Wright writes.....

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, D-A-T said:

I agree. I think you have, by accident, captured the look very well. Bet you couldn’t do it again if you intended to!

 

PS If you ever decide it’s surplus to requirements can I be first in line please. 

I doubt it, too.

 

However, no two original 'WCs' would have the same ripples and dents.

 

Either way, the end result would be fingers like these.............!

 

 

The same result as in building brass A4s.

 

Apologies to those of a 'sensitive nature', but I once tried to help a chap with his modelling who couldn't stand pain, fainted at the sight of blood and became nauseous when subjected to paint, glue or flux fumes. It puzzled me why he'd chosen railway modelling as a hobby.

 

I'm afraid 34094 is not for sale. I have a soft spot for Bulleid's (or the Jarvis) Pacifics, having seen them towards the end of their lives on the ex-L&SWR main line to the West or Weymouth. Despite her not being appropriate to LB, it's nice to give her a run now and then; as it is with the other SR I've built for myself...........

 

 

 

Another ex-Charwelton loco, and another painted perfectly by Ian Rathbone. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[davidw]

38 minutes ago, Tony Wright said:

I doubt it, too.

 

However, no two original 'WCs' would have the same ripples and dents.

 

Either way, the end result would be fingers like these.............!

 

 

The same result as in building brass A4s.

 

Apologies to those of a 'sensitive nature', but I once tried to help a chap with his modelling who couldn't stand pain, fainted at the sight of blood and became nauseous when subjected to paint, glue or flux fumes. It puzzled me why he'd chosen railway modelling as a hobby.

 

 

Is that as painful as it looks? 

[micklner]

3 minutes ago, davidw said:

Is that as painful as it looks? 

Errr no idea but No Chance !! whether painful or not !!

 

Tweezers , Cocktail Sticks , self closing clamps etc etc are much better methods of soldering !!

 

A good way to blood poisoning ? and god knows what else other ailments method of soldering !!

[Tony Wright]

37 minutes ago, micklner said:

Errr no idea but No Chance !! whether painful or not !!

 

Tweezers , Cocktail Sticks , self closing clamps etc etc are much better methods of soldering !!

 

A good way to blood poisoning ? and god knows what else other ailments method of soldering !!

Thanks for the 'elf 'n' safety' advice Mick,

 

I agree that one should be prudent and careful with regards to one's health and safety, but none of the aids you list is as good as fingers/thumbs for holding things while soldering.

 

After 550+ locos built, my fingers are probably immune to pain by now.

 

Fortunately, my methods have (as yet) not caused blood poisoning (or any other malady, as far as I know).

 

Anyway, I've been to too many funerals of late; funerals of guys, all younger than me, who probably never soldered anything in their lives.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[30368]

7 hours ago, Northmoor said:

So I'll be drilling out the sandbox covers as well.

 

Hi,

 

It is probably worth drilling out and filing away the sliding covers over the clack valves (firemans side) whistle, likewise the covers at the base of the firebox and low down on the cab side sheet over the washout plugs were often missing. If you look at the moulding, it has many covers that can be drilled out and filed and if you make up a replacement from thin brass sheet, left hanging "by a thread". Don't forget to model the part of the boiler/firebox thus exposed by the missing cover!

I did a bit of drilling and filing my Little Engines Q1 many years ago to remove the cover over the clack valves, which was often missing on these utility locos. Not so successfull I admit, white metal is too thick!

 

 

 

Kind regards,

 

Richard B

 

Edited August 15, 2022 by 30368

[landscapes]

6 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Good morning David,

 

You're too kind, though Ian Rathbone's painting certainly is stunning.

 

Trying to illustrate the ripples in MORTEHOE's construction is quite difficult, but I think the following shots display the 'happy accident' caused by expansion during soldering-on the thin brass overlays for the cladding. 

 

 

 

 

 

I've tried different lighting attempting to emphasise this. 

 

I think a model of an original Bulleid light Pacific made this way looks far more-'natural' than any RTR 'plastic perfection' (though Hornby's renditions are very good). 

 

I built 34094 near 30 years ago, and she ran on Leighford originally. Latterly, she operated on Charwelton (on railtour duty), but now lives in her box; only being 'let-out' on LB when SR-loving friends visit.........

 

 

I think she might have picked up a few more dents and dings in her life, anyway.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

Hi Tony

 

Those top three photos show it if off to perfection.

