West End Workbench

[Bill Bedford]

That palbrick is the one wagon more people ask me about at shows than any other.

I'm not surprised, I've never seen a photo of a real one with the extra bits above the headstocks.

[jwealleans]

Don Rowland, British Railways Wagons, page 26, plate 11. Diagram 1/019, apparently.

[Bill Bedford]

That explains it, there were eight of these converted from 13ton medium goods wagons.

[jwealleans]

Good job I didn't build 9 then. Thinking back, I'm not sure I'd have had the patience, it wasn't the easiest thing to build. I note he no longer offers it.

[52D]

A bit too far South for me but an excellent loco seems to be appearing.

[jwealleans]

Well despite the silence things have been happening albeit not perhaps as quickly as I'd have liked. Most of it has been me applying paint, wiping it off and trying again, which doesn't make for thrilling reading. Mr Markits did come up with the correct goods second time around and so the last of the C1 mechanisms was made up and tested.



This is a K's chassis for anyone struggling to follow. The flywheels came back drilled out to the right shaft diameter and have all been fitted.

Some applications of paint later this is where we are:



DJH (3276)



Ks (3296)

As I was painting apple green I also brought the 4025 gallon tender I built for the Raven A2 out and that has been done at the same time.



The lining needs tidying up but overall I'm not too unhappy with it. I'll use transfers for the rest.

While waiting for paint to dry I started on a couple of pending coaches. I had an MJT brake compo to build, but some of the components turned out to be for a standard rather than a brake coach. Instead it became this:



This is a D 5 SFO (semi-open first), which I think was almost unique to the ECML. The sides are Bill's, I think; they were bought on Ebay as part of an aborted build using resin cast Hornby ends and all sorts of bits and bobs. It's come to a halt for the moment while I wait for some more parts from Dart Castings.



We do need a number of brake coaches for Grantham, so while that's stalled I've also started this Comet D 175 BC. It's interesting to compare the two different approaches to the same coach: the Comet sides are much quicker to assemble as they're in two pieces, but the time saved is then spent making and fitting all the hinges, which aren't provided. I have to say I prefer the appearance of the MJT at the moment, but we'll see when they're both complete.

Finally a very happy Christmas and a prosperous and productive new year to everyone and a collective thanks for all your help and encouragement throughout the year.

[jwealleans]

Almost forgot. I made this as well. I claim no credit for the design, it's a copy of the one Derek Buck uses for the Ely MRC shunting stock.



It's a jig for setting up Sprat and Winkles. One end has a magnet set under the sleepers to make sure the hook drops (note OO wagon on EM track):



The other end has a goalpost to make sure the hook rests at the right height and the wagon goalpost is also correct. The visible discrepancy here is because Derek has set the wagon up with the hook through a slot in the buffer beam, but the stock on Uppingham, which this will be used for, has the hook below the beam.

[jwealleans]

Had a good session with the Bob Moore this afternoon. There's more to do but you can only use it so long before it starts to dry up and clog and you go cross-eyed.





The sharp eyed will note that the proposed 3296 has become 3275. This was due to a realisation that it had the wrong tender handrails. The loco boilers are lined with SMR transfers - they went on OK, but despite careful pressing and use of Microsol they have silvered to some extent. The tender of 3275 has been done with HMRS and the difference is quite apparent.

Question - is there any red lining at the top of the tender frames? There's no valance to line along and anything underneath would be invisible so I'm inclined not to bother.

The WSM body was so rough that it was impossible to line successfully so it's been through the paint stripper.



Irritatingly the brand new Railmatch aerosol I've been using has clogged, apparently terminally, so I can't do the tender until I procure a new one. Still, the loco will keep me busy enough for a while.

In between bouts of spraying and lining I have managed to finish a few wagons. You can't go all week without working on a wagon - t'aint natural.





The one on the right is K's, with a plastic roof and Dave Franks buffers. Brake gear came from Mainly Trains. I intended that one for Thurston but we can get away with it on Grantham as well, although it is from the 1943 batch.



I also spent a happy hour or so making handrails and footsteps for this Smallbrook brake van. This will probably end up numbered as one of the batch sold to the North Eastern. They do come with a resin chassis these days but I'm afraid I was too hamfisted to get the wheels in without breaking it, so it's had to be scratchbuilt. It needs some cosmetic stepboard struts and a bit of solebar gubbins adding.

