Rob's 7mm Rolling Stock Workbench

[M Gair]

Hi Rob,

Nice work on the brake van.

The OO Restaurant Triplet set arrived today, just in time for Christmas. Thanks very much for packing it securely. I have a bit of work to do on it I see, but you have done a nice job on the painting and construction.
Have a merry Christmas and New year.
Mark in OZ

[Robpulham]

Thanks Mark,

I look forward to seeing your progress.

[Robpulham]

A couple of hours yesterday saw the brake van complete (or as complete as I plan to make it). I deviated from Jim's build methods by using some WEP compensation units, although I have fitted other vehicles exactly as Jim suggests without issue before.

I rolled some microbore tube in my rolling bars to ensure that all four sand pipes were to the same profile and then made the distinctive safety loops for the brake yokes from fine scrap etch. Besides painting the only things to complete are the springing of the coupling hooks/buffers.













As with the other Connoisseur wagons that I have built, this was a joy to put together even if you don't want to add any additional details.

[Robpulham]

Continuing on the NBR theme I put this together once I had finished the brake van.

It's a Majestic Models NBR/LNER Floor Cloth Wagon. aside from the etched strapping strips it only consisted of about a dozen individual parts so it went together in no time at all. In the absence of any detailed information on this I built it straight from the box with little deviation from the instructions.











What I need, if anyone can provide the answer is the placement of the lettering pre 1937. George Dawson had struggled to find this information and had guessed at post 1937 livery (according to his notes with the kit).

[Robpulham]

Since finishing the Floor Cloth Wagon and still being on holiday I haven't rested on my laurells. Next up on the workbench is another of last year's Christmas gifts, a Connoisseur Diagram 416 Midland Milk Van.

For once Jim seems to have provided more in the way of details than is necessary for this diagram of van.

He provides torpedo vents for the roof and their positions but referring to Midlad Carriages an illustrated review by Jenkinson and Essery reveals: "However, in 1904, the MR decided to fit many of its fruit and milk vans with torpedo ventilators to improve matters. We have no evidence that any of D416 were so treated"

The accompanying photo is the same photo that is included in Jim's instructions along with the drawing. Jim also provides a more detailed approx 7mm scale drawing. Both of these drawings show long handles for one of each pair of doors and there are etched T handles provided for the left hand doors.

The photo however only shows ring type handles on the left hand doors and by good fortune I had some nice Griffin castings in stock for these.

I am not sure whether the safety chains would have been removed by LMS days but I like them so I have added them. I opened out the holes in some short handrail knobs and soldered the chain into them before adding the hooks and soldering them to the ends.

Jim's Midland buffer castings are very nice but I don't particularly like the way that he offers to spring them so I raided the spares box and came up with some turned heads and modified them into "normal" sprung buffers.



This is where I got to just as the New Year chimed last night.

[jwealleans]

Rather nice, that. I built a 4mm parcels van when he still offered them in that scale and that was a really nice thing.

Have you had any advice about the floor cloth wagon? The basics are pretty well established - large 'NE' wherever the strapping allows it to fit, large numbering to lower right, capacity lower left, tare on the solebar somewhere near the middle. Not unlike this. Given that these were specialised wagons - were they part of the 'special' stock? - I'd have thought they'd be branded rather as they were under the NBR, probably using the same text (as they'd be painted in the same works as before).

Bit of a stab in the dark, but that's how I'd decorate mine.

[Robpulham]

Rather nice, that. I built a 4mm parcels van when he still offered them in that scale and that was a really nice thing.

Have you had any advice about the floor cloth wagon?

Not so far, but I do thank you for the thoughts - I may have draw up some word and get John Peck to print them for me for the none standard stuff.

[Robpulham]

Work on this slowed down as I went away for a couple of days at the New Year. A visit to the NRM at Shildon allowed me to see work on the A4 Dominion of Canada which is being cosmetically restored there to garter blue including both side skirts and the bell.

Since returning I have cracked on and finished the milk van ready for painting.

As I got to the final details I was looking at the cast whitemetal vacuum pipes and thinking that they would be quite vulnerable so I got some 1.5mm brass rod a few bits of scrap etch and some 24 gauge brass wire and made up these as replacements





In terms of time spent I could probably have bought some cast lost wax ones cheaper but I did enjoy fiddling about with them and I am pleased with the result.

These are a few shots of the van with the remaing details added. As I did with the brake van I beefed up the brakes with scrap etch to make them a bit stronger.

[Robpulham]

Next up is another one of Jim's goodies this one the GER/LNER Sand Wagon. This is the only kit of Jim's that I have built so far that has compensation built in.

I built it straight from the instructions, the only change being that I only added brake gear on one side. Parts are provided for both sides.

Having looked in volume one of LNER wagons at the couple of photo's in there, I couldn't make out a second set of brake gear.















Next on the workbench is a Welcome Wagons BR Pipe wagon.

I am building this to sell - Sadly I didn't read the description too well when I bought it, homing in on the LMS design rather than when they were built. So it's a bit late for the period that I model.

[Robpulham]

Trying to raise a few funds by clearing a few surplus items. This is one of the welcome Wagons range and it's a BR Pipe Wagon.

This is where I have got to in the last couple of nights

[Robpulham]

Almost all the add on parts for this kit are cast white metal. Despite planning to sell it I have scratch built the most vulnerable parts - so far these have been: guard irons, coupling hooks (Connoisseur beefed up with scrap etch).






I also managed to melt one of the plates that cover where the coupling hook goes through the buffer beams so I made a couple of those too. The next bit of scratch building was the brake cross beam. The cast one was too short so I cut off the cast arm that goes to the vacuum cylinder and made a new rod from copper tube and brass rod.




The next issue on mine was the tie bars between the axle boxes they are etched and have dimples for the rivets/bolts. I pressed them out before testing against the wagon and the bolt heads were out of line so I remade them from some scrap nickel strip.



I also added a spare MMP etched plate - not quite right for the wagon in terms of it's detail but infinitely better than the cast blob provided in the kit



The next problem encountered was that the cast brakes are not long enough to fit close enough to the wheels - the next job is working out the best way to make them fit.....

Regards Rob

[Robpulham]

In between fighting/building the pipe wagon, I finally plucked up courage to change the filters in my spray booth and like a lot of jobs it was much easier than my mind had built it up to be.

So a lot of the residents of the work bench have hit the paint shops in the last week.

Starting with this:

A Slaters MR open.

[Robpulham]

Further progress with the pipe wagon. Despite trying to cut them apart and stretch them, I struggled to get the brake shoes to come remotely near to the wheels.

So scrap etch in hand (I will be gutted when I run out of the nice strips that surrounded my J63 kit) I had a go at scratch building replacements.

This is a comparison of my efforts to thse provided in the kit.

[Robpulham]

Next on the paint parade is the sand wagon

[Robpulham]

Another fresh from the paint shops is the NBR Brake van. I still need to paint the lamps for the tops of the duckets.

I assume that they would be painted red, with red lenses but if anyone knows for certain it would be appreciated.