Tullygrainey

Clandestine? In that uniform?

Some progress on H. Leslie's bodywork. Tricky little beast, this one. A saddle tank that had to be rolled and a lot of edge to edge soldering. I decided the best way to make things fit was to solder up the shell, then carve bits out of it until the chassis/motor can slide into place. That boiler bottom is unlikely to survive intact. Those of a sensitive disposition, look away now.

More Hawthorn Leslie. A High Level RoadRunner Plus gearbox was bundled with this kit. Little gem. The 2mm steel shafts on which the gearwheels freely rotate are fixed in place with glue on one end. This can be tricky and I managed to lock the primary drive up almost solid by being too free with the superglue. Discovered in time to push the shaft out and start again. Used UHU instead - it doesn't run along the shaft. The final drive on this gearbox can swing through an arc to aid fitting it into different chassis. From here... ... to here... ... but it then needs to be locked in one position using solder or glue before being used. To do that, I need to know that it will fit inside the bodywork. Too high and the motor may not fit underneath the saddle tank... ... too low and it may not clear the bottom of the boiler. The geartrain may also intrude into the cab in this position... .. so I'm going to park the chassis for a bit and build enough of the superstructure to let me decide where to lock it. Decisions, decisions... Alan

The instructions for this one are brief, to the point and for the most part unambiguous. One sentence though, made me laugh out loud and if you've ever built an etched chassis, it may make you laugh too.... "Fit coupling rods and ensure smooth running" Seven little words to describe at least three days of sweat, toil and bad language.

I suppose even Mashimas give up the ghost eventually. Good luck with the rebuild David. The High Level motor & gearbox combination should be a good substitute.

Coupling rods and hornblocks. The gubbins of a compensated chassis. The rods are two layers soldered together. The hornblocks are High Level SpaceSavers with bearings for 1/8th inch axles. Nice fold-up design. No soldering required for these. Poppy Woodtech chassis jig came into play to set up the chassis. The crankpin holes on the rods were reamed to be a neat fit on the axle ends. A bit of biro spring between the hornblocks helps keep them in place for soldering. Hornblocks soldered in The finished model will have Gibson wheels which are an interference fit on their axles so to avoid taking them on and off too often, a temporary set of old Scalelink wheels (which bolt on) were used to help set the chassis sitting level so the compensation beam could be soldered in place. Despite my best efforts, I still drilled the hole for the compensation beam in the wrong place, meaning that it had to be bent to sit on top of the axle - just what I was trying to avoid in the first place Job done. One compensated chassis. The rods will need to be reamed out a bit more to fit the Gibson crankpin bearings. Then we'll see if we have a free-rolling chassis. Best to establish that before trying to add connecting rods, crossheads and slidebars to the mix. Happy Easter everyone. Alan

Thank you for those kind words about the County Down locos Jonathan. It was a pleasure to meet you. Maybe get a chance for a proper chat next time. Just to avoid any confusion, I can’t lay claim to the H&W diesel No28 in UTA black (though I wish I could). That’s a very fine example of Gareth Brennan’s work.

Lovely afternoon. Good company and sound-chipped diesels. Who could ask for more!

If I could match that bloke I’d be eggstatic

Maybe it’s so small it’s approaching watch-making. Travelling hopefully

The problem with shiny brass is that it tarnishes. You have to Brasso it every second day

Yes David! By coincidence I’ve been pondering No6 for a while. That particular wheel arrangement, along with 4-4-0s too seems to be tricky to get working properly so I’m tempted by the challenge. I have a copy of Mike Sharman’s little book ‘Flexichas’ in which he describes a novel approach. I’d like to try it! A bogie tank would be good too. I did one from an Adams Radial but it would be nice to get a bit closer to the prototype with a scratch build. What are you planning with that footplate?

I have High Level and MJT versions in the drawer and was debating which to use but yes, probably the High Level ones.

After a very enjoyable weekend with Patrick Davey's Brookhall Mill at the Bangor Show last weekend, my loco-building gene started to agitate again. What next? A number of folk have suggested (and keep suggesting!) a BCDR Baltic but those things still have too many wheels and whirly bits. As well as all things BCDR, I have an abiding affection for scruffy little shunters, both steam and diesel and in my to-do drawer for a while now has lurked an etched kit for a Hawthorn Leslie 0-4-0 saddle tank crying out to be built. So I've made a start on it. Since it's not by any stretch an Irish loco, you'll find the build in the 'British Outline Modelling' part of the forum. Alan

