4mm An EM Workbench: Mini-Signwriting (rough)
- Thread starter AJC
- Start date
AJC
Western Thunderer
Sorry, long day. Probably this one, taking price, complexity of work and design into account:
This is the Wizard/51L iron ore hopper - importantly - the fitted version. The chassis design isn't great, but not any sort of showstopper (shrunken and inexplicable whitemetal headstocks, overthick brass), the brakegear was totally unusable and most of the castings poorly and crudely mastered, rendered in soft alloy. The resin hopper was fine but not provided with any location, etc. NOTE - the unfitted version is probably more or less fine because push rod brakes are much easier: the fundamental wagon is OK (not great, but ok).
What you see above is the result of bloody-mindedness and the spares box. It took a couple of years to finish because it made me so grumpy, even though I'm pleased with the result. The Rumney tank will be mostly done in a fortnight which tells its own story.
Adam
PS: as a general point - and you might have a different view, @matto21 - there are very few truly awful kits out there and most of the worst were early etched ones, no longer available. Pretty much all the plastic kits available are dimensionally accurate and have the key detail represented pretty well. Even some of those which cause a lot of people problems (e.g., Cambrian's more complicated prototypes) are often triumphs really for all that people complain about them. You have to take into account, 1. the technology involved in creating the moulds (very basic); 2. the degree of difficulty of the real thing (you've just done a Mermaid so you know! It's not especially difficult to build that chassis square, if you prioritise that over using the bits as supplied); 3. Price.
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Ministry of Aviation Tank (Rumney Models)
AJC
Western Thunderer
Anyway, back to the humble tank wagon. Nearly all soldering operations are completed (barring the ladders), and once the various tank fittings are on it will be ready for paint.
This really is an excellent, and surprisingly straightforward, kit, though the iPhone makes it look ever so slightly bananaform...
Adam
This really is an excellent, and surprisingly straightforward, kit, though the iPhone makes it look ever so slightly bananaform...
Adam
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AJC
Western Thunderer
Hi Dave - it's all a bit representative, really. I cut a strip of 10 thou', to the height of the finished plate, strips of 5 thou' the right height for the lettering and cut notches and bits to suggest the letters I wanted. A drop of solvent later, a bit of tweaking, and allow to set: the rim is fuse wire, superglued in place - I used 'L's rather than attempt the frame in one. They look ok, and are, obviously, quite cheap.
Adam
Roadstone Rake
AJC
Western Thunderer
I haven’t built a 16 tonner of any sort for absolutely ages, so why not do four at once?
Ok, so there’s a requirement for a couple: road stone traffic from Podimore will take two, and three other wagons (more anon), which accounts for the welded 1/108 and riveted 1/109. The ‘French’ type are simply because they were in the drawer thanks to other forum members (and thank you, I really appreciate it). They’re a bit more involved in detail terms so will be slower: there’s every chance the plain ones will be done within the week. Basic bodies done, load bases added, those with buffers in hand secured. The ESSO tank is nearly done, too, more of that later.
Adam
Ok, so there’s a requirement for a couple: road stone traffic from Podimore will take two, and three other wagons (more anon), which accounts for the welded 1/108 and riveted 1/109. The ‘French’ type are simply because they were in the drawer thanks to other forum members (and thank you, I really appreciate it). They’re a bit more involved in detail terms so will be slower: there’s every chance the plain ones will be done within the week. Basic bodies done, load bases added, those with buffers in hand secured. The ESSO tank is nearly done, too, more of that later.
Adam
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Roadstone Rake
AJC
Western Thunderer
One more for the roadstone rake, a Parkside/Peco 13 ton hopper. The Parkside bit is in grey, the Peco bit (completed posthumously), black, perhaps in a different type of plastic. I presume that they used drawings prepared to finish the job without Parkside’s understanding and knowledge of the real thing. So we have ok springs, overscale vee hangers, crude axleboxes, and buffers with rounded stocks. Oh, and this is fair enough, very thick end platform sheeting. I can do something about that, and will, so watch this space.
A fair bit to replace then. There’s also some poor fit around the hopper base, but that’s forgivable and quite easy to resolve: I trimmed away some of the grey moulding to suit. A spot of filling will be required.
A third 16 tonner and another, more exotic, hopper will complete the rake, but they’re for the future.
Adam
A fair bit to replace then. There’s also some poor fit around the hopper base, but that’s forgivable and quite easy to resolve: I trimmed away some of the grey moulding to suit. A spot of filling will be required.
A third 16 tonner and another, more exotic, hopper will complete the rake, but they’re for the future.
Adam
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AJC
Western Thunderer
The Bradwell kit? Dad's done one of those, I seem to remember that all the spare space on the etch is filled with coupling hooks? I've done three of the NCB version which are similar, but actually quite different in terms of construction in some respects. Pictures are on the other computer: I'll fish them out later. They're very, very good and Dave's fit and instructions are exceptional, though the latter may be a little text heavy/idiosyncratic for some tastes.
If you've enjoyed Justin's chassis, then one of Dave's wagons shouldn't pose many problems. The tricky bits I recall were the brake safety loops (getting the iron in a small space), and filling the layers that make up the side ribs: I used low melt solder, I'd probably not worry so much now and use Milliput after primer.
Go for it!
