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  1. 5&9Models
    A bit of fun in the garden today trying to find an area that had a bit of natural light, not too shady, and with a bit of sky in the background. Not easy, and I was a bit concerned at one point the diorama was going to blow away! However, a few photos taken on my phone (since I don’t have a fancy camera) which seemed to have come out ok. Really must leave this lit alone now and move on to completing the bridge and making the stables.





  2. 5&9Models
    It's been a very long time since my last post (which I think was a 4mm scale chair!) but I've nearly completed my latest build: Canterbury & Whitstable Railway, Taylor 0-6-0 goods loco, no.121,  c1847.
    The bulk of it was constructed whilst convalescing with a broken left metatarsal. What a tragedy to be signed off work and have to sit there day after day with my foot up, drinking tea and model making, life can be so cruel!
    A friend offered some Portescap motor/gearboxes in exchange for kits so one of these formed the basis for this engine. The gearbox had to be dismantled and reversed so the driving axle sat under the motor and the wheels were some old Romford ones from the scrap box.
    One of the biggest challenges was the haycock firebox with it's brass beading around the corners. The box itself was build up from two strips of scribed 10thou brass bent into an 'n', cut and soldered together, then the brass corners cut from 5thou, bent and beaten into submission around the curves, a horrible job and much learned in the process but it doesn't look too bad. It hasn't put me off doing another one anyway.
    The tender was rest was gradually scratch built using good old fashioned measure, bend and cut techniques, as was the rest of the loco, a refreshingly 3D print free zone! It still requires some water feed pipes under the footplate and there is an annoying little short every time it goes left which I must sort out. Of course some crew will be required before it moves 'off shed' but they can wait.
    The photographs leave a bit to be desired, I find the low sun at this time of year a bit tricky, our house faces due south and not casting a shadow over the photo at midday requires some degree of contortion. Hopefully they will do for now, next up is an 1845 Bodmer Single but as usual it will take me ages!
    Thanks for looking and please feel free to ask if you need to know more.





  3. 5&9Models

    A London & Birmingham Novelty

    By 5&9Models,


    London & Birmingham Carriages
    I’ve long been entertained and intrigued by depictions of early railways of the 1830s and ‘40s. The period was marked by significant political and social change, the technology of the new iron roads symbolised these changes more than anything and the railway companies knew it. From the opening of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway onwards, artists such as Isaac Shaw, John Cooke Bourne, Thomas Talbot Bury and many others recorded what they saw, creating images that sought to commemorate and impress. From these illustrations lithographic prints were produced and distributed in quantity, in a way a form of propaganda, promoting the grandeur and unprecedented architectural and engineering achievements of the railways whilst at the same time demonstrating how harmoniously they would sit within the landscape, showing just how marvellous (and safe) it would be to travel by train.
     
    The detail and accuracy of many images is praiseworthy, Shaw was a skilled engraver, Bourne a talented artist and Bury a noted architect however, some images must be taken with a full chip shop’s worth of salt, and a few would not look out of place hanging in a gallery of work by Salvador Dali. Therefore, one must never rely on such pictures as a clear window into the past but in the absence of photographs or files full of detailed and fully dimensioned drawings, they are all we have. 
     

    Fig. 1. Detail of ‘The entrance to the tunnel at Watford’ by T. T. Bury, engraved by N. Fielding, published by Ackermann, London, 1837. 
     
    The subject of this article is an oddity I noticed many years ago in a charming painting by T. T. Bury showing an impressive cutting on the London & Birmingham Railway. The little engine processes gaily towards the Watford tunnel entrance blissfully unaware that it is on the wrong line pulling eight open carriages, little more than trucks with seats, four enclosed second- and first-class carriages bringing up the rear. Sandwiched between these is one carriage which appears to be another open third but with raised full-height ends. Not only that, two passengers, apparently a couple, stand at seat back height looking forward down the train to the locomotive and the approaching tunnel. Trains in this period seldom reached speeds in excess of 25mph or so, but even at this pace standing on the end of the carriage would seem to be an extremely hazardous thing to do. Momentary loss of footing could result in serious injury, even death. Surely a flight of fancy on the part of the usually reliable artist I thought - but no. Buried in the London & Birmingham Railway minute books held at the National Archives is a short sentence that goes a long way to confirm that Thomas Talbot Bury was not pulling our legs. Dated 17th April 1837, minute 81 reads ‘Ordered - that Mr Bagster be authorised to give additional height to the ends of one or more of the third class carriages.’ It seems that this instruction was indeed carried out and remarkably Bury recorded one of these rare vehicles. Those familiar with my modelling will know that this is all the evidence I need to produce a model and it proved to be more straightforward that one might think.
     
    After the opening of the London & Birmingham Railway, the board were left with a significant number of open carriages used initially to show-off the line but really only suitable for a third-class fare. Given that they had no intention of carrying third-class passengers something useful had to be done with them. Thankfully, they were sturdy enough to be converted into covered second-class carriages with the addition of brakes, full height ends and roofs whilst others formed the basis for entirely enclosed carriages. Our curious carriage would appear to be a half-way house for the daredevil traveller. In my quest for a good variety of London & Birmingham carriages I had already produced a cast white metal ‘kit’ for the open carriage based on drawings published by Samuel Brees in his ‘Railway Practice’ of 1842.
     

    Fig.2. The raw castings for the London & Birmingham open third awaiting cleaning and assembly.
     
    The basic carriage was put together in the usual way, soldered construction with etched details and a set of resin cast seats which simply slot in place. Once completed, the carriage was thoroughly cleaned and given a coat of primer. The end extensions were then fabricated from styrene sheet and strip, and carefully glued in place. I decided that Bury’s suggestion that the two passengers were standing at the height of the seat back must be slightly incorrect. To do this would have required a substantial shelf at this height which would then prevent anyone from actually sitting on the end seats (unless the shelf folded up) and in fact standing on the seat itself would be sufficient to see over the carriage end and satisfy any burning desire to have one’s top hat blown off. 
     

