When TT3 was the next Big Thing

[Golden Fleece 30]

After the poor finish on the Mail coach from Shapeways (the only option available), I thought I would try these in the "smoothest fine detail" option, at the highest price, and I am very disappointed with the finish. Why some parts are smooth and others very rough I don't know but I will be giving them a miss now as 2 lots out of 2 have not been anywhere near as good as Lenny's bodies. There is nothing wrong with Mike Roch's design which is very good, it is Shapeways printing.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

The start of my Tri-ang TT 10201 loco. The bogies (Tri-ang A1A) were initially made for a class 40 but I made some better ones and kept these to one side just for this loco. I will have to paint the bottom piece under the buffers black though.

 

Garry

[David_Belcher]

22 hours ago, Golden Fleece 30 said:

The start of my Tri-ang TT 10201 loco. The bogies (Tri-ang A1A) were initially made for a class 40 but I made some better ones and kept these to one side just for this loco. I will have to paint the bottom piece under the buffers black though.

 

Garry

Shaping up well, should be a real talking point once complete & painted. Lenny's bodyshells are a class act.

 

David

[Golden Fleece 30]

9 minutes ago, David_Belcher said:

Shaping up well, should be a real talking point once complete & painted. Lenny's bodyshells are a class act.

 

David

Thanks David, it was painted today, has had it's bogies fitted and a trial run around Tri-ang curves today.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

The Prestwins are painted and will have to look to see what transfers are available but most likely do my usual and put some generic 00 labels on. I had a go at smoothing some of the body but only on the ends so the rest will have to do.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

Leonard Seeney's 10201 is a beautiful print, just look at the rivet detail. There is a little gap above the front of the bogies but on the real one the bogies had an extension here I think so a piece of plastic to represent it will be fine. I will need to make a brass mounting block now for the bogie stretcher.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

The V1 from Leonard Seeney fits the prairie chassis very nicely, in fact the overall coupling distance/position is about 1mm too long but I can live with that. Very little work required to get the chassis to fit but the cylinders might not be so easy but I have an idea what to do.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

The 8F now awaiting its smokebox number plate from 247 Developments then varnish. That gives me a little time to finish the chassis.

 

Garry

[Ben B]

I think the best thing with all these recent wagons and locomotives -particularly the heavy freight engines- is that because you've used the Triang running gear and wheels, they come across as plausible. Any of them could be a genuine Triang TT item, a 'what-if Triang never dropped the range?' model. They're lovely models, that 8F in particular is a belter!

[Silverfox17]

7 minutes ago, Ben B said:

I think the best thing with all these recent wagons and locomotives -particularly the heavy freight engines- is that because you've used the Triang running gear and wheels, they come across as plausible. Any of them could be a genuine Triang TT item, a 'what-if Triang never dropped the range?' model. They're lovely models, that 8F in particular is a belter!

Thanks Ben. I do like my Tri-ang so I will first try to fit a Tri-ang chassis if I can, if not get my own chassis etched and use Tri-ang wheels and motor as in the 3 recent heavy goods, and if that fails it is to use Romfords and a Mashima motor.  Apart from some Teak coaches all coaches (which I never made) are Tri-ang or have Tri-ang bogies fitted. All my Parkside and scratchbuilt wagons have Tri-ang underframes.  Considering Tri-ang only made 8 locos with just 2 different wheel sizes I have quite a variation. 

 

Garry 

[Golden Fleece 30]

Finally made a start on the Black 5 after about 3 or 4 years and this shows how much material I had to remove from the magnet after grinding as much as I dare from inside the firebox. The body should be about 1mm lower but it is as much as I dare remove inside the firebox without coming through. You can just see in the cab how close the magnet is to the body which is why the top pole piece needing filing. Need to start thinking about valve gear soon.  This was one of Lenny Seeney's first 3D printed steam locos, and, like most of them it was not made to fit a Tri-ang chassis but a more homemade scale one.

 

Garry

Edited April 13, 2021 by Golden Fleece 30

[Golden Fleece 30]

This Leonard Seeney body arrived today for later production in my workshop (kitchen actually). I will draw a chassis up to take the XT60 but it will have Romford wheels as they made the axles which I bought a long time ago thinking they will come in handy one day. Luckily I had a nice set of Romfords I was going to use on the 8F so no wheels to buy.  Plenty of room in the body for some weight too.

A nice touch with the body is the front grill is a separate piece making painting a doddle.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

Done a little lining on the Leonard Seeney 3D bodies 10201 and V3 tank plus the brass bodied Z class got a smokebox number from 247 Developments and a coat of varnish. Now awaiting some more Railtec transfers for more locos.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

The 08 is now painted and varnished and ready for me to draw up and make a chassis for it.  As usual it will have an XT60 motor but will have Romford wheels as it needs the extended axles.

The paint looks as if it has been put on thick but it is just the varnish giving the effect so I may have to tone it down a little.

 

Garry

Edited April 18, 2021 by Golden Fleece 30

[Golden Fleece 30]

Lined both sides and fronts of 10201 now, looks slightly better than the first side but the panels and ribs etc make it look more out of alignment than it is when you look straight down the body. Photos are cruel anyway lol. I may even get to put glazing in this one.

 

Garry

[John Isherwood]

On 11/04/2021 at 22:32, Golden Fleece 30 said:

The Prestwins are painted and will have to look to see what transfers are available but most likely do my usual and put some generic 00 labels on. I had a go at smoothing some of the body but only on the ends so the rest will have to do.

 

Garry

 

I can supply 3mm. Prestwin transfers.

 

John Isherwood,

Cambridge Custom Transfers.

[Silverfox17]

7 hours ago, cctransuk said:

 

I can supply 3mm. Prestwin transfers.

 

John Isherwood,

Cambridge Custom Transfers.

Apart from other issues I have mentioned before I recently read (on here somewhere) that Railmatch or Precision enamel varnish can break up or dissolve these and you can only use acrylic, is that correct or wrong? 

 

Garry 

[John Isherwood]

3 hours ago, Silverfox17 said:

Apart from other issues I have mentioned before I recently read (on here somewhere) that Railmatch or Precision enamel varnish can break up or dissolve these and you can only use acrylic, is that correct or wrong? 

 

Garry 

 

That is correct - an overcoat of water-based varnish is required, after which you can apply whatever finish you require; all this is covered in the instructions.

 

I have thousands of customers who do not seem to find this to be an issue; incidently, what 'other issues' do you have with my transfers?

 

John Isherwood.

[Silverfox17]

1 hour ago, cctransuk said:

 

That is correct - an overcoat of water-based varnish is required, after which you can apply whatever finish you require; all this is covered in the instructions.

 

I have thousands of customers who do not seem to find this to be an issue; incidently, what 'other issues' do you have with my transfers?

 

John Isherwood.

I know lots of people use acrylic but I don't, apart from the initial colour of a loco, after that it is always enamel.  Once the enamel is on you cannot put acrylic over the top as the enamel solvent acts as a stipper. Some say after a couple of days it is okay but I can say from experience over a year later it has still reacted so covering with acrylic is not an option to start with. 

 

One issue was the carrier film and you said it should be on a gloss finish and cut close to the shape, fair enough, but some paints are dull and I don't put gloss on just to put transfers on and varnish again. I am happy with what and how I do things.  Another issue was you did not do loco lining plus I was not wanting to try cutting close to a transfer. 

 

I appreciate you do a vast range and have many satisfied customers  John but your transfers are just not for me, thanks. 

 

Garry 

 

 

[Golden Fleece 30]

The saying is horses for courses and I have read that Fox transfers are affected by other products, thankfully I don't use the other products so it is using what is best suited to each individual.

 

The attached photo shows the coach roofs that were painted with enamel and over a year later I thought would look better if sprayed and by mistake I used an acrylic black which I use on black locos as their base, and you can see after all that time the solvent still affected the acrylic.

 

Garry

[John Isherwood]

36 minutes ago, Silverfox17 said:

I know lots of people use acrylic but I don't, apart from the initial colour of a loco, after that it is always enamel.  Once the enamel is on you cannot put acrylic over the top as the enamel solvent acts as a stipper. Some say after a couple of days it is okay but I can say from experience over a year later it has still reacted so covering with acrylic is not an option to start with. 

 

One issue was the carrier film and you said it should be on a gloss finish and cut close to the shape, fair enough, but some paints are dull and I don't put gloss on just to put transfers on and varnish again. I am happy with what and how I do things.  Another issue was you did not do loco lining plus I was not wanting to try cutting close to a transfer. 

 

I appreciate you do a vast range and have many satisfied customers  John but your transfers are just not for me, thanks. 

 

Garry 

 

 

 

I use oil-based paints exclusively, except for under- and over-coating waterslide transfers; I have never, in sixty years of modelling, had any adverse reaction when applying water-based varnish over oil-based paints, nor when applying oil-based weathering over water-based varnish.

 

You clearly have your own set of 'I don't do ....' standards; that is your choice - but if it means using 'generic 4mm. scale' transfers on a 3mm. scale model, rather than the correct style and scale transfers, I find it an odd choice.

 

I have today had a message from another 3mm. scale modeller, congratulating me on my wide range of 3mm. scale transfers; he tells me that there is a thriving correspondence trade amongst his fellow TT scale modellers in the unused sections of my transfer sheets.

 

I would mention that it was at the request of the Trade Officer of the 3mm. Society that I agreed to rescale my transfer range for 3mm. / TT scale.

 

John Isherwood,

Cambridge Custom Transfers.

[John Isherwood]

5 hours ago, Golden Fleece 30 said:

The saying is horses for courses and I have read that Fox transfers are affected by other products, thankfully I don't use the other products so it is using what is best suited to each individual.

 

The attached photo shows the coach roofs that were painted with enamel and over a year later I thought would look better if sprayed and by mistake I used an acrylic black which I use on black locos as their base, and you can see after all that time the solvent still affected the acrylic.

 

Garry

 

I think that the key point is that any paint is best 'misted' on when spraying. I have never experienced such crazing when using Klear acrylic lacquer, either under or over oil-based paint.

 

That said, I use no acrylic paints or varnishes except Klear.

 

John Isherwood.

[Golden Fleece 30]

Black 5 cab side numbers arrived today from RailTec. Excellent service, order one day (including Sunday) and two days later arrive and these are all made individually to order. Just need the smokebox number now from 247 developments and she can be varnished.

She is numbered 45027 as that is the very last BR steam operated loco I saw in York a few months before steam was officially finished. I saw her about April 1968 and she was withdrawn the month after.

 

Garry

[Golden Fleece 30]

I also got the Hymek numbers from Railtec today so hopefully not long before she gets varnished now. She is powered by two Tri-ang DMU power bogies which I cannot file down for whitemetal castings to fit on top. Another Leonard Seeney (Lincoln-Loco) 3D printed body.

 

Garry

[David_Belcher]

On 18/04/2021 at 21:51, Golden Fleece 30 said:

Lined both sides and fronts of 10201 now, looks slightly better than the first side but the panels and ribs etc make it look more out of alignment than it is when you look straight down the body. Photos are cruel anyway lol. I may even get to put glazing in this one.

 

Garry

Currently having similar fun & games lining out a 4mm GF Pullman from a HMRS sheet! Still not finished either side of it in full...