Industrial Railway Workshop

Dave

Western Thunderer
I now have my own pantograph milling machine, so churning out locomotives is becoming a doddle.


W.G. Bagnall 12-inch 'wing tank', based on w/n 1392 of 1893. Most of this type is the same as the slightly later 12-inch saddle tank. so I only have to make smokebox and tank patterns to enable a saddletank version to be made.
WingTank-002.jpg

WingTank-007.jpg

WingTank-015.jpg

WingTank-039.jpg

WingTankFramerepainted-001.jpg

scratchbuilds-010.jpg

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Dave

Western Thunderer
I almost forgot this one - Hudswell Clarke 10-inch contractor's loco. It is an ancient K's whitemetal kit that I built new frames, cylinders and motion for. I also fitted the correct size wheels and binned the K's motor in favour of an N20 motor/gearbox unit, which makes it run far better than the original ever could. I painted it but the lining was done by Warren Heywood.

SETH-001.jpg
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
Hello Dave,

Nice to see these over here - I love the chimney on Hercules; proper Victoriana that. The finish on Anubis and Kitchener is an excellent representation of a style of well-oiled lined mid-green which has always been may favourite industrial loco' finish. I haven't actually done one like that yet...

Adam
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
Cheers, Adam.

More on building Hercules.

HerculesBuild-010.jpg

HerculesBuild-020.jpg

HerculesBuild-024.jpg

HerculesBuild-029.jpg

Hercules is up, running and almost finished. I just have to paint in constrasting panels on the tanks and bunker. Then it's just a matter of waiting for the etched name and owner's plates that I have ordered from Narrow Planet.
HerculesBuild-038.jpg
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
Another one but this time a bash of a Ready-To-Run trainset loco.

This:
DowlaisBuild-001.jpg
Is Hornby's cheap trainset loco that not many people know is closely based on an actual prototype. The model is too wide, too long, the wheelbase and diameter are wrong and, being a trainset loco, it's performance is on a par with an A4 Pacific.

This is the prototype, built in 1907 by Guest, Keen & Nettlefold for their Dowlais iron works.
KGV.jpg

DowlaisBuild-002.jpg
Chopped, glued, filled and sanded.

DowlaisBuild-003.jpg
Bodywork loosely sat on new frames, with correct diameter wheels.

DowlaisBuild-004.jpg
Old and new frames.

DowlaisBuild-005.jpg

DowlaisBuild-006.jpg
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
Lots of new things to report from the Industrial Railway Workshop.

The Dowlais loco is finished and is awaiting lining.

Hercules, the 0-6-0T, has only ever been run for testing but at Wakefield exhibition it ran on the large layout belonging to Southampton club. It was before opening on the Sunday, so I was able to test the haulage ability of Hercules. It took 80 mineral wagons, most of which was on a curve, with only a little slipping when starting. People were surprised that such a relatively small engine could pull so much but even more so when I told them that the motor is only the size of a Mashima 10/15.

I don't know how 80 OO mineral wagons converts into their 7mm equivalents but it's got to be more than six. Six is the maximum train length on my O gauge colliery layout, so I am going to fit one of these tiny motors into one of my 7mm locomotives to try it out.

I have built another Class H Manning Wardle. This one dates from 1877.

MWH3-9d-1.jpg

MWH3-8-1.jpg

I have also rebuilt a Hornby 'Smokey Joe' into something more like a real engine. It is now a Neilson, which is pretty much the same as the Caley pug that the old Hornby model is intended to be. When I say rebuilt it's more like an accountancy rebuild as little of the original model remains. Only the cab, saddle tank and smokebox are original and all of those parts have had work done to them.

Neilson-1.jpg

Neilson2b-1.jpg

And at the moment I am scratchbuilding contractor's wagons.

Contractor's wagon-1.jpg

Contractor's wagon-4.jpg
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
Thanks, Rob.

Another contractor's wagon. The previous one was a bit experimental - seeing how to put things together, really. I wasn't happy with the brass shim, used for the ironwork. It was too wide but cutting it to an accurate and consistent thickness was difficult. Dimpling rivets into it wasn't very successful, either, and having to stick it to the body with superglue means it will probably fall off at some point. Superglue and brass never seem to mix well.

