RichardClayton

Worth celebrating though . Of course my comment about almost everything being kit or scratch built applies to pretty much all of the pictures in this thread not just the most recent ones, especially the excellent ones taken by Tony Lambert, as well as other fantastic layouts on RMweb -- Blackgill being a geographically adjacent (in prototype terms) example. We do run some modified and re-wheeled RTR locos (9Fs, Q6s, WDs, K1s, and the odd diseasel (sic) etc), and some modified RTR wagons (e.g. the oil train), so there are exceptions. Richard --

Here are a couple of photos from last Saturday, with more fruits of lockdown. The first one shows J27 65871 on a running in turn, but looking at home with a train of 21T hoppers. You can tell it is running in because there is no coal in the tender, no crew, it is suspiciously clean, and a few other details are missing too. Who needs to wait for Oxford Rail deliveries when you've got a Dave Bradwell kit ... and the time to make it. Speaking of which, Martin brought along his Bradwell Q6, which not only looks good but also runs nicely. The other Q6 in this shot, 63379, is an Alexander Models kit running on a Pete Stanger chassis enjoying a pleasing run before the DCC chip self destructed. Incidentally, everything (locos, wagons, signals, etc) in these two pictures is either scratch or kit built. Just saying.

Some progress to report on the J94 -- the chassis fits underneath the body nicely, and the RT models castings look the part. The steps and handrails are also an improvement on the Hornby offering. I made a new boiler to fit underneath the tank from brass, after several futile efforts to shape plasticard to a consistent radius. It is lined with tissue soaked in epoxy to reduce the likelihood of fried DCC decoders. Lots more detail to add, and I'm starting to enjoy this :-).

Thanks John — another great looking vid! The Q6 will acquire coal, crew, lamps, and a layer of grot in due course, but it was nice to give it an opportunity to stretch its legs on Saturday, and pleasing to see the fruit of lockdown(s) trundling round South Pelaw without too many mishaps — once I had fixed a couple of errant back to backs.

I have also started on a new project to turn a cheap eBay purchase .... ... into a better representation of J94 68038, which spent time at Blaydon and Tyne Dock sheds, so could plausibly have made it to South Pelaw. The first part, as is often the case with RTR enhancements, has been complete deconstruction, and it was considerably more drastic than usual this time. Gulp. But the horrid seam along the saddle tank has gone, and I have been greatly helped and encouraged by Ruston's thread that covers a similar conversion -- -- many thanks to all who contributed to this thread. The reconstruction stage has begun already, with an RT models chassis kit that made up really nicely. With a bunch of RT models etchings and castings to come. Richard --

The Trestle wagon is now nearly finished -- just need to fix the trestles in place, add some chains and maybe a load. I'm quite pleased with the overall finish though, despite the slightly wobbly TRESTLE lettering. The transfers are a mixture of HMRS and ancient and rejuvenated Woodhead. The number may not be completely correct -- it is right for a Plate, and among a batch that were (according to David Larkin) converted to Trestles. So it is plausible. And will anyone notice?

A couple of coats of paint and some Railtec transfers later, here is a test assembly of the J27 loco and tender. I’m not 100% happy with the paint finish, and I hope the very slight orange peel will vanish once a layer of dirt is applied. The re-insertion of the tender wheels was quite tricky, as was the re-assembly of the loco chassis. There is still some way to go; fitting a DCC chip, glazing, buffers, smokebox number plate, cab details, crew, coal, and so on. I’m also planning a tarpaulin folded on the cab roof. But I do feel we are getting there. As well as the J27 and introducing some variety, I’ve also been working on some North Eastern signals for a friend. These use MSE components, with a home made bracket scaled from photos. Again, these aren’t quite complete, but look the part I think.

The J27 is now primed with etching primer, and while the etching business was going on I was sidetracked into building a Parkside Trestle wagon from the stash. I’ve built one of these before, and the kit is a little misleading because standard Plate wagon sides are provided, whereas all the photos of Trestle EAs I have seen have a plain side at the foot of the trestle. I fabricated this from plastic strip. The chain pockets on the other side are provided, but I decided to make these too. Buffers are Lanarkshire Models. The coupling hooks are in nickel silver from Exactoscale and are things of beauty, as are the instanter links from the same source. From this photo it looks like there is still some tidying up to do. And of course the trestle is going to be fixed down once painting is complete. I took a delivery of some wagon goodies from HA models this week, which included some more 16 tonners, and I discovered a hidden stash of ABS 9’ brake gear — so odds are even on whether the next entry here is wagon or loco related ...

In addition to Johndon's pic, here are some photos of wagons that often feature in loaded steels. First up is a Bachmnann Bolster C, modified with Rumney Models etchings and bolsters to represent a D1/474 (I think) wagon. I have recently received a new set of goodies from Justin, so there might be more of these wagons appearing. Next up is a Bolster D from a Cambrian kit, loaded with billets, probably bound for Jarrow. And finally one of several Cambrian Boplates, loaded with product from the Hownsgill plate mill and bound for the shipyards. Steel in these cases is plasticard rod and sheet painted grey to represent mill scale. We do have some photos of steel traffic through South Pelaw, but there seem to be more pictures of empty steel wagons going up to Consett than fulls coming down. Of course this might have something to do with the difficulties inherent in working a heavy loaded train down a steep gradient, and we do know that a fair bit of product went via Lanchester. However, we are always on the lookout for more information too.

The class 24s do indeed make an impressive racket. Perhaps we should think about sound chips for the 9Fs, but it won’t be quite the same without the volcanic exhaust effects of the real thing. See the following video for an example. The wheel slip at the end of the video is something we can, and do, reproduce on the model.

