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Pugsley

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Blog Entries posted by Pugsley

  1. Pugsley
    Due to a varnish malfunction, what used to look like this:

    Now looks like this:

     
    And what used to look like this:

    Now looks like this:

     
    The moral of this story is, if you're using a varnish for the first time, don't use it on anything important. On the plus side, I now get to try the filter technique on the TTA, and set myself a huge challenge in replicating this:
    http://www.flickr.co...57603195747980/
     
    I wanted to do it before, but wasn't sure how I was going to do it. Now, these oils seem to be perfect for this kind of thing, so I'm going to give it a go.
  2. Pugsley

    Point(less) Update

    By Pugsley,

    With flights of fancy put on the back burner for the time being, where they should be, a milestone has been reached in the construction of Bisley Junction - the pointwork is more or less complete!
     
    The most challenging piece so bar was the B7 FB crossover:

     
    Which I'm rather pleased with, closely followed by the two bullhead rail points - flat bottom rail is so much easier to work with as it's obvious which way up the rail goes!
     
    The only thing left to do do all of the turnouts is to fit the tiebars. After considering several options, I've decided to go for functional stretcher bars of my own construction:

    For this I've used 0.5x1.5mm brass strip, 13mm long, with the last 2mm of each side bent to form an 'L' shape - the brass did need to be annealed to soften it before bending. Between the two brass strips is a piece of paper secured to the brass using epoxy resin, which sticks the parts together and insulates electrically. As an extra precaution I've also run thin superglue into the joint as well for added strength.
     
    The one pictured above is the prototype, which appears to have been a success so far, it's very strong, will be easily soldered to the rails and both sides are fully insulated from each other. I need to drill a hole for later fitting of the operating mechanism but other than that, it's complete. Just another 6 to make now....
  3. Pugsley

    BOGIES!

    By Pugsley,

    No, I've not been shouting that word in libraries in homage to Dick and Dom, but I've actually started work on the springy bogies of 415.
     
    Quite a productive weekend has seen me prepare the 42 teeth gears for fitting onto the axles and make a start on the axles themselves.
     

     
    The gears originally had a 2mm hole in the centre. I enlarged these by drilling 3.5mm, 4.3mm and then reaming to 4.74mm for an interference fit on the 3/16ths axles. Which brings me, neatly, to the axles themselves.
     
    The original plan was to have solid, one piece, axles, but further thoughts turned to how I was going to set the back-to back measurements effectively, with all of the traction motor gubbins in the way. The solution is to have the axles in two halves, which will screw into one another, allowing for adjustment.
     
    One half is 23mm long, drilled 2.5mm and will be tapped M3. The other half is 28mm long, but has 5mm turned down to 3mm, ready for threading M3. Once the axles are assembled, I'll see how the threadlock holds, if it's not sufficient I'll drill through the two halves and taper pin them.
     
    Next jobs are to thread the spigots and tap the holes in the other halves, before drilling and reaming the wheels to 4.74mm.
  4. Pugsley
    Railex has managed to do what several other shows have singularly failed to do this year, and that is to inspire me enough to get on with this layout. I've also got Chris Nevard to thank, as reading the description of Combwich in the programme sparked a Eureka moment - expanding foam filler!
     
    I'd been wrestling with how I was going to achieve the landscape that I desired, and this, combined with some flue tape (like gaffer tape only much, much stickier) is the answer. I considered blocks of extruded polystyrene, I have some left over from Chittle, but cutting it to the right dimensions and angles seemed like a lot of, messy, work. So, I've set about laying the tape over the areas to be foamed, then covering it in foam. I need to get some more, however, as the small can didn't go as far as I thought it might have.
     

     

     
    The foam will be carved to shape with an old kitchen knife. I also managed to pick up the last track components I needed and have now laid all of the sleepers, with the exception of the bay as that is a little close to the area being foamed, and once that stuff is stuck it's not going anywhere!
     
    More terraforming updates soon.
  5. Pugsley
    As per the title, really. The 'third time lucky' parts are in the process of assembly, and I've now got to the stage where I'm testing that it all works before I get too far in the process. It all fits where it should, although I have made a bit of a mis-calculation with the positioning of the cross-members, in relation to the traction motor gears. Nothing that cutting a bit out can't cure!
     
    The cosmetic sideframe is loosely attached to the assembly, just to check everything is as it should be:
     

     
    I'm also checking the relative positioning of the equalising beams in comparison to the spring mounts on the sideframe. I think I'll need to extend the faces of the axleboxes to mount the stirrups on, but I have factored that into the design, and included parts for it.
     

     
    The method of assembly, the cross members are secured to the main frames with 10BA screws and bolts, seems to have worked well in getting the assembly square - the axles have fitted into the axleboxes without any trouble. I'll probably solder the parts together once I'm satisfied that everything is square and true. It's pretty much there now - it was screwed together on a polished, square, slab of marble.
     

     

     
    A trial axle assembly in place, just to check that the clearances have turned out as designed, which they have (thankfully!). It's all a bit tight, but again, I'm fairly sure it's going to work, which is a bit of a relief. In the pictures the wheels are set roughly to the correct back-to-back measurements, but the traction motor is not in the final position. That will be located by retainers on top of the cross members.
     
    I now need to dismantle the assembly, before making up all of the secondary spring mount parts and soldering them to the cross-members.
     
    It's nice that it's all coming together, at last! There's been times when I've questioned the sanity of what I was trying to do and I have been worried that I was trying to do something that I wasn't capable of. It seems that I'm scraping through OK!
  6. Pugsley
    Links for the next chapters of the saga:
    26 - Getting somewhere at last!
    27 - OMG, I think it's going to work!
    28 - Getting there slowly
    29 - Quick bogie update
    30 - More bogie progress
    31 - Spring bounce
    32 - A milestone moment!
    33 - Doing a jig
    34 - Back to life...
    35 - Mocking....
    36 - I dont believe it!
     
     
     
    I decided to finish another 'quick win' task before starting on the bogies - fitting armrests to the seats included in the kit.
     

     
    The armrests are filed from 1x2mm Evergreen styrene strip, to more or less the shape and size in this picture:
    http://briandaniels.fotopic.net/p61285107.html
     
    Next up, bogie assembly!
  7. Pugsley

    (Traction) motoring on

    By Pugsley,

    The first of the traction motor assemblies is approaching completion, just the fitting of the motor gear to go now (I'm not counting the axle assembly as part of the motor unit - I've still got to thread all 12 parts of those!)
     
    Side view of the motor assembly:

     
    The first one has been close to disaster a couple of times, due to me not really having a clue how best to put them together I've now worked out the best sequence for doing it, which should make the next 5 go together a lot quicker.
     
    End view of the motor asembly:

     
    I've also discovered another design fault - I've made the bracket fit the motor extremely accurately, however I hadn't taken into account that the shaft bearing of the motor protudes from the casing by about 0.5mm, which meant that the bracket wouldn't fold square. I've now had to drill the hole for the motor shaft out to 4mm, so it sits nicely in the support frame.
     
    View of the motor with wheel, giving an idea of what is visible behind the wheel. With the gears painted black, it shouldn't be too bad :

    It's all a (fairly steep at times) learning curve, I guess
  8. Pugsley

    He ain't heavy....

    By Pugsley,

    A somewhat obtuse title, I suppose, but what the heck, I'm suffering from lack of imagination due to the heat
     
    Work continues on the heavyweight conversion, with the bogie mods done and the headlights replaced. These are Replica items, drilled through with a 2mm drill and stuck to the shell with Plastic Weld once the original moulded lights were shaved off carefully.
     

     
    It makes a massive difference to the appearance of the loco IMO, especially as the 'face' is one of the first things looked at and it's often really noticeable, although not always - it took me a while to work out why the Heljan Kestrel didn't look quite right, but that's something for another time....
  9. Pugsley
    There are periods of doing this kind of thing where I feel like I've spent an awful lot of time doing something, but don't really have much to show for it.
     
    I've started on the roof of the 09, with the cab roof getting the most treatment. A mix of weathering powders and hairspray was used for this - mostly Mig Europe Dust, with a little Brick Dust and Gulf War Sand chucked in for good measure.
     

     
    This is mixed up and applied with a brush. If it goes on too thin, add more. If it goes on too thick paint neat hairspray on, and dab gently with a cosmetic sponge - this will spread the mixture, remove it in places and also remove brushmarks. If you end up getting it where you don't want it, a wet brush will remove it.
     
