Finescale - of a sort?!

Osgood

Western Thunderer
You have wood floors don’t you?
Sling the carpets, screw track straight to boards, build point work out of your components using floor boards as base.
Finally fill rooms to rail top height with clean foundry sand.
Sand could be coloured for different rooms - won’t show dirt, quick rake over before guests arrive, change every 2 yrs.
Cat may have to go though - but as compensation hoover can go too.
And as a bonus - no traction issues.

I’d call that a win-win scenario........
 
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Peter Insole

Western Thunderer
Ha Tony, you've cracked it!

When the boys were young it always felt like "we were living in a farmyard"! We used to wonder if sawdust and straw was preferable to rugs and carpets?! Never thought of sand though, and if the truth be told, it is probably (*) needed more now that they have grown and flown.

Sorry Tom, that wasn't personal, just a bit of "Nanny and Grandad's Revenge": We are all very proud of, and love the dear little Princess, but I'm afraid that it is your turn now to cry; "Eh-yuk, what is that?", or "where did that come from?"!!

Edit: * no, change that to definitely!

Pete.
 

Eastsidepilot

Western Thunderer
You have wood floors don’t you?
Sling the carpets, screw track straight to boards, build point work out of your components using floor boards as base.
Finally fill rooms to rail top height with clean foundry sand.
Sand could be coloured for different rooms - won’t show dirt, quick rake over before guests arrive, change every 2 yrs.
Cat may have to go though - but as compensation hoover can go too.
And as a bonus - no traction issues.

I’d call that a win-win scenario........

This is all well and good but will poor little Grandson be able to drag Granddad off the engine for 5 mins. :D

Col.
 

Tom Insole

Western Thunderer
Ha Tony, you've cracked it!

When the boys were young it always felt like "we were living in a farmyard"! We used to wonder if sawdust and straw was preferable to rugs and carpets?! Never thought of sand though, and if the truth be told, it is probably (*) needed more now that they have grown and flown.

Sorry Tom, that wasn't personal, just a bit of "Nanny and Grandad's Revenge": We are all very proud of, and love the dear little Princess, but I'm afraid that it is your turn now to cry; "Eh-yuk, what is that?", or "where did that come from?"!!

Edit: * no, change that to definitely!

Pete.

None taken, I've already started that one. All with the fears things need to be moved higher again.. today standing was tested on her part I got photos sent to me at work. Won't be long and it'll be one foot infront of the other and GONE! She likes water so a beach theme indoor railway will suit well! ;) Best get some plastic sheet underneath it or the sand will end up in the celar though.
 

Giles

Western Thunderer
I certainly think that your track needs to be of softer or no harder material than your wheels - I take it they are plastic? - so the wheels don't get damaged, as they'll be more of a nuisance to replace than any track components, I would have thought....
 

Peter Insole

Western Thunderer
Aye indeed Giles. Whatever I use will have to be sturdy enough to carry some weight without too much vertical deflection, yet must be no deeper than the plastic track sections attached to it.

I am still very tempted to try PVC strip for the running rails, with the tramline style, infilled sections between cut from MDF. That latter detail would hopefully strengthen what would otherwise be a very thin and perhaps rather too flexible plywood baseplate?

As there is still quite a lot of work to do on the engine, I am quite content to continue considering this particular challenge for a little while longer!

Anyway, I promised a brief bit about my non ferrous fakery...

Steel, aluminium and even copper may be just about manageable, but brass is utterly 'orrible! The stuff keeps changing colour. Over time it turns from a predominately golden yellow to a dull brown, and in between presents an uneven and quite reflective red to purple bloom on the surface!

Several years ago, a chap asked me to paint a cheap, white plastic, electric clock to make it look "old fashioned" so that it might blend in with the stained oak panelling he was having installed in his living room. Thankfully, I had the presence of mind to keep my original mixing palette for the solution. He was pleased with the result, while I was more relieved that I appeared to have just about got away with it!

Onward to this project; I continue feeling that it would be only right and proper to make all the brass and copper fittings out of the real stuff. The piston glands would have been the first parts to make, but I quickly realised that the dry bearing contact with the piston rod needed to be in a "soft" material to avoid the risk of scraping, scratching and squeaking!

The MDF versions would have to be painted, using the same technique as applied to the clock.

Here are the Humbrol colours that I used:

SAM_xy3095.JPG

Metallic 54, "Brass" (an almost coincidental title, as it bears so little resemblance to the genuine article!)
Metallic 171, "Antique Bronze" (a similar comment to the above applies!)
Matt 98, "Chocolate"
Plus a smidge of Matt Black for fine tone adjustment.

The colours were blended when wet and the darker, brownish shades were worked towards the centre of the facets, then the outer edges were picked out with neat "Brass"

The glands were finally finished with water based satin varnish to create the essential sheen effect.

