jhb171achill Posted April 27, 2019 Posted April 27, 2019 1 hour ago, KMCE said: Meanwhile, Our good friends Shepherd & Beesley also mentioned in passing that given the rise in gas lighting to the coaches in 1895, a means of conveying gas around the network was needed. Two old wagons Nos. 131 and 242 (cattle wagons, I think) were stripped and their chassis used to carry tanks for the gas. It appears these were long lived and 131 operated on the network up to 1959. No drawings, or even full photos were available, so with a bit of research through loads of photos, it was possible to get some partials which allowed a wagon be built. The cattle chassis would most likely have been short, so I went for a wagon length of 14" which dictated the size of the gas tank. I cannot claim it to be historically correct, however given the severe dearth of information available, I think this is a reasonable representation. The tank is not fixed at the moment as the whole lot needs a good clean prior to painting. Once it's all painted I most likely will glue it together and blend the elements together with some weathering. Nice little wagon and a good way to pass a rather dull Saturday. Ken The van is certainly spot on, and the wagon looks good too. As for the tanker, I agree that it's likely to have had a short chassis, and what you've made is very convincing indeed. Even if no actual hard and fast accurate drawing is to hand, things like this were often built almost ad hoc, as one-offs, so it's as good as any and certainly looks convincing. Excellent stuff as always. 5 Quote
leslie10646 Posted April 27, 2019 Posted April 27, 2019 To my shame, I must admit that this is the first time I've noticed this thread. Really terrific, skilled work Ken. To say "Well done" doesn't start to give you the credit due. Thanks for posting the photos of the locos and rolling stock in native brass - I have always thought it showed off a model really well. When I had a Class AL built from the Northstar kit recently, I particularly asked the modeller to photograph it for me in brass, before painting it - a bit like the "real" railway works who photographed their locos in "Workshop Grey". Great to see the DSER modelled - i'm only aware of one other person doing it - and I'm about to send him the link! 1 Quote
KMCE Posted April 29, 2019 Author Posted April 29, 2019 On 4/28/2019 at 12:49 AM, leslie10646 said: Great to see the DSER modelled - i'm only aware of one other person doing it - and I'm about to send him the link! I would be very interested to touch base with this individual to discuss all things model DSER!! Ken Quote
leslie10646 Posted April 29, 2019 Posted April 29, 2019 Hi Ken He's been sent the link, but may be away from the Internet, having a real life away from railways! If he doesn't bite the "fly" quickly, I'll use a different bait! Leslie 1 Quote
KMCE Posted June 18, 2019 Author Posted June 18, 2019 Been a while - the real job is getting in the way!! Painting and weathering of the newer wagons underway at the moment. A story of a few step forward followed by a few steps back, however I'm getting there. Amazing what a bit of weathering can cover up!! Painting of 495 is ongoing at the moment also, and that will need quite a bit of work. I'll fill in the details in the 495 post in Irish Models. Brake van, gas wagon, vehicle wagon (already done) open wagon and the DSER covered wagon coming along nicely. Gas wagon may be a little light in colour? Brake van needs more work as running boards and buffers to be painted, glazing to be added and roof needs a lot more work. Open wagon took a bit of a battering during painting losing the brake levers brackets & one brake shoe. Brass to white metal connections are rather fragile - I'll use superglue at this stage to effect repairs. Coming along rather nicely. More as time permits. Ken 10 Quote
murrayec Posted June 18, 2019 Posted June 18, 2019 OOOh! do I see some rods! in there Ken? Very nice Eoin 1 Quote
KMCE Posted June 18, 2019 Author Posted June 18, 2019 13 minutes ago, murrayec said: OOOh! do I see some rods! in there Ken? Yes indeed - early days but it does look good. It's the Wills point rodding kit plus extension pack. I'll post more details in the layout section. Ken 2 Quote
KMCE Posted June 23, 2019 Author Posted June 23, 2019 As mentioned in the layout section for Wicklow South, I intend to use the two footbridges to enclose the scene. The main footbridge over the platforms and a smaller one spanning the single line further south from the station. DSER constructed very similar footbridges along their network and for quite a few they were integrated with the signal box - meant only one stairs rather than two, so a certain element of fiscal efficiency. Prototype take recently. Rather that make the sides by soldering individual pieces together, I decided to draw up a plan for the base side in CAD & use the mill to cut out. It also made it easier to drill the uprights for the horizontal rods which will be much more accurate using CNC than by hand. The sides were cleaned up and t-section added top and bottom which soldered joints on the inside. Front side was kept clean with some rivets added. The uprights were a little fiddlier as threading through 6 no. 0.5mm brass rods took a some time being sure not to deform the uprights. It was worth the effort, as when uprights were soldered into position top & bottom, we ended up with this, which is starting to look good. Alas, I stopped too short with the rods as I was thinking the last section tucks into the signal box - it doesn't, so I'll have to amend that bit before ti gets to the model. More as time permits. Ken 5 4 Quote
KMCE Posted June 30, 2019 Author Posted June 30, 2019 So, Corrected the problem with stopping short with the rods, they now run to the end. A floor added and back section connected. The DSER bridges have an interesting support which runs clear of the underside and then turn up at an angle to the top rail. Adds a nice touch. Trial positioning with some timber blocks for now. I haven't detailed the back cut - a few lines on the backscene will probably suffice. Back scene for this area will be prototype photos (hopefully). Got to work on the footbridge at the other end. This is the same structure as the platform bridge, so I'm not going to go through the construction details. A quick shot with 495 and a few wagons to set the scene!! 8 4 Quote
KMCE Posted October 26, 2019 Author Posted October 26, 2019 (edited) Time to come back to the workbench after some work on the layout. Our good friends Shepherd & Beesley also had a rather nice photo in their book of the DSER armoured train from 1923. The loco was based on thier 2-4-2T, a wagon for troops front & rear, based on the 13"6" Covered wagon, and a flat wagon again front and rear. Image courtesy of Shepherd & Beesley There is some really good info on the Railway protection repair and maintenance corps which goes through the history of measures taken to protect the network here which has some really good photos on the armoured trains, including this one. Anyway - to the Model: I had a drawing for the 2-4-2T, and so by using the chassis and dveloping a bodyshell, I was able to create a cut file for the CNC. Body is in 0.35, which I feel is probably a little light and needs stiffening. The cut files included tabs to provide some stiffening and eases soldering, however I'm not convinced it's enough. I started with the cab area. Grooves on the tabs were a little too deep, so some broke away cleanly and others cut all the way through, but held at each end ( I can already see Eoin shaking his head slowly & sighing ) I'll get that sorted for the next cutting project! I didn't take may photos as I was building, as I tend to get focused on what I'm doing and forget. So photos of the nearly completed body. A chimney and piece of brass pipe for the safety valves is all that's needed to complete the body. It's rather simple construction, and given the simple slab sided body, riveting detail is really needed to provide some level of visual interest. Chasssi was cut out from 0.5mm and is in the process of tidying up ready for assembly. All for now. More as time permits. Ken Edited January 21, 2020 by KMCE 8 1 Quote
KMCE Posted October 28, 2019 Author Posted October 28, 2019 (edited) Progress on the Chassis. Con rods were cut out and sweated together. Top complete - bottom needs tidying up. Chassis was assembled using con rods to set bearing distances. Pony & Trailing truck assembled, axles cut and wheels on. Compensated beam for front axles, while traling truck is stablised by some 0.5mm PB wire. Chassis on track and seems to perform well. However. there is very little space for movement by the trucks and I'm thinking there may be shorts where the leading & trailing wheels touch the chassis. A small set in the chassis may provide a little more clearance. I'll monitor this when I put on the pickups. Quick shot with the body on get to a feel for the overall look. Starting to come together. Ken Edited October 28, 2019 by KMCE 7 Quote
murrayec Posted October 28, 2019 Posted October 28, 2019 Excellent Ken Sure their would have been sparks flying around that anyway! Eoin 1 Quote
Galteemore Posted October 30, 2019 Posted October 30, 2019 Lovely work Ken. Already captures look of prototype, and that’s a nicely arranged chassis. 1 Quote
David Holman Posted October 30, 2019 Posted October 30, 2019 Different, to say the least and well down the list of potential ready to run models, methinks! May be odd, but the modelling certainly isn't. Another classy build going on here. 1 Quote
KMCE Posted November 3, 2019 Author Posted November 3, 2019 (edited) As noted in my last post the chassis was a bit tight for the pony and trailing bogies, so a revised chassis was designed and cut. I felt the trailing bogie was too far back, so this was also adjusted to accommodate - adding a little to the rear & taking a bit from the front to balance. A combined 1mm set was introduced into the chassis (0.5mm per side) to allow the bogies move a little more - the grooves aiding the set points. While I was at it, I decided to add some detail such as cylinder head details, which is lost on the model, but hey, what the hell... The set is just visible which is good, as I didn't want it to be too obvious. Chassis runs through points & curves much better now and with washers on the main axles keeps the chassis straight & should reduce any sparks!! Footplate was built up with angle, buffer beams added, and some nice Slaters GWR sprung buffers which are nicely tapered and a good match for the original. Body fixing points need a little fettling to get get the body to sit down properly. Chimney is just siting on and a bit wonky, but that will be sorted. Cylinder detail is just barely visible, but does look good I think. Couple of quick shots with the covered wagon which it ran with to set the scene! I think the body needs some stiffining as there are some wavy lines which I'm not entirely hapy with. I think the 0.35mm is a bit light - the other loco bodies I have built have been 0.5mm and sit that bit straighter. I'm open to comments from others here who have more experience in the 0.35mm to give some insight. Some more work on the chassis needed; add the crankpins & con rods, motor, gearbox and pickups needed to get it running. Brakes & steps needed to finish it off, but getting there. Ken Edited November 3, 2019 by KMCE 9 Quote
Mike 84C Posted November 3, 2019 Posted November 3, 2019 Fantastic job of a rather brutish looking loco, not one that I would have picked to model! I also like the cylinder heads. 1 Quote
skinner75 Posted November 4, 2019 Posted November 4, 2019 11 hours ago, Mike 84C said: Fantastic job of a rather brutish looking loco, not one that I would have picked to model! I also like the cylinder heads. Has me thinking of a Barna shed! 1 Quote
KMCE Posted January 21, 2020 Author Posted January 21, 2020 (edited) Been quiet for the last while, but got some work done. The loco body was sanded and leveled to sit better on the chassis, side steps andded and coupling rods fixed in place. Gearbox and motor housing are also installed ready for pickups. Cover on the safety valves needs to be bigger so that will need to be re-done with brass tube. Smoke stack and steam dome were turned down and tidied up with the lathe, Moved on to the flat wagon and sketched up a kit to cut on the mill. While I was at it, I included some brake shoes for the loco, as I forgot to include them in the loco cut. This will allow me to proceed with the loco build later. This cut is for the two wagons as it made sense to cut the two at the same time. This was a tricky little wagon, as it's not quite flat. There are raised & curved upstands located in the centre of the wagon, so I allowed a cut-out in the sides to take these upstands, which were flared at the top, turned in and corners shaped with solder. From what I can see from the few photos I have seen is that they are only on the sides, turn in slightly, but do not cross the floor of the wagon. Kinda hard to explain, but this grainy photo may help... So, have got to the rolling chassis stage with brakes, axle boxes, springs & hook to be added. Bit of tidy up of the solder to be done & add the white metal parts to finish. Then rinse & repeat for the second one! I'll make up some odd work tools & parts as a load to finish them out later. View of the loco, wagon & the box van stepping in as a sub for the troop wagon to get a feel for how it is coming together. More as time permits! Ken Edited January 21, 2020 by KMCE 6 Quote
popeye Posted January 21, 2020 Posted January 21, 2020 Very nice project and unusual. What was the purpose of the flat wagon? and why did it have those unusual upstands? Quote
KMCE Posted January 21, 2020 Author Posted January 21, 2020 My understanding is that the flat wagon was to carry repair tools and materials to fix any sabotage on the line. As to the upstands, they are quite unusual & I dont know the answer; perhaps they are to provide some means of stopping material falling off whilst providing repair crews quick access during repairs? 1 1 Quote
David Holman Posted January 21, 2020 Posted January 21, 2020 Unusual project, but also some lovely modelling. 1 Quote
jhb171achill Posted February 2, 2020 Posted February 2, 2020 As an aside, KMCE, I love your trackwork and ground cover - so very realistic. I notice that, bizarrely, the whole train has had LINING added! (Vital in times of war!) 2 1 Quote
KMCE Posted June 2, 2020 Author Posted June 2, 2020 Been a while since I last posted. Been working on a 305mm/ft project which has taken up quite a bit of time! Back to modelling recently. I debated whether to build moulds and cast the sides for the wagon, or just cut an solder, and as I'm very low on mould material I went for the cut & solder method. Wondering now if I should gone the other way given the time needed to add all the posts to the wagons. Anyway, wagons mostly complete. Ran out of axleboxes, springs & brake gear, so two wagons got further than the others. Still plent of detailing to be done when parts arrive, but it's starting to look like a train now. As the train will only run as a complete unit, I may opt for the 3-link coupling which will look more prototypical. More, once parts arrive..... Ken 8 3 Quote
Angus Posted June 6, 2020 Posted June 6, 2020 Hi Ken, I've just been asking about a gas tank that appears on a couple of photos at Sligo over on my thread about Sligo station and was pointed here. The tank wagon in question is different to yours but I would guess similar in size, what diameter did you establish the tank to be? Thanks in advance. Angus Quote
KMCE Posted June 6, 2020 Author Posted June 6, 2020 Angus, Hopefully this will help? You can always shorten the tank, or lengthen the wagon and add in the headboards & strapping you were referring to in your post in Layouts. My timber supports are probably a little too big on the model, however it seems to work, so I'm happy to leave it. Regards, Ken 1 1 Quote
Angus Posted June 7, 2020 Posted June 7, 2020 Hi Ken, As I've said over on my Sligo thread it is very much appreciated that you've shared your work with us. Thanks Angus Quote
KMCE Posted June 10, 2020 Author Posted June 10, 2020 A little more work on the loco over the weekend. Brakes needed to be added as well as sand pipes. Brakes were fashioned in such a way as to be removable - the top pins sit into the cross tubes in the chassis allowing removal for maintenance / painting. One thing that is noticiable ginen the cut-outs in the chassis is the lack of firebox. This is particularly evident on the 423 loco I built, so I decided to put in a fire box detail to fill the gap, so to speak. Perhaps it was a little OTT, as when the body goes back on, you really have to get low down to see the detail. The steps also cover over the front brakes - ah well, at least I know they are there!! At leas the sand pipes are visible. Motor and pick ups were added and it now runs. Pick ups are above the chassis as there is loads of room given the size of the body, and this helps to keep the underside somewhat tidy. I'll park this for now until additional parts arrive to finish the detailing on the wagons, but before I go, some photos of the train extant. All for now. Ken 7 3 Quote
Mike 84C Posted June 10, 2020 Posted June 10, 2020 Brilliant Ken! its almost a shame to paint all that lovely brasswork. For me that 3rd photo in your post really captures the essence of the whole train. 3 Quote
David Holman Posted June 10, 2020 Posted June 10, 2020 Safe to assume there won't be an rtr train set like this any time soon! Just wonderful. 3 Quote
KMCE Posted September 2, 2020 Author Posted September 2, 2020 So, finally made it to the paint shop. Have to confess, painting is not my favourite part of this hobby. Having said that, I think the results are not too bad. Wagons got W-irons replaced with SSM compensated units as I could not seem to get the wagon to sit level with the RCH units from Scalefour shop. These units will also not take 14mm wheesl, while the SSM can with a little bit of tweaking on the compensated axle. Springs, axle boxes, brakes and sprung coupling hooks added to finsh the wagons. Loco got vacuum pipes and sprung coupling hook. The intention is to run this as a complete train, so three link couplings used to look closer to the prototype. Weathering needed to soften the shapr look of the paint and blend the elements to a whole. Some construction materials needed for the flat wagons to complete the working look. Overall, I'm very pleased with how it is coming together. Nearly there. More as time permits. Ken 5 Quote
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