30368

Mainframes are now assembled, as usual I used my Poppy's loco builders jig.

Kind regards,

Richard B

Off to build an ex GCR 9Q/LNER B7 4-6-0 from a G-Trains Locomotive Works kit, see my

I shall return.....

Kind regards,

Richard B

Well I have made some really good progress with my 70D layout so as a reward I have allowed myself to build another locomotive. So, I have just started building the G-Train Locomotive Works GCR 9Q/LNER B7 4-6-0. I am interested in those early years of the 20th Century when many railway locomotive engineers designed 4-6-0 locomotives to meet increased traffic demands but seem to have been uncertain of what direction to take. John Robinson of the Great Central being one of the most prolific designers of this type. I have already built a B9 4-6-0 from a Judith Edge etch and that seemed to work out well so I hope the same goes for this build.

I must say that the quality of the etches look first class. As you can see I will be using Alan Gibson wheels and less obviously a HighLevel gearbox and coreless motor.

The frame etch allows for bothe variations of the B7 with either the original cylinders or later replacement cylinders fitted to a number of locomotives. I shall be modelling the original version.

Frames under construction showing the spring hanger overlays.

Kind regards,

Richard B

4 minutes ago, Sidecar Racer said:

After I found and posted that I learnt that he was still alive when

he was dragged from the car , 3 days later he passed .

 

The article on Wiki about him says 100,000 people went to  the funeral .

I recall watching the race on BBC TV with the great Murrey Walker commenting, who made totally appropriate comments about the crash. It was really shocking to watch and, as a Ferrari fan, deeply upsetting. Bandini was second and catching Hulme, the eventual winner, when he crashed.

Thank goodness, largely due to the efforts of Jackie Stewart, that things are so much safer now. Cars are much stronger and more protective of the driver and accident response is much sharper.

Kind regards,

30368

Yes goodluck all. Somerset is a bit too far now we have moved to Buxton.

I can recommend Mudmagnet Models though - my 70D layout has benefitted from all that printed ex LSWR station seats and sacktruck etc...

Kind regards,

30368

1 hour ago, Clive Mortimore said:

I have posted this all over RMweb but not here, so if you want to see me face come along.

Great effort today Clive, no one can claim that you are half hearted about your interest in DEMU's etc. I hope the event goes well, I might even have a go at attending although it is just before a holiday so Mrs B  may not give me a pass out.

Kind regards,

30368

3 hours ago, doilum said:

But, pull pin and throw, Peppercorn's A2s were the best proportioned locomotives to run on British rails. 

Hi doilum,

I agree, they may well have been, particularly if fitted with a double chimney, but my judgment on Thompson's pacifics is based on a slightly differing aesthetic. Their brutalist look is appealing, as if they could pull anything. I suspect we all have a favourite looking locomotive and many are well balanced, for example the V2 2-6-2 or many exGW 4-6-0 types or perhaps the ex LMS 5XP's?

No boom then...

Kind regards,

30368

On 27/05/2024 at 14:05, JeffP said:

The A2/1 and A2/2 were rebuilds of  Gresley's 2-8-2 locos.

Sorry JeffP but the A2/1's were new builds based on the V2 boiler (The original order was for V2 loco's) and as you say, the A2/2's rebuilds of Gresley's 2-8-2s. I'm not usually pedantic, honest.

Like you, I rather like the look of all of Thompson's 4-6-2s and he seems to get unfair treatment by the LNER "Glitterati" if I can use the phrase.

Kind regards,

30368

Nothing much new at the moment. I bought a secondhand Hornby Churchward 28XX 2-8-0, the weathered version, I already have a clean version which I have never unpacked. These loco's did turn up at Basingstoke as did many exGW loco's given that it was a joint station and, after the closure of the GW shed, were regulars on 70D. The usual GW types being Halls and Granges as well as 61XX tanks and 57XX tanks too.

A couple of snaps of 2845 making itself at home on the shed. I have changed the standard weathering a fair bit.

Very impressed with this Hornby model, seems accurate and very well detailed. It runs well at low speed too.

Kind regards,

Richard B

4 minutes ago, johnofwessex said:

Didnt the P8's have the same 'vital statistics' as a lot of subsequent UK 4-6-0's?