SAM_xy3084.JPG SAM_xy3130.JPG SAM_xy3128.JPG

Pete.
 

Peter Insole

Western Thunderer
Thank you Alan. I seem to be rather adept at causing pain, in one way or another, but I never anticipated being responsible for actual bodily harm?!

Talking about potential damage leads quite nicely into this next instalment:

I have been concerned about a weakness in the design, though to date not sufficiently to take any action. A recent test run under power revealed the issue, though thankfully without the feared outcome.

It can be seen on the prototype photo below, that contact between the bottom of the headstock and the rails or ground was not an entirely uncommon event?

hzscSAM_3101.JPG

Several historic images of the other locomotives show the outer corners were frequently bent back or forward after similar events. It is quite easy to imagine that derailments at various locations around the works might have been regarded as a fact of life?! Solid, long bars attached to guard irons appeared to be fairly common practice on many of the old industrial lines.

In a moment of inattention during the aforementioned test, our own little engine disgraced herself by coming off the road and copping a whack on the beam as it did so! The MDF may have sprung a bit, but at least it held this time?

Here is the problem, with the feared fault line marked thus in green...

hSAM_x1817.JPG

If the contact had perhaps been much harder, and even if the corner had not snapped right off, I could imagine an irreparable crease occurring all along the line? Either way, a completely new plate would have to be cut and fitted, along with all the associated aggro!

A solution turned out to be surprisingly simple!

Although the headstock modelled represents that fitted only to the original Beyer Peacock engines; "Robin" and "Wren", with that distinctive, inverted T cut-out and rivet/bolt positions, the last five of the class, built in-house at Horwich, had a modified version. Records confirm that "Wasp", "Fly" and "Mouse", "Midget" of 1891 and 1899 respectively, were fitted from new with motion-guard platework that completely covered their undersides. At the front end, those guard plates where bolted on to three rivetted angles, two short outers and one longer centred between the frames, and all attached to the lower, rear face of the headstocks. They were evidently troublesome, as a picture, dated 1902, show that the plates had been removed from "Fly".

The angles were initially retained however, and can be clearly seen on "Fly", and by a line of betraying rivets on "Midget"...

horwichwren 1c Fly 1891 - After rebuild c1902 44048167542_424913bfe1_ob.jpg horwichwren 2d Midget large_DS110136a.jpg

Whilst "Fly", and some others had the angles removed shortly thereafter, (See below) it is confirmed that "Wasp" retained them until withdrawal.

horwichwren 1d Fly.jpg

Here was a perfectly justifiable and fairly robust answer to the problem, even if it was not quite accurate in some finer points of detail:

I still had some of the steel angle left over from the motor frame construction, and by cutting it in one single piece would provide the structural integrity. Once painted black, it would hardly be noticeable that there was no gap in the vicinity of the frames anyway?

SAM_xy3151.JPG SAM_xy3155.JPG

I made sure that every corner and edge was well, and perhaps overly rounded off, once again purely for the sake of safety and comfort.

The additional, vertical bolt holes were of course technically unnecessary, but were at least in all the right locations, while the horizontal bolts and nuts, that should have been rivets, would have to suffice, after trimming and painting anyway!

SAM_xy3159.JPG SAM_xy3210.JPG

Yes folks, there is a "rivet" missing at centre, beneath the buffing/coupling plate!

As I mentioned in a recent post about the pivot for the reversing lever rod, I had used one of the last seven machine screws of a particular size in the box. There was very much muttering indeed when I discovered that I was then one short for this job!

Pete.
 

Peter Insole

Western Thunderer
Hi Jordan, welcome. I'm glad you are enjoying it.

"Works drawings" of Zm9? Well done for finding them! Please don't take too much notice of my guesswork and forced error efforts from way back at the beginning of this thread. I built her in pre internet days, and only had a single photograph from a magazine to work from!!

The little Hudswell hasn't turned a wheel in anger for years and just sits, looking pretty on a shelf now, but it had served it's purpose well enough!

Pete.
 

Scale7JB

Western Thunderer
A very real problem indeed..... my 10 1/4" Bagnall has a bent front plate gained by someone hitting something even harder than her 6mm steel plate..... Even a VERY large hammer won't straighten it!
I'd like to see that one day, Giles. Bet it's an absolute hoot to play with.

JB.
 

Peter Insole

Western Thunderer
I do not want to explain why I have been absent for a while, given that so many of us are probably also feeling somewhat stressed, save only to admit that I am also suffering from Lanky (Pug!) engine withdrawal symptoms!

The next few posts will still only be in the "catch up" category, but I am promising myself some time at the workbench for this coming Christmas; no matter what the circumstance, nor consequences?!

I had been considering that completion of the chassis before moving on to more "pretty" bits was a preferable priority, but I had not fully appreciated the psychological impression of apparent project advancement rather than a sensible or practical approach?!

Fancied being naughty and making a start on sorting the boiler instead...

This is a very rough sketch of what I had in mind:

SAM_xy3220zpoint 785.jpg

The postal tube barrel is adequately stout, but will not remain so when a section is removed from the top (later to be obscured by an opening tank and dome assembly) for locating and providing access to the battery.

Some sturdy bulkheads would suffice, and I already had sufficient quantity of 13mm MDF in stock that should be fit for purpose. Conveniently, the ideal locations for them neatly coincided with the tubeplates on the prototype! The intruding upright motor therefore fits just inside the firebox, into a slightly enlarged space between the front, and behind the brick fireback, thus making a dummy grate only marginally short when viewed from an opening firehole door! A desire for adequate battery ventilation would also be a perfect excuse for a fully detailed smokebox interior, complete with open smoke tube ends! For the added benefit of educational play value of course!

The really worrying part for me was the need to cut a series of circles and fairly narrow donut rings of absolutely spot on diameter, all with perfectly squared edges for a secure and non distorting fit inside the barrel.

Much too frightened by the prospect, I was going to cop out and ask a friend with a computer and laser cutter for a huge favour.

Then along came Lockdown, so that knocked that jolly (cheating) idea on the head!

SAM_xy3252.JPG SAM_xy3374.JPG

I would just have to do it the hard way!

Cutting slightly over size, and then spending ages carefully planing back to pencilled lines, drawn with a simple, lashed up strip-wood and nail compass was the order of the day!

That was all going laboriously, but fairly well until I managed to bust my jig saw, and ended up spending even more time dismantling the wretched machine, searching in the all the nooks, crannies and sawdust for a little errant, broken bit, and then trying to work out how to fix it with only two hands, a limited number of digits, minus one by the way, that I had previously and painfully succeeded drilling a hole in, and not having to stand on my head in an extremely cramped space!

The constant adjusting, clamping, shaving, taking down, offering up, marking out, re-clamping and shaving a bit more took it's toll! Somehow, I didn't seem to be in quite the right mood to take progress photos, so the following pics are a bit mixed up!

SAM_xy3390.JPG SAM_xy3253.JPG SAM_xy3254.JPG
I should really have cut a rebate all the way round for the sake of a more accurate appearance, but that would have left too little meat for the screws and pins to bite into. The extra material should hopefully not be too obtrusive when the door is open in a gloomy and heavily weathered smokebox? Two short sections of the correct profile were needed however to locate and bolt the dart locking bar at either end.

Next came the part that I was looking forward to...

SAM_xy3284.JPG

Yes, out of seven, this was the one that ended up fighting me back!

The outer edge does look rather strangely blackened and uneven in the above photo. During the trimming phase my concentration lapsed. Each time I offered it up it was way too tight all round, then all of a sudden it just fell in and rattled about. That was a dummy well and truly out of the pram and halfway down the road moment!

I had no inclination whatsoever to start over again, so desperately sought out some thin card for a shim. The only material I could find of a suitable thickness was a fairly soft, black, raggy stuff. An altogether untidy, but when well soaked in PVA glue and set, was an otherwise perfect solution.

The temporary nut and bolt in lieu of the original single, slightly below centre boiler stay was needed to help extract the plate again for the remaining extra details and finishing.


Pete.
 

Peter Insole

Western Thunderer
Thank you so much for your kind and welcome comments guys! I don't mind being regarded as a bit...

...well not really....?!!

The washout plugs did provide a brief break and some relief from breathing in all that nasty MDF dust! At least brass filings (and occasionally the objects themselves) head in a generally downward direction.

SAM_xy3281.JPG

Please don't look too closely at these three little plugs!

I know that the threads are not tapered and cut way over size too, and I suspect that they should be bronze rather than brass, but they do look quite good when screwed almost all the way home in the tubeplate and backhead.

They were made from a found, short length of brass rod that turned out to be just the right diameter.

Shortly before tackling these I had one of those utterly reckless moments, and splashed out some pennies on the cheapest and a barely cheerful box of metric taps and dies! At this rate my previously proud claims of tool poverty will start ringing a bit hollow eh?!

Pete.
 

mickoo

Western Thunderer
Barking mad !

One has to question why you threaded the plugs when they are screwed right down :))

The answer is of course 'because you can' which is why all of this is just so insanely brilliant; proof that good modelling does not need an excuse or reason to exist, it just is.

BTW, you haven't got a Delorean in the back shed by any chance have you :p Make sure the flux capacitor is fully charged mind :cool:
 
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