TimC

The warm sun dried 33019 nicely. The weathering is airbrushed Railmatch enamels - a mix of the usual suspects - Frame Dirt, Roof Dirt, Weathered Black & Model Mates Oil Brown - removed in places with a damp (with thinners) flat brush. I'll leave it a few days and have another look at the loco, I might add some highlights with Tamiya weatherline tablets. The fuel tank certainly needs a bit of shine to the 'oil spill' 33019 did not get warning flashes on her cab fronts until late summer 1981. I set my locos in May/June 81 just before the NCL collect and deliver service ended (July 81) hence none are fitted. One odd thing with Class 33 is that their air/brake pipe valves are wrong handed with respect to the rest of the BR fleet. The handles are inboard on 33s whereas all others are outboard. I thought that this might be an Eastliegh'ism' but Class 73s are per all other loco classes - most strange. No doubt someone will know why. Although, the loco has sat around for a while awaiting weathering, it was a relatively quick project in terms of modelling time. I'm hoping that the forthcoming Heljan 31 will be as quick and easy . I really ought to get my JLTRT 25 finished but I'm itching to start some parcels vans to go behind the 33............

What a lovely day to be outside........................... Once, its dry and I've removed the masking I'll post a few more pics.

Had a great weekend operating Thames Wharf Yard at the Nailsea Show. My 48DS made an appearance or three. The flywheel and the relatively high speed of the Mashima 1220 makes for an 'interesting' drive. Even at half speed, the loco will run for well over a foot before coming to a rest so stopping on the magnets for the sprat & winkles was 'fun'. The curves are tighter than the test Avon GOG test track so 'pull-four/push-three' was the limit before the sound of spinning wheels could be heard. You'll notice that in the coupling bar is missing on the front in the two lower pictures but present in the top one - it was removed after a shunting accident (more cursing about flywheels........) - it was my wife operating so 'hey-ho, it'll glue on again...' Got the 33 out this morning only to find that one side's transfers had come off in the box....Grrr! My fault, though, as I hadn't varnished them so a quick order into Precision Decals for more data panels. I've carefully removed the mould lines on the roof and will hide this under a good layer of roof dirt in due course.

Thanks Jeff. I wasn't familiar with the Y2200's until I had a quick 'google'. They look a nice little prototype.

Well I didn't ponder for long. I went for a 'looked after but used' appearance for the 48DS. Weathering was predominately MIG powders (ashes white, industrial city dirt and black smoke) with some dry brushing Railmatch acrylics (dark rust, weathered black, frame dirt) plus the odd splash of Model Mates oil brown weathering liquid. All sealed with a light coat of Games Workshop purity seal. The lamps are lenses from Little Cars, I used matt varnish and a small amount of black to take the shine off the glossy bezel. Glazing was from some clear thin clear plastic packaging of some long forgotten item that had found its way into my bag of plasticard. The driver is from Omen Miniatures. The roof has been superglued on but sparingly, it'll come off easily enough if need be. One day, it'll feature as the shunter of a private siding of a dairy where with affection it is known as 'Ernie' (the fastest milkman in the west). Next on deck, I'm going to finish off my Heljan 33 now that getting the airbursh out on the patio is now becoming possible (subject to any wind).

Hi Jeff No, I resorted to paint (etch primer then chaos black) as I don't have gas at home nor a gas torch (here - got one on the boat buts that's 500 miles away) so had nothing to hand to warm them up. The paints OK but I'd preferred to use blackening fluid - anyhow, I'll see how it wears but should be OK under a coat of purity seal.

Took the 48DS down to the Avon GOG meeting tonight. It ran well and managed six wagons before losing adhesion on the curved sections of the test track so not too shabby - it does only have one powered axle. I'll post a few more pics once I've got the cab interior sorted and the roof stuck down. Still not decided as to what overall condition I want the loco and hence the extent of the weathering. One to ponder for a bit.

