Dog Star
Western Thunderer
This statement leaves me most puzzled, what is being said about WT elsewhere?
[Adam has provided a link and, having read the material, probably best left to sleep]
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4mm An EM Workbench: Mineral allsorts
- Thread starter AJC
- Start date
[Adam has provided a link and, having read the material, probably best left to sleep]
AJC
Western Thunderer
BR unfitted brake
AJC
Western Thunderer
Back to brake and a brief consideration of the footboards. These are made up from a laminate - two layers being stronger that one - with a half-etched layer, including the bracket detail and a full-thickness layer with the toe boards folding up at the back. As we can see the design doesn't have these folded back on itself which might make things a little easier but this doesn't matter all that much as working slowly from one end to the other carefully the two can be soldered together without a banana-shaped result. All this means that the brackets folds are reinforced with solder. Dave's got the half-etched lines spot on for bendability and durability.
A bit later - and using the clever jig supplied - the top footboards are added. The brackets are soldered through holes in the solebar and because, this once, I read the instructions and didn't use too much solder, this worked first time without having to re-drill or open out holes. These are really quite robust though not much more so that the comparatively unsophisticated D&S version of the very similar chassis found under LNER ballast brakes I built some years ago.
And here we are. The body has had very little attention thus far as I've just taken the handrails off. The axleboxes and springs are from Rumney Models and the buffers from Lanarkshire Model Supplies. The style of these items shows that this will be one of the early unfitted versions with the multi-part handrails like this one: BR Brake van diag 1/506 CAO, CAP, ZSQ, ZTO, ZTP, ZTR, ZTV | B950884 20T Brake van unfitted LONDON MIDLAND Photograph date 9-10-50 Tare 19-8 Diag 1-506 Lot 2137 Darlington 1950 © Paul Bartlett Collection w
Adam
A bit later - and using the clever jig supplied - the top footboards are added. The brackets are soldered through holes in the solebar and because, this once, I read the instructions and didn't use too much solder, this worked first time without having to re-drill or open out holes. These are really quite robust though not much more so that the comparatively unsophisticated D&S version of the very similar chassis found under LNER ballast brakes I built some years ago.
And here we are. The body has had very little attention thus far as I've just taken the handrails off. The axleboxes and springs are from Rumney Models and the buffers from Lanarkshire Model Supplies. The style of these items shows that this will be one of the early unfitted versions with the multi-part handrails like this one: BR Brake van diag 1/506 CAO, CAP, ZSQ, ZTO, ZTP, ZTR, ZTV | B950884 20T Brake van unfitted LONDON MIDLAND Photograph date 9-10-50 Tare 19-8 Diag 1-506 Lot 2137 Darlington 1950 © Paul Bartlett Collection w
Adam
BR unfitted brake
AJC
Western Thunderer
Moving on a little to the body more or less adequate. Dave Bradwell's etches provide for new cabin partitions to replace the rather chunky Airfix ones. To fit them you have to file a rebate in the sides which meant levering them off the long assembled carcasss (pretty easy as the original join was less than substantial). This is messy, but far from problematic. Dave reckons that the sides are a mite low in height, probably to accommodate the armour-plate roof so I've added some 15 thou' strip along the eaves and a chunk of 60 thou' to space the sides firmly apart.
In these pictures you can see that I've temporarily placed one of the partitions roughly in position. I'll add strips of plastic to locate them properly before go much further. Note that the ends are made of two layers, spaced with scrap etch. The gap will allow glazing to be dropped in after painting which is rather nifty. Bachmann and Hornby both use a clear plastic moulding for this part which is probably the best production compromise, if a fiddle to repaint...
Note too that I've removed the horizontal glazing bars from the partitions (the earliest BR vans and their LNE precursors lacked them).
Adam
In these pictures you can see that I've temporarily placed one of the partitions roughly in position. I'll add strips of plastic to locate them properly before go much further. Note that the ends are made of two layers, spaced with scrap etch. The gap will allow glazing to be dropped in after painting which is rather nifty. Bachmann and Hornby both use a clear plastic moulding for this part which is probably the best production compromise, if a fiddle to repaint...