[Atso]

I've always got a soft spot for Atlantics and those ones are really looking something special! I look forward to seeing the completed models in the New Year!

[jwealleans]

I'd like to be able to show completed models, but we're at the finishing and fettling stage which always takes ages. Still, we can test run again on Monday which will help.



3276 (DJH) is just down to final details to add now. This is undoubtedly the pick of the bunch but demonstrates the same issues Graeme had with the rear axle on his.



3275 (Ks) is playing up - I've clearly altered the relative position of some of the body components when I stuck back the bits which fell off in the paint stripper. I also removed some material from a slot under the footplate which allowed the body to sit fully down on the chassis for possibly the first time. I had to remove a fair bit from the rear splasher at one side to allow the wheels to rotate (plenty of clearance at the other side - which tells its own story about the kit). Running was very poor, though, which I traced to the crossheads and cylinders. Fettling those took a lot of this afternoon and finally one of the whitemetal crossheads fell apart. I'll get hold of some Comet ones next time I make up an order to Andrew H. To be fair that was the original plan until Comet went into their sad hiatus.



4412 (WSM) is moving through the paint shop and catching up the others. Mechanically this one isn't causing any issues. I may try to mount the cylinders of 3275 onto the chassis as that K's arrangement is a nightmare to reassemble. You can see the colour difference between loco and tender here, but both my spray cans of Precision Doncaster green have clogged irrecoverably so it'll have to be repainted when I next acquire another one.



I haven't done as much with coaches as I'd have liked over the holiday, but this one has moved on a little. Comet design their coaches to assemble body and roof to chassis as I like to and their single nut and bolt fixing at each end will be ideal for mounting the couplings. I was minded to put a fitting on each end to allow this coach to go at either end of a set. I have had to move the mounting nut and hole towards the end about 1mm to allow the coupling to pivot freely. I have also made and fitted all the hinges, which was one of those tasks you don't look forward to, don't enjoy but is worth the effort afterwards. I have another two to do as well. Yippee.

[Atlantic 3279]

Very nice. We should be fully atlanticked up come September!

[jwealleans]

Hmmm, been a while. George RR Martin can take a deal of the blame for that. Still, we're all up to date now and back to the bench.

I sat down and made the new cylinder stretcher for the Ks atlantic this evening. The slidebars took a great deal of thinning down to allow the brass Comet crossheads to slide freely. I think they're about half their original width.







It attaches to the forward stretcher on the chassis which I'd filed back quite a way to clear the bogie. I have built up a new Comet 6' 3" bogie as well which I'll try to pivot from somewhere between the driving axles. I expect I'll need to make up new frame sections as well once we see how much clearance there is down there. I need some brass tube to replace the missing piston sleeve on the rear of the cylinder and I don't have any the right size, so that'll be a Doncaster purchase, I expect.

Still no bits from Dart Castings so no more coaches started. The ones I was building have come on a little:



SFO - bit more filling and smoothing and the rainstrips over the doors and it'll be into the paint shop.



BCK likewise, there's just a bit of finishing on the roof ends and an approximation of the alarm gear to make.



Have we seen this before? RDEB ECJS D 49 BTK. This is awaiting an MJT roof so the Kirk one is just there to give you an idea. This is a 58'6" coach I think. One of the expanding range available from Andrew Hartshorne.

[LNER4479]

Yay! Great to see an update. I think the SFO is my favourite from that batch, a nicely distinctive vehicle. That one provides a bit of extra toff's dining accommodation on the 5.50 ex-KX, right?

[JASd17]

Quite right LNER 4479.

A GN Section train. Summer 1938 GN section carriage working book has D219 No.41262 on this service. But Jonathan's Diagram 5(?) would also do the job. It is working with a D10C Restaurant First. A Pantry Third provided 39 dining seats for that class.

John

[jwealleans]

I'm afraid I haven't learned the timetable yet, but I know it's one of the ones we need.

Have you (4479) spotted the one in the East Anglian film in the Rolling Stock section?

John, you are quite right, D5. We have a couple of D10Cs available now and an RTP in the queue.