Ian Major

My thanks to George for his kind words and also to Adrian for his like. Actually I was stood next to you two gents at Telford when we were discussing George's latest kit acquisition but I am such a quiet person that you wouldn't know that I was there. Glory, glory, some more progress. I completed the brake rigging. The kit supplies 1mm copper wire for the cross shafts but they looked a bit underfed to me. So I sheathed them in lengths of 1.5mm OD thin walled brass tube. The kit also supplies 0.7mm brass wire for the pull rods but no cranks. The instructions say to bend the pull rod in to a "L" shaped and solder this directly on to the cross shaft. I decided to make a couple of cranks out of scrap etch brass. These were sandwiched between two of the pieces of tube which makes a better looking job. (Interestingly, the MACAW B comes with etched cranks, 1.5mm wire for the cross shaft and some, not all, components to make DC brake gear. Excellent.) The other end of the pull rods I supported with loops of 0.5mm brass wire rather than have them rub on top of one of the axles as per the instructions. I also fitted the brake levers using short lengths of the tube for spacers and to represent the nut holding the lever on. The handle should point more upwards rather than horizontal, but I found it fouled the nearby lashing ring. So the lever is actually on back to front. Hopefully not too many people will notice. The next photo shows these in place. < The photo also shows the 0.5mm holes that I have drilled which will take the sheet hooks and the stanchion retaining chains. Next photo is a side view at rail level of the wagon on some track. It is just possible to see the brake gear. Well I know it is there! The bolsters are sitting a trifle low but that will be corrected when the plastic false floor is finally fitted. < I turned to the buffers - literally. The kit supplies white metal rams but I prefer steel ones. So I turned a set. For springing I used 3 x 4mm steel springs which I got from Eileen's Emporium. The tails are threaded 8BA and held in place by 8BA nuts. I have a Connoisseur MACAW B kit and I will be semi scratch building a MACAW B in parallel. Whilst making the buffers for the "H" I will make a further 8 for the two "Bs". When (if?) I finish three wagons they will extend to 3ft or more when coupled together. The photo shows the buffers completed but only temporarily pushed in to the buffer beams. < The next photo is a comparison of the buffer components for the "H" and "Bs" (on the left) and the components for a spare buffer of the type I made for my Connoisseur LORIOT M. I couldn't get enough clearance behind the buffer beam for springing on the LORIOT so I opted for genuine self contained buffers. Basically the underside of the buffer body is drilled and tapped 14BA to take a 14BA grub screw. The base of the body is blind. The ram is turned without a tail. Instead the the ram has a slot milled in to its side and a fairly shallow hole drilled in to the rear. The hole keeps the spring in line and is just deep enough to contain the spring when it is totally compressed. The grub screw engages the slot and stops the ram falling out. This sort of thing has been done many times before but this is my way of doing it. < I have ordered my Xmas and next Birthday present from my wife. Well she is giving it to me, not making it - well you know what I mean. I am upgrading from a micro lathe to a mini lathe. I will leave turning the remaining 8 buffer rams until I get my hands on it. It should make the work a lot easier and much more accurate (no flexing etc). When I first got my micro lathe I was discussing my acquisition with a fellow G0G member whilst we were waiting to get into the Telford exhibition (after a fire alarm). He told me that what I had bought was "crap". Rather put a dampener on the proceedings. So this time I am keeping the detail to myself and only sharing the results. Onward and upward. Ian.

I have to admit that if you hadn't pointed out the imperfection in the first photo I would not have spotted it. I still think it is a fantastic piece of workmanship that leaves me in awe. A stray hair puts you in illustrious company. When the main lens for the Hubble telescope was polished to shape highly accurate jigs were used. One had a hair get in to it resulting in the telescope being myopic ultimately required a space walk to fit some "specs". If they are affected thus what chance do we modellers stand? I look forward to your next installment. Ian.

Very nicely done. It is a big step up from "N" to "0"! What experience do you have of making kits from metal? If you have limited experience I would suggest a Connoisseur "Skill builder kit" such as the LNER LOWMAC (see link here). You can download the instruction booklet to get an idea of what you would be getting before buying. They are good kits to make and the instructions give advice on how to construct brass kits. Ideal. If you have loads of experience making brass kits I will go back to sleep. Keep up the good work. Ian.

Magnificent. The rendition of pipework both inside and outside of the cab is second to none. Seeing Weymouth running through Curzon Street transports me back to the early '60s. Then I used to see WC and BB class locos running between Honeybourne and Evesham pulling football specials from the south to Birmingham - Saturdays Only of course. Our local signalman would always give me the nod when one was due to come through. Until the later arrival of the odd Britania they were the only Pacifics that I saw on that line. Ian.

I have had a three month break from working on my projects due to other activities including rewiring the NECG0G test track. My youngest grandson wanted a train set so I had a very pleasant few weeks making the board with legs and fitting the track. Some of the track was new, the rest was refurbished track that had been my son's. Also refurbished were some of my son's wagons and four wheel coaches. We bought my grandson a new Hornby 0-6-0 loco which we gave to him on his birthday. Talk about a dog with two tails. Everyone was very happy. Back to the MACAW. The result of my removing the lip around the sides was the supplied bolster castings were now too short. I made a master to cast longer replacements. I then made molds and cast replacement bolsters. The picture shows the length of the master compared with the original. I cast a couple and tried them out. They just needed a little fettling to fit. The kit supplies 6BA screws for bogie pivots. These screw upwards in to 6BA nuts which are themselves soldered in to a box that fits on the underside of the body. I prefer to have non-threaded bearing surfaces. I turned a pivot as shown in the next photo. The photo shows the box, spacer washer (to adjust ride height), spring, washer for the spring to bear on and nut. Below is one of the turned pivots. The 6BA brass washer sits on a shoulder at the end of the pivot thread so the nut locks on to it without totally crushing the spring. BTW - the buffer at the top is a spare from a Connoisseur LOMAC. The hole in the underside is tapped (as are those fitted to to my LOMAC) so that I can make them self contained. The following is a scan of my chicken scratchings with the pivot details and a few other things. I notice my spelling is awful in these notes. (Can't get the staff these days!) I fitted the pivots, trussing and brake "V's". I designed the pivots to be fixed to the body and mounted pointing downwards so that if the nut comes adrift when thrashing around the track the bogie won't become detached. The brake handle guards supplied with the kit are of the pin down variety. All the photos that I have seen of these wagons in GWR service show the ratchet type. The guard from the kit has gone in to my spares box to go on to another wagon. I made a pair of ratchet type guards with a length of 2x2mm angle and some 1.5mm brass strip. I should have used 1.5x1.5mm angle but had none. I reduced the angle to match the strip. Basically I filed up a 14mm length of angle to represent the teeth. I used high temperature solder to attach the strip to the bottom of this then folded the strip around to make the guard. The photo shows a trial fixing of this on to the wagon. ... and my construction notes. I took dimensions from the kit parts which is the upper of the two diagrams. To reduce any tremble I made what is in effect a top hat bearing with an open end. The central bore of this is a close sliding fit on the pivot. I fitted one bogie with one of these which allows no fore and aft or sided to side rocking. The other bogie is not so fitted so gives plenty of compensation. The photo shows the under side of the bogie thus fitted.... ....and the top view. The "rim" of the top hat replaces the spacer washer. My dimensioned notes. The next photo shows the brake guards permanently fitted. The bogies are attached for now. The nearest is the one that is top hat fitted. I have also added Slater's cast wagon couplings. Finally the wagon on its feet (shame I left the coupling links knotted. What was that about getting staff?) The plastic false floor is removed whilst I am soldering parts on. Next up will be finishing off the brake rigging, then detailing the sides and fitting the buffers. Hopefully these won't wait another three months. Ian.

My word George. When you said to me at the last High Lane meeting that this project was coming on in leaps and bounds you weren't joking. It is looking fantastic. When I get the test track wiring completed (a few more weeks) I will get the chance to look at it in the flesh again. Ian.

Time for an update. I have been working on the models - honest. I temporarily assembled the bogies and put them under the body to check for ride height. It looks a little low compared with some of my other wagons, but the kit includes packing washers to address this. Next was to make the bolster retaining brackets. For these I milled up some 2 x 2mm brass angle. This I cut to 5mm lengths, gave them some rivet detail and shaped the top corner. To help align these parts when soldering I milled up a dummy wooden bolster 6 x 7mm cross section. I had made a 40thou Plastikard floor which was scribed to represent the planking. The bolster brackets cut in to the floor. So when I fitted each pair I pushed the floor down on the brackets. This left a mark that showed me where to cut the slots for the brackets. The next photo shows some of the brackets solder in, with the dummy bolster holding some of the brackets in place ready for soldering. There is one of the stanchion holders pushed in to its hole to align the dummy bolster. When I had fitted the end pair of brackets, I took a photo of the end of the wagon, temporarily on its bogies, to see how the brackets looked. They appear a little bit well fed. The 2mm angle is approx. a scale 4 inches. I guess the prototype used 2.5 inch angle. If I get around to making a MACAW B I will use 1.5mm angle and reduce the bracket height to 4.5mm. I compared the following photo with the prototype picture in the previous entry. I completed fitting the brackets on one side and test fitted the false floor. Where I have wire along the top of the side curb rail it has a grove where the solder is drawn in to the joint. To fill this groove, I used 70 degree solder, which bonds with the higher melting point solder but fills any grooves nicely. Using high temp solder for this resulted in the solder being drawn into the lower side of the wire. I will dress this when the rest of the soldering is completed. Again, on any latter MACAWs I make, I may use 1mm half round brass wire for this lip. Now for the brackets on the other side. Edit. Forgot to mention that I made and fitted some reinforcing plates around the buffer holes as per the prototype photos that I have seen. I also added the clips for the laden bills(?) made from small rectangles of 0.5mm nickle silver, with a "U" shaped piece of 0.3mm brass wire. The other items were the brackets on the solebars behind the buffer beams that I also added. Ian.

