4mm An EM Workbench: Tank tribulations
- Thread starter AJC
- Start date
AJC
Western Thunderer
While the young man is having a nap (I’m on leave to look after him for a few weeks), a look at the LNER AVB. We started here:
And have, with the addition of a few bits of wire, reached this point:
Which looks like this the right way up:
Arguably, the solebar brackets make a greater difference to the overall look of the model than the brake detail. We’re missing the safety loop under the inter-vee linkage at this point, but once that’s done, the complicated bits will be over with just the levers to add. I might even use the cast ones this time: if they’re good enough for Geoff Kent…
The longer version of the same gear on the Tube:
I’m trying to keep this in step as a way of moving the model on. It’s more or less working.
Adam
And have, with the addition of a few bits of wire, reached this point:
Which looks like this the right way up:
Arguably, the solebar brackets make a greater difference to the overall look of the model than the brake detail. We’re missing the safety loop under the inter-vee linkage at this point, but once that’s done, the complicated bits will be over with just the levers to add. I might even use the cast ones this time: if they’re good enough for Geoff Kent…
The longer version of the same gear on the Tube:
I’m trying to keep this in step as a way of moving the model on. It’s more or less working.
Adam
Last edited:
AJC
Western Thunderer
Another step onward - the conflat is much the same - and what’s appeared are a collection of safety loops, spring stops (Rumney Models spares), and small details on the solebars along with brake levers. Lever stays and so on still to add.
The Tube is a struggle, partly because all that brass is a heat sink. Still, nothing has fallen off, the solebar brackets are in place (scrap etch), and we can move on to more interesting things. I might even remember to reshape the end stanchions.
Adam
The Tube is a struggle, partly because all that brass is a heat sink. Still, nothing has fallen off, the solebar brackets are in place (scrap etch), and we can move on to more interesting things. I might even remember to reshape the end stanchions.
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
The problem with Tubes and Pipes - anything with a lot of doors, really - is the accompanying detailing. I think the door control spring fittings were supplied as castings and I didn’t have those. Chances are they’d have been chunky and overscale so they’re no great loss, but you can’t very well afford to leave them off.
So what I’ve done is make up some triangles of brass, with a tail to insert through a hole I drilled through the solebar, from scrap. That provides the hinge pivot (left).
The arm that links that to the door is a bit of 0.7mm nickel silver wire filed square on three sides and bent through 90 degrees (I needed to file a Nick in that to allow the bend), poked trough a hole drilled through the planks. This was then soldered in place, through the door and to the pivot before being cut to length in situ.
Two done, six to do.
Adam
So what I’ve done is make up some triangles of brass, with a tail to insert through a hole I drilled through the solebar, from scrap. That provides the hinge pivot (left).
The arm that links that to the door is a bit of 0.7mm nickel silver wire filed square on three sides and bent through 90 degrees (I needed to file a Nick in that to allow the bend), poked trough a hole drilled through the planks. This was then soldered in place, through the door and to the pivot before being cut to length in situ.
Two done, six to do.
Adam
Last edited:
Lyndhurstman
Western Thunderer
Nice fettling, Adam. I took the easy route with the MEDFIT and made some cuts out of plasticard sheet, but yours will undoubtedly endure beyond mine!
Jan
Jan
AJC
Western Thunderer
Were it a plastic kit I'd have done just that - since it's brass, soldering was the natural solution!
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
Here you are, Tony:
Note that the solebars are actually inset into the underside of the floor moulding. Note that the holes through the buffers are to allow for brass versions of the steps that went on top of the real thing - Parkside provide mouldings for these, I'll be employing more scrap etch.
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
I suspect that the drawing was the source for the kit, so they ought to match! No problem.
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
Ah, yes. I’ve not built one of those (LMS, I think? A single door in the middle?), like all those Chivers opens, quite chunky. At least with the 21 tonners you could take a large file to the insides! I think, with the SR engineer’s Tunney, I just left the moulding as was, maybe a slight feather on the top edge?
That said, I have to remake the body of a scratchbuilt 1/033 as the 30 thou’ I used bowed badly, it was just too thin. Win some, lose some.