    I've also reduced the fuel spill effect in front of the cab - it was looking a little too dark to me. A soft flat brush moistened with screenwash took care of that, brushing it down vertically. I've also modified the paint on the front slightly to get it a bit closer to the photo I'm working from.
  10. Pugsley

    Quick bogie update

    By Pugsley,

    Not much to say, other than slow progress is being made on the bogies. I've now assembled the first of the frames, and popped in the first motor unit to see how it all fits together.
     
    The good news is, it all fits together!
     

     

     
    The sideframe is just held on with blu-tack for the moment, but it all looks promising.
  11. Pugsley
    As is kind of hinted at by the title, I'm pretty happy that I've finished the first side of the 09. It's just been a matter of adding the the little details with gouache and powders, so again it won't look much different to last time.
     

     
    The masking tape depot plaque seems to have worked as intended, a bit more gouache washes and powders in this area have made it look as it should.
     

     
    The trickiest part of this phase was the marks on the battery box where the BR arrow had been removed. Again using goucahe helped with this, as I found it really difficult to get to look convincing. I think this is attempt number 4 - the rest were wiped off with a damp cotton bud as I wasn't happy with them.
     

     
    I've made a start on the front, but that needs a lot more work yet. The cab end and other side need to be done next. I'm really pleased with the way this one is turning out - I think it might be the best one yet!
  12. Pugsley

    Finally!

    By Pugsley,

    Hah, I bet you all thought that this project was dead and buried!
     
    Truth be told, I did as well, after being seduced by 7mm scale and shiny technology, oh, and cars. However, of late I've worked out why the layout wasn't really progressing - I find track building and wiring incredibly boring and, seeing as I don't have to do them, and there are many other interesting projects to spend time on, I haven't. I considered ripping up what I'd already done and building a small 7mm layout instead, but I couldn't quite bring myself to do that. So, with my wife insisting that she wanted our kitchen table back, I had to find a solution.
     
    The solution appeared to be to find someone to subcontract the track building and basic wiring to, allowing me to concentrate on the bits I enjoy, such as the scenery and the buildings, etc, to go on the layout once finished. The hardest part was going to be to find someone who was prepared to take on the project, who I felt would be able to complete it to my unfeasibly high standards. So, a chance conversation at the SWAG do last weekend resulted in the layout heading North after the show, to Darlington. Simon, of S H Model Making is going to do the honours as I know that I can trust him to finish the track to my standards (no pressure, if you're reading this, Simon!)
     
    Have I sold out? Probably, but at least this way I have got about 12 months to concentrate on building stock for the layout, so it's going to be a year of 4mm scale, with a bit of 7mm Cargowaggon thrown in for good measure. The first job is to finish the tamper, then the 455. I'm also looking forward to getting back to the tank wagons.
     
    The occasional progress report on the project will appear here, from time to time:
    https://www.facebook.com/SHModelMaking
  13. Pugsley
    No, not finished the large 37, or the small one for that matter, but I've achieved something that I hoped was possible, but wasn't sure about.
     
    I was given a healthy dose of reassurance by Andy, here:
    http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/topic/16226-andys-plop-shop/page__view__findpost__p__153226
     
    Which showed that what I was trying to achieve is relatively simple, and all the experimentation I had done (to little avail) with Tipp-Ex and other substances wasn't really necessary.
     
    I think that I've mentioned before that my ultimate goal is to one day take a picture of a model where absolutely nothing gives it away as being a model. A tall order indeed, but I have to have something to aim towards, else I get bored.
     
    To this end, I decided that the sides of the 37 need a bit of texture - so, this evening, I mounted a 3mm carbide burr in the flex shaft of the Dremel and attacked my 37 with it . Removing the tiniest amounts of material, almost randomly, in different directions, whilst constantly looking at photos, the effect intitially looks a bit wrong. However, smoothing with a bit of wet and dry (1200 grit, used wet) brings it all together nicely. I'm rather pleased with this:


     
    It's a very subtle effect (I think it just about shows up OK in the photos), which is exactly what I want, but it is very time consuming. 2 hours has seen me do one cabside and about a third of the main bodyside. I'm hoping that, come the end, it's going to be time well spent.
     
    More soon, hopefully.
     
    Edit - I've managed to get a better picture with the help of a little Klear, water just wasn't working properly. I've also spent another couple of hours on this effect this evening (in the same place) and it's pretty much there now.
     
