dibateg
Western Thunderer
We've spent 6 years trying to get our patio sorted. The chimney had to be knocked down and rebuilt and we finally found someone to do the work - with me helping. Six and half days later, we have a patio and paths... Hurrah! We no longer have to look out over a pile of rubble! Hence the break in modelling updates, I didn't do any at all...
So it was time to return to the Radial - the white metal castings are just plonked on for the picture, so ignore the wonky chimney. One of the things I noticed was that the buffer stocks have a set of extra nuts top and bottom, so these were added using Scale Hardware ones.
She's a pretty little loco...Here you can see the panelled up rear windows.
I love engine picking and found that there was a two port oiler just behind the toolbox. Maybe this replaced the one on the boiler side, and studying the photos there was no evidence of this pre the late '50s boiler change on 30583. However, the later boiler has a pair of rivet heads where the oiler used to be... There were no lifting brackets on the tank top either.
The rear of the engine still has its Drummond lamp irons with plug in mounts. I must of nudged that chimney!
Anyway, that's the body nearly done... It has to be ready for Reading in a week...
So it was time to return to the Radial - the white metal castings are just plonked on for the picture, so ignore the wonky chimney. One of the things I noticed was that the buffer stocks have a set of extra nuts top and bottom, so these were added using Scale Hardware ones.
She's a pretty little loco...Here you can see the panelled up rear windows.
I love engine picking and found that there was a two port oiler just behind the toolbox. Maybe this replaced the one on the boiler side, and studying the photos there was no evidence of this pre the late '50s boiler change on 30583. However, the later boiler has a pair of rivet heads where the oiler used to be... There were no lifting brackets on the tank top either.
The rear of the engine still has its Drummond lamp irons with plug in mounts. I must of nudged that chimney!
Anyway, that's the body nearly done... It has to be ready for Reading in a week...
Last edited:
dibateg
Western Thunderer
It was ready, so we've said goodbye to this attractive little loco for a while whilst it visits Paul Moore. I enjoyed the Reading Trade show, it is always good - the venue is not brilliant, but it is what it is and I guess we'd be paying a higher entry fee elsewhere.
Fred Lewis
New Member
Hello Tony . Fred here you sent me your photos of the Manor to help with my build . How did you fit the cast smokebox front and smokebox /boiler joiner ring please , was it with epoxy glue or low melt solder . Thanks again for your help .
Fred Lewis
New Member
I think you've got the wrong Fred. I'm Frederick Elwyn Lewis Not Frederick John Lewis . Happens all the time .
Scale7JB
Western Thunderer
My apologies..
dibateg
Western Thunderer
Hi Fred -
I'm trying to remember!
I think I spot soldered the joining ring inside the smokebox. It had been soldered to the boiler first.
The Cast front ring was then epoxied in.
I hope that helps!
Cheers
Tony
Fred Lewis
New Member
Thanks Tony .
dibateg
Western Thunderer
Back to the Southern and I've been pottering away over Xmas building three Slaters SR vans. They are nice kits, although the underside detail can be a bit sparse, they are perfectly adequate as layout vehicles I needed to go a bit further with this commission, so added pipework, and some upgrades such as the Sidelines Vac cylinder. I wanted to make the guards steps robust, and experience told me that gluing plastic steps to the brass supports was not the way to go, they would ping off at the first opportunity, no matter what I used from my glue armoury. So the answer was to use pcb, which can be soldered, making the whole assembly stronger. Early BY vans feature separate supports below the guards door and cranked out support for the lower step. Later versions have equally spaced supports using the supports all like the RHS one. Another thing I found was that the indents for the commode handle are moulded in place for the bolts on the handle mounting, but the spigots to mount the handles are actually a continuation of the rail itself. This would place the handles too close to the edge of the door, so the mounting holes need to be drilled half a mill or so to the side... Also the dampers are a little understated, so new ones have been made from 8BA screw heads. I struggled to find anything else that would do.
Underneath...
Underneath...
dibateg
Western Thunderer
I remember childhood holidays in Weymouth, also a holiday to Jersey by boat train, I can just about recall the panniers with the bell taking the train through the streets to the quay. Later holidays there we saw 33s and 03s... happy days.
Anyway, I digress and so here I join the Finney7 SR pacific party, I'm lucky enough to follow the two Micks as they have documented their work very well, so that's a great help. As you'd expect there are a lot of little parts, but they do fit...
The frames are under way, there have been lots of rivets to press out.
The ash pan is the SR original, made of a lot of fiddly bits. I modelled them closed, which seems more common than open.. Yes... you can see some solder....
Anyway, I digress and so here I join the Finney7 SR pacific party, I'm lucky enough to follow the two Micks as they have documented their work very well, so that's a great help. As you'd expect there are a lot of little parts, but they do fit...
The frames are under way, there have been lots of rivets to press out.
The ash pan is the SR original, made of a lot of fiddly bits. I modelled them closed, which seems more common than open.. Yes... you can see some solder....
I opted to leave those buffer beam brackets off as the strap for the end of the cylinder taps is really fragile ! You’ll be glad it wasn’t the BR Ash pan, it’s quite a bit more work. 
7mmMick
Western Thunderer
dibateg
Western Thunderer
Thanks for your offline help chaps - that will allow me to press on. I've only just ordered the wheels this morning, but I'm able to crack on with multiple components.
I also had to resort to Micks Viking language when it came to the injectors and it took me a while to work out what the hell is going on. What I thought was a control rod is a feed pipe - I couldn't understand why there were only three pipes! I also forgotten that the clacks are on the same side of the boiler, which explains the pipe runs. There are a lot of separate bits and so I utilised 179 degree solder for some of the construction. The castings are very nice and I pre-drill them all before assembling. The back of that ash pan needs a tidy. I've still got to work out what to do with the drawbar...
The bogie - all goes together nicely. Yes I know the block is the wrong way up. I'm not keen on mechanisms that cannot come apart, so rather than solder the baffle plates for the side control in they are held with 'staples of 0.7mm brass wire. Yes - I had to take the staples out and rotate the square block:
Pony truck, bogie and slidebar bracket all fit together nicely. There is a touch of cleaning up to do. The white metal castings are of excellent quality and they didn't melt when I used 145 solder to put them in. That's a one way ticket I know..
I also had to resort to Micks Viking language when it came to the injectors and it took me a while to work out what the hell is going on. What I thought was a control rod is a feed pipe - I couldn't understand why there were only three pipes! I also forgotten that the clacks are on the same side of the boiler, which explains the pipe runs. There are a lot of separate bits and so I utilised 179 degree solder for some of the construction. The castings are very nice and I pre-drill them all before assembling. The back of that ash pan needs a tidy. I've still got to work out what to do with the drawbar...
The bogie - all goes together nicely. Yes I know the block is the wrong way up. I'm not keen on mechanisms that cannot come apart, so rather than solder the baffle plates for the side control in they are held with 'staples of 0.7mm brass wire. Yes - I had to take the staples out and rotate the square block:
Pony truck, bogie and slidebar bracket all fit together nicely. There is a touch of cleaning up to do. The white metal castings are of excellent quality and they didn't melt when I used 145 solder to put them in. That's a one way ticket I know..
dibateg
Western Thunderer
Thanks Dave -
I was waiting for some bits to arrive, so I thought I'd crack on with the tender underframe. I also lost a day or so's work to a cold. Grrr.
As per the Micks - I also made the buffer beam removable. There are lots of tiny fiddly etched pieces, but they all fit... and it captures the intricate nature of the prototype. I liked the updated inner chassis, I prefer sprung hornblocks to compensation. The brake gear is held on with screws.
I was waiting for some bits to arrive, so I thought I'd crack on with the tender underframe. I also lost a day or so's work to a cold. Grrr.
As per the Micks - I also made the buffer beam removable. There are lots of tiny fiddly etched pieces, but they all fit... and it captures the intricate nature of the prototype. I liked the updated inner chassis, I prefer sprung hornblocks to compensation. The brake gear is held on with screws.