My Workbench - Potters Bar and South Mimms

[Atlantic 3279]

Scale size windows, shallower window reveals than the old Hornby offerings, and beading in the right places, all points of definite benefit. How well have the sides managed to adopt the correct curvature, and will they remain correctly curved where the ends do not force them to do so?

[jwealleans]

Also, how do you secure the beading and keep it straight? I've built some laser cut sides with beading pieces like yours and they refused to stick anywhere near straight. In the end we did away with them and put grooves into the sides which we then filled with plastic rod.

[Phil Brighton]

Curve of the sides is held by the bottom of the original Hornby side remaining in place and they are stuck to it. It doesn't look very pronounced but then again doesn't look wrong like the newer Hornby Gresley coaches.

The beading is a problem. Its just about ok on short sections but the long runs on the sides of the buffet in particular are not great. There I stuck it with with the central bits of plastic in between the lining still in place and then carefully pealed them away while the solvent was still wet.

To be honest I think I will get away with it as I am going to paint these quite weathered and therefore with quite subtle lining. If fact on colour photos it seems quite hard to see the lining at all on weathered teak. If it was going to be brighter it might not be straight enough and a different method needed.

They are never going to be perfect but drawings aside they have so far cost next to nothing and I am enjoying building them.
There are two brake coaches half made in the same way and then the final one is a 61'6" which is going to be all Kirk expect for the sides.
This is likely to be more difficult as i will have to form the turn under myself and I won't be able to brace it in the same way as the full brake I made this way before.

[Atlantic 3279]

If I'd paid more attention to what you did a little further back I would have remembered that you were leaving the smoothed remains of the original lower sides in place to support and to preserve the shape of the overlays....

[jwealleans]

Have you seen the way David Jenkinson made his sides? That might be a route you could consider for the turnunder.

[Phil Brighton]

I am planning to use full height sides sandwiching shorter ones so the bottom of the front is pulled in. Is that the same thing?

[jwealleans]

Jenkinson had a flat full height inner side then an outer with strips of plastic horizontally just above where the turnunder starts. The thickness of the strip set the amount of turnunder and the two sides are then clamped together and glued along the bottom. He also used to slot the glazing between the two sides.

[Phil Brighton]

A few pictures from around Potters Bar

[Woodcock29]

I love seeing the continued development of Potters Bar Phil, having lived there for my first 8 years 1955-1964. Well done.

A question for you. I note the tallish chimney on your J6. I presume its a NuCast kit? Was that chimney provided in the kit? The LRM brass chimneys in their kit look too short to me for the prewar period.

Regards

Andrew

[Phil Brighton]

It was a Nu-Cast kit yes. I am pretty sure though without checking the kit comes with two chimneys - shorter and taller. Looking at photos both were fitted to D2s pre-war. There are tons of variations of tender, chimney, splasher and other bits on these, not to mention the other very similar Ivatt classes. I think I just picked a photo and copied it best I could.

[Phil Brighton]

Whoops. That was an answer to a question you didn't ask. Sorry! J6 chimney - no idea, fitted the one it had. Nu-Cast again though.

[manna]

G'day Gents

Looking good there Phil, Excellent.

manna

[Phil Brighton]

Progress on the Cambridge Buffet Express has stalled and instead things have moved onto a quad art train. Kirk kits, one of the two kits was part constructed but when it arrived it looked like someone has been shooting glue at it out of a cannon. Thankfully very little of the sides was ruined by glue and I had spare bogies and could make other parts that couldn't be rescued so after a lot of rubbing down has come up ok. Footboards made of staples and scrap brass were a pain but pleased with how they turned out.

[Phil Brighton]

Also while I do know they didn't run through Potters Bar I have always liked the Sentinel Railcars and have had a Nu-Cast kit on the shelf for ages. I had to swap the wheels on the motor bogie as they are very small. I know others have said the Tenshodo couldn't cope but so far mine seems ok.

[jwealleans]

Have you used the Kirk bogies on the quadart? I put ABS ones on mine and it benefited from the extra weight. I still haven't built the other (composite) set to go with it.

It will be interesting to see how long your Tenshodo lasts on the Sentinel. I think Mick's didn't even make it into double figures of minutes. I have built two, my own with a Bullant Major (excellent piece of kit) and a second for Ormesby Hall with a Black Beetle. I wish I'd ignored the advice to use the Beetle and gone for another BullAnt as it has never run as well as mine. I have another kit in the pile and as and when I get round to that then I'll try something like a LoRider from High Level.

I also made a replacement floor for mine to try to reduce the weight. It did also mean i had something straight and parallel to work from as none of the castings were either. Have you found anything which resembles the seats? I tried some etched tram ones but they were nowhere near.