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Coming along nicely Richard. Always good when the landscape starts to take shape.

 

I'm more of a Fruit and Fibre man myself though.

 

Regards, Andy

Very nice Work. It's amazing how a little amount of work can make such a big difference.

Thanks. Fitting the etch is pretty simple... but getting the artwork right was a bit of a nightmare. Still, once the artwork is sorted then fitting the etch to lots of locos should be nice and quick.

 

Regards, Andy

I certainly would like three sets of etches to go with my Warships.

 

A scale 3" too high on the loco probably is noticeable when sat next to a coach. Must get out a Warship, a Farish Mk1 and take a look at the relative roof heights.

I'll put you down for some then.

 

I just tried the Warship and Mark 1 test (7mm diameter wheels). The book says that the coach roof panels should be 5 inches lower than the Warship roof panels, so we're guessing that it will actually be closer to a scale 8 inches. It's tricky to measure but I'd say it's thereabouts.

 

Regards, Andy

I believe some of the BHE castings/mouldings and etches were originally from Fleetline and MTK. Ray should be able to tell you what will fit as a result.

I suspected that's the case given that his range a few years ago was a very close match for the original Fleetline list but I've also read stuff that suggests otherwise so I'm not sure exactly what the real history is.

 

My point though is that although the BHE MU and coach stuff is similar to MTK/Fleetline, I'm sorry to say that my own experience of the quality is that it is not as good. In particular the mouldings needed a lot of time spent with a file to sort out the uneven thickness and then re-polishing before they were usable. Things may have changed more recently but I certainly know of one person who's tried one of their DMU kits in the past couple of years with a similar experience.

 

Regards, Andy

Nice work, Andy. Are you going to be making these etches available so we can all join in?

I have always felt that the Farish warship looked a bit tall. Any thoughts on that?

Thanks Chris.

 

The current etches are most definitely experimental and I doubt whether most folks would like paying for 6 windscreen frames of which only two actually fit but I do plan to revise the artwork and get some more done because I have more locos of my own to do. I certainly won't be opposed to running off some extra copies if other people want some.

 

Apart from some very small adjustments to the curves, I plan to thicken the frames a tad and also redistribute the current 'margin' so that half of it is above the window frame. The real loco has no perceptible 'margin' at all but I think that it's better to have a clear separation between the frame and the plastic bodywork to allow some room for glue, paint meniscus etc.

 

I couldn't remember off the top of my head how the Farish offering matches up to true scale so I measured Hermes which sits on reprofiled Farish wheels (because you can't get drop-ins for the Warship). The prototype dimensions are from the Ian Allen plans book and also the (excellent) 'Book of the Warships', both of which agree... and scaled to 'N'.

 

Height to top of roof - 26.9mm (ish). Prototype 12'9 1/2" = 26.4mm

Width over body - 18.4mm. Prototype 8' 8 1/2" = 18.0mm

Bogie Centres - 78mm (ish). Prototype 37'9" = 77.9mm

Over buffers - 123.3mm. Prototype 60' = 123.8mm

 

So roughly 2-3% overscale on both height and width but the proportions of the front should be about right. It will look a shade high next to a scale vehicle but in terms of front end appearance I'd say that the over thick corner pillars on the cab are the biggest thing that will mess up the perceived proportions when you look at it without the aid of a ruler.

 

Regards, Andy

Blimey Andy, that is some serious detailing there. But well worth it judging by your initial pictures! These little improvements and additions will certainly make an improvement to the overall look of the model.

Hope so. Like I said, time to take a knife to some modern moulded plastic

I was thinking the same too about the warning panels. A very defined shape on an awkward shaped nose.  Be interesting to see how you overcome it.

So will I

Great stuff Andy - really lifts it to another level.

