John Isherwood

Building and fitting brakegear - a trifle fiddly, but what could possibly go wrong; (that would account for the delay in posting this episode)? Following the instructions - now there's a novelty - I assembled the three layers that make up the brake hangers / shoes, remembering to produce three each of the LH and RH assemblies. Alignment of the back and centre laminations was achieved using drills through the outer holes, as with the coupling rods; the outer brake shoe lamination was aligned using a length of 0.7mm. brass rod, which was cropped off after the laminations were soldered together, to represent the shoe fixing. Conductive brake hangers and brake rods are always a recipe for short circuits, so I decided to attach the brakegear in such a way that it was electrically 'dead'. To this end, the 2.0mm. brass tube brake hanger supports were cut off flush with the outer face of the frames, and three 17mm. lengths of 1.6mm. Evergreen plastic rod were cut. These were drilled at each end, 0.7mm. axially, and then inserted into the brass tubes with equal lengths protruding from each side. The plastic rods were then locked in place with a touch of cyanoacrylate glue. The brake hanger / shoe assemblies could now be attached to the ends of the plastic rods with short 14BA screws, which self-tapped into the 0.8mm. axial holes. Ooooo-er !! The brake shoes were a country mile from the wheel treads. Somewhat belatedly, I checked the diameter of the Romford wheels that I'd had stashed away for this project for ages - and they turned out to be 5'-6'' (22mm.) diameter instead of the correct 5'-9'' (23mm.) of the prototype. Cue a quick call to Wizard Models, who could supply six of the correct wheels, albeit all insulated. The 'American' system of insulated loco and tender relies on having the respective chassis live; something not easily achieved with all insulated driving wheels. So, whilst awaiting the delivery of the replacement wheels, I added an additional set of pick-ups to the copperclad strip below the frames, and isolated the screw which attached the copperclad to the chassis. The replacement wheels were fitted, resulting in a much more intimate relationship between brakeshoes and wheel treads. The brake pull rods could now be soldered in place, and the brake actuating assembly was soldered into the trunnions below the rear of the frames. The rear ends of the brake pull rods were not attached to the actuating assembly, so as to ensure that they remained electrically isolated. Note that, contrary to the instructions, GT3 had two loco brake cylinders located outside and to the rear end of the frames. I therefore fabricated two brake cylinder levers from strip brass, attaching them to the ends of the brake actuating assembly. Brake cylinder rods, made from 0.8mm. brass wire, were soldered to the levers, but the actual cylinders were omitted as they are hidden behind the cab footsteps. So - a slight hiatus resulting from not checking basic components, but easily remedied thanks to prompt service from Wizard Models. Next, and last stage in the chassis assembly, the front bogie; with which I intend to depart slightly from the instructions and adopt a sprung mounting which applies the load below the axle centreline; (with due acknowlegements to Chris Gibbon of High Level Models who kindly supplied the sketch below). Regards, John Isherwood.

True, but I think that a wipe over with lighter fuel, followed by a rub with a fibreglass stick, followed by a blast in the ultrasonic cleaner should eliminate all risk. ..... and if this seems a little OTT, it is my (and many others') standard pre-painting routine. Regards, John Isherwood.

It has been recommended elsewhere that permanent marker ink is a good solder deterrent - and it can be removed with your favourite solvent. Regards, John Isherwood.

Mike, You are quite correct - I should always read the instructions ! I am awaiting a lower ratio gearset fro High Level - GT3 runs a little too sedately for my taste. I'll fit the spacing washer when I exchange the worm and pinion. Regards, John.

..... and it pre-dates the application of black patches on grey, unfitted wagons. Regards, John Isherwood.

I have successfully used waterslide transfers for interior coach panelling; (scanned from photos of the interior of a Blue Pullman); but I think that distressed, faded and weathered wooden raves are going to call upon our weathering skills. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers.

