CXW1

5 minutes ago, Tony Wright said:

Good morning Chris,

 

My choice of word to describe my relationship with golf was entirely apposite, I assure you. A personal choice, of course.

 

I'll explain. I used to play the game, but no more. Why not? Because it exposed facets of my (admittedly dubious) character which are best not shown. I played mainly with teacher mates, after school of during holidays (not during summer weekends, because they were reserved for cricket. I've never played a game where it's so easy to cheat! Not that I ever cheated (there was no need, what does it matter if your score is 150 or 175?). My 'partners' (from another school) would disappear into Amazonia, only to announce 'Found ball!', whererupon it would sail back into view, straight back to the fairway (they couldn't possibly have thrown it, could they?). Then, counting up at a hole, they always had at least two fewer shots than I, and my mate, had taken. 

 

I've never found a game so frustrating. So frustrating that my number of clubs reduced each time, either through their being broken or 'lost at sea'! 

 

I also found the supposed 'etiquette' to be anything but that. Aren't slow players supposed to call faster players through? On one rare occasion, my mate and I had hit a purple patch. By that I mean a run of par scores, including a three (though never a birdie). We were flying, only to come up behind two of the slowest golfers I've ever encountered. They were old gits, too. They were on the green of a par five ahead of us, so my mate and I teed off (I presume that's allowed?). Both shots were crackers - long and straight, within another couple of shots of the green. Such was our arrogance that we declined to take our second shots, in case (lo and behold) we actually made it to the green. So, we watched and waited. And waited and waited and waited............. Address the ball. Stop, walk to the opposite side of the hole. Dangle a putter, walk back, re-address. Check again. Putt, and miss! Go through the same procedure............. Then have a chat (still in the middle of the green), compare scores, then, eventually crawl off the green. 

 

Fuming, my mate and I had then lost it. He's sent a screamer off to the left, out of bounds. I topped mine and it dribbled about 30'. Bad language, fury and a wish to kill the pair in front was the outcome. After that, any chance of a round in the 90s was gone forever (anything below 100 was brilliant!). 

 

No, not for me. I don't have the right temperament. Anyway, how can it be right that an inferior player can beat a better one, even though he/she has taken more shots? 

 

When I played cricket, I'd accept at times the fact that my immediate opponent (batsman) was better than I was (bowler). I didn't then expect him to be 'handicapped' each over by him having to not use his bat for the last ball. He used his skill to better me. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

Tony,

Unfortunately much of what you mention still goes on.

Fortunately I am in a position where I can play during the week when it is quiet and we can usually whizz round without any issues. Try and play in a Saturday competition or a Sunday afternoon and it can be a different matter though. 

I used to play lots of cricket at a decent level but my back/knees/ankles prevent me from doing so now (or at least to any reasonable standard). Golf has effectively become a substitute for cricket, but it is no direct replacement. What comes after golf? Bowls?

I was just slightly surprised at the use of the word 'abhor'. I tend to use this in the same sentence as something like mindless vandalism or suchlike as opposed to a harmless game enjoyed by many. However, given your personal experiences I can see where you are coming from.

Let's park this and get back to some modelling.....

Thanks

Chris

11 hours ago, johndon said:

Cheers Chris. I lived at East Stanley when I first got married but that was years after the line closed. 
 

The Royal Train visited Consett in December 1982. There are a number of photos of the train on my website here: http://southpelawjunction.co.uk/wp/?page_id=493 who knows, you may be on one of them  

 

John

 

John

Thanks for the link to the photos. I reckon I would have been just out of shot on the left of the picture of Prince Charles getting off the train on the white steps - I was stood with my Dad next to the photographers and TV crews.

My memories of the day have faded but I do remember an old lady who I was stood next to asking Prince Charles 'how's the bairn, hinny?' (referring to the recently-born Prince William). Charles smiled politely but with a look on his face which said 'I don't have a clue what you have just said to me'. 

I also recall driving up to Consett and there being lots of people standing next to the line at Annfield Plain with their flags at the ready. However, the train was already parked up on the curve between East Castle and Leadgate by that time, so the good folk of Annfield Plain would have been disappointed. 

Apologies for interrupting the discussions with my trip down memory lane....

