Geoff's G3 Workbench

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
A couple of photos of another wagon which will hopefully be included in the Williams Models range: an RCH Gloucester 5 plank open wagon, with the diagonal strapping on the inside. My method of construction is the same as for the NBR wagon using two layers of 1.6mm ply for the body, styrene strip for the strapping and Cambrian rivets and nuts.
One photo also shows parts for a Great Eastern wool wagon, which is just for myself. This is the first wagon where I had problems with the ply warping. I will need to split the floor into 30 individual planks and glue them to a new flat base.
glouc 1 008.JPG glouc 1 005.JPG
 

Jon Nazareth

Western Thunderer
Geoff
I did send you an email but just in case you didn't get it, I can machine up some floorboards for you if you would like out of beech or maybe sycamore. I can machine down to 3mm thick, just tell me what size and I'll sort it out for you. It'll save you having to cut them by hand oh and, no charge.

Jon
 

unklian

Western Thunderer
The Gloucester is looking very nice Geoff. What are the prototype dimensions for length (over headstocks) and wheelbase please ? I think it might make a good basis for some company as well as private owner wagons .
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Co were a bit unusual and used the inside measurements to describe their wagons. This one is 14' 5" by 7' 0" by 3' 1" inside, which makes 14' 10" over the headstocks. The wheelbase is 9'.
The diagonal washer plates also served as truss bars, which passed through the end planks and were tightened with nuts.

Once the kit is available, I'm hoping to convert mine to an Ipswich Gas Company coke wagon, which had 6 coke rails.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
back to the NBR Jubilee wagon. The hinge works, even with the delicate 3D printed plastic patterns, so it will be fine once they're cast in brass. For those who haven't seen earlier posts, the hinges are extra long so they can be used for the later NBR 8 plank wagon. For the Jubilee the kit builder just cuts the surplus off. I'm trying to maximise the potential for each casting, so Mike's not saddled with something that is unique to one wagon. They are also okay for the Caledonian Railway wagons.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
Final 3D printed parts for the NBR Jubilee wagon arrived from Chris Ward today. They are the brake pivot trunion, the side door catches and the strapping for the opening end door, complete with fastening peg hole.
I'm pleased with them all, but particularly the door catches, for me, they were much easier to draw than fabricate myself, especially as there are four.
I've included a plug for Chris Ward in the photo. I don't think he's short of work, according to the GOG gazette he's just produced a 3D printed kit of a GCR Sacré 4-4-0 in 7mm.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
While I'm at it, here's a picture of the diagonal strapping in the Gloucester 5 plank. I'd cut slots in the ends then pushed in plastic rod. Plastic tube for the washer thing, then a 14BA nut. I need to check some photos to see how much I should cut the rod down.
I got the drawing for this wagon from Dave Noble, who specialises in 5" gauge finescale:
http://www.davenoble.co.uk/Jan2012.pdf
He's part of the crowd who build wagons with working vacuum brakes, even had MRJ drooling recently.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
the Christmas holiday has given me the change to do more work on my GRS class 08 shunter. I've reached the detailing stage, adding the brake pipes. The kit comes with some nicely cast air brake pipes, but they're in white metal and are bound to get broken when coupling the loco to wagons. I've replaced the hose part with the plastic sleeve from some electric cable(the kind with a solid copper wire through it) the photo shows what I'm doing. I'm inserting a length of very fine brass rod in the sleeve, to enable me to bend the resulting pipe. It should be flexible enough to cope to most knocks.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
The etchings have come back from Grainge and Hodder for two other G3 projects:

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the smokebox and outside frames for an Eastern Counties railway Gooch class 'A' loco, and all the brass bits for a Simplex Y11 petrol shunter. if the test build of the latter is successful, and anyone else is interested, I'm thinking of producing this as a limited run kit. My version will be of the one based at Brentwood, with a wooden 'shed' body concealling the batteries and RC, so I won't need any internal fittings, but I intend including them in the kit.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
Yes, that's the one. John's pantographed a pair of frames for me, I'm hoping to build a test underframe over next next few weeks. I'll post the progress I make.
 

geoff_nicholls

Western Thunderer
Collected the pantograhed frames for the simplex Y11 from John Taylor, at the Manchester show. Assembled the underframe using some GRs frame spacers and axle bushes, and a pair of split spoke wheels (as per prototype) I fitted an MSC motor, which was to only motor/gearbox I could find small enough, but with 1/4" axles. It runs nicely, but with only one axle powered at present, needs a substantial weight to push anything. It copes with three GRS wagons. I hope to fit the chain drive next week. This is one project where I wish I hadn't gone over to RC; track power would leave the area above the footplate free for a detailed (and draughty) cab.
The wagon is a much altered Williams Models RCH 5-plank flexikit body on a GRS underframe, with scratch built floor and inside detail. eventually it will be lettered ICI Limestone.

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