Ready to run 1/32 Mk 1 Coaches

Dikitriki

Dikitriki

Flying Squad
Mmm.

I know they have got faults, but I would be very happy indeed to run a rake of those behind an Aster MN (to pick something out of the air).

And I might not even bother to build something to replace them.

Off to the show at Warwick today for some large scale inspiration.:)

Richard
 
Phill Dyson

Phill Dyson

Western Thunderer
Yes they look pretty good to me too:thumbs: & with a few of the tweaks we have discussed previously they Will be even better:) .............. can I have half a dozen blue/greys in 7mm please:D
 
Neil

Neil

Western Thunderer
It's no doubt impressive in 1/32 but the roof does scream Bachmann rather than Mk 1. This interests me because I have long had a sneaking suspicion that sometimes an inaccuracy in a model if seen often enough enters the conciousness of the hobby to such an extent that it becomes accepted as being right.

Have I therefore attended to the roof of my Bachmann Mk1? Whoops there go my petards again.
 
Simon

Simon

Flying Squad
That looks brilliant, I really must get on the phone and get my green rake sent down to Wenbridge!

Are the wheels solid metal, how are they attached to the axles and what diameter are the journal ends?

I guess I'm really asking how easy it might be to turn the flanges down....

And have you worked out how easy it will be to remove the "plinth"?

I'm quite pleased they have left the excessive carrying capacity on the guards van!

Joking apart it is a fantastic looking piece of kit.

Just think, passengers at Wenbridge - I guess they will need a platform or two....

Simon
 
iploffy

iploffy

OC Blue Brigade
Just out of curiosity I couldn't find a price on the web site, how much are they?, is it a JAW dropping amount?
 
Steve Cook

Steve Cook

Flying Squad
Simon said:
Are the wheels solid metal, how are they attached to the axles and what diameter are the journal ends?

I guess I'm really asking how easy it might be to turn the flanges down....

And have you worked out how easy it will be to remove the "plinth"?
Click to expand...

No idea to all of the above I'm afraid Simon :oops:
I'd only owned the coach about 11 hours when I posted that photo and I spent yesterday at the Fosse chatting to Arty, Dikitriki and The Snapper and then prepping the Castle for its first proper run today.
I have had all the coaches out of the boxes to check I've got 2 BSK's and 2 SK's in Crimson and Cream, they are getting a shakedown run today to find out what they are like to pull.
They are a screwed together assembly though, so no doubt I'll get round to stripping one down this week for a more thorough investigation of the plinth issue. I'll have a closer look at the wheels today for you.
Steve
Oh - and I'll take photos :)
 
Steve Cook

Steve Cook

Flying Squad
Neil said:
It's no doubt impressive in 1/32 but the roof does scream Bachmann rather than Mk 1. This interests me because I have long had a sneaking suspicion that sometimes an inaccuracy in a model if seen often enough enters the conciousness of the hobby to such an extent that it becomes accepted as being right.

Have I therefore attended to the roof of my Bachmann Mk1? Whoops there go my petards again.
Click to expand...

Agreed, the ribs are way too prominent. However, its all plastic so I spy some sanding down / scraping before the repainting they need anyway to get variation in colour and weathering.
Steve
 
Simon

Simon

Flying Squad
Sounds like a great day yesterday and another one coming.

I'm just off to the Nailsea show to do the books again - Apethorne Junction completely does it for me....

Beeeeeee - Baaaarp!

Simon
 
taliesin

taliesin

Western Thunderer
Osgood said:
That would be pretty good value in 1/43 scale, let alone 1/32!
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Ah, you have hit the nail on the head. No one has claimed that they are perfection but they fill a huge hole in the Gauge one market, affordable coaches. The current price of a fully finished Tower Brass is £670 a pop or you can have Fred's kit at circa £500 which although admittedly beautiful take a lot of work to finish and are probably rather fragile for the outdoors/live steam environment.
The custom builders charge circa £1000 per coach and you wait a long time. The other kits available are 10mm scale and in some cases little more than a scratch builders aid but cost similar or more than these plastic fantastics.

If you can imagine a parallel universe where the only coaches available in the smaller scales were from the likes of Golden Age and the likes of Tri-ang, Lima et all had never existed then one day the Bachmann mk 1 turned up, freely available and at a fraction of the price of whats gone before then you will understand the impact that these will have for many people.
I can only see one possible downside which is that i might get sick of seeing them at every Gauge one do that i go to but on the other hand i get sick of seeing vari scale coaches that looked like they were fashioned out of driftwood some fifty odd years ago, particularly if they are being pulled by something like a modern Aster.

cheers to all, Rob
 
Simon

Simon

Flying Squad
Just spoken to Trevor, green (and WR ones) will be dealt with in about a week's time, they are processing orders by livery.

So I now have a bit more time to concrete track base before the passengers arrive - I am adding one Trevor's grey mineral wagons to my order too.

Right, let's fire the mixer up!

Simon
 
Steve Cook

Steve Cook

Flying Squad
Simon said:
Are the wheels solid metal
Click to expand...
Yes
how are they attached to the axles
Click to expand...
looks like a knurled section under the insulating bush that separates wheel and axle
and what diameter are the journal ends?
Click to expand...
4mm (well, the one that I've measured. They are a good fit in the roller bearings)
I guess I'm really asking how easy it might be to turn the flanges down....
Click to expand...
Definitely do-able, you'll be needing to turn the width down to suit as well but I'll let you pull your wheels off, mine are happy in their current location :)
And have you worked out how easy it will be to remove the "plinth"?
Click to expand...
Not yet, but I have got as far as stripping it down to its main assemblies this evening - it only took 10 minutes but I've been delayed by stripping and cleaning an axle pump. A decent phillips screwdriver gets the body to pieces, it uses the same screws for all the bits I've taken off so far (bogies excepted).

BSK2 Coming Apart.JPG


These things are absolutely brilliant as far as I'm concerned :) They run fantastically well, they have genuine Kadee couplers that stretch out on curves and pull together on the straights to keep the rubber gangways in contact and they lend themselves to a bit of individualisation. I need to glue in a loose interior panel (see top left), find out what colour the seats and partitions / corridor woodwork should be and slap some paint on, slim down the roof ribs and get some matt paint over that. A spot of light weathering will bring out some detail and they'll do for this season at least.
I think some careful fitting, rather than mass assembly, will see a better fit along the plinth - in the short term I'm tempted just to add some body colour to that edge whilst the coach proves its durability. I've not looked at it properly, but I suspect that you could probably extend the body sides with some plasticard strip and maybe trim the plinth off the chassis although I acknowledge that doesn't leave much support for the body on the chassis, it will rely solely on the small tabs that hold the screws.
Lots of fun ahead then :)
Steve
 
Simon

Simon

Flying Squad
An excellent appraisal - thank you very much!

I really like the way they break down, perfect for an adventurous bodger....

In other news, wheels for Watersmeet are now turned and awaiting data on crank pins before completion and despatch.

Thanks again for doing that Steve, very much appreciated.

Simon
 
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