|
|
Members' Projects
|
|
|
Webb Coal Tank under construction by BERT ASHTON
This coal tank was designed by HOTSPUR (Chris Rayward) who published all his notes in "ENGINEERING IN MINIATURE" over a number of years. For further details on this project, please contact Bert. Van and Wagon construction by GEOFF DOWDEN
LNER 12 TON COVERED VAN The first LNER design for a standard covered goods van. 2344 were built to this specification having a timber underframe, 9’0” wheelbase, 17’6” over buffer beams and fitted with Moreton hand brake gear. These examples only had the brake mechanism on one side of the chassis with one brake block working on each axle. Both the end ventilators were positioned on the same side of the van. The model was built generally following the Engineering in Miniature series of drawings and notes by Doug Hewson who supplied the axle box castings, brake blocks and the fine chain for the door latch and brake lever locking pins. Body panels are of MDF with a two layer card and PVA’d cotton covered roof on MDF ribs. The wheels were machined from mild steel bar and the works plates and label clips were provided by Bill Hall of Sutton Coldfield. L ivery detail by transfer and Letraset applied by G.Dowden 7 PLANK 12 TON PRIVATE OWNER MINERAL WAGON Constructed to the 1923 Standard Railway Clearing House Regulations. Thousands of examples of these wagons were once a familiar sight throughout the length and breadth of Britain’s railways, carrying all manner of materials and commodities. However, they will be probably best remembered for the transportation of coal from the collieries to thelocal yards for onward distribution to a wide variety of consumers. The model was built following the Engineering in Miniature ‘Building 5”g Wagons’ series by Doug Hewson who supplied the 8 spoke wheel castings, brake blocks and fine chain for the brake lever rack. Body sides and ends are of plywood with an MDF floor. Buffer stocks – fabricated from 6 individual pieces soldered together. Axle boxes – machined from brass section. Label clips and wagon registration plates were supplied by Bill Hall. Livery details applied by G.Dowden. A 20 TON BOGIE BRICK WAGON The model was constructed as a driving truck following Doug Hewson’s drawings and notes which were published in Engineering in Miniature. The design essentially provides a braked single seat vehicle designed for ground level running with the intention that its bogie appearance gives a fair representation of an LNER diamond frame wagon prototype. When operating on raised tracks, the wagon is provided with aquickly attached footrest/ stirrup arrangement of square section tube which fits across the top of the wagon sides and is secured to the front of the seat box with two ¼” diam. bolts and wingnuts. 3 hole disc wheels were machined from mild steel bar with the livery detail applied by G.Dowden and is a combination of Letraset, stencil and freehand application. A 20 TON L.M.S. BRAKE VAN Lot 715 – Built Derby 1933 The model is an example of the type of brake van referred to as ‘the Reverse Stanier’ in order to distinguish this style from the later and much better known vehicle. The basic measurements, length overall and wheelbase were the same, but the later vehicles, built from about 1936 until the first BR standards appeared, had the entrance lobby at the extreme ends of the van. When first built the livery was as shown, but repaints after 1936 were out shopped with LMS, 20T and running number in approx. 4” high letters positioned at the bottom left hand side of the vehicle. The model was constructed mainly from a general arrangement drawing by Ken Morgan with notes by Bob Essery which appeared in the Railway Modeller of July 1970, then on sale at 3/6d (17½p)! Van body - side and end panels of MDF with a roof of 2 layers of card covered with cotton and supported on MDF cross members with 2 stripwood longitudinal side formers. Guard’s duckets – Folded and glued to shape from good quality card. 3 hole disc wheels – Turned from mild steel bar with axles boxes machined to correct profile from sections of cast iron bar. Internal stove and cinder tray – machined separately from sections of brass bar. Brake blocks, guard’s brake column and hand wheel castings supplied by Doug Hewson. Plasticard and Slater’s letters and livery details applied by G.Dowden. The construction of the model was described in Model Engineer Volume 186 nos.4147/4149 and Volume 187 nos.4151/53/57 A 5”g example of a ‘Narrow Gauge’ Slate Wagon Once common in the Welsh valleys and elsewhere to convey material from the slate quarries to the works for the finishing processes. The model was constructed generally to the drawings and notes by M.R. Harrison, published in Engineering in Miniature and based on an example in the Talyllyn Railway Narrow Gauge Museum, Towyn. Where necessary, appropriate amendments to the design were made to enable the wagon to be coupled and run, although quite unprototypically, in a rake of other ‘standard gauge’ freight rolling stock! Wheels – machined from mild