SRman

Hi Colin. Sorry I missed your comment earlier. I agree with what you say about dstance from the coupling's leading edge to buffer face although with tighter curves I tend to allow a millimetre or two to avoid buffer locking. As the photos show, this installation clearly exceeds that by a considerable margin!! It would be possible to move the coupling mounts only slightly further back. The axleguards are part of a boat shaped etching which takes up a bit of the chassis space on either side of each axle. Addtionally, I have opted to use the compensation unit which means that the coupling mount cannot be attached touching the pivot or etching as it would then interfere with the movement. The upshot is that I have mounted them as far back as I dare. I want to get hold of some shorter couplings (I think Bachmann make them) to reduce the distance from buffer face to end of coupling bar. Kind Regards, Jeff.

Still tweaking and refining things on the Z, I have added the strange pipework on the front above the buffer beam and the rear bunker steps, which were cut from 20 thou plasticard. I temporarily installed a small Gaugemaster decoder, gave it the number 950 and took it to show off at PCM's BRMA meeting yesterday. It ran rather hesitantly because of the various disturbances to wiring and valve gear and a little resin dust in the pickups but after a quick lubrication job and dust off it is now (as I type) trundling around my layout. I still need to add lamp irons and the smokebox number plate and then, I think, it will be ready for painting in plain BR black. I have not, as yet, figured out how I am going to affix couplings!

You seem to have done wonderful job of fitting everything into the restricted space, Dave. Everything we do in modelling has to be a compromise somewhere along the line, even if it is for such things as accessibilty or limited space. The modelling and your photography are superb!

And yet one more shot of the detailing bits. The holes in the tank fronts are a fudge as the real items actually pass behind the tanks; on the model the tanks are integral with the boiler (a necessary compromise for the casting). I will try to carve a little more detail into the clack valves rather than leaving them as semi-shaped blobs!

I have been working on the Golden Arrow Productions Z class 0-8-0T, the body kit for which arrived last week. Rather than duplicating everything so far, I have hijacked Norwenglish's thread that deals specifically with this model, here http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/74548-gap-z-class-kit/page-1. This uses a Hornby motor-driven Stanier 8F chassis but involves a lot less modification than the one in the G16 kit. While most of the previous posts about the Z could equally well belong here, I have duplicated only the most recent post, in part because it also shows further work on the G16 and on a Triang 'Nellie' 0-4-0T that I have been detailing up as a 'quickie' project. This was prompted by the sudden availability of some Romford wheels and axles of a suitable size, cascaded from re-wheeling my Craftsman class 07 diesel shunter with newer and truer Markits wheels. The 'Nellie' has received separately fitted handrails as well, and now has some etched brass spectacle frames (the front ones have been filled and filed to match the rear ones)..This loco will eventually be finished in lined black. The finer detailing continues on the Z. I mixed a bit of Milliput to repair the holes and gaps in the resin castings and used that to make some crude clack valves. Once painted these shouldn't look too bad. After some digging through photographs, I have worked out that the rather delicate lifting links for the valve gear were covered by boxes on the footplate after nationalisation (or possibly even just before!). I have made boxes of approximately the right size from two pieces of 60 thou plasticard laminated together. There was also one more little wire handrail/handle on the smokebox door to do and that can also be seen in this latest photo. The G16 has also had my crude Milliput clack valves added. The sheet of etched brass spectacle frames, the rear ones with coal bars on, are from Mainly Trains and I will use these on the Z. I have also used a set on the Triang 'Nellie' project which can be sen at the rear of the photo.

One more from me: the finer detailing continues on the Z. I mixed a bit of Milliput to repair the holes and gaps in the resin castings and used that to make some crude clack valves. Once painted these shouldn't look too bad. After some digging through photographs, I have worked out that the rather delicate lifting links for the valve gear were covered by boxes on the footplate after nationalisation (or possibly even just before!). I have made boxes of approximately the right size from two pieces of 60 thou plasticard laminated together. There was also one more little wire handrail/handle on the smokebox door to do and that can also be seen in this latest photo. The G16 has also had my crude Milliput clack valves added. I also have a sheet of etched brass spectacle frames, the rear ones with coal bars on, from Mainy Trains and will use these on the Z. I have also used a set on the Triang 'Nellie' project which can be sen at the rear of the photo.