Chris 

On 04/01/2021 at 09:18, johndon said:

 

Or Class 37s if you're even younger

 

John

Hello John

I grew up a few miles further up the line (at East Stanley) and the only thing I can remember apart from Class 37s is when a Class 31 brought Prince Charles on the Royal Train up to Consett. That must put me in the 'youngster' category . My dad took me to Consett to get a glimpse of the heir to the throne but I was more interested in the train. I can't exactly remember when that was but it was probably just after the steelworks had closed. 

Anyhow, I've always had a keen interest in the railway between Stella Gill and Consett and I think your layout is superb as it gives me a visual understanding of what used to be there but had long gone when I was a kid. I moved away from the area many years ago and looking at the layout reminds me of the area I still consider to be 'home'. The quality of modelling is great - one of the best layouts on here in my opinion. 

Cheers

Chris 

1 hour ago, Tony Wright said:

 

And, please don't get me going on golf (which I also abhor) or photographers......................

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

Hello Tony,

Well, as you mentioned it, I would love to get you started on golf given that ‘abhor’ is a very strong word to describe something that I enjoy and play regularly (or at least I would if I were permitted to at the moment). You really must dislike golf to suggest it is abhorrent. 

Admittedly there are still probably some nasty old boys who frequent some stuffy ‘old school tie’ establishments, but not all golf clubs are like that. At least none of the golf clubs that allow the likes of me in are like that. Perhaps the game has a reputation which, in the main, is no longer accurate, just like magazines dating from before I was born?

My other main interest is of course scratchbuilding 4mm scale ex-Hull and Barnsley Railway locomotives from bits of brass. Is this any less odd than hitting a small ball around a big field into 18 holes? As far as I am concerned both activities are rather strange and eccentric when you strip them down to their component parts, but I also view them as being as harmless as each other to wider society.  Each to their own and all that….

All the best,

Chris

To echo what Mick has said, I have also used a 52F chassis on a Dave Alexander tender and it makes a huge difference to the haulage capacity of the loco (which in my case is a J27). The 52F chassis runs in proper frame bearings and is far more free running than was the case when the tender had the old whitemetal sub-frame. I think the 52F chassis cost me around ten quid so not a huge outlay for improved performance. 

Cheers

Chris

4 minutes ago, ArthurK said:

No it wasn't a Wakefield lubricator. It was the design used on all NER superheated locos. I have  these in my range of castings on a sprue of six.

 

ArthurK

Ah, that looks a lot different to my home-made bodge.

I'll be in touch Arthur....

1 hour ago, Axlebox said:

Chris

No need to apologize, Croft Depot was built partly as a test piece and partly to inspire folks to 'have a go' at something simple...and weirdly, Croft lives just the other side of Alnwick moor from Whittingham...

Cheers

Duncan

Hi Duncan

As someone who falls into the 'I haven't got enough room for a layout' category, I have always been drawn to layouts like Croft Depot because they prove that you don't necessarily needs loads of space to achieve something that is both realistic and believable. It certainly inspired me to have a go. I'm currently kicking some ideas around for a small EM layout, but whether the ideas result in something getting built remains to be seen. 

Thanks

Chris 

3 hours ago, Worsdell forever said:

Seem to have got more done in the last week or so than I have in the last 6 months, the reason? she's treated herself to netflix and is watching the whole of 'The Crown'...

 

This is quite an old model that has put in sterling service over the years on Fellburn and Felton Lane but the time had come for it to go into North Road works for a full rebuild. It's been converted to EM and backdated. As I built it, it was superheated with a later boiler so the smokebox was removed and boiler bands and boiler fittings taken off. when it came to a new smokebox the only short ones in the spares box were of a later pattern with a pressed steel front whereas what I needed was the earliest fabricated type with sharp 'square' corners so I took a superheated one and cut it down taking to file it carefully to keep the corners sharp. New boiler fittings also from the spares box were fitted. The tender only needed the coal rails altering, it had 3 and 1008 had 4. 

There's still a few bits to do, finish the pickups, refit the brakes and re-paint the wheels etc.

 

 

Looks good Paul. Is it one of Mr Alexander's kits?

2 hours ago, Jon4470 said:

Like the D22!

 

My attempt at a Wakefield lubricator is below ( along with an oil box)

 

 

The body is plastic with pipes from 5 amp fuse wire.

