CXW1

With the benefit of hindsight, possibly yes. A conversation with a few people before I started the X2 suggested that the weight distribution needed to be towards the back with the centre of gravity in between the driving wheel and the bogie. I was concerned that by sticking the weight at the back I could end up with the front lifting up. My thoughts were that a sprung front wheel with downward pressure would hopefully make sure that it was always in contact with the track, and I wasn't confident drilling a hole in the frame for a front bearing and getting the smaller fixed front wheel at exactly the same level as the fixed driver. Advice suggested that the rear bogie needed to be load-bearing (rather than an 0-4-4 where you can stick all of the weight up front and have the bogie 'float' a little). It was definitely a learning curve. The latest modification seems to have worked and I'm 95% happy with it. If I was to start again I would probably do things differently, but I'm in no hurry to make another one. With all of the non-mainstream things that RTR manufacturers are announcing and releasing I would have thought that Aerolite would be an ideal candidate given that it still exists and can be measured and photographed. It would go nicely with the NER petrol electric railcar. Thanks Chris

My dad is one of many volunteers at the Tanfield Railway and last year he asked me if I would make him a model of Twizell in its ‘as-preserved’ condition. I like a challenge, so I gave it a go. I sent the prospective owner of the model off to Marley Hill shed armed with a camera and tape measure so I could work from accurate dimensions, and fortunately there are loads of photos on the internet to look at as well. The model is 4mm scale, OO gauge, and is scratchbuilt from brass. High Level gearbox and Mitsumi motor. The lining is not 100% accurate. The actual loco has very thin double lining which I don’t have the skills (or eyesight) to produce in 4mm scale. Lining on the model is the thinnest stuff that Fox produces and isn’t as noticeable to the naked eye as it seems to be on camera. The photos below were taken by its new owner in his back garden. A picture of the model sitting on the footplate of the real loco appeared on the Tanfield Railway blog and twitter pages a few months ago but I don’t have a copy. My main interest is ex-NER and ex-Hull & Barnsley locos and I have started a thread over on the kitbuilding and scratchbuilding section for all of that stuff. As Twizell is an industrial loco I thought it was better off here. Are there any other models of Tanfield locos out there? Cheers Chris

Now, it’s all well and good making models of Hull and Barnsley locos but at the end of the day, and as interesting as they are, surely it was the North Eastern Railway that built the real classy-looking stuff? Apologies – only joking but I am originally from the North East and I can’t help being biased, so here are a couple of ex-NER engines to address the balance. On a more ‘workbench’ theme, the X2 single wheeler (which has previously appeared elsewhere on RMWeb) has been in the workshop for some tinkering. This has been a right sod to get balanced and it is still not 100% (think 0-4-4 tank engine but 10 times worse). The centre of gravity is towards the rear and it more or less sits on the bogie. The front wheel bears very little load. The front wheels are in hornblocks and originally had some thin brass wire providing some downward pressure and very light springing on the axle. The problem with this was the loco tended to gently ‘nod’ when moving forwards (backwards was not as noticeable). So, yesterday I swapped the springy wire for a more solid fixed beam of 1mm brass wire and the front axle can now rock/pivot on this whilst appearing to bear more of the loco’s weight. The nodding has been reduced but it has taken hours of trial and error to get this point and I’m not in any hurry to make another single wheeler. Finally, can anyone recommend a nice realistic-looking screw coupling? The X2 and F8 below both have Smiths screw couplings which are basically a flat etch with what looks like a Hornby track pin stuck through the middle. The Romford screw couplings are beautifully made but I think they look slightly too big. Can anyone recommend something else? Just noticed that the lamp handle on the F8 has disappeared/snapped off. Cheers Chris

I mentioned a few days ago that I would post a few more pictures of my Hull and Barnsley locos when I got a chance. So, in order from top to bottom are: · J75 (ex H&BR G3) · J80 (ex H&BR G2) · N13 (ex H&BR F3). The J80 is 95% finished and still needs some coal in the back. There isn't too much difference between the J75 and J80 - the J80 wheels were 6 inches larger in diameter and as far as I can see, that was about it. I personally think that the larger wheels give the J80 a more graceful appearance.

In all seriousness Laurie has given me a number of 2mm wagon kits to make, some are already on the layout and a few are still left to do. He kindly gave me a 2mm LSWR G6 kit to have a go at a couple of months ago but I haven't plucked up the courage to make a start on it yet. It will appear on here when I do.

Tony, Laurie more or less dumped the content of his gloat box on me a couple of years ago.....

Spent an enjoyable couple of hours making a 3-D printed rectangular tar wagon. It's a bit small though. It will end up living on Lauri2mil's impressive 2mm finescale Yeovil Town layout. The tar wagon uses an etched underframe, wheels and buffers from the 2MM Association, and I believe that the 3-D printed body was an association member's own project from a few years ago - not sure of the full details.

