Friday, December 1, 2017
Changing Gear
I'm still not ready for the big reveal of what I've been working on in the evenings, but to go with the brake wheel we now have..... a clutch peddle.
Friday, November 24, 2017
Progress Update
It's been almost a month since my last post and while there hasn't been a huge amount of modelling achieved I thought it worth doing a quick update.
First up, there has been some work on the latest Clayton build. That photo may not look too impressive but the box the body parts are resting on holds a few more bits of work. I've now collected all the parts together to complete the build, and I've assembled the wheelsets and the main layshaft. Most of the work though has gone into preparing the 3D body prints. Normally I spray my models from an aerosol can which puts the paint on reasonably thickly and hides some of the print issues. I'm hoping though to move to using an airbrush for painting so that I don't end up hiding small details etc. and can have access to a wider range of colours. This means though that I need to spend more time preparing the model surfaces. So far both parts have had two rounds of rubbing down with 2000 grit sandpaper after being sprayed with Mr Finishing Surfacer 1500. It's the first time I've tried using this stuff and so far I'm impressed, although the proof will come when I apply a layer of primer.
And now for something completely different. I usually model in my study, unfortunately the desk is pushed up against a thin internal wall and on the other side is my son's cot, so doing much when he's asleep is tricky, and I've avoided doing too much modelling in the lounge after he's gone to bed due to the inevitable mess I'd make. I've especially avoided doing anything with metals and plastics that might leave nasty stray bits if I don't clean up properly. So wanting a project I could work on in the lounge after he was in bed, I've picked up a kit made mostly from wood. I'm not going to reveal what that is just yet but as a clue, I decided to scratch build a brake wheel for it.
First up, there has been some work on the latest Clayton build. That photo may not look too impressive but the box the body parts are resting on holds a few more bits of work. I've now collected all the parts together to complete the build, and I've assembled the wheelsets and the main layshaft. Most of the work though has gone into preparing the 3D body prints. Normally I spray my models from an aerosol can which puts the paint on reasonably thickly and hides some of the print issues. I'm hoping though to move to using an airbrush for painting so that I don't end up hiding small details etc. and can have access to a wider range of colours. This means though that I need to spend more time preparing the model surfaces. So far both parts have had two rounds of rubbing down with 2000 grit sandpaper after being sprayed with Mr Finishing Surfacer 1500. It's the first time I've tried using this stuff and so far I'm impressed, although the proof will come when I apply a layer of primer.
And now for something completely different. I usually model in my study, unfortunately the desk is pushed up against a thin internal wall and on the other side is my son's cot, so doing much when he's asleep is tricky, and I've avoided doing too much modelling in the lounge after he's gone to bed due to the inevitable mess I'd make. I've especially avoided doing anything with metals and plastics that might leave nasty stray bits if I don't clean up properly. So wanting a project I could work on in the lounge after he was in bed, I've picked up a kit made mostly from wood. I'm not going to reveal what that is just yet but as a clue, I decided to scratch build a brake wheel for it.
Friday, September 29, 2017
An Extra 8.5g
As some of you figured out the new parts I showed in the previous post are a revised version of the keeper plate in the O14 Clayton battery electric locomotive I've been modelling on and off for the last two and a bit years, having started on it back in May of 2015. I did finish a complete model at the end of 2015 but that is now earning it's keep in Rhyd. Initial running trials at Rhyd showed that while the model worked okay it wasn't really heavy enough, especially if the driver was on the heavy side, and had a tendency to bounce. For the past year I've been slowly thinking about ways to add more weight and this is the result.
On the left we have the original keeper plate as fitted to the model now running on Rhyd. In the middle we have the revised keeper plate which is quite a bit thicker and has much taller ends. On the right we then have a new part which is purely to add weight; it doesn't have any specific function, unlike the keeper plate. This fits between the motor and the layshaft directly over the wheels.
The original keeper plate weighed 6.3g whereas the two new parts together weight 14.8g so an extra 8.5g, or viewed another way, an increase of 135%. Hopefully this should drastically improve the running quality of the model by helping to keep it securely on the rails. Hopefully I'll find out reasonably soon how much of an improvement as I need to get on and build the new model because, yet again, I've been commissioned to build it for someone else, so I still won't have finished one for myself!
