Heather Kay
Western Thunderer
The old black dog was much in evidence today. I don’t invite it in, it just turns up and makes things more difficult than they need to be.
Once I’d persuaded Muttley to shift over a bit, I set about making the roof fit so it can be removed. I think that made sense. A little measurement, and some thin brass strip, and I’m happy the roof now fits in place, stays there once fitted, and is in pretty much the right orientation.
Next job was to tackle the reverser reach rod. It disappears behind the tank at a fair old angle of attack. I think the builder is expected to fit the lever and rod to the footplate, but with a bespoke inner gubbins that wouldn’t be feasible. So, I found some NS scrap etch, set about it with files and drills, and made it so it could be tack-soldered to a stretcher on the frames. The b*gger was then making it so it didn’t interfere with the boiler, and didn’t make it any harder to fit the frames to the body than it already is. It’s a bit tight, and you have to thread the reversing lever through so it aligns with the slot in the footplate.
The only other real annoyance, but not anything that can be helped, is the rear fixing screw is slap bang in line with the rear truck. To take the frames out, one has to remove the truck first.
Now, how can I work out how much extra weight to add to this model so the springs are compressed properly?
Once I’d persuaded Muttley to shift over a bit, I set about making the roof fit so it can be removed. I think that made sense. A little measurement, and some thin brass strip, and I’m happy the roof now fits in place, stays there once fitted, and is in pretty much the right orientation.
Next job was to tackle the reverser reach rod. It disappears behind the tank at a fair old angle of attack. I think the builder is expected to fit the lever and rod to the footplate, but with a bespoke inner gubbins that wouldn’t be feasible. So, I found some NS scrap etch, set about it with files and drills, and made it so it could be tack-soldered to a stretcher on the frames. The b*gger was then making it so it didn’t interfere with the boiler, and didn’t make it any harder to fit the frames to the body than it already is. It’s a bit tight, and you have to thread the reversing lever through so it aligns with the slot in the footplate.
The only other real annoyance, but not anything that can be helped, is the rear fixing screw is slap bang in line with the rear truck. To take the frames out, one has to remove the truck first.
Now, how can I work out how much extra weight to add to this model so the springs are compressed properly?
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