Scratchbuild a wagon in styrene

Overseer

Western Thunderer
Jon,
Looks good, thanks for showing it - you should build some more. There are lots of different ways to put styrene sheet together, it is a case of trying different methods and finding the ones that suit you for the particular model you want to build.

Has anybody started a wagon in the last few weeks? I would like to see some progress photos before I finish mine.
 

adrian

Flying Squad
Jon,
Has anybody started a wagon in the last few weeks? I would like to see some progress photos before I finish mine.
Not quite - About 20yrs ago I started building a couple LMS long tube wagon using thin ply (following Chris Crofts articles in MRJ). Although this thread has made me dig them out of the cupboard and seriously contemplate finishing them off.
 

mickoo

Western Thunderer
Me neither LOL, first choices are to pick a railway (US- UK, it's the usual cyclic interest bubble olympics) and then decide on which wagons I want and more rightly which ones I might need LOL

But you carry on old chap, don't let my indecisions spoil your work flow :thumbs:
 

Simon

Flying Squad
Well not a wagon exactly....

A companion for the very nice brake van that John Dale gave me, a Liskeard & Looe Composite.

Coachside.jpg

Great thread by the way, all pretty much what I do when making wagons except that I have only just got the Olfa groovy tool and I do all the right angle/parallel stuff by eye against a cutting mat with a grid, being a bodger at heart.

Your right angle frame idea is very good though, and doesn't look too difficult....

You work much more quickly than I manage, although it's surprising how little tasks will add up to a result.

All joking apart I really can recommend scratch building, it's very satisfying and (I suspect) often much easier than building a kit. And best of all (subject to information and your imagination) you can build whatever you want:thumbs:

Simon
 

Overseer

Western Thunderer
But you carry on old chap, don't let my indecisions spoil your work flow :thumbs:
Work flow is not a term I would have thought of in this context. There is rarely any flow, things tend to be erratic but I do like to get on with things while in the mood and before the real world gets in the way as it often does. Then when I get back to the work bench it is a lottery which half finished object catches my attention, or whether something else is started. I find exhibition bookings are very good for focusing attention and getting things finished. WT works too. Now back to the nuts and bolts before I start the Presflo or maybe scratchbuild a 1930s 13 ton steel private owner wagon in brass - no that had better wait as I don't really have enough information yet.
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
Not in the last few weeks, no. There are a few scratchbuilt (well, with modified kit components) styrene wagons that can be found on my workbench thread - all 4mm, I'm afraid - which you might be interested in: 4mm - An EM Workbench: A 3F indulgence

Otherwise, here's something which may, or may not have fetaured. it isn't exactly a scratchbuild since the chassis is modified Parksdie but the body, if you can call it that is. This is one of a pair of Coil S that reached this stage quite quickly and then stalled because I need to make a jig for the metalwork (it was L section steel and angle on the real thing: BR Rod Coil S - open merchandise conversion KSV). The plastic is the easy bit, it's the metal work and making a couple of loads of rod coil from a spool of 5 amp fuse wire that's putting me off currently...

CoilSE.gif

My method for scribing planks differs from yours in that it's rather low-tech; I mark up using either a pair of draughtsman's dividers or digital Vernier callipers - these can also be used to scribe the lines. The dividers are good because they ensure the planks are a consistent width, but usually I simply use the point of a scalpel in the same way that Geoff Kent employs his scraperboard tools, i.e., perpendicular to the line of the plank rather than in line with it which gives a nice 'V' shaped groove. The sides are them cleaned up with a bit of fineish abrasive paper and the planks tidied up with a combination of a scalpel blade, finger nail and, sometimes, a glass fibre brush. this process gives about the right amount of relief and texture for 4mm, i.e., not a lot!

Adam
 
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Overseer

Western Thunderer
Just a quick update. Some more nuts added while sitting in front of the television -
LNWR open2.jpg

And found one of my unfinished HO wagons for comparison. It is also an 18 foot long wagon with 3 foot high sides, although with a steel underframe and cupboard doors.
LNWR open1.jpg
LNWR open4.jpg
The nuts on the HO wagon are much smaller than the 7mm scale one but do look a bit over size when shown close up. 7mm scale is much easier to work in. I think it becomes considerably harder to scratch build convincing rolling stock in the smaller scales, even the difference between 4mm and 3.5mm scales is substantial when adding details.
 

Overseer

Western Thunderer
7 1/2 years later the ex LNWR Diagram 84 wagon is nearing completion. The Exactoscale LNWR 9' 9" underframe (with brakes) was put together years ago, then the buffers were added a year or two later. It has been on the shelf since then. The buffers were a problem. The post-1910 Diag 84 wagons were built with 2 rib LNWR buffers instead of the earlier 1 rib buffers. I found 2 manufacturers made 1 rib buffers but couldn't find any 2 rib buffers. Surely there are 7mm models out there of later LNWR wagons. Anyway, having put the one rib buffers on thinking they will have to do, I thought a bit harder last night and decided the 1 rib buffers could be converted to 2 rib buffers. And so they have been, by carving off the single white metal ribs and cutting out 15 thou styrene triangles then cutting more bits off the styrene to fit the triangles to the buffer stocks and supergluing them to the buffers. Plus a little filler. I think they look OK and look more like they should. I assembled and fitted the brake levers and guides, and added some nuts to the solebars. Now just a few bits of strapping to add to the solebars, fit the axleboxes (the wagon being modelled had RCH axleboxes fitted to replace the original LNWR or later LMS axleboxes), add door catches with chains and some horse hooks and it should be ready for paint.

D84 a1.jpg
D84 a2.jpg
D84 a3.jpg

The Exactoscale suspension really is nice. The wagon glides along on its springs. Hopefully they will be available again soon as I don't have any spare sets left.
 

Keith Phillips

Western Thunderer
I've been looking for this thread, on and off for months. I saw it a while ago, went to a show and bought the scribing thingy and then couldn't find the thread again :headbang:. So I, for one am very happy that progress has been made.

Lovely work which I will hope to emulate in my future endeavours.

Keith
 

Overseer

Western Thunderer
Nearly there, brake safety straps and a few other bits left to add and it will be ready for paint. Still deciding on the colour, probably filthy remnants of LMS grey. I don't know how many pre grouping wagons would have been painted LMS bauxite before WW2, probably not many. The black and white photo I am basing it on shows that the wagon was certainly not repainted by BR.

d84 b1.jpg
d84 b2.jpg
 

Overseer

Western Thunderer
It had to happen, just after airbrushing some grey paint on I realised I had forgotten the door springs so they will have to be added. Not a big problem. The wagon must have been grey because it still had remnants of large LMS lettering. Next more paint to make it look like it might have in the early 50s, it will have to be extrapolated from the early 60s photo.
pipe f1.jpg
pipe f2.jpg
pipe f3.jpg
 

Joe's Garage

Western Thunderer
I too have only just seen this thread, very informative and motivating.
Thank you for posting this over the years.
Now which wagon shall I choose?
Julian
 

Overseer

Western Thunderer
Thanks Julian, John and everyone who has liked posts. I hope the thread encourages people to have a go at scratch building. The materials are cheap so throwing away the odd mistake while practicing is no real loss. With this wagon I decided to model it at the end of its life after changes from its original condition so even if a plastic kit or rtr is released it is unlikely to be the same.

Not sure how many pictures people want to see, but the current state is this-
d84 c1.jpg
d84 c2.jpg
 

Bazzmund

Active Member
I started down this dark road to build Taff Vale pattern 6 ton coal wagons.

50609493638_c2c7666f13_c.jpg
 
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