As a bit of an aside, and because I think it's interesting, I thought it worth a few comments on weighting models and I why I've taken the route I have. Often when trying to add weight to models people use Liquid Gravity which is essentially a lot of tiny little heavy beads; would probably have been lead shot at some point in the past but health and safety rules means it's no longer lead based.
Liquid Gravity is nice and easy to use as you simply pour the beads into the available space within the model and keep it in place with a little superglue. I used this approach when building the Hudson-Hunslet model as it meant I could fill the tiniest of spaces to add extra weight. While the manufacturers don't provide any details on the weight of Liquid Gravity for a given volume I did find a review that had tried to estimate how heavy it really is. They found that it weighed roughly 4.15 g/cm3 which is actually quite light when compared to lead which weighs 11.3 g/cm3.
The stainless steel that I've had the parts 3D printed in is referred to by Shapeways as being 420 steel. Having had a hunt around I've found that 420 steel should have a weight of 7.74 g/cm3; so an 86% increase in weight for the same volume. Shapeways also give the material volume of each part and checking I found that the original part (with a volume of 0.8141cm3) should have a weight of 6.3g and the new parts (with a combined volume of 1.8215cm3) should weight 14.1g which matches nicely with the final weights of the printed parts.
When building such small models it seems silly not to take advantage of the extra weight of the stainless steel especially given that it can be printed to exactly fit within other printed parts and, in the case of the keeper plate, to serve a function at the same time. I'll certainly by continuing with this approach on future models, although Liquid Gravity still has it's uses.
On the left we have the original keeper plate as fitted to the model now running on Rhyd. In the middle we have the revised keeper plate which is quite a bit thicker and has much taller ends. On the right we then have a new part which is purely to add weight; it doesn't have any specific function, unlike the keeper plate. This fits between the motor and the layshaft directly over the wheels.
The original keeper plate weighed 6.3g whereas the two new parts together weight 14.8g so an extra 8.5g, or viewed another way, an increase of 135%. Hopefully this should drastically improve the running quality of the model by helping to keep it securely on the rails. Hopefully I'll find out reasonably soon how much of an improvement as I need to get on and build the new model because, yet again, I've been commissioned to build it for someone else, so I still won't have finished one for myself!
As a bit of an aside, and because I think it's interesting, I thought it worth a few comments on weighting models and I why I've taken the route I have. Often when trying to add weight to models people use Liquid Gravity which is essentially a lot of tiny little heavy beads; would probably have been lead shot at some point in the past but health and safety rules means it's no longer lead based.
Liquid Gravity is nice and easy to use as you simply pour the beads into the available space within the model and keep it in place with a little superglue. I used this approach when building the Hudson-Hunslet model as it meant I could fill the tiniest of spaces to add extra weight. While the manufacturers don't provide any details on the weight of Liquid Gravity for a given volume I did find a review that had tried to estimate how heavy it really is. They found that it weighed roughly 4.15 g/cm3 which is actually quite light when compared to lead which weighs 11.3 g/cm3.
The stainless steel that I've had the parts 3D printed in is referred to by Shapeways as being 420 steel. Having had a hunt around I've found that 420 steel should have a weight of 7.74 g/cm3; so an 86% increase in weight for the same volume. Shapeways also give the material volume of each part and checking I found that the original part (with a volume of 0.8141cm3) should have a weight of 6.3g and the new parts (with a combined volume of 1.8215cm3) should weight 14.1g which matches nicely with the final weights of the printed parts.
When building such small models it seems silly not to take advantage of the extra weight of the stainless steel especially given that it can be printed to exactly fit within other printed parts and, in the case of the keeper plate, to serve a function at the same time. I'll certainly by continuing with this approach on future models, although Liquid Gravity still has it's uses.