 

BTW, how does the Farish compare with the original Minitrix one? My brother used to have the Trix one and despite the lemon yellow colour it was the best and smoothest running loco by far with immense pulling power. Still runs like a dream too

Thanks. Cockade and Zest are both modified Trix items retro-fitted with 5 pole motors and with some extensive surgery to their bodywork and their little Germanic chassis skirts. They are built like tractors (farmyard machines, not class 37s) so will probably outlast me.

 

The original Trix nose shape is well wide of the mark but so far I've maintained that my modified ones do a better job of saying 'Warship' than the unmodified Farish model in spite of their remaining dimensional issues. I think that I'm finally making some progress in changing that state of affairs now. Nevertheless I reckon that the Trix ones will still be running when the Farish mechanisms have given up the ghost. I also etched some 'specs' for the Trix bodies because I've been hankering after that polished metal window surround look ever since I first started looking seriously at prototype photos. Cockade's plastikard skirts were not too well thought out and will likely part company soon so it will be in the works for some bodywork repairs, at which time it may also get some 'specs'.

 

On the subject of Trix pulling power, I recall that my first loco kit was an (ABS?) whitemetal 03 on a Minitrix dock tank chassis. We had it pulling seven 4mm scale coaches with no problems when the Hornby 4mm scale pancake motored stuff was struggling to keep its feet with half the load.

 

Must stop rambling.

 

Regards, Andy

If you google "Albion Alloys 0.2mm rod" you will find a number of suppliers. 0.2mm is only .007mm bigger than 36SWG so it should be close enough. Adantage is that it comes in straight lengths. I used it for all the handrails on my 08 and it worked really well even after it was painted.

I bought some of their 0.1mm rod but I haven't used it yet. The ideal for our scale would be 0.15 but I haven't traced any.

Thanks for the info David. I'll check them out. My googling was for various combinations but always 'wire', so maybe that's why I didn't turn them up.

I like the Farish Warship but I do remember you saying about the mess they had made of the windscreens. 

 

These etches have brought the model into another league all together. I'm looking forwards to seeing the green machine. It will certainly be a contrast to the maroon ones.

Thanks Mark. I wouldn't want to criticise all of their efforts - I'm sure that the windscreens are a tricky proposition for a mass produced model. On the other hand the cover plates on the cab sides should have been really easy to get right.

 

Just hope I can turn out a decent paint job. Not looking forward to masking those yellow warning panels!

Good stuff Rich. I struggled when I tried to solder wire droppers onto switch blades but that was a long time ago and I haven't tried again recently. It would be useful to see your jig if you have a photo of that.

 

Regards, Andy

That is a real improvment - I've wanted to do a Warship for some time now but the Farish front just hasn't looked right somehow, your etched replacments show why.

Thanks. They are certainly getting there... although I think there is still room for some improvement in the next batch.

I didn't realise until I saw this shot today that Warship windscreens were hinged for additional ventilation.

Darn. And I'm also missing the big hole at the other end for the driver's head to stick out. Never seen a Warship with prototype Deltic stripes before either - DB V200 paint scheme, yes, but not Deltic.

 

Regards, Andy

I haven't got a MK2 kit but if I could find one, I'd be really interested.

BTW, in case you were hinting... my gloat box stash does not include any more Mark 2s

I haven't got a MK2 kit but if I could find one, I'd be really interested. If not, there is always CJM to the rescue with Chris's excellent Mk2's!

OK... well you can concentrate on your new track instead then

 

Worsley Works still list some etches for Mark 2 sides but you'd be on your own for everything else if you went for those. I think they are intended for overlaying onto the older build Farish bodies. I've never tried this route so can't say much about it.

 

One option that you may also come across is BHE. They have very similar looking mouldings to the old Fleetline/MTK ones but I'm afraid that when I bought one of their DMU kits the quality of the body shell mouldings was poor - one end being considerably thicker than the other. Having built up some more Fleetline kits after doing the BHE one I can say that the Fleetline body components were not perfect but were much better quality.

