4mm An EM Workbench: Mini-Signwriting (rough)

[AJC]

They are indeed. I often wish the North Sunderland had had one....

Just FYI, in case Dapol spares can be any use (plastic brakes, for example):

B4 OO Gauge - DCC Supplies Ltd

www.dccsupplies.com

Thanks for that - I did consider the brakes, but I decided against it in the end as meshing mouldings like this with a metal chassis is usually a swine to do as I know from bitter experience. A trial fit suggests good clearance of flanges and reasonable closeness to the treads which is what's wanted, I do have a very nice set of sandboxes from that source though which have yet to go on...

Adam

PS - the complete GWR tenders are one of the bargains of the age but I really don't need one of those.

 

[Daddyman]

A trial fit suggests good clearance of flanges and reasonable closeness to the treads which is what's wanted

Yes, there's rarely a problem if one is careful.

I'll take your word for it on the GW tenders!

 

[AJC]

And now the brakes in situ. No obvious shorts…



Now, exactly where am I going to put those pick ups? Too many ideas, all of which will need a hole cut out of the footplate. Watch this space.

Adam

 

[Lyndhurstman]

And now the brakes in situ. No obvious shorts…

View attachment 163906

Now, exactly where am I going to put those pick ups? Too many ideas, all of which will need a hole cut out of the footplate. Watch this space.

Adam

Coming along nicely @AJC Adam. Which is more than can be said for the Y4… pickups are one of my stumbling blocks; pressure, mostly.

Cheers

Jan

 

[AJC]

Coming along nicely @AJC Adam. Which is more than can be said for the Y4… pickups are one of my stumbling blocks; pressure, mostly.

Cheers

Jan

Pressure isn't such a big challenge, usually, anyway, it's finding a route that reaches the flanges (my preferred location of contact) that's reasonably discreet. Here, it should be ok, because the tops of the tanks obscure the tops of the wheels, it's just finding room through the footplate. That's slightly complicated here because there's a pocket for the DCC chip in precisely the place I want to put them...

Adam

 

[AJC]

Having found the B4 works properly, I’ve felt inspired to make moving metal parts in between working in a conference paper. Really I should knock up some vac’ pipes for the said B4, but I wanted a mechanical challenge. That means slide bar and cylinder assemblies, made from lots of tiny bits.



Yes the wrapper is slightly on the huh, but it works as it should. This project can no be popped back in its box for another few months until the mood takes me again.

Adam

 

[AJC]

Now it's cooled down and paint doesn't dry while you turn your back, another complete, if not fully finished wagon project of BR diagram 1/209, this being one of those with Morton brakes and strangely, GWR style lever guides. Why strange? This variation came out of Ashford... This one features lots of Rumney Models bits (levers, vees, lever guides, axleboxes), buffers from @Dave F. and the original kit by Parkside.



The lettering and white lines are by Cambridge Custom Transfers. Weathering will wait until I'm in the mood again - in the meantime, I'm finally adding droppers to the layout so it may be operable soonish.

Adam

 

[AJC]

Away on our holidays this week and to Norfolk. Naturally that means a ride between Holt and Sheringham, always a pleasure.



Actually my favourite bit of the line has always been Holt, something to do with the setting and the now fairly mature pines behind platform 2 (as it now is), improved by the motley collection of buildings they’ve assembled to make a pleasingly M&GN impression.





I know the real station at Holt is under the bypass and never looked much like this but it feels quite natural.



And they’re blessed with such fine motive power, too, of course.

Adam

 

[steve50]

One of my favourite places, I love going over the golf course crossing then looking out over the sea, and there's some fine views walking back down the line from Weybourne station, I wish I could spend more time there.

 

[AJC]

Back home (having discovered an excellent model shop in Cromer which stocked a great range of kits and bits including Railmatch colours). Anyway, activities here involve clearing the living room for a carpet fitter and running repairs to my workbench revealed the miscellaneous bits including this Cambrian Railways brake van. I suspect I bought the kit, many years ago, for some half formed industrial scheme.

As much as a decade and a half later, I’ve dusted it, laminated and reinforced the footsteps, added lamps and most of the castings. I dare say it’ll make a nice companion for Thomas…



Adam

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

and running repairs to my workbench revealed the miscellaneous bits including this Cambrian Railways brake van. I suspect I bought the kit, many years ago, for some half formed industrial scheme.

Ah, but did you find enough miscellaneous bits to form a hybrid wagon kit of no known prototype ?

