Elmham Market in EM

[James Spooner]

Spurred on by Mr Holt’s comment and with the photo kindly provided by Andrew Young I have spent an idle couple of hours fettling up some semblance of a control panel from bits of wire, plasticard and a Peco track pin. I think that is as far as I can go given the access problems I have given myself by making it in this order. Still, better than nothing.

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

Work on the glazing continues with the end panes now glued in and one side glued in with the lavatory window painted white…

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

Today’s modelling time has been spent making half a dozen footboards from scrap etch, soldering a couple of pieces of 0.45mm wire under each, drilling holes in the underframe, gluing in and priming. I have also glazed the rest of the DTC. Next jobs are to make and add the detailing to the ends and to create the interior.

I think the prototype buffers were round Oleo with a 1’8” head; does anyone know where such buffer heads can be sourced (ideally sprung)?

Nigel

 

[David B]

This really is a cracking build Nigel - and it’s a little thing, but having spent years as a teenager watching DMU drivers at work from those coveted front seats, I particularly love your representation of the gear lever…I can almost hear the pneumatic ‘tis…tis’ as the driver moves between gears. It’s been well worth all of the time you’ve spent on this set - handmade DMUs of this quality are rare birds.

 

[James Spooner]

This really is a cracking build Nigel - and it’s a little thing, but having spent years as a teenager watching DMU drivers at work from those coveted front seats, I particularly love your representation of the gear lever…I can almost hear the pneumatic ‘tis…tis’ as the driver moves between gears. It’s been well worth all of the time you’ve spent on this set - handmade DMUs of this quality are rare birds.

Thank you David, that is very kind of you to say so. Still a long way to go yet, with the DMBS to be dealt with as welll…

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

I have spent the last couple of days plugging away at the interior of the DTCL. Still not finished yet but I think I have broken the back of it. The partitions were a brainwave of Paul Godwin’s (@Godders53). As I mentioned further up this thread, he has built one of these before and so was indirectly responsible for me starting on the adventure. He designed the partitions on PowerPoint and then printed them out on sticky labels and glued them, one each side, on glazing sheet and cut them out. He kindly emailed me the PowerPoint slides and I have repeated the exercise for my set.

Second class seats were from an old part built DC kits Derby lightweight, with the tops of the seats scalloped to match the Wickham seats. First class seats used much cut down Ratio seats as a basis, with 20thou plasticard forming the frames and 40thou Evergreen styrene strip for the arm rests. I still have the rear compartment to finish, although that should be quite a quick job as the seats and partition are made.

A few photos to show progress. I still need to spray paint the underframe, add first class transfers to the relevant windows and detail the front end. I am drawing blanks in terms of buffers at the moment; if anyone knows where I can source some I would be very obliged if they could point me in the right direction!

Nigel

 

[Dave Holt]

Coming along very nicely, Nigel.
Those internal divisions with the fancy shaped openings (designed to accommodate the Mekon, perhaps?) are very distinctive. I never saw anything like them in the various DMU types arround Manchester.
Dave.

 

[jonte]

Seems a shame to cover up all that excellent work, Nigel

A prime example of the benefits of a forum.

I’m sure somebody will be along soon with a source for the buffers, Nigel.

Jon

 

[James Spooner]

Coming along very nicely, Nigel.
Those internal divisions with the fancy shaped openings (designed to accommodate the Mekon, perhaps?) are very distinctive. I never saw anything like them in the various DMU types arround Manchester.
Dave.

Thanks Dave and yes they were quite distinctive; possibly unique to the Wickhams.

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

So, more progress today. The interior is finished, with first class stickers on the appropriate windows. I have also sprayed the underframe and bogies Precision dirty black (not shown in the photo below, taken before the spraying).

I’m now starting the detailing of the cab end, adding in screw coupling, various connection pipes etc.. I’m going to call a halt there for a couple of days as the memsahib and I are off to Norwich to see our new granddaughter and celebrate our grandson’s birthday.

Nigel

 

[simond]

Nigel,

you can probably chop the droppers off the Kadees as you‘re unlikely to be uncoupling…

arb
Simon

 

[James Spooner]

Nigel,

you can probably chop the droppers off the Kadees as you‘re unlikely to be uncoupling…

arb
Simon

Simon,

Yes, you’re right and I probably will. From experience I think I’ll also glue them in as they tend to droop and come uncoupled after a while.

Nigel

 

[simond]

Morning Nigel,

I’ve used Kadees on my 7mm coaches, I haven’t suffered “droopy couplings” but they spend most of their lives in stock boxes - where are you thinking of gluing?

S

 

[James Spooner]

Morning Nigel,

I’ve used Kadees on my 7mm coaches, I haven’t suffered “droopy couplings” but they spend most of their lives in stock boxes - where are you thinking of gluing?

S

Hi Simon

It might be because the version I use is designed for NEM sockets in 4mm and the Bachmann Derby lightweight sockets aren’t true sockets as such, because they don’t have a base. I’ll glue them in at the end of the stalk (I had to do that on my Bachmann Derby lightweight as well and tha has run satisfactorily around Elmham Market for some years now.

Nigel

 

[simond]

Hi Simon

It might be because the version I use is designed for NEM sockets in 4mm and the Bachmann Derby lightweight sockets aren’t true sockets as such, because they don’t have a base. I’ll glue them in at the end of the stalk (I had to do that on my Bachmann Derby lightweight as well and tha has run satisfactorily around Elmham Market for some years now.

Nigel

Ah, makes sense, mine are screwed to bogies on one set, and to the floor on the other. I will get them all the same at some point…

 

[James Spooner]

Back home from a weekend cooing over new babies and building marble mazes with grandchildren; now trying to crack the buffer problem. AGW buffer shanks are a smidge too narrow, Slaters threaded ends a bit too thick, a search on known suppliers via the internet drew a blank. In desperation I cut off the buffer heads from the Bachmann Derby lightweight trailer bufferbeams that, in turn, I had cut off the ends of the underframes (to fit under the 3D printed driving ends). Some vigorous filing later and they do fit into the 3D printed sockets and are about the right diameter. They won’t be sprung, but I don’t plan to use the DMU with anything else so that won’t really show up. Unless anyone has a better plan I might just end up gluing them into place…

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

I have now added all of the detail onto the driving end and have ventured to assemble the different sub components. I’m quite pleased with the way it has come together and will call the DTCL a wrap and move on to the DMBS…

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

I haven’t been totally idle over the last few days. Thursday evening was the NW Surrey EM meeting and several of us admired Newcastle Emlyn, a P4 layout made by @MervB’s late father. I have been slowly working away at the DMBS since then.

I have scratched up another set of driving controls (it seems somehow different making them up for a second time) and fashioning a second set of driving cab windows. The middle one was a particular nuisance and kept finding its way onto the floor at every opportunity but was finally tamed. Buffer heads were cut from the other end of the Bachmann Derby lightweight and a new Smiths screw coupling made up.

That’s probably it on the modelling front for a week as I’m off up to the TLC of Wales for a week’s driving on the world’s finest narrow gauge railway…. If the weather plays ball I might manage to get some shots in along the way.

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

Back to the slightly less clement weather of Snowdonia…. DLG on shed at Boston Lodge for a trip to Blaenau…

Nigel

 

[James Spooner]

Today’s steed and location; Linda at Glanypwll…

Nigel