Adam
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AJC
Western Thunderer
Just for @matto21, two of my Dave Bradwell NCB hoppers. I'm sure that I have other pictures of the things, and they're definitely on wheels now. The handlettering is, I think, not bad at all - a good match for the prototypes. Perhaps one day the NCB landsale yard (with rather slippery geography to suit my eclectic selection of industrials) to go with these will materialise. Perhaps not, but the kits were enormous fun to do.
Adam
Adam
Roadstone Rake
AJC
Western Thunderer
By means of contrast, here’s the PECO/Parkside.
It’s assembled ok: the end pieces of the frame fit into slots in the hopper assembly. I found that I needed some 10 thou’ packing at the *top* of the slot to get the level right. The location of the solebars is a little tight, but accurate and the application of Daywat did the job (my usual Humbrol liquid poly didn’t cut it).
To get the end platforms close to scale, I trimmed and filed the moulded representation away: this will be replaced with 5 thou’ plastic sheet.
Other changes and omissions: the spring stops were horrid, crude lumps and will be replaced. There are no horse hook holes - never seen a kit lacking those before. The vee hangers are round about the correct size for S scale, note how they don’t line up with the rivets, so they’re going and obviously new axleboxes will be added. I quite like the PECO wheels, they drifted out to EM without hassle, though on stepped axle, they seem to be true. This isn’t actually much work, it’s mechanically sound, but whoever cut the moulds for PECO, and those who signed it off, don’t know much about wagons…
Adam
It’s assembled ok: the end pieces of the frame fit into slots in the hopper assembly. I found that I needed some 10 thou’ packing at the *top* of the slot to get the level right. The location of the solebars is a little tight, but accurate and the application of Daywat did the job (my usual Humbrol liquid poly didn’t cut it).
To get the end platforms close to scale, I trimmed and filed the moulded representation away: this will be replaced with 5 thou’ plastic sheet.
Other changes and omissions: the spring stops were horrid, crude lumps and will be replaced. There are no horse hook holes - never seen a kit lacking those before. The vee hangers are round about the correct size for S scale, note how they don’t line up with the rivets, so they’re going and obviously new axleboxes will be added. I quite like the PECO wheels, they drifted out to EM without hassle, though on stepped axle, they seem to be true. This isn’t actually much work, it’s mechanically sound, but whoever cut the moulds for PECO, and those who signed it off, don’t know much about wagons…
Adam
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AJC
Western Thunderer
Away from work and the bench for a week and back to Norfolk for Wells beach and the most pleasingly ramshackle tourist railway surviving in Britain, the Wells and Walsingham Light.
The 10 month old absolutely adored it, probably on purely sensory grounds, the rattles, the dappled shade, the bumps, the sounds and smells: he grinned and cooed and, more remarkably, sat more or less still. Chips on the Quay and the RNLI thanksgiving service on a warm evening. Lovely.
Adam
The 10 month old absolutely adored it, probably on purely sensory grounds, the rattles, the dappled shade, the bumps, the sounds and smells: he grinned and cooed and, more remarkably, sat more or less still. Chips on the Quay and the RNLI thanksgiving service on a warm evening. Lovely.
Adam
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Round stock buffers appears to have been standard for these wagons, from new. BR 13ton small hopper wagons | B400520 BR 13ton small hopper wagons | B402329
Paul
BR 13ton small hopper wagons
BR small 13ton coal hoppers most of which were condemned in the early 1960s but a few survived until the 1980s, especially in Yorkshire. Scale drawings in: Monk-Steel, David (2022) An illustrated history of British Railways Hopper Wagons. HMRS publishing, Butterley Station, Derbys. 248 + iv...
PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com
AJC
Western Thunderer
Round stock buffers appears to have been standard for these wagons, from new. BR 13ton small hopper wagons | B400520 BR 13ton small hopper wagons | B402329
Paul
BR 13ton small hopper wagons
BR small 13ton coal hoppers most of which were condemned in the early 1960s but a few survived until the 1980s, especially in Yorkshire. Scale drawings in: Monk-Steel, David (2022) An illustrated history of British Railways Hopper Wagons. HMRS publishing, Butterley Station, Derbys. 248 + iv...PaulBartlett.zenfolio.com
Yes, that's my understanding, and what Parkside/PECO seem to have tried. Problem is the representation isn't great, though that's simple to resolve with a replacement casting.
Adam
Roadstone Rake
AJC
Western Thunderer
Back from holiday and now all four wagons are on their way. One of the 16 tonners has its drop flap doors dropped, as did happen occasionally. The other two are perfectly normal and all are waiting on brake levers, and one axleboxes/springs because I’ve run out of the very nice Rumney ones. You can just about see that I’ve also reworked the corner reinforcement brackets with 5 thou’, bonded with more superglue; this is worth the hassle, I promise.
The hopper is missing buffers because the set of LNER/LMS self contained I thought that I had are hiding. More on the end supports later, I’ve had to extend them downwards by 20 thou’ to meet the platforms. Note that these are decked with 5 thou’ superglued in place, along with some proper axleboxes (MJT).
Adam
The hopper is missing buffers because the set of LNER/LMS self contained I thought that I had are hiding. More on the end supports later, I’ve had to extend them downwards by 20 thou’ to meet the platforms. Note that these are decked with 5 thou’ superglued in place, along with some proper axleboxes (MJT).
Adam
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Roadstone Rake