While the weather hasn't been exactly nice (like living in a cloud at the top of the Cotswold escarpment), it has been still, still enough to get the airbrush out. The green is Railmatch acrylic SR Light Olive - I had hoped it would be a tad lighter but I can weather that down in due course. After the tamiya tape lifted some small bits of paint once I had removed the masking on the green, after doing the (weathered) black, I opted for brush painting the red (Phoenix Buffer Beam Red (dull) - enamel). I was going to use Humbrol acrylic RC406 - which is supposed to be 'authentic' buffer beam red but even after thorough mixing it was still positively pink! The red has come up nicely - a bit blotchy in places - not too much weathering required there as it already looks a bit dirty. I quite like the etch primer grey for the cab interior too. I'll see what it looks like once the interior is fitted and cab roof are on. If it doesn't 'shout' too much then I'll leave it as it is. If it is all dry, I 'll put the loco together and take it down the Avon GOG tonight for a quick spin around the test track. I'm operating Thames Wharf Yard at the Nailsea show this weekend so when Paul's not looking little 'Ernie' may come out to play.....

Hmmm, good point Andy. I've no idea. However, each panel had a fair amount of the label wrapped around onto the back of the plasticard and the panel itself is well stuck onto the model. The panels are also surrounded by framing so fingers crossed it'll stay where it is intended. I may have more of an issue on the loading dock. We'll see. The labels I used were new from Rymans and they were very sticky - they put up a real fight if I got one in slightly the wrong place and had to adjust their position I'll seal each structure with Games Workshop Purity Seal in due course (In fact, I've just put my can into the crate that I take to club each week to prompt me to do so). That should help too.

Planning for the 2013 club exhibition is getting in the way at the moment but the offices have had the windows and doors added. I've since opened up the windows in the doors - they look better bigger but I forgot to take another piccy last night (D'Oh!). Once I've painted the doors, I'll add the door framing and door handles (which means a raid on my wife's sewing box to look for some appropriate pins......).

Thanks Pete!

Brian I like the LMS BG - very nice!

The new offices for the shed are progressing. The prototype construction is a concrete beam frame with stretcher bond brick infills - similar to that used at Colchester. I started by planning out the sections and making up the infill sections. The infill sections are Scalescenes brick paper printed on computer label(s) (1 per A4 sheet) and stuck to 30thou plasticard. To be honest, I was a bit into the build before I remembered I was supposed to be taking pictures! I remembered about here. The model is a thin box with a rear wall of 1.5mm plasticard with some Evergreen StripStyrene (No177 - 100thou x 156thou) framing that follows the lines of the concrete beams which themselves have been fixed on the front wall which is 1.5mm clear sheet. The rear wall and framing was all sprayed in Halford's Grey Primer before gluing on the front wall. Having made up and attached the concrete beams (more 1.5mm plasticard), I then masked off the areas where windows were planned. Hawk eyes will notice that I've changed the arrangement per the original plan in order to hide the join in the clear plastic front wall. Painting the beams was a two stage process. First - a coat of 'Plastikote Touch Suede' to give a good base and a subtle texture. Then a light(ish) over spray with 'Rust-oleum Painter's Touch, Heirloom White' (both spray cans came from a large DIY retailer). The Heirloom White is more of a cream colour and sits well on the Suede to provide a mottled effect. After the masking tape was removed the infill sections were then glued in. The voids left are for windows and doors. Here is the part built building in-situ next to the shed. In due course, I'll have to revisit the shed to match the concrete colour and brickwork. The next stage is to add the window framing and doors. Watch this space......

It was the club AGM this week so not much modelling got done. However, Jim (Flubrush) has been working at home on his sectioned goods shed. It is being built up in strip wood with a plasticard base. The underside of the floor is impressive as the supporting beams of the floor will be visible. I've also found out that the fuel point (see earlier post) is a modified Skytrex item. It has been cut in half and the unused half made up to be the back of the structure.

Thanks Jeff - I'll give that a go.

Hi Dave Sorry to hear the 88DS story but at least you tried so good effort! The 48DS kit was incomplete, it was only the etches so I've used a fair bit of licence in pulling the other bits together. I purchased the horn before I got your book and then only realised they had a car like horn fitted. However, my 48DS will (one day ) run on a 1980s layout so the story is that It was an apprentice overhaul project that saved it from the scrap yard and hence has a few mods! The instructions in the kit are quite vague on motorising options. They make reference to the kit being originally designed for some (unspecified) components from Mike Sharman that were no longer available. It therefore suggests a double ended Mashima motor with Romford 40:1 gears - an arrangement that I've never got to work well in the past so I wanted to avoid going that way. I only ask for the 48DS to pull a wagon or two so a single axle drive was going to be sufficient. This also made compensating the chassis easier too. Hello Jan! Good to see you here. Now that looks mighty like that old Hibberd that used to languish around the back of the mess coach at Toddington years ago (in the good old bad old days), not sure what happened to that.

The 48DS is nearly there. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly brass tarnishes. The model was clean, all bright and shiny, after I finished the body construction over the weekend. All went together very easily. Though it looks like I've still got some cleaning up to do in places - the photos are a bit cruel! There is some filling required too but I'll try and get some etch primer on it first to see the true picture. The roof is not yet fixed down and I'll need to trim down the exhaust pipe further once the cab interior is painted.. I wasn't happy with the sand box lids which are just a fold of brass in the kit so I'll fashion something up from plasticard in due course. The sand pipes and the guard irons will go on just before painting as these'll only get bent while the loco knocks around the modelling table. Finished the brake gear and fitted the pick ups on the chassis this morning. I've stuffed the model full of lead wherever there was a good opportunity and she weighs in at around 325g. The model certainly feels substantial for its size. It runs nicely on a odd piece of track I have and I'm looking forward to taking the 48DS down to the AvonGOG test track to see what it'll pull. I have some Maygib or Markits buffers (not sure which as I've thrown away the packaging!) to go on the loco but they just will not blacken with Birchwood Casey - Grrr! A pity that the Impetus range of kits are no longer available as this one has been a real pleasure to build. The 48DS will soon join the queue waiting for good painting weather but in the meantime I'm not sure what's going to crawl up onto the modelling table next......

TTG, Thanks for the offer, we'll see nearer the time.

Hi TTG. Yep, Paul normally takes something to Thornbury, either a layout or does a demo and he's offered Somerset Lane for this years show.

Thanks Mason! Glad you like it. I'll find out which kit Jeff used for the fuel point. Thanks Jack! Paul followed some old CAD generated point templates that another club member made for a project from a while ago. I'd say they were mostly A5 (ish) points so say 6ft radius (I may be completely wrong here so if anyone knows please say differently). However, there were no issues when testing out Heljan class 37 and 47 locos around the layout so all good really. Saying that, the primary locos will be shunters and Paul's class 15 and 20 as the larger locos (Cl37/47) really dominate such a small layout.

Somerset Lane is a play on Devon's Road. Paul (owner of Thames Wharf Yard) started this project just over a year ago and now there is a small gang of us from Sodbury Vale MRC working towards completing the layout. It is just two 4x2 ft baseboards and there is a lot packed into the space. The aim was for a small portable exhibition layout which combined a small shed to show off Paul's collection of early diesels and allow a modicum of shunting so that there is always something moving - a key to maintaining a watching public's interest. As the nod to Devon's Road suggests, the layout is set in the east end of London. Here is the plan: Progess to date: Paul has built the trackwork and it is all copper-clad construction. It was been wired and tested prior to ballasting. This is 99% finished, we just need a few more grains (on order) to fill in some bare patches and beef up some of the shoulders. Once this has been completed then the paintwork on the sleepers and track will be revisited. The electrics are conventional DC with section switches for parking up locos on shed. I've knocked up the depot building and offices, it is loosely based on those at Colchester. However, when I put it on the layout the offices looked very lonely in the corner so the offices are up for replacement with a longer version that will stretch down to the fuel point built by Jeff. There is a low relief tank planned to go adjacent to the fuel point. Next to the depot is a loading docking and a low relief goods shed/warehouse (got some ideas here but the latter is not started yet). The loading dock was based on one at Wickham Market (I was scratching around for a GERish prototype here!). Normally, I build wholly out of plasticard but I've used some Scalescenes papers on the loading dock. Overall, I'm impressed with them but part of the learning curve was finding that they don't take too much distressing/weathering without damage. The deck took some punishment in particular so I've had to strategically place some 'stuff' over the damaged areas. [The clubroom lighting makes the concrete wall/deck look a tad pink in the photos]. None of the buildings have yet to be let into the layout and mounted permanently. Down the other end, Paul is working on the bridge scenic break and Jim (RMweb: Flubrush) is building half a good shed. It is designed so that you can see inside across the deck. We have an invite to a show at the end of November so I'll post the progress over the coming months.