    Fig.3. The assembled carriage in black undercoat with the end extensions made from black styrene.
     
    The building of this curiosity took a few evenings work but the novelty of the finished carriage together with the point that it brings to life an otherwise forgotten or even unbelievable detail from the early days of railway travel was well worth it. As always, I am very grateful to Tom Nicholls for finding this little gem of information in the archives and providing the excuse I needed.
     

    Figs.4 The completed and painted carriage just requiring a couple of standing passengers with a ‘Devil-may-care’ attitude towards personal safety.
     

     

     

     
     
  4. 5&9Models

    In a stable condition...

    By 5&9Models,


    Stables for Bricklayers Arms
    I hesitate to call this 'Bricklayers Arms Stables' because that's not what they are. However, they are the stables for Bricklayers Arms which is confusing I know but I'll explain.
     
    Whilst Bricklayers Arms station building, goods shed, carriage and loco sheds and coke depot are recorded (some photographically, others as outline drawings) the original 1844 stable block is not.
    There appears to be no record at all of its appearance. Therefore I have chosen to model the 1856 stables at Camden (because I like them) and position them in a relatively useful position behind the cattle yard to form an interesting backdrop to what would otherwise be a rather dull open space. Much of these stables still exist and form part of the famous stables market which makes it easier to model as reference can be easily made to the buildings. I am indebted to a good friend who braved the elements on a freezing February day just before Lockdown to take some invaluable photographs for me.
     
    Since there were several identical 'bays' to produce I chose to model one and use it as a master to cast duplicates in resin and stitch them all together to form the full block. The cart lodge and office at the eastern end was constructed in the same way but not used as a master as only one was required.
     

     
    Cutting the masters from embossed styrene sheet.
     

     
    Completed masters.
     

     
    Rubber mould with resin casting.
     

     
    The kit of resin castings.
     

     
    Bit of a jump but this is the assembled resin castings primed and in the process of having roof slates applied, (card strips on double sided sticky tape).
     

     
    Another jump to the finished article. I really am rubbish at taking photos as I go!
     

     
    The rat catcher calls...
     

     

     
    Arty black and white shot to finish.
     
     
     
     
     
  5. 5&9Models

    Ballasting at last.

    By 5&9Models,


    Ballasting at last
    An opportunity presented itself to drag the baseboard outside yesterday and take some photos in the rather dull afternoon light. At last I feel some progress is being made, or in other words, what a difference a bit of ballasting makes!
     
    I took a few more photos to show how some of the areas are finally tying together after some further detail was added.

     
    Oooh look, ballast at last! This is my own somewhat unconventional technique since the ballast in the 1840s was all over with only the rails showing. This can be a bl**dy nightmare when it comes to keeping things clear enough for smooth running.
     

     
    A view under the bridge.
     

     
    The stables with the tall Greyhound  in the background.
     

     
    The tannery, with a little more detail added and some 'bedding in'.
     

     
    The somewhat neglected back yard between the Greyhound and the Tannery.
     
  6. 5&9Models
    In the Summer 2016 edition of the Brighton Circular I posed a question regarding the identity of a loco illustrated in Samuel Brees' 'Railway Practice' 1846. His claim that the drawing was of London & Croydon Railway locomotive 'Croydon' was clearly an error and thanks to the perpetuation of this mistake by E. L. Ahrons and others, it's identity has never really been queried.
     
    Thankfully my article sparked a bit of debate and some excellent responses were written in subsequent Circulars. Unfortunately the conclusion was that we know what this loco was not, but who built it (if it was ever actually built) and the Railway it was built for remain a complete mystery.
     
    When I started the model, I was happily convinced it was 'Croydon' built by Rennies for the New Cross incline, and on that basis I determined to complete it. However, now it's somewhat enigmatic and I think I like it even more!
     

     
    The model itself is in 4mm scale to EM standards. Power is by a slightly modified but very sweet running (thanks to the benefits of running it in long before installation) Portescap RG4. The motor is a sliding fit inside the brass tube and veneer boiler, with the gearbox hidden inside the smoke of driving the leading axle. The second axle carries flangeless wheels as per the drawing and the trailing axle and tender wheels are wagon/coach wheels since these are appropriately more dainty than loco/tender wheels: all wheels are Gibson.
     

     
    The frames are cut from brass with 5thou styrene overlays to allow for rivet detailing etc. I confess I struggled a bit with the construction of the motion, the first incarnation was chopped off and started all over again as it never ran smoothly however much I swore at it! The assorted round bits were turned in the lathe, I wouldn't want to tackle a loco like this without one.
     

     
    It all dismantles into sub units; the boiler with motor and gearbox which can be slid out if required. The outside frames with motion and smokebox etc. And the inside frames with the final drive gear, wheels etc.
     

     
    The tender is entirely conjectural. There is no tender illustrated with the original drawings so I made one up (which was great fun by the way) based on standard practice for the period including a lever operated brake which I imagine was almost entirely useless! Sprung buffers and a bunker full of real coke complete the model.
     

     
    The smokebox front is very odd indeed. I've kept to the original drawings which show a convex front bolted all the way around. Either this is a very early attempt at streamlining (unlikely) or simply another error. Surely the cleaner was not expected to undo 48 individual bolts just to brush the tubes?!
     

     
    I completed the model on the last day of 2017 so 2018 is clear for the next loco. This will be a Bury Goods 0-4-0, watch this space....!
  7. 5&9Models

    London to Birmingham and hopefully back again...

    By 5&9Models,


    London & Birmingham Carriages
    Another of my 'seemed like a good idea at the time' projects last summer was to create kits for each of the principal carriages of the London & Birmingham Railway.
     
    Once again this was to be another diversion from Bricklayers Arms but a change is as good as a break, no?
     

     
    Together with a good friend Tom Nicholls who has provided endless information, drawings, research and above all encouragement, I started at the bottom with the intention of working my way up. In other words, the first was the open third class carriage (if you can call it a carriage at all) and the open-sided second. These have been created as fairly straightforward cast kits with one resin-cast block for the seats. This turned out to be quite a good idea as making seats in styrene is very boring indeed.
     