  14. Pugsley

    Getting there slowly...

    By Pugsley,

    Progress is at it's usual snails pace, but it is progress none the less! I've managed to get the first of the traction motor/axle assemblies complete, and it all fits between the wheels. I knew it would...
     

     
    The R on the top of this one denotes that it is the innermost unit of the bogie, and as such has the motor mounted the other way round, so is wired to run in the opposite direction to the other two on the bogie, whilst keeping the wire colours consistent.
     
    A view of another, partially assembled, unit, waiting to have the other wheel pressed on:
     

     
    Another view of the completed unit:

     
    I need to work out a way of blackening the gears, possibly using permanent marker, but they shouldn't be too visible once the frames are all in place.
     
    Meanwhile, work continues on assembling and cleaning up the main bogie frames. More anon!
  15. Pugsley

    D I Why?

    By Pugsley,

    A combination of things in the title - do it yourself transfers and why am I going this far? I could have the body assembled by now, I reckon, but it is getting to a point where the extra work seems worthwhile - I just have to keep thinking 'it'll look great once it's finished!'.
     
    The transfer making wasn't as tricky as I feared it might have been. I ordered some of the clear and some white paper from Crafty Computer Paper, which comes with fairly comprehensive instructions. The first attempt didn't go exactly to plan - after 3 light coats of Klear sprayed on the ink ran after wetting the decal. Since that first attempt, I've given everything else one thin-ish coat of Humbrol Mattcote applied with a flat brush and it appears to be working much better. The signs were made up in CorelDraw based on photos I've found on t'internet.
     
    The results so far:

    The engine room bulkheads are now substantially complete - just need a little weathering before fitting. The painted flag and detonators in box effect looks a little crude but, in the context of the assembled model, should look OK. Just don't look too closely...
     
    The nose bulkhead for the No 1 end is in a similar position, although I have started on the weathering of this, mostly worn paint/shiny metal so far, using Metalcote silver (Humbrol).

     
    Once the nose bulkhead is weathered and fitted, I can make a start on fitting the cab detailing bits, and the LED cab lights. About the only cab detailing parts left to make now are the windscreen wiper motors - these will be fitted after the bulkhead is secured in place.
    http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/1264621456/gallery_6668_11_33085.jpg
     
    Included in the above pic are brake indicator lights, isolating switches of some kind (I think - they're fitted above the cab doors on the drivers side), cab heaters, radio and unidentified tanks that go on the secondmans side.
     
    After finishing the cab assemblies, attention will turn to the body sides, although there is a little experimenting to be done before assembly - more of that in the next 'gripping' instalment...
  16. Pugsley
    The next, somewhat elastic, deadline for getting this 'ere 37 finished is now Guildex in Telford. I'm hoping that, even if it's not actually painted, it will be mechanically operational, which took a step closer today with the arrival of this, from the etchers:

     
    I'm pleased with the way it's come out - pretty much everything has come out as planned, with the exception of the writing on the axlebox stirrups. I knew I was pushing my luck with it, as it was on the small side, but it isn't legible, as I'd hoped it might have been. On the plus side, you can see that something's there, so all is not lost:

     
    This weekend will now mostly be spent beavering away in the workshop, to try and get everything ready for assembling the bogies. I just hope that there's no major flaws in the design!
     
    There is a real sense of satisfaction when the shiny bit of metal, made from your artwork, comes through the door
     
    In terms of major bodywork, the loco is mostly complete. I've got to trim some of the bufferbeams away to mount the ETH gear, but the other major job was to fill in one cut-out on the side of the loco, and make another.
     

     
    This is one of those reasons that prototype photos are essential if you're trying to accurately recreate a particular loco - especially with 37's as they are a minefield of detail differences.
     
    Whilst studying photos of 415, I noticed that the semi-circular cut-out present on the model isn't there. There is a recess behind the cut-out, to thin the skirt in the visble section, so this was filled with two bits of 0.25 x 3.2mm, cut to fit (2.9mm IIRC), superglued in place. Once dry, I filled the hole with Holts Knifing Putty - which I've discovered is better than most model fillers, and cheaper too!
     
    The new aperture is based on dimensions scaled from a side-on photo of 415, found on the web. I marked the hole out, and started it off by drilling 1.5mm holes towards the corners. These were then joined, carefully, with a sharp scalpel. The hole was finished to size with small files.
     