Yes, just when you think they can't get any more realistic these guys come along and post something ... well ... more realistic!! Some of those recent photos are totally convincing. Well done guys.

The L1 is not a bad moulding, considering its age. I did much like Black Rat - mine is also unfinished! Adding wire handrails and separate pipework makes quite a difference. I also put correct sized Romford wheels on mine, and consequently it sits nearly 2mm too high now! Mine was converted before the correct Triang-sized axles were made available so has bushes to compensate for the smaller axles. I must add extra pickups to the tender too - that's a good idea.

Last pics for tonight: the Z with Bachmann sprung SR/LNER buffers added (but only push-fitted until after painting!), then with steps added. A few minor repairs are needed to the step mouldings before painting. I am going to make completely new rear bunker footsteps out of plasticard as the resin ones were a bit ragged. Sorry tha last one is a bit blurred but the light was really not good by then. EDIT: substitution of a clearer photograph for the second picture.

A little further progress on my Z. I have been adding various bits of wire of suitable sizes for the ejector pipe, clack valves (doing the same as I did for the G16), and the handrails. It is not runnable right now because I still have the blanking plug out of it - I will have to do the wiring mods mentioned before and maybe even shift the DCC socket board altogether for clearance reasons.

Well, my GAP Z arrived today. It was a little delayed as it broke GAP's mould! Chris Meachan included a note of apology and explanation of what happened. I immediately started a cleanup of the flash and moulding pips. I then took the Stanier body off its chassis and removed the front pony truck. The rear tender coupling was removed and the wires snipped back near the decoder socket. The Socket circuit board was filed down as per the instructions and the inside of the body cleaned up with a milling tool in the Dremel. I carefully drilled out the chimney, starting with a small pilot hole then progressively larger drills until I got to the right diameter. The result is not quite sitting correctly yet, currently being about a milimetre (or less) high at the back. I'll sort that out before long. The wiring will be simplified as I eliminate the capacitor and remove the tails of the wires to the tender coupling. Anyhow, here are a few photos of the start I have made. Note in the first two shots the Stanier 8F body can be seen in the background In the foreground is an old Triang 'Nellie' locomotive that I have decided to upgrade and detail a little. It has gained Romford wheels and axles cascaded from my Craftsman 07 diesel shunter - that received new Markits wheels and axles. I also shaved off all the moulded handrails on the boiler and smokebox and replaced them with proper handrail knobs and wire. I had to make up a replacement baseplate from 40 thou plastic as the original disintegrated! Because I have used insulated wheels on both sides, I have to rig new and extra pickups then I may even stick a decoder into it as the chassis will no longer be live. I'll post pics of that in my workbench blog when I have better light for photography.

To get us back on track (a pun??) here are a couple of quick videos of the Heljan class 16 taken on my phone camera. The first is just of the 16 on a representation of a transfer freight, the second includes the same train with a Dapol track cleaning car in vacuum cleaner mode, after I had painted some more of the third and fourth rail installations and disturbed a little of the ballast. It is followed by an LT CO/CP stock train.

Sorry, I wasn't disagreeing with you either, Keefer. I am agreeing with you, at least in part. I think. There is a bit of conflict in the scant information available. I also looked at the SEMG headcode pages which seem, from what I can see, to go only from SR days with the latest one that I can find being from 1944 onwards. I am still wondering how many class 16s found their way to Hither Green. I'm sure the odd 15 got there but the NBL locos were noted for being unreliable (as has been said a few times earlier in this topic). Just because one had the Hither Green headcode doesn't mean it actually got there!! Quite a few of the photos that I did find were either at Crystal Palace LL or at Clapham Junction: both ideal locations for a bit of inter-regional train spotting. There were other locos such as class 25s and Westerns on these freights too but they had four-character headcodes (such as 1O71) ... still my excuse for owning models of such beasts on my predominantly BR(S)/SR layout!! I must get myself a Warship too, especially as they belong on the south western main lines in the later 1960s. Sorry all, rambling here and taking us a little off topic! Thanks for the compliments too, Keefer.

I'm sure the codes have changed periodically. Most of the photos I have found with any detail of the headcodes and routes involved have been dated as 1962. As with everything where human beings are involved, there is room for error, even from the most reliable of sources. As information is hard to find, especially from here in Australia, I can only take the word of the author/owner of any published photos.

I found another in Fleet Survey #4 - a class 24 D5065 in 1962 from the GNR passing through Crystal Palace LL with a top disc, one over the left buffer and one in the centre. Haresnape describes this as Norwood Junction via the widened lines, Snow Hill curve and Tulse Hill, whereas the top + left buffer on a class 15 was described as Norwood Junction via the West London Line. I am using left and right to refer to as we look at the face of the locomotive, in the cases I am describing. EDIT: fixed up a typo in the book title. Full title and details here. British Rail Fleet Survey: 4 Production Diesel-Electrics Types 1-3, Brian Haresnape 1983, Ian Allan Publishing. Number 1 in this series also has the prototype batch of class 15s and the class 16s, which never had any more produced after the initial 10.

One very minor point I should clarify from my earlier post regarding the headcodes: I have no evidence that D8219 or D8404 specifically ever carried those headcodes; just that at least one class member of each did so in real life. That was sufficient for me to use them on my models.

Nice pics - that second one looks a tad faded but it is great for modelling a 'tired' unit.

I was working from photos in various reference books to do the headcodes. The Hither Green one used three open discs in a triangle, that is, the top one and the left and right ones. I believe that SR locos would have had the top disc and the two middle ones showing but, as Stewart has pointed out, the ER locos didn't have the extra discs so the lower ones would have been used. I have evidence of these headcodes being used on both classes 15 and 16 at some time in the early to mid 1960s.

I use a similar technique to run wires from trailing bogies, usually with a slightly wider slot to allow for tighter curves. It works for me! The company mentioned re the coiled spring pickups is DCC Concepts (which is Australian). Their products are available from some UK suppliers as well.

Thanks for the kind comment.

And now for something completely different! I performed a quickie weathering job on a Bachmann blue class 25, 25 276. This locomotive has lost its sound-fitted chassis to a green example. I have used the usual weathering mixes of Humbrol #62 leather, #85 coal black and metallic gunmetal, plus some matt varnish. I have tried to be subtle on the sides, leaving some nearly pristine blue showing. As a visual displacement technique, I have carried the yellow of the front up over the centre part of the gutter to disguise the too-flat curve over the windscreens. While this is fairly obvious in the photos, it works reasonably well to the naked eye at normal viewing distances. I may, at some stage, renumber this locomotive into the pre-TOPS style.

A couple of shots of the new Heljan class 16 in service. This one is D8404 with Stratford style yellow panels. The model runs almost silently and very smoothly with a Bachmann 21-pin decoder fitted, with 20 wagons in tow. The headcodes I chose for each end are similar to the ones I put on the class 15 and represent transfer freight runs on to the Southern Region, with this one representing Norwood Junction as a destination and the code at the other end (not visible) being for Hither Green.

How does the new timetable affect connections in Sydney for the Melbourne XPT? In the past one was able to change at Strathfield for the northbound services but the southbound ones missed completely!

I managed some further work on the brake gear on the ex-LCDR brake van on the weekend. All rigging is now in place - at least, all the rigging I am ever going to do! - but the tops of the brake blocks are not yet anchored. I have threaded the tops through holes in the floor. Where I managed to break off the top strips I have soldered short lengths of wire for the same purpose. The last photo shows these projecting inside the van body and also my stove, made from a resin barrel with a brass tube stuck into it! The tops of these strips or wires will be bent over to locate the blocks at the correct height, then araldite will be used to fix them permanently.

I use some black-tack or Blu-tack to keep them from falling off while retaining the ability to remove them at will. Even so, you are experiencing what the real ones used to do anyway!