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
Ah, thanks! I'd not seen a completed 4mm one before now, but even the 7mm equivalent look a bit big...
Adam
AJC
Western Thunderer
Since we have COVID back in the house again, and everyone else is asleep, I’ve done a bit more. All castings now in place (buffers, drilled for sprung heads from @Dave F., the rather lovely BR heavy duty axleboxes from Rumney Models, as were the worksplates and lever guides), and the vac' cylinder from one of the many Parkside sprues I have in the box. Note that there are a few bits of extra detail to be added in plastic, notably the capping strips - these are included on the etch and one door's worth have been fitted, but there's no way I have the patience to solder more of these on - so these will go on after primer.
All in all I'm quite pleased with that, but what a lot of work to get there! It is, I note, almost exactly the same length as the Bogie Bolster E with which it currently shares a shelf.
Adam
All in all I'm quite pleased with that, but what a lot of work to get there! It is, I note, almost exactly the same length as the Bogie Bolster E with which it currently shares a shelf.
Adam
Last edited:
David Geen Tank
New
AJC
Western Thunderer
Another long(ish) term wrestle. This Geen tank is made of very soft alloy and turned out to have a lot of epoxy holding it together. But it has brakes, is now broadly square, and is well on the way to becoming a tar tank. Additions since we last saw it include buffers, obviously, proper mechanical fixings from tank to chassis and retensioning of the retaining straps. There’s a new discharge pipe underneath for good measure.
Less obvious, but more significant, is the reprofiling of the ends which were very flat. I added a disc of 40 thou’ stuck on with some JB Weld, took a big file to the result and tidied up with Milliput. It’s ugly (and parallax makes it look worse than it is).
I’m going to add heating inlets on one end and new end bracing, as well as solebar detail before thinking about a suitably anonymous small fleet owner eking out its last days. I have a kit for an Air Ministry tank in the drawer (from Rumney Models); I fear this is one instance where it might be better if they didn't appear in the same train...
Adam
Less obvious, but more significant, is the reprofiling of the ends which were very flat. I added a disc of 40 thou’ stuck on with some JB Weld, took a big file to the result and tidied up with Milliput. It’s ugly (and parallax makes it look worse than it is).
I’m going to add heating inlets on one end and new end bracing, as well as solebar detail before thinking about a suitably anonymous small fleet owner eking out its last days. I have a kit for an Air Ministry tank in the drawer (from Rumney Models); I fear this is one instance where it might be better if they didn't appear in the same train...
Adam
Last edited:
David Geen Tank
New
Herb Garden
Western Thunderer
AJC
Western Thunderer
I just hope that the effort is worth it! The end stays ought not to be too difficult, but it’s not a great starting point to be brutally honest.
Despite that it’s far from the worst kit I’ve built. That's this one (because pretty much all the underframe and brakegear detail was unusable and there was no positive location for anything - the unfitted version of the same kit would actually be fine, well, barring the shrunken whitemetal headstocks - the fitted brakegear is very complicated and very badly rendered, what you see here was either scratchbuilt or borrowed from spare bits from Rumney models. It took absolutely ages):
Adam
Last edited:
David Geen Tank
New
AJC
Western Thunderer
A little less parallax, and the start of the end stays added. The real thing (on 1911 spec’ wagons, which going on the drawings in Tourret seems to be what this is) had chunky square section ones, I can’t remember what happened to the ones from the kit, but they’re easy enough to make.
A bit of 10 thou’ represents the steel channel and I’ve pinned it to the tank with brass wire dowels. I’ll need to buy some T section for the uprights, but I have some suitable etches from Rumney Models - meant for detailing Bachmann tanks - that will resolve the problem of the diagonal stays.
Adam
A bit of 10 thou’ represents the steel channel and I’ve pinned it to the tank with brass wire dowels. I’ll need to buy some T section for the uprights, but I have some suitable etches from Rumney Models - meant for detailing Bachmann tanks - that will resolve the problem of the diagonal stays.
Adam
Last edited: