My Workbench - Potters Bar and South Mimms

[Phil Brighton]

Kirk bogies on the quad art, just different ones from the kit. Have used the simpler peg in hole articulation method as well.

I have only test run the railcar but have been checking the motor and isn't getting hot. We will see if it survives. Used all the original parts expect making my own plastic mounting for the bogie so it is heavy. Haven't done the seats inside yet and the vacuum formed seats in the kit don't look promising. To be honest I never put much effort into interiors as you can't see it and I don't enjoy making them. Probably just use what I can find in the spares.

[Dave]

Looking good, keep us posted on the quad art sets.

[Atso]

Great stuff Phil, I'm particularly impressed with your Cambridge set. I look forward to seeing the Quads progress, a must for my layout as well.

[Phil Brighton]

I am being very undisciplined and starting all sorts of new things. I had a old version Hornby B12 I had ruined when practicing weathering and I have a picture of a B12/1 running through Potters Bar on a Cambridge train. So when a Mcgowan kit for a B12/1 came on ebay for what I thought was a reasonable price I went for it. The idea being it a simple looking kit, use the old Hornby B12 chassis and quickly and easily get a decent and a little bit different B12 for far less than a new Hornby B12/3.

Unfortunately the kit is proving a pain, the parts don't fit together, it needs loads of filing to get the close and is going to have a ton of filler needed before the end. On top of this it appears the B12 chassis has chewed up its gearwheel so a new one will be needed. All in not proving a simple project.

[Atlantic 3279]

Pretty normal experience with McGowan loco kits, it is said.

That's certainly how it was with my ex-GCR B4 from that stable.

[Danby Wiske]

You might want to check the dimensions of the chassis too. I'm pretty sure the original Hornby B12 used the same 'multi-purpose' chassis as the Flying Scotsman, so the wheelbase was incorrect. The later China-built ones may have kept the same measurements - I'm not sure how much retooling was done. I assume they've corrected it on the new ones...

[Pebbles]

Is there not an etched chassis in the kit? there always used to be.

[Phil Brighton]

The Hornby chassis is more or less spot on for the driving wheels wheelbase when held against a drawing I had stored away. The kit comes with both a brass and a white metal chassis but the plan was to save money by not needing to buy wheels, motor etc and just slot the Hornby one in as I already had it going spare.
Annoyingly despite containing two loco chassis the kit seems to have brakes for the tender. Not sure how I would attach brakes to the Hornby chassis anyway but may make something up and give it a go.

[nzpaul]

Just an idea for the loco brakes Phil. Glue some of that copper clad fibrous stuff on the plastic keeper plate and solder brass rod and brakes onto that, you can keep the two sides isolated by putting a slot in the copper and soldering the rod in an L shape to each side. You might have to do some clever extension to get to the front wheels though, I think the keeper stops behind the line of the front axle. You'll more than likely come up with a better idea yourself but I've got a B12 in a box somewhere that's on the "must do it up" list and was pondering the same problem.

Cheers
Paul

[Phil Brighton]

That's a really helpful idea - Thanks.

[Phil Brighton]

Progress on the Quad Arts continue and am pleased with how they are looking.

The McGowan B12 is continuing to need a lot done to it to get it to both fit together and look like a B12/1.
It was too long, the smokebox front was wrong, steps in the wrong place and the decorative valencing didn't match the castings.
After much though and a realisation you can use solvent to stick plasticard to white metal I ended up making a thin skin for parts of the frames, the smokebox, top of the running plate and cab front. This was after a very large amount of filing the castings down all over.

I am a way of painting yet but can anyone confirm the colour of the decorative valances in LNER livery. I think they should be black looking at photos but some other models have them green and the green D16s had green ones.

[nzpaul]

Quad-art looks amazing. The B12 looks like you're having fun....glad it's yours

Paul

[Atlantic 3279]

I had an impressive heap of white metal filings after making the parts of my McGowan B4 look reasonable and fit tolerably well......

[Dave]

Quad art looking very good.
Is the painting around the windows and tops of the doors finished ? as it looks a lot darker than your teak finish, and should be the same as the teak finish.

[Atso]

Lovely work Phil, the quad is looking good.

Regarding the B12, I know that Ian Rathbone painted the valances green on the 2mm one that runs on Copenhagen Fields. It can be found here:

http://www.ianrathbonemodelpainting.co. ... scales.php

A quick look through colour rail's site shows two B12s, but one is a colourised photo so cannot be taken as gospel. The other looks like the valance is black but a closer inspection suggests a hint of white lining, so it may just be very dirty. I'm not near my copy of The Big Four in Colour at the moment so can't search to see if there is a more conclusive photo there.

The only other photo (B&W) I've found that definitely suggests a lined green valance is on Transports of Delight (see link below).

https://transportsofdelight.smugmug.com ... -L4dbdMN/A

Hope this is of some help.