Copenhagen Fields & TFW’s workshop

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Love the way layouts evolve over the years.

manna

[Tim Watson]

Just a few pictures of the production run for fitting the Kato extending couplings. In this picture the third class end of the set was tried out on CF. Setting up the articulated units needs a bit of fettling - one fairing needed a bit more clearance on one side - but they seem fairly robust on the layout.  The blue colouration is some appropriately coloured masking tape used to hold the bodies onto the chassis.

These are the bits needed to fit the couplings. 

This is the brass jig tgat is used to guide the drill to make 0.6mm diameter holes in the top piece of the coupling moulding. The 3mm-shank drill is simply turned by hand. 

The coupling is then offered up to the rebated end of the carriage floor and the holes used as a guide to drill the same size holes in the under frames.

Once one side was drilled, tapped 16BA and temporarily pegged in place with a bolt, then the other side was drilled and in this image is being tapped; again holding the tap directly between fingers. 

This picture shows the couplings in place with the bodies and attached 3DP fairings loosely in situ:  the extension mechanism can be seen at work in the upper set.  The lower set shows the top view of the couplings: they are very neat and will look prototypical in side view. The BA bolts were locked in place with nuts, the studs cut off with side cutters and then some cyanoacrylate adhesive run around the assembly. At the back of the coupling a little bit of steel shim was used to encourage the coupling to sit level. 

Once the set is fully made up, I may model some subtle folds into the fairings. I am awaiting some long 10BA bolts to make definitive roof/ body fixings to the under frames, as per the old Triang carriages. Once that is done I get can get to work on the interiors and bodywork. The Kato couplings have made life so much easier!

Tim

[Atlantic 3279]

Evidently the Kato system works and saves labour, although I was impressed by the hand crafted brass extending coupling. I must have missed the bit where you decided not to proceed with that idea and use the ready made Japanese offering instead.

[Tim Watson]

The extended brass coupling is used on the articulated section of each twin, the Kato system on the ends of the articulated sets. The Tufnol fairing doesn’t show up that well in the photo, but both should look quite good when painted to match the train.

Tim

[Atlantic 3279]

Sorry, yes of course, I see that now, and could have worked that out previously had I looked properly and thought properly...

[Tim Watson]

Last night, the full set of Coronation carriages was pushed around the front and also some of our new untested fiddle yard track on CF: as a scientist, I should have known better than to run an experiment with two variables.  The train seemed a bit stiff and one pair of carriages (the first class set) was finding every track irregularity. The offending carriages were stripped down until all that was left to test was the heavyweight articulated bogie - 2mm FS doesn’t take kindly to a wheel 0.5mm out on the B to B…After a tweak it all ran OK. Until the next test. 

Back in the carriage shops, attention turned to attaching the bodies to the chassis. Fixing a long bolt through the chassis to a plastic roof is bit of a challenge. I didn’t want to machine a heavy lump of brass and tap it to take the long fixing screw, but gluing on a nut is guaranteed to fail. The compromise solution was to solder a nut to some slightly curved thin nickel silver and bond that larger surface area to the underside of the roof. 

In this picture the eight coaches are tucked up together with 24hr epoxy resin, bonding the fixings to the roof. The bolts are passively in the chassis fixing holes to locate the nut fixings. 

Let’s hope the idea works…

Tim

[Jim de Griz]

There are times this forum needs a like button.

Those are looking really good.

Jim de Griz

[Tim Watson]

Well about 8 weeks ago none of this lot existed. At least they are now mechanically sound and should work OK on the next test on CF. 
Having tightened down the bodies with the new fixings, the brown Tufnol articulation fairings needed a bit of adjustment: they have to be completely free to move as any rubbing on the bodywork puts a bias on to the bogie wheels and stiffens the movement of the articulating bogie. Hopefully these adjustments will give a smooth running train. 

The light grey inter-articulated pair fairings may be adjusted to be a bit closer, but they exhibit a much more dynamic movement when working on the layout and may need a little more slack. 

Work can now start on cutting out the redundant side pillars in the bodies and making / fitting the glazing. 

Tim