 

The hand wheel is the smallest that I have available- it’s too big I think.

 

I plan to see what it looks like once installed on the loco. May remake it - or not - we’ll see!

 

Jon

Thanks Jon - I think your lubricator looks spot on. As I have just mentioned to Mick I don't think I'll bother with the pipes. My eyesight is pretty good but not that good!!

4 hours ago, micklner said:

I presume it is a Wakefield Lubricator ?

 

 

 

 

This one is to be fitted to the rebuild  G5.

  4 pipes when fitted to the brass connectors, will disappear behind the frames. You dont see them modeled in 4mm very often

 

The Dome on the D22 looks a bit strange , almost no flair at the base ? .

 

Lovely Loco.

Thanks Mick - looking at the prototype in the photo I don't think you will see the pipes modelled in 4mm scale by me either!!

The dome is one of Arthur's and I think it looks OK to the naked eye. I'm not changing it.

Cheers 

Chris

The J71 has had its chassis repainted, brakes re-fitted and I've covered up the 'Romford' wheel nuts with some little brass thingies from Comet. 

It is still way too cold to think about painting the D22 although I can't decide if it is too cold for the paint or just too cold for me - probably both.

Here is a final picture of the D22 prior to painting. Last night I fitted brakes to both the loco and the tender. The lubricator on the footplate was made from scrap brass and a spare handwheel. I assume that the lubricator would have had some pipework attached to it but I can't find and photographs that are clear or detailed enough to tell. Any ideas what should be there?

I'm quite pleased with the D22 given that it was a bit of an afterthought to use up some spare driving wheels....

Cheers

Chris 

Its been a while since this thread was last updated. My dad built the body of a High Level Armstrong Whitworth shunter about 12 months ago and gave it to me to build the chassis and make it work. Thanks!!

The loco has been finished as No. 2 as preserved at Tanfield (minus the lining) and hopefully it won't be too long before it can be delivered to its native North East to keep the model of Twizell company. 

I ended up half-making my own chassis after struggling with the chassis in the kit. Like all High Level stuff the chassis is superbly designed but it is designed to take 2mm axles. I assume that these would have been available at some point (Sharman, perhaps?) 

I initially used Alan Gibson L&Y Pug wheels which are designed to be used with a standard 1/8th inch axle. Alan Gibson supply bushes which reduce the axle bore from 1/8th inch to 2mm but unfortunately I couldn't get on with these and the thing wobbled all over the place. This is entirely down to my ham-fistedness rather than any issues with the kit. To cut a very long story short I ended up damaging the original chassis and using some of it (jackshaft, connecting rods, motor etc) and using the original frames as a template to make new frames which can accommodate 1/8th axles and Markits wheels. 

On the new 'home brewed' chassis the jackshaft is quartered and connected to the front driving wheels (as on the prototype) rather than using the 'illusodrive' system in the kit. 

With the benefit of hindsight it may have been better to just ream out the axle holes on the original chassis to accept 1/8th bearings in the first place before starting to build it. 

The main thing is that it has turned out OK in the end and it runs well (and apologies to Chris G for making a right old mess of his kit)!!

Cheers

Chris 

Hello Paul

I would echo what others have said about using a 52F chassis.

I have a 52F chassis on my old Nu Cast G5 and it is excellent. It makes a huge difference to both the running and appearance of what was at best an OK model.

I don't have any knowledge of 52F's J21 kit but, assuming it follows the same design principle as the G5 chassis, it may include a gearbox which is integral to the chassis (thus avoiding the need to spend money on a separate gearbox).

Don't be put off by how fiddly the 52F stuff looks - it is really well designed and the instructions are very comprehensive with lots of diagrams.  

Good luck with which ever option you choose. Always good to see another NER modeller on here....

Cheers

Chris

57 minutes ago, t-b-g said:

 

I wish I was just half as prolific as you are Chris. Seeing them all together like that, with so many of them scratchbuilt, is really inspiring and makes me want to try just that bit harder (and faster!).

Tony, under normal circumstances I don't think I would have been so prolific. In reality, if it wasn't for the restrictions on daily life, things like the J79 and Y8 wouldn't have seen the light of day for many years. Work and other real life events have been challenging to say the least in the past 9 months, and sitting down and making things has been a welcome release. 