Monday, September 25, 2017
Signs of Life
So 11 months on and family life is starting to settle down into some kind of routine, and I'm beginning to find the time to do the odd little bit of modelling here and there. Just to prove that things are indeed happening how about some newly designed parts for one of my ongoing projects....
Friday, August 18, 2017
Standing Still
While writing the previous post I realised that I did have some model, albeit a tiny amount, to show you. If you remember from the last modelling post back in April I'd made a few small steps forward with my model of Tallylyn, including fitting the smokebox door. When I posted I'd just about convinced myself that I could live with the moulded smokebox door handles. Usually these are one of the first things I'd look to replace on a model, but I thought I could live with these, but a few comments on that post made me realise I'd regret not altering them.
So as you can see I've now gently removed the moulded dart, fitted a turned replacement, and resprayed the primer. The new dart looks quite different to the handles currently on Tallylyn but I've based these on old photos from the period I'm modelling the loco. I think this looks a lot better than it did before and I'm glad I didn't do any more work on the model before replacing the dart because it was easy to do without doing any damage; if I'd left it any later through the build process I'd probably have had to respray a top coat of paint which would have been much worse.
Unfortunately that was still the last modelling I've managed and I did this back in the second half of April so I've still no real progress to report.
So as you can see I've now gently removed the moulded dart, fitted a turned replacement, and resprayed the primer. The new dart looks quite different to the handles currently on Tallylyn but I've based these on old photos from the period I'm modelling the loco. I think this looks a lot better than it did before and I'm glad I didn't do any more work on the model before replacing the dart because it was easy to do without doing any damage; if I'd left it any later through the build process I'd probably have had to respray a top coat of paint which would have been much worse.
Unfortunately that was still the last modelling I've managed and I did this back in the second half of April so I've still no real progress to report.
Salvage
It's been quite a while since I last published a local history post (I got distracted by Scottish grouse shooting railways) but a new photo has come to light that shows a different view of one of the local railway accidents I've talked about before; specifically the Bullhouse Railway Accident which occurred on the 16th of July 1884..
All the previous photos I've seen of the accident site have been taken from below the railway line showing the carnage in the road and fields. This photo though is taken from the Penistone side of the bridge looking down into the road. It would appear that rather then showing the direct aftermath of the accident this photo shows the cleanup and possible salvage of useful parts from the destroyed wagons and carriages; note that the upturned carriage is missing it's wheels.
All the previous photos I've seen of the accident site have been taken from below the railway line showing the carnage in the road and fields. This photo though is taken from the Penistone side of the bridge looking down into the road. It would appear that rather then showing the direct aftermath of the accident this photo shows the cleanup and possible salvage of useful parts from the destroyed wagons and carriages; note that the upturned carriage is missing it's wheels.
Saturday, April 8, 2017
Two Steps Forward...
As predicted back in November I've had very little time for modelling over the last six months. I have, however, managed to grab a few minutes to take two small steps forward on the Tallylyn model. The last time you saw the model on the blog I'd just fitted a lamp bracket to the rear cab sheet. Well I've now also added one to the smokebox, along with the smokebox door.
The smokebox door is a 3D printed replacement from the Narrow Planet detailing kit. The door isn't a perfect match for the time period I'm modelling (the door would have been smaller looking at photos) but it's close enough.
As you can see I've also made a start on painting the model. Only a very basic start though; primer from a rattle can on the separate body pieces. On the plus side this hasn't shown up too many areas that need any work before more painting can take place. So the next decsion is what colour am I painting it. I had wondered about going with a heavily weathered black, but I think I'll go with a heavily weathered dark green (so weathered as to be almost black) instead.
The smokebox door is a 3D printed replacement from the Narrow Planet detailing kit. The door isn't a perfect match for the time period I'm modelling (the door would have been smaller looking at photos) but it's close enough.
As you can see I've also made a start on painting the model. Only a very basic start though; primer from a rattle can on the separate body pieces. On the plus side this hasn't shown up too many areas that need any work before more painting can take place. So the next decsion is what colour am I painting it. I had wondered about going with a heavily weathered black, but I think I'll go with a heavily weathered dark green (so weathered as to be almost black) instead.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)