Agenoria WR 1366 Pannier for Pencarrow Bridge

[2ManySpams]

How long is your shopping list young Sir ?

Not very. I've recently spent cash on my other hobby replacing my 16 year old CD player with a network streamer....

[gwrrob]

Not very. I've recently spent cash on my other hobby replacing my 16 year old CD player with a network streamer....

To paraphrase the old Not The 9 o'clock News sketch.What the hell is a network streamer...

[2ManySpams]

To paraphrase the old Not The 9 o'clock News sketch.What the hell is a network streamer...

Takes music saved on a hard drive and plays it through my stereo. Had lots of fun burning CDs to the hard drive and then rediscovering albums I've not heard in ages.

[chaz]

Thanks all for the continued support and encouragement, much appreciated.

 

It looks like there may now be a possibility of attending the Telford show on the way home on Sunday. I'm wondering about upgrading the front and rear Vac pipes and smokebox dart. I have also noticed that Premier Components do a set of frames for a 1366 and also the correct shape coupling rods. Is such a chassis rebuild too much? I am concerned about how flimsy (and wrong) the current chassis is though. What to do...

 

I would have a good look at the Premier Components set of frames and, if they appeal (and you can afford 'em) buy 'em! Do have a good look at the frames though before you buy - maybe take a drawing with you.

 

  As you must agree (especially after your experiences with this one) there is nothing sacred about a kit, and chucking sub-standard bits in the bin is all part of an intelligent upgrade. You are allowed to use as much or as little as you like - you bought it, you can chuck bits of it away. Or you can soldier on, strengthening, modifying etc etc - it's all valid.

 

Chaz

[gwrrob]

Takes music saved on a hard drive and plays it through my stereo. Had lots of fun burning CDs to the hard drive and then rediscovering albums I've not heard in ages.

What about all those old 78s you have.

[Donw]

What are the differences between the premier and the kit chassis. If the wheel base differs changing the chassis may impact elsewhere such as the position of those springs under the panniers which should line up with the wheels. I must admit I do like the Premier couplings rods much nicer than those soldered up multi layer etches I feel.  You must be nearing the point where you are thinking I might just as well have scratch built this. It is like my 1361 class which started as a kit which Steve Naylor offered to build for me.  When someone said it looked very different to his built from the same kit. Steve admitted that he kept looking at horrible lumps of white metal and then going off to cut up a bit of brass or Nickel.

 

Don 

 

ps Fewer Pubs or Less time in them? 

Edited August 30, 2016 by Donw

[3 link]

The Premier components I have used in the past have all been of good quality and if you buy both the frames and rods, you should end up with a smooth running loco.

 

And Premier frames are far from being flimsy.

 

Martyn.

[2ManySpams]

The Premier components I have used in the past have all been of good quality and if you buy both the frames and rods, you should end up with a smooth running loco.

And Premier frames are far from being flimsy.

Martyn.

Thanks Martyn. Did you run them solid or compensated?

[wagonbasher]

Not very. I've recently spent cash on my other hobby replacing my 16 year old CD player with a network streamer....

I didn't understand any of that, my CD player still works and my nose streams at times, should I budget for a referb

 

Andy

[wagonbasher]

 

What about all those old 78s you have.

 

Are the 78xx frames no good either?

 

Andy

[3 link]

Thanks Martyn. Did you run them solid or compensated?

The last set of frames I brought were for an old Oakville kit ( and you think you've had problems, think of slide bars made out of white metal! ) of a WD 2-8-0, and yes I cut out and compensated them. I do recommend them as a quick and accurate fix.

 

ATB,

 

Martyn.

[2ManySpams]

Spent the afternoon at the Gauge O Guild show at Telford. The majority of the visit was spent looking through the products of many traders stalls searching for the remaining parts for the 1366.

 

 

So we now have:

- Vacuum pump

- Rear sandboxes

- whistles

- sandbox levers-

- steam heat pipes

- vacuum pipes front and rear

- smokebox door handle

- spring hangers (I'm going to amend the current springs)

- hornblocks

 

I've ordered a set of frames and rods from Premier Components and, having seen them work, a set of their softly sprung plunger pickups. I had a really good chat with the fine folk on the Finney7 stand and was impressed with their compensation system (as shown in their M7 instructions). This ended up with me buying a set of small GWR hornblocks.

 

Yes, this means that the 1366 is getting a completely new chassis. The opportunity will be taken to alter the compensation to a true three-point suspension system. The beams will compensate the rear two rather than the front two axles. The current chassis has a fixed rear axle for the motor. In the new chassis, the front axle will rock. Only the axles and wheels will transfer between the two chassis.

[gwrrob]

Quality.

[LaScala]

Spent the afternoon at the Gauge O Guild show at Telford. The majority of the visit was spent looking through the products of many traders stalls searching for the remaining parts for the 1366.

 

tmp_27669-rps20160904_190401-1608542342.jpg

 

So we now have:

- Vacuum pump

- Rear sandboxes

- whistles

- sandbox levers-

- steam heat pipes

- vacuum pipes front and rear

- smokebox door handle

- spring hangers (I'm going to amend the current springs)

- hornblocks

 

I've ordered a set of frames and rods from Premier Components and, having seen them work, a set of their softly sprung plunger pickups. I had a really good chat with the fine folk on the Finney7 stand and was impressed with their compensation system (as shown in their M7 instructions). This ended up with me buying a set of small GWR hornblocks.

