Just for Col and Dave a parting shot of the completed backhead without Bluetak
From the previous update '
Toss up between the steam cocks, steam generator or injector pipework next
'
The answer was all three as it turns out, I have to confess to loosing the will to live several times during the week, after the joys of the cab pipework the under cab pipework was a nightmare, principally because some of the pipes only have one point of fixing and it's mid run so the ends are flapping around and prone to damage. It's safe to say every pipe has been off at least once to repair Herr ten thumbs visits and C'tain cock up and his crew have raided the fridge and set up camp for the week!
Never the less after much swearing, screaming and threatening is all succumbed to fit in the right places. To be fair it was never going to be easy, the real engines are a box of snakes under the cab floor for pipework, the model replicates that very well.
Drivers side generator area.
A small pipe run but the two large pipes twist and weave under the cab support frame work, due to the lack of support at the rear end I couldn't stop the front from flapping around and this creates a problem where they meet the casing. The resin casing is quite thick 3-4mm and the idea is to trim the pipework to sit flush with the lower edge, of course due to my ineptitude the pipes would not consistently sit flush. In the end I trimmed the inside of the casing to give a very thin edge and made the pipes longer so that they passed up into the casing area....Lesson 1!
Drivers front end.
This was actually the last attempt at pipework so out of build sequence, getting the hang of it now, it's very close to the bogie side control spring casting, pleasingly accurate
Just need to straighten the drain cock mid pipe clip so that it's nice and square, it's only slid on at the moment.
Back to the cab and the second pipework exercise chronologically.
Lot of pipework going on here, plenty of coffee and a bucket of patience, even so, expect the odd joint to fail here and revisit as you fabricate it all up, there is so much interaction going on that each pipe contacts and weaves through others that damage is almost an inevitability. I didn't even attempt to make the pipework sit flush with the casing and simply extended up into the casing area by a 'goodly' amount, I still have to go back and trim the casing edge to get the pipework closer to the outer skin like the prototype engines.
Third attempt was the firemans cylinder drain cocks.
Just realized I need to trim the drain cock mid clip as it didn't fold exactly right, mind I have two spare ones on the etch so I'll probably whizz it off and fit a new one.
Checking clearances I noticed that the engine would not go round right hand curves, bit of a problem really, the rear Delta truck was sticking and fouling the pipework.
It took a while to work out why, basically the RH side control spring casting is fouling the lower injector pipework and if you look more closely there's a gap between the bearer pad and frame bearer plate, clearly the rear end of the Delta truck is to low.
The Delta truck is essentially a seesaw, so to get the rear end up we can push down on the front, you can just see the extra packing washers, better, but not quite good enough and there's no real room to add more without creating a visual eye sore.
Another solution is to raise the fulcrum point, in this case the axle position, possible, but means reworking the axle retaining clips if I want to preserve easy removal for maintenance.
Of course all this is simply applying larger bandages on the wound and does not solve the fundamental problem, the Delta truck is misshaped.
The fabrication of the Delta truck is by means of a fold up mid section and side pieces, clearly C'tain cock up snuck in and one of the folds is not quite 90° so that when the side pieces went on it all got soldered up slightly bent. In fairness on it's own the truck looks perfect and by eye the slight arch is almost impossible to see, but clearly it is there.
I may be able to tweak the truck, but to get the rear end by 1.0 - 1.5mm will require almost the same downward motion at the front, so instead of an arched mid section truck I'll have a sagging mid section.
The solution is of course a combination of all three, straightening of the truck metal work, packing washers at the front end and a lowering of the axle (jacking of truck assembly), that and the sand pipes will be today's tasks and if there's time left over the fitting of the oil pipes on the front end lubricator pots.
It's also a nice day here so might find time to waft some paint onto so sub assemblies, motion bracket is ready and front end could do with a blow over, but need the oil lines in first really.
Finally, none of the pipework has been cleaned, so y'all can see how much solder I slosh around
before spending time cleaning it all up...where required
Enjoy
MD
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