West End Workbench

[jwealleans]

A very happy new year to all my readers and forum members. It's been a fairly quiet week but I have managed some time fiddling with some more of these wagons. Some of them really needed very little work at all.



Two different takes on the G2 van - I think the one on the left is D & S and the one on the right Dave Geen (or 51L?). I've repaired and completed the brake gear using the Wizard Models etches. There's not a lot more I can do for the moment - I have no .5 mm drills or decent photos to complete the door latching mechanism on the D & S one nor any rail to put along the top centreline to stick the roofs to.



Another G2 van - this one is different again - this one had been abandoned, I think, because one of the axleguards had been soldered on at an angle and it wouldn't run properly. Removed with judicious application of brute force and ignorance and replaced, it's now fine. The fish van only needed wheels and a vac pipe, it's otherwise complete.



D & S GE open - just needed a new floor and a single axlebox, which I used an RCH one for. The F2 van was also complete apart from wheels.



GN Implement wagon, main part of the floor replaced, just the infill parts between the ramps to add. Brake lever cut down from the Wizard Models parts. The single bolster has also had a brake lever added.

[Atlantic 3279]

I see that your New Year Resolution is the same one as ever - "you can never have too many wagons".

[jwealleans]

New? That's more of a fundamental principle, surely?

[JASd17]

Graeme,

What were the railways for?

[Woodcock29]

I must say I like Jonathan's principle!

My problem though is where to put all the wagons once my layout is full or should I say so blocked up with wagons its difficult to operate!

One solution is to agree to provide rolling stock for a new exhibition layout, even though it will be small and only require 25-30 wagons that will at least provide more room on my home layout, provided I keep those wagons in storage when not in use on the exhibition layout. However, a few of these wagons will probably be built from some of the kits I still have to build - oh well the idea was good!

I realise you don't have that problem Jonathan as your wagons are used to supply layouts elsewhere.

Happy New Year everyone.

Andrew

[drmditch]

New? That's more of a fundamental principle, surely?

I would remind you of a statement by (I think) Mr Jenkins Jones.
'There is never a shortage of wagons, only of empty wagons'

Perhaps that why most of mine don't carry loads.

I think there is another principle:
'Always make the next wagon you want to make.'
Now could that be stretched to include snowploughs as well. I have been thinking about........ for a while!

[MartinWales]

Nice work Jonathan!

Just working through some similar stuff myself! Happy New Year!

[jwealleans]

Well, here we are back on the sceptred isle, back in the jug agane and starting to finish off some of these wagons. First tranche are all for Wickham Market as thoughts turn towards its first outing in May.

Some of these vehicles have been built for a while but needed weathering and loads.



GE tender as a sludge carrier and a Ks Palvan. I've detailed the palvan a little and also made a plastic roof to reduce the weight.



Pair of unfitted opens, one Oxford, one Bachmann. Both have had some detailing work - the Oxford was a repaint from the LNER, done so you could see the old lettering - which I then sheeted over. Next time I'll leave it uncovered. The Bachmann is a repaint from the LNER version with extra body brackets added.



Bachmann Pipe, from their bargains list and a Parkside 5 plank open. The Parkside was a rescue of a badly built job, having had the corners tidied up and new brake gear added.



Pair of steel highs, one Parkside, one Bachmann (again from the Hattons bargain list). Some detailing on the Bachmann one - solebar brackets and lamp irons - while the Parkside was another rescue of a basket case.

Now, with Grantham not due out until November I was looking at the projects I have for Wickham Market and discussing them with the Ely chaps. I was going to crack into the Easterling set based on a carriage list given me by Andy Rush, but I was advised that they'd rather have an F6 for the Framlingham branch first. I've had the Gibson kit in the pile for a little while, so on Sunday afternoon I brought it out.



This will be 67230, as i have the most photographs of that one. Now, don't make the mistake of thinking it's almost finished. Up to now has been the easy part - there are no witness marks for any of the castings, steps or handrails, I haven't yet made up the drive mechanism and the carrying wheels aren't even ordered. Most importantly I haven't worked out how to get it to go round 3' or tighter curves, because it sure as hell won't as it is. I have some ideas, but would be pleased to hear from anyone else who's already been here.

[LNER4479]

This will be 67230, as i have the most photographs of that one. Now, don't make the mistake of thinking it's almost finished. Up to now has been the easy part - there are no witness marks for any of the castings, steps or handrails, I haven't yet made up the drive mechanism and the carrying wheels aren't even ordered. Most importantly I haven't worked out how to get it to go round 3' or tighter curves, because it sure as hell won't as it is. I have some ideas, but would be pleased to hear from anyone else who's already been here.

