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Saint Johnstoun's recent projects.

14217 Views 295 Replies 9 Participants Last post by  Saint Johnstoun
I've been absent from this forum for some time but here are a few recent projects. The first is a Metropolitan Railway K class Tank engine created from a Bachmann N Class.
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Vac reservoir on view, top picture
Getting warm!
Does anyone have a close-up or details of the Westinghouse Pump arrangements on the Tyne Dock O1s? I have two spare pumps and am tempted to convert my O1.
The loco that never arrived. This 8F was built by the North British Locomotive Company in December 1940 to specification for use by Turkish State Railways - air brakes and right hand drive. It was shipped from Hull in April 1941 but the SS Berhala was torpedoed near Freetown on 23rd May 1941.
Train Wheel Vehicle Rolling stock Mode of transport
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The loco that never arrived. This 8F was built by the North British Locomotive Company in December 1940 ...
...and then shipped to Turkey for re-erection broken down into 23 crates or cases: 1 x frames complete with cylinders, 8 x separate pairs of wheels, 1 x boiler, 1 x tender underframe, 1 x tender tank; 11 further cases in which all the smaller parts were packed. (The state of available shipping and port cranes in Turkey forced this method, there weren't enough ships regularly available with a deck crane to lift the 70 ton load of the 'dry' locomotive, nor the necessary dock cranes of sufficient capacity in Turkey.)

There's an account based on Ron Jarvis' notes of his and Fred Soden's adventures on assignment to Sivas in Turkey where 8F's were reassembled, in 'Ron Jarvis From Midland Compound to the HST' by JE Chacksfield, pub. The Oakwood Press.
The TCD 8Fs were either built for RHD or converted so the arrangement of the air compressor and air tanks was different to the normal arrangement with the compressor on the left side of the smokebox. No Vacuum brakes.
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The TCD 8Fs were either built for RHD or converted so the arrangement of the air compressor and air tanks was different to the normal arrangement with the compressor on the left side of the smokebox. No Vacuum brakes. View attachment 21969
The replacement 8Fs that were sent to compensate for those lost at sea were conversions and retained the compressor on the right hand side - also the Vacuum ejector exhaust was not removed - one of these locos is now at Bo'ness on the SRPS site.
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I have a Bachmann B1 that has developed a 'wiggle'. I've swapped the chassis with an LNER liveried one I don't run on the layout and it is fine, but any suggestions as to a cure - it it just wear and tear? Would replacing the axles help?
I've also had instance of the plastic wheel centres distorting and fouling the coupling rods. That loco also got failed valve gear and was withdrawn for spares.
I have a Bachmann B1 that has developed a 'wiggle'. I've swapped the chassis with an LNER liveried one I don't run on the layout and it is fine, but any suggestions as to a cure - it it just wear and tear? Would replacing the axles help?
I've also had instance of the plastic wheel centres distorting and fouling the coupling rods. That loco also got failed valve gear and was withdrawn for spares.
The description of the problem suggests to me this might be a split chassis mechanism B1? (Simple diagnostic, won't have a DCC decoder socket or NEM coupler pockets.)

If that is the case, that's what happens with this obsolete construction, the driven wheelsets fall apart as the centre plastic muff in the wheelset construction becomes loose: can be glued or replaced by muffs sold by Peter's Spares. (You clearly have already experienced the distorting cosmetic plastic inserts in the driving wheel faces, that can produce this 'wiggle' effect too.)

But if it is the current model, then most likely to be some part of the external rods fouling, or a bent coupling rod on one crankpin of the wheelset that's 'wiggling'. Needs careful inspection, connecting rod fouling on the leading crankpin is a key first place to look because a modern motor can seriously bend a snagged coupling rod, but there's usually an audible click and you don't mention that. Can also be a little piece of foreign material concealed in the cylinder limiting the travel of the piston rod, or a wiper out of place snagging on a wheelback, or a piece of foreign material lodged on a wiper or underframe detail, doing the same. Or if the loco has had a heavy accident, a wheel in the wiggling wheelset no longer true on the axle.
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It's a split chassis one. I've had problems with other ones in my fleet usually cured by replacing the plastic axles. There seems to be an awful lot of side play in the rear driving wheels although the back to back is OK.
Some of the split chassis mechanisms had a lot of sideplay, overall chassis width very narrow. Selectively cementing black plasticard to the keeper plate sides to reduce the lateral slop was effective. (My recollection is that the worst was the LMS 4-6-0 mechanism, which would end up slewed over for quite a distance after exiting a curve.)
I'll try that - funnily enough one of my best runners with split chassis is a BR lined black Rebuilt Patriot which started life as a Mainline but I rechassied with a Bachmann chassis 30+ years ago. I renumbered it 45512 Bunsen. It still performs on a regular basis on my layout.
Attached Plastikard packing to the chassis keeper front and back and it has cured the wobble.
On the 'projects' front I do find myself looking at the previous version of Bachmann's V2 with an eye to neverwazza developments. One of these V2's with a double Kylchap already trails a GN type coal rail 8 wheel tender off an early build A1 (by now an A3) which has in turn received a high-sided tender off 'something else': all this on the grounds that the V2 was occasionally embarrased in service by running short on water when put on a turn calling for the sustained high power output it could deliver.

Now there was an outline sketch prepared at Doncaster of how the V2 would have looked given the Bugatti streamlining; and here am I looking at the former Trix, now Bachmann, A4 bodyshell, long ago removed from a totally worn out split chassis mechanism. Just a foot out of the front of the boiler I reckon, and it will look right. This would definitely have had the high-sided non-corridor tender, which came with this particular A4. Would almost certainly have been named too, 'Straight'n'Arrow' appeals to me.
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I have done a streamlined V2 - awaits painting.
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This was done using one of those A4s supplied with that magazine and a spare V2 chassis. I haven't decided about the tender yet. The original outline shows a standard 6 wheel tender.
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...I haven't decided about the tender yet. The original outline shows a standard 6 wheel tender.
Indeed, however your model is upgraded beyond anything the LNER did to the V2, by the double Kylchap ejector exhaust which has increased the boiler power output potential significantly. I would suggest that the appropriate tender is a four axle type, mainly for the extra water capacity on a long high speed run.

I'd go for a modernised version of the GN type for a better rearward view when working freight turns, which would be the majority of the time.
I'm also undecided about livery? As for tenders I could have both types - 8 wheel and 6 wheel as I have both as spares.
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