steel bar with axles running in boxes of 2-piece mild steel welded fabrication and fitted with Oilite bearings. Coupling hooks – sawn and hand file finished from mild steel plate. Livery detail by G.Dowden utilising Letraset material and protected with 2 coats of Humbrol satin varnish. The rake of wagons is currently hauled by a now work stained example of the 3½”g “William” 2.6.2T design by the late Martin Evans, a first attempt locomotive constructed between 1983/87, pending the introduction of a 5”g Midland Johnson 0.6.0 3F which will hopefully be ready to enter service in the summer of 2005. The freight train puts in an appearance at the Rochdale society’s track at Springfield Park but has been known to venture further afield to locations such as the Ribble Valley at Edisford Bridge, Clitheroe; Worden Park, Leyland; Cinderford Picnic Site for Lancaster and Morecambe; Abbey Park, Leicester, where it was awarded the trophy for the 3½”g locomotives at the Northern Association Rally in 2003 and over the Snake Pass to Abbeydale, the home of the Sheffield and District M.E.S. for the same event in 2004. Once the 3F has proved itself, “William” will probably be consigned to secondary line duties and provide the entertainment for the society’s ‘Wednesday afternoon’ retired members brigade. A little about ‘William’ After a quarter of a century of railway modelling in ‘00’scale and a brief encounter with‘0’gauge, ‘William’ evolved during 1983 – 87 following the late Martin Evans series published in Model Engineer between 1983 – 84. The construction of ‘William’ was the manifestation of a lifetime’s interest in railways and, being raised in a corner of northeast Lancashire, a special fondness for the LMS in particular. To own and be able to drive a miniature steam locomotive had been a personal ambition for many years and I had lost count of the number of occasions that I had borrowed the familiar standard works on the subject from the library but then dismissed the idea of ever being capable of building one as a completely impossible task. Thankfully, the ME article, ‘A locomotive for Beginners’, provided the final motivation for signing on for two years of night school tuition on the use of machine tools and the ultimate purchase of a used Myford ML7. My only regret is that I did not make this momentous decision much earlier as it is now impossible to regain twenty years of lost opportunities. My advice to anyone in a similar position to my own and who is sitting on the fence is – Jump, go for it. You will probably never regret it! A chance meeting and consequent unforgettable conversation with Martin Evans at the rally which bears his name and held at the Brighouse and Halifax SMEE club site in 1994, resulted in an invitation to submit an article about the locomotive which subsequently appeared in Model Engineer vol. 173 no. 3976 published in September of the same year. The loco. has given seventeen years of generally reliable service during a period which has satisfied both a personal desire and provided a wealth of extremely enjoyable and diverse experiences. The only repairs that have been necessary are renewal of the wasted copper superheater element return bends and the replacement of the eccentric rod return crank bushes – worn to an oval. More recently, due to a somewhat erratic performance, the lubricator tank mechanism has been given a makeover, the unit being an original purchase from one of our trade suppliers. The locomotive comfortably handles its driver and the club’s riding truck when hauling the five 5”g freight vehicles in my present fleet – further additions are expected for ‘William’s’ replacement, a more powerful 5”g Midland Johnson 3F. A tank wagon, a single bolster truck and a cattle wagon are the current nominees but I will probably only call a halt to the wagon building programme when it becomes physically impossible to load any more in the car! The Object of the ‘O’ Gauge Flirtation The ‘O’ gauge 4.4.0 2P locomotive originated many years ago as a ‘can it be done’ exercise in the use of Plasticard material for models larger than 00 scale rolling stock and was instrumental in whetting my appetite for the larger gauges. In retrospect, it was the catalyst which propelled me into the realms of the bigger stuff and was the reason for my frequent visits to the library and perusal of the appropriate technical publications with reference to steam locomotive construction. It was never my intention to fit an electric motor in the loco. as the building of an O gauge layout was not an option, but nevertheless, provision has been made to accommodate the fitting of a power unit to the chassis if ever the occasion demands. The chassis and superstructure of both loco. and tender are constructed from the styrene sheet material with Romford wheels and axles and white metal castings for the smokebox door, chimney and dome etc. Coupling rods are fashioned from lengths of 00 scale bullhead rail with the crankpin ends each fabricated from two steel washers, a solder filling and filed to radius.
|