As well as all things BCDR, I have an affection for small shunters, both diesel and steam and this etched kit for a Hawthorne Leslie 0-4-0ST in 4mm/foot scale has been in my to-do drawer for a while now. The kit was bought complete with motor, gearbox and wheels so all the bits are here. No excuses. Time to get going on it. It's here rather than in my workbench thread because it ain't Irish. Though marketed by CSP these days, the chassis etch identifies it as an Agenoria Models kit. If memory serves, Agenoria produced kits in 7mm scale, suggesting that this one is the original etch scaled down to 4mm. The result is some impossibly small bits which I suspect the carpet monster will acquire before ever I manage to attach them to the loco. Whilst the instructions just describe the building of a rigid chassis, the frames have been designed to accommodate hornblocks for a compensated chassis and have half and fully etched guidelines for fitting these. With only 4 wheels and a short wheelbase, this little beast will need all the help it can get to stay in contact with the rails and not stall over points or bumpy track so some form of compensation would be desirable. I'm building it with one rigid (driven) axle and one mounted in hornblocks, pivoting about a central point. This will require something to pivot on so the first job was to drill a hole in the front frame spacer into which a short bit of 0.7mm brass rod can be soldered to provide a fulcrum for the front axle. Some jiggery-pokery required to get it in roughly the right place. A Stanley knife and a fine file took care of cutting out the hornblock openings. The fixed bearings for the rear axle were soldered in - shoulder inside for OO according to the instructions and not what I would usually do. Spacers folded up and chassis assembled on a sheet of glass on top of a board with an end stop to help keep it square. The long axle also provides a visual cue. Important to proceed slowly and keep checking for squareness. A bent chassis will never run well. And here it is, hopefully straight and the basis for hanging all the other bits on. Next job will be assembling the rods and hornblocks. The former will then be used as jigs to set the latter in place. More soon. Alan

This is shaping up well. Glad to see your new tank loco has found a home! Regarding the station roof, there's a thread on the 'Narrow Gauge Railway Modelling Online' website devoted to photos of weathered corrugated iron. Plenty of ideas there for what a weathered station roof might look like. The link below may not work if you're not a subscriber to the forum but like this one, it's free to sign up. Worth a look. Alan https://ngrm-online.com/index.php?/forums/topic/1257-corrugated-iron-photos-please-add-yours/

Hello Stoby, As regards track, you'll find that there are lots of opinions regarding the best way forward because accurately scaled track to suit the Irish standard gauge is not commercially available. Many modellers get around this by making their own track. If as you say, you're new to the hobby, making your own track probably isn't what you want to do. Not just yet anyway. Rest assured, you're not alone there. Many of us find that notion pretty daunting so we compromise and use whatever is commercially available, even though it may not be absolutely scale-accurate. I'm guessing you're planning to model in 4mm/foot scale or OO to give it its more common title. The track most widely used in that scale is Peco Streamline Code 100 with a track gauge of 16.5mm. This allows most commercially available locomotives and rolling stock to run on it without modification. The range consists of various ready-made points together with long lengths of flexible track. Good luck with your modelling and keep asking the questions. As Metrovic says, this is a very supportive forum. Someone will have the answer. Alan

If not before

Great video Patrick. Especially like the shots of Hunslet 101 pulling that lone linen van away from the mill. Just to pre-empt anyone charging us with telling porkies, the BCDR tank loco in the video is No30, the one that began life as an Oxford Rail Adams Radial. Not quite a scratch build, though it felt like one at the time

Great progress already David. I like your technique of overlaying onto clear acrylic sheet. A much better approach for something with so many windows than trying to glaze it after the event. Salted away for future reference

Thank you Patrick for the opportunity to run trains this weekend. Hugely enjoyable. Also a weekend to meet people and put faces to names. Thanks to all of you who came to say hello. And due to a signalling error somewhere around Ballymacarrett, a number of BCDR locos slipped into the platform at Brookhall Mill so the fitters at Queens Quay are ecstatic.

Oh dear. Hope tomorrow has fewer hitches for you. Look forward to seeing you. We're tucked away in a side room. From the entrance, turn left and sharp left again

No way!! Mr Weaver has already packed an overnight bag and booked a night at the Premier Inn, Bangor.

Nice one. You can almost hear it creaking and clicking as it cools down. Five minutes after this shot was taken, Mr Weaver went round switching lights off and muttering about bills

Lovely project David.The Donegal railcars were really appealing vehicles in all their various forms. I've often thought of trying one but never managed to do anything. I remember perusing that diagram in the Crombleholme book for the first time and struggling to visualise it, never mind try to build it! Good luck with this one. I will enjoy seeing it develop.