I always use High Level gearboxes. Not saying others aren't as good, but I've always been 100% satisfied with High Level. As others have already said there are different versions available to make sure you get the best fit for whatever model you are making. Chris (owner of High Level) is now stocking some new motors which are an excellent alternative to Mashimas. London Road Models might still sell a more traditional single stage motor mount if you don't want to build a gearbox. Cheers Chris

Here are a couple of J28 pictures as promised. Scratchbuilt using my usual method of gearbox on the rigid rear axle with hornblocks on the middle and front axles. It has a High Level Loadhauler gearbox and a Mitsumi motor mounted vertically in the firebox. Coupling rods are Alan Gibson 'universals' and have been made up to fit - they were just long enough. I think I acquired the chimney from Stevenson Carriages (who own Millholme) at a show, so this is possibly the only part from their kit that I have used. Hopefully I have captured the long and fairly low profile of the prototype.

Perhaps it was originally designed to fit a Hornby Jinty chassis or similar? I seem to remember from when I built my J28 that it seemed to have a very long wheelbase compared to many other 0-6-0s.

No - the J28 is scratchbuilt. I will take a picture of it later today when 'working at home' allows. The Millholme kit has always looked 'too dumpy' (if you know what I mean) on the few occasions that I have seen one - almost a cross between a J23 and J28 - and doesn't seem to quite catch the longer and slender proportions of a J28. I may be wrong and it could be dimensionally perfect of course. Thanks Chris

Mick, I will get back to H&BR matters shortly. The fact I haven't got a layout means that I have spent a fair amount of time making engines (no time spent on track and signals etc). If I were to build a layout it would probably be 'mid to late 1920s' hence the locos I make being in LNER livery rather than H&BR or NER. In terms of the H&BR locos that made it past grouping I have already built a J75, J80, N13, J23 and J28 (plus the N12 on this thread). I think that this probably leaves a choice of N11, D24 or Q10 to do next. The curvy shape of the footplate has put me off the D24, and the fact that the Q10 is an 0-8-0 has also slightly put me off. I am well within my comfort zone making inside cylinder 0-6-0s (or 0-6-2s) so perhaps it is time to expand my horizons. I have got the HMRS Hull and Barnsley book which has some line drawings of locos, and the RCTS books are useful for dimensions, but any pictures you have would be great when I decide which to do. Pictures of the J75 and J80 have already appeared on Tony Wright's thread some time ago but I'll post some pictures of them on here (plus the others) when I get a chance. In the meantime here is the J23 when it had a run out on Buckingham a year or so ago. Tony Gee took the picture so I hope he doesn't mind me showing it. Thanks Chris

Not sure Mick. My dad built the body of a High Level Kits Armstrong Whitworth diesel shunter a while ago and gave me the task of building the chassis and making it go. This has been on my to-do pile for a few months so I really ought to crack on with it. I also have a J79 in bits that needs sorting out. I bought this off Connoisseur Models a number of years ago when Jim did a limited re-run of 4mm kits. This was my first attempt at a brass kit and I made a reasonable job of the body but a right hash of the chassis. I have always intended to scratch build a new chassis for this and it has also been in the to-do pile for some time. There isn't much room for a gearbox and motor so I will have to give this one some thought. I don't have any major loco building projects in mind at the moment. I should really start building a layout for the locos to run on but space is at a premium.

A more successful couple of hours tonight without any mishaps. The J74 has turned into No. 64. I decided against No. 461 as this would have meant changing the buffers and the smokebox door handle to a wheel (which I don't have). The picture of 64 in the Yeadon book shows it with parallel buffers and twin handles on the smokebox door, so 64 was a better fit. The N12 is more or less done and the next time it appears on here it will hopefully be painted, but this won't be until I can get to Halfords for some black paint. The cab roof in the picture below is just plonked on for now and I will fill the secondary front splashers with Milliput and file them smooth. These smaller splashers serve no purpose on the model and are purely cosmetic as the coupling rods just fit under the footplate at their highest point. I'll fit the clack valves after painting. Cheers Chris

Simon, many thanks for your kind words. It was looking at your work (and that of many others who post their work on here) that inspired me to have a go in the first place. Cheers Chris

Thanks for the pictures Mick. It looks like the smokebox door handles will need to be swapped for a wheel to turn 467 into 461. Possibly some tapered buffers instead of the parallel shanks as well, plus some globe lubricators on the side of the smoke box. Ah well, something to keep me busy. Out of interest, do you know what the number '50' attached to the top lamp bracket was for? I have noticed a number of pictures of shunting locos in Hull which have a similar number. I have always assumed that it was a job number or route number for the day. Regards, Chris.

