Kiwionrails' Work Bench

GWR Loriot P Conversion (Continued)
It has been a number of weeks since I have last managed to progress the LORIOT P conversion. Honestly this was mostly due to me reaaaally not feeling in the mood to complete the brake gear, as it is more fiddly than I'd like....

The below won't be perfect by any means, but I'd like to think that it at least provides the 'impression' of the correct pattern, even where it doesn't hold-up to close scrutiny..... in either case I believe it looks better than the stock Hornby mouldings..!




The above was cobbled-together as follows:

• Brake yolks & adjusters - MT etch
• V hanger - Comet models etch
• Pull rods - 0.3mm NS wire
• pivot axle - 0.45mm NS wire

As one of the pull rods was routed under the axle, I was therefore unable to remove the wheels for painting.... some careful masking of the tyre treads ensued....



....which was followed by a very thin coat of Mr Colour Surfacer 1000 & levelling thinners through the airbrush. - Due to the 'pokey' nature of the underframe, I wanted the greater control afforded by the airbrush over my usual tactic of Halfords rattle can..



...this was then followed by some wagon grey...



Items remaining:

• Painting
  • Wooden planking - Will probably tackle this in a similar manner to I have just done with a MACAW which is also being worked on where I 'base coat' with a 'raw' wood colour then use the oils to tone it down...
  • Brake handle needs picking out in white
• Lettering
  • General lettering - Need to poke around my various books to what styles to use.
  • Custom solebar number plate
• Finishing
  • May continue playing with weathering on this one.... we'll see....

Regards,

Cameron.

PO Wagon Thomas Meakins No.13 (Continued)
To tie-up the completion of the Thomas Meakins wagon, it has now received its final coats of varnish and touch-ups to the wheels to give them a nice 'white wall', and am very happy with the final result!



Regards,

Cameron.

GWR Loriot P Conversion (Continued)
Had some time today, so have been able to continue work on the Loriot P.....

There were a number of timber panels in the deck, which involved lots of masking. Fortunately nothing overly complex, but did require a few different widths of tape! The big thing that needed doing was ensuring that all the tape edges were well rubbed-down onto the surface...


This was then followed by some Phoenix Precision 'raw' wood colour - I know this is very 'bright', but rest-assured it will be toned-down in time....


With the masking removed and brake levers painted, I must admit it does look very smart!



Lettering next, then some light weathering.....

Regards,

Cameron.

Ratio GWR MACAW G No.32354
Another wagon that has been kicking around the workbench for a very long time was a built-but-not-painted Ratio MACAW. This was an early test-piece back in January for using the automotive paint, and is one of the reasons I decided to adopt it for future models...


The interior wood planking was given a coat of vallejo acrylic bare wood colour (can't remember the code currently), but as with the above Loriot, this was a bit bright....

...and alongside the PO wagon, was one of my first test-subjects for using oil paint. The effect was achieved with some black oils, white spirit and a 0-size brush, brushing 'along' the planks to tone things down and give a wood-grain effect.


Lettering was then added, sourced as follows;

• 'GW' - HMRS Methfix
• 'Not common user' - Railtec
• MACAW G - Fox Transfers
• Running number & load/tare - Fox Transfers

Once that was complete, it was all sealed-in with some laquer varnish, and once again I'm very happy with the result!




I'm aware that the Ratio MACAWs were actually based on a Taff Valley Railway prototype, and thus the standard GWR 5'6" aren't quite correct (see 'A Pictorial History of Great Western Wagons', pg81), but I was rather scuppered by the original builder who used the 'wrong' type! Whilst I could obtain some bogies of the correct pattern, I honestly cba for this wagon at the moment, and would prefer to do this sort of thing as part of a 'ground up' build in the future... If anyone asks I'll say that it was swapped-out in service(!)...

Regards,

Cameron.

GWR Shunting Wagon Diagram M.2 No.41750 - Plymouth (Millbay) East End
I have you to blame for getting a bee in my bonnet on this one 34C !

34C said:

Ah, ABS kits. I rather doubt that anyone attempting to resume production would get the same results, as Adrian's work standard was rigorous. I once had a couple of packs of wagon buffer castings from misaligned mould halves, and returned them, and by return received an apologetic letter explaining that there would be a delay in sending replacements ,while he revised the mould securing arrangment such that this should never happen again.

As for the white metal formulation he used, way harder than the norm and as a result 'crisp' in taking an impression, and permitted commendably thin representation of side sheeting, such that up to the size of a general merchandise open the weight was good. Higher side and longer opens and vans were heavier than ideal. But of course where his productions really shone was bogie flats, adequately heavy as supplied, and also the castings for bogies which supplied useful weight for a plastic coach body such as those by Ian Kirk; much utilised by this ECML modeller.

(Sadly, after many years caring for his invalid mother, his own health failed, and he was banned from websites for his intemperate criticism of poor RTR models. This was not the real Adrian Swain, but a product of his poor health, far removed from the helpful and courteous personality I had experienced in years gone by.)

Click to expand...

A wee while ago I was able to pick up an ABS/Four Most Models whitemetal kit of a GWR shunting truck to Diagram M.2 (kit ref F.289).