True. Most people will only ever see the roof properly, the sides a bit and the chassis very little. We're all giants towering over 2mm scale people and on top of that our brains are very selective about what we actually register; only those harsh larger than life pictures we've all become familiar with will show things up.

Yep. Although having started this conversation I did go back and look at the photos again in my Marsden book. The main thing that I can see under a Mark 2 is lots of daylight. Logic says that there should at least be a vacuum cylinder somewhere but I have no idea where.

However, I really like your MK2a and am tempted to have a go at a kit built version myself rather than waiting for the retooled Farish offerings.

Have you got a Mark 2 kit then? Who is it made by?

 

Just thinking that a Fleetline or MTK one will be quite tricky to get hold of nowadays unless you already have one stashed.

 

Regards, Andy

There are some pictures of painted examples of the Mk2a here http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/69375-farish-progress-on-20132014-models-link-to-pictures/

Thanks. I think these look better than the 4mm model on their web site, so they are not doing themselves any favours there. Glad to see that they have not gone for the prominent roof ridges (my least favourite feature on the Blue Riband Mark 1s). Not sure what's going on where the roof joins the end - looks like a bit of a ridge or step but the real thing is definitely smooth there. The sides seem a bit 'lumpy' - lacking the smoothness of the real thing, but maybe I'm just biased by the complete absence of texture on etched sides.

 

They do have more gubbins below the solebar than I have. They are probably correct - I haven't found any decent info on what's going on close to the centre line of the chassis and it's pretty much invisible in photos.

 

Regards, Andy

Nice coaches Andy. That blue/grey MK2 looks fantastic! It shows that these kits are still ahead of even todays rtr items. Think I still have an Ultima MK1 kicking around in my "box of bits and kits".

Thanks Jez. I'm very happy with the TSO as a model although its paintwork is rather more representative of what I could do with brushes in the early 80s than what I can do with better kit nowadays.

 

It was an interesting challenge building the FK because I often struggled to work out just how I'd done things on the TSO. The buffer collars and the gangway were the biggest puzzles. I figured most of it out eventually, although the FK has a Mark 1 style gangway so I didn't need to do the folding plastic doors again... a pity because I really like them even though I had not the slightest clue about what shade of green they should be when I did them.

 

I don't think I've actually seen anything of the new Mk2a offering from Farish yet. The image on their web site is of a 4mm model and I didn't notice any samples on their stand at Warley last year.

 

Regards, Andy

Lovely work Andy,

 

As good as the latest rtr stuff is, there is something very compelling about a well made kit such as all these above.

 

I always wanted to build those MTK/Fleetline kits but I think Farish started expanding their range so I took the easy route.

Thanks Pete. From a personal perspective, one definite compelling aspect is the knowledge that I made the thing myself. Apart from the satisfaction involved, we all have our own ideas about what's important and can spend time getting those bits right. That's not to say that these are showcase models - they definitely are not and some bits are... well... impressionistic. Of course others may see things differently and it's hard to be objective about our own models. Oh well, when in doubt refer to rule number one.

 

I think that for their time, the MTK coach kits were superb... albeit let down by the whitemetal bits. The Farish stuff has only caught up with them in terms of appearance in the past couple of years. I still have several more kits tucked away. I don't foresee these ever getting built as intended but they can still provide a useful source for roof sections or whole bodyshells. I think this will be the last sleeper that I build this way though.

 

Regards, Andy

Really nice work Andy.

 

Think the Hawksworths will look great once painted-weather permitting.  I do like the Hawksworth coach design.

 

As for the Mark 1 sleepers they are beautifully finished. The Woodhead Transfers are lovely to use-as can be seen from work. I'm down to the remenants of my last pack of 4mm sadly.

 

Totally agree with you though about constructing these with the immenent release of the Graham Farish versions. Will add a nice bit of variety to the St Ruth passenger stock.

