 308 when it first came out, but Hornby short-changed the place I'd ordered it from, so my order got cancelled - I've been monitoring eBay since, but most sellers on there are chancing it at an average price of about £160 (the only one on there right now is £244!). I did have to join the collector club to order it, but still comes to £127 total, which is pretty much RRP for one of these, plus I get a free 0-4-0 to butcher into something completely different (maybe a crane tank this time? I'm already CAD modelling the Neilson one to see if I can make it 3D printable). I did think about doing a CAD model of the H class to add to my (currently very limited) range and 3D printing it, but I only want to model things that aren't available RTR as the detail won't be as good. Sometimes it's worth spending the money.
     
    Maybe I should have ordered six and put the rest on eBay...
  8. TurboSnail

    R1 project

    By TurboSnail,

    The other day, I got some Duck fresh discs through the post. Slightly bemused, as I had not ordered anything like that, I had a closer look and it turned out to be the Wrenn R1 bodies I bought off eBay. Some guy seems to be selling old factory surplus, so I picked up a couple of bodies to have a go at detailing them, and it doesn't matter if they get too damaged.
     

     
    Assuming I get at least one of them into a reasonably good state, I'll need a chassis. The old Wrenn ones are very difficult to come by without a body attached and would need a lot of work anyway, so that's not an option. Maybe I could use a cheap RTR chassis, but none seem to have the same wheelbase as the R1, so I'd have to live with the inconsistency. The most promising option at the moment is to buy a wheelset and rods of the correct diameter, modify the rods and fit them to a 3D printed chassis, unless I can find an old Wrenn chassis block without wheels and motor. The CAD is easy and I can get dimensions from another complete R1 I have (which has sentimental value, hence why I'm not cutting that one up), and I may even be able to include motor mounts and other fancy things. It will probably be slow progress as I have hardly any modelling time at the moment, but if all goes well I might end up with a detailed, slow running R1 for probably under £30 outlay.
  10. TurboSnail
    Taking a layout to university with you is not practical, even if it's only a shunting plank. So I'll have to think of other modelling projects to get on with until Christmas. Maybe I can get one or two of the many side projects done...
     
    I have a tiny room here, so guess I'm fortunate that most of it is taken up by desk space, which was clearly intended to be used for modelling. I've set up my portable workbench on it, consisting of the cutting mat to make a work area, and projects and tools in the wedge shaped box. I've already outgrown the box's size with R/C gear.
     
    Still, good enough for a good relaxing study break!
     

  11. TurboSnail
    I recently bought a Hornby Railroad 0-6-0 in SDJR colours because it was cheap. I really need to come up with better reasons for buying things... Anyway, as I don't model the SDJR, my intention is to use the relatively modern, well-running chassis to underpin something a bit different. Initial thoughts were to replace the chassis of an old Wrenn R1 so it looks less terrible, but the wheel positioning is wrong for the R1 so I'm not sure I'd be happy with that for long. Mind you, there is enough wrong with the Wrenn body that you might not notice... An alternative idea is that the chassis seems to be the same one that is in the Railroad Class 08, so it might be possible to put a Golden Arrow Maunsell diesel shunter body on it, and I've wanted to do one of those for a while. The issue here is that a) it's expensive for me and b) the body is intended for a more modern chassis, so some modifying would have to take place and I might end up with the motor showing in the cab. Another option is the unique SR S class tank, but that's more expensive, but being whitemetal, probably more detailed. Maybe there's something obvious I haven't thought of? Any SECR/SR based suggestions welcome...
     

  12. TurboSnail
    Does anyone still use scatter? At least for representing grass, as I still use it for mud areas and am happy with the results, but I recently added a pub garden to my layout using scatter and I'm not all that convinced by the results. I started with 3 colours mixed together and made a test piece, but it's still pretty vibrant:
     

     
    Toning it down with a wash of light grey helped a bit:
     

     
    Once laid using PVA, it sticks pretty well so that's good at least. It was then given another wash of light grey, shown here partway through application.
     

     
    Once dry, it looks like this:
     

     
    Not exactly a perfect match for the grass next to it...
     
    I'm actually not too bothered by this, as the layout is meant to be a learning platform for me - if I was trying to make something for exhibition or a club layout, it would get redone. I still may revisit it some time down the line, but for now, I want to get the rest of the scenery done so I have an overall picture rather than worry about each little bit.
     
    But going back to the original thought, does scatter really cut it as grass any more? The rest of the grass on my layout is hanging basket liner, which while not perfect, stands up a lot better (metaphorically and literally). Scatter doesn't even have the excuse of being the cheap option any more, since static grass is not that much more expensive unless you're modelling vast expanses of it. I think I'll have to upgrade my methods for the next layout, although fortunately for my wallet that looks like being a long way off.
  13. TurboSnail
    Is making retaining walls the most boring job in modelling? It's taken me about 2 years in total to complete the 1.5m length on my layout as I keep finding more interesting things to do. It's got to the point now though where they have to be done so I can move on, which means making and fitting the wall and buttress cappings.
     

     
    I shouldn't complain, since I have a small layout and the Scalescenes walls are pretty easy to build. They look pretty good too, for card kits anyway, and they're definitely economical for doing long lengths. But I do get a bit bored with cut, stick, fold, cut, stick etc. - thank goodness I'm not working in plasticard and having to paint the whole thing too...
     

  14. TurboSnail

    Hornby Slow-4-0

    By TurboSnail,

    I'm reliably informed that the Hornby generic 0-4-0 chassis has the nickname of 'Pocket Rocket'. If you look around on the interweb, lots of people have had a go at making it better, by regearing it, adding weight, or just building a new chassis altogether. I picked up a cheap one (brand new for £10) from a department store somewhere and then had to think of something to do with it (what do you mean, "impulse buy"?) so I decided to try making the pocket rocket into an ultra slow-speed shunter. On a budget, of course...
     

     
    A quick look on ebay/amazon/slightly-dodgy-chinese-website came up with this motor (£1.20ea) and a pack of 50 different sorts of gear (£2), so I picked a few gears that end up with an approximately 90:1 ratio. The brass worm does not mesh with the gears, hence why the plastic one is fitted, although it has the wrong shaft diameter so is held on with filler... will be replaced with thin wall tube when I can get hold of some. The dual shaft motor means I will also be able to fit a flywheel, although I will probably try to pick one up at an exhibition rather than order online, as only Roxey seem to do them with a reasonable lead time and they are expensive for what they are.
     

     
    The gearbox is made from some aluminium sheet I had lying around, no bearings but it spins pretty freely. The drive gear had to be drilled out to fit the original Hornby axle. Slow speed control is pretty good, much better than it was, and better than I'd expect from £13 worth of loco, even without the flywheel being fitted yet. The only video of it I have running is a test I did of some video editing software that I just took as I needed something to edit, so it's not great - the track was very dirty and the plastic chassis is so underweight I had to load it with some random items to make it run at all.
     

     
    Which reminds me, I need to get a camera that will do more than 18 frames per second.
     
    Next, I need to get hold of and fit a flywheel, and then find/make a body for it as the original steam one won't fit any more, so I might go for a diesel to make things simpler to build and easier to fit. Initial thoughts are kit-bashing a Dapol c60 0-6-0 shunter to shorten it to fit, but not sure yet. Any suggestions welcome...
     
    EDIT: I have started on a 3D printed body to go with this chassis, thread here
  15. TurboSnail
    For a current project, I need a tiny, but very high-ratio motor and gearbox, so modifying a servo to rotate continuously seems to be the perfect answer. The entire unit takes up less than 20x20x8mm and provides a motor, speed controller (I'm using it with R/C) and an approx. 120:1 ratio gearbox, while costing less than a fiver. But it does need some slightly fiddly modification first. I'm listing the process here, as much to aid my own memory next time I do this...
     

     
    Small but hopefully powerful...
     

     

     
    After levering off the base, you can see a tiny (4mm diameter) motor (the white circle on the right) and the circuit board. If you move the circuit board to one side, you find the potentiometer hiding underneath. This is what tells the servo what position it is in, so it can adjust correctly. All we need to do to make it rotate continuously is remove this feedback capability. To do this...
     

     

     
    Lever out the potentiometer so it doesn't have the connecting shaft attached (it has a shaft connecting the pot to the output gear which you can see in the cover to the left). File down or drill out the potentiometer shaft hole (the little white bit sticking out of the small black box in the photo) so the shaft cannot turn the potentiometer. This has removed the servo's ability to sense where it is - there is a better way of doing this for bigger servos by replacing the potentiometer with a two high resistance, low tolerance resistors, which will give you more stability, but I don't have room to do that in this tiny servo body.
     
    Flip the servo over and lever off the top cover to reveal the gearbox - be very careful with this or you will have gears everywhere and will have to spend 10,000 years trying to work out what order they went in. I speak from experience...
     
    The output gear (the one sticking out the top with a spline on it) will have a tab on the bottom to limit the range it can turn. Cut/file this off. Before you put the output gear back, measure the spline diameter - about 3mm is fairly common.
     

     
    To add a gear to the spline instead of one of the 'horns' that came with it (no idea why they're called that) drill out a gear to slightly less than the spline diameter - drilling this gear to 3mm (by drilling to 2.5mm, then 3mm to reduce the risk of decentreing the hole) results in a snug fit. I used a crown gear as the servo has to sit flat under the chassis so needs a right angle before reaching the wheels.
     

     
    Re-assemble the gearbox and cover, then test - you should have a continuous rotation servo! If it rotates when the control stick is in the centre position, adjust the potentiometer with a small screwdriver until it stays still. If you want, give it a blob of superglue to make sure.
     

     

     
    The potentiometer can then tuck back into the body as it is not physically connected to the output gear any more, making the installation nice and compact. Job done!
     

  16. TurboSnail
    Finally got round to finishing the remote uncoupler installation, which finishes off the track work for now. It's nothing fancy or electronic, just a manual cam-based system made of ice cream sticks and offcuts of wood and metal. This shows how rubbish I am at baseboard planning, having hacked a hole in the supports to fit the system in. Fortunately it's not a wide baseboard, so still has plenty of strength.
     

