Bill Bedford's New O4/5 Conversion Arrives

[Atlantic 3279]

New, full length reverse rod from plastic strip, cut, filed and laminated to suit:

Front details, modern chequer plate finish removed as described earlier.

Second new full length reverse rod fitted to original superstructure, Bachmann "shortie" rod lying alonside for comparison.

Tender with Great Central features in lieu of ROD fittings, but still no water scop control wheel fitted to front bulkhead: Old filler hatch pushed out from beneath, hole plugged with plastikard disc and smoothed. Old coal plate scribed around edges at front and rear then removed by use of side-cutters and by snapping, before cleaning up top of tank. New resin combined filler-hatch and water-scoop cover added, its front corner notched, and a small low rear coal plate added alongside. Original detachable metal "coal" ballast weight shortened to fit new space, with coal sides tapered and "under-bevelled towards rear to achieve neat fit with all coal egdes below adjoining plates.

One more overview.

[mick b]

Excellent work. The resin comes up really well.

I am surprised you reused the metal coal, which I think spoils the overall look of the Tender. Real coal looks much better IMHO. I added lead of similar weight to my O4/3 rebuild to compensate in the interior of the tender.

I now have a spare O4 to use as a O4/8 in due course.

[2002EarlMarischal]

Halfords Satin Black. Mine has actually come out a fraction shinier than the Bachmann paint, but the finish is influenced of course by the degree of "wetness" that you generate in each coat as you spray the paint. Lighter, drier coats, created by fewer passes with the aerosol and / or a greater working distance dry with a duller finish - but it may not be possible to put on all of the coats that way as the fine dry mist doesn't always penetrate into recess areas of the model, and too dry a top coat may leave too much texture.

At least the "shade of black" looks right (sounds daft, but black does vary), and a unifying coat of satin varnish and / or weathering will do the rest. Experience proves that Humbrol or Railmatch enamels will go onj over this black without trouble.

A further thought on those paint-pickling problems you've had Jim - I have heard it said that with some solvent-rich paints a good long hardening time MUST be allowed before any other "sealing" paint is applied over the top, otherwise, even though the paints may be chemically compatible, solvent trapped in the under-coat will have nowhere to go as it tries to complete its process of evaporation, and will soften / expand / attack one or maybe both layers of paint. I seem to remember being given dire warnings of this possibility in connection with Precision etch-primer, but it may well apply in other cases too.

Good light this morning so I grabbed some pictures - will try to post later.

Many thanks as always Graeme, great advice!

5008 looks splendid!

[Atlantic 3279]

I am surprised you reused the metal coal

The motivation was a strange mixture of curiosity (could it be made to fit?) and a sort of penny-pinching or waste-not-want-not mentality. Something along the lines of "why should I use up lead sheet to create new ballast when the Bachmann coal already provides it?" In due course a further thin dressing of real coal may well appear. It is of course, still cleanly removable as it is too, although the empty tender isn't fully correct as I haven't added the long cover for the scoop operating rod that should run through the length of the coal space at one side.

[Blink Bonny]

Ay up!

Why not try your local tyre fitting shop next time your transport of delight needs new shoes. I did that and got a large supply of tyre weights in various values. On my O4, I removed the casting to build a better coal hump, wrapped the weight (50g I think) in tape to prevent shorts and Bob was, indeed, my uncle. Of course, after rebuilding the tender rear, the coal casting wouldn't fit anyway so I'd really no choice. Why didn't I think about surgery on the coal casting?

On the 3Fs, the coal space isn't modelled at all - removal of the casting leaves a flat, featureless expanse of sheet plastic, albeit nicely painted! I also covered this with real coal.

[strang steel]

What always bemuses me about using real coal is how many people dont seem to break it up into small enough pieces. I know this is being pedantic but I have seen tenders full of 1cm lumps of coal.

This equates to approx 2'6" in 00 which is a little large even for loco coal.