I've just remembered that I also made a LRM Hull & Barnsley Railway horsebox. 

Looking at the above pictures I reckon that I've fitted a Westinghouse pipe to the D22 buffer beam rather than a Vacuum pipe. I'll change it tomorrow. I should have also mentioned that the D22 tender is an Arthur K kit - only the loco is scratchbuilt. 

Just to add to the conversation about tenders, I have made some progress with a North Eastern Kits tender for the D22. I know that Arthur looks at this thread periodically so I'm happy to be corrected by the kit designer himself if I've managed to make a pigs ear of it. In all honesty the tender is so well designed that it is probably harder to get it wrong than get it right. 

I haven't built the chassis that was supplied with the kit yet because I'm waiting for some bearings and wheels from Alan Gibson. The tender is currently plonked on top of a 52F chassis that my Dave Alexander J27 tender usually sits on - I think the tender in the picture below is sitting slightly too high but that will get sorted when I build the chassis that came with the kit. 

As an aside, the 52F tender chassis greatly improves the running qualities of the J27 compared to the 'whitemetal lump' chassis that was supplied in Dave's kits - far less weight and drag for the loco to deal with. 

Anyhow, I think I said in my last posting about the D22 that my next job was going to be loco brakes and cab handrails. Clearly I haven't done any of that, but I've knocked up a tender body for the D22 and 75% of an F8 instead, so I haven't exactly been idle. I have also decided that the D22 will be a model of No. 1542 because I thought it looked better with tapered NER buffers rather than the LNER group standard buffers that were fitted to No. 663 in the period being modelled, plus there is handy side-on photo in the RCTS book to refer to.

No. 1542 had Ross Pop safety valves which has allowed me to nick the the brass trumpet for the F8. 

Just noticed that one of the front buffers is wonky and a couple of the castings need a small amount of work to straighten them up before they are stuck down. Getting there though....

14 hours ago, micklner said:

     Many thanks , I am sure that will be a big help in due course. I will amend the existing frames.

 

     Just started fighting a old Geo Norton J25 "kit" diabolical instructions, no markings/tabs to confirm where the parts should fit and parts missing because they were never/forgotten to be designed to be in the kit , I have only just looked at the Tender as well so far !!

 

 

Sounds fun 

29 minutes ago, micklner said:

Luckily Tanks heights are i.d on the kit I have , the sides are 1mm higher , not perfect but near enough as its now painted . Yes, I will try a rear truck option first and see how it goes from there  in due course.

 

Thanks.

Probably a bit late if you are going to go with the LRM trucks, but here is a picture of the Gibson frames. Unfortunately you can't see a great deal of the frames with the wheels/motor/gears in the way.

Front axle is in Gibson sprung hormblocks with 2mm axle bore and a bit of side play. Rear axle is in a home brewed pony truck.

In the absence of being able to see anything I have drawn a basic outline of the frames below. Something to be aware of is the fact the frames have a very high profile above the driving wheels - possibly prototypical but unnecessary for a 4mm scale model. 

3 hours ago, micklner said:

Thanks , I might be better off cutting some slots into my chassis at each end for the LRM trucks , and use that still. It will be as easier as well, as mine has Gibsons fitted . I never have any luck removing them.

I would try the LRM radial trucks in the existing frames in the first instance, especially if the issue is with the front and rear axles rather than the driving wheels. I only used the Gibson frames because I had them to hand. 

2 hours ago, Pebbles said:

A better side view drawing of the F8 is on page 91 ln  Vol 3 of the "North Eastern Record", the Railway Modeller drawing appears to have followed the weight diagram with regards to the cab cut out. The F8 RCTS quotes the tank capacities of the F4/5 and the  F8 as 1241gals. As the GER 2-4-2 tanks and the F8 were very closely related, for modelling purposes  the figure of 4ft (16mm) quoted on the GER Society drawing for the height of the tank side sheet from the footplate for the F4/5 would appear to be applicable to F8. 

Thanks for the information. I don't have any of the North Eastern Record books for reference but I agree that the cab cut out on the Railway Modeller drawing doesn't look quite right when compared to photographs of F8s. I can't put my finger on what the issue is - is it too large, or is it something to do with the radius of the corners?

