Model Loco/DJH Rebuilt Merchant Navy kit build.

The chassis is now virtually complete, since bogie and pony truck have been attached. Not sure about the brass fret cylinder drain pipes though, I may well just replace them with copper wire as it'll look better with round rather than flat pipes! Wheel weights have also been fitted, light lubrication done ready for a 'running-in' session on DC to start with, then a quick DCC conversion, decoder will easily fit in the loco firebox, but that's for later.

 

I have to admit I'm no fan of valve gear either Pete, but this kit has most of the gear pre-assembled into 2 main parts for each side which does make it a bit easier. Having said that, in order to achieve the necessary clearances, it's been necessary to slightly bend a couple of rods which would definitely NOT have been bent in real life. Then again, the recent Bachmann model of H2 Atlantic "Beachy Head" also comes with slightly bent rods, once again to get the necessary clearances.
Keith.

 

After an interval of nearly 3 weeks, mostly spent wrestling with attempting to convert my layout to PC control (without success so far!), I've had a few sessions furthering this loco build, and reached the point where some paint can be applied, mostly just primer & undercoat, but it's a start. This is the tender underchassis, which has got as far as black topcoat, the wire sticking out is from the 3 'plunger pickups', and will pass through to join the loco pickups, hopefully improving electrical contact with the track.

 

The tender body has had primer and undercoat, and as is usual, slight flaws have shown up which will need filler and/or other attention. I find that grey undercoat is useful for showing up areas needing further work which otherwise might go un-noticed.

 

.......and from the other side. If you're wondering what the 'lumps' are on the buffer base ends, it's just 'Blu-Tack' which I use to blank off holes or other parts where I don't want paint to find it's way into. I just remove the tack when final painting is being done, ready to fit the buffers into.

 

The chassis has already received paint, and now the loco body is complete except for odd parts like Ross Pop valves etc (I have brass ones to fit, along with smokebox door handles) this too has had primer and grey undercoat, again showing up small areas that need more attention before further paint coats.

 

Parts such as smoke deflectors will be separately painted and fitted after the body's final paint coat and transfers, but before the clear varnish coat which I apply to seal transfers.




Like 'British Rail' used to advertise some years ago, "we're getting there!"

 

Having got the airbrush out, I got 8 very fine topcoats of BR green sprayed onto the tender and the loco body. The initial primer was a clear etch primer, followed by two coats of Grey primer then the green, which is Railmatch BR Loco Green. As the tender top and loco facing end is black, I've not masked off for the green so there is some slight overspray to be seen, likewise the smokebox and footplate top on the loco body. I'll leave the paint to harden for a few days before I attempt any masking for the black area's since I don't want to pull any paint off when I remove the masking tape. I did decide to paint the smoke deflectors in Satin Black as the primer had been applied previously, so they are now ready to fit when required. For any Satin Black or White topcoat, Red Oxide, Grey or White primers, I just use "Auto-Tek" acrylic car paint in a 'Rattle Can' from the local 'Cheap shop' in Alfreton, £2.49 for a 500Ml can, and it goes on without problems and gives a good finish.......what's not to like! If you're wondering what the 'sticks' with the smoke deflectors are, I just use a blob of "Blu-Tack" to fix the sticks to unseen area's on the rear of the deflectors, which then allows me to turn them as needed for an even spray coat, peel off the sticks when the paint's dry, and the deflectors are ready to fit.

 

It's been a week or three since a progress report, and I've been slogging along in between other stuff, including a 4th 'extension' to my layout, in truth only a lengthening of the 3 sidings on the Cement Works part of my layout, but that's at a standstill presently as I wait for delivery of various odds and ends. I completed the paint spraying of the loco and tender, then put on a couple of coats of clear gloss varnish as decals don't settle onto matt surfaces well. Here's the loco body with decals, lining and name/number plates fitted.

 

I also fitted the Ross Pop safety valves and smokebox door darts, turned brass items rather than the supplied white metal, and (in my opinion) these look so much better.

 

The tender is also now completed with decals, again awaiting satin varnish to seal and 'dull down' the final finish. Sprung buffers will be fitted to both tender and loco after final varnishing is done.

 

At least it's now beginning to look like a locomotive and tender! Glazing of windows still to do.

 

Finally, after a break from modelling of almost 2 months, I've managed to wade through almost all of my outstanding home property maintenance jobs (with the exception of replacing the entire roof of my 32ftx15ft double garage, presently leaking like a sieve!), and now that the real 'British Summer' has arrived in the form of "Monsoon Season", I've been able to get back indoors to complete this model. Glazing the loco and tender windows was a bit awkward, but not insurmountable using thin clear acetate sheet superglued in place, but superglue was almost my undoing shortly afterwards! The plunger pickups I fitted to the loco proved somewhat unreliable, so I ended up gluing small pieces of Veroboard under the chassis and soldering phosphor-bronze wire to these, bearing on the backs of the right hand wheels. This was fine, but on soldering wire to the veroboard strips, in order to keep said wire from moving, I superglued it to the chassis with what I thought (and intended) was just a tiny spot of glue. After completing this, on trying to run the chassis, I found eventually, that some surplus superglue had run down the chassis and firmly glued the central drive axle to the bearing.........AAAAaaaaaaaaghhhh!
I discovered that the local "Toolstation" stocked superglue 'Debonder' so I duly obtained a bottle (and also a bottle of 'thick' superglue, which is what I SHOULD have used in the first place!) and after several applications of the debonder, we were back in action.....Phew!
After that hold-up, it was a simple job to assemble chassis to body, attach the tender and feed through and solder the wire from the tender pickups to the loco pickups. I found that there was insufficient front bogie movement with the cylinder drain pipes fitted, likewise with the front loco steps, so as is often the case with many RTR models, these had to be dispensed with, but apart from that, all is ok.

 

Now this job is out of the way, I might have the opportunity to look at the "Judith Edge" Fell diesel kit that's next on my 'To-Do' list.
Keith.