Marc has supplied a photo of the underside of a new(ish) PECO point. I have added a red arrow to show the quite well hidden factory fitted "gotcha link" which we cut to allow the switch rails to be bonded to their respective stock rails. Note the two frog exit rails are factory bonded together. Hope this is helpful. Ian.

Interesting in deed. I have had a look at DCC Wiki on the use of PECO Unifrog points. (https://dccwiki.com/PECO_Unifrog) . It indicates that the points do not need modification for DCC but as I surmised suggests there is a risk of shorts across wheel flanges. In the entry they quote PECO, part of which I requote:- "As supplied, the turnout is wired completely “live”, except for the frog tip and wing rails, and can be used straight out of the packet without any further modification (and so behaves like an Insulfrog). The stock rails are wired to the closure rails at the factory, which in turn are connected to the corresponding frog rail. This means the turnout is completely live (except for the tip of the frog), no extra wiring required. If the turnout is being used as a switch to isolate a section of track then it is simple job to remove the wire that joins the centre rail and stock rail and it will work like a current Insulfrog. Peco provides a pair of pigtails to allow wiring the turnout to behave like an Electrofrog. (They have been spot welded onto the appropriate places.)" This states that the closure rail and corresponding stock rail are permanently wired together. However, the points in use definitely had a factory installed wire link between the closure rails, which makes me think these are not Unifrog points. Andrew, when we lift the last point I will photograph the underside and compare notes with you. We submitted our replies at the same time! Ian.

Andrew, Interesting point you make. With Unifrog points, does this mean that there is now no requirement to bond the stock rails to the closure rail? Bonding is the recommendation for DCC. It was this bonding plus the new link that created the short. Without the bonding added and with the link in place, the frog and both closure/switch rails are connected together. I can see situations occurring where, for example, a Dapol wagon with its back to back that varies as it moves could short the open open switch rail to its stock rail. That at the very least would confuse the frog juicer! I think I will do more research on this. Ian.

George/Mark, We have one more turnout to address. It would be worthwhile to photograph the underside to show to others the problem we hit. For the benefit of those not present, the gotcha occurred on the newer PECO turnouts. They are manufactured with a link between the closure rails, so when the closure rails were bonded to the stock rails the short was produced. This link is separate to the wire that connects the various parts of the crossing (frog) to the outside world. The link does not exist on the older PECO turnouts hence they did not short. Ian.

Time to start brass bashing. I detached and cleaned up the basic parts. Next, I used my Hold and Fold to bend the end curb rails back and forth until they fractured. I did the same for parts that would have made the upper part of the channel on the side curb rails. The side curb rails were folded up. The ends and edges needed tidying up. This is the point where I usually think “what have I done”! Perhaps I should call this thread “How to ruin a perfectly good kit”. I decided to try making a small mock up from some scrap brass. I used a length of 0.7mm rod to represent the bulb shape and a piece of 40thou Plastikard to represent the floor. I temporarily mounted it on the kits buffer beam, photographed it and compared it with a detail view taken from the Ongar photo. Looks reasonable. So, I added the 0.7mm rod to the actual model. I used wooden pegs to hold most of the length of wire but used metal grips where I was spot soldering. The square section steel block was held in the position shown to stop the rod from rolling over the top of the curb rail. The rod was soldered using 188 degree solder. A check was done with buffer beam in place to see that all was well. When the bolster brackets are fitted I will run some low melt solder along the top edges and sand it to the final shape. I have only formed four rivets around the coupling area rather than the six indicated by the etch since the prototype end views that I have seen match this. Around the buffers I have not formed the rivets since I intend to make some overlays with the rivet detail on. In parallel I worked my way through the stanchion brackets drilling them out. To hold them whilst doing this I went high tech. One part was a lollypop stick with a hole drilled in it. The other was half a wooden peg with the slot enlarged where its spring used to sit to clear the body of the bracket. The next photo shows this contraption in use. The peg does not press on the hollow part of the bracket so wont crush it. Ian.

