murrayec

Hi btb A very small unit if you plan to do a lot of painting, you'd be far better off getting something a bit bigger in the compressor area. Here is a link to the kind of unit I use;- https://www.expotools.com/acatalog/AB603-Airbrush-Deal-AB603.html#SID=2 Lidl do a full size tanked compressor from time to time for around €100.00, one would need a filtration system €20.00 in Lidl (not the best unit- SIP do one for around €100.00) Lidl's one does work, it's a water filter n oiler- the oiler you don't need for painting! then the spray gun and a few connectors. These compressors are OK quality and you have the added advantage for use in other applications- pumping up her tyres! Eoin

Hi all So with the Bray Fair cancelled on Sunday I had a bit of spare time- Flying Scot upper tender body time! With my plan on being able to remove the upper body I cut some waste brass sprue to make two brackets to hold it together on assembly, straps cut, scored for folding, and M2 bolt holes drilled.. All folded up and setup to mark holes in footplate Captive M2 nuts about to be soldered on, using the excellent modellers tool to hold the nuts in place- cocktail sticks! All soldered up with 180deg solder, soldered the folds also for a bit of rigidity M2 holes in footplate were countersunk for the screws After a few minor adjustments the upper body was installed and the unit was epoxied, making sure the footplate was not glued While that was setting I started on the tender main frames, these needed the rivets embossed out first, the kit has half etched marks for this This is a very handy rivet embossing tool which I made a new MDF table for, and I get to try it out for the first time here- its hard to hold a part in place with nothing to rest it or your hand on when using the punch, it works really well Nice little embossed rivits I then soldered on the frame steps, steps rivet detail, and the axle box keeper plates with 180deg solder All cleaned up and frames now ready to be fitted to the footplate Eoin

Hi irishthump There are different grades of alcohol spirit, I suspect them Americans use a specific grade for mixing paint? I have a bottle of isoprop from a pharmacy that melts any soft plastic or rubber it comes in contact with, skin also!..... Eoin

I have to agree there with thumper- surgical spirits is not the best for cleaning paint, paint doesn't dilute in it like it does in thinners, spirit can also melt O rings and plastics that some guns have..... Eoin

Cant believe it! not a split pin suitable in the workshop. So set about making up a few out of .8mm brass wire Clamped down in the vice on a piece of hardwood and filed the wire flat on one side Then measured off 5 lengths, bent them over the PB wire steam pipe, cut them, and then pinched each with a pliers to form the eyelets Split pins With that done I started to fit the lubricators, atomizers, and pipes- this photo shows the steam pipe installed with the split pins Hand rails completed with wrap around over smoke box door rim, lubricators, atomizer and pipes installed on this side All complete and very close to start painting- small bit of straightening up and a bit of filling here n there Its great to get this job completed, I wasn't to sure how the pipes were going to work with my plan of being able to remove the boiler from the footplate for painting. It does work but some of the pipes will have to be installed after painting- otherwise it worked out Deadly! Eoin

Nail on the head, John, with Noel and his 30mins Eoin

Hi All With the recent discussion on the Luas and in that thread the mention of an underground railway for Dublin City- I thought of doing this thread so that some of the people interested in, or against, can view the technical and design aspects of a project like this. Some may find this very boring and not applicable to their argument, but it is real information and has to be considered in the discussion for reasons of;- cost, technical & design ability, build ability, feasibility, and the affect it would have on the City while under construction. Some of these points if not all are the reasons why an underground has been promoted in the past and then abandoned! So here we go;- This is a truncated report by the Institute of Engineers of Ireland on what's under Dublin City- some argue that its all rock but the report indicates what's actually there;- https://www.engineersireland.ie/EngineersIreland/media/SiteMedia/groups/societies/geotechnical/Soils-of-Dublin.pdf?ext=.pdf This is a lecture by Michael Löffler from CDM Smith discusses the use of underground space as a key factor for sustainable development of densely populated areas. He outlines innovative solutions to these challenges from a number of ongoing and recently completed underground rail projects;- It's interesting that the Institute hosted this lecture only last year? Please contribute to this thread with any information you think is relevant and please link to the source of the information that you add, so that we have qualified additions that can be referenced and not just notional personal thoughts- qualified information leads to good understanding of a development like this...... Eoin

Hi Noel I reckon the ultrasonic cleaner has caused this problem- it is known that ultrasonic cleaners can cause metal fatigue by vibrating the crystals to the point of destruction- the glue in the metal lets the hard particles go and under pressure or working the item breaks. I would recommend keeping precision tools and metal models (especially ones that have been super-glued or epoxied) away from ultrasonics..... Eoin

and For those masking problem areas use liquid masking applied with a brush into the raised area under the masking tape, let it set then tidy it up before painting- Humbrol do it or you can use the liquid masking one gets in the Art n Hobby Shop Eoin

Hi Noel Use cellulose thinners to clean your spray gun, cellulose will remove all paint if you spray with it after quitting painting, use it after spraying the paint thinners to wash the gun out first, or when cleaning the gun use it and/or leave it soak in it for a few hours- spanking clean every time.... If you have paint getting into the air in area there is a problem with the gun? Eoin

Thanks guys for great coments I started on the upper tender stuff on the Flying Scot, a lot of cusp removal from the brass parts and sized up everything to plan it out. The upper tender section will be removable, I reckon this is better for painting and it allows disassembly if problems occur.. it also allows the tender inside to be accessed if one wants to install anything at a later date Working out the system to assemble the tender structure without using the footplate, the plate will be fixed to the chassis detailed above, so then the plastic structure and all the bits assembled on it will be removable.... Lots of little bits required two evenings cleaning up All the set up work is now complete on the footplate parts of the loco and now getting ready to stick things on Lubricators, atomizers, and .4mm PB wire pipework setup to go on the valve chests on the footplate- a lot of little holes drilled... Valve chests ready Firebox washout plugs installed and boiler handrails test fitted and ready to be stuck on A hold up again as the parts to support the break steam pipe that runs from the smokebox back to the cab are missing- should have some split pins that should work- off to look see.... Eoin

It's a transition DART- used to train the drivers while they waited for motors and other stuff to be installed Wrennie Those 'Ribbons' draped on the side- to me they look like protection coverings falling off in the wind! Eoin

Great photos Wrennie People did bash the DART at first, even Mr Fitzgerald who brought it in was afraid of it's first run and stayed away, ever the opportunist Mr H (cant bring myself to say his full name...) went on the first run and stole the credit.... after it came in the bashing was in regard to, that there was not enough of them and those stupid folding seats were silly! it transformed commuting in and out of the city... the Luas is doing the same Eoin

Hi Guys The Luas has been an incredible addition for the commuter, we are just fudies because we like real trains! and it's lack of good authority road management and cars that cause all the trouble...... Back in the 70's the Dublin Development Plan had the underground planned, it was indicated on the development maps including locations of stations n all- the powers that came along after decided to abandon the plan on the basis of the disruption to the city while building it!- decent tunnelling machines had not been invented then... Eoin

Hi Paul Check out here;- http://www.electrarailwaygraphics.co.uk/ and keep an eye on here;- This system will allow a number of loco types to be made in RTR and in kits- still early days but plodding along I also do Gauge N 2 car DART and a Kato 103 conversion DART Eoin

Hi Guys Just a reminder that the Train & Model Fair is coming up this Sunday.......

Hi dave182 It's not necessary to go back to metal a light sanding with fine wet n dry fine paper or a soft fibre brush to create a key for the new paint will suffice, then a good wash and your away painting, some models have to much paint applied in the factory and with a second paint detail starts to disappear- these models need a good sand down to retain the detail- Oxford apply a lot of paint to their models.... Eoin

Hi dave182 In my experience most die cast models are held together through the floor plate with two screws or stud rivets, unscrew or drill out the rivets and the lot should dissemble, sometimes glazing is spot glued in so try some glue remover on it, when drilling rivets- less is more! as in, only remove the head don't drill into the stud proper as you will need it to assemble the model again. With the stud type one uses a bit of cyano on the stud will hold the model together again..... I use enamel paints Eoin

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Hi jhb Yes I have dabble in live steam- Stuart stationary and bits, currently working on a 3.5" Northumbrian kit and have designed a 3.5" Hibernia!!- but both shelved for the moment with all the other stuff going on...... Eoin

Hi George Are the kids DCC or Analogue? Eoin

Hi Robert PM sent Thanks Eoin

Hi 16miller Many moons ago I built SM32 locos and wagons for a chap's garden railway using Peco mechanisms for their 0-4-2 tram and Hunslet 0-4-0, they had planned to build a live steam railway but baulked at the cost of building the models and went for electric power. Unfortunately he is not on the forum and I have not heard from him since the time of the build- it got complex...... Eoin

Hi Robert I have two sets left in the last batch I made, €25.00 per set, €5.50 standard post to GB or €11.75 registered post to GB I'll pm you with account details if you want to order Eoin

Hi popeye The best way to take a photo is to take it in diffused daylight with a white background and a pure black object in the scene, the camera white balanced before you take the shot, then the levels can be adjusted using the black and white colours in the photo, once you have B&W levels set correctly one has the best colour representation on screen for that situation. Most cameras and phones now have facility for white balancing- this is done just before taking the photo in the same environment you want to take the picture, done with a white sheet of paper held arms length away from the lens, then balance the camera, then take the shot of the model. The GUARD sign photo was taken like this- daylight, white snow background, and black cover book in the shot, then the levels of the photo were adjusted in photoshop (most decent bitmap graphic editors have this facility) and then the green background colour was assessed on screen with the board in the fist to see if it gave a good rep..... When comparing colours in an image its best to do it in the bitmap graphics editor- ie, photoshop, where one can see the values of RGB, or whatever the colour format your working with, and also in greyscale! our eye perceives tones of grey far better than colour- graphics editors have all these facilities for proofing images.... Your photo of the model body you painted seems to be taken indoors under artificial light with a cream background- the light and background will effect the way the camera sees the colours of the model and that is why the photo looks different to the real thing..... Eoin