I tend not to use drawings that much although if I can get my hands on a fairly accurate drawing I will use it. I usually start out by doing my own drawing, using the RCTS books for the key measurements like wheelbase, size of wheels, length over buffers etc, and then scale the rest from photographs. 

4 hours ago, micklner said:

My F8 still is a poor runner .

I am considering a Gibson frame version with London Road truck etch (which I have already) for the rear only. One problem is the body, on mine it maybe wrong . What height are your side tanks please as I think my kit ones are too low?

 

Can you post some photos of the chassis only please, it will give some me more ideas on altering mine .

Mick, the side tanks are approximately 16mm. 

I have used a drawing which was published in the September 1972 Railway Modeller magazine. I don't have the magazine but Peco charged me a few quid for a photocopy of the drawing - worth having for what it costs. I assume the drawing is accurate....

According to the RM drawing the cab sides are approx. 26mm, and the measurement from footplate to the highest point of the cab front (i.e. in between the 2 cab spectacles) is approx. 30mm. 

I'll take a picture of the frames this evening but please be aware of the point I made earlier about the loco sitting too high on Gibson frames if you were thinking about getting some. The other issue with the Gibson frames is the fact they are made from very thick brass, so you might have to use slightly thinner spacers if you want the loco to go round tight curves, or somehow narrow the frames at the front and rear. 

Not much progress to report with the D22. I will hopefully make a start on the tender shortly. I have bought a tender from Arthur/North Eastern Kits as I don't see the point in making my own when an excellent kit is available. 

A few years ago (probably more) I built a F8 2-4-2 tank. The body was scratchbuilt but I used Alan Gibson frames. The chassis never really ran as well as I would have liked for several reasons. I originally used Gibson sprung hornblocks which I found had too much 'slop' within the horn guides. I ended up ditching the Gibson frames and making my own. There is a picture of the F8 sitting on its home made frames earlier on in this thread (I think on page 2 or 3). 

The result was of course that I had a spare set of Alan Gibson F8 frames which I kept looking at thinking that I really ought to make use of. 

The original frames had cut-outs for sprung hornblocks on all 4 axles. I have found over time that I prefer to have the motor/gearbox attached to a fixed axle, so I've blanked off the rear driving axle cut-outs and fitted rigid frame bearings. The front driving axle is now in my preferred High Level hornblocks with a beam for a little bit of compensation. The rear axle uses the pony truck dodge that I described a couple of pages ago. The chassis is basically a 0-6-2 but without the front wheels coupled to the middle wheels. I also thought that the Alan Gibson frames as supplied made the original F8 body sit 1mm to high, so they had this much shaved off the top before being soldered back together. 

Everything else that you see below was stuff that I found in my spares box including the wheels, motor and gears. The gears are a single stage 50:1 Branchlines motor mount - slightly 'old school' compared to a High Level gearbox - but it runs well enough after sticking lots of lead in the tanks and boiler. 

The driving wheels were also out of the spares box and eagle-eyed North Eastern Railway aficionados might notice they have a couple too many spokes but this is barely noticeable, especially when it is moving. 

So, here is the 'Spares Box Special F8' which has effectively cost nowt to build up to this point. Admittedly I would have bought the parts that I've used at some point but I guess what I'm trying to say is that I haven't bought anything specifically for this model this time around.

I am going to have to spend a few quid to buy some castings to finish it off though.....

Cheers

Chris 

I have made a bit of progress with the D22 in the past week. The bogie and front frames have been fitted although they still need some detailing.

The main development is the fact it now works. I have gone for a High Level Roadunner Compact Plus gearbox and one of Chris's cheaper 1020 motors. The small gearbox allows the motor to sit low down in the splashers which gives plenty of room for lead in the boiler and some much needed weight. 

I have decided to stick with the whitemetal roof shown in the previous picture. At the end of the day it is a good fit and adds additional weight, but I have filed off the detail and made it into something more appropriate for the LNER period. The 'spares box' LNER group standard buffers of unknown origin  in the previous picture have been replaced with some better looking ones from Lanarkshire Models. I have decided that the loco will be based on No. 663 which had GS buffers and a polished brass safety valve trumpet in the period being modelled. 

Cab handrails and brakes next.