     
    The sole bars, axle guards and springs are all part of the side so the carriage went together quite quickly. The buffers were turned in brass and set in a mould to produce a quantity of castings suitable for both types of carriage.
     

     
    I haven't bothered with any form of compensation with these as they really are so small it hardly seems worth the effort. In fact they are that small one would fit neatly inside your average 10ton coal wagon (yes, I tried it)!
     

     
    The open-sided second required a little more work in that I made little turned pillars to support the roof which was made of brass sheet gently curved to the correct profile. These carriages also had brakes, the brakesman sitting amongst the passengers and hopefully not being too distracted from his job by the odd glimpse of a ladies ankle. The handle is operated through a hole in the end panelling which presumably gave the brakesman a view forward or back as required, although a roof top seat like the braked First class carriages would have been much more useful in that respect.
     

     
    The enclosed Night Second is a work in progress and artwork is currently being drawn up by a fellow Brighton Circle member to produce the two types of First class as etched kits. More about these in a future blog when I finally stop fussing over the detail and agree to send the artwork to the etchers!
  8. 5&9Models
    I appreciate this little locomotive has graced the pages of RMweb before thanks to the excellent contribution by chris p bacon, however, thanks to the aforementioned gent sending me a set of etches to aid the scratch building of my own attempt, I thought I'd share the progress here. 
     
    The Railway Chronicle for December 16th 1848, carries an article on 'a specimen of a light locomotive, called the 'Little England', which, with its tender on the same frame, will work the ordinary stock of a company. The 'Little England' and tender weigh together when roadworthy 9 tons 5 cwt. It has a 7-in. cylinder, a 12-in. stroke, and 4 ft. 6 in. driving wheels. The diameter of the leading trailing wheels is 3ft. The distance between the extreme centres is 14ft.'  The article goes on to describe the journey from New Cross to Brighton station with three first-class carriages containing 31 persons of note. Its sprightly performance was much praised and George England went on to produce several versions at his Hatcham Iron Works just off the Old Kent Road.
     
    In the Summer of 1849, George made his first sale of his little 2-2-2 engine to the Dundee, Perth & Aberdeen Railway. Before the year was out, a further example (named Dwarf) went to the London & Blackwall, and the following year six more were sent to a variety of destinations. Of these, three (named England, Samson and Hercules) went to the L&B, one (also named England) travelled north to the Edinburgh & Glasgow and another to the L.C&S.Rly. (although what that stands for I'm not sure - help me out someone)! A further locomotive (named Little England) was prepared for the Great Exhibiton, becoming exhibit no.509.
     
    A charming contemporary illustration apparently shows 'Little England' and is probably the Great Exhibition engine with a wheelbase of 15ft. Clark also illustrated one of George's engines with a 12ft. 6in. wheelbase, so there were different versions along the same theme sometimes with the same name. Finally, a photograph of 'Dwarf' on the Sandy & Potton confirms the 15ft wheelbase version.
     
    The aforementioned etches provide a good basis for what is essentially a scratch build. Motorising such a tiny loco is always a challenge and I chose to hide an H&S mini motor in the bunker and drop the gears down under the footplate, up into the firebox, to a 40:1 worm and pinion on the driving axle. The gears themselves were robbed from an old toy engine from my childrens wooden train set, (don't worry, the motor was burned out beyond redemption - I'm not that mean)! It all seems to run very sweetly and does the job at a total of 90:1. I'm going with the 15ft wheelbase for my model although I'd like it to be 14ft to represent the original 'Little England' I can't face 'cutting and shutting' the etches and it's not obvious where to loose the 4mm without making it look very odd indeed. I suspect I would need to steel 2mm from behind the drivers somewhere and 2mm in front which is just too much hassle!
     
    I've assembled the boiler and firebox, lathe turned the necessary round bits, and am now starting out on the rest of the chassis and bodywork. More to follow in the next post.
     




  9. 5&9Models
    I'm beginning to feel like a bus,  I don't post anything for ages then a string of posts one after the other. I'm keeping the posts minimal to provide a bit of bite sized interest and to avoid boring you all with the same background for all the photos. Please bear with me, it's all I've got at the moment!
     
    A few images of some early London & Brighton Railway stock. The open sided second coupe break (surely far too many titles for such a basic vehicle?) appears to be waiting for an engine of some description. The conductor (that's what they were called in those days) remains calm but his patience is wearing thin! The carriage lacks a few passengers, or perhaps the weather is so good they've all booked an open third, which conveniently leads on to the second picture. The third pic shows the roofed version of the same open third and there is an enclosed second version too, although I haven't photographed it yet. Perhaps a little job for this weekend. 
     



  10. 5&9Models
    Over the few years I've been a member of RMWeb, I seem to have erroneously created several blogs. My clumsy grasp of computers has been a bit frustrating as I never know where I've posted and have a horrible habit of posting new material on the wrong blog and so on. Therefore a little bit of belated Spring Cleaning is required and I have copied the info from my previous 'George England 2-2-2' blog to this one so that I can have it all in the right place. So, apologies to those who have read the first bit before and I hope that the new material is sufficiently interesting to make up for it!
     
    The Railway Chronicle for December 16th 1848, carries an article on 'a specimen of a light locomotive, called the 'Little England', which, with its tender on the same frame, will work the ordinary stock of a company. The 'Little England' and tender weigh together when roadworthy 9 tons 5 cwt. It has a 7-in. cylinder, a 12-in. stroke, and 4 ft. 6 in. driving wheels. The diameter of the leading trailing wheels is 3ft. The distance between the extreme centres is 14ft.'  The article goes on to describe the journey from New Cross to Brighton station with three first-class carriages containing 31 persons of note. Its sprightly performance was much praised and George England went on to produce several versions at his Hatcham Iron Works just off the Old Kent Road.
     