    I made a list of all the things that needed doing the other day - I won't be putting it here, as it's too long! Suffice to say that there is plenty to keep me occupied for a while
     
    I've got a weekend to myself, so I'm hoping to achieve a lot this weekend - updates as and when
  17. Pugsley

    A milestone moment!

    By Pugsley,

    I'm feeling rather pleased with myself this afternoon, as it all appears to work! I've spent the last few modelling sessions constructing the axleboxes and their stirrups and fettling the equalising beams to fit.
     
    After the test assembly appeared to be successful, I couldn't resist plonking the body on top to see what it looked like, and it looked rather good IMO.
     

     
    Everything appears to be OK in terms of width across the bogie - nothing looks out of place there. There is an issue with one of the springs being slightly out of alignment (obvious in the pics), but a careful bit of work with a file on the mounting stud will sort that out. I've resigned myself to lightly gluing the springs in position, instead of relying on a friction fit anyhow.
     

     
    The ride height appears to be ok, in as much as in its current state the distance from the ground to the bottom of the body is less than I had allowed for the overall height of the bogie, so by the time the secondary suspension is installed it'll be at the right height. I just need to find out what that height is, as I don't appear to have written that down anywhere...
     

     
    What it has highlighted though, which I did kind of expect, is that I'm going to have to add a fair bit of weight inside the model to get the springs to ride at the correct height. In the photos above, the model is sitting at pretty much the maximum downtravel of the axleboxes, the idea is that the normal position will be at half travel, so the wheels can go up and down with the undulations in the track.
     
    It needs a bit of tweaking, but at least I've proved to myself that I haven't been wasting my time!
  18. Pugsley

    Still loving it!

    By Pugsley,

    It's sad, but I've been like a child with a new toy over the last few days seeing what else I can do with these oil paints. I've known about them for a long time, Rich Divizio of mtw (http://modeltrainsweathered.com/forum/) has been using them for years, but I'm still getting excited by playing around with them and discovering things for myself. I think I need to get out more....
     
    Side two of PR58265 has been completed, and I've now worked out how to use them for the spillage staining effectively:

    Which involves applying the paint sparingly, then dragging down with a dry brush.
     
    On this side, I've also used the oils on the underframe to good effect, using raw umber mixed with black and white in varying quantities to add highlights and shadows. This leaves things a bit glossy though, so it needed to be overcoated with some matt varnish on this one, as I didn't want any shine.
     
    Pix - I've used the JSV on this one, it brushes beautifully and dries nicely matt. It is definitely spirit based, and cleans up OK with the odourless thinners I normally use. I'll run some through the airbrush soon and let you know how it goes.
     
    Quick top shot:

     
    One more TTA to do now before finishing off both of the TEAs
  19. Pugsley

    I was half right!

    By Pugsley,

    The half right bit being at the end of my last, unusually verbose, post where I said that the next post would be about modelling and with pictures and stuff. So here it is! The part I was wrong about though is that I thought it would be about the 37 bogies, however I've decided to do a bit more to the TTA chassis that still only currently exists in the virtual world.
     
    I've now drawn up the axleguards (W-irons if you must ), mounted them to the chassis rails with Scale Hardware rivets, and put the wheels and bearings into the axleboxes and slid those into place in the axleguards. The good news is that it all fits together!
     
    Isometric view:

     
    One thing that I did discover during the assembly process was that there were some dimensional issues with the axleboxes - both of them were too small, but luckily as I'd scaled all the dimensions off photographs, all to the wrong ratio, I've got away with it by just scaling them up as a complete part. That was more luck than judgement though!
     
    Looking at both the side and end views, below, I'm happy that, so far, everything looks to be the right kind of size and in the right place. If anyone can see something that looks wrong, please let me know - sometimes it's hard to see the wood for the trees when you're looking at something constantly.
     

     

     
    The axleguards still need the wear liners added (these will fold up onto the axleguards), so there is a bigger gap than there would otherwise be between the guards and the axleboxes. The next job to tackle will be the inner chassis rails and cross-members, which is going to be quite an interesting task, I think.
  20. Pugsley
    Erm, rinse my kits after washing with soapy water - isn't that what everyone does?
     
