Atso

15 hours ago, PupCam said:

Just discovered this thread as a result of your post on WrightWrites Atso.       What an excellent and speedy start you have made to Hadley Wood.    

 

Having spent my early years loitering on Oakleigh Park and New Barnet stations I did contemplate having a crack at Oakleigh Park in N Gauge 35 years or so ago.   Like so many ideas it was but a pipe dream!

 

Anyway, looking forward to the next update, it must be almost finished by now!

 

Alan

Thank you Alan,

You'd think I'd be almost finished by now but life, work, the Universe and everything has gotten in the way. The reality is that the layout hasn't progressed much since my last post but I hope to be making up the turnouts and track for the remaining kickback sidings before the end of the year.

I've been reading the gearbox discussion with interest although, as I model in 1:148 scale, it is of limited use to me.

Given that nobody makes N gauge loco or tender wheels specifically for kit/scratch building in N gauge (although spare parts from RTR can sometimes be obtained), there is also no need to manufacture gearboxes (although the 2mm Association has just released one for use in 2mm fine scale which might just fit between the frames of an N gauge locomotive).

I purchased a milling machine a little while back and have been slowly learning how to use it. I'm recovering from another bout of the 'Black Dog' at the moment so concentrating has been difficult. However, I did manage to spend a few hours each day hacking brass bar about and came up with this - middle of the (poor) photo.

This is a tender drive for a GNR type tender and the difference in size to the LNER GST can be seen from the Farish J39 tender to the right. On the left is one of my class B tenders for an Atlantic. The tender drive in the center is machined from brass and uses spare Peco Collett tender wheels and a Tramfabriek 7mm coreless motor driving a 20:1 reduction. As the motor is so low, I've had to make the chassis 7mm wide, rather than the usual 6-6.5mm used for N gauge. That means that clearances and side play are right on the limits of what will go around an 11" radius curve. Amazingly, given that only the center wheelset collects power, it runs reasonable well and this will only improve once a free running locomotive chassis is made and aiding power collection.

Getting the motor so low means that it should be possible to model the tender half empty, which would be a nice touch to add to my southbound locos on their last 11 miles into King's Cross. This particular tender drive will likely end up powering a ex-GNR D2.

8 hours ago, Doncaster Green said:

Hi Steve

Correct me if I'm wrong, but is the lower left a GNR Dia99 Twin First?

Regards

John

Maybe John

Needs a bit (a lot!) of a clean up but it went together more or less as I hoped.

2 hours ago, Dr Al said:

 

Out of interest, did you get a company to etch for you, and if so who that would be?

 

I've a small etching project I've had in the back of my mind for a while....

 

Cheers,

Alan

Hi Alan,

I use PPD.

https://www.ppdltd.com/

Hope this helps.

2 hours ago, jrg1 said:

What glues are you using?

I don't know for sure, but I think it may be some type of 'weld' bond (J-B Weld perhaps?). Anyway, I'm sitting 'bolt' upright and absolutely 'riveted' to that 12inch to the foot scale build! 

Graham, did that particular P2 kit come with wheels and a motor?

8 hours ago, TomE said:

Getting to grips with the Mono X, still some tweaks to make to exposure times but the detail is pretty impressive 

 

 

Tom. 

That's look fantastic Tom. I would be most interested to know what exposure times and orientations you are using for the Mono (I've got one now, but not the X!).

Another PO wagon being designed. I was looking at the prices of new RTR wagons and decided I needed a different route to the remaining c. 50 I need. Kit's, while cheaper, still ended up totaling an eye watering amount so I decided to have a go at the CAD. I've still got a way to go, but I think it is shaping up nicely so far.

I've not been doing too well with keeping this thread up-to-date recently. While the new job has been taking up much of my time, some things have been slowly progressing.

Such as the CAD for these O2s. On the left is one of the GNR built O2/1s, while on the right is Gresley's prototype O2 as it was c. 1933-35.

10 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Thanks Mike,

 

I wonder if anyone has actually made a 'working' 4mm lubricator? By that, I mean the wheels/handles actually move/rotate.

 

I know I fit the drives to A4s and the W1, but they're really dummy. They move, but not the lubricators.

 

I did fit a lubricator drive to a SR Q1, though I think that only pivoted below the actual lubricator. I rigged a similar thing up on a USA tank.

 

An interesting challenge; one I'll never take up!

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

Ask Tim, I'm sure he'll include it on his next 2mm model!

I've been getting the hang of my new Proxxon MF70 mill and, as I'm starting to gain confidence with it, I've made a start designing a loco that will need a scratch built chassis.

I've not quite finished the CAD yet, but it is getting close.

I recently purchased a Proxxon MF70 milling machine and have been learning how to use it by machining up a tender chassis for one of my C1 Atlantics.

Very much a warts and all photo - especially where I managed to drill one of the fixing holes in the wrong place! The top of the chassis needs 1.1mm removing from it to get the tender frames at the right height and then I'll drill out the holes for fixing the frames to the chassis and for the tender drawbar. This has been a big learning process and there are a lot of things (techniques) I'll do differently on the next one. However, for a first attempt, I am happy. All the wheels sit level on the track and it sails through the hand built pointwork in the fiddle yard.

On 04/10/2020 at 10:34, -missy- said:

 

Hi Steve.

 

Those mills are so versatile, there are so many things you can do with one (trust me, I know!)

 

I would highly recommend one of these for it though...

 

https://www.axminstertools.com/proxxon-pm-40-precision-steel-vice-474981

 

So much better than the vice you have.

 

Julia.

Hi Julia,

Actually, it was your one that led to me wanting one of my own. Maybe it'll be converted to CNC one day, but not today!

I would have purchased that vice last Saturday if my budget would have allowed. The one I have came with the machine and, while OK, I can see that it isn't the best in the world. I'll see about getting one next month.  

What a great idea Julia!

My latest purchase due to the combined factors of receiving my first paycheck (new job) and Axminster having a sale on. Purchased this morning and I hope to start playing and learning how to use it tomorrow.

58 minutes ago, Tony Wright said:

I wonder if anyone can help in the following respect, please? I mentioned the near-parity in price now between equivalent N Gauge and OO Gauge locos (or my observations could be wrong, of course).

 

 

The above is a Farish  N Gauge 'Princess Coronation' in (obviously) BR blue (being an ex-streamliner shouldn't it have a sloping smokebox in this guise, and a smaller spectacles?). Does anyone know the RRP of this, please?

 

Hello Tony,

According to the Graham Farish website, the RRP for the N gauge Coronation is £184.95. 

So this weekend saw the next two coaches glazed, gangways made, couplings added and a repaint of the Brake Third roofs. Below is a photo of the four coach set (one still to make) undergoing testing with an appropriate bit of motive power. 

Since the photo was taken, I've addressed the lifting vinyl roof brackets in the end coaches by securing them with a sport of superglue. I've still got the footboards, corridor handrails, etc to make up but their pretty close to complete now! 

I've spent a good part of my weekend painting some cheap plastic figures to populate my Cambridge Buffet Express coaches.

Having reassembled the tender drive components and resolved a couple of clearance issues, J6 No. 3602 moved under its own power this evening.

I've still got the whistle and new (shorter) drawbar to make, along with a little more detailing and weathering, but I'm really happy to finally have this one running.

The J6s have now received their identities.

I've still got quite a bit of detailing to do and rebuild the tender drives, but I think they're coming along nicely.