Step making tutorial
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    I was asked the other day via PM how I'd go about making steps. In that particular case it was stone steps and in 4mm.

    I provided some thoughts but have just had to make 2 lots in 7mm for the provender store. These are not stone but what look like solid concrete. The method may be useful to somebody though.

    rps20190323_141744.jpg
    I worked out that the tread I wanted was about 10" and the rise 8". A piece of 30thou was marked up in a grid giving 10" x 8" squares and a diagonal.

    rps20190323_141811.jpg
    The 4 resultant triangles were snapped out...

    rps20190323_141859.jpg
    And the the end small triangles removed...

    rps20190323_141929.jpg
    Followed by all the rest...

    rps20190323_141952.jpg
    These were paired up and stuck to the building base with vertical spacers used to align the sides.
    rps20190323_142738.jpg
    You'll recall that the original 30thou with the grid had the horizontal lines extended to the right. These give you the vertical risers.

    rps20190323_142018.jpg
    The risers have been cut slightly over length so they can be cut back flush when the solvent has hardened.

    rps20190323_145026.jpg
    The final step is to add the treads and trim them down when set...

    Something to consider is that you are adding 30thou to the front and top of the stepped sides. As such you have to set them 30thou low and trim 30thou off the rear.
     
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    Louvres tutorial
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    Returning to the provender store...

    Now all the blockwork is done I've been quietly working away on the ends. Corrugated material added and the outer framework finished.

    One feature I was putting off was creating the louvres. I'm sure there are other methods and that an etched brass solution would be easier (once drawn and etched) but this is what I did:

    rps20190330_154622.jpg
    The voids were lined top and bottom with 10thou and wedges added to the base of each side.

    rps20190330_154727.jpg
    A strip of 10thou 7mm wide and 20mm long was placed on top of each pair of wedges. A spacer of 20x40thou strip was added to each side.

    rps20190330_154700.jpg
    The process continued layer by layer. It was now I decided I really should add the black framing as it helped firm up the louvres. No idea why the top vertical was off centre on the prototype...

    rps20190330_154847.jpg
    Process continued until 5 louvres on each side were in place. Once everything is dry and hardened off the spacers will be trimmed back.

    A shot from low down:
    rps20190330_155004.jpg

    And head on:
    rps20190330_155034.jpg
     
    Provender store painting
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    A start is being made on painting the building, concentrating first in the structure above the blockwork.

    rps20190412_203846.jpg
    Workbench has been cleared of plastic dust and all the tools replaced with paints.

    rps20190412_203905.jpg
    The framework is just a flat grey at the moment but I've started building up the colours on the walls.

    rps20190412_203927.jpg
    As everyone seems to recommend them I'm giving Vallejo acrylics a go. Job lot off eBay. Seem nice to work with.

    Going to stop now and see what it all looks like in the morning.
     
    Pannier detailing
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    I've had some 4mm number plates from Narrow Planet in the past, they are rather good.

    Great to catch up last weekend too.

    Regard,

    Good to catch up with you to Brinkley old fruit.

    Detailing 4666 continues at snails pace.

    Mods required are as follows:
    rps20190506_121817.jpg
    Red: kink in the vac(?) pipe which it appeared to gain some time prior to 1962.
    Blue: extra pipe not included on the Minerva model. I presume on others it goes behind the tank support. But where does it head once behind the tool box?
    Green: the pipe has a return kink missing once below the footplate.
    Also noticeable in the photos are the lamp iron brackets near the tool box that are different handed to the Minerva model.

    rps20190506_121553.jpg
    I've bent the vac pipe and put on a collar out of plasticard. The recesses in the footplate near the cab entry have been added, as well as rebates to the pipe from the injector(?).
     
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    Platform faces
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    So, having had a play with plasticard I'm now most the way through making the first 700mm of platform faces. The second step in the face and the edge slabs are still to add.

    IMAG0867.jpg
    IMAG0868.jpg

    To get the recesses in the right places I previously had to work up a rodding diagram to see where the cranks and compensators should go. That was ages ago so a quick check of the calls was in order.

    IMAG0866.jpg

    Probably close enough to look like it should work...
     
    03 research
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    Class 03 for Pencarrow?

    I understand that 03s were used on the St Blazey to Wenford Bridge line in the interim between the 1366 Pannier tanks and the 08s. But which ones?

    Three 03s were at one point or another allocated to St Blazey: D2127, D2129, D2183.

    D2127 was withdrawn in 1968
    D2129 was withdrawn in 1981
    D2183 was withdrawn in 1968

    D2127: 24/08/1964, arrived St Blazey; 14/05/1967 reallocated to Laira; so was at St Blazey the longest.

    D2129: 07/10/1961, arrived St Blazey; 11/04/1965, reallocated to Landore (Swansea).

    D2183: 21/04/1962, arrived St Blazey; 19/05/1962, reallocated to Laira; 08/11/1964, reallocated back to St Blazey; 14/05/1967, reallocated to Taunton.

    D2127 looks favourite for the Wenford line and was certainly used on brakevan specials.

    Wenford Bridge Stannon China Clay Works. D2127 & special. 10.9.66

    Now trying to work out when it got wasp stripes... Which I've narrowed down between September 66 and "early" 67.
     
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    Grain store window photos
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    Best I can do in colour are these shots...

    post-6675-0-07133100-1435616477.jpg

    rps20200704_130443.jpg

    rps20200704_130409.jpg
    In these views the ridge looks bigger and rounder than the b&w below.


    And an older b&w:

    rps20200704_130309.jpg
    In this view the ridge looks like an L rather than a half round?
     
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    Grain store painting
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    Well done Chris! Perhaps we’ll all benefit from an upsurge in layout progress reports as a result? ;)


    Regards

    Dan

    Dun some paintin, does that count?

    IMG_20211113_172405_1.jpg

    Note to self...

    Wood wash first, then silver grey wash, then blobby drags with German black brown and dark grey.
    IMG_20211113_185946_1.jpg

    And these were the rusty roof colours.
    IMG_20211113_161721_1.jpg
     
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    Wagons from the Grahame Hitchen estate
  • Pencarrow

    Western Thunderer
    Chris,

    that is truly sad news. Grahame was a great modeller and a super bloke - mega helpful. Though we only knew each other through WT & RMWeb, we had corresponded for a while, and were looking forward to meeting at a show sometime. I had no idea he had been so ill.

    if you are in contact with his family, please pass on my sincere condolences.

    meanwhile, the custom GW transfers he kindly made for me are on my Riding Van, and will serve as a memento.

    View attachment 155700

    Simon

    I have been unreliably informed that GW stands for Grahame Wagon. As such I felt it appropriate to obtain the following from the estate of the late Grahame Hitchen. Great bloke and I'll treasure them...

    IMG_20220227_132334.jpg
     
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