Chas's workbench

[paulc]

Thanks Adam; I haven't applied any yet, thought I'd wait and see what other do. I hadn't thought of graphite, interesting idea. What about the type of very light teflon grease sold for model gears, or would that gum it up? Part of the reason I'm considering it is fear of the steel spring pieces rusting over time...

Ji Chas , I wouldn't use grease or even oil as they both attract dust and fluff which will turn into goop and bind everything up .
Graphite powder is the way to go .

 

[Chas Levin]

Ji Chas , I wouldn't use grease or even oil as they both attract dust and fluff which will turn into goop and bind everything up .
Graphite powder is the way to go .

Thanks Paul, I shied away from anything gooey by instinct as the moving parts are so finely arranged: always reassuring to have things confirmed by those with more experience though .

 

[Chas Levin]

We went to Naples mainly to see Pompeii (and if you haven't been and can make the journey I cannot recommend it highly enough, it's incredible!) and on the subject of Romans, something there that I was particularly fascinated to see in person were grooves or ruts worn in stone cobbled roads by chariot wheels, which really bring the place to life as they're visible, tangible traces of use:



Standing looking at these tracks, I imagined something like the scene in 'Genevieve' where Kenneth More's car wheels get stuck in tramlines and take him in the wrong direction, because these grooves are so deep that Roman chariot or carriage wheels must occasionally have got stuck in them.
And that led me to wonder whether it had ever occurred to any Roman drivers that creating guided tracks for their wheels might result in smoother running and the ability to move greater loads. Why didn't finding their chariot wheels stuck in these grooves lead to the invention of guided rails earlier than the 12th century, which is when it's believed the first examples were seen...?

 

[Rob R]

I prefered Herculanium.
More compact, better preserved and nowhere near as busy.

 

[simond]

I didn’t get to Herculaneum, but having been subject to the tender ministrations of vindictive but well-meaning Latin teachers using the orange Cambridge books, as was my daughter (though her teachers were happily less inclined to physical cruelty), we were enchanted to see the Cave Canem doorway in Pompeii, and many of the other sites and sights.

and being a bit of a Floyd fan, it was rather good to see the amphitheatre too.

 

[Hayfield1]

I prefered Herculanium.
More compact, better preserved and nowhere near as busy.

On a day trip to turkey we visited Ephesus. As you say the roads were still intact with working drains and wheel ruts running down the center of the roads. These roads lasting 2000 + years. The whole site is amazing and so well looked after

 

[Chas Levin]

I prefered Herculanium.
More compact, better preserved and nowhere near as busy.

We'd originally intended seeing both both but in the end we didn't have time - in fact we only really saw about half of Pompeii. The 38C temperature didn't help, mind you!
It was more than enough though and actually, the sheer size of it was part of the impact it had on us. Walking round an entire Roman city was really quite an extraordinary experience.
Herculaneum next time... and at a cooler time of year. That was unavoidable though - the Vesuvian visit was part of a holiday to celebrate Mrs. Workbench's 60th so I didn't think suggesting postponing it until the Autumn would go down well!

 

[Chas Levin]

I didn’t get to Herculaneum, but having been subject to the tender ministrations of vindictive but well-meaning Latin teachers using the orange Cambridge books, as was my daughter (though her teachers were happily less inclined to physical cruelty), we were enchanted to see the Cave Canem doorway in Pompeii, and many of the other sites and sights.

and being a bit of a Floyd fan, it was rather good to see the amphitheatre too.

Yes, Alison was delighted with that doorway too, and another one who's resident is mentioned in a Latin primer she used at school.

I have to admit that neither of us is a Floyd fan though, so that association was lost on us!

 

[Chas Levin]

On a day trip to turkey we visited Ephesus. As you say the roads were still intact with working drains and wheel ruts running down the center of the roads. These roads lasting 2000 + years. The whole site is amazing and so well looked after

We'll bear that in mind for a future visit. The next big birthday will be my 60th, in July next year, when the trip will be less hot and more Swiss...

 

[Mike Trice]

For Pompeii/Herculaneum try and arrange during cultural week. Free entry.

 

[Phil O]

Mike,

Just tried to Google cultural week and it doesn't come up with anything specific and the official website isn't much help either.

Thanks .