Whilst the Fruit Van is crawling through my paint shop it is time to start the MACAW H. I treated myself to a Connoisseur kit at the Leigh Show. After seeing Raymond Whalley’s build of MACAW B (see here) I fancied building one. When I got it home, I realised that I had acquired the MACAW H, which is a shorter version of the MACAW B. Hey, ho. A slight change of plan! First thing was to look in my copy of Atkins, Beard and Tourret (hereafter referred to as ABT). From ABT I gleaned the following. The MACAW H were built under two diagrams from 1927 to 1943 when they were recoded BOGIE BOLSTER A. They were 35ft over headstocks, 20-ton (later 25 ton) rail and timber wagons. Dia J25 Built 1927 to 1936. Typical Tare 14-3. Total 285. They had end curb rails, DC brakes with off centre brake lever and intermediate shaft on separate V-hangars. A diagram is on page 207, Fig 178. Photo on page 206, plate 243 show No 107361, built L1189 in 1937 with disc wheels. On page 206, plate 244 shows No 107285 with spoked wheels. Dia J30 Built 1940 to 1941. Typical Tare 14-6. Total 20. No end curb rails. Rachet lever brakes. A diagram is on p213 Fig 186. Dated April 1941. A photo on p214 Plate 255 shows No 32728 with disc wheels. The MACAW H and MACAW B wagons made during the second war had no end curb rails. Cost reduction/reduce amount of steel required? Make them easily end loadable? The kit. Now it gets interesting. The kit instructions say it makes a Dia J30 wagon. However, the kit has pin down brake levers and end curb rails, which makes it a hybrid of the two diagrams. I could see my piercing saw waving at me from its hook! I looked at doing a Dia J25. This would involve making DC brakes (no problem) but it would make the rivet pattern on the solebar overlays completely wrong. I opted to do the Dia J30 and remove the end curb rails. Resources on the Web. As usual I looked at Paul Bartlett’s collection. <link>. There are many photos of bolster wagons. Quite a few show them converted as crane match trucks/runners or modified for private use eg at steelworks. Another site I used was “UK Preserved Railway Stock List” link. <link> . It doesn’t appear to have any of its own photos but does point to plenty. I did found quite a few errors in its text. Some photos linked from this list: No 107328. Dia 25, L1189. At Winchcombe, Glouc and War Rly. Excellent photo taken from above from a passing train. Useful for MACAW B as well. Self-contained buffers. Spoked wheels. End curb rails. DC brakes centrally mounted. <Link> The bolsters are missing so all the brackets on the inside of the curb rails used to secure the bolsters can be seen. These are not modelled in the kit. It also shows the position of the various sheet(?) hooks and eyes for the stanchion chain attachment, although some are missing. Worth noting is that it is hump backed so that as it is loaded it flattens out. My Russell GWR Carriage Appendix 1 has photos of carriage frames prior to the bodies being fitted showing the same characteristic. Number Unknown. Actually a MACAW B(?) at Chipping Ongar Rly. Appears to be Dia J28. Good photo showing end profile of the side curb rail with no end curb rail fitted and exposed floor. The end bolster retaining bracket can be seen, with what appears to be a substandard bolster in place. <Link> This is interesting because the kit produces curb rails as channel whereas the full-size wagons have “bulb” shaped curb rails. Worth a look! Renderosity Web site sells a 3D virtual reality model of MACAW B No 70335 by "DryJack". Although this is “virtual” it looks a very accurate rendition including views of the underside. It also has images of a class 37 and other items! <link> Useful images The smugmug site has loads of interesting photos (and some not so interesting ones). I did a search for “Gloucester+Warwickshire+Railway” and got these <link> . Included are photos of some interesting wagons stored in Hunting Butts tunnel. Put the names of other heritage railways in the search field and get loads more. I have no connection with any of these sites. Ian.

Before I launch in to the MACAW, a further thought on the Slater's axleboxes. I said earlier that I could not see any of the supplied boxes that looked like the open type. Recently I saw Pete Hutch’s rendition of a Slater’s BR Lowfit on the G0G forum which has open front axleboxes fitted. It finally dawned on me that each open front axlebox is made from TWO parts (not mentioned in the instructions). In the photo below part A is stuck on the front of part B to get what Pete produced. The detail on part A is on the side facing away from the camera. Obvious really – when someone points it out. Ian.