    It doesn't seem right that a 7mm kit bodyshell can be built out of this few parts, but here are all of the main structural components. These are now drying off before work commences on the cab bulkheads and sanding down the filler on the bodysides.
     
    I've also discovered a few more parts I need that aren't included in the kit. The ETH gear is missing, despite stating that it was for a /4 at the time of ordering and I've also discovered that I need Western Region style lamp brackets. I did speak to a nice man at JLTRT this afternoon though, and they are sorting it all out for me - their service is very good.
     
    I find it incredible that 415 (or 277 as it was formerly known) went through refurbishment and came out still with only WR lamp brackets, although one on the no.2 end had been bent round to act like a standard bracket by 1993 - possibly the first time anyone had tried to put a tail lamp on it? Trust me to pick an oddity without realising it...
  21. Pugsley

    Wax on. Wax off.

    By Pugsley,

    Well, more like slap on filler and sand off. It's coming on, with a little help from my new friends:

    The sanding sticks have proved to be a worthwhile investment for this project (I got mine from Netmerchants) not exactly cheap, but not ludicrously expensive either, in the grand scheme of things. More of this later though.
     
    Riveting - Part 1
    Through filling the second set of footsteps in the tumblehome of the loco, losing some of the moulded rivet detail around the area was inevitable. However, all is not lost:

    These really are good, I bought them ages ago for another project (actually exactly the same problem as here, but in 4mm scale!) but they've sat in a drawer for ages. They arrived from the US in roughly 4 days after ordering - sterling service. They are effectively blobs of resin on waterslide decal paper and apply exactly like a transfer. The instructions recommend fixing in place with Klear, which I would endorse, they may come off a little too easily if you don't (found that out the hard way).
     

     
    The results are worthwhile - this job would be a real bu**er to do if they didn't exist!
     
    Drilling down
    I've also taken the opportunity to finish off the two cab ends whilst the potential for distraction was reduced. At this stage I've drilled out the tail and marker lights in preparation for fitting the lighting at a later stage in the build. These were easy, selecting the right size of drill to fit the aperture, using the existing shallow holes as a guide, meant that the holes were automatically centred.

    The headlights weren't going to be so easy. In order to show the marking out a bit better, the headlight was coloured in with a pencil. The overall width of the light was measured in terms of both height and width. By calculating half of both dimensions, setting the calipers and using the outside of the light housing as a guide, I was able to accurately mark the centre of the aperture. Once marked, I carefully used a 0.5mm drill to find the centre marking and drill a pilot hole.

    Once the pilot holes were drilled (above) I opened them out with a 1.0mm drill, right through. this was then the guide for a 3.5mm drill that I only drilled part way down, so that the angle of the drilled hole forms the shape of the reflector. More on this in a later chapter.
     
    Riveting - Part 2
    I needed to make a blanking plate for the boiler exhaust aperture, so made one from 5 thou brass sheet that was to had. The blanking plate was measured, and the piece marked out before cutting with sharp scissors. They're not quite so sharp now
     

     
    Whilst at the Reading show back in December, I purchased one of the GW Models rivet presses, which I thought would be ideal for forming the rivets on the plate. It turns out that it was! I used the calipers to mark 2mm in from each corner and used the punch to create the rivet in this location. the plate was rolled with a bit of brass tube on a pad of kitchen towel to make it conform to the roof profile.
     

     
    After gluing it in place, I realised that it was sticking up far too far. I've since removed the boiler port so that the plate is now flush to the roof. The port was removed with a combination of scraping and filing and the plate re-secured with CA adhesive.
     
    Back to the start
    And now 'tis back to the start and the reasons for massive filler consumption and dust generation. Firstly, the cab mouldings required a lot of fettling in order to get them to fit and even then required a far bit of filler to get the profile to match the rest of the body, more than I expected TBH. Got there in the end, although I expect to have to do a little more fettling after the body is primed.
     

     
    This was the biggest use of filler - as the kit is supplied, there is one more bar in the cantrail grilles than there should be, 11 bars instead of 10. I'm not sure if this is a design error, or a design compromise - the joint between body and sides would be less straightforward if it had been stepped. I've filled this with the green stuff, but would use a suitably sized piece of plasticard in each aperture to be filled if I was to do it again.
     
    It's still a little rough round the edges in the cantrail grille area, this is one of the tasks to complete this week, along with assembling the bogies to a certain extent, although not quite for the reason you may think. More elaboration on that mystery in the next (thrilling?) episode....
     