 

If I had built Padstow instead of Haymarket I would be begging you to sell it.

 

As I said they are without doubt my favourite class of locomotive in their ounrebuilt form probably more so than the Gresley A4’s.

 

Thank you for posting the additional photos.

 

Now back to LNER Pacific’s 

 

Regards

 

David

[micklner]

2 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Thanks for the 'elf 'n' safety' advice Mick,

 

I agree that one should be prudent and careful with regards to one's health and safety, but none of the aids you list is as good as fingers/thumbs for holding things while soldering.

 

After 550+ locos built, my fingers are probably immune to pain by now.

 

Fortunately, my methods have (as yet) not caused blood poisoning (or any other malady, as far as I know).

 

Anyway, I've been to too many funerals of late; funerals of guys, all younger than me, who probably never soldered anything in their lives.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

Well you have been lucky , one burn with the wrong chemical nearby,  has great potential for a nasty adverse reaction.

None of us are getting any younger, and all tools need to be treated with respect and caution. People need to realise this when burnt finger ends are shown on here on a popular thread. Sorry there is no need to suffer those injuries, and you should be showing ways to avoid them. Some peopla are naive to think thats the only way to solder.

 

No doubt some people  will "poo poo" such idiotic observations by me, thats there choice . The same goes for breathing in flux, paint etc etc  fumes, potentially lots iof  nasty stuff . a lot of people always think its someone else that will get affected .

 

550 Locos you have been very lucky, I have only managed a 250 plus various kits, without any burnt fingers ends . I intend to stay that way never had any problem soldering anything,  after the no burns early attempts at joints .

 

Health and Safety advice needs to be promoted at all times !!.

 

Rant over, back to swearing at another kit ,without any hopefully pain incured ( I hate pain) .

 

 

 

 

[drmditch]

Re: Bullied Light Pacifics.

34051 'Winston Churchill' which is part of the National Collection, is currently at Locomotion in Shildon.

I remember at some pre-covid time a visitor complaining that the 'air smoothing' wasn't smooth enough!

Edited August 15, 2022 by drmditch

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, micklner said:

Well you have been lucky , one burn with the wrong chemical nearby,  has great potential for a nasty adverse reaction.

None of us are getting any younger, and all tools need to be treated with respect and caution. People need to realise this when burnt finger ends are shown on here on a popular thread. Sorry there is no need to suffer those injuries, and you should be showing ways to avoid them. Some peopla are naive to think thats the only way to solder.

 

No doubt some people  will "poo poo" such idiotic observations by me, thats there choice . The same goes for breathing in flux, paint etc etc  fumes, potentially lots iof  nasty stuff . a lot of people always think its someone else that will get affected .

 

550 Locos you have been very lucky, I have only managed a 250 plus various kits, without any burnt fingers ends . I intend to stay that way never had any problem soldering anything,  after the no burns early attempts at joints .

 

Health and Safety advice needs to be promoted at all times !!.

 

Rant over, back to swearing at another kit ,without any hopefully pain incured ( I hate pain) .

 

 

 

 

Thanks for your concern Mick,

 

In all my modelling, I've only ever claimed that I do things 'My way'. It's 'A way', not 'THE way'. 

 

Indeed, in all the DVDs I've made, a health & safety warning regularly appears at the base of the screen extoling viewers NOT to follow my practices. It's a safety device, to preclude people who 'hurt' themselves from claiming damages. 

 

Anyway, I would have thought that my posting a picture of my mutilated fingers will deter most from adopting my soldering methods. 

 

I'm all for safety, particularly in the workplace, but I never advocate anyone becoming a 'follower'.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[micklner]

Cheers Tony for those who have never seen your DVD's, this makes it clearer to all concerned for the future.

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, micklner said:

Cheers Tony for those who have never seen your DVD's, this makes it clearer to all concerned for the future.

Good evening Mick,

 

I issue the same 'health warning' in the books I've written and in most of my articles. It's the same one for all the shows I attend as a demonstrator and also the same when I've been a tutor at numerous seminars/modelling classes over weekends or weeks. 'Do as I say, not as I do!'.

 

I'm surprised anyone takes any notice. 

 

Why don't you write books/articles, Mick? Also, why not attend shows as a demonstrator and why not become a tutor? That way you can pass on your (considerable) experience and broadcast your 'safe' ways of making models, showing folk how it really should be done.

 

Regards,

 

Tony.  

[DougN]

Tony you need to look after those fingers. I have found an off cut of icy pole stick can be helpful to avoid losing ones finger prints! Not a total avoidance of small burns from soldering irons but helps! One of my other "tools" is an off cut of soft wood about 100mm long x42x19 which I have been known to roll the brass onto when soldering over lays. It doesnt matter if the wood gets scorched, drilled every so often, burnt, or dinted once it is too damaged it goes in the bin! 

 

I still havn't figured out why solder will remain liquid until just after the pain threshold has been passed! i'm building a LNER G6 at the moment and it is nearing the end of the parts to be installed.  They are a curious beasty finding photos and figuring out the detailing has been very interesting.  The kit was started by another modeler which has resulted in a bit of "guess this part" as it was a etched kit from Steven Barnfield (now LRM). Has any one else had a go at a representation of the valve gear and cylinders as under the boiler it is very open. 

 

 

 

[Paul Cram]

51 minutes ago, DougN said:

 

 

I still havn't figured out why solder will remain liquid until just after the pain threshold has been passed! i'm building a LNER G6 at the moment and it is nearing the end of the parts to be installed.  They are a curious beasty finding photos and figuring out the detailing has been very interesting.  The kit was started by another modeler which has resulted in a bit of "guess this part" as it was a etched kit from Steven Barnfield (now LRM). Has any one else had a go at a representation of the valve gear and cylinders as under the boiler it is very open. 

 

 

 

Yes I have built one with the inside valave gear.

[Tony Wright]

4 hours ago, DougN said:

Tony you need to look after those fingers. I have found an off cut of icy pole stick can be helpful to avoid losing ones finger prints! Not a total avoidance of small burns from soldering irons but helps! One of my other "tools" is an off cut of soft wood about 100mm long x42x19 which I have been known to roll the brass onto when soldering over lays. It doesnt matter if the wood gets scorched, drilled every so often, burnt, or dinted once it is too damaged it goes in the bin! 

 

I still havn't figured out why solder will remain liquid until just after the pain threshold has been passed! i'm building a LNER G6 at the moment and it is nearing the end of the parts to be installed.  They are a curious beasty finding photos and figuring out the detailing has been very interesting.  The kit was started by another modeler which has resulted in a bit of "guess this part" as it was a etched kit from Steven Barnfield (now LRM). Has any one else had a go at a representation of the valve gear and cylinders as under the boiler it is very open. 

 

 

 

Thanks Doug,

 

'I still havn't figured out why solder will remain liquid until just after the pain threshold has been passed!'

 

I think every modeller who uses solder-construction puzzles over that. I usually find that the solder solidifies just before the components reach the ground; after I've just let go! My expletives are usually enough to re-melt the solder! 

 

I do use the odd 'safety devices'; a strong tissue, dipped in water, acts as a useful heat disperser. It's just that devices like little pegs, hair clips, self-locking tweezers, blobs of Blu-Tak and whatever other aid one might use to prevent pain from soldering never work quite as well as fingers/thumb. But you're right (as is Micklner) - burning one's digits is not good practice in general - hence my 'do as I say, not as I do!' maxim.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[teaky]

Has anyone tried this kind of thing?

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Molain-Protectors-Resistant-Accessories-Scrapbooking/dp/B09BKX8L76/ref=d_pd_sbs_sccl_2_3/258-8219959-0639149

 

This particular example also seems ideally suited to soldering, remembering those articles where the instructions seemed to say "hold part A with your left hand, hold part B with your right hand and with the soldering iron in your other hand ..." 🥸

[Dunsignalling]

8 minutes ago, teaky said:

Has anyone tried this kind of thing?

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Molain-Protectors-Resistant-Accessories-Scrapbooking/dp/B09BKX8L76/ref=d_pd_sbs_sccl_2_3/258-8219959-0639149

 

This particular example also seems ideally suited to soldering, remembering those articles where the instructions seemed to say "hold part A with your left hand, hold part B with your right hand and with the soldering iron in your other hand ..." 🥸

Maybe the makers could employ Tony as their Test Pilot.😉

[Barclay]

I've always considered soldering to be very like playing the guitar - it hurts your fingers unless you do it a lot, and build up a decent callous on the fingertip. I never got far with the guitar but when I'm building a loco it does hurt less towards the end of the project, though I don't build enough to keep it there permanently as Tony does!

