D869

Locos are like busses on your blog. Wait ages and then several appear at the same time.

 

Nice work

 

Regards, Andy

No worries Chris. I quite understand.

 

The brakes are fitted now. I decided that I had to do them or else I would never get around to it. I used Nigel Ashton's approach as inspiration so all six shoes are mounted onto a sub-assembly that fits up under the loco... with no soldering to the actual chassis required. It's taking a few liberties but at least I have brakes now.

 

Regards, Andy

Thanks Will - probably as near as makes no difference given the accuracy of a set of calipers.

 

I suspect that they must allow for shrinkage when printing the casting master. As Mr Scott used to say... 'you cannae change the laws of physics'.

 

Whether it's accurate enough and has a good enough surface finish for mehanisms is another question though. I reckon that you're blazing a new trail there.

 

Regards, Andy

Another question
 
How does it compare dimensionally to what you drew?
 
The late Phil Kerr who was a member of our group used to be a pattern maker and I remember that he had several different rulers depending on the metal for which the (wooden) pattern was intended. Each ruler was scaled slightly larger than the true dimension to allow for the contraction of the metal during the casting process.
 
So I wonder if Shapeways are scaling the master up by a few percent when printing it to allow for the contraction of the brass.
 
Regards, Andy

They look really good Will. Certainly food for thought in terms of what else 3d brass might be useful for.

Thanks Jerry. I'm hopeful that the trickiest bits are done now. The only remaining loose bits from the etch are the brake shoes. I haven't yet decided what to do regarding brakes but I'm not massively keen on the idea of soldering more odd bits of wire onto an already painted and working chassis.
 
I think I'll want to do something other than a 45xx (or 44xx) for a good spell now, but thanks for the info about Chris's possible future plans.
 
It might be nice to get back to something more diesel hydraulic again given the title of this blog
 
Regards, Andy

Thanks also Andy - yes, there is definitely some things that went together better second time around but I think I need more practice before I tackle SH's kits.

I was talking about the Association chassis kits, of which some are better than others.

 

Stephen Harris's kits have a good reputation but I can only comment from experience on the 35T oil tanks. These have a lot of bits (as you would expect with such a vehicle) but if you are methodical and follow the instructions they go together very well.

 

Regards, Andy

Those chassis do take a while to put together Pete, so 4 hours doesn't seem terrible to me.

 

Not all of the chassis kits are created equal either - some go together comparatively quickly and without problems while others seem quite resistant to going together... just don't plan on too many steel bodied 'High's

 

Regards, Andy

Nice signal Ian. I'll have to try out the skinny tubing wire guides myself some time.

 

I'm sticking with plastic finials myself though. I prefer a broken signal to a punctured hand, but each to his own!

 

Has anyone ever managed "see-through" GW finials in 2FS?

I did draw some for 3d printing but in the end I decided that they would probably break and even if not the holes would get filled up with paint so I went back to solid ones (and a few of those broke).

 

Regards, Andy

Hi Richard,

 

I can;t comment on the Pictroller, having no experience of them myself. I have had success with refurbishing a couple of AMRs by replacing the potentiometer. The carbon tracks don't last forever.

 

If memory serves it is a 10K linear job. I replaced it with a Cermet one but they were probably less expensive at the time... even now it's probably cheaper than a new controller though.

 

Regards, Andy

Looking good as usual Pete. I do like a proper typeface - it was something that the railways treated as an important part of their public image. I guess that's one sure fire way to make sure that it's not wrong.

 

Better than seeing Microsoft Arial printed signage on a big four era model for sure!

 

Regards, Andy

Super looking loco! Just one thing, the footplate looks like it's bent up a bit at the front.

Thanks. The Dapol moulding is pretty flexible and definitely not straight when in its unconstrained state and then it bends differently when the rest of the body bits are attached, so getting it straight (or nearly so) is not a precise science.

 

Looking Great. You need to do something about that Dapol drive shaft though!

