Scattergun EM Whimsy: Home James!

[AJC]

And now steps. A Mainly Trains etch for Midland types. These don’t match those on the tender, but James had more than his share of accidents, so I can live with that - and not one of the illustrations in the books show any steps whatsoever!



So I’ve put them where pretty much every pre-Grouping 0-6-0 had them. Cab and between first two axles.

EDIT - a mocked up body preview. The cab will be fairly heavily modified (for width, and height, mostly, obviously there's a Belpaire firebox to fit in there - must check all this for height at some point - but the roof has some nicely moulded vent detail which will be kept).



Adam

 

[AJC]

I’ve put a couple of strips of 40 thou’ under the cab sides. This gives the extra height to match the firebox; I’ll add overlays in 10 thou’ (front), and 20 thou’ (sides), to reduce the quite substantial overhang on the moulding. The new chimney will be slightly taller!



I will have to do something about the splashers soon. I had considered reusing the ones from the ‘C’, but though they’re roughly the right size, they are rather thick, so it’s probably as easy to make some from brass…

Adam

 

[AJC]

After some additional thinking about the cab, I’ve gone for a composite approach. The existing cab has been carved up (I’ll build splasher boxes, etc. in plastic), and brass side sheets made.



It plugs in like this so I can epoxy it in after painting.



The hole in the front is to make a bit of breathing space for the motor. I might not need it, but it’s easy to add now! Elsewhere, the chassis is almost ready for paint, fitting out, and so on.

Adam

 

[AJC]

Ok, this is now ready to paint.



A simple, beam compensated chassis with a fixed driven axle. I’ve put a side control spring on the pony, but time will tell if that’s necessary. It’s hard to escape the impression that this is all a bit better than it needs to be…

Adam

 

[Stevers]

I’ve put a side control spring on the pony

Possibly more important than side control is damping usually by having the pony truck rubbing on whatever is applying weight. Once you've got that, side control becomes more useful. BobO's Jidenco W Class ponytruck (sprung/controlled by a wire) continuously hunted from side to side at any sort of speed, and I'm guessing his DJH N Class may well have the same problem when I get to it.

 

[AJC]

Possibly more important than side control is damping usually by having the pony truck rubbing on whatever is applying weight. Once you've got that, side control becomes more useful. BobO's Jidenco W Class ponytruck (sprung/controlled by a wire) continuously hunted from side to side at any sort of speed, and I'm guessing his DJH N Class may well have the same problem when I get to it.

The pony is full of lead and I’ll see how that goes. There’s space for a spring above, but that’s one for powered trials.

One of* the serious purposes of this model is to prove to myself that I can do pony trucks…

Adam

*OK, the only serious purpose...

 

[Stevers]

The pony is full of lead and I’ll see how that goes.

Weight (as with quantity) has a virtue of its own! If the pony truck of Bob's W had been heavily weighted, there would have been more resistance to sideways movement from the treads of the wheels, and a slower oscillation if any were still possible.

 

[AJC]

Weight (as with quantity) has a virtue of its own! If the pony truck of Bob's W had been heavily weighted, there would have been more resistance to sideways movement from the treads of the wheels, and a slower oscillation if any were still possible.

That all makes sense. Of course, there’s no reason that the plate frames of Bob’s W cannot be filled with lead as well…

Adam

 

[Stevers]

Of course, there’s no reason that the plate frames of Bob’s W cannot be filled with lead as well…

There were other problems with the undercooked Jidenco valve gear and brakes. It had a nice bod though - if a bit dented and smokebox round the wrong way. I've put an SEF N1 chassis under it and cab interior in it. The new chassis has twin beams on the rear drivers with the bogie sprung to go along for the ride, and I kept the Sharman wheels it came with. Naturally as it's in my care it's not finished (waiting for valve gear and the Escap to be re-fitted), but it has been (safely?) propelled round South Junction in it's new configuration at wildly unrealistic speeds.

 

[AJC]

Having acquired a motor from High Level, I thought test fitting was in order. A but of material to remove, mostly as a function of the rear drivers being right under the cab, but nothing very major.



What I actually meant to do this evening was to knock up some sandboxes. Onwards!

Adam

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

What I actually meant to do this evening was to knock up some sandboxes. Onwards!

It's always the way. What we plan to do at the workbench and what we actually do are two different things.

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

Having acquired a motor from High Level, I thought test fitting was in order. A but of material to remove, mostly as a function of the rear drivers being right under the cab, but nothing very major.

Is there not a gearbox available which can make the motor sit further forward and be entirely in the firebox? Or is just a case of using what's in stock so to speak.

 

[AJC]

Is there not a gearbox available which can make the motor sit further forward and be entirely in the firebox? Or is just a case of using what's in stock so to speak.

Of course there is, Dave. If I can adjust the motor fitting so that it sits between the frames (it’s on an angle as that’s how the mounting holes are set up), this one will. And that’s tonight’s job, maybe. My fault for deciding on a different motor to the one I originally had in mind.

Adam

PS: I did make the sandboxes.



And I’ve put the backhead in the cab shell.



I just didn’t plug the soldering iron in.

 

[AJC]

I did manage to plug the iron in yesterday and made up some minute sub assemblies for various things. Included in the list was the smokebox wheel for James.



While I was about it, I swapped the chimney for a spare pinched from a Bachmann 3F (in the throes of conversion to a M&GN type which had extended smokeboxes and two different types of ugly chimney). Looks much more Sodor-adjacent now. The smokebox door? Martin Finney.

Adam

 

[AJC]

Having - finally - popped the lamp irons on the back, the tender has been primed. All those Margate rivets look broadly plausible, I hope.





A bit of tidying up along the bottom of the sides needed, but nothing very serious.

Adam

 

[AJC]

Here's the current state of play at the front end. The boiler is weighted and filled - the yellow is filler primer - and ready for detailing. The chassis is painted and ready for fit out, while the footplate and so on is getting there - splashers are the big missing element.



Adam

 

[AJC]

First coat of red on:



I haven’t made a final decision on the valances and steps: Thomas had the former in maroon (Brighton maroon at that - appropriate), and the latter (per the books), in blue. The books don’t show James as having any steps…

Adam

EDIT - the Small Controller (the 6-year-old), and I have had discussions about this - and the cab roof, because he has an eye for detail (the books show it red, the various TV versions, black) - and black steps have been mandated. With red lining, I think, because I can.

 

[AJC]

The nice thing about acrylics (Model Color in this case - Vermillion), is that you can, even without an airbrush, build up colour depth quite quickly. The white is undercoat for bufferbeam red (Model Color again, Scarlet this time: I care that this is different from the livery colour, no one else will!).




Adam

 

[Deve_]

That's bright! Model Colour vermillion has been my go-to for inner frames, 2-3 light brushed coats over black etch primer. Will be interested in seeing the contrast with scarlett.

 

[AJC]

That's bright! Model Colour vermillion has been my go-to for inner frames, 2-3 light brushed coats over black etch primer. Will be interested in seeing the contrast with scarlett.

Here you go. The intensity of the red varies with lighting quite a bit and buffer beam red is often quite orangey (hence Scarlet).



I’ve left the rear platform and filler red oxide as some railways did.

Adam