I don't doubt. The P8 was manufactured from 1906 to 1923 with around 3,700 built and survived until the 1970s, they must have been a very good design of "do anything" locomotives. Given the discussion around early British 4-6-0s it took another 25+ years before a comparable class appeared in the UK. Mr Stanier's Class 5 4-6-0 was introduced in 1934 although, I guess, the GW production Halls pre-date this by six years or so.

To clarify my viewpoint, I have no burning attachment to any UK Railway Company being a product of British Railways (For me 1963 until 2006). Hopefully, we are on the cusp re-claiming those assets that were owned by the British People and given away for a few £M to make lots of money for a few people at a massive cost to the British People in Taxation and Rail Fares. Anyway, sorry I digress!

Kind regards,

30368

1 hour ago, burgundy said:

Does the Prussian P8 of 1908 fit your criteria - or is a 5' 9" driving wheel too small?

Best wishes 

Hi Eric,

It is not my criteria at all but that adopted by British Locomotive Engineers in the first part of the 20th Century. All I did was to apply the profile back to the early part of the 20th Century as the British 4-6-0 was being developed.

As to European and USA practice, generally, design seems to have been 10 or more years ahead of the UK.

Kind regards,

30368

2 hours ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

The Raven S2 4-6-0 for the NER (later LNER B15) of 1911, specifically  designed as a mixed traffic locomotive, did the pioneering..

HI,

I am agreat fan of NER Locomotives having spent much time in the NE during the mid 1960s when the Q6/7 and J27s were still very active. The B16's were great locomotives and I have built a DJH B16/1.

However my point is that the H15's, being a two cylinder outside valvegear 6ft driving wheel design of 1913 (First one completed in January 1914) was a pioneer of all those 4-6-0 locomotives, like the LMS 5, LNER B1 and later BR Std 5 all of which could trace their ancestry back to the LSWR design and to Churchwards 2 cylindered designs. The B16, being three cylindered with inside motion smaller driving wheels and introduced in 1919 does not quite meet the profile.

Kind regards,

30368

Always rather liked the K2 2-6-0. A good few years ago I built a London Road Models K2 kit. It has a large can Mashima and two stage Branchlines gearbox. Tricky build for the model railway club I attended back in Wiltshire. Painted/weathered by me. Goodness I had (and still have) a lot to learn!

Built as a Scottish Loco.

Kind regards,

30368

I have long thought that the introduction and development of the 4-6-0 wheel arrangement in the UK (It was well established elsewhere) was a very interesting time for locomotive development in the UK. Some locomotive engineers struggled with the concept, notably Drummond on the LSWR and to a lesser extent Robinson (An engineer I have a great deal of respect for) as well as engineers on the LNWR.

On the one hand they seemed to have assumed that building a 4-6-0 was just a case of building a bigger 4-4-0 on the other hand some thought that the more cylinders you could cram in the better. I am not criticising these engineers indeed I find the wide variety of 4-6-0 types fascinating since it provides so many different prototypes to model.

It seems to me that Mr Churchward, based to some extent on his knowledge of US practice, designed a series of locomotive types that set the standard for the next two decades that was followed by all GWR engineers and greatly influenced the LMS range of standard locomotives. Having said that, Mr Urie, faced with the Drummond 4-6-0 inheritance designed a series of simple two cylindered locomotives with outside Whalschaerts valvegear that performed well (Although even better when Maunsell fitted to some longer travel valves) and were cheap to maintain and fairly popular with enginemen. Examples of the Urie 4-6-0's lasted into the 1960s and some to the end of steam on the SR. As Morello above, and myself on a number of occasions, Mr Urie's 4-6-0s were true pioneering engines of what became the British 4-6-0 Mixed Traffic engine of which well over a thousand were eventually constructed.

I have built examples of the following 4-6-0's:

H15 all varieties.

S15

N15

N15X

B9

B16/1

Still to build:

B7

BR Std 5

Kind regards,

30368

54 minutes ago, 1165Valour said:

Could the S15s be properly classified as mixed traffic engines, rather than strictly goods?

An interesting question. The LSWR did use ex ROD Robinson 2-8-0's and Drummond did have an 0-8-0 design prepared but the proposal was not proceeded with when Mr Urie took over after Drummonds death. The S15 design was proceeded with on the basis that although goods engines they could, at peak times, pull passenger trains and they did right up to the end of steam on the SR.