An unintended visitor to my workbench this evening. A couple of years ago I made a model of a J74 for no obvious reason. I understand that the prototypes never had the best reputation and were designed by the NER ‘Locomotive Committee’ from spare parts that were lying around after McDonnell got the push. The model followed a similar theme and was cobbled together from parts and off-cuts that I already had in my spares box and it didn’t cost much to make. I lost interest in the build half-way through as my mind moved on to other things. In my rush to get the J74 completed I fell into the trap of thinking I had finished it only to find evidence a short while later which suggested otherwise. According to the Yeadon book two of the class (467 and 662) were never fitted with coal rails. My model has coal rails and is numbered 467. Oops. I didn’t fancy doing anything to the N12 this evening and thought that a quick job would be to re-number the J74 to one of the class members that had coal rails (the obvious candidate being 461). Unfortunately, I ended up knocking it off my small test track onto my bench whilst trying to do two things at once. It only fell 3 inches but this knocked off some steps, bent a couple of buffers and chipped far more paint that you would expect from such a small accident. The front lamp flew off never to be seen again. Most of this evening was spent doing the repairs but I still haven’t got round to changing the wrong number which is what I set out to do. The moral of the story is take your time to start with, don’t try and do two things at once, and always work from a photograph in the first place. Photo below shows the J74 on the test track that I knocked it off. Hopefully better luck tomorrow when I change the number, fit a new lamp and apply some weathering to hide the now dodgy paint job. Cheers Chris

Just noticed this topic. Two H&B topics started on here in the space of a week - must be some sort of record!! I will follow with interest. Regards Chris

Thanks Mick. Looking at the GA and the above picture, I think I have the cab spectacles slightly too large and too far apart. Too late to do anything about it now though.....

Hi Mick Thanks for the drawings and pictures. Do you know if all of the N12s had what I assume to be a tank filler in the bunker? It is difficult to tell from photographs which tend to show the bunkers full of coal. I have seen the picture of your N12 on here before (and possibly a nice Class A?). I'm pleased that you have responded to the topic given your knowledge of H&BR matters. All the best, Chris

Many thanks for your comments. Most of what I do is scratchbuilt. I only have basic tools (no lathe or rolling bars etc) so boilers tend to be from brass tube and castings are whatever is commercially available and therefore, in some cases, not 100% accurate but close enough for me. I have built a few other H&BR locos and I will put some stuff on here when I get a chance, but if you look on page 1686 of the 'Wright Writes' thread there are some pictures of my J75, J80 and a few other things stretching their legs/wheels on a very famous train set. One day I will get round to building a layout that they can run on!! Cheers Chris

Having been ‘outed’ on here a few weeks ago when Tony Gee (t-b-g) posted some pictures of my models over on Tony Wright’s thread, I thought it was about time I started posting my own updates within my own thread. My main interests are ex-North Eastern Railway and ex-Hull & Barnsley locos. Like many people I have had a fair amount of time lately to finish things off I started a while ago, and to start some new projects. The latest thing to trundle off my workbench is a J78 crane tank. At the end of the day I have no particular use for this other than the fact I enjoy making models of obscure prototypes. I thought it was finished a few days ago but I read in Yeadon’s that the prototype carried its red lining until 1932, so out came the fox transfers – not a job I like doing. The other loco currently on my workbench is a LNER N12 (ex-Hull & Barnsley F2) which will hopefully progress in the coming weeks. The N12 will become LNER No. 2485 which I understand got a 'new' domed NER class 901 boiler in 1923 rather than the more familiar domeless type. It might not get painted until after the lockdown when I can get down to Halfords for a new rattle can. Everything is EM gauge. Nothing that I do breaks new ground and I tend to use tried and tested methods. I am happy to share ideas and, as a relative novice, I’m not adverse to constructive criticism if it helps me to improve. More anon. Chris.

John Thanks for the kind words about my G5 but it really is a bit rough round the edges compared to a nicely built LRM/Norton kit like the examples earlier on in the thread. I guess it shows that some of the older kits can scrub up reasonably well with a bit of work which is why I enjoy reading this thread. I am also pretty sure that Northumbria Models' Chris's surname was Staniland. I remember him in the shop with his wife (and possibly his son who was also called Chris). Good days. Thanks Chris

Morning All, I built a 52F G5 chassis a few years ago and had no problems in using it with a Nu Cast body. I built the chassis in EM gauge and had to remove a fair amount of metal from inside the body. I ended up 'breaking through' the front splashers, but Peter supplies a replacement etch on the assumption that this will happen. I don't think this will be an issue in OO. The 52F chassis is weight-bearing and compensated on all 8 wheels and eliminates all of the usual problems associated with 0-4-4s. I originally built the Nu Cast kit about 30 years ago and it was possibly my first (or maybe second) attempt at a loco kit. The chassis in my kit was brass rather than a metal lump. It still wasn't very good though. The previous post got me reminiscing. I bought the kit from Northumbria Models on Waterloo Street in Newcastle, which I agree was an excellent place for kits and other bits and bobs. It still has the original Northumbria Models price tag of £38 on the box!! The body is starting to look a bit battered now and I really need to finish off the lining. The old Nu Cast kit was, in my opinion, an average body let down by a useless chassis. Now I have something where an excellent chassis is let down by an average body. I could of course improve the body but I think if I started I would end up scratch building most of it. The only modification I have made is to fit a cab interior because the 52F chassis doesn't protrude into the cab like the Nu Cast chassis did. I will leave the rest of it as it is because it reminds me of a previous era of Northumbria Models, the Model Shop on Blenheim Street, the Guild Hall exhibition etc. Hope you don't mind me butting in. Cheers Chris