7mm 7mm Mick's Workbench - LNER A2/3 60514 Chamossaire

[mickoo]

Thanks for the advice fellas, I'll give that ago I think

Before I can make good the motion bracket area I needed to be sure the fit underneath the footplate was snug as otherwise it just wouldn't look right. So I set about fitting the two huge lumps of pewter (footplate + Smoke box/boiler/firebox ) together and this was where the fun started. To say they need some fettling is understating things. The footplate has a mind of it's bloody own! I wanted to make the boiler removable to aid painting but the footplate can't maintain it's own form under it's own weight, so sadly this is not an option, the two have to be permanently fixed. So I got on with that and found I needed to also fit the cab in the process.

And so to fit the cab I needed to fit the roof because the higher temperature solder would mean I couldn't fit it afterwards. The more I looked at the prototype the more I realised that the rear beading just wasn't good enough. I remember @mickoo having a crack at this with his A3 and I've nicked the idea. So 1mm soft copper wire was used and filled to half round using some suitable N/S sheet as a jig. First attempt;
View attachment 111574
Great, I thought. I thought wrong, no chance of manipulating the wire once it's filled, it just wants to bend the way physics intended and that's no good! So the second attempt was formed first and then filled down;
View attachment 111575
Much better. Once this was fitted and the cab roof was in place I was ready to push on. I then found, having straightened the footplate as best I can that the rear of the firebox needed some work, a quick bench grab shot;View attachment 111576
Far from ideal !! Anyway I have not got the main structure together and the chimney tacked in place until i'm 100% happy with the position. I do like the Thompson budget sheet metal chimney on this class!
View attachment 111577
View attachment 111578
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You'll see from the above shots and certainly the following shot that there's still lots of cleaning up to do of the pewter but at least the basic shape is coming together and this will allow me to pick the work up on the frames again;
View attachment 111581
Incidentally this is how the whole side of the footplate arrives, the feed pips are a real pain to clean up and make a tidy job of.

Cheers

Mick

Mick, I'm going to guess here, on the first attempt with the beading you filled half off and then attempted to bend it to the right profile, as you've found that wont work.

The trick is to solder the long upright on first and stop just short of the first bend, then bend the beading in situ around a drill shank for something; on the County tender I found the end of a pair of tweezers had roughly the right radius.

It will try to twist and may even do so, but the trick is to form the bend and then flatten the twist with a pair of flat nose pliers. The problem with copper is that it marks very easily and using the pliers can add a flat surface to the half round part. Once the first curve is done you just repeat around the rest.

The stuff I've linked to has to be used the same way, solder the longest and straightest part first, then work in the curves.

Either way, the correct beading makes all the difference and well worth the effort

Looking at that footplate and the work ahead, I can't help but think you'd be better off working a new one up from sheet brass , it probably won't take much longer time wise either.

 

[adrian]

It will try to twist and may even do so, but the trick is to form the bend and then flatten the twist with a pair of flat nose pliers. The problem with copper is that it marks very easily and using the pliers can add a flat surface to the half round part. Once the first curve is done you just repeat around the rest.

The stuff I've linked to has to be used the same way, solder the longest and straightest part first, then work in the curves.

All good advice - likewise I much prefer brass half round for beading because as you say copper is just too soft and marks easily - especially with my heavy handed cleaning. I always soften the wire before use and then likewise solder the longest and straightest bit first.

Drill shanks are great for bending to the correct radius for small radius bends but for the larger radius I don't shape it before soldering but start at one end and do a little section at a time. I use little hardwood strips to rub and ease the wire into the correct radius, it doesn't mark the wire and gives a nice smooth transition on the curves. I use the hardwood strips all the way along to hold and rub the wire in place whilst soldering to smooth out and kinks and keep it flat.

The other suggestion is start at one point and work your way along. Do not tack solder at each end and then go back to fill in. The wire will expand when you solder it and if it's been tack soldered then it will buckle to some extent.

 

[7mmMick]

Mick, I'm going to guess here, on the first attempt with the beading you filled half off and then attempted to bend it to the right profile, as you've found that wont work.

The trick is to solder the long upright on first and stop just short of the first bend, then bend the beading in situ around a drill shank for something; on the County tender I found the end of a pair of tweezers had roughly the right radius.

It will try to twist and may even do so, but the trick is to form the bend and then flatten the twist with a pair of flat nose pliers. The problem with copper is that it marks very easily and using the pliers can add a flat surface to the half round part. Once the first curve is done you just repeat around the rest.

The stuff I've linked to has to be used the same way, solder the longest and straightest part first, then work in the curves.

Either way, the correct beading makes all the difference and well worth the effort

Looking at that footplate and the work ahead, I can't help but think you'd be better off working a new one up from sheet brass , it probably won't take much longer time wise either.

Thanks Mick and Adrian, really good advice fellas. Stuff which I will follow and i'll get an order in for some of the half round brass

As for the footplate, I reckon you've got a good point there mate. If I do another one of these kits I'll go down the fabrication of a new footplate, it would have been a damn sight easier

Cheers

Mick