 

Yes, this means that the 1366 is getting a completely new chassis. The opportunity will be taken to alter the compensation to a true three-point suspension system. The beams will compensate the rear two rather than the front two axles. The current chassis has a fixed rear axle for the motor. In the new chassis, the front axle will rock. Only the axles and wheels will transfer between the two chassis.

Sow's ear to silk purse?  Bet the upgrade total cost is climbing up towards original cost of kit.

I see on FB that the current owner of Agenoria is about surrender to the inevitable and call it quits without a buyer in sight.  I guess this thread has added a few nails to the coffin.

[Donw]

A successful day then.

Don 

[Hal Nail]

Is it "chase the lady" where you try to avoid winning hearts unless it goes really tits up and you have to go all out and try to get the lot?

 

Just thinking along those lines that if you scratch build the few bits you haven't already replaced and pop them back in the box with the already redundant parts, you can sell the complete kit and you'll have ended up with a free loco! 

[wagonbasher]

Sow's ear to silk purse?  Bet the upgrade total cost is climbing up towards original cost of kit.

I see on FB that the current owner of Agenoria is about surrender to the inevitable and call it quits without a buyer in sight.  I guess this thread has added a few nails to the coffin.

I guess it's like buying a second hand car and discovering it needs a new engine. Expensive, frustrating yes... But unless it runs you haven't got a car.

 

(We did this once)

 

Andy

[2ManySpams]

 

 

Sow's ear to silk purse? Bet the upgrade total cost is climbing up towards original cost of kit.

I see on FB that the current owner of Agenoria is about surrender to the inevitable and call it quits without a buyer in sight. I guess this thread has added a few nails to the coffin.

Whilst I'd much rather any kit I buy contained etches that were the right size/design and good quality castings that were appropriate for the loco, this was obviously not the case. Given what came in the box I had four choices:

 

1. Give up and put the cost of the kit down to experience.

2. Build the kit as supplied - not possible as some bits didn't fit.

3. Modify that kit parts to make them fit and ignore the poor quality and inappropriate castings.

 

I would not have been happy with any of the above.

 

4. Do what I'm doing and scratch build parts, modify others and buy in better quality and more accurate alternatives elsewhere.

 

Yes this latter route adds considerably to the final cost of the kit but hopefully will result in something that looks like the prototype and will stand close up photos. Mentally I'm taking this extra cost as the cost of a kit building training course. The kit has taught me a great deal on how to approach a build, what to check, what not to buy and also has helped me understand what I want my builds to be.

 

Hindsight is great and if I'd be able to go back, I'd have bought just the etches from Agenoria. It was interesting yesterday just how many folk hold the later Agenoria kits in low regard. It was even put to me that Agenoria's sale was down to financial issues brought about by low sales of poor quality and high cost kits. There wasn't much sympathy or love for the range.

 

I am where I am with the kit, I can't go back, can't afford to junk it and so am persisting and taking the whole affair as a learning experience.

[Simond]

Chris

 

You will, in the end, have an outstanding model of an attractive prototype - it will be 100% "yours", and you will be justifiably proud of it.

 

I think viewing the whole exercise as a learning experience is a really positive approach, I wish I had the sense to do this when appropriate!

 

Are you sure you'd have bought the etches??? You made the bunker and most of the rear of the cab. I can't imagine that the cab front, footplate, buffer planks & tanks would hold much fear any more....

 

Best

Simon

[2ManySpams]

Chris,

This the difference between building a 1366 Agenoria kit, and making a model of a 1366 using the Agenoria kit as the basis.

The latter approach can sometimes be the former, but only if the kit is really good.

That's where I went wrong. I wanted the kit to look like the actual loco.

[N15class]

Nice selection of castings. I think you have made the right choices to improve the kit. When it's for yourself I think the cost is not so important as model fidelity. If like my S15 I need to get it to look like the loco but will improve parts more than replace.

[2ManySpams]

Have a look at the Finney7 instructions for their M7: http://www.finney7.co.uk/Instructions%20Page.htm.

 

Page 2 of the A3 set shows the beam compensation method I'm going to use on the 1366. Simple but clever. Hence why I bought the hornblocks.

[2ManySpams]

Photos from Mick's M7 build to show how it works.

 

 

 

 

 

[Donw]

It is going to look seriously odd with a bogie at the rear 

The third axle will I assume be allowed to rock slightly with something bearing on the centre of the axle to act as the third suspension point. One point have you ordered jointed rods from Premier. They are an extra fiver but does stop the compensation fighting with the rods.

Don 

[2ManySpams]

It is going to look seriously odd with a bogie at the rear

The third axle will I assume be allowed to rock slightly with something bearing on the centre of the axle to act as the third suspension point. One point have you ordered jointed rods from Premier. They are an extra fiver but does stop the compensation fighting with the rods.

Don

 

Yes, fixed rods could be a problem on a compensated chassis. I ordered the jointed ones - they look very nice indeed.

 

Front axle will indeed rock on a horizontal rod.