4mm Adam's (genuinely) Western stuff - Capel Dewi Hall

AJC

Western Thunderer
Since this is a genuinely GW piece of kit it seems sensible to start a thread in the appropriate forum. :) This started as a ‘simple’ re-gauging and detailing project retaining the original chassis. A quick – and far from comprehensive – tally of the work done, however, suggests that I may have got carried away…

Body Beautiful (or something like that; the thing is built like a second row forward, all broad shoulders and big back end)
  • Complete replacement of handrail knobs and ‘plain’ handrails. The boiler handrails were reused, however.
  • New lamp irons (Masokits)
  • Replacement vac’ and steam heat pipes.
  • Smokebox dart, number plates, steps added to the buffers.
  • Added injector pipework and all the usual thinning and titivation Iain Rice taught us how to do all those years ago.
  • Enlarged cab ‘keyhole’ and thinned cab roof edges – this made the biggest difference to the model.
6680_6.gif

Chassis
  • New wheels (Ultrascale – the loco’ came to me very cheaply so I could justify the expense). These entailed replacement balance weights and sundry mucking about.
  • New brakegear – see my earlier post.
  • Cosmetic frames behind the wheels.
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  • Cosmetic rear frames and front framing. Sounds simple but took a lot of thinking about though the end result is well worth the effort I think and, once thought about, only took an evening to complete. The rear frames are still far too narrow but are a country mile closer than what Bachmann provides. What Bachmann provides, however, is still there. I left the ‘radial truck’ alone though it’s actually no such thing. It consists of a sprung arrangement, reminiscent of a plunger pick-up, acts on the axle which runs inside a piece of what looks like phosphor bronze tube meaning that the wheelset is pushed, gently, onto the track. The axle can flop about in every plane going so I don’t think this qualifies as ‘proper engineering’ but if it stands up to service I will leave it be. The rods actually look quite good and are mechanically sound so I've left these alone too.
  • New front sandpipes.
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The nearly finished result is quite nice, all in all. You don’t see many models of these big tanks in black, the manufacturers and most modellers seem to prefer lined green and that’s fair enough, going on the photographs, so did Caerphilly works. When I get around to fully weathering it I envisage it being on the filthy side of grubby on the front of 30 or so minerals.

6680_7.gif

Adam
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
And here it is again, after the first pass of weathering. It's too clean, and the overall effect a bit too even. What you see was applied by brush, heavily thinned. The colour mix is now fairly conventional, following the suggestions of Martyn Welch; Metalcote Gunmetal, Matt Leather, and a touch of Matt Chocolate (all Humbrol enamels). I'm following this exemplar - 6680, taken at Moutain Ash towards the end of its life in March, 1964.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/64215236@N03/7084896719/in/photostream/lightbox/

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The tanksides are still shiny (note that on the prototype they were matted with grime) while the strapping on the smokebox has been picked out in paint or chalk which I've assumed was white - though it may have been silver. Not every modeller likes such things but, since I only found the prototype picture after I had acquired the plates I thought that I should at least copy it (and hope to goodness that the real 6680 was black at this stage).

6680_8.gif

Adam
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
Time for an update. Dad has had the chance to waft some weathering over the tanks to flatten them back a bit but test running on South Junction found it lacking pulling-power: it was outperformed by a humble pannier, tackling about 15 wagons (or naff all) round the circuit. South Junction is reasonably challenging since one end of the fiddle yard consists of a flying junction with flyunder and flyovers, all curved (about 4' radius in EM), but something BR rated class 5 should be able to do better.

Simple regauging with Ultrascale wheels meant that the original Bachmann mechanicals were untouched and a bit of bench testing and prodding showed that this was because the carrying wheel was lifting the rear driver, the driven axle. For those of you not familiar with Bachmann RTR steam locos, what should be a radial truck is actually a sort of sprung plunger in which the axle runs and can flap around all over the place. This is ugly from an engineering point of view but does work reasonably well in terms of track holding but with a loss of haulage because the plunger lacks sufficient vertical play. There's not much that can be done about this, but the slot that the axle runs in has a couple of ridges on the outer edges that serve as the bearing surface. The available options were either reworking the radial truck altogether or filing these ridges away. The former seemed like a lot of effort so the latter was tried. This might have caused problems of rolling resistance or yet more play in the system but Ultrascale trailing axle in the conversion set runs inside tube so the outer face of said axle is more or less irrelevant. Did this work?

