ArthurK

Further to my comments earlier, one thing which appears to have been overlooked in conversions from long to short bunker is that the first twenty engines (those with short bunkers) were fitted with steel plate buffer beams (front and back). In most cases the front beam had a wooden baulk and  an  extra steel plate added (the footplate was not extended). The rear rarely (if ever) had this change and retained the steel plate throughout the lives. The Newcastle pilot was in this condition as 68680 in its final days.

That means a hunk of plastic to remove whilst leaving the footplate intact!

ArthurK

When the longer coal bunker was added to the NER E1 (edited) class (later J72) the  frames were not extended. They remained at twenty five feet.  The only change at the rear was to add a wooden baulk behind the rear buffer beam. This, together with an additional steel plate added 5 3/8" to the length. The bunker was extended by this same amount. It then overhung beyond the actual frames. The footplate on the original E projected eight inches beyond the buffer beam, more than enough to accommodate the additional bunker length.

ArthurK 

Let's not get too upset about the rights and wrongs of any particular model. We all strive to produce the best that we can. With hindsight the front of the radius on my model is too high but let's settle this by showing a close up of the real thing.

ArthurK

You are already down  for  both of those Steve!

ArthurK

1 hour ago, Blue Max said:

Hello Arthur,

 

Sorry to to hear you have been unwell. Just wondered if the J25’s are getting close to shipping in the next few months.

 

Thanks, Steve

I have had a lot of problems with the quality of the brass castings on this one but things are being resolved -- slowly! It  should start shipping within the next couple of months.

ArthurK

On 31/10/2019 at 20:37, sjp23480 said:

Hello Arthur,

 

Did you find homes for all your remaining D20 kits?

 

Stephen

 I cannot answer that question. I won't know  for sure  how many I have until I sort all the bits out!!!!!!

ArthurK

The Tennants are being  packed.

I had a bit of a health problem which has slowed things down but the first shouldn't be too long.

Regarding the use of only a few parts from the original kit, I bought a Nu Cast O2  from a local trader ( yes we once had one in Lytham but that was not his main business). The boiler was in two halves with the firebox made up from two more. There was no way that I was going  to get an acceptable round boiler from that lot. I made a round boiler from brass. Then decided I would prefer the LNER cab to the GN version. I ended up scratch building the footplate and chassis as well. The tender wasn't too bad and I did keep the backhead!

No doubt  Tony  with his better knowledge of these than I have will find plenty of inaccuracies but all I had to go by was a Skinley drawing and I did make some adjustments to that. I can't really blame the kit manufactures for all the bits I threw away but the boiler was horrible. Some day I might finish it, or perhaps I should just dispose of it and let someone else do that. I don't have the time.

ArthurK

13 minutes ago, MarkC said:

Has anyone mentioned Centre Models yet? I built one of their RSH 0-4-0ST kits many years ago, powered with an ECM motor (remember them?) instead of the recommended X04. It was all whitemetal, including a crude chassis block, albeit one that was drilled quite accurately. I sold it to a friend and fellow member of this parish back in 2010 or thereabouts - it's still going strong, and is a great load puller. They had several other industrials in their range, if memory serves?

 

Mark

I don't think so but here is one that I built. Top is as it came but most of the chassis is scratch.

ArthurK

Tony, please forgive me for publicising my range here.

My name has been mentioned a couple of times in the above posts. There are about twenty locos in range, all are NER prototypes.

NORTHEASTERN KITS PRICE LIST.pdf

Not all are available at any one time as they are produced in small batches.

Note the these are not complete kits and do not include handrail knobs,  nuts & bolts or wire. They do include all etches, castings and comprehensive instructions.

Many of these are detailed in MikeMeg's threads

ArthurK

2 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Thanks John,

 

And perhaps my initial comment was a bit too cynical. However, when one is (was) paid to build professionally, then time spent correcting ill-fitting parts is rarely catered for in extra payments. 

 

You make a very interesting point, regarding the difference between the 'professional' builder and the self-builder. Time spent by the latter is often enjoyed in a way not given to those who earn a crust by making models. Not that I didn't enjoy making models professionally (have you ever tried to teach 5C?), but there was always a maximum price one could ask for a model, and to take so much time 'correcting' a kit's mistakes, either in its prototype inaccuracies or poor fit of parts was never going to be economically viable. 

 

Strangely, I never built any of the 'high-end' kits, either; the Mitchell/Finney ones. Though their quality was/is unimpeachable, so much time would have been needed  for me to erect them (assuming I could?) that the price would have been way too high. Imagine fashioning Gresley crossheads from umpteen sandwiches of etched brass! I've built one Brassmasters' kit - a Beames L&NWR 0-8-4T. The chassis was way too complicated for me - fully-sprung and so on. I made it rigid, in a fraction of the time. 

 

Are JIdenco/Falcon Brass kits anathema to professional builders? Clearly, from your experience some of the kits must be fine. If so, then my prejudice should be challenged.

 

Will other professional modellers comment, please? 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

Whilst not a fan of Jidenco I feel that provided you were prepared to spend the time you could produce  a reasonably acceptable result. I picked up two of their coaches (unbuilt) on a club secondhand stall. The first was this Barnham shown below. As Jonathan has remarked. the bogies were awful but I did get them to run (these were six-wheeled). The other was a sixty foot  corridor third similar to the one in Jonathon's post. I built the body shell for that and decided I had no use for it and  sold it on half built.

I also built four NER ironstone hoppers. Again these were not easy builds but the result was acceptable, but might not pass close scrutiny.  I will photograph these and post them on here later.

