West End Workbench

[jwealleans]

Bit of a hiccup with the B1 build; made up the gearbox, fitted the motor, applied flyleads and absolutely nothing happened.   The (brand new) motor was completely dead.   

As you'd expect, no dramas at all from High Level and a replacement arrived today.   I've fitted that, fettled the coupling rods a little and it has had about half an hour on the rolling road this evening.

 

 

I've been adding pads for pickups and making provision for things like couplings so it hasn't been completely lost time.

 

I've filled the gap with a few more wagons.   I picked up three NER G1s on Ebay for less than a tenner each; incomplete but I had most of the missing bits in stock.  When they turned up, it was apparent that whoever made them had done so partly with glue and partly with normal solder and a hot iron.   He hadn't always got away with it either:

 

 

He'd also used something like Fry's flux and not washed it off, so there was brown gunk all over the insides.  Nothing too difficult, though and apart from grumbling about getting it all over my hands they've gone back together pretty well.   He'd fitted an assortment of axleboxes so I just had to fill in the gaps with matching ones and make up some replacement brake gear.

 

 

 

The C10 open is 51L and that was among the collection of the late Caroline of this parish.   It was also incomplete so I've replaced the lost parts and soldered it together (it had been glued).

 

 

Parkside Plate  - was complete, no wheels, just needed the red oxide stripping back and repainting grey.

 

 

Cattle wagon lettered and the missing brake lever replaced (how many times did I pick it up before I noticed?).   The mineral is Slaters.

 

Finally, just to show the benefits of keeping your eyes open:

 

 

I picked this up out of the mud down the yard at work.   It's the top of the water outlet on a ball valve.   I looked at it and thought I could probably do something with it.  It's been smoothed off, a few Archer rivets added and a coat of Metalcote 27004.   I'm making up two planked discs to cover the holes, then with a bit of timber packing underneath and some chains it'll make what I think will be an interesting load.

Edited July 9 by jwealleans

[St Enodoc]

4 hours ago, jwealleans said:

I picked this up out of the mud down the yard at work.   It's the top of the water outlet on a ball valve.   I looked at it and thought I could probably do something with it.  It's been smoothed off, a few Archer rivets added and a coat of Metalcote 27004.   I'm making up two planked discs to cover the holes, then with a bit of timber packing underneath and some chains it'll make what I think will be an interesting load.

You could run a quiz at exhibitions for folk to guess a) what it is and b) what it represents. Prizes for the most accurate and most ridiculous answers...

[Chas Levin]

Plus it might be very useful in a plumbing emergency! It's a good way to have things handy...

(Note to self: find a use as wagon loads for car brake lights, teabags and condoms...)

Edited July 10 by Chas Levin

[jwealleans]

As we're only a week away, just a note to say I shall be demonstrating weathering at Thirsk Show next Sunday in the Town Hall.

 

I'm told I've been moved out of the upstairs room (presumably at the request of the other demonstrators) and placed on the landing next to the tea urn.

 

Details here.  Always a quality show and in aid of a good cause.

[BoD]

1 hour ago, jwealleans said:

Always a quality show and in aid of a good cause.

I haven’t been able to get since Sunday became my regular volunteering day.  As you say it is a quality show with usually lots of beautiful smaller layouts and I miss it a lot.

[jwealleans]

Workbench progress will probably halt for a little while as I get my demo material ready.  I've been concentrating on running in the B1 chassis and adding pickups.   On the loco this is hampered by the springs, so I've gone for little curly ones rather than my usual long springy ones.

 

 

I don't think I'd build a tender loco without tender pickups now and the Comet tender underframe allows room to put them on top of the wheels, nicely out of the way.

 

 

The whole thing connected by my usual Peter's Spares plug arrangement which regular readers will be very familiar with.  This bizarre looking ensemble ran up and down my layout two or three times this evening - enough of a test before it's dismantled for painting. I've added an unprototypical bar across the back of the brake rigging to hold the plug up clear of trackwork.

 

 

I haven't neglected the wagons: 3 G1s and a C10 now painted and ready for lettering.

 

[jwealleans]

Good day at Thirsk today: thanks to everyone who came and said hello, showed an interest and bought a wagon or two - it all helps fund the Air Ambulance.

 

 

If whoever accidentally bought the 7 plank mineral I was weathering as part of my demo reads this and would like to contact me, I have the coal load for it.

 

It's P338344 about 5 posts back, but a lot dirtier now.

 

 

[Barry O]

It wasn't me.. honest guv..

 

Baz

[Chas Levin]

Nice t-shirt, Mr W!