Crikey - a loco! Steady on, now...

It'll go round corners fine like that; it's when you put the outer wheels on that you want to start worrying.

[65447]

Now, with Grantham not due out until November I was looking at the projects I have for Wickham Market and discussing them with the Ely chaps. I was going to crack into the Easterling set based on a carriage list given me by Andy Rush, but I was advised that they'd rather have an F6 for the Framlingham branch first. I've had the Gibson kit in the pile for a little while, so on Sunday afternoon I brought it out.



This will be 67230, as i have the most photographs of that one. Now, don't make the mistake of thinking it's almost finished. Up to now has been the easy part - there are no witness marks for any of the castings, steps or handrails, I haven't yet made up the drive mechanism and the carrying wheels aren't even ordered. Most importantly I haven't worked out how to get it to go round 3' or tighter curves, because it sure as hell won't as it is. I have some ideas, but would be pleased to hear from anyone else who's already been here.

I've sent you some info to assist with locating parts. The Connoisseur 7mm F4/5 kit treats the radial carrying wheels as pony trucks, but John A Gardner wrote an article about making real radial trucks in S7 and I think Laurie Griffin might have done something similar too.

Is it too late to fret out the relevant shapes from the frames to form pony trucks, or some other arrangement that will provide some radial movement?

[Atlantic 3279]

If the frames are narrow enough to allow the idling wheelsets enough side movement to cope with the intended track curves you could simply unsolder the bearings from the frames, put the axles in brass tubes and suspend those tubes from a springy wire A-frame arrangement of the type I used under the rear carrying wheelset of one or two wide-firebox tender locos. I believe the outer axles would be best provided with some (lightly sprung) freedom to rise and fall, and gentle encouragement to centralise, in order to ensure the ability of the driven wheels to grip the rails, also to help the loco to follow the track and to ride steadily.

[UpDistant]

Jol Wilkinson is building a 2-4-2 with radial trucks for the carrying wheels - https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/inde ... oad/page-8. It is available separately from LRM - quoted minimum for OO is 24". At least your axles will be closer to perpendicular to the rails (on a "corner") than would be the case with an axle floating in a bit of tube. HTH

[Atlantic 3279]

But with the A-frame geometry of the springy wires correctly applied, and the springy wires kept close to the level of the axle to avoid tilting / twisting forces on lateral displacement, the axle tube does steer into the curvature of the track and remains level, under gentle load:

Another option for those who like to sort out such complexities is to look into available ratios for (preferably cheap) additional gears and to power either three or all four axles in the loco, allowing weight to sit firmly on those axles and reducing or avoiding the need for vertical freedom of movement in those outer axles - at least for the purposes of getting the loco to grip and pull. I won't bother with a repeat picture of the Atlantic I fitted successfully with gear-linked drive to the trailing axle.

[mick b]

Jol Wilkinson is building a 2-4-2 with radial trucks for the carrying wheels - https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/inde ... oad/page-8. It is available separately from LRM - quoted minimum for OO is 24". At least your axles will be closer to perpendicular to the rails (on a "corner") than would be the case with an axle floating in a bit of tube. HTH

How do you (or anyone else) suggest, as to how the trucks are mounted onto a non LRM chassis ? The etch appears to be suitable for the LRM chassis only due to the etched mounting posts on that chassis ?.

I have a F8 with same problem as JW's Loco.

[john coffin]

This is a constant problem for anyone designing kits with trailing or leading pony trucks(yes I know the rear are not called pony, but it gets the point across)

When I designed my two GNR tanks, more than 10 years ago, C12 and N1, I made the trailing axle a separate item where the split was hidden
by the steps. The same could be done on almost all of the Gibson GER 2-4-2T's, although it would of course mean more frame spacers etc.
In the 70's the somewhat lamented Rod Neep used insets in the frames for his N2 chassis to fit under the Airfix et al body. That was much like
the real thing, but relied on a very careful build which I never did get right in those days.

Atlantic's idea is a good one, but still relies on cutting the frames or creating another inner wheel carrier.

At the time I did my work many people complained about the lack of "prototype accuracy", but no one subsequently has complained about
them going round curves!!!!!!
SInce most people are dealing with non scale track, and curves, the appearance of a separate pony or trailing truck that is hidden by the
steps seems to me a sensible compromise. However it is difficult to do once the frames have been soldered up as nicely.

Paul