 

[AJC]

Ah, but did you find enough miscellaneous bits to form a hybrid wagon kit of no known prototype ?

Funny you should say that, Dave: I have a couple of ends, a floor, a choice of chassis and some scribed planking and no end of buffers. No wheels as yet but the next drawer up needs mending too...

Adam

 

[AJC]

In between other things (waiting for paint to dry around the house), I’ve added all the remaining bits and now, primer. I should form a roof for the thing, shouldn’t I?



Adam

 

[AJC]

I got a bit ahead of myself yesterday evening so had time to paint and letter the ‘van.

Since the vehicle is destined to be paired with a certain Sodor-based tank engine I thought I ought to make an effort to get the livery ‘right’ so I delved into the peculiar world of the Thomas fan area of the internet (a very strange place indeed). It turns out neither Awdry, nor his illustrators, were very consistent with wagon livery, and almost never included lettering. The brakevans shown were fairly obviously based on Hornby tinplate so far as I can tell but some look quite close to my Cambrian van and that's comforting. The Sodor railway turned out to have a formal title, something I didn’t know, ‘North Western Railway’ so that was something! Hornby seem to have gone with mid grey for their trainsets, so that’s a choice made.

I went with Railmatch BR wagon grey (acrylic) and some lettering meant for North British wagons. I think the overall effect is plausible (as a wagon livery, anyway). Once the living room furniture is out of the kitchen, I'll get on and form some plastic sheet for the roof. I reckon the handrails should be white, however...




Adam

 

[AJC]

Here's a very long term shelf queen, which is really a sign of weakness of will and a lot of 'good ideas at the time'. I don't need a Jinty, though I quite like them as engines (the one now at the Spa Valley over the hill from me - in bits - used to be at Cranmore when I was a kid).

So this Jinty started out as a discard from when Bob Alderman moved completely to 7mm. It had a scratchbuilt chassis, whose frames were, I think, hand fretted from brass with etched rods under a Cotswold(?) whitemetal body which wasn't a lot of cop to be honest. With a set of early Gibson wheels. and Perseverance bearings on the front and with plunger pickups it was very '80s finescale. It had never worked that well but perhaps I could rebuild it?

It languished. Anyhow, I bought a very cheap Hornby body, started detailing that and then came upon a slightly more expensive Bachmann body and some etched bits and pieces with the intention of marrying Bob's chassis, suitably reworked, to that. I decided, following a small windfall, to replace Bob's work with a High Level chassis and to build that instead which takes us to where we are here. Even the original wheels were discarded as it turns out that they were actually GW drivers. They're a problem in search of a pannier, I suppose, but that's for another day. The frames live on under Thomas, so what seems like quite an expensive exercise is perhaps not *quite* as bad as it first appears?





Here's the state of play - a rolling chassis which, through my incompetence, proved harder to make workable than it should have been (anyone can broach out a coupling rod on the skew, but one really shouldn't). The rogue P4 axle that snuck is something I have no excuse for! Anyhow, I've almost succeeded in achieving running clearances, though the front steps have had to come off for a second pass.

This will at least be modelled on a Somerset-based example, one of those shedded at Radstock (47496), but that's the far side of the Mendip from my nascent branchline so remains absolutely implausible despite being in the same county. Still, it would be at home on the LMR environs of South Junction, so all it not quite in the realms of fancy.

Onward, slowly.

Adam

 

[ullypug]

Looks very good, though it does read a bit like Trigger's broom!

 

[AJC]

Looks very good, though it does read a bit like Trigger's broom!

It's EXACTLY like that - I think a couple of crankpins and fasteners survive but that's stretching any sense of a rebuild beyond credibility,

Adam

 

[AJC]

A small project for projects: a batch of vac’ pipes.



Yes, you can buy these but for some applications I like to make my own. They're simply 0.7mm brass wire with very fine filament wire (from a dead phone charger) wound around it. The end fitting is from a Rumney Models wagon detailing etch, but a wind of thicker gauge wire would be just as good to most viewers. Two pairs here for the B4 and Thomas respectively, and a pair for stock. Hopefully I’ll be able to find them again when I need them!

Adam

 

[AJC]

In cruel close up (and with a little dust), a Ford [not aV]8, nearly finished (for someone else). Flush glazing makes a huge difference but drove me scatty.




Adam

 

[MarkR]

Hi Adam,
I think it might be a Ford 8, also known as the Model Y, if it had a V8, it might be a bit of a handful!
Mark