Beautiful work. It looks like a displacement lubricator to me. Ian.

Hendie, That is fabulous work. The carriage has real presence. I love the door and grab handles. When I first saw the latter I thought you were designing taps for the lavatories! I noted your comment about picking up your project after a lengthy break. I tend to have the same problem which is why I write logs on web sites such as this, which keeps the info all nice, tidy and safeish. After a break I reread my blog and off we go. If anyone else finds them interesting then that is a bonus. A bit selfish I suppose. Keep up the good work! Ian. (PS. Hum, I tried to flag your entry with a "like" and a "craftsmanship" but it only allows one or the other. Sorry if it has produced an odd effect at your end.).

George, I have a few making their way through the paint shop at the moment. I will bring one that is finished to the next High Lane meeting. I am also working on the modified Connoisseur MACAW H but keeping it under wraps for now in case it turns in to a disaster. I can pretend it didn't happen then! Because of the modifications the supplied bolsters will be too short. So I will be making molds to make fresh ones. At the same time I will remake the molds for the brake cylinders to see if I can get a better dome on them - then you can have some. Ian.

George, Excellent work. I like the photos - they give me a clearer view of what you are aiming for. Ian.

A quick update. The Fruit Van has moved in to the paint shop. I decided that it was time to actually do some painting. The van is partly done but the GWR Open has popped off the end of the pipeline. The lettering is left over Parkside with some characters hand painted. Here are some photos. It scrubbed up fairly well. The Tare should have been nearer to 5-16. Doh! I have still got to varnish it. Looking at the photos I may stipple some rust mix on the corner plates. Never satisfied...... On the construction front I have started on a Connoisseur MACAW H. I intended it to be a quick job but I can't leave anything unmodified so I will keep it under wraps for now in case it turns in to a complete disaster. Ian.

My word it is developing rapidly. This is something to look forward to. I hope Mark's attire does not become de rigueur at High Lane. My knees would frighten the horses. Ian.

Hello George, That ballast looks superb. I think it is spot on for 7mm scale but must look like boulders in 4mm. Nice job. Ian. (Still alive, honest!)

Paul, If you are still interested here are an extract from Slater's instructions for securing sprung buffer rams with clips as opposed to nuts. I have done a few of these and it is a bit of a fiddle I am afraid. Not my favourite way! Ian.

Thanks for that Michael. The background to your photos look like the same carpet that I have in my workshop. It has proved perfect to enable small parts to hide from me. BTW I am "in the paint shop" at the moment trying not to make too much of a mess of various mechanically completed projects. Ian.

Michael, Thanks for your input. The base layer is very colourful - are you using plasticine? I found the brown modelling clay heavy to use, plasticine seems to be an easier proposition. What put you on to using white spirit to thin the rubber? It would not have occured to me in a lifetime! Ian.

My thanks to Ray and 101 for their input. In the event I went for a variation on their suggestions for the tie bar. But first I considered the safety loops which were very fragile. A decided to make replacements out of 1.0 x 0.3mm nickle silver strip. To make sure the four loops were the same size I milled up a jig from some scrap aluminium. The loops are 2.8mm across with legs 18mm long. The end 5mm of each leg I twisted through 90 degrees (as per prototype) to ensure they attached securely to the chassis members. When I came to fit the loops I found the large mounting blocks on the top of the brake hangers fouled the position of one leg on each loop. So I drilled a 1.5mm hole in the blocks to accept the legs. This oops actually resulted in a very strong mounting. Returning to the tie bars, I made these from 1.5 x 0.3mm nickle silver strip 80.3mm long. Rather than drill the holes in the ends (as per Ray's idea) I used my rivet press to simulate bolt heads 1.8mm and 9.0mm from each end. I would still be able to use these as guides to drill holes if required. I filed of the detail off the existing tie bars then filed them flush with the "w" irons. This gave a good foundation on which to glue the new tie bars. The rest of the detail was fitted more or less as per the instructions as shown in the next photo. My open now has just few left over bits. It is waiting for the next project although I really should paint it first. With all the parts fitted I weighed the van. It came out at 101gms. The G0G manual recommends 125gms for a wagon this size. So I created a sealed box containing lead shot from scrap plastikard in the central compartment. This brought the wagon weight up to 128gms. Now for the worst part for me. Time to get the paint pots out.