[Manxman1831]

Looking at pictures of locos filling up from manual coaling plants, some of the pieces of coal are larger than a man's head! Which comes down to about 4/5 mm in 00?! Which according to my dad is about right. He used to tell me about my grandfather taking cobs of coal home on his bike from the shed he was at, resting it on the handlebars and hoping he didn't have to stop for anything.

[Blink Bonny]

Ay up!

If you know anyone with a real coal fire, then scale size coal is easy. Sweep up the fines and dust from the bottom of the coal scuttle then sieve it. You then have one pile of pure dust that will represent the slack and dross that was the stuff of goods engines and some bigger pieces for passenger engines.

Mix the two and you have...




...NUTTY SLACK!!!

[Atlantic 3279]

Eeeee, nuttty slack!

Long ago I passed some crushed coal through my own set of "screens", one collander, one kitchen sieve, one tea strainer* (yes dear, of course I'll wash them.....). Got four grades of coal:
1. Won't pass through collander = Very large lumps, "where's that big 'ammer this won't go through the firehole!"
2. Passes collander but not sieve = No 1 steam coal
3. Passes sieve but not tea strainer = Slack, though not nutty unless mixed with above.
4. Passes through tea strainer = Practically coal dust.

Although many, including George Dent in a very recent Model Rail mag, still advocate fixing the stuff in place with just PVA and leaving it at that, it seems my coal is highly sulphurous, and when left with its surface bare so as to look properly coal-like, in the varying heat and humidity of a loft it soon turns into a chemistry experiment, yellow sulphur crystals sprouting from its surface. Only when sealed by a full coat of black paint, varnish or glue does it remain inactive. The pity is, it doesn't then look absolutely authentic.

*We only have proper tea, made with leaves, in a pot in this house. None of your quick brew teabag muck thank you.

[jwealleans]

Graeme,

Get yourself to Grosmont and acquire a lump of best Bedlington (if there's any left). There's plenty of spillage on the path round to the back of Deviation Shed. I've been using it 10 years (all the same lump, I think) and I've never had that problem.

[2002EarlMarischal]

It comes to something when even railway modellers can fall foul of the "wrong type of coal"

[Atlantic 3279]

I'm pleased to have an added excuse for another trip to North Yorks: NYMR generally, good walking, New Inn at Cropton, fish and chips (Whitby, Pickering or Wetwang), Ormesby Hall, and now the right sort of coal.

Mmmmmmmm

[mick b]

Up their next month , will have a look !!

[Blink Bonny]

Eeeee, nuttty slack!

Long ago I passed some crushed coal through my own set of "screens", one collander, one kitchen sieve, one tea strainer* (yes dear, of course I'll wash them.....). Got four grades of coal:
1. Won't pass through collander = Very large lumps, "where's that big 'ammer this won't go through the firehole!"
2. Passes collander but not sieve = No 1 steam coal
3. Passes sieve but not tea strainer = Slack, though not nutty unless mixed with above.
4. Passes through tea strainer = Practically coal dust.

Although many, including George Dent in a very recent Model Rail mag, still advocate fixing the stuff in place with just PVA and leaving it at that, it seems my coal is highly sulphurous, and when left with its surface bare so as to look properly coal-like, in the varying heat and humidity of a loft it soon turns into a chemistry experiment, yellow sulphur crystals sprouting from its surface. Only when sealed by a full coat of black paint, varnish or glue does it remain inactive. The pity is, it doesn't then look absolutely authentic.

*We only have proper tea, made with leaves, in a pot in this house. None of your quick brew teabag muck thank you.

Ay up!

Dunno what it is about the stuff we get at the cottage but it's never gone yellow. Remind me of yer address and I'll send you some!

[mjbyyz]

One fairly obvious question - is this loco body solid or hollow? If solid, how much does it weigh, roughly? I'm thinking adhesion weight and, come to think of it, where does the motor go?
mjbyyz
120322-23:30EDT