7mmMick
Western Thunderer
Well with the B1’s stripped and ready for painting by @warren haywood its on with the next build. Up next is a JLTRT Crab. Having had a good look through the kit and studying the instructions two things were clear. The instructions were absolutely pants and there was scope for a call to Laurie Griffin for some upgraded castings.
So ordered from LG were smoke box door, chimney, dome, brake and pull beams, couplings and valve gear. To combat the woeful instructions I began research. Lots of photographs have been looked at and @Dikitriki ’S various online builds have been a godsend! If you have a crab to do his build photo’s are a must and have helped me make sense of the instructions. I’ve attached a couple of links for ease;
T’other place build;
Dikitriki's 7mm Workbench: Scratchbuilt Wagon
Western Thunder build;
7mm - Dikitriki's Dark side: A WD 2-8-0
And so onto progress...........
First the cab. This is where the majority of work is required on the body. A new etched front is supplied which states is the correct profile for the kit. Comparing with the original the new firebox is clearly wider and the back corners. The cab sides were built up in the flat and I’ve used some angel to represent the side window runners. The sliding window is blackened to prevent them being soldered solid. The reverser and cab seat castings are supplied with the kit and are really nice. I also made up the cab roof bracing as these aren’t in the kit but are very noticeable on the prototype. Still to fit is the fall plate. Also the floor was drilled through so the blackhead can be bolted in after paint;
The only issue I had with the cab is that the half etched rebate on the front meant the resin firebox didn’t fit properly. To get over this I filled up a blank to fit. Once fitted this represented the angel beading on the prototype properly. Maybe this should have been with the kit ? Never mind I enjoyed a bit of scratch building;
The footplate is built on a fold up cradle, which helps keep things nice and square. The age of the original kit shows here as it’s all butt joint, no fancy slot and tab, so it’s worth taking time to get everything bang on. The front footplate was detailed with some lovely LW castings supplied with the kit. The boiler firebox is a very nice resin casting, which saved lots of time;
And finally a shot of things sat together. Boiler fitting are just sat in place. The smoke box door is designed to fit a rolled brass boiler so needed lots of adapting, I think there was a about five quids worth or brass dust on the bench after And it still needs more work!
Next onto the frames
Mick
So ordered from LG were smoke box door, chimney, dome, brake and pull beams, couplings and valve gear. To combat the woeful instructions I began research. Lots of photographs have been looked at and @Dikitriki ’S various online builds have been a godsend! If you have a crab to do his build photo’s are a must and have helped me make sense of the instructions. I’ve attached a couple of links for ease;
T’other place build;
Dikitriki's 7mm Workbench: Scratchbuilt Wagon
Western Thunder build;
7mm - Dikitriki's Dark side: A WD 2-8-0
And so onto progress...........
First the cab. This is where the majority of work is required on the body. A new etched front is supplied which states is the correct profile for the kit. Comparing with the original the new firebox is clearly wider and the back corners. The cab sides were built up in the flat and I’ve used some angel to represent the side window runners. The sliding window is blackened to prevent them being soldered solid. The reverser and cab seat castings are supplied with the kit and are really nice. I also made up the cab roof bracing as these aren’t in the kit but are very noticeable on the prototype. Still to fit is the fall plate. Also the floor was drilled through so the blackhead can be bolted in after paint;
The only issue I had with the cab is that the half etched rebate on the front meant the resin firebox didn’t fit properly. To get over this I filled up a blank to fit. Once fitted this represented the angel beading on the prototype properly. Maybe this should have been with the kit ? Never mind I enjoyed a bit of scratch building;
The footplate is built on a fold up cradle, which helps keep things nice and square. The age of the original kit shows here as it’s all butt joint, no fancy slot and tab, so it’s worth taking time to get everything bang on. The front footplate was detailed with some lovely LW castings supplied with the kit. The boiler firebox is a very nice resin casting, which saved lots of time;
And finally a shot of things sat together. Boiler fitting are just sat in place. The smoke box door is designed to fit a rolled brass boiler so needed lots of adapting, I think there was a about five quids worth or brass dust on the bench after And it still needs more work!
Next onto the frames
Mick