Thanks Chris. It is a bit obtrusive so I'll give some thought to a better option. The one on the Hall does at least stay put though. On the Manor I didn't do such a good job making the UJ socket for the loco end so it falls out whenever the loco is picked up... which can be quite annoying when you expect the loco to pull gracefully out of the fiddle yard on its first run at a show.

Cheers Ray. I'm sure you know what our solution is when it comes to achieving good looking pointwork

I do like the group shot typical of the GWR old and new mixing together.

Don

Thanks Don.

 

I trust the baseboards were passed for the running of a King that far west of the Tamar...

 

Kevin

Oh yes, extensively stress tested by being thrown in and out of an estate car repeatedly.

 

Lovely images, thank you. Your evocation of PZ is truly beautiful, Kind regards, Jock.

Thanks Jock.

 

Many thanks Andy for finding time to show the Hall during a busy period. Glad I made the visit to view St Ruth visiting so far north,Kind regards to you all   Roger

You're welcome. It was good to have so many interested folks who wanted to chat.

Thanks Rich. I'll pay Mr Tilson a visit next time we're at the same show.

Looking very nice.  I like the weathering, it looks pretty subdued in the photos.  It's also good to see a crankpin retainer that blends in better than the blue or yellow ones we often see ;-)

Thanks Ian. I quite like a nautical scheme for crankpin retainers - red on one side, green on the other.

I'll be interested to see what you do about crew. I've a 57xx looking deserted and I didn't like the look of the farish blokes!

I was hoping to find some ideas on RMWeb, but so far no such luck. My ideal would be some crew in more casual poses like leaning on the cab side or looking back along the platform to see the guard's flag.

 

I've only just realised, after all these years, that St. Ruth is also a pun, as in StRuth = Strewth!!

Sshh! Don't tell everyone!

Hi Pete,

 

I definitely think that some lighting in the fiddle yard is a good plan. Sports halls are one thing but last year we were up on the stage at St Albans. Fairly subdued overhead lighting and the wall behind us painted black - we couldn't see a thing when anything needed doing in the fiddle yard.

 

I've not come across the Screwfix strips. Are these LEDs too? How do they compare in terms of output with the Ikea stuff?

 

Regards, Andy

Will there be a 'T' shirt?

 

Roadies?

 

Groupies?

I assume that there is not space to fit a ty-rap for a belt and braces approach.

Not inside the body I fear.

 

Do you think I should put a couple around the outside to be on the safe side?

Cheers Jez.

It certainly looks the part Ian. I think that the SR colours are one of the more attractive schemes for wooden railway buildings.

Yes, I've not been to the Abingdon show for many years but it seems to have quite a strong 2FS content... certainly this year.

I was probably just pleased that there were still some of Pauline's flapjacks left ;-)

Shh! You're giving away our trade secrets.

 

I really like the view along the layout, the light reflects really nicely off the "damp patches" on the beach, really pleased with the way that has come out!

Nice pics Andy - Particularly like the overall shot looking along the length of the layout...a view probably not seen by the punters...

Yes, I've always liked this angle but it only really works at shows when we have the full lighting rig set up. You do need to filter out the lights that are shining straight at you though, which is easier with the Mark 1 eyeball than it is with a camera.

 

The Hall does look very good doesn't it

Thanks John. It's certainly coming along although I'd say that the colour looks a bit unnatural in the photo. It's better in real life but still very 'ex works'. I'm planning some more work on the paint finish which will hopefully result in a slightly more subdued and natural looking end product.

 

Congratulations on your trophy. I agree that the 'shine' on the beach is very effective from the angle of your photo but the overall sweep of the layout and backscene are also very impressive when viewed from the front.

 

I thought that the Abingdon show was particularly good this year, with a lot of layouts making good use of 'water' textures.

Thanks Mike. I got a quick look round and saw some nice layouts but I suppose that one of the down sides of a one day show is that there is less time for sloping off on the part of the operators so I didn't get long to linger.

 

Regards, Andy

Cheers folks. Glad we're on the same wavelength.

 

Regards, Andy