Hi Jeff I'm not sure that there is a current 7mm 88DS kit. I think Impetus did one but of course that's no longer available. Ruston has a thread on building one using some laser cut plastic components http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/47149-ruston-88ds-build/page__fromsearch__1 - I'd be very interested in acquiring a set of those components Dave (hint, hint). Every time I see Michael Edge I ask him if he plans to do his DE165 in 7mm - he says its not too bad to do as he could use several of the castings from his 7mm 0-4-0 RH165DS kit but its getting the time and he has a load of other projects he wants to do. So pester him if you see him!

Hi Dave Thanks for your reply. I've already knocked up this for the cab interior: It was based on the drawings in your book - The Ruston Class 48DS & 88DS Locos. It might not be 100% but given the paucity of information available then I'll live with it. The piece of checker plate I have is not quite big enough but I'll add a tool box/seat along the back of the cab - an addition made by the locos owners to improve the comfort of the driver . BTW - How is your 88DS coming along?

OzzyO - That waxy flux gets everywhere and as I hop between computer and modelling table that is not a good mix. Its a bit like that 'no clean' flux sold by the 'Building O Gauge On-line' - Great stuff, but it still needs to be rinsed off to keep things sweet. As usual a few other chores have got in the way but the chassis is coming on. I'm at the dry run test fit stage. I made the axle under the cab a rocker using some tube and brass rod. There are some handy central cut outs in the etch which made getting the axle correctly centered easy but to get the ride height correct, the pivot bar is on the tip of the etch so I'll need to strengthen that up. I didn't have any 1/8th axle hornguides so fashioned some up from brass bar - a bit agricultural but hey its a 48DS!. There is quite a distance between the internal frames and the wheels and I needed 4 washers a-side to centre the driven axle (one side's washers are not fitted above hence why the axle is not central). The High Level gearbox runs like silk and allows the motor to sit upright in the bonnet. I had mapped this arrangement out on a 7mm drawing before purchasing the motor/g'box to check the clearances - tight but sufficient (as shown below). A dry fit of the bits so far. Next up, I need to sort out the wheels - they are Slaters lowmac discs which are 2ft8 whereas the prototype had 2ft6 fitted but I'll live with that. However, they do require holes in their faces. Then - Finish off the chassis with brakegear and get it in running order with pick ups etc (though I don't think I'll bother with a sound chip......).

OK, its not going to be BR Blue but the Impetus Ruston 48DS is going together well. A couple of mornings work has got it so far: The etches are superb and everything goes together easily. It is a real pity that these kits (actually, the whole Impetus range) are not currently available. I was about half way through the frames when I remembered the resistance soldering station and switched from iron to RSU - the RSU makes things much neater. That 'Carrs 179 no clean' solder cream is the business too but you do need to wash the etches after a session to remove any residue of the cream/flux. The bonnet and cab interior are next and should finish off the basic structure of the body. Working off a 7mm drawing, my plan for motorisation is a Mashima 1220 driving through a High Level gearbox (54:1 Slimliner Compact+) on the front axle only. There should be enough room for a flywheel too - all mounted vertically within the bonnet so the cab interior is not violated. The loco will only shunt the odd wagon so hopefully a single axle drive should be sufficient. If anyone has (or know of) a photo of the cab interior of a 48DS and the layout/arrangement of the three levers (direction, throttle, brake), I'd be grtateful if they could post it or give me a link. The only ones I can find are of models (needless to say all slightly different) and I'd rather see a cab from an actual loco.