The Norwich & Mucklemouth Railway - Eastern Eccentricity in EM

Herb Garden

Western Thunderer
The passenger stock project continues....

The 4th set of etches is for another diagram 502 or is it? Thanks once again to the support and guidance of @Buckjumper I've learnt something about this particular set of etches.

The ends on the etch are for a diagram 502 coach but the sides are for the last batch of diagram 503 brake 3rds so neither matches. So what I've decided is to correct the 502 I built last week to be a 502 and modify the 4th set of etches to be one of the last batch of 503s... The two main differences are that the 503s were 3in taller in interior height. 1mm in model form to the centre of the roof. The last batch of 503s gave recessed top panels otherwise they are basically the same coach
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So here's the 503 coming on with the Hornby body underneath extended to make a 27ft body and the start of laying some extra plasticard on the roof to bulk it up by 1mm in the middle I've then just got to blend it down to meen the sides giving a tighter radius arc than on the previous vehicles.

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What I love about passenger stock is that to the untrained eye it all looks the same but there are little details that provide wondrous variety
 

Simon H

Western Thunderer
Hi Simon,

Yes these are the Peter K ones. Goodness knows how old some of these etches were but some were almost brand new when I acquired them second hand

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You can hopefully see the difference in levels of tarnish between the 2nd & 3rd form the left and the one of the far right.... Just goes to show it make a difference how you store etched parts
I think I must have bought mine at least 30 years ago and I got the impression that they weren't exactly the latest thing then.
Pretty sure I found out about them in an issue of "The Colonel" (Col. Stephens Society journal); IIRC there was a list of then currently available kits or parts that were applicable to the K&ESR...I also bought a D&S kit for a GWR outside framed goods brake van at about the same time, for example.
I've noticed quite a bit of variation in the condition of a lot of etches...perhaps something to do with who etched them and how long they hung about before being packaged, etc.?
Watching your progress with interest,
Simon.
 

Herb Garden

Western Thunderer
I think I must have bought mine at least 30 years ago and I got the impression that they weren't exactly the latest thing then.
Pretty sure I found out about them in an issue of "The Colonel" (Col. Stephens Society journal); IIRC there was a list of then currently available kits or parts that were applicable to the K&ESR...I also bought a D&S kit for a GWR outside framed goods brake van at about the same time, for example.
I've noticed quite a bit of variation in the condition of a lot of etches...perhaps something to do with who etched them and how long they hung about before being packaged, etc.?
Watching your progress with interest,
Simon.
Issue 31 of 'The Colonel' is the one you want. Can be downloaded from Thier website.

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Whilst on a GERS zoom social tonight I've been able to make more progress on the 503 the roof shaping is complete. Ducket sides added and it has been dropped on to it's chassis.... Ride height still needs adjusting but it's getting there.

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Getting there but still more to do and other tasks are piling up in the background.
 

Simon H

Western Thunderer
Issue 31 of 'The Colonel' is the one you want. Can be downloaded from Thier website.

View attachment 261332
Whilst on a GERS zoom social tonight I've been able to make more progress on the 503 the roof shaping is complete. Ducket sides added and it has been dropped on to it's chassis.... Ride height still needs adjusting but it's getting there.

View attachment 261333
View attachment 261334
View attachment 261335
Getting there but still more to do and other tasks are piling up in the background.
Thanks for that...I'd pretty much forgotten about the Society, as my modelling has gone in other directions recently. There's a (very) long term plan for an EM Gauge light railway, though I suspect it'll be freelance in nature...
Cheers,
Simon.
 

Herb Garden

Western Thunderer
So the fun of these etches is that they were definitely hand drawn which means there are some discrepancies between parts. No more obvious than the duckets.

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Hopefully you can see the issue the individual ducket side doesn't match the coach end requiring yet more filing. But saying that it's starting to look like a finished coach.... Form this angle at least

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Herb Garden

Western Thunderer
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The basic form of the 503 is now complete! Absolute luxury if you were a 3rd class passenger in 1880s London

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I'm trying to get them all to a basic form before detailing starts here it is posed with the 1870s diagram 216 composite.

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They are still riding a little bit high if compared to the diagram 611 brake which is originally from the same era but I think I can adjust that.
 

Herb Garden

Western Thunderer
Hot on the heels of those coaches comes the next one
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The diagram 501 is a Johnson suburban design dating back to 1872 or so it shares many features with the later 502 and 503 but has one less compartment.

We met it back in post 893 And at a length of 22ft 8in rather than the later 27ft the Hornby chassis (at a scale 26ft) has required drastic surgery

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My first attempt made the wheelbase to short so I've had to cut and stretch the chassis again to make it suit the prototype.

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You can see the blunder I made but it all will get covered up.

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It will be a nice little coach when complete.

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So here's the current state of play of the passenger fleet posed at Skeetsmere's station. Yep 8 coaches and not one finished... Even for me that's embarrassing. Probably with an up and coming exhibition deadline I will have to be selective which ones get finished first.
 

Bigjohn

Western Thunderer
Earlier in this thread smaller needle files were sought,. Not having read the full content of this thread, ESCAPEMENT FILES are available from watchmakers suppliers H S Walsh was my local supplier in S London, others are available. The quality ones are “Pricy” .various shapes round triangular etc. HTH……..….big J
 

Herb Garden

Western Thunderer
Gents, I will make a point of 'filing' those suggestions away for future use, very helpful thank you.

This is probably going to be the last update on passenger stock for a bit as some of the components to get the electrical issues have arrived and getting that aspects of the layout working needs to be a priority
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The 501 has it's duckets done now.

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The 502 also has it's duckets completed and I've started filling the top panels as the 502 didn't have these unlike the later batch of 503.

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The most progress has been made on the 216. Roof, end steps, waist panels and door vents have been added so it's started looking like a coach.
 
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