[jwealleans]

18 minutes ago, Chas Levin said:

Nice t-shirt, Mr W!

 

I have to credit my friend and colleague Mr King for that; he did a batch for the then Grantham team in green and black.   Unfortunately I'm not sure they can be obtained any more.

[Worsdell forever]

18 hours ago, jwealleans said:

... I was weathering as part of my demo...

 

What? you actually got something done? 😲

[jwealleans]

19 minutes ago, Worsdell forever said:

What? you actually got something done?

 

Only until you arrived and I started serving cake.   It was curtains for the weathering after that.

[Worsdell forever]

4 minutes ago, jwealleans said:

 

Only until you arrived and I started serving cake.   It was curtains for the weathering after that.

 

That was lemon pour cake rather than lemon drizzle cake...

[jwealleans]

3 hours ago, Worsdell forever said:

That was lemon pour cake rather than lemon drizzle cake...

 

Once eaten, seldom forgotten.    It's one of the Mrs' most popular offerings.

 

 

[Barry O]

Scrumedacious!!

 

Baz

[manna]

G'Day Folks

 

I've got one of those 'T' shirts as well, Only wear it on certain occasions, IE, model shows, last time was about 10 years ago. It's wearing well. 😂

 

manna

[Chas Levin]

On 29/07/2024 at 14:42, jwealleans said:

 

I have to credit my friend and colleague Mr King for that; he did a batch for the then Grantham team in green and black.   Unfortunately I'm not sure they can be obtained any more.

 

Thought I recognised it! Mr K very kindly gave me the artwork as I said I'd like to produce one for myself, I just haven't done it yet... Too many things and too few hours in the day...

[jwealleans]

In among preparations for Thirsk, the B1 was dismantled and painted and I'm now erecting the frames again for what I hope is the final time.   Having got it back to the running chassis it was before, I'm now adding the valve gear one bit at a time, testing as I go.

 

 

I hit a problem I haven't come across before this morning, not being a habitual user of the Romford deluxe crankpin (the threaded one).   I set the chassis running on the rolling road and after a short time it slowed down then locked up.  Eventually I worked out that the rear nearside crankpin nut was tightening itself up and jamming the coupling rod.   Here i've taken it off and replaced with my usual piece of elastic band and it's run freely for as long as I was there watching it.   I'm a bit loath to replace the crankpin now the chassis runs freely, so I may just solder it in place and see if that solves it.  I'd Loctited the front ones so they didn't have the same problem but they'll be soldered anyway.

 

The body was also painted and I've applied the Fox Transfers lining pack.  i don't like them but they are the best around at the moment.

 

 

Bit of a gotcha here - the cab lining comes with a number already laid out (61018).  I didn't want that one, so I took off the last three numbers before I applied it to the cabside.   My number (61236) is wider, so adding it has left it off centre, but the transfer is so fragile I daren't try to cut out the two which are part of it and try again.    There's also not enough material under the running plate to get the valance lining transfer on, so I'll put the light grey line on by hand as it's the most visible part.

[micklner]

I built a DJH A2 recently already in the box were a set of De Luxe Crankpins. I found they were a real pain , no matter how tight when fitted they on one axle in particular , always unscrewed out of the wheel during running in. Superglue added and they have behaved since. I would'nt use them again much simpler using the "normal" version .

[60526]

On 02/08/2024 at 09:34, jwealleans said:

I hit a problem I haven't come across before this morning, not being a habitual user of the Romford deluxe crankpin (the threaded one).   I set the chassis running on the rolling road and after a short time it slowed down then locked up.  Eventually I worked out that the rear nearside crankpin nut was tightening itself up and jamming the coupling rod.   Here i've taken it off and replaced with my usual piece of elastic band and it's run freely for as long as I was there watching it.   I'm a bit loath to replace the crankpin now the chassis runs freely, so I may just solder it in place and see if that solves it.  I'd Loctited the front ones so they didn't have the same problem but they'll be soldered anyway.

 

I've had success with putting the normal piece of paper through the crankpin and over the rods and soldering the nut, as you would with the older Romford crankpins, but I've also used the Romford crankpin bushes - https://www.roxeymouldings.co.uk/product/1089/4ma067-romford-slotted-crankpin-bush-10/ 

yes you have to enlarge the hole in the rod, but you can tighten the nut onto this bush, I used a dab of gloss paint to hold it.

[jwealleans]

One step forward, one back.... first, the motion.   The previous builder had made up subassemblies, so when I came to present it all to the loco I only had four bits to worry about.

 

 

Can't say it wasn't a fiddle - one side just fell together, I had to have three goes at the other - but in the end it's all on and runs freely on the rolling road.  We'll get to test running in due course.