Whilst we are talking awful (impossible) kits , I nominate MTK Gresley 61' 6" coaches.  These were a preformed shell, beading included. It sounds an easy build until you find the bottom beading is under the the coach bottom!!! Enough said. I would rate these way below the Jidenco coaches.

I must add that I have never bought or built a Jidenco loco kit.

ArthurK

2 hours ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

It's alright. I've also got a couple of the old version to chop about.

 

Bought when they first came out, so to say they are a bit tired is an understatement.

 

 

One will end up as a J71 using the Mainly Trains parts. I'm wondering what to do with the other one. After having a look at the Bidston/Wrexham ones it seems they had shorter chimneys, possibly from a D17 according to the LNER Forum. So maybe one of those as they would fit in with most of my other locos.

 

https://www.lner.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=13142

 

I'll be buying one of the new ones. Don't know which one though. 

 

 

 

Jason

I have both the short bunker J72 and the J71 in my range of etched brass kits, 

ArthurK

12 hours ago, mikemeg said:

And, once again, just by way of something a little different, here's another of those black and white photos; this one of a B16/3 - the Thompson rebuild of the B16/1. As always, the photo is courtesy Mick Nicholson and shows the loco - 61472 of Hull Dairycoates shed - passing Hessle, near Hull, not long before its withdrawal.

 

I'm never sure if the readers of this (or any) thread find these photos interesting? For me they are a lasting reminder of the railway we knew and loved in the days of steam and, as such, are priceless. For we can never take these photos ever again.

 

Interesting that the cab side windows appear to have been moved closer to the cab roof, on this locomotive. Was this a modification made to all of the B16/3 rebuilds?  Makes a real and very positive difference to the look of the locomotive. Now with this modified cab and had the drive been to the middle set of drivers a la the B1, then this would have been one of the most handsome 4-6-0's ever built!!

 

Cheers

 

Mike

 

When these locos were rebuilt to B16/2 (Gresley) or B16/3 (Thompson) the cabs were restyled after the LNER fashion. The windows of NER cabs were considered to be too low and the were raised for these rebuilds. The Q5 rebuilds got a similar treatment but on those the cab was basically the same as the J39.

The second photo is a B16/2. It retains the right-hand drive of the B16/1

ArthurK

On 28/08/2019 at 09:28, Guest said:

If there is one left I would like one please. 

David

PM me with your surname. I may have one but the list is now closed.

I was surprised at the response to this. I have had to revise the order twice.

Delivery to those that made it will be about six weeks,

ArthurK

2 hours ago, Steve Taylor said:

I'm definitely interested but am "between" jobs until November so have to be a bit careful with the finances. Would that be anywhere near your timescale? 

Steve

I will add your name to the list. Looks like I will have to order eight rather than four!

Delivery will be about six weeks.

ArthurK

NORTHEASTERN KITS

Class 1463 Tennant

There is enough interest to warrant  going  ahead with an order for a further four of these. If anyone else is interested please let me know. quickly.

Delivery from the  etchers will take 4-6 weeks.

ArthurK

NORTHEASTERN KITS

Class 1463 Tennant

I have a customer asking for one of these kits. To become viable I really must order four of these. The tender underframe would have a Well tank with which few (if any) were fitted. This is barely visible unless the tender is turned upside down.

if anyone would like one of these please send me a PM. this is probably your last chance.

ArthurK

I have two techniques that I use.

The safest way  is use a wooden cocktail stick insert the through the hole and into the nut, screw it tight with the fingers to form a thread on the cocktail stick, then apply flux and solder. The thread on cocktail prevents solder getting onto the brass thread.

The other method (to be used with caution) is to add a washer to the bolt then through the part and nut. Tighten the bolt very firmly then apply a good fillet of solder around the nut.  Don't overdo the flux and keep the solder away from the top of the nut!  Well it usually works for me!!!

ArhurK

Here is another variant of "maroon". Of course  a lot depends on the the lighting conditions and the type of film being used. In this case the weather was overcast and the film was Agfa. 

As an aside I spotted this at LlanfairPG, and knowing that it was unlikely to rush across the Menai rail bridge I hurried across the suspension bridge to a spot that I had already selected just at the Bangor end of the rail bridge, jumped out of the car and with my camera at ready waited for it to appear. I had only a few seconds  to wait! Happy days.

Date July 1964, loco "City of Nottingham.

ArthurK

23 minutes ago, jamie92208 said:

I had exactly the same dilema in a different era when touring Doncaster works when the 56's were being built. They ranged from comp,ete painted locos to sets of frames that were just delivered from IIRC Crewe.  My mate and I had a discussion about the ethics and decuded that if the engine and frames were on their bogies wjth cabs and the bodyshell and the number identified on the attached paperwork, then they counted as Cops.  Very ironic as Keith and I were both cops.

 

Jamie

 

 

 

We visited Doncaster works at that time.

ArthurK

NORTHEASTERN KITS

There are still several short bunker J72s available. When those are gone it unlikely that there will be a further batch unless there is an upsurge in demand. I need an order of six to become viable.

I find that I have three J24s available.  These will not be packed until orders are requested. The price is £100 which includes P&P within the UK.
 

ArthurK

The photograph of the 4125 tender is from a B16 as it still has both brake and scoop handles. The Q7 wasn't fitted with water pickup.

ArthurK

Some pages back there was a discussion about splashers on the V2. I have just unearthed the photos I took in 1974 when it visited Carnforth.  I took the opportunity to clamour onto the footplate to take a number of shots from a viewpoint not normally available. Needless to say I was spotted and politely (!) told to come down from there. I didn't mind as I already had the photos that I wanted. This is  one one them clearly showing the splasher over  the front driving wheel.