 

[Mike Trice]

It looks as if they have made it more regular:
"Is there a day on which you can see Pompeii for free?
As established by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage every first Sunday of the month admission is free for all the monuments and the artistic and historical sites in Italy. So also for the Pompeii Excavations. The opening hours will be the regular ones."

 

[Chas Levin]

Yep, we saw that 'first Sunday in every month' thing at a few places in both Rome and further South, but the holiday dates this time were focussed on Mrs Workbench's birthday (the 13th) so we had to miss out on free entry. Next time though...

 

[Chas Levin]

Here's the current state of play on the Revell CIWL carriage pair, with plenty of painting done and lamps fitted to tables:



I'm still considering installing lighting, plus couplings need to be dealt with and after that, the lining. Quote pleased so far: the masking of the sides for two colour spraying went well (I never like masking on top of existing paint but in this case the raised mid-height ridge provided a fixing point for the tape, as it'll be done with the ruling pen later) and my fairly crude pseudo-mottled two-tone seats look acceptable when seen though the plastic windows...

 

[Chas Levin]

Couplings now sorted out (Dapol-style NEM pockets, homemade bushes from 3.1mm brass tube!):





...and some quick comparisons of lining colours on a dark blue background:



The upper is Phoenix Precision's 'Lining Gold', the lower is Ian Rathbone's 50:50 mix of Humbrol 7 & 69 (Light Buff & Yellow) which he recommends for yellow lining. Please ignore the very poor lines, this was done purely for colour comparison and not as proper lining.
They don't look hugely different, which is as it should be: the broad horizontal stripe that runs the length of the CIWL carriages beneath the windows (and which I believe is a Class marking?) appears to be yellow on many photos, both prototype and model, whereas the rest of the lining appear to be a satin finish gold, so these should do the trick.
The window frames are a much shinier gold in some cases though, not sure how I'll do those yet.

I still haven't quite decided whether to fit lighting or not (a lot of trouble for only occasional use) so doing the lining is a way of keeping up progress while considering the lighting question...

 

[paulc]

Hi Chas , ref the lining . The 50/50 mix appears to look brassier , is that a word ? That of course could be down to the camera etc .

 

[PaxtonP4]

Rather than Precision's lining gold try their Gorse Yellow - P625 M.& G.N.R. Loco Gorse yellow

 

[Chas Levin]

Hi Chas , ref the lining . The 50/50 mix appears to look brassier , is that a word ? That of course could be down to the camera etc .

Rather than Precision's lining gold try their Gorse Yellow - P625 M.& G.N.R. Loco Gorse yellow

Thanks for the feedback gents - paulc, if 'brassier' hasn't been a word up to now, it should have been! Yes, I know what you mean, it looks lighter, or brighter, but neither colour has come out terrifically accurately compared to real life (no fancy camer, just my phone). The Lining gold does look gold in real life, but a satin finish gold, quite muted. The 50-50 mix looks like what it's intended to be, a toned down yellow.

PaxtonP4, thanks, I've not noticed that colour before. I just put in an order yesterday so I'll see if I can add that to it.

I looked at more CIWL photos online yesterday and there's more of a mixture than I thought with regard to the wide horizontal central stripe, with as many coahces showing that stripe in yellow as there are those showing it in the same gold! Likewise, some coaches look like they entirely lined in gold, some yellow...

 

[paulc]

Thanks for the feedback gents - paulc, if 'brassier' hasn't been a word up to now, it should have been! Yes, I know what you mean, it looks lighter, or brighter, but neither colour has come out terrifically accurately compared to real life (no fancy camer, just my phone). The Lining gold does look gold in real life, but a satin finish gold, quite muted. The 50-50 mix looks like what it's intended to be, a toned down yellow.

PaxtonP4, thanks, I've not noticed that colour before. I just put in an order yesterday so I'll see if I can add that to it.

I looked at more CIWL photos online yesterday and there's more of a mixture than I thought with regard to the wide horizontal central stripe, with as many coahces showing that stripe in yellow as there are those showing it in the same gold! Likewise, some coaches look like they entirely lined in gold, some yellow...

You could try this which is Precision P625 M&GNR gorse yellow . This is recommended my Ian R for LNWR lining although it may be too orangy for your needs .

 

[paulc]

Don't be too hard on my lining corners , its my first attempt at lining and from 2ft they look okay ish .