As note above, the whitemetal was incredibly fine and crisp straight out of the packet. My biggest criticism was that there were some sections with a lot of flash (mainly the complex figure shape), however for the most part this was very thin and easy to remove..!


The instructions whilst thorough weren't the clearest, as they were a single sheet for the range of shunting wagons, rather than dedicated solely to this kit, but honestly it was completely workable once you got used to the writing style.

As noted above, the floor and toolbox are beautifully fine, with planking detail actually included on both sides, which I thought was a nice touch!


I didn't take many photos during the main part of the assembly, as I really wanted to concentrate to ensure everything went together squarely. It may be considered heresy, but I actually assembled almost the entire thing with superglue...! Before people bite my head off, I tried something new with this one, having just picked up some rubber-infused 'black' superglue, which is significantly more flexible than the standard varieties.

The main challenge when getting the sides and ends attached to the floor was the lack of any 'solid' jigging pieces to locate the relative lateral positions of the components until you had at least two firmly affixed in place. Once these first two were done though, the whole thing basically 'fell' together!



Detail was next, with buffers, axleboxes and springs going on nicely. The latter slotted very neatly (after a small amount of fettling) into some pre-formed holes, which would have enabled the wheels to be dropped out if I had taken that option during assembly..


The underframe followed next - For some reason the vee and brake handles were both supplied with 'pips' rather than holes for the brake rod, so this had to be drilled-out before this could be fitted... Once all assembled and the additional pull rods added, i'd say it looks pretty good! (ignore the fact that you'll never see half of this due to the stepboards, but I'll know it is there!!)



Now for the component I was most afraid of, which would make-or-break the look of the wagon - the handrails! The Diagram M.2 wagons had two sets - one long continuous one just above the solebar which attaches into pockets on the two ends.

The other handrail raises out of the wagon floor on vertical stantions. The kit is supplied with a set of split pins to represent these stantions, however as one of the only variations from the supplied, I swapped these with some Alan Gibson 'Shoulderless' handrail knobs, which looked a basically perfect fit for size and length!


With the handrails complete, it was then ready for priming! First-off though, I thought I'd do a couple of 'glamour' shots to show off the finished assembly!



I didn't mention above, but the kit is supplied with full detail inside and outside the toolbox. I haven't decided whether it will be left open or shut long-term, so have left it removable for now. I considered trying to fabricate a hinge, but didn't have aby good ideas on how to do this neatly - one idea I currently have is to use a couple of small pieces of tape (kapton or maybe insulation) to create a flexible joint after painting.

You can really see the beautiful insides in the below photo!


Next-up; painting!

Regards,

Cameron.

GWR Shunting Wagon Diagram M.2 No.41750 - Plymouth (Millbay) East End (Continued)
Painting has now commenced!

I thought I'd build an improved version of the painting handle I've used previously. In this case it comprises a scrap of wood, length of 5mm dowel and an M3 bolt. This screws into an M3 nut that is glued into the underside of the floor, and provides much greater access to the underside during painting.


Unfortunately the rigid whitemetal W-irons mean that the wheels can't be removed for painting, so some careful masking of the treads was required....


...This was then followed with some of my usual Halfords etch primer....



.....and then some GWR grey....



The wooden deck will be receiving a suitable coat of 'wood' colours - probably following a similar approach to what I did with the Macaw. I have however seen variable reports of whether the step boards were left unpainted or not.... TBC what to do about this....

More generally left to do:

• Wood components
• Handrails
• Brake levers
• Lettering
• Interior detailing of toolbox....

I have also commenced painting of the whitemetal shunter figure which come with the kit, which is a bit of a new experience for me, having not tackled many figures before....!

Regards,

Cameron.

7-Plank RCH1923 'Convertible' Coke Wagon - Gas Light & Coke Co, Beckton
....In a move which should surprise no-one at this point, I have started yet another wagon going....(there are also actually two others, but they are for another post...)

The subject today would be due to acquiring some POW Sides dry transfers for a Gas Light & Coke Co open wagon, based at Beckton Gasworks in east London...


If you look closely, you'll see that the wagon is technically 'for internal use only', however I'm going to pretend that it escaped, as I wanted one....!

This should be applied to a 10-planker, as coal coke is very much less dense than coal, however the closest I have managed to find is a Cambrian 7-Plank RCH1923 'Convertible' Coke Wagon...


Assembly went reasonably smoothly, however as noted in previous posts, the fitment between components is not as precise as ideal, so some sanding and filling was required in places...



I decided that this one would be 3-point compensated with some MJT W-irons, so needed to do some grinding of the rear of the solebars. - Actually more was needed than ideal, as I fitted the solebars about 0.5mm closer together than I should have due to not paying attention (as supplied the moulded w-irons would have spaced them out from the stops on the floor, but I forgot this when gluing in place...!)


The W-Irons and brake gear then went in, with a 'stub' left to enable later fitting of the brake handle - this was something which I have found to greatly improve the ease during painting where body-coloured solebars are used on PO wagons.