Thanks Mark. I think that a lot of people mourn the passing of the Woodhead range. Their definition is excellent and... novel idea... they actually gave you enough on a single sheet to do a complete vehicle (or several). The big snag was their short shelf life but that can be overcome with liquid decal film.

 

I've decided it's time to stop second guessing what might appear as RTR and get on with building the things that I enjoy building. The RTR boys have some big advantages for fine detail these days but a thin etch over flat glazing still wins in terms of the appearance for coach windows in my opinion. I'm still somewhat sceptical of the current trend for 'land grabs' in RTR announcements. Basically I'll believe that a decent RTR product will be available when I can actually hand money over and walk away with one.

 

That doesn't mean that I won't be buying any Farish sleepers though. The samples at Warley looked very nice.

 

Regards, Andy

Good to see someone willing to attack these modern mouldings with cutting tools Jez. I'm beginning to worry that we're starting to treat the latest offerings with far too much respect.

 

How did you remove the double arrows etc?

 

Looking forward to the 2FS track making an appearance. Maybe some slightly earlier Cornish locos might come and visit then.

 

Regards, Andy

Nice wagon Mark.

 

Definitely the start of a slippery slope there though.

 

With regard to variations in 16 tonners there are loads of them. Even if a wagon started with a pressed steel door it might have received a welded one later on. Then there are bottom doors, top doors, pressed steel side doors, different types of brake gear, axleboxes, (probably) buffers, re-bodies in the 1970s... the list goes on.

 

The 'first half million' book says that 34085 was a diagram 1/102 built for the MoT at ROF Woolwich. I think that the pressed steel end door is (probably) OK for this as built.

 

One thing I do notice - you have double 'V' hangers (i.e. independent brakes) so you should lose the cross-shaft - it would get in the way of the bottom doors.

 

Regards, Andy

Thanks Andy. Yes, I can see a GITANES sponsored Ligier appearing in Juniper Hill. Wonder if there's a OO/HO version available?

 

That would be one with the wheels set slightly further inboard than the P4 version would it?

 

Sorry, couldn't resist that one

Thanks Robin. Yes, the avatar keeps changing at the mo. Bit undecided as to what to go for. In the meantime we have Jaques Laffite F1 driver from the 70's/80's.

... or Jack Lafferty to his friends. I'll be keeping an eye out for period F1 cars sneaking into your road vehicle fleet.

 

Regards, Andy

Hmm... RMWeb putting HTML tags in by comments now? Nice.

I have four of those Dapol coaches. They do look rather large in comparison with other stock although (on another thread) Chris Higgs suggested that they are correct 'N' scale and I think I measured mine and agreed with his conclusion.<br /><br />Not sure where the extra 'bigness' comes from but I concluded that there were not many straightforward options for lowering them. As I think you are intending, I swapped the wheels for 6mm ones which lowers them by 0.5mm.<br /><br />I still like them as models though in spite of their shortcomings.<br /><br />Regards, Andy

I went yesterday and enjoyed the show. Sure there were a few hiccups but it's not the only show that I've been to in a school.

 

On the plus side, I found it much easier to get hot food and drink when I wanted it than was the case at the sports centre. The sausage and tomato roll that I had on arrival more than made up for the walk in the sleet from the alternative car park.

 

I heard several of the traders comment negatively at the level of trade that they were getting though.

 

If I would change one thing (apart from the weather) it would be the lighting in the sports hall - it seemed quite dark in there. Maybe this was partly to blame for the mood of the traders. Logically of course we would all say that lighting doesn't affect our willingness to buy stuff (I did my bit to support them!), but on the other hand the high street shops all try to flog us their pretty things by putting them under bright lights and presumably they know what they are doing.

 

Does anyone know whether the school will be a long term arrangement?

 

Regards, Andy

Good progress Pete... but 54 days! Wow, that's not very long. Now it's not often that we get a genuine sense of suspense on RMWeb.

 

Regards, Andy