The means of fixing the axles to the frames was also a bodge and, again, involved supergluing brass tube. This time I have made proper bearings, like those on the real thing.

Contractor's wagon-3.jpg
At the top of the picture are the actual 4mm scale bearings. I made a master and from this made 4x sub-masters. As I plan to make up to 10 of these wagons it makes it easier to run off a batch of 4 at a time without moving the cutting table.

contractors wagon-5.jpg
The body. On this one I have used all-plastic construction. The coach bolt heads are individual pieces of rod, pushed through holes drilled in the strapping and planking. They are sitting a little too proud of the strapping at the moment but once everything has properly dried I will file them down.
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
The all-plastic version looks much better to my eye. I'd just trim the boltheads using a blade rather than filing, as that creates less mess, but good work!

Adam
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
The all-plastic version looks much better to my eye. I'd just trim the boltheads using a blade rather than filing, as that creates less mess, but good work!

Adam
I did try trimming them using a blade but I find it easier and safer (for both my fingers and the model) to file them. I brush them with MEK after filing to take the roughness off the edges.

I have been doing more of the same with a wagon scratch-build. Although these are main line, rather than industrial, they will run on my pre-grouping era mineral/light railway. First-off is an NBL van.

NB Van-1.jpg
The body is built entirely from scratch, using plastikard. The frames are Ratio whilst the buffers are proprietary turned brass items.

Van001-1.jpg
The NBL van in primer.

Next up is an ancient Triang van, which I converted into a reasonable approximation of a L&Y Diagram 3 van.
triangwagon-1.jpg

Chopping out sections of the body to recess the new headstocks.
Triang Van-7.jpg
Van001-2.jpg
Roof hatch, headstocks and solebars made from plastikard. Buffers, running gear and brake gear are etched brass and whitemetal from 51L Models.

And finally, Hornby's old favourite, the 'Prime Pork' van. I had one of these in my very first trainset. It resembles a Hull & Barnsley van, so that's what it is to become.
H&BR van-1.jpg

There's not much to do with this one, except for replace the frames, which I did by using various bits of plastic kit parts. And make a new roof, from plastikard, as the original looked to be too thick.

Van001-3.jpg
Brakes on one side only.

All three are awaiting finish painting, transfers, couplings and weathering.
 

adrian

Flying Squad
There's not much to do with this one, except for replace the frames, which I did by using various bits of plastic kit parts. And make a new roof, from plastikard, as the original looked to be too thick.
There's a nice bit of detail on that van once the original livery has been masked. Although I'm a little puzzled on the bracing but to be honest I don't know the intended prototype (if any!). The corner strapping on the fixed panels suggest some form of diagonal bracing should be present.
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
There's a nice bit of detail on that van once the original livery has been masked. Although I'm a little puzzled on the bracing but to be honest I don't know the intended prototype (if any!). The corner strapping on the fixed panels suggest some form of diagonal bracing should be present.

I have been told that these vans were originally listed by Hornby as H&B vans. There is a photo of a former H&B van in Peter Tatlow's LNER Wagons An Illustrated Overview and it looks very much like the model. I expect the bracing is on the inside of the sheeting.

The Manning Wardle is now finished with the custom etched cylinder ends and the works and name plates, plus crew figures.
Sekhmet-2.jpg

Sekhmet-1.jpg

Sekhmet-3.jpg
 

Rob Pulham

Western Thunderer
There's a nice bit of detail on that van once the original livery has been masked. Although I'm a little puzzled on the bracing but to be honest I don't know the intended prototype (if any!). The corner strapping on the fixed panels suggest some form of diagonal bracing should be present.

Hi Adrian,

That's just how the bracing was on the original Hull and Barnsley vans were.

My copy of Tatlow is 80 miles ago or I would have doubled checked but I have a feeling that they might have been some kind if insulated van.
 

Dave

Western Thunderer
It is a very rare thing for me to build passenger stock and I think the only coach I have built previous to this one was a Slaters 7mm scale GWR 4-wheeler that I used for the paddy train on my O gauge colliery layout.

This one is an etched brass kit, by Prickley Pear, and is a GNSR First Class coach of 1854 vintage. It will be used as a coach for quarrymen on the Edwardian era mineral railway that I am building.

The paint finish is supposed to appear as varnished teak but I'm not sure how well I've pulled that off.
Coach-2.jpg
 
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