Alan's Workbench

[KMCE]

10 hours ago, Tullygrainey said:

Furthermore, the whole thing had somehow become 3mm too long

Easiest thing in the world to happen, you put the buffer beam on the end of the footplate rather than under it, and you already have a problem.  Likewise, recently I ended up with a brake van being c. 3mm too long when compared to the brass built version.  Turns out I added the 1.5mm thick ends directly onto the ends of the sides and hey presto too long, but only noticed After I printed it; in my case easily solved, in your case, perhaps a little more elbow grease?  Don't worry it happens to all of us at some point or other, it still turning out to be a fine looking model, so keep the head up!

Ken

[Tullygrainey]

Thanks Ken. Yes, that’s exactly what happened. I’ve made similar mistakes before too so you’d think I might learn

[Tullygrainey]

The piercing saw has been in play again to produce a flatpack for No. 29's cab...

 

... then the tricky job of tacking it all together while keeping it square. Clamps, bolts, clothes pegs, engineer's squares, bits of wood and verbal blandishments all play their part in the process. Once the first corner is done, it seems to get easier...

 

... and eventually we got there. It has 2 captive nuts (14BA) so it can be bolted to the running plate

 

Now for the boiler.  A new toy and a new skill to learn...

Onward with trepidation

Alan

 

 

 

 

[Galteemore]

Nice neat work on the cab. GW rolling bars ? Good tool.

[Mayner]

I love your nicely organised workbench, tools and fixtures, mine looks more like a scrapyard!

Nice work with the piercing saw.

[Tullygrainey]

9 hours ago, Galteemore said:

Nice neat work on the cab. GW rolling bars ? Good tool.

Thank you GM. Yes, GW rolling bars. I treated myself to these recently but this is the first time I've used them. Can't see how you could produce a reasonable cylinder without them or something similar. Rolling brass using a dowel rod on your thigh never seemed like a viable option to me

 

8 hours ago, Mayner said:

I love your nicely organised workbench, tools and fixtures, mine looks more like a scrapyard!

Nice work with the piercing saw.

 Thank you John. The organisation grew out of the frustration of never being able to find anything and spending more time looking than making. It still ends up looking like a tip though, even with the simplest job.

[David Holman]

Looks SO familiar!

What is it about even the simplest jobs that seem to need half the contents of the tool box?

Love that jig you are using to assemble the cab. Home made or commercial? Either way, time and money well spent.

[Tullygrainey]

2 hours ago, David Holman said:

Looks SO familiar!

What is it about even the simplest jobs that seem to need half the contents of the tool box?

Love that jig you are using to assemble the cab. Home made or commercial? Either way, time and money well spent.

The jig is home-made David, from offcuts of good quality MDF (possibly ex-Ikea, can't remember) and threaded inserts. I made it fairly recently but it's already earning its keep.

[Patrick Davey]

Love this Alan!!  Will be another masterpiece!

[Tullygrainey]

The rolling bars work well and I managed to produce an acceptable tube at the second attempt. Very satisfying.

 

I now have a rectangle, a cube and a cylinder. I think we can do something with this...

Rolling along,

Alan

 

 

[Galteemore]

Lovely work. You’d almost swear it was a kit. My scratch building generally ends up with rhomboids, trapeziums,and ovals! 

[Tullygrainey]

I enjoyed looking at my pristine new boiler for a while, then gritted my teeth and cut a lump out of it. Scary but necessary to provide clearance for the motor. I half expected it to spring apart but thankfully it didn't.

 

Tanks and bunker were next. The Hold & Fold tool came in handy for some of the bending. 

 

Handrails added in 0.33mm brass rod. One of my least favourite tasks - a real fiddle and I never get them entirely straight. The beading on the tank and bunker tops was done with 0.7mm brass rod. A bit of 2mm steel rod helped get the bends smooth. Took ages but really improved the look of the parts.

 

The shell is loosely assembled in this pic. There are 3 sub-assemblies that bolt together:

running plate

boiler/smokebox

cab/tanks/bunker

The 14BA captive nuts are all in place. The boiler bands are leftovers from a London Road Models kit.

 

The Belpaire firebox is going to be a challenge 

Alan

 

 

 

[Galteemore]

Fabulous work. If you can manage this you can manage a Belpaire! Made one myself and it I can do it…..

[David Holman]

Lovely stuff. Have to keep reminding myself it is 4mm scale. As for 14ba nuts, bet the carpet monster loves them!

[KMCE]

Super stuff - a real quality feel to this.  Looking good.

[Tullygrainey]

2 hours ago, David Holman said:

 As for 14ba nuts, bet the carpet monster loves them!

It does indeed. In fact I think it has enough bits now to build its own locomotive

[Patrick Davey]

Alan this is truly amazing, magnificent work altogether, sir!

