Class 24 build... oh no not another Stoke engine.

Set off from here at 09.30 then thanks Rob I'd overlooked that bit.

 

Yes it was now you mention that.

 

And I'll take another too.

 

Yes I'm looking forward to making the body.

 

The Hymek conversion kit comprises of castings mainly, the main etches are the original design U shape inner bogie wheel and motor carrier, other etches are the side window frames, a flimsy inner body support frame, fan and some internal stuff like cab seats and parking brake hand wheel. I upgraded much of the white metal castings with equivalents from Laurie and also Peter Harvey Designs for the cab steps. The Hymek is a project I need to put back on the bench again even if it just becomes one of these jobs that run alongside something else, in my opinion I'd say the PRMRP conversion using a Triang Blue Flier Hymek (not the evil plastic Novo or Red Rocket body) will make a reasonably convincing model if the detailing is done which includes major surgery to cab fronts, windows and some cut and carve for the fan grill position with additional work along the skirt, otherwise this kit best serves those who are just seeking to have a reasonable representation of a Hymek and can live with certain shape inaccuracies .

 

Well this evening I managed to spend a couple of enjoyable hours soldering one of the bogie sides up, this involved soldering the back plate and the end undersides onto the front and top sections to form a continuous box fabrication, next I added the bolster swing link brackets in place on their locators... a bit of a faffy job but made easier with a suitable length of correct diameter wire and my grip tweezer. Slowly did it starting with the outer end pieces and then passing a wire through the holes as a support for the inner pieces which are to a slightly differing profile and a nice hot iron and bobs your uncle with the 145 degree solder... everything stayed as it should and I even spot soldered the white metal axlebox journals in place noting that they too are handed. All that was needed was a slight tweak with the pliers to square up the angles before the final solder fix. I may have used slightly too much solder in a couple of places but hey so what. Here are tonight's pics, I had hoped to move this bit of the build further forward than I have this week but other matters had priority, so now same again for the other side then I shal mark and locate the damper brackets before going for a full outer frame assembly.

 

So answering the request from Toto for more pictures showing size I placed the bogie side against a one pence coin to try and indicate scale. The penny coin measures 20mm across and the length of the bogie side is 101mm and height 14.5mm so if I placed the coin on the top over the bolster bracket it would be near on totally covered by Her Majesty.

As we can see this kit boarders on pushing boundaries of skill in the making process but for me this is a totally enjoyable and satisfying journey which will ultimately deliver a superb model, I think for me anyway having a mid-life change of direction and going to art school as I did then at the age of forty and learning how to develop personal making skills has stood me in very good stead. As I've always said before a craftsman never blames his tools and understands the nature of his materials in what is made, there is nothing wrong with Steve's 24 kit it just requires patience, planning, good tools and time to invest in building. I would say however this is a kit which does demand a certain level of experience but again that is the builders remit and not the kit design. Anyway lots more to do and I think I'll build up one bogie set in its entirety first as I want to see how the bolster sits in relation to its height on the outer frame which in turn will dictate the height of the body and the buffers. More of that later.

 

Well today is a stuff the world day and I've just decided to take the day off because things have been so hectic here I have almost been catching myself coming back ! So its back to the workbench YIPPIEEE to push this build forward a bit more and attention was turned back to the equalizing beam to solder on the damper support brackets. The first job was mark the locating position of the damper bracket on the equalizing beam against the centres of the damper holes the top section of bogie frame, this done the tiny etches were folded up forming an inverted U shape where the damper arm sits through. A slot in the bracket denotes the back face of this bracket.

 

So here is the equalizing beam with the left hand bracket soldered in position, the scribe mark on the right side just in front of the tweezers show where the next bracket must straddle this line, the damper holes are the smaller ones inside the bogie frame top face.

Now can anyone spot the soldering error... don't worry I've rectified it now and the damper arm will stand perfectly aligned.

 

And this is the way I soldered the tiny brackets, the beam is gripped in a wooden clothes peg and a lollipop stick supports the outer end of the beam, I just held the edge of a Slanley blade over the top of the bracket and soldered. The beauty of these tiny pieces is they heat up very quickly so the solder flows nicely, this means the tiny piece has not time to move or be accidentally shifted, just keeping the blade over the piece until the solder freezes also acts as a heat sink.

 

One bogie set of equalising beams with damper brackets fitted ... now all damper arms will stand straight. On with the second bogie now and then its solder clean up time but at three o clock its time for tea.

 

Right all four beams now fitted with their damper brackets and a nice cup of Yorkshire tea as my reward for a good afternoons work.

 

The two pairs of equalizing beams are now dressed and cleaned, they can be popped back into the self lock poly bag for safe keeping until needed.