The springs/axleboxes (MJT) and moulded coke extensions were then fitted to enable final preparation for priming...


....before fitting to my very useful open wagon painting handle!


....aaaand now nicely covered in a coat of primer....


The bodysides will be a light grey, although am going to do some digging through the selection before settling on a shade...

Regards,

Cameron.

Back in April I did some spit-balling on what a GWR equivalent of a bogie brake van would look like, and now having found a suitably cheap source of a couple of bodies, has been moved forward.....!



The 'donors' for this was a pair of Airfix Toads, which were both completely stripped-down....



Both bodies were then attacked with a fine razor saw...


...the bogie brake van will now be 'parked' on this post, as the above photo gave me an idea..... what to do with the remaining body pieces....!

Freelance GWR 'Mini' Brakevan

Measuring up the remaining pieces, it turned out to be exactly the right size to use a couple of spare pieces of solebar which I had sitting in the bits box.... Coupled with some buffer beams from a Cambrian kit, I managed to cobble-together a very short (7ft!) wheelbase layout...!


Doing some further cobbling, I created a clasp-braked underframe using a combination of MJT W-Irons and brake shoes, with Comet models yolks.

Axleboxes are the older grease-type, with my justification being that this brake van would be effectively 'captive' in its native yard, as the short wheelbase and light weight would make it unsuited to mainline running.


Further 'bits' were added from various other etches to fill in the rest of the underframe to give it a plausible look - I think I worked out that if everything was actually connected, it would 'work', albeit slightly unconventionally....


Weight was added under the floor at veranda-end, and inside the enclosed cabin at the other.

The remainder of the below-solebar detail consisted of some long sandpipes and a pair of short running boards.


With that finished, it then received a coat of grey primer, which really ties everything together...!



Painting and lettering will now commence.... Unlike the above bogie equivalent, I haven't yet worked out how this will be arranged, or even the load rating.... a further post will follow in due course.....

Regards,

Cameron.

GWR Loriot P Conversion (Continued)
Lettering on the Loriot P has commenced, with the first side now complete.


Lettering used on this was as follows:

• 'GW' - HMRS
• Running Number - Fox
• Load/Tare - Fox
• Not Common User - Railtec
• Wheelbase - Modelmaster
  (Technically the wheelbase listed is wrong, but I'd challenge anyone to notice w/o macro photography, and it was noticible that 'nothing' was there without it)

I'll tackle the second side in the coming days once everything is fully dry...

Remaining:

• Painting
  • Wooden planking to be weathered down with oil paint
• Lettering
  • Finish second side
  • Custom solebar number plate

Regards,

Cameron.

GWR Shunting Wagon Diagram M.2 No.41750 - Plymouth (Millbay) East End (Continued)
The shunting wagon has also been continuing, next-up with lots of masking to enable me to spray the wooden flooring...



I decided against trying to mask the handrails, and instead used a cotton bud with white spirits to simply wipe-off the overspray whilst it was still wet. Masking would have either been incredibly fiddly, or would have blocked my ability to spray... Whilst I could have instead brush-painted the floor, this again would have been very fiddly to do around the handrails....


Speaking of the handrails....they are now white...! Some Humbrol white acrylic was used here as I have found it to have a much denser pigment load than the various enamel (Humbrol, Revell and Phoenix) that I've tried....



Really happy with how this one is coming out, and the handrails certainly go a long way to 'complete' the look..!

Remaining:

• Wood components
• Handrails
• Brake levers
• Lettering
• Interior detailing of toolbox
• Light weathering(?)
• 'Shunter' figure

Regards,

Cameron.

Freelance GWR 'Mini' Brakevan (Continued)
Have been doing some thinking about liveries for the 'mini' brake van, and have come up with the following:


3 & 5 are currently my favourites, with 2 and 4 just looking 'wrong' to my eyes...!

Will give it a bit of thought over the next few days before lettering-up, but welcome other's thoughts!

Regards,

Cameron.

7-Plank RCH1923 'Convertible' Coke Wagon - Gas Light & Coke Co, Beckton (Continued)
Whilst considering livery options for the brake van, work on the coke wagon has continued....

The exterior of the wagon should be 'light grey' - without having any suitable photos, I decided to just pick a colour from my collection, so ended up with "Yang-Ming Grey for C Rail" from Phoenix Precision. This is a very light grey (maybe a bit too light), but thought I'd give it a go....


The wagon interior would be tackled in a similar fashion to a couple of recent ones, with an undercoat of 'wood' brown colour. I decided that whilst the main part of the sides would have been left unpainted, the additional 'coke rails' would have been painted all-over. The inside was therefore duely masked to enable some spraying to be undertaken.....


...aand post-application....



Again due to lacking any suitable photos, I was left to guess what the wagon strapping painting regime would look like, and settled on a 'everything metal to be black' approach...! At the time of writing I haven't yet done the coke rails, as I was going a bit cross-eyed after finishing all that....!



The underframe metalwork would also receive a coat of black, although this would be sprayed rather than brush-painted like the body. More masking was therefore needed.....!


......aaaand now how things stand, with the masking removed....



Next up.....lettering....

Regards,

Cameron.