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50 wagons later, on the flat...

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... and round the corner over the hump, rather suggest that yes, it does. :)

Adam
 
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AJC

Western Thunderer
Anyhow, in some game attempt to introduce some focus into my workbench activity, I've decided to concentrate the most unalloyed Western Region activity here and keep my general workbench for more heterogeneous delights. For the moment this means that unusually focussed work on a 3-car set of BR(W) stock will appear here. The set is typically ill-disciplined - relative to the more civilised regime of the Southern - and consists of a Hawksworth TK and a pair of Mk 1s, a BCK in chocolate and cream, and an SK in maroon, both by Bachmann. With a parcels vehicle of some kind tacked on the front this seems to have been entirely typical and could appear with anything from a pannier to a Brit'/Castle/Warship/Western on the front. We might, if we were so inclined, add another couple (or more!) vehicles in the middle, but the intention is that the Hawksworth goes at the front and the BCK on the back. Hence the lamp:

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So, at the other end, the Hawksworth (it's now maroon, but is waiting on lining, and curtains before reassembly):

Hawksworth2.gif

In the middle, the SK was picked up second hand the other week. It had been weathered, but in the 'overall filth' school of airbrushing so I cleaned most of it off using a cotton bud or three and T-Cut. This gives the happy benefit of muck where it is supposed to be, clinging around the hinges, commode handles and so on and a nice hard glossy sheen to the paintwork. The underframe weathering is quite nice, so I left that alone but the roof, being typically Bachmann, required its ribs removing and has been repainted (Humbrol matt 'Tank Grey' spray can). The SK has also been treated to a set of sprung corridor connections in the manner described here: 4mm - An EM workbench - a small part of Merthyr Vale | Page 21 | Western Thunder

SK_001.gif

Couplings and touch up needed.

Adam
 
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AJC

Western Thunderer
While the Hawksworth is now painted and partially lined, I've been otherwise engaged with wagons just lately so there isn't much to show. The next WR project is the reworking of a Bachmann Modified Hall with a Hawksworth tender, 6999, Capel Dewi Hall. The loco can wait until Brassmasters get their detailing kit out but the tender has been receiving some gentle titivation as an when I'm in the mood. Work done thus far includes:

  • Taking the 'weathering' off and giving the paintwork a bit of a polish.
  • Thinning the side sheets of the tender platework - the tender is clearly quite an old moulding, recent Bachmann tenders don't seem to suffer this.
  • Replacing handrails, on the water filler and on the rear corners (front corners still to do)
  • Reworking the bed for the coal load - a great use for spare Milliput.
  • Rewheeling for EM
Capel_Dewi_002.gif

Part of the rewheeling was taking the brakeshoes off - new ones that line up with the wheels will be added, but the Bachmann brake rigging (excellent) will be reused.

Capel_Dewi_003.gif

As can be seen, the vac' pipe and lamp irons - good for O scale - have also gone, together with the dummy hook.

Capel_Dew_001.gif

Wheels old and new. Although the old could have been turned down and re-spaced, using Gibson's products was easier, albeit with new axles made from 2mm OD x 1.5 inside brass tube (21.5mm long) and some 1.5mm steel rod cut to the same length as the existing stub axles (c.23mm). The wheels were opened out with a cutting broach a smidge and are a nice snug fit. The inner frames require some material to be removed - sufficient that the inner frames are flush - and the resulting tender rolls nicely and has now gone back in the box until next time the Milliput is out...

Adam
 
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AJC

Western Thunderer
Great detailing work, 6999 was Cantons favourite modified hall throughout the 50's

Thanks! I just liked the name - and found a nice picture of it at Yeovil (my home town) when it was shedded at Westbury.

GW Hall Class 6999 seen at Yeovil Pen Mill

(Not actually Pen Mill, but the east end of Town station on the diverging route up to Yeovil South Junction and thence either to Yeovil Junction or towards Dorchester).

I have long had a hankering for a model of a modified Hall. One of the few mainline steam runs I've had was behind Burton Agnes Hall between Salisbury and Yeovil in the late '80s and Halls were nicely balanced locos. The Brassmasters bits look like they'll be good.

Adam
 
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AJC

Western Thunderer
It's been very quiet on this particular front, but this weekend, I've inched forward. Five out of the eight axles are now fitted with EM wheels, a new bogie has been constructed. Here's the bogie - a modfied Comet etch with front plate from the Brassmasters detail etch and Gibson wheels. The bogie has been modified with a compensated front axle using simple three-point compensation. The rear axles run in bearings while the front - the Comet etch has slots for axles so adding a pivot from scrap etch and nickel silver wire over the top was as straightforward as not doing it: all I had to do was open the slots upwards a smidge.

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The tender, meanwhile, has gained brakegear to go with its EM wheels. With lamp irons, vac' and steam pipes, that element will be done. My next focus is getting the tricky bit, the powered axles and reworking the motion, sorted.

Capel_Dewi_006.gif

Adam
 

oldravendale

Western Thunderer
Sorry, Adam, but this is not genuine GWR. Nearly so but not quite. 'Twas built 1949, so strictly speaking a BR loco.

Sorry there's no emoji for a smug grin. Will this do?:thumbs: Or perhaps :D

Joking aside, a lovely build and has that look of being "right". More, please!

Brian
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
Sorry, Adam, but this is not genuine GWR. Nearly so but not quite. 'Twas built 1949, so strictly speaking a BR loco.

Sorry there's no emoji for a smug grin. Will this do?:thumbs: Or perhaps :D

Joking aside, a lovely build and has that look of being "right". More, please!

Brian

Given the ways of Swindon and the nature of their output, I wonder whether news of Nationalisation actually reached there before c.1952. ;) The Western attitude to secondary services (at best indifferent) and timekeeping remains alive and well (unfortunately). Witness this GWR class 150 from last week:

150_wet.jpg

150_wet001.jpg

I've just filled the holes in the tender prior to fitting scale lamp irons and will shortly be taking a look at the replacement driving wheels...

Adam
 

Steph Dale

Western Thunderer
I have to say that I think the new GWR refurbished stock is generally very smart. And that's as a regular traveller.

Timekeeping though? No, still not great.

Steph
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
I have to say that I think the new GWR refurbished stock is generally very smart. And that's as a regular traveller.

Timekeeping though? No, still not great.

Steph

I'm a reasonably regular traveller too and the timekeeping seems, as much as anything, to be down to staff attitude and thus derives from long term management culture. The HSTs are routinely excellently kept, but other things? Anything I've seen 'maintained' by St Philip's Marsh that isn't an HST has varied, over the course of the franchise, from fair to - like that 150 - unfit for traffic, with more towards the latter end of the spectrum. That said, the interior was in decent shape and clean. Just soaking wet on one side... A look at the state of the roof of the unit in question shows why both cars were so wet. Note the rust around cantrails and particularly the gutters:

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GWR 150244, Clifton Down by Steve ., on Flickr

None of this relates to Modified Halls though!

Adam
 

oldravendale

Western Thunderer
Hi Adam.

Was but a very gentle and friendly dig. During my schooldays I spent many happy hours on the down side of the line by Hayes and Harlington Station - there was a beautiful lower quadrant bracket signal there - and later at Southall Shed. Of course the Modified Hall was truly a GWR engine.

But I meant what I said about "more please".

B

PS - I agree about management influence on current performance. How much better it would have been to keep the regionalisation and pass that on to BR and then the current operating companies. There's a real lack of pride in the job and employer, and that's a job for the managers. However, one has to question whether the cash devoted to operations and maintenance is properly spent. On the positive side, my local line, Chiltern, seem to have successfully re-engendered some sort of team spirit, so the model is there to follow.
 
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