The Southern was a passenger railway with some goods business so it was logical to build a class of large goods engines that could also pull passenger trains. Both H15s and to a lesser extent, S15s were both mixed traffic engines a class of locomotive that the LSWR/SR (and the GWR) pioneered.

Regarding the performance of the S15 from my reading the Urie version were good sloggers and could manage the hills ok. The Maunsell version was a better locomotive.

One of my two Urie S15s - largely a DJH Kit.

Kind regards,

30368

3 hours ago, great northern said:

Why this, you may wonder?  Leicester Midland shed, 15C, had this one and 42331, and they seem to have spent quite a lot of time on the Leicester- East trains, so it is ideal, really. Nice to have another tank engine to look at too.

The Fowler 2-6-4T was, by all acounts, a very good and useful engine class. Buxton shed had a number of these tanks for the Stockport/Manchester London Road services which I regularly use but now served by 150's and London Road has become Piccadilly. The weathering is very, very good. Enjoy Gilbert!

Kind regards,

30368

8 hours ago, charlielynch said:

but this thread makes me want to try.... 

Go for it Charlie it is hugely rewarding. Maybe follow what Tony has done to the Stainer 2-6-0, buy an old built kit and refurbish it? Loads of advice available on this site.

Kind regards,

30368

On 19/05/2024 at 23:15, Tim Dubya said:

Never tire of those programmes 👍

Metroland is classic for all time.

Kind regards,

30368

15 minutes ago, Mallard60022 said:

I know 30368 and he is going to be very helpful indeed. He has literally only recently building one of these as he mentioned but he was too polite to say he took it over from me, as I'd given up 15 years ag or so!

Thanks Phil.

Happy to help Cabbie37 and I am keen to promote and support anyone who wants to try their hand at loco restoration leading to loco building.

Perhaps you might want to look at my record of building 30368:

Feel free to ask for help either here or you can PM me.

Kind regards,

30368

1 hour ago, cabbie37 said:

Thanks so much for the photos 30368. Much appreciated..

Pleasure.

Yes it can be very tricky to determine where the error lies. I notice that the running plate seems low at the cab end, which would make things appear worse but on balance I would agree, the smokebox is too high.

Give me a shout if you want more images of 30368 - which is what the loco above became.

Kind regards,

30368

Yes I am fairly certain that the Crownline 700 Class kit is much the same as the PDK Kit, i.e. with a brass rolled boiler.

When you say the boiler is not level is it high/low at which end? The smokebox end is mounted on a brass saddle made up of a front and rear support, the firebox end is located by the spectacle plate and the running plate. Depending on circumstances, it should be relatively easy to rectify providing you are reasonaby ok with a soldering iron and some de-soldering braid.

Some images of the one I built earlier which may help:

Kind regards,

30368

2 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Or an original WC? Also painted by Ian. 

 

This shot brings back great personal memories of my watching the real things going really fast on the ex-LSWR main line, in steam's last year.

Two great SR locomotives featured in your wonderful panned images, much appreciated.

I too recall those last years of SR steam on the LSWR main line to Southampton and Bournemouth. I was fortunate enough to have a cab pass for a few weeks as part of my training and some lobbying by Mr Les Elsey (Photographer and fitter at Eastleigh Diesel Depot) whom I worked with at Eastleigh. Remember a great run in the cab of 35013 Southampton to Waterloo non stop. 100mph on the speedometer at Battledown. I have probably mentioned this before but why not! It was wonderful but very scarry too!

Kind regards,

30368

I have just received a whole lot of printed parts from Mudmagnet Models. They make a wide range of detailing parts for stations and maintenence depot workshops as well as some parts for locomotives. I looked them up because they were recommended by Graham Muspratt, a fellow member of the SW Circle and much more. The quality of the items supplied is high and they are very accurate.

The fitters at 70D have been waiting for a flypress and a pair of pillar drills for ages. The ex LSWR large luggage barrow and sack trucks were a common sight at Basingstoke Station. I particularly like the LSWR passenger station seats. The wheelbarrows are destined for the shed yard and the luggage stacks for the station. The cleaners have not been forgotten either although I will have to buy 2 or 3 more work stands. Lovely stuff!

Kind regards,

Richard B

In between gardening and old gits "suicide" mountain biking on The Peak Districts trails I have managed to complete a bit more station detail.

Kind regards,

Richard B