     
    Lining the whole thing up was a bit of a nightmare, but it seems to work pretty consistently. I tried taking a video with my rubbish phone, but hopefully gives an idea of how it looks.
     

     
    More info in this thread if you're interested: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/113032-remoteautomaticdiy-uncoupling-methods/
  17. TurboSnail

    Making roads

    By TurboSnail,

    One of the major parts missing from the layout was roads. Lots of people have their own preferred methods, including using fine grit sandpaper, textured paints, Bachmann RoadStuffTM (I've no idea what it's actually called) but all of those methods involve either expense, time waiting for internet orders or going outside, so I had to come up with something else. Following a rummage in the garage, I found the ingredients for the rather noxious brew in the photo below: some dulux white matt primer, most of an old brown tester pot (possibly from the 80s?), some completely solidified GreenScene textured road paint (the dark tarmac, I think) and mixed it all together. At this point, it was still way too white and I couldn't locate any black paint - although come to think of it, I shouldn't be surprised as who paints their house black? Slightly desperate, I came across some car bumper restorer blackening wax, from back when I had a mk1 Ford KA with the grey plastic bumpers, and chucked it in. Amazingly, it mixed in ok, as you can see below.
     

     
    There was just enough Greenscene paint to add a bit of texture to the road without going over the top and having a gravel track. Probably due to the unconventional mixture of chemicals, there were a few cracks in the paint after drying, but a second coat sorted this out nicely. It's not the best looking road I've ever seen, but since it was free I'm not complaining, and the next job is to tone it down and mess it up with some washes to get some more variation in the colour.
     

  18. TurboSnail

    Intro

    By TurboSnail,

    So, given I have some free time in the University holidays, I thought I'd have a go at blogging my layout progress (or lack thereof), for two reasons: 1) 'cos it'll give me something to do with myself and 2) so when it inevitably shows how little I've achieved (I am on holiday after all), I'll be motivated to do more. I'm aiming to do weekly updates as I don't want to be too ambitious but who knows where this is going. Maybe I'll be able to get some video in from time to time as well.
     

     
    Might be worth starting with a layout description: the picture above (or wherever it goes on a blog) shows the layout in it's current state - track down and wired, landscaping done and starting on adding roads, buildings and scenic detail. It is just a small shunting plank layout (how very original!), the only fancy thing about it is live frog points, the first time I've ever used them and they seem to be pretty good considering my motive power is small 0-4-0 and 0-6-0s.
  19. TurboSnail

    Layout testing

    By TurboSnail,

    Time to play with test the layout! I took a short video and had a go with some free editing software, not the easiest thing to get the hang of...
     

     
    Filmed on my rather tired Windows Phone camera, maybe Father Christmas will get me a better one? The Terrier is working well, as are the points and controller. The remote uncouplers still need some fettling, although I think that's mainly down to my test wagons all being old Wrenn/Hornby/Triang items with all the tension locks at different heights and different states of rusty!
  20. TurboSnail
    Surprise post is always nice, I forgot I'd ordered this. It's a Mk2, I think, fairly nice model but I was really hoping the wheels would be metal so it would run properly, as it is the plastic ones derail easily. I guess I'll have to motorise it now!
     

  21. TurboSnail

    New R/C project

    By TurboSnail,

    A new project beckons...
     

     
    The Leyland FG will eventually become remote controlled, to join the Albion truck. I chose it as a fun, more toylike model as I don't want to spend too much time fussing over details, rather I want to use this project to iron out a few of the issues I have with the previous attempt. And besides, who doesn't like a fire truck?
     
    Anyway, so as not to clog up my blog, I've started a thread on the build progress here: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/125927-rc-truck-in-oo-scale-mk2/
     
    I think I need to start on a layout with a more extensive road network...
  22. TurboSnail

    Road testing

    By TurboSnail,

    Ok, this really is the last post about roads for a while... But at least it's a video!
     

     
    We modellers always test our track when it's been laid, so why not do the same with roads? The road surface seems pretty good for the truck, it has enough grip although still wobbles a bit - I blame Base Toys for not making round wheels. Need to work on that turning circle too!
  23. TurboSnail

    Realistic(?) roads

    By TurboSnail,

    The downside of making roads by mixing random paints and chemicals together (see my previous blog post) is that somehow it mixed together into a very even colour. I thought it needed toning down, so I decided to go with a wash of grey, this being the simplest method I could think of. Gaugemaster decided to send me a pot of Humbrol no.32 despite me ordering something else, so some of that went in with some white spirit.
     

     
    Before anything dried, I went over the whole area dabbing it with kitchen roll, which seemed to make the effect more subtle and less uniform. I'll freely admit I was making it up as I went along, but it has turned out quite well. One learning point though: if one dabs too vigourously (with the kitchen roll, not the odd arm thing) the colour rubs off and it then gets very difficult to mix in a new patch without there being obvious borders.
     

     
    That should be it for roads - the benefits of having a small layout.
     
    I am now desperately looking for other things to weather before my mix dries up...
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