4mm An EM Workbench: Mineral allsorts

[OzzyO]

One thing that I do remember from my spotting days at Preston station in the 80s was the steel coils coming down from Scotland (Ravenscrage?) and how hot the coils could be after a journey of over 100 miles, so if the coils were hot loaded in Wales them wooden timbers would not last that long nor the floor of the wagon if that was wood as well.

 

[AJC]

One thing that I am learning about steel traffic is that coil was sent about the place for different purposes and in different states, so the loads you describe would be different and using different wagons - bogie strip coils a bit like the one featured here (the Ravenscraig traffic used a later batch, with roller bearing-fitted bogies: http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brstripcoil/h2bbda622#h2bbda622) - which were of all steel construction suitable for hot coil.

Things like the 4 wheel Coil Js and Coil Cs (which did have wooden floors as it happens, even when they were used for pig iron) which seem to have been used for cold coil sent for further processing or shipping. The hooded Coil H, converted from another type of pig iron wagon (used for hot pigs so with a steel floor), was also used for coil, this time of tinplate, carried in stillages.

Adam

 

[OzzyO]

I was just looking at some of the wooden cradles in this photo https://www.flickr.com/photos/rivercider/6635481867/in/photostream/lightbox/ and the one 2 1/2 wagons from the left looks to have some scorched wooden baulks in it. So I just assumed that they were loaded with hot rolled coils.

 

[AJC]

The final wagon from the rake (for the moment) is this one, converted from a tippler of the 10' wheelbase variety. The 'Hybox' axleboxes are left over from some Parkside wagon or another, the springs are from 51L and the chassis is an AMBIS etch with ABS brakegear. The body came from the wagon that gave up its chassis for the Coil C: waste not, want not.



Adam

 

[AJC]

A little bit later on, the fleet has found a couple of coats of paint, next up, lettering:



Note that the Coil C is posh - protective metal strips on the baulks, which even merited a coat of red oxide - while the Coil J, er, isn't, even allowing for the roller bearings (luxury!).





Adam

 

[AJC]

A concerted effort over the last few days has seen a varied collection of wagons lettered. There are more that I couldn't fit on the desk and more still to be done. The pair of Coil S (the brown ones!) been featured before and look much better for their identities. The Coil J marathon is ongoing, two more left. The slightly rough effect is deliberate: these '60s conversions seem to have been re-lettered by whoever was to hand capable of waving a 1" brush and the way I achieved this is to use a Modelmaster sheet derived from '80s period Cambrian dry print transfers; the artwork was hand drawn and gives exactly the rough effect I was after. I'll need some more sheets, and the word 'COIL' a dozen or so times...



Adam

 

[AJC]

Having spent an enormous amount of time lettering things, I've come to a stand and am in the process of commissioning some transfers in order to actually complete several jobs. Who knows, the 2015 wagon count might reach double figures comparatively early?

Anyhow, while those - coil wagons, clayliner tank, etc. - are maturing yet further, the pair of Coil S in particular have had a gestation that would shame an elephant, I've jumped the scattergun again and started something else entirely, a pair of lesser known of BR's (many, many) coil types, the Coil R. These were conversions from BR-built vac'-fitted Bogie Bolster Es used for tinplate, carried in stillages, under semi-permanent hoods. You may see the prototype here: http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brcoilr

Bartlett et al's BR wagon book (fig. 37, p. 122) has a drawing of the Bogie Bolster E, the bogies can be had from Cambrian and a really good dimensioned sketch (to scale, it transpires) on page 82 of the diagram book. LIMA made a model of the 'E' but chopping that up is certainly more trouble that it's worth. Justin Newitt does a nice etch for brakegear and replacement trussing and so...





I've commissioned the transfers for these too so that's one less thing to scratch my head over...

Adam

 

[iak63]

VERY tasty...

 

[AJC]

I've engaged in some groundwork for fitting bogies and the elements of headstock detail. The former simply involves strips of plastic being welded to the underside of the floor to provide physical locations for the bogie pivots (a standard Cambrian item) so isn't desperately exciting to look at...

The Rumney Models etch provides a nice little jig for drilling the same to allow these tiny details to be pinned in place - obviously, if I'd chosen to make all this from brass I wouldn't have needed to since I would have applied both lamp iron and vac' dummy through the headstock and added the detail in plastic, but this is a thoughtful touch and means that I will actually use the bits rather than bodge the same from wire - this detail needs to be robust rather than 'correct' in 4mm but it's obviously nice if it can be both:



The jig folds to an angle and the LH end aligns with the end of the headstock. Simple and effective, accurate location and, importantly, means that it was a little bit longer before the 0.3mm drill went 'ping'!

Adam

 

[AJC]

Now a better idea of what the wagons look like. I'm waiting on a set of bogies but had a spare set of fixings lurking so the two remain in step. The underside looks like this:



Right way up on its bogies (and there's significant work to do in tarting these up though I haven't yet added the axlebox covers):



And a three-quarter view. You'll note that I haven't bothered scribing too many planks as they're invisible under the hood.



Detailing time...

Adam

 

[AJC]

So, a fiddly little detail. What is it?



Adam

 

[AJC]

A little progress, of the fiddly little detail variety to report. First, relating to the object above which is a speedo for a Warship, D824, Highflyer. In addition to this little detail, I've been back to glaze the thing, do some touching up and, through the good offices of Andrew Ullyot, given it a quick spin (with some other long-term works in progress) on his model of Clevedon on the WC&P. The civil engineer was clearly looking the other way...



The loco' is a bit clean, as yet but with a little additional detail painting, it's ready for the road. Otherwise, the pair of Coil R have gained a host of tiny bits of etch so, while the overall look is more or less unchanged, the wagons are some way down the path to completion. Brakegear next.





Adam

 

[AJC]

One of the more satisfying elements of wagon construction is having completed something fiddly whose overall impression is evident! The brakegear on these Coil conversions certainly falls into that category and the fiddliness in this instance comes from the repetition and proximity of the various components rather than inherent tininess of parts because most of these were made as sub-assemblies in advance. Much easier, it turns out, that bodging the various elements from metal wire, strip and tiny bits of plastic in situ.





Brake levers and the last of the solebar detail - about 10 rivets per side - and I can move back up above the solebar.

Adam

 

[SimonT]

Adam,
I suppose I should take this as a hint to get my two Connoisseur based Coil Rs off the layout and add some brake gear. Based on a previous hint I have managed to get the baulks off the Coil Js to sort out the end baulks. I then discovered some photos on Paul Bartlet site, that weren't there before, and there is a lot more detail add. Just in time, phew. What are you using to do the various type of coverings?
Simon

 

[iak63]

Seriously tasty Adam.

 

[AJC]

I didn't realise that you'd built any Coil Rs Simon, I would be interested to see a picture, brake gear or not, if only for the novelty value. You wouldn't happen to have prototype picture showing the hoods remotely close to would you?

My approach will be a variation of what I've done before with these 'fixed hood' style of wagons - click here to go to an earlier post - which has a subframe built up from plastic sheet with the sheet rails added in copper wire, faired in with either epoxy or Miliput and the ends built up to represent the tailored sheets from the same. The centre sections will be treated to tissue paper in the usual way and the whole treated to a coat of PVA over the top so the texture is nice and smooth.

Adam

 

[SimonT]

Adam,
some snaps taken on the phone. I couldn't find any photos of the hoods but did find some good ones of a set of wagons rammed into a buffer somewhere which gave lots of information on the body but none on the baulks. All on Paul's site, of course. John Talbot examined them at Warley and gave them the ok, so maybe there weren't any baulks?

Doh! However, I think the weathering can be improved......

Simon

 

[OzzyO]

Where are the vac pipes?

The door closed with a gentle click.

 

[SimonT]

The wagon got too close to an old leaky Fulminator and were zapped by some Xuron rays; the only casualties were the vac pipes and, as ever, the truth.

 

[AJC]

Apart from the vac' pipes most of the brakegear seems to be present!

The pic's you mean were taken at Llandeilo Junction, handy for the tinplate works at Trostre. I understand that the tinplate was loaded into these as coils of sheet carried in stillages which I guess were lifted in and out as required by forklift or similar so the absence of baulks is probably because there weren't any. I'm reasonably happy, by the way, that the solebars on these were treated as part of the body work and thus painted the same brown as the 'bodies'. I guess that this probably applied to the headstocks and buffers as well.

Adam