Hi
Model from Hell Update......
OK, I had a big think and measure up in respect of the cylinders over the weekend. I have come to the conclusion that the nickel silver chassis etches, including the cylinder formers are from a Black 5 kit - hence the discrepancy in the brass chassis overlays, the fact that the kit's original cylinder wrappers were too narrow, and the cylinders were right up against the valance like a Black 5.
Bit late to send the chassis back on several counts......
So I have to turn a Black 5 chassis into a Patriot chassis. Well the wheelbase was set with Patriot milled rods, the body was built from the Patriot components and is fine now, and the body is in the right place compared with the chassis wheelbase, so it's not such a big issue. It has meant a change in the order of doing things though.
I am now going to build the bogie and mount that on the chassis so I can get the spacing between trailing bogie wheel and leading driver right, scratch build a new set of cylinders, fit the cylinders to the chassis in the right place, then think about attaching the body to the chassis.....again. In scratch building a new set of cylinders, I will lose both the cylinder to chassis fixings and the front chassis to body fixing.
I bit the bullet yesterday afternoon - not in the best of moods I can tell you - and 20 minutes or so ago, ended up with new cylinder formers (ironically cut from scrap etch from a Jim Harris Black 5!).....
I know I shall be much happier with these cylinders, but it's a faff I was not expecting.
Cheers
Richard