Mossys 3D Models

Well the frame now fits and the long and short yokes join up nicely with the actuating lever. None of it is glued together yet:



So build sequence is:

Glue the compensation unit to the floor.
Assemble and glue the brake unit.
Drop the brake frame over it without gluing it.
Carefully thread the wheel set into position.
Glue the brake frame to the floor.
Take a few breaths of air and repeat at the other end.

Now the 64 dollar question - do I go for it???

Mossy

 

Paul,

I like your second idea, but the snag is the compensated axle. The fitting that glues to the floor is 10-thou brass and the clearance of the rocking unit from is less that 1mm, All very very tight. Provided I take it slowly and carefully my way works. But the best laid schemes and all that. It just squeaky bum time.

On a different subject, do you know where I can get washers to fit a 2mm diameter wagon axle.

Mossy

 

Paul,

After all the discussions on end hand rails I have added a small refinement to the Cattle ends. If it doesn't work they could easily be filed off, but its worth a go.

Horse loops. If you look on Chris Pulhams website there is a lovely painting of a horse shunting a P7 coal hopper: Gallery Three (chrispulhamrailwayartist.co.uk)

Mossy

 

Back to clasp brakes.

The original frame set upfit perfectly on the none compensated end, but a trial fit on the