    Thanks for reading - especially if you got all the way down here..
  22. Pugsley
    I'll start with the lesson in observation. When planning a model of a wagon, check what axleboxes it had in the period you'll be modelling it in, don't rely on more recent photos!
     
    I've been turning my attention to the Nitric Acid tanks again, as a little bit of a break from the 37 bogies (more of that in another post to follow shortly) so dug all of the research material out the other night. In a previous post, I'd been drawing up the SKF axleboxes, as that's what I thought I required but closer inspection of some older photos of the tanks, in UKF colours show them with Timken axleboxes (all except the Pedestal suspension fitted 949 and 950).
     
    Having realised my error, I've set about drawing up the Timken variant of axlebox. It's going to be quite a useful thing to do anyway, as it was fitted to such a wide range of air braked wagons, including the VAA and VBA vans, which I plan to turn my attention to at some point. So here is the current work in progress, on the floor this time rather than floating in mid air:
     

     
    It's shown in parabolic spring configuration, for use on the vans it won't need the circular spacer on the top, there's a few little tweaks to do, but it's more-or-less there. The text on the front projects further than it should, the same as the last one, due to the minimum size requirements for the 3D printing process. I'll sand the print to reduce the size of that before using it as a master.
     
    The SKF type wasn't a complete waste of time though, I can still make use of it on another type of wagon in the future.
  23. Pugsley

    The novelty...

    By Pugsley,

    Still hasn't worn off. Sorry if this is now getting a bit boring, but I'm enjoying myself, which is the main thing! Tonights experimenting has revealed that the oils can be matted down nicely by stippling in talc.
     

     
    as demonstrated on the W irons.
     
    I've also been experimenting further with the addition of highlights and shadows, doing it a little more on this one than the others. Again, it seems to work, but I think it has to be carefully controlled, or the model could end up looking like a caricature of a tank wagon.
     
    I've played around with the barrel as well, putting larger patches of crimson, blue, white and yellow on before manipulating them first with a dry, and then with a moist, brush, using dabbing and scrubbing motions, as well as running the brush down from top to bottom. It seems to have added a slightly blotchier effect to the barrel, which I kinda like.
     
    Time to carry on playing!
  24. Pugsley

    Mocking....

    By Pugsley,

    up the final ride height was one of this evening's little tasks (it's amazing what you can do with brass rod and blu-tack!). Now that I've got all 6 motor units assembled and test fitted into the bogie frames, I wanted to make sure that I could get squeeze everything in that I wanted to and check clearances.
     

     
    As you can see, it's all a little tight in there! The shiny bits on the cross-member are the lugs that the torque reaction arms will fit into, engaging into similar holes on the edge of the motor housing. The motors project a little bit above this, but not much.
     
    The other bogie, which is yet to have these mounts fitted:

     
    Someone asked a while ago about how visible the gears would be - here's a pic with the motor in roughly the final position (pretend that the file and cocktail stick aren't there )
     

     
    I don't think they'll be too intrusive once painted black.
     
    Next job is to solder the torque reaction arm mounts to the one bogie, then sort out the kingpin and secondary suspension mounting. The secondary springs need to be soldered in place before the bogies are assembled, as I'm not sure what effect that heat will have on the resin sideframes. Between the springs and the bearing plates, yet to be attached, there will be a screwed adjustment, so ride height can be adjusted to ensure the loco is level. The primary suspension, theoretically, doesn't need this as it is equalised. Both bogies are sitting level, with all 6 wheels on the marble, so I'm confident that all is square and should run OK.
     
    More progress later in the week, with any luck.
  25. Pugsley
    Having had the house to myself most of the weekend, I've used it wisely to get quite a lot of modelling done, both in real world and virtual. I've now created the axlebox for the Nitric tank project, and I'll probably do the Timken version at some point in the future.
     
    Behold the mysterious floating axlebox:
     

     
    The SKF logo is a little more prominent than it should be, but that's unavoidable due to the resolution required for printing. I understand that the minimum feature size for FUD is 0.1mm. I'll reduce the size with judicious use of wet and dry after printing.
     
    Just the rest of the wagon to go now!
     
    I've made a start on the second class 37 bogie as well, so there is a slim possibility that it might be sat on its bogies at Telford. It probably won't though
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