[Barry Ten]

My favorite soldering aids are a pair of wooden clothes pegs. They can be used to press down on things, or form a handy surface for soldering small items on (sparing the cutting map) as well as their usual "clamping" function. The other end of the peg (opposite the jaws) can also be used to spring open an etched chassis if you've soldered in a frame spacer in the wrong position, or soldered the bearings in from the wrong side, not that I've ever done either of those things.

[geoff west]

1 hour ago, Dunsignalling said:

Maybe the makers could employ Tony as their Test Pilot.😉

That would require some serious editing if it were made available on DVD.

[t-b-g]

I act as both a tutor (at Missenden) and as a demonstrator at various shows.

 

The idea of showing people how I do things and then telling them not to do it that way is just about as far removed from how I work as it is possible to get.

 

I always like to show people how that can achieve a particular result, not how they shouldn't do it.

 

To me, the skill of soldering is not about how long you can hold something very hot before you have to drop it. My soldering is much more about learning an order of assembly and a way of holding parts in position that allows soldering without pain.

 

 

[D-A-T]

I admit it is not usable in every situation but my best purchase recently is a RSU. To be able to position a part, hold it in place with the carbon probe, apply heat and then use the probe to keep the parts in situ as the solder cools is a game changer for me. Fewer scorched fingers. 

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, t-b-g said:

I act as both a tutor (at Missenden) and as a demonstrator at various shows.

 

The idea of showing people how I do things and then telling them not to do it that way is just about as far removed from how I work as it is possible to get.

 

I always like to show people how that can achieve a particular result, not how they shouldn't do it.

 

To me, the skill of soldering is not about how long you can hold something very hot before you have to drop it. My soldering is much more about learning an order of assembly and a way of holding parts in position that allows soldering without pain.

 

 

Good afternoon Tony,

 

That must be one of the reasons why you replaced me at Missenden. My former 'pupils' tell me that you're much more caring and sensitive to their feelings. 

 

It's interesting how different we are in approaches to model-making/teaching, yet we still produce some reasonable items.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Jesse Sim]

10 minutes ago, Tony Wright said:

Good afternoon Tony,

 

That must be one of the reasons why you replaced me at Missenden. My former 'pupils' tell me that you're much more caring and sensitive to their feelings. 

 

It's interesting how different we are in approaches to model-making/teaching, yet we still produce some reasonable items.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

Never fear Tony Gee is here!

If Tony Wright is here all you feel is fear! 
 

Might have to trademark that 🤣

[Barclay]

I feel the inspiration for a new character in 'VIZ' comic:

 

"PICK IT UP BOY !!!" 

 

But Sir, it's white hot

 

"ARE YOU A MAN OR A MOUSE? RIGHT, THAT'S SIX OF THE BEST FOR YOU"

 

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU'VE COMPENSATED IT??" DETENTION FOR A MONTH.

 

But Sir, Wilkins has put Continuous Springy Beams in his...

 

At which point Tony applies his soldering iron to a stick of dynamite, and blows up the entire school. 

[t-b-g]

3 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Good afternoon Tony,

 

That must be one of the reasons why you replaced me at Missenden. My former 'pupils' tell me that you're much more caring and sensitive to their feelings. 

 

It's interesting how different we are in approaches to model-making/teaching, yet we still produce some reasonable items.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

There is only one reason why I replaced you at Missenden Tony and that was when you were not able to carry on for a while. I had mixed feelings about it initially as I am well aware that seeing Tony Wright listed as a tutor was likely to be a bigger draw than seeing Tony Gee.

 

It seems to have worked out well though and we have quite a few people who keep coming back and a group that is about as large as can be managed, so something must be going right.

 

The many different approaches are part of the fun of the hobby for me. There are usually lots of different ways of accomplishing any given task and my advice to modellers is always to try different methods and find the tools, solders and fluxes etc. that suit them the best. I am constantly learning and evolving how I work and I can do things now that I wouldn't have fancied my chances with a few years ago.

 

Malcolm Crawley used to work as you do, with apparently asbestos fingers, a high pain threshold and an ability to ignore the smell of burning flesh until the soldered joint was made properly.

 

It was one aspect where I watched what he did and decided that it wasn't for me.