    In the Summer of 1849, George made his first sale of his little 2-2-2 engine to the Dundee, Perth & Aberdeen Railway. Before the year was out, a further example (named Dwarf) went to the London & Blackwall, and the following year six more were sent to a variety of destinations. Of these, three (named England, Samson and Hercules) went to the L&B, one (also named England) travelled north to the Edinburgh & Glasgow and another to the Liverpool, Crosby & Southport Rly. A further locomotive (named Little England) was prepared for the Great Exhibition, becoming exhibit no.509 and receiving a Gold Medal for it's efforts.
     
    A charming contemporary illustration apparently shows 'Little England' and is probably the Great Exhibition engine with a wheelbase of 15ft. Clark also illustrated one of George's engines with a 12ft. 6in. wheelbase, so there were different versions along the same theme sometimes with the same name. Finally, a photograph of 'Dwarf' on the Sandy & Potton confirms the 15ft wheelbase version.
     
    The aforementioned etches provide a good basis for what is essentially a scratch build. Motorising such a tiny loco is always a challenge and I chose to hide an H&S mini motor in the bunker and drop the gears down under the footplate, up into the firebox, to a 40:1 worm and pinion on the driving axle. The gears themselves were robbed from an old toy engine from my childrens wooden train set, (don't worry, the motor was burned out beyond redemption - I'm not that mean)! It all seems to run very sweetly and does the job at a total of 90:1. I'm going with the 15ft wheelbase for my model although I'd like it to be 14ft to represent the original 'Little England' I can't face 'cutting and shutting' the etches and it's not obvious where to loose the 4mm without making it look very odd indeed. I suspect I would need to steel 2mm from behind the drivers somewhere and 2mm in front which is just too much hassle!
     
    I appreciate this little locomotive has graced the pages of RMweb before thanks to the excellent contribution by chris p bacon, however, thanks to the aforementioned gent sending me a set of etches to aid the scratch building of my own attempt, I thought I'd share the progress here. 
     
    The Railway Chronicle for December 16th 1848, carries an article on 'a specimen of a light locomotive, called the 'Little England', which, with its tender on the same frame, will work the ordinary stock of a company. The 'Little England' and tender weigh together when roadworthy 9 tons 5 cwt. It has a 7-in. cylinder, a 12-in. stroke, and 4 ft. 6 in. driving wheels. The diameter of the leading trailing wheels is 3ft. The distance between the extreme centres is 14ft.'  The article goes on to describe the journey from New Cross to Brighton station with three first-class carriages containing 31 persons of note. Its sprightly performance was much praised and George England went on to produce several versions at his Hatcham Iron Works just off the Old Kent Road.
     
    In the Summer of 1849, George made his first sale of his little 2-2-2 engine to the Dundee, Perth & Aberdeen Railway. Before the year was out, a further example (named Dwarf) went to the London & Blackwall, and the following year six more were sent to a variety of destinations. Of these, three (named England, Samson and Hercules) went to the L&B, one (also named England) travelled north to the Edinburgh & Glasgow and another to the L.C&S.Rly. (although what that stands for I'm not sure - help me out someone)! A further locomotive (named Little England) was prepared for the Great Exhibiton, becoming exhibit no.509.
     
    A charming contemporary illustration apparently shows 'Little England' and is probably the Great Exhibition engine with a wheelbase of 15ft. Clark also illustrated one of George's engines with a 12ft. 6in. wheelbase, so there were different versions along the same theme sometimes with the same name. Finally, a photograph of 'Dwarf' on the Sandy & Potton confirms the 15ft wheelbase version.
     
    The aforementioned etches provided a good basis for what was essentially a scratch build. Motorising such a tiny loco is always a challenge and I chose to hide an H&S mini motor in the bunker and drop the gears down under the footplate, up into the firebox, to a 40:1 worm and pinion on the driving axle. The gears themselves were robbed from an old toy engine from my childrens wooden train set, (don't worry, the motor was burned out beyond redemption - I'm not that mean)! It all seems to run very sweetly and does the job at a total of 90:1. I'm going with the 15ft wheelbase for my model although I'd like it to be 14ft to represent the original 'Little England' I can't face 'cutting and shutting' the etches and it's not obvious where to loose the 4mm without making it look very odd indeed. I suspect I would need to steel 2mm from behind the drivers somewhere and 2mm in front which is just too much hassle!
     

     
    Having cobbled together a working gearbox the rest of the loco could be built up. It's a combination of etches and bits of brass and nickel silver. The copper firebox top, dome, chimney and other round parts were turned up on the lathe, an essential tool when modelling engines of this period as one can certainly never expect to find the correct size and shape from proprietary sources.
     

     
    The final chassis has wiper pick-ups to the leading and driving wheels, but the trailing wheels had to be cast from resin. An issue I hadn't foreseen was that the usual steel-tyred wheels ran so close to the sides of the motor that all they wanted to do was stick to it. The only solution was to make them from plastic and the resulting wheels work just fine... thankfully!
     

    Facing right.
     

    Facing Left, and not quite on the rails...!
     

     

     

     

     
  11. 5&9Models

    Saturday morning on the Upper Grange Road

    By 5&9Models,


    Bricklayers Arms c.1845
    Ex petty officer Solly is in a bit of a pickle. 

    Having recently been suspended from active naval service owing to a regrettable incident with a cannon, he has decided to consume an increasing quantity of London’s best porter.

    Unfortunately, not only did the calamity result in the loss of his right leg below the knee, it also neatly removed his left thumb. He now has to swap his crutch to the left in order to hold a bottle in his right hand. After several bottles this balancing act can prove increasingly challenging.
     


    Meanwhile, Archibald Plummer calmly makes his way past the undignified display. He’s seen it all before and he knows it rarely ends well.
     

     
    A cab clatters past the houses at Greyhound Place. Inside, William Rolls peruses the morning papers on the way to his floor cloth manufactory.
     