Your'e absolutely right -- I'm not sure why I thought Q7s were compounds, but its not the first time I have been mistaken...and I'm sure it won't be the last

I agree, it does look odd. But to my eyes Q7s always tend to look a bit weird from some angles, like they have been stretched in a vertical direction. I think it is because the boiler sits quite high, and I presume this is to incorporate the inside compound cylinder. The short coupling rods also give the outside cylinders quite a sharp rake. I'm pretty sure this model is a Dave Alexander kit on a Pete Stanger chassis, a combination that produces a more dimensionally accurate model than the DJH offering, so it should be pretty much spot on.

I’m enjoying this, and have been inspired to buy a copy of the book by Webb and Gordon, which was a fascinating read. The buildings are very fine models, and I’m very much looking forward to seeing the rest of layout develop.

I have enjoyed a pleasant afternoon finishing off these single bolsters. When I bought all four single bolster kits at Scalefour North a few years ago (an exhibition, remember them?) Dave told me to make sure I actually built them. Well they are all done now, bar some Dullcote and chain. Before anyone mentions it, I *know* the numbers are for diag 1/400 wagons with an 8’ wheelbase, and these wagons are diag 1/402. Mea culpa, and it does bother me slightly. My excuse is that I had a railtec transfer sheet with the earlier numbers, which are nearly right. In my experience, making up numbers one digit at a time, or by cut’n’shut can work, but there is also potential for significant frustration. So I went with inaccuracy ...

I obtained one of Dave Bradwell’s revised chassis etches. I wasn’t all that keen on the squeeze and hope approach, and the newer etch went together nicely. In today’s developments, it has been dismantled, cleaned with jif and bike degreaser, and dried out ready for priming with Halfords etch primer if it warms up enough today.

One pandemic later, I have finally got round to adding the boiler fittings, brake gear, handrails, and electrics. It goes, at least in a straight line, and soon it will be time to dismantle, clean, and paint. It’s looking the part — and will be 65871 sporting a long smokebox and diag 57 boiler, based on a 1961 photo that can be found here https://rcts.zenfolio.com/steam-lner/j-0-6-0/j27/hA10483A6#ha10483a6

Here are some more gratuitous photos of wagons built for South Pelaw. First, one of the many 21T hoppers that adorn the layout. We are close to having enough to represent the sheer volume of full and empty traffic into and out of Stella Gill, and up and down the bank to Consett. This one is pure Parkside. Apart from iron ore, the other main traffic was steel. Following on from the twin bolsters in my previous post, here are a quartet of single bolsters, all from Dave Bradwell kits. The first pair are 8’ wheelbase LNER designs. The second pair are BR 10’ wheelbase versions, and are obviously incomplete; though one has at least reached the initial painting stage. As with all Dave Bradwell kits, they are an absolute joy to build because the kit is well designed, and the parts fit together beautifully.

Nice to see some historical shots. I think these show the benefit of using OS maps to plan the layout — the curve through South Pelaw junction is both subtle and distinctive, and Martin’s trackwork captures location perfectly. Meanwhile here’s some gratuitous lockdown wagons. These are a model of lowfits, some of which were converted into twin bolsters beginning around 1960. The models are built from Red Panda kits with some Parkside underframes. We have no evidence that I am aware of for their use at Consett, but they make a plausible change from plate wagons and bogie bolsters. Transfers are a right mixture of HMRS methods, Cambridge Custom Transfers, and Railtec.

The weathering technique is entirely traditional, and I claim no novelty whatsoever -- Halfords grey primer, paint with grey acrylic, leave to dry, apply a layer of dirt in enamels (Humbrol black, chocolate 98, and leather 62), leave to dry for a couple of hours, and then scrub off with a cotton bud dampened in thinners to get a flaking paint effect. Pick off all the cotton threads that get stuck everywhere, especially on rivets, and add some rusty highlights. If you go to http://www.emgauge70s.co.uk/model_omwb175.html and scroll down a bit then there are some much better examples of weathered mineral wagons produced by Pete Johnson, I think the rust colour on these wagons is spot on.

Thanks, and it is entirely possible that I have missed something about brake arrangements in this long and excellent thread. I have followed the “brake gear and Morton clutch on the side with end door to the left” rule for as-built wagons, based on Peter Totman’s MRJ articles from way back. I could be mistaken, but I’m pretty sure this is consistent with most photos I have seen.

The hybrid Airfix/Parkside mineral wagon last seen on the previous page has acquired paint and transfers. After a few moments of frustration with white stripe decals, I decided that masking tape and blobby Tamiya white was the way to go. And here is a riveted cousin. Pure Parkside. Whoops, just noticed the lack of buffers ...

Probably the ones that came with the kit, but I don’t recall exactly. The overall look was inspired by the wagon lurking in the background of this photo on Ernie Black’s most excellent Flickr pages — https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishswissernie/41534051062/in/album-72157663860935107/ . Though I have just noticed the black chalk panel on the original ...

And here’s another one — Airfix body, but there was no chassis in the box so I used a Parkside one. Brake gear is ABS, axle boxes and buffer heads are of unknown origin.

There is still scope for extra wagons on South Pelaw, and here are a couple of recent additions to the fleet. First up a 13T steel open from Parkside. Van traffic was in the minority, but I enjoyed making this 12T ex-LMS van despite the extra effort involved in modifying the roof profile.

A new identity. I’m not 100% confident that the large BR emblem on the tender is correct. I’ve not been able to find any photos of the loco before 1960 that show the tender detail. I think it looks quite fetching though ...