GT3 will not, when completed, have pick-ups; I intend to use the 'American' system of electrically separated loco and tender. To this end, the LH loco drivers are uninsulated and so the loco chassis is live. Nonetheless, it is much more convenient whilst building the loco to be able to test it independently; ie. without the tender attached. So, I set about building and fitting a set of pick-ups for the RH, insulated loco driving wheels. The pick-up mount comprises a strip of single-sided copper-clad paxolin cut slightly wider than the distance between the frames. I scribed two grooves, with an Olfa PC-S plastic cutter; ( http://www.olfa.co.j...detail/157.html ); in the non-copper side of the paxolin, to match the frame width. These grooves were to half the thickness of the Paxolin; then two more cuts were made, just outside the grooves, to the full thickness of the paxolin. A little tidying up of the edges with a needle file produced stepped edges to the paxolin which allowed it to sit half within the frames and half on the lower edge of the frames. On the copper side of the paxolin, a longitudinal groove was cut approximately 3mm. from what would be the RH edge; four 1mm. holes were also drilled through the paxolin for ease of making electrical connections from above the frames. The paxolin was tried in place below the frames, and the position of the frame spacer which prevented it sitting down into the frames was marked. A groove was scribed into the paxolin to take the frame spacer, and a 2.3mm. dia. hole was drilled along the axis of the paxolin, and offset 1.0mm. from the groove for the frame spacer. An 8BA thin headed screw was then passed through the paxolin from the copper side, and a brass nut was screwed in place on the plain side. The lower edge of the frame spacer, and the appropriate face of the fixing nut were both tinned, and then the paxolin was put in place below the frames. A spot of flux was applied to the joint, and then a hot soldering iron was touched to the frame spacer and nut. The positions for the pick-ups were marked on the RH edge of the paxolin, to line up with the upper edge of the wheel flanges. The paxolin could now be removed by unscrewing the 8BA screw, and the copper faces were tinned and checked to ensure that the narrower and wider strips were electrically isolated. The pickups themselves are phospher-bronze strip. One end was tinned and soldered to the first pickup position, and then bent up tight to the edge of the paxolin. The strip was cut off 20mm. from the bend, and the end which will rub on the wheel flange was centre-punched to form a dome. This was repeated for the remaining two pick-ups, and two lengths of thin insulated wire were soldered to the two sections of copper, via the 1mm. holes previously drilled. The pick-up unit could now be reattached to the chassis, ensuring that the strips passed between the wheels and the frames. The strips were 'tweaked' to ensure that they did not touch the wheel backs or the frames, and that the domed portion rubbed on the flange edge. Clear adhesive tape applied to the face of the frames can assist here. The wires were soldered to the motor terminals, and the chassis was placed on the track with some temporary weights to aid adhesion. Power was applied and, very gratifyingly, the chassis glided off down the test track virtually silently - just the noise of wheels on rails and the occasional rail joint click. It is a testament to the design of this chassis kit that the foregoing build has taken less time than it has taken to compile this thread !! Next time - brakegear. Regards, John Isherwood.

S1 includes full BR period transfers for all of the PD kits appropriate to that period - including the ex-LNER BRICK and SULPHATE wagons. Regards, John.

I haven't received your enquiry - but the answer, I'm afraid, is that I can only offer BR lettering on my Sheet S1 - it's not on a black background, though. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers

The gearbox provided with the chassis is, not surprisingly, a High Level product; and the motor is a Mashima 1430. As is now well known, Mashima are about to / have ended production permanently, so alternative sources for motors will have to be found in future. I have been providing cheap but high quality Japanese Mitsumi motors for some time now; (see http://www.cctrans.org.uk/ and http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/98857-building-a-4mm-scale-mpd-midland-3f-0-6-0/ ); and I wanted to be able to test one in this chassis. So I drilled two extra holes in the gearbox frame to suit the Mitsumi motor fixing holes. Having removed the gearbox frame from the etch, it was folded to shape, and the rest of the components were assembled as per the instructions; it really couldn't be simpler. The Mashima motor was fitted in place in the gearbox, and then the assembly was lightly lubricated and tested under power - all was fine so far. Next, the rolling chassis was partly dismantled in order to fit the motor / gearbox, and then reassembled. Power was supplied via long, thin wander leads, and the chassis was placed on the track. Slowly turning up the throttle, the chassis duly trundled off down the track - and very smoothly at that ! Next time, pick-ups, so that proper track testing can be undertaken. Regards, John Isherwood.

Ahh - I see ! Having just seen photos of the jig with a single set of rods attached, I made incorrect assumptions. I have to say that I have had no real problems assembling etched rods and frames without any sort of jig, or using just a set of extended axles with turned-down ends to suit the crankpin holes in the rods. The Poppy's jig is merely an extension of this idea, but does provide an excellent way of holding everything in place whilst the frame spacers are fitted and soldered. If I loose the touch as I age, perhaps the Eileens / Hobby Holidays jig will prove to be the answer. Regards, John.

I have little or no knowledge of the Eileens / Hobby Holidays jig, but on the face of it I would worry about working clearance / backlash in a device that apparently relies on just one set of coupling rods to set the position of axle bearings. If I am interpreting how the jig works - apologies; but I know how careful I have to be to eliminate backlash with my Unimat 3. Regards, John Isherwood.

Well - the glue dried and out came the soldering iron. Now - lets make one thing clear; I'm a Luddite when it comes to chassis !! Strictly rigid 16.5mm. gauge, all as per Tony Wright's creed. I have tried equalised and sprung, and have produced sweetly running chassis - but no better than the rigid ones that I build, so what's the point? The frames were detached from the fret; the tags filed off; the axle holes opened out to fit the top hat bearings; and the brake gear support holes opened out to suit the prescribed 2mm. OD brass tube; both using tapered broaches. It was also necessary to remove two of the four tabs on the underside of the front of each frame; these tabs fit into slots in the front 'mudguard' spacer, and the tabs to be removed will be dictated by the gauge for which the chassis is being built. Think about this carefully, and then think again before removing the surplus tabs; (guess who removed the wrong rear tabs)! I have to say that. IMHO, the frames are a little thinner than I would have preferred. I know that this is all the rage nowadays, but the chassis ends up far too 'bendy' for my liking. Anyway, the top hat bearings were soldered in place; and cut and filed off flush on the inside of the frames. What a difference to the ease of soldering nickel silver makes when compared to brass ! I don't like axle bearings left too long, especially on thin frames which can, to some extent, be a little flexible - they can be an unnecessary source of binding if left over-long. The frames were now set up in the Poppy's jig, and one problem immediately surfaced; there is no provision that I could see for setting up a 7'0'' - 7'9'' wheelbase frame. Both 7'9'' markings are obstructed by solid MDF. I was therefore obliged to very carefully 'drift' the end of one of the slots with a round needle file, taking great care to keep the horizontal alignment of the slot. Having achieved the set-up in the jig, the rear, and intermediate frame spacers, plus the front 'mudguard' spacer were removed from the fret and their tags were removed; plus the rear spacer was folded to form a square 'U'. Starting from the rear, the spacers were fitted and soldered into place - their tabs just snap into the frame slots with a little pressure. Lengths of 2mm. OD brass tube were also passed through the appropriate holes in the frames and soldered in place. In no time at all the basic chassis was assembled and removed from the jig. Markits' wheels were assembled in the chassis, having slightly relieved the axle holes in the bearings with an 1/8'' reamer. Markits' threaded crankpins were screwed into the wheels, and the coupling rods were tried in place. Some initial stiffness was eliminated by slightly opening out the crankpin holes in the coupling rods - I always leave the holes as a tight fit on the retaining bushes when assembling the rods, and then open them out with a taper reamer - a little at a time - until the wheels / rods rotate smoothly with no binding. As the rods are thicker than the bearing width of the retaining bushes, I counter-bored the outer faces of the bearing holes in the rods with a 3mm. drill. The retaining bush heads are therefore partially recessed into the face of the rods, which will make the fitting of the coupling rod 'hub-caps' much easier at a later stage of construction. At this point, I had a rolling chassis - next will be the assembly of the motor and gearbox. Regards, John Isherwood.

What he said - known as rollbock; one metre gauge bogie carries a single standard gauge axle - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rollbock . Available for 3.5mm. scale from Bemo, I believe. Regards, John Isherwood.

TIMBER P ? Regards, John Isherwood.

Nope - nowhere near enough adhesive weight, even with 3mm. thickness of lead sheet underneath the roof. The kit will be finished - eventually - but as a purely scenic feature. Regards, John Isherwood.

Saturday afternoon, indifferent weather - time to make a start; (at long last)! The first job involved none of the above components. I bought a Poppy's eight-coupled chassis jig after several list members of repute extolled it's virtues. Assembly was a breeze, involving nothing other than white wood glue and elastic bands. Assembly of the coupling rods was next on the list. The instructions recommend the use of 1.0mm. drills to align the three laminations, but the crankpin holes were etched nearer to 1.25mm. diameter. So, having established that the crankpin bushes that I intend to use are 1.5mm. diameter, I used 1.3mm. drills as the alignment pegs. These were drilled down into the soldering board to form a jig. The crankpin holes in the three laminations were opened up a mere touch, until they would just slide onto the 1.3mm. drills. The laminations were then pressed together with a wooden cocktail stick; 15% phosphoric acid flux was applied round the edge of the laminations; and then solder was applied with a good, hot, medium-sized soldering iron bit. The solder flashed around the edge of the rods in a most satisfactory manner, and when cooler, the rods were removed from the drills. A little cleaning up with miniature files and a fibreglass stick followed, and then it was time to join the two parts of the articulated coupling rods. I had some nickel-silver valvegear rivets which have a bearing diameter of 1.1mm. and a shank diameter of 1.0mm. The joint holes in the rods were carefully opened out to be a easy fit on the bearing diameter; (the front lamination); and a tight press-fit on the shank diameter; (the rear two laminations) Having assembled the two parts with the merest touch of oil on the bearing surface of the joint rivet, a touch of flux was applied to the back of the rod where the end of the rivet was visible and, holding my breath, a touch of solder was applied. Contrary to expectations, the solder took to the back of the rod and the end of the rivet, and the joint did not lock solid with solder - amazing !! Moreover, the same result was achieved with the second rod. Into the ultrasonic cleaner for three minutes to remove any dross, and a pair of gleaming rods emerged. The joint action was a little stiff, so a touch of Brasso was applied and the joints vigorously worked until they became a little more free. Back into the ultrasonic cleaner; dried, oiled, and the rods passed the 'drop under gravity' test for free action. The glue on the Poppy's jig should be dried in time for the next session, so it'll be on with the main frame erection. Regards, John Isherwood.

David, J238 is, I believe, D2151 not D2451. Regards, John Isherwood.

Been there, done that - and I'm not in a hurry to repeat the experience !! (....and I was trying motorise it too). Regards, John isherwood.

Photos copyright T. Shackleton As long-promised, I am about to embark upon my GT3 build. In the absence of surviving works drawings, it seems unlikely that even Heljan will take this one on, and I have always been determined to have a model of this iconic locomotive. GT3 was, by all accounts, very successful, but the prevailing rush to eliminate all traces of steam-age power from BR mitigated against it, and the sudden surge in the price of oil dealt the death-blow to the project. I understand that the purpose of the GT3 project was to demonstrate that steam locomotives could be updated to a more environmentally and operationally acceptable form of motive power, without scrapping the entire machine. Given the incredibly short operational life of the BR Standard locomotives, (had the price of oil remained low), a more rational modernisation policy could perhaps have seen GT3-type rebuilds operating for some years, as the intermediate stage on the way to widespread electrification. Be that as it may, I accumulated the various kits and components over several years :- The Golden Arrow resin kit http://www.goldenarrow.me.uk/products.htm#other The etched detailing kit from macgeordie of this parish http://www.rmweb.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=46203 The High Level chassis kit http://www.highlevelkits.co.uk/ Assorted additional components (mostly Markits) http://www.markits.com/ A collection of mystery components which may, or may not, find a home in GT3 ! A pair of miniature low revving gearbox motors that MAY drive the loco air intake fan and the tender scavenger fan. A greyscale image of part of my transfer sheet BL149, (which was used on Tim Shackleton's model, see photos above) http://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm So, with the combined skills of all of the above producers, there should be no excuse for not producing a first class model - we'll see !!! Next episode when I get to work. Regards, John Isherwood.

Here is the BR 1/633 14T anchor-mounted creosote wagon as modified from the new Bachmann Class B version. A very easy modification if you are just starting modifying RTR wagons. Regards, John Isherwood. http://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm

See http://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm . Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers.

I have amended the above post to highlight that you also need to remove the ladders, walkways and the side inlet valve; the latter should be replaced towards the bottom of the tank end, at the end with the unloading pipe beneath the solebar. The location slots for the walkways and ladder will need to be filled and rubbed down. Regards, John Isherwood.

Photos as promised - not the easiest thing to photograph !! Note that the pivot hole is larger than is usually necessary - but it does allow more side-to-side movement. Regards, John Isherwood.

Idly browsing through Tourrett's "Petroleum Rail Tank Wagons of Britain", looking for suitable subjects for transfer sets for the new Bachmann 14T anchor-mounted tank wagon, I came across Plate 96 on Page 55. This is one of the small fleet of BR-owned departmental tank wagons - specifically for the transport of creosote to sleeper depots. BR diagram 1/633, of which there were twenty-two examples, was one of the smaller 14T wagons, and was was widely allocated. The Bachmann model measures up as being extremely close to diagram 1/633 - the tank length being perhaps a tad short. Determined modellers could easily stretch the tank slightly, but most would be content to strip a Class B tank, remove the ladders, walkways and the side inlet valve; (the latter should be replaced towards the bottom of the tank end, at the end with the unloading pipe beneath the solebar). The location slots for the walkways and ladder will beed to be filled and rubbed down. Add the number / allocation plates from scraps of plastic card, and respray the model black. Why do I mention this? Well, as soon as I recognised diagram 1/633 in the photo, I remembered that one of my early transfer sheets - BL33 - includes six sets of transfers for 1/633, with a variety of geographically widespread allocations. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers. http://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm