The workbench of a Ribena drunkard!

[Sylvian Tennant]

As you may have seen, I have recently been modifying and weathering an old tender drive 8F.

Just before I had painted it i give it a short test run and everything was working fine.

However, once I had painted and weathered it I have now found that it barely runs and is very twitchy when it does.

I have taken it apart, put it back together, cleaned as much as I could have off the wheels and connections but it's still struggles to run.


I have localised the problem to the locomotive itself as the tender drive unit runs fine with other locomotives.

The chassis block carries a current when it is switched on too but apart from that there is nothing much in the way of running.


The modification wasn't a problem before as i have mentioned previously it was working prior to painting. (the modification itself involved drilling out the chassis and adding a brass 8ba screw and nut as per the comet models instructions).

Has anyone else encountered this problem before and does anyone know what to do, save buying a new chassis (unless one is going free).

[Sylvian Tennant]

So, it's done. I have managed to finally create a monster.

I messed with time an history and it brought me to this place.

The dark and brutal world of British mainline steam in the 1980's.

Many have scoffed that it was far fetched, and yes it because frankly steam didn't survive on the mainline after 1968 as a revenue earning arm of BR.

But it's nice to dream.

but anyway. After a major electical issue involving rewriting the driving wheels to the tender to get it working again it is complete.

I promised a brief story on my world at 988 193 so here it is.


It belonged to a batch of loco's built during the war, and spent most of it life in the midland region, that part of it's life I'm not to clear on. but the 1955 white paper smoke emissions called for steam to be eradicated by the end of the century and called for steam locomotives to provide a more efficient turn of economy and emissions. BR contacted L.D. Porter who had been working on modifying Agrentine steam locomotives and he proposed a series of improvements on a select number of locomotives to extend their lives.

R.A. Riddles was successful in pushing for electrification and the pilot scheme diesel locomotives (which were fewer in number than reality) were pooled into the WCML & Southern with steam locomotives from those regions transferring or scrapped outright.

The Western was the next to go with their favoured hydraulics with left the areas of the midland region, Wales, Yorkshire and the north east and Scotland until the 1980's when the Midland regions went fully with electrification and diesels. Wales eventually succumbed and the eastern side of England and Scotland were left until the end of the 80's.

Steam still lingered on until mid 2000 with the final shunting, depot pilots and industrial locomotives were withdrawn.

anyway the 8F in question was converted in 1976 from a 988/0 (an unmodified 8F) to incorporate a Lempor chimney, dual braking, radio equipment, electric lighting& mechanical stoker. A the end of midland steam she transferred from Toton to Thornaby along with a healthy number roof other locomotives from former midland Region sights. Here she worked mainly on Oil trains up to Newcastle and York, occasionally running coal trains up to Drax and also doing turns on steels runs to Redcar.

She ended by as one of the last few surveyors lasting up until 2000 and eventually adopting a Loadhaul and finally an EWS livery before withdrawal and eventual scrapping in 2012.

Anyone, daydream over.

She wasn't done over night but would have been a lot sooner had the electrical issue hadn't occurred. Paining was done completely by hand, that also includes the weathering too.

Transfers were from Replica Railways, Nairnshire Modelling Supplies and HMRS.

The crew were modified Dapol track workers. The livery itself was Hornby rail colours BR Blue & Yellow, as mentioned, hand giant. the weathering was also done by hand.

I have enjoyed it and I'm looking to build some more BR blue locos eventually as well as stock and maybe a small layout.

But for now, I am going to stick to something closer to reality.

If you have any questions, please just ask.

[Sylvian Tennant]

Hello, hi, good evening, who are you!

Ah well never mind, you're here now and I suppose I should talk to you.

Well, enough of these commissions and imaginative what if's, something relatively real now, for me.

remember that Dave Alexander Q6 that I was relegating to the side due to my overly pessimistic opinion of doing something completely heinous to cause it to go wrong (of which I'm eternally shackled to) Well somehow it has managed to please the God's enough to work!

So far I only have the chassis built but that is more or less complete saved some slight tweaks with the weathering which can happen once it's fully assembled. I'm quite pleased with it!

I'm going to put it to one side as another commission has come my way and also I have this to work on.

For £75 it's not bad but there's a fair bit of work and possibly a repaint on the way.

In addition to that a new commission has come my way... any guesses on what this could become?

I'll explain more later unless you would like to read my new blog update (warning contains strong language and opinions)

http://sylviantennant.blogspot.co.uk

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Send it back to Barry, please

manna

[Sylvian Tennant]

ello

Pfft! it's staying here where it belongs

[jwealleans]

any guesses on what this could become?

This?

[manna]

G'day Gents



manna

[Sylvian Tennant]

Eh boys, you're all terrible!


Nah, this is a commission for an autistic lad who wants it to look like the LT L.150. But wants "Metropolitan 1" on the sides in stead. Just out of curiosity, does anyone know if there are any transfers available for Metropolitan 1 at all?

[jwealleans]

If there are, I'd have thought these people would be your best bet.

[Sylvian Tennant]

Esh, you're all terrible people!

Thanks jwealleans, the lady who brought it in said it doesn't have to be perfect but I want to do a decent job at least.

[Sylvian Tennant]

Hello hello hello

I'm sort of back, kind of. I've been quite busy of late with a study that is going mental with stuff, a uni course who over aches my head and a girlfriend who is now a fiancée. Mental.

But I still have time to model which is good.

So here they are, first up is my beloved Q6 which I finished on Friday. Unfortunately the light in the pictures is a bit pants but I wanted to add something a bit different from the usual mucky engines. So, I painted the bottom half of the smoke as a "patch up job" even else is pretty much filth and I've even added the fireman having a tab as he looks out between shovel fulls

​Next up (and finished the same time) is my slightly battered WD which I now think looks a much more professional looking model that in it's previous guise. Again, I'm slightly bored of completely filthy WD look now so (along with my other WD with it's clean buffer) I want to add a clean or repaired bit ever WD I work on. This time, it was the smoke box which has seemingly went under repair and repaint in comparison to the rest of it. Obviously it was be unrealistic to just lap paint and be done with it so I, washed humbrol 62 & 33 over the smokebox. I then dusted the top of it and steam pipe with Humbrol 27004, 62 and 64 and using a white colouring pencil added stream down the door. Finally some umbral 64 was dribbled at the bottom of the smokebox front.

​Both engine have couplings with work with your typical mention locks and (hopefully) D&G couplings which our club use for shunting.

Till next time my dear fellows.

I hope you like, I like.

[52D]

Hello Sylvian, I do need a couple of WDs and like you I tend to like things a little unusual but prototypical. At the moment im looking for a source of transfers that are I believe Belgian style. These are 5 figures beginning in the 7xxxx series but in a totally different style to LNER or BR numbers. I have photographic evidence of Tweedmouth WDs attending the Goswick accident and at least 2 carry this style with the smokebox number being split ie 77 xxx if anyone can point me to a source of these id be most grateful or I may even commission a WD/Austerity sheet with WD/LNER/BR numbers on it.

[Sylvian Tennant]

Like this at all https://mikemorant.smugmug.com/Trains-R ... -W7QBx85/A

If so they resemble American style numbering I believe, Woodland scenics or someone does something like these at my local model shop. I think they're dry transfers but I can't guarantee the sizes at the moment.

[Dave]

I do like both your locos, can we have a pic of the guy with the joint in the Q6.

[Sylvian Tennant]

Here's the fireman with his Chamberwick Carrot