Note too that I've removed the horizontal glazing bars from the partitions (the earliest BR vans and their LNE precursors lacked them).
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
Not sure. Brass strip, probably. The L shaped ones on the veranda will be from Masokits (a clever doubled up etch which pins to the plastic moulding).
Adam
100 HP Sentinel
AJC
Western Thunderer
While I've been down in Somerset for Railwells and a week off, I remembered to bring my Sentinel down for a test on South Junction, Yeovil Model Railway Group's EM layout (about 30' long). This has allowed haulage trials and at their conclusion it managed 22 wagons over the flying junction/reverse curve combination in the fiddle yard which is the basis of our informal maximum load test. It's slow, controllable and now probably needs a wheel clean...
Adam
Adam
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Lyndhurstman
Western Thunderer
it looks the part, Adam. A lovely bit of weathering, too.
Cheers
Jan
Cheers
Jan
AJC
Western Thunderer
Thanks - while this one works, my other Sentinel steamer disgraced itself with filth-related pick-up failure (now resolved) and rootling through the industrial box revealed two more wheel cleaning clients, one an outright failure, and a burst bunker from the dreaded PVA; I fear the latter will need stripping and a repaint...
Adam
Dan Randall
Western Thunderer
Nice work on the Sentinel Adam. 
Green is my favourite colour and that's a lovely shade - what did you plump for in the end please?
Regards
Dan
Green is my favourite colour and that's a lovely shade - what did you plump for in the end please?
Regards
Dan
AJC
Western Thunderer
Nice work on the Sentinel Adam.
Green is my favourite colour and that's a lovely shade - what did you plump for in the end please?
Regards
Dan
Thanks, Dan. It’s Humbrol matt grass green - I can’t remember what number that is but it’s a decent match for the real thing. The answer is probably on the loco thread (link when I can find it!).
Adam
Dan Randall
Western Thunderer
Duly noted - thanks Adam.
Regards
Dan
Regards
Dan
AJC
Western Thunderer
Duly noted - thanks Adam.
Regards
Dan
Number 80, I think. Naturally, the tin is in Kent while I'm here and the online suggestions of what the colour is like are completely wrong!
Adam
Patching Hunslet
AJC
Western Thunderer
I mentioned above that a quick audit of the box of mixed industrials revealed a couple of mechanical duds and a burst bunker caused by the combination of lead shot and PVA. My fault, of course since I reweighted this model (it was made by Bob Alderman from the Impetus kit and acquired from him when he gave up EM to fully commit to O), alongside replacing the gearbox with something more sophisticated than the Romford cog it was built with. It's had a couple of passes of cosmetic work since, most recently a new chimney and dome/safety valve courtesy of Mike Edge and two repaints. So what's at stake?
All three soldered joints had failed as was revealed by a bit of drilling and soaking:
Removal turned out to be relatively painless and so I've soldered the rear plate back on and - since it's plain black - a patch repaint is worth trying at least, hence:
Time to harden off and retouch with a brush. Maybe some lining as well?
Adam
All three soldered joints had failed as was revealed by a bit of drilling and soaking:
Removal turned out to be relatively painless and so I've soldered the rear plate back on and - since it's plain black - a patch repaint is worth trying at least, hence:
Time to harden off and retouch with a brush. Maybe some lining as well?
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
Yes and no: lining was pretty common and black lined red does look good. We’ll see.
Adam
Patching Hunslet
AJC
Western Thunderer
All done:
I decided against lining and settled for repainting the valance black, so that'll do. While the sun was out, I also introduced the Sentinels to one another. It's interesting to see how the family resemblance only extends so far; shapes and lines are similar, but angles and proportions are quite divergent, but they are the same height (the bigger one is quite a lot faster, too!).
Adam
I decided against lining and settled for repainting the valance black, so that'll do. While the sun was out, I also introduced the Sentinels to one another. It's interesting to see how the family resemblance only extends so far; shapes and lines are similar, but angles and proportions are quite divergent, but they are the same height (the bigger one is quite a lot faster, too!).
Adam
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