[Tullygrainey]

The Belpaire firebox came together fairly well, made from a U-shaped bit of 10 thou brass with some bits of 1.5mm square section brass rod soldered in at the front to give me something to work on. This  was shaped by alternately filing and puddling solder onto it until something of the right profile started to emerge. It took a while. There may be better ways to do it but I'm fairly happy with the result.

 

 

It required more bits to be cut out of the boiler 

 

We're getting past the broad strokes and into the small details now. More pics soon.

Alan

 

[Galteemore]

Nice work Alan. You’ve made a nice job of that. When I made one I found it easier to make the firebox as a separate unit, to be bolted on to the main boiler. This saved further cutting into the boiler, which like you I also hate!! 

Edited May 12, 2023 by Galteemore

[Tullygrainey]

20 minutes ago, Galteemore said:

Nice work Alan. You’ve made a nice job of that. When I made one I found it easier to make the firebox as a separate unit, to be bolted on to the main boiler. This saved further cutting into the boiler, which like you I also hate!! 

 

Thanks GM. That's a more sensible way to do it. I'll remember that for the next one! 

I like the look of your tank engine. Is that nickel silver?

Edited May 12, 2023 by Tullygrainey

[Galteemore]

Thanks Alan. Nickel silver it is. Although long hidden under black paint now!! Many points of design likeness with your little gem.

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by Galteemore

[Tullygrainey]

4 minutes ago, Galteemore said:

Thanks Alan. Nickel silver it is. Although long hidden under black paint now!!

 

Ah yes, Enniskillen. A lovely model. I think I first saw a picture of her in New Irish Lines last year

[David Holman]

Coming on nicely and speaking of NIL, see there is a very nice model of a certain diesel in the latest edition. Am going to steal your idea of a central section to support the cab roof for my E class too.

[Tullygrainey]

5 hours ago, David Holman said:

Coming on nicely and speaking of NIL, see there is a very nice model of a certain diesel in the latest edition. Am going to steal your idea of a central section to support the cab roof for my E class too.

Thanks David. Please do. If memory serves, I stole the idea from an article in MRJ.

[David Holman]

As the saying goes - imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

[Tullygrainey]

Some Alan Gibson boiler bands did service for coal rails. Three were separated from the etch but kept attached to one another so they stayed equidistant while uprights were soldered on. Then the whole caboodle was soldered into the bunker and some tank fillers added (artistic licence in play here)

 

By the time all this was added, my soldering iron was struggling.

 

Still resembles an Airfix kit. Ah, fond memories... Locate and cement cab roof (1) to cab (2) ensuring whistle hole is to the front etc...

 

...but getting there.

 

Will need to source a suitable chimney and dome soon. 

Alan

[Broithe]

Is there a Nobel Prize for Modelling Innovation?

 

There should be.

[David Holman]

Delightful!

And still looks like a 7mm scale model to me...

[Tullygrainey]

Little Things Sent To Try Us Department: Running plate steps

These little brutes severely strained my patience, my dexterity, my eyesight and my resistance to using unseemly language.

 

But they're done, for better or worse, and now and I'm whistling a happy tune 

Alan

[Gabhal Luimnigh]

Fair dues lad 

[David Holman]

Almost as bad as brake gear! Look great though.

[KMCE]

16 hours ago, Tullygrainey said:

Running plate steps

One of my pet hates - the thoughts of them put me off finishing the 670 class I have on the bench; those buggers have three steps and are destined to send those with limited patience into apoplexy!!

[Tullygrainey]

I've ordered up some chimney and dome castings, hoping some will be right for No 29. While waiting, I decided to have a go at making some.

For the chimney, some bits of nested brass tube and a suitably sized washer were the raw materials. These were soldered together with 188 degree solder, then the rough shape built up with 145 degree solder and the final profile machined (and I use the term loosely) with files and emery while the thing rotated in the Black and Decker.

Using higher temp solder to assemble the bits meant that the thing didn't fall apart while the lower temp stuff was puddled on. I learnt that the hard way - see failed project drawer.

 

The bottom flange, in 10 thou brass, was the most difficult bit to do. 

 

The dome used the same process with different materials - wooden dowell, 0.5mm plastic sheet and filler. 

 

The dome was fitted tightly into a hole cut in a rectangle of plastic sheet and fixed with superglue.  The sheet was taped round a suitable cylinder and the whole lot dunked in hot water, then cold, to induce a bit of a curve for the flange.

 

We'll see how they compare with the commercial bits when they come. They may not get used but the process has been instructional. All those years watching Blue Peter weren't wasted 

Alan

 

[Gabhal Luimnigh]

Nice tidy work lad.

[David Holman]

Lovely stuff Alan - old school modelling at its best!

Nothing wrong with 3D printing, or indeed the skills of lathe workers, both of which I have every admiration for. Nevertheless, the dome and chimney show how you can turn basic shapes and materials into something far more complex with a little thought and application. Also, there is no guarantee that castings will turn out to be accurate either, as per the dome on my E class...

 Our hobby is blessed with all manner of high quality products these days, but there is so much satisfaction to be gained from making things for yourself.