    In January 1837, James Braby a coach builder of Duke Street, Lambeth was granted patent no.7279 to cover ‘Certain Improvements in the Construction of Carriages’. His patent was well illustrated with drawings of three designs for hackney carriages and one omnibus. The first, a one horse hackney carriage is the subject of my model. It's cast in white metal as a ‘kit’ and the driver, a heavily modified ModelU character. The horse was a spare from the scrap box.
     


    Whether James Braby actually built any of these carriages is unknown. Unlike many inventors he was at least in a position to manufacture his designs, even if only in model form to promote his ideas to prospective clients.

    Figures are ModelU’s finest (with minor and occasionally major modifications). The layout is my ongoing project to recreate Bricklayers Arms, Bermondsey, c.1845 in 4mm scale. Apologies for the low resolution of these images, I must buy a new camera!


  12. 5&9Models

    Tartan paint !

    By 5&9Models,


    Tartan Paint
    Continuing the theme with some ModelU 3D printed figures, I've been experimenting with 'Tartan paint'.
     
    Seems to work quite well on Rose's shawl as she has it out with Charlotte over some recent unladylike behaviour. I mean really! What is she doing out in the street without her bonnet on? Disgraceful!
     

     
     

     

     
    Apologies for the horrible model makers fingers!
     

     

  13. 5&9Models
    In 1845 the Swiss engineer John George Bodmer constructed a pair of 2-2-2 locomotives at his Manchester workshops for the Joint Committee of the Brighton, Croydon and Dover Railways. Born in Zurich in 1786 and later apprenticed to a millwright, the young engineer showed much promise and a strong talent for innovation. He moved to Lancashire in the 1820s but continued his connections with Switzerland and Baden in Germany. His particular invention was that of an opposed cylinder steam engine in which two pistons moved in opposite directions driving two crankshafts, a 'balanced' engine. He continued to expand this idea and the two locomotives for the Joint Committee were his most famous, or perhaps infamous, machines.
     
    Purchased for £2100 the Committee took delivery of the engines in July and December 1845 and numbered them 123 and 124. The locomotives each had a pair of double pistons, the conrod of one passing through the hollow conrod of the other. This complicated arrangement was powerful but very costly to maintain. The tenders supplied were carried on six wheels with a mechanically driven feed pump mounted between the frames to feed the loco via a substantial hollow pipe which also served as the coupling between tender and loco! Typically the loco itself had no brakes but the tender sported huge wedges of timber with iron shoes which when wound down, wedged themselves between the wheels and the rails which in extreme circumstances could lift the tender clear of the rails altogether. Predictably this had disastrous consequences and the engine allocated to the SER after the dissolution of the Joint Committee left the rails at Pluckley on the 23rd May 1846 killing the driver. However a subsequent enquiry proved that a large stone left on the line by errant youths was the cause of this particular accident. Unfortunately this did nothing to assuage the opinion that this 'foreign' locomotive was more trouble than it was worth and after some modifications and very little further service the loco was sent to Ashford where it languished until being dismantled in 1880.
     
    The Brighton engine had better luck although it was rebuilt first by Craven, then again by Stroudley who even saw fit to name it 'Seaford'. Thankfully a photo exists of it in this guise but it can be seen that not a great deal of Bodmers original design survived, certainly not his balanced pistons which did not survive the Craven rebuild.
     
    And so to the model. A friend of mine declared that he was going to build Seaford which prompted my response that i was intending to build the 1845 version. "Let's build them simultaneously and do a joint article for the HMRS" he said. "Great idea" I replied not fully aware of what I was letting myself in for.
     
    Nevertheless the short straw had been drawn and everything else put on hold to scratch build Bodmers 1845 balanced locomotive in 4mm scale to EM standards. Since nothing about it is conventional it has tried my patience to the extreme and progress in painfully slow, however I hope the following photos show that it is at least getting somewhere and I hope to be able to add to this blog in a positive manner in the not too distant future.
     
    If you never hear from me again you'll know it didn't go well!
     

     
    Portescap gears in a scratch built box to get them in the right positions.
     

     
    It fits, just!
     

     
    Haycock firebox. I hate doing these....!
     

     
    Frames and springs. The trailing springs were double coil springs hidden in the axle guide casting as per the tender.
     

     
    The story so far.....
     

     
    Thanks for looking!
  14. 5&9Models
    London & Greenwich Railway No.1 Royal William - Pt.5
     
    This is the last part of the series on Royal William for now until I make the Stephenson tender to go with it.
     
    It's all done, an interesting project and a good opportunity to try out a few ideas on the cheap! So the lessons learned are as follows:
     
    Sprung plunger pick-ups on such a tiny engine were more trouble than they were worth. In the end I simply fitted some tee shaped wiper pick-ups between the wheels. Easy, simple and effective.
     
    The use of a coarse worm and pinion with such a low ratio gearbox has created what I can only describe as a fine stutter as it moves. It runs beautifully slowly but the click, click of each pinion tooth engaging with the worm just shows. As it speeds up that disappears but it's a useful lesson. A finer worm and pinion and higher ratio box would be a better balance. I'm sure this is quite obvious to those who build engines more often than me!
     
    The casting of the main chunks in white metal has worked very well. Anything lighter and I'm sure it just wouldn't have the weight to pull itself along. As it is, it will pull a short train of third class carriages at distinctly third class speed. Good enough for me!
     
    I haven't yet fitted the nameplates. They're only small but the name Royal William is quite long and rather fills the boiler side. I might fit them with a spot of PVA so they can be picked off again without trace if I decide they look too daft.
     
    I hope this blog has inspired somebody to have a play with those odd motors and gears and wheels that gather in the bits box! Go for it!
     

  15. 5&9Models

    William Bridges Adams Light Locomotive

    By 5&9Models,


    Adams Light Locomotive in 4mm scale
    In the latter half of the 1840s, William Bridges Adams began to dabble in locomotive design with the help of several key figures, particularly the resident engineer of the Eastern Counties Railway, James Samuel. He had established a works at Fair Field, Bow in 1843 for the purposes of expanding his business building carriages and wagons for both rail and road and locomotive construction was a natural progression.
     
    Together they developed the principle of the light locomotive which was proffered as an alternative to the ever increasing weight and power of railway locomotives in general, particularly with the gauge wars and stiff competition between the mighty broad gauge with it's powerful Gooch designed passenger engines and the ultimate symbol of power and speed on Stephenson's gauge, Thomas Russell Crampton's mighty 'Liverpool'. 
     
    Adams argued that the wear and tear on the permanent way was unacceptable, it being barely able to keep pace with locomotive and rolling stock development. The huge volume of dead weight hauled around by large engines meant that much of the time, particularly on branch lines, the arrangement was highly uneconomical. Adams offered an alternative in his lightweight locomotive and carriage, either as a fixed vehicle with engine and carriage on one frame like 'Fair Field' for the broad gauge and 'Enfield' for the Eastern Counties, or a paired light engine and tender carriage. His vision and that of James Samuel was for frequent light 'shuttle' services and it could be said that considering the make-up of todays trains on lesser lines, he was way ahead of his time. This locomotive and its tender/carriage was first illustrated in Adams' 1850 publication 'Road Progress' as a fold out plate. Essentially the same design appeared in one of his many (32) patents, No.13653 of 1851 and the culmination of this design was Ariel's Girdle displayed at the Great Exhibition in the same year, although this was made by Kitson, Thompson & Hewitson of Leeds since Adams was bankrupt by the summer of 1850 and the Fair Field Works sold off. The design concept was sufficiently noteworthy for Zerah Colburn to illustrate it in his 'Locomotive Engineering and the Mechanism of Railways' in 1871, although the tender carriage in Colburn's drawing is considerably shorter than the original and looks decidedly odd. Stephenson's continued this basic design and one of their versions was illustrated by Daniel Kinnear Clarke in his book 'Railway Machinery'. It is more sophisticated machine and makes for an interesting comparison.
     

    This drawing is reproduced courtesy of the National Archives.
     
    My fascination for the life and work of William Bridges Adams is well established and aside from writing his biography (an ongoing long term project requiring an immense amount of research not helped by Coronavirus lockdown restrictions), I have an ambition to model at least a good representative selection of his various creations. The 4mm scale model described here is the first of my efforts towards modelling his locomotives. During 2020, the Bodmer single occasionally drove me mad so I felt it was important to have a side project to restore the equilibrium, a sort of yin and yang approach. I would not normally have two loco projects on the go simultaneously in the fear than neither of them would get finished however, in this case it proved a blessing. The following photographs show its current state with much still to do including the tender/carriage.
     
    I have to say I find it one of the most attractive (dare I say sexy?!) little engines I have ever seen. Further pictures will be posted with some constructional details in due course.
     

     
    The wheels are only just on (I don't like to force them home until I'm ready to fit them for the final time) and the splashers balanced in place. The footplate side sheets are made but not yet fitted. Cylinders and motion remain to be finished and may well be fitted after painting. They are very delicate and if I gum them up with paint (schoolboy error) I will not forgive myself! There is a little more plumbing to be done such as the steam pipes from the dome and the injectors but it is almost there.
     

     
    The drop in the buffer beam allowed the smokebox door room to open since the boiler was fairly low slung. Adams was a great believer in keeping the centre of gravity as low as possible,  a popular theory of the time. The idea was that it made for steadier and safer running but this was not quite the case. The footplate was no wider than the outside edge of the splashers and therefore quite narrow. Later versions including those made by Stephenson who continued the design were wider.
     

     
    The coupling to the tender/carriage can be seen and th two brass pipes are the feed from the water tank, a long wide shallow container which sat under the tender/carriage. Apparently water from the well tank under the boiler was circulated back through this tank to keep the passengers warm in cold weather. Clever!
     
  16. 5&9Models
    The London & Croydon Railway ran it's first trains in 1839, and typically for Railways of that period with no facilities to build it's own locomotives, the L & C turned to established engineering companies. Some of them, G & J Rennie for example had reputations forged in other industries but we're nevertheless keen to exploit the rapidly growing demand for engines to run on the newly created iron road.
     
    Aside from a later locomotive Coryndon designed by John Chanter and built by Peter Borrie & Co. to research coal burning, the L & C's stable of eight locomotives came from only two manufacturers; the aforementioned G & J Rennie, and the Manchester firm of Sharp & Co. even at this early stage, Sharp's had settled on what could be termed a standard design. A compact and reliable 2-2-2 with a large distinctive brass dome to the front of the boiler and gracefully curved outside frames. A sturdy four wheel tender completed the ensemble, and these diminutive but effective engines provided the first motive power for a good number of railways both at home and abroad.
     
    No.5 was constructed by Sharp & Co. In 1839. Sporting 13" x 18" cylinders and 5' 6" driving wheels it weighed in at 13tons 13cwt, the makers number was 25. Initially working on the L & C it was included like all it's stablemates in the 1842 Joint Committee amalgamation to emerge later as South Eastern Railway No.5 after the dissolution in 1845. Two years later it was overhauled at Deptford (possibly receiving steel cladding to the boiler and improved tender brakes) and sent to work the Greenwich line. Further postings were made to the Tunbridge Wells branch and finally the Maidstone branch before being condemned and dismantled around 1859.
     
    Further details of the building of the model can be found in the latest Modellers Digest http://www.lbscr.org/Models/Journal/LBSCR-Modellers-Digest-5.pdf which I highly recommend. You will find many more excellent articles on some fascinating modelling projects. Read on.....!

  17. 5&9Models

    Greyhound Place

    By 5&9Models,

    I think I have finally completed the buildings at Greyhound Place, Bermondsey. This is the collection of buildings next to the Greyhound Pub at the Eastern end of Bricklayers Arms c1845. I've slightly tweaked the date of the layout by a year as I want things to show signs of settling in, and it allows a bit more artistic licence when it comes to the rolling stock.
     
    These images show the back yards, there are only a couple of children to add and a few bits of general domestic 'stuff' then we're about done. A couple of tin baths would look about right, and maybe a basket of more washing, although I have to admit, I don't think the maid at no.3 has done a very good job!
     
    The next step is to complete the Greyhound Bridge and then move west with the cattle yard and stables.
     
    I'll post some pictures of the fronts once I've given No.7 a front step.
     
     






  18. 5&9Models

    Bury goods 0-4-0

    By 5&9Models,


    Bury Goods 0-4-0
    This scratch build is something I have been wanting to do for years but have never quite plucked up the courage.
     
    There are several 'sticking points' in modelling a bar framed Bury loco, the obvious one being the distinctive wheels. All Bury locos had them so unless you get those right you might as well not bother with the rest. Thankfully, a friend very kindly drew some up and 3D printed the centres to be fitted into Gibson tyres of the appropriate diameter. However, I found the prints to be exquisitely detailed but not very strong. So I decided the best way forward was to use one of the prints as a master and cast a set in white metal. These came out well and are considerably stronger than the prints. The down side is that they are conductive so once cleaned up on the lathe and fitted with tyres, the centres had to be bored out and a tiny plastic sleeve forced in before being bored out again and secured to the axle.
     
    I first made a master for the bar frames out of styrene to use as a master for casting them in white metal but decided that the castings would not be robust enough so instead some brass bar was used to fabricate the frames. They're now plenty strong enough for the job as I made them slightly chunkier than the originals for peace of mind. Springs were made from some very useful etches, bearings added and a buffer beam built up from nickel silver and brass. 
     
    The buffer beam was soldered in position but a trial fit of the wheels revealed that the buffer centre height was too low by just over 1mm. Rather than unsolder and move the buffer beam higher which would look daft, I decided to unsolder the bearings and fit them lower down in the frames. This sounded like a horrible job, unsoldering the bearings whilst not accidentally disturbing any other soldered joints. However, it went well and before refitting the bearings I cut and fitted the footplate to ensure everything was square and spaced properly. This actually made it easier to get the bearing in exactly the right place. Lesson learned for when I tackle the Bury passenger 2-2-0 later on.
     
    The photo shows progress so far. The next job will be to scratch build the gearbox and ensure the motor sits at the right level so it can hide inside the boiler. Something tells me that this won't be particularly straightforward but I feel up for the challenge. Wish me luck...!
     


  19. 5&9Models
    London & Greenwich Railway - Royal William – Part One


     
    The London & Greenwich Railway opened for traffic in 1836. Built on approximately four miles of brick arched viaduct, it was the first Railway to serve the Capital. Royal William was L&G No.1, built by Charles Tayleur & Company to Stephenson’s ‘Planet’ design. Although there is a fairly well known tinted drawing of this locomotive, we are lucky to have a drawing from the Vulcan Foundry archives, which confirms (or otherwise) the accuracy of the more familiar image. Combining both sources provides a fairly good guide and certainly enough information to have a go at building a model of this little engine, which in my opinion is a historically significant locomotive and deserves more attention.
     
    Scratchbuilding such a small loco in 4mm scale throws up myriad problems to be overcome. The first and most obvious is how to squeeze in a motor and gearbox where it is clear there is ‘nowhere to hide’. Building in EM helps as in 00 gauge the wheels would foul the boiler. I chanced on a small 12v motor and spur gear box on a well-known internet auction site. It was only a few pounds with free delivery from China (if you are prepared to wait a few weeks). The shaft output speed is a mere 100rpm. This may even prove to be too slow in the long run, however, it will not be required to take charge of a top link express so it’s just as well. With a bit of fettling I managed to shoehorn it inside the brass tube boiler with a slot cut in the bottom to accommodate one of the larger spurs and the pinion. A ‘new old stock’ Romford worm and wheel gear set was rescued from the scrap box. The worm was bored out to push fit onto the 3mm output shaft of the gearbox and the pinion sleeved to fit onto a 2mm axle. I don’t know what the reduction ratio is but it’s very crude and needs to be as the gearbox provides all the reduction you could ever wish for. I expect if the engine was set against a snail in a race it would lose by some margin.
     
    The second obvious sticking point was the wheels. The spokes are round, straight and sport a small decorative ball about half way along each one. Cleary proprietary wheels would not do, but could at least provide a steel tyre.
     
    I started with a driving wheel at 5ft dia., or 20mm in 4mm scale. A 2mm axle bearing was used as a hub to which twenty 0.7mm brass wire spokes were soldered. I then threaded a small nut and bolt through the centre and mounted it in a drill chuck on the lathe. Very gently the spokes were marked at the correct length all round and then trimmed to length. Tiny brass wire rings were made from some wire, which once graced a rather nice bottle of red wine (do they do they to stop the bottle escaping or persuade you to spend more?), and these were threaded on each spoke and spot soldered in place. The rim and tyre of the wheel were butchered from a Gibson driver, the rim being cut from its spokes and filed to take each new spoke before the whole lot was glued in place. Finally the hub was filled with Chavant and the completed wheel, sans tyre, was placed in a mould to be cast in whitemetal.
     

     
    I then turned my attention to the leading wheel. This is 3’ 6” or 14mm with 14 decorative spokes as per the driver. Choosing a small enough hub was a problem so instead I did away with the idea and soldered together a series of V shaped pieces of wire set inside a hand bent rim of the correct diameter to fit inside a steel tyre. These were soldered to a single full length spoke already soldered to the rim. The resulting blob of solder in the middle forms the hub. Under close inspection the spokes don’t quite line up but hidden behind the outside axlebox and frame this will not be an issue. The whole wheel was then clamped in the lathe chuck and the centre drilled out. Once done, the wheel joined the driver in a mould and both were cast in whitemetal.
     

     
    The freshly cast wheels were popped back in the lathe, re-drilled, trued up and generally tinkered with until they ran smooth and true, The final job was to fit them into their steel tyres, de-grease and etch prime. The last job will be to fit nylon insulating bushes to the centre to isolate them from the axle. Pick up will be in the usual way from the back of the tyre.
     