 

 

Now a step back... just a couple of minutes after taking that picture, I sprayed loco and tender bodies with Halfords lacquer - the same I use on everything - whereupon the cabside transfer wrinkled irretrievably all over the surface and the tender lining did the same.   The boiler lining was unaffected, yet it all came off the same sheet.   The air was blue.

I'll strip the tender but on the loco I've just scraped the cabside clean and smooth and I'll only repaint that.  No need to redo all the boiler when it's absolutely fine.

[31A]

Which lacquer was it - gloss?  It seems to be stuff to be treated with caution!  I've got some but haven't used it much; I had a bad experience spraying it over Railmatch enamel a little while ago.  One side of a van was OK but the paint on the other side crazed and could almost be rubbed off with a fingernail.  I presume it would be OK over other Halford's paints but after that experience I'd be wary of using it over anything else.

[jwealleans]

Morning Steve.   The can was just labelled 'Clear Lacquer'.   I've binned it.   The paint was fine (it was Halfords anyway), it only attacked the transfers.  I'll order another set and it'll be repainted by the time they come.

Edited August 6 by jwealleans

[31A]

3 hours ago, jwealleans said:

Morning Steve.   The can was just labelled 'Clear Lacquer'.   I've binned it.   The paint was fine (it was Halfords anyway), it only attacked the transfers.  I'll order another set and it'll be repainted by the time they come.

 

I don't blame you!  Mine says "Universal Clear Lacquer - Gloss" on it.  I've got another one which says "Matt Lacquer" on it, which I haven't used yet.  Both are in the new-style mainly orange cans.  They seemed like a good idea when I bought them, but it sounds as though they're things to be used with caution if at all.

[jwealleans]

I intend for the moment to persevere with the Halfords as I've used them for a long time with no issues, but I have discarded the suspect can and replaced with one which claims to be satin.  I've indulged in a bit of wagon therapy while stripping and respraying the B1.  I fancied making some more minerals: the 1950s stock I have is a bit heavy on the steel wagons and the ratio should be roughly 75% timber to 25% steel for the early part of the 1950s.

 

First thing I happened on was a lot of 6 Ks 7 planks on Ebay which I scored for just over 3 quid each.   I didn't recall that Ks had ever done a 7 plank mineral, but clearly they did.   They're both plastic and basic, which was what I expected.   They'd been built to EM gauge with what looked like decent wheelsets, so I decided to try to retain what I could.

 

 

You can see most of what i did here.   The wheels are regauged but I tried the original W irons and bearings.   The first one didn't roll very well so I replaced the bearings with some more modern Wizard Models ones and that ran a lot better.   The originals have a very shallow hole for the pinpoint and seem to grip the axles slightly.   Buffers from LMS, brake handles and external V hanger from Wizard, the rest made up from fret and wire.   

 

 

The strapping is a bit insipid, but replacing all that would be a bit much.   End stanchions are another matter and I've added my own.   The ex-PO on the right has wooden ones, 60 x 40 Evergreen strip filed down at the top to represent the taper.   The other one will be an ex-company example, so steel end stanchions from 20 x 10 and 30 x 10 Evergreen.   You can also see where I've chamfered the tops of the sides and ends to reduce visibility of the overthick sides.

 

 

Having embarked on those, I then went to Redcar Show last Sunday afternoon and found that Dave Scott was selling some Bachmann examples which will need a lot less work.   These were all factory weathered, but not unsalvageably so, so there's been a bit more distressing of planks and they'll now go to be weathered properly.

 

 

I called on Mr. Nicholas through the week as well and was lucky enough to be able to acquire a couple of wagons by Peter Lawson.  These are both excellently built and painted and will drop straight into traffic, though I may weather the 6 plank a little more.   That is whitemetal, I think from ABS and the mineral is Slaters.

 

 

I wrangled a bit of chain this evening; the water valve is now firmly attached to its Lowmac.   All this needs to be blackened, but again I've photographed it as is so those who take an interest can see how it's done.   The Lowfit was gifted by Rob Bergin: I've done nothing to this except weather it.   The load is bobbins - quite literally, it's a bobbin the Mrs. had finished with, filled with lead shot, screwed to the wagon, sheeted over and tied down.   This will go into the Grantham Scotch Goods for the next show.

 

 

While I was in that sort of mood and had all the gear out, I did the Flatrol ELL as well.   One of the drawings I have shows the chains laid out as here and I have a photograph where they're similarly deployed, so that'll do me.   It's more interesting than a bare deck.

Edited August 27 by jwealleans