Rollers

[Mr Grumpy]

lm a gnats whisker from finishing my present kit and have started looking for my next project.
It's no secret I have fallen for the yet to be released MOK 9f, which is strange as I thought I was going for a 33/1 !
However, the boiler is going to require rolling and I believe it should have a very slight taper.

My thoughts on this are:

Is this within my capability, as I have only rolled small items for oil tanker kits. (On a mouse mat with suitable diameter drill bit with annealed brass)

If I go for a rolling machine, what would be the best to buy? (Probably subjective to everyone's personal taste)

Is it worth buying one for perhaps the only boiler I may wish to construct?
If I make a hash of rolling, can I go back and roll again (nickle silver)

 

[mickoo]

I've a GW 10" one and love it, nuff said.

You'll find more stuff than boilers to roll, splasher tops and roofs spring to mind.

The Mok 9F will dent your wallet, shame to spoil it with an oval boiler rolled on a mouse mat....some people can roll boilers this way very well, the rest of us meer mortals cannot

If you don't buy one, I'll loan and send my rollers in the post when you get to roll your 9F boiler, I'd hate to see a grown man weep for a happeth of tar
Make a hash of it? In my limited experience you've really got to make a concerted effort with rollers to make a hash of it, take your time, do it in small bite sized steps, listen to others advice, practice on scrap material (I can send you plenty of scrap to play with) and add backing sheets to get a uniform roll and you'll be winner winner chicken dinner.

If not, I, and I suspect many others here would willingly offer to roll it for you and send it back pre rolled.

Besides, even if you only use it once you can probably still flog it on Ebay for £20 less than you paid for it.

Finally, you've fallen for the 9F (good choice ....I wish they'd hurry up with the Brit) over a 33/1, who's to say once you've done the 9F that you don't take a fancy to another kettle

 

[Mr Grumpy]

Many thanks for your kind offer Mick!
My goodness, fellow modellers can be so very generous with their time and resources
I have a GW rivet press and am very pleased, I almost bought their folding bars as well, but get by with my hold and fold.

 

[richard carr]

Richard

Those 10 inch GW rollers are as far a I know the only model size ones available. After that you are moving into the sheet metal workers realm where rollers start getting seriously big and expensive.
I have a set I bought 15 years ago, another tool that rarely gets used but when it does you are so glad you have them. If you are going to keep building kits then I would seriously think about investing in a set, you'll be pleased you did.

Richard

 

[Mr Grumpy]

There in lies my quandary!
I wouldn't get a great deal of use from them and I'm on a very tight budget which means I have to sell some RTR locos to fund the kit building. I know I need to build up my tool kit, obtaining the correct taps and dies, decent side cutters etc and I don't know if the rollers would become an expensive ornament.
I will take a look on Saturday at the Reading show. I have a pot of xmas cash which I was planning on using for good quality tools so maybe these could be on the list.

 

[oldravendale]

Conversely....... I've been building in 0 gauge for a long while now. Many - probably most - of the kits I buy have a pre-rolled boiler. You'll also find that quite a number of the kit manufacturers will roll the boiler for you if you ask, although whether they'll be as careful as you would yourself (or, indeed, Mickoo if you were to take advantage of his offered services) is an open question. I've always bought the kits or built up my quality tool kit in preference to a set of rollers and, even though I struggle with the phone book and broom handle approach to creating curves have always succeeded, always after some expletives. Perhaps I've just been lucky but, as an attendee at the Missenden Model Railway Weekend in March I usually borrow Bob Alderman's rollers if I see the need for a bit of boiler rolling coming up.

Having said which Mickoo has also pointed out that these rollers can be used for items other than boilers. Being in the fortunate position of now having a decent tool kit of decent quality tools and more kits than I'll ever build in two more lifetimes a set of rollers is now on my list!

Brian

 

[David Varley]

Possibly a little bit opportunistic of me, but I have a set of GW rollers that I simply don't and probably never will use. In fact I've never used them since I bought them from GW Models. Would be open to reasonable offers plus postage at cost.

 

[Mr Grumpy]

Possibly a little bit opportunistic of me, but I have a set of GW rollers that I simply don't and probably never will use. In fact I've never used them since I bought them from GW Models. Would be open to reasonable offers plus postage at cost.

Hi David,
I will drop you a PM
Richard.

 

[daifly]

The smaller (6") roller from GW Models also has rail guides which are perfect for putting an even, gentle curve into 7mm switch blades, stock rails etc.

 

[mickoo]

The smaller (6") roller from GW Models also has rail guides which are perfect for putting an even, gentle curve into 7mm switch blades, stock rails etc.

Yes, an omission on the 10" rollers to my mind.

Mind, I suppose I could always chuck mine up in the lathe and make my own rail guides if it really got to me

 

[Overseer]

I have been very happy with my 6" GW rollers. I bought the smaller ones as I like to build smaller locos, but thinking about it 6" is over 21 feet in O scale and I can't think of a UK locomotive with a boiler barrel 21' long so for loco building in O there is no need to have longer rollers.

Real railway workshops use a range of sizes-

this collection of rollers on nice cast iron stands (probably cast on site many years ago) is in the sheet metal shop at a carriage overhaul workshop, with a bigger powered roller part visible to the right. Not sure if the green monster in the background is a roller or shear.

 

[Ressaldar]

I trust that there is no alcohol in the fridge- just Loctite products

cheers

Mike

 

[oldravendale]

Thanks for your comments Overseer.

As I'm modelling in "O" I'll now be considering the 6" version - unless anyone can see good reason to go for the bigger ones.......

Brian

 

[Scale7JB]

Thanks for your comments Overseer.

As I'm modelling in "O" I'll now be considering the 6" version - unless anyone can see good reason to go for the bigger ones.......

Brian

Any rolled roofs for buildings required in the future?

JB.

 

[ZiderHead]

Roof/tumblehome for coaches perhaps?

 

[oldravendale]

Any rolled roofs for buildings required in the future?

JB.

Roof/tumblehome for coaches perhaps?

Never say never, but I'm not in to layout building, preferring to run on OP's or the club's. In fact I think I'd be inclined to make building roofs from Plasticard or card board were I to be tempted.

And for coach tumblehomes I think I'd need longer than 10" anyway, woudn't I? Very tempting thugh, if there are long enough rollers out there somewhere. I loath curving tumblehomes, probably because I've never been able to make them curve to my liking.

Brian

 

[ZiderHead]

Good point!

 

[Rob Pulham]

The only way that I have found to roll coach roofs is to use the 10" rollers and do them in two pieces which are then joined. I thought that I had a photo somewhere of one that I prepared earlier but I can't find it..

For coach tumble homes, I did a bit of a tutorial on I do it here

 

[oldravendale]

Thanks for your suggestion, Rob. Yes, I'm familiar with that and have tried it with singular lack of success. Nothing to do with roller size either - I have rollers from about 1 1/2" down to 3/16".

I know that it's done successfully by most. However, I've tried it under instruction and still failed. Maybe annealing the brass may help, but the last time I tried that on a brass roof I ended up with a piece of metal so twisted out of shape it went straight in the (recycling) bin!

Clearly this is a skill lacking in my techniques. I still have quite a few coach kits with which to deal so perhaps I'll eventually get it right!

Brian