     
    Other major sections of the loco such as the smokebox, firebox, chimney and frames were fabricated in styrene and cast in whitemetal. The need to create as much tractive ballast in such a small engine is paramount and by casting the bigger parts as solid lumps it should help a great deal.
     

  20. 5&9Models

    The Greyhound

    By 5&9Models,

    A bit of history
     
    The earliest record of a tenant in The Greyhound public house was a Mary Stiff in 1822. The Upper Grange Road (now Dunton Road) Bermondsey was likely a relatively quiet lane leading off the Kent Road before the arrival of the Bricklayers Arms Extension Railway in 1843/4. At first it was suggested that the railway should cross the road on the level, but the contractors Grissell & Peto constructed a bridge to carry the road over the four running lines. The inconvenience to the occupants of the Greyhound and the neighbouring houses in Greyhound Place is well recorded in the Committee Minutes of the BAER held in the National Archives at Kew. Significant amounts of compensation was paid out for the inconvenience of having a large brick structure right outside the front of the dwellings. The owner of the Greyhound, William Rolls received £2310, a huge sum in 1844. The tenant at this time was William James Peirse and his four daughters.
     
    The Greyhound itself was significantly altered as a result of the rising road in front of it and the public rooms were moved up to the first floor on a level with the new road. Thankfully one photograph exists taken at the end of the 19th century which just about shows this unusual arrangement. Access to the six houses further along was via a walkway underneath the frontage.
     
    The model
     
    The basic shell of the building is in 3mm perspex which I find very robust and resistant to warping over time. Brickwork is embossed styrene, windows in clear styrene with fine strips of styrene overlaid to produce the window frame. The sash windows at the back actually work, a completely unnecessary indulgence! It is not known what the back yard looked like. An aerial photograph taken in the 1930s gives a rough idea but it is so indistinct as to be of no real help. I added a stable block which is rather unlikely but in studying the history of the Greyhound and it's tenant W. J. Peirse, who left the tenancy in his will "to my four dear daughters", I grew rather fond of him and thought he deserved such a luxury.
     
    The figures are from scratch, perhaps William's eldest daughter Martha is telling the potman just how queer the rocking motion of the carriages on the new railway made her feel on her recent trip to Croydon. The yard surface is decorating filler with the cobbles scratched in. There are further buildings to come, particularly those of Greyhound Place, and of course the Upper Grange Road Bridge itself which is in the process of construction.
     


  21. 5&9Models
    I've finally completed my scratch built Bodmer single no.124 of the London & Brighton Railway. It's taken a year of blood sweat and tears, trying to be too clever and paying the price!
     
    Details of the project have been promised to the HMRS in the form of an article for their Journal, so rather than spoil that I'll just deposit a couple of images here in the meantime.
     
    Further details of this project can be found on a previous blog entry entitled 'Build a Bodmer Competition - not!', or a more comprehensive write up should be in the next HMRS Journal out this summer.
     

     

     

  22. 5&9Models

    A complete whitewash

    By 5&9Models,


    Bricklayers Arms c1845
    Jonathan enjoys his job at Bricklayers Arms. Usually he is gainfully employed tending to the bovine guests arriving at the cattle yard. He couldn't say for sure what happens to them once they leave the yard, but given the profusion of tanneries in he area we can be fairly certain it is a one way trip. He makes their lives as comfortable as he can whilst they are in his charge.
     

     
    Occasionally there are sheep to manage but these are less rewarding owing to their irksome tendency to bolt. However, today does not look like it is going to be so enjoyable.
     

     
    He has been given the task of whitewashing the new cattle wagons arriving this morning, they are larger than the previous wagons. He thinks this is a direct result of two beasts jumping out on their journey through north Kent and being, as reported in the Illustrated London News, 'dashed to atoms' by a train passing in the opposite direction.
     

     
    The whitewash will no doubt end up on his clothes, his shoes, and on his hands and face. Jonathan is diligent but clumsy and we think he may need to move his tub much closer to the wagon!
     

     
    It was fun to build the SER cattle wagon with doors open for a change, something you don't often see. But perhaps I need to get out more...
     
  23. 5&9Models
    Just to demonstrate how much better the well-to-do had it in the mid 19th century, these three 1st class carriages would have conveyed the wealthier passenger, often with their own road carriage on a truck and their horses in a box at the end of the train.
     
    The first is a coupe carriage of the London & Brighton Railway. An extra fee was charged on top of the first class fare for those who wished to travel in the end compartments. This was more for privacy than the view (and if running behind the engine then privacy went out the window anyway as the driver and fireman would have a pretty good view in)!
     
    The second is a more standard three compartment first from the London & Brighton and the third is a conjectural kit-bash to represent a first of the London & Croydon Railway. We don't know exactly what these looked like but this was made from three compartments of the coupe carriage and is probably not far off what might have been.




  24. 5&9Models
    Another vehicle to add to the London & Birmingham Railway layout I will never have! However, that’s never an excuse not to make a model of whatever you fancy is it?

    This little van is from a drawing by Joseph Wright of a water ballasted ‘break waggon’ pre1845. The drawing gives his London address which makes it a very early vehicle, so just right for Bricklayers Arms (if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s for completely the wrong railway), but let’s not worry about that.
     
    Excellent masters (as always) by Simon Turner and cast as a kit. Went together well so I might just have to make another one...


  25. 5&9Models
    Well it's not every day you have the excuse to use the word triumvirate but today I'm feeling lucky!
     
    These three are a bit late for my own layout, but never too late for the glass cabinet screwed to my living room wall. The Beadle wagon is a recent addition to the range, crisp masters by Simon Turner, lettering transfers by POW sides.
     
    The Lime wagon and Booth Bros. wagons are revivals of excellent Woodham Wagon Works kits, masters by Burgundy many moons ago, but I made a new mould for the Lime Wagon and intend doing the same for the Booth Bros. at some point in the not too distant future. Lettering by my own fists of ham.
     



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