Nelson's Workbench

[jhb171achill]

Likely to be well weathered in traffic, especially post war. Use standard LMS grey.

[Hunslet 102]

That van is a stunning piece of work Nelson,well done.You are certainly not a slow worker,I am finally getting round to finishing an AEC railcar that has been kicking around for a couple of years

[Dunluce Castle]

Thank you Hunslet

I've decided in the end to have her as ex works, and not weather her, I love the grey that she's in.

[Glenderg]

Tidy bit of work nelson. Very impressed by the scratchbuilding too. R.

[Dunluce Castle]

Thanks glenderg,

[cg-antrim]

I'd love to see a picture of the painted wagon, Nelson - if you could?

[Dunluce Castle]

Certainly cg-Antrim after I come home from the club

[StevieB]

So young but so talented - puts most of us to shame.

Stephen

[Dunluce Castle]

Please don't feel like that Stevie, everyone can do it, just takes time.

[David Holman]

Nelson, the van is a gem & I would be happy to have produced one to that level of detail in 7mm scale.

You are right to be pleased with the axles box/W irons & I was wondering myself how they were done - very fine indeed! May I suggest this is an area where rein casting may be of value, though am sure individual items will be very small & the contents of a casting starter kit would enable you to produce hundreds...

However, for multiple van sides, as well as the detail parts, casting has its merits & who knows, you may have people wanting copies, such is the quality of your work.

Super stuff.

[scahalane]

Lovely bit of scratch building, well done.

[Dunluce Castle]

Thank you David for your comment and kind words, I must say I've never thought about making a resin casting, it's certainly a good idea and I must re-search into it, thank you.

 

Thank you scahalane

 

The van is so nearly complete, just final touches and transfers then she'll be finished.

[Dunluce Castle]

Hello everyone,

Here she is completely finished, I've decided to keep her in ex works condition as I love the uniform look of the grey.

Many thanks for all your support,

Nelson

Edited April 27, 2014 by Dunluce Castle

[patrick]

Very nice. I look forward to seeing more Irish wagons from you.

[BosKonay]

Beautiful!!

[burnthebox]

Nelson, you have that Magic Touch, super

[Kirley]

Just like something in the Transport Museum, love the way the balsa wood corner pillars has taken up the paint.

[scahalane]

Lovely finish, she turned out very well.

[murrayec]

Hi nelson

 

It looks really great, as kirley says the timber has a great... magic

 

As David mentioned earlier- plastic moulding is the one for making the job so much easier for the other 5! you wont have to cut out those curvy bits ever again..

 

I can give you a list of stuff if you like?

 

murrayec

[Dunluce Castle]

Thank you everyone for your kind words, much appreciated, thank you.

 

Yes please murrayec, it would be interesting to see what's needed.

[cg-antrim]

Absolutely fantastic. Which transfers did you use? I am inspired!

[murrayec]

Hi Nelson

 

Here it is, it seems like a lot but after you read down through it, it's not. Its like all things- once you have a go, you find how easy it is!

 

Silicone Moulds;-

 

 

 

1. Supersil 20 Silicone Rubber Parts A & B. - Mixed by weight 10 parts A to 100 parts B.

2. Weighing scales. - Try and find one that does not switch off after 2 minutes, it's a pain!

3a. Mould casings- I made these from perspex with a 10mm alu angle stuck on, this gives variable sizes for moulding in. Use a perspex or glass base to set-up on.

3b. Mould casings made from plastic card- fixed size

4. Pipette - very important for adding Supersil 20 Part A, don't try to pour it from the bottle

5. Vacuum chamber- not fully necessary, Supersil 20 is quite good at getting air away from the master. This was made from a lunch box and a medical vac pump, though the box is not rigid enough!

6. Plaster-scene for sealing the mould casings sides and to the base with a fillet on the outside - ensure the base extends well beyond the casing for this job.

7. A DART bogie mould and its plastic card master.

 

A mixing container and spatula is also required- go for a plastic kitchen mixing jug its easier to clean- let the silicone dry and then it just peels off.

 

Mixing thoroughly is very important- cut the end of the spatula square so that you can wipe the bottom and sides of the jug.

Sit the whole thing on a level surface to dry- it will take a good 6 hours to set completely and then carefully open the casings and trim off the outside edges with sharp knife.

 

The master parts should be well stuck down to the casing base, ensure there are no gaps under the master or the silicone will find its way under and the the mould may tare when taking the master out- you cannot repair a damaged mould, nothing will stick to it! Just start again.

 

Store the moulds carefully in plastic bags, do not stack them, they will deform over time if stacked. Put the in a box like this;-

 

 

Two sided moulds are possible but master single sided first. With two sided the plastic needs to be forced in with a syringe and this can distort the mould. I support the moulds with MDF backing boards and light elastic bands. When making this type of mould a release agent (ambersil Formula 5) is required between the pouring of the second side- otherwise you will not get the mould open- silicone rubber will stick to itself.

 

Plastic Casting;-

 

I use polyurethane plastic, its not as dangerous as resin, and easier to use

 

 

8. Easy Flow 120 Parts A & B. Mixing is by volume 1 Part A to 1 Part B.

9. Mouldlife resin pigment. Mix no more than 5% of the plastic volume otherwise the plastic will react and bloat, or be very brittle.

10. Asatone- for cleaning syringe and fine Delux points, n other things!

11. ambersil Formula 5 non silicone release agent. Not fully necessary but it does help to let the plastic flow over complex moulds.

12. Gloves. Are necessary- this stuff is toxic

13. Sheet of plate glass for working on, small mixing spoon, chepo kitchen measuring spoons, syringe, and Delux fine feed points. I made cleaning sticks from NS wire to push through these to clean them.

14. Chepo kitchen measuring cup, these came in the same pack as the spoons, I use these for mixing the plastic in. The dirty one is the maximum plastic I use at a time- you only have about 2 mins to get the plastic fully into the mould. Any longer and it will be a mess!

15. Pots to keep your pigment mixes in.

16. Spirit level to set the plate glass working surface level.

 

Mix the plastic equal and thoroughly, you have less than 2 mins to pour, clean every thing within 5 mins with kitchen towel. I keep a small jar of asatone ready to drop the Delux points into and suck up into the syringe immediately after the mould is filled. Clean the Delux points with the NS wire immediately.

 

With the open moulds, for larg parts I pour straight from the mixing cup, trying to keep a constant flow into the mould. Its very hard to get the plastic level with the top of the mould because of the air pressure- just wipe the excess plastic across the mould lightly with a spatula onto a kitchen towel or onto the plate glass. If you create a depression doing this just spoon in a few drops to fill again. You can always sand the back on wet n dry paper when the plastic has hardened.

 

For small parts and deep stuff I use the syringe- place the point deep into the mould and push, try to keep the point in the plastic at all times. With the syringe and fine points you have only about a minute before it gets harder to push. Do not empty the syringe into the mould, there will be air there and you will just push it into the plastic and ruin the cast.

 

After 2 minutes do not use the plastic, it will only be a mess. The plastic will harden in about 20mins, but best to leave it for about an hour. When removing the parts flex the mould first, carefully pull the edges away from the plastic with your finger nail and slowly work the piece out.

 

murrayec

[Dunluce Castle]

Thank you Murrayec for that, I will get a chance to read it properly very soon, it looks very interesting.

 

Thank you Cg-Antrim, the transfers for the "LMS" were HMRS wagon transfers and for the "NCC" it was also HMRS but private owner lettering, but it's not worth it, I've already run out of "C"s as they only provide 4 "C"s in the sheet, the rest of the sheet is just the rest of the alphabet, so I may need to find someone who does custom transfers.

[UP6936]

Do Railtec do anything NCC , nelson? They are very good

[Dunluce Castle]

Railtec only sell NCC tender locomotive letters, they have coach transfers but they are over scale.

[cg-antrim]

I bought a set of those NCC coach transfers but can't really think what to do with them as they are so large!

[Dunluce Castle]

I know, I'm the same, I've thought about using them for a Y class (Jinty repaint) as they should be the right size for that.

[josefstadt]

... they only provide 4 "C"s in the sheet, the rest of the sheet is just the rest of the alphabet, so I may need to find someone who does custom transfers.

 

Nelson, try Weshty of Studio Scale Models on this site. He can do custom transfers and should be able to sort out your problem.

[Dunluce Castle]

They are only waterside aren't they tho?

I love the pressfix transfers, they are the ones I used on this van and there is literally no carrier film and no need for varnish. Absolutely fantastic.

[Dunluce Castle]

Hello everyone,

Here's the latest project, it's a LMS NCC open wagon, everything that is white in the pics below has been individually cut out from plasticard sheets, a timely process but it looks the part.

Thanks

Nelson

[Kirley]

You are really getting into plasticard modelling now and it really looks the part.

[Dunluce Castle]

Sorry for the lack of updates, but here she is, an NCC open wagon, the body is a Dapol one as it is a very close representation to those used on the NCC.

Many thanks

Nelson

[Kirley]

Excellent in every aspect

[Dunluce Castle]

Thank you

[heirflick]

more dirt - love it! well done Nelson:tumbsup: