GSR 800 Posted March 13, 2016 Posted March 13, 2016 I'd dread getting to your age, GSR...! I'd say you passed it before the UTA became NIR!
jhb171achill Posted March 13, 2016 Posted March 13, 2016 I'd say you passed it before the UTA became NIR! Quite possibly.......!
Horsetan Posted March 17, 2016 Author Posted March 17, 2016 It seems 552 had a high coping on its bunker( it was a regular on the T&C) There are photos of 552 in that condition, working the Kilmessan-Athboy branch.
GSR 800 Posted March 17, 2016 Posted March 17, 2016 (edited) There are photos of 552 in that condition, working the Kilmessan-Athboy branch. I'm building my one as 552, i used cut down pieces of the garden shed sides for the higher coping and scrap brass for the back. I better get back to building it.. Edited March 17, 2016 by GSR 800
Horsetan Posted March 17, 2016 Author Posted March 17, 2016 I'm building my one as 552, i used cut down pieces of the garden shed sides for the higher coping and scrap brass for the back. I better get back to building it.. Are you going 21mm gauge as well?
GSR 800 Posted March 17, 2016 Posted March 17, 2016 (edited) Are you going 21mm gauge as well? No Mate, not at this stage anyway. Might venture into it in the future, but at the moment I just don't have the skill(or patience!) If I ever do, you will be the first to be notified! Edited March 17, 2016 by GSR 800
Horsetan Posted March 30, 2016 Author Posted March 30, 2016 I've elected to use the nickel silver frames, but they're not exactly friendly for what I have in mind...
GSR 800 Posted March 30, 2016 Posted March 30, 2016 I've elected to use the nickel silver frames, but they're not exactly friendly for what I have in mind... I didn't know what the spacer bars were until it was too late, so I went through a lot more hardship than I needed too. Are you using compensation? They wouldn't be easy for that.
GSR 800 Posted March 30, 2016 Posted March 30, 2016 I'm thinking of taking the chassis apart, and buying the Poppy's wood tech jig and building it around that.
Horsetan Posted March 30, 2016 Author Posted March 30, 2016 (edited) I didn't know what the spacer bars were until it was too late, so I went through a lot more hardship than I needed too. Are you using compensation? They wouldn't be easy for that. I want to use Continuous Spring Beam suspension, which is meant to allow all axles to float, and is the same system that I'm using on the "S" class. The J26 frames have to be modified for this. Here are some examples Edited March 31, 2016 by Horsetan
GSR 800 Posted April 3, 2016 Posted April 3, 2016 I want to use Continuous Spring Beam suspension, which is meant to allow all axles to float, and is the same system that I'm using on the "S" class. The J26 frames have to be modified for this. Here are some examples Wouldn't the brass chassis be better for that?
Horsetan Posted April 3, 2016 Author Posted April 3, 2016 Wouldn't the brass chassis be better for that? Yes and no. Yes, because the hornways are the right size. No, because the frame outline isn't quite as good as on the nickel silver frames. 1
Mol_PMB Posted April 2 Posted April 2 I know this thread is a decade old, but thought I would bump it as it contains some useful information for @Tullygrainey on the options in the J26 kit. I got my kit out last night and had a look at the bits and read the instructions. I am mulling over the options, one of which is to put it back in the stash… @Horsetan did you get a CSB chassis working in the end? 1 1 1
Tullygrainey Posted April 2 Posted April 2 Thanks for digging this out Paul. Lots of useful stuff here. I should've known there'd be info tucked away on this forum! Mayner's comment on page one: The later n/s chassis was designed for compensated assembly using top hat brushes and equalising beams. I found that the axle holes for the rocking axles were etched oversized for the collar of a 1/8" top hat bearing. confirms something I half-suspected. The collar on the bearings are meant to bear on the outside of the frames and thus trap the equalising beams in place against the inside face. Instead they just slip through the holes and the beams stray toward the centre of the chassis. Which is why I ended up with the brass tube collar on the pivot rod. 1
Horsetan Posted April 4 Author Posted April 4 On 2/4/2026 at 7:26 AM, Mol_PMB said: I know this thread is a decade old… @Horsetan did you get a CSB chassis working in the end? Jaysus, 10 years.... Too many other distractions, including an oul Citroën (now 38 years old and very nearly road tax exempt) in the intervening time. I really must get 560 back on the road. I did the High Level hornblocks - admittedly the easiest part of the build - but took a long time to decide which generation of chassis to use. I prefer n/s, but the original brass one was much friendlier. The coupling rod design didn't help either, when I realised that real J26s had rods forked on the crankpin. Looking at the leading section of the nickel-silver rod, this actually matches the brass one, so I thought it possible to "cheat" the forked rod by making a 3-layer sandwich, the nickel-silver layer being on top/outside of the brass ones. That's about as far as I'd reached before life got in the way. I'm after getting the box out again this evening and reviewing what I was going to do next. 3
Mol_PMB Posted April 5 Posted April 5 Thank you! I’m still not sure how I am going to extend the axles for 21mm gauge but I think most options will require a sleeved joint in the middle. Therefore the axles can’t be fed through the frames from the side and I’ll need hornblocks. I have ordered the high level hornblocks and CSB tags, I used them on my E401 class and that worked fairly well. I am also trying to decide which set of frames to use, and considering adding an extra layer to the rods. At present I’m planning to work around the parts supplied in the kit rather than design a new modern etched chassis…
Horsetan Posted April 5 Author Posted April 5 1 hour ago, Mol_PMB said: Thank you! I’m still not sure how I am going to extend the axles for 21mm gauge but I think most options will require a sleeved joint in the middle.… Ultrascale will make you correct length ⅛" axles (should be around 25.2mm long)....if you can wait 6 months. I had this done for the S-class and B1a, and will likely do the same for the J15. On the other hand, if you have suitable ⅛" steel rod (or even Sharman overlength axles that you trim yourself), and a back-to-back gauge, you could cut your own axles using nothing more than a piercing saw. I'd be interested to see what a modern J26 chassis kit via CAD would look like today. You'd certainly have the facility to design the forked coupling rods. 1
Mol_PMB Posted April 5 Posted April 5 3 minutes ago, Horsetan said: Ultrascale will make you correct length ⅛" axles (should be around 25.2mm long)....if you can wait 6 months. I had this done for the S-class and B1a, and will likely do the same for the J15. On the other hand, if you have suitable ⅛" steel rod (or even Sharman overlength axles that you trim yourself), and a back-to-back gauge, you could cut your own axles using nothing more than a piercing saw. I'd be interested to see what a modern J26 chassis kit via CAD would look like today. You'd certainly have the facility to design the forked coupling rods. Thanks. I've no problem buying 1/8" steel and cutting to length. But the wheels at present for this loco are to suit square-ended axles with threaded spigots, and they're rather more difficult to make to custom length. I either need to cut and splice them (while maintaining the quartering) or adopt some other approach. Annoyingly the outer, round, part of the hole in the wheels (where the retaining nut goes) is moulded to a diameter slightly more than 1/8". One possibility is to bore out the wheel centres and insert a brass sleeve to fit on a plain round axle.
Horsetan Posted April 5 Author Posted April 5 5 minutes ago, Mol_PMB said: Thanks. I've no problem buying 1/8" steel and cutting to length. But the wheels at present for this loco are to suit square-ended axles with threaded spigots, and they're rather more difficult to make to custom length. I either need to cut and splice them (while maintaining the quartering) or adopt some other approach.... Might be better to start with a set of Romford "EM" axles, although good luck finding a supply of those now that Markits is dead. 1
Mol_PMB Posted April 5 Posted April 5 3 minutes ago, Horsetan said: Might be better to start with a set of Romford "EM" axles, although good luck finding a supply of those now that Markits is dead. I have some of those, which I bought with the wheels. I even have a spare one. But they're still 2.8mm too short, so they need cutting and shutting.
Horsetan Posted April 5 Author Posted April 5 45 minutes ago, Mol_PMB said: I have some of those, which I bought with the wheels. I even have a spare one. But they're still 2.8mm too short, so they need cutting and shutting. Problem half-solved, so. I think Branchlines still sell a split-axle conversion kit, so that could help with the cut-and-shut. 1
Horsetan Posted April 5 Author Posted April 5 Here's the original TMD instruction sheets, painstakingly typewritten and hand-drawn.... TMD J26 instructions.pdf 1 2
Mol_PMB Posted April 5 Posted April 5 1 minute ago, Horsetan said: Here's the original TMD instruction sheets, painstakingly typewritten and hand-drawn.... TMD J26 instructions.pdf 3.24 MB · 0 downloads Are you going to join Alan and myself and build a trio of them? 1
Horsetan Posted April 5 Author Posted April 5 Just now, Mol_PMB said: Are you going to join Alan and myself and build a trio of them? We've got to get this together somehow. During the Covid period, the Scalefour Forum had an impromptu "Great 3F Build-Off" challenge, where anyone who had a 3F type loco kit (of any class, from any railway) was invited to get as far as possible in building their kits. "The Great J26 Challenge" sounds like a good one. Anyone else out there with a J26 needing some work? Soldering iron will need a clean... 1
Mol_PMB Posted April 5 Posted April 5 3 minutes ago, Horsetan said: We've got to get this together somehow. During the Covid period, the Scalefour Forum had an impromptu "Great 3F Build-Off" challenge, where anyone who had a 3F type loco kit (of any class, from any railway) was invited to get as far as possible in building their kits. "The Great J26 Challenge" sounds like a good one. Anyone else out there with a J26 needing some work? Soldering iron will need a clean... I wonder if the lads at Whitehead would like to get involved? They could make a somewhat bigger one! 1
Galteemore Posted April 5 Posted April 5 11 minutes ago, Horsetan said: We've got to get this together somehow. During the Covid period, the Scalefour Forum had an impromptu "Great 3F Build-Off" challenge, where anyone who had a 3F type loco kit (of any class, from any railway) was invited to get as far as possible in building their kits. "The Great J26 Challenge" sounds like a good one. Anyone else out there with a J26 needing some work? Soldering iron will need a clean... I’ve got a 7mm kit just arrived. I’m in…. 3
Horsetan Posted April 5 Author Posted April 5 11 minutes ago, Mol_PMB said: I wonder if the lads at Whitehead would like to get involved? They could make a somewhat bigger one! I think they have their hands full with something a touch bigger and longer than a J26.... Still, a new-build J26 would be a great gas....if you could find the drawings for it. 1
Westcorkrailway Posted April 5 Posted April 5 90 and a J26 would be some combination at Downpatrick! 1
.png.c363cdf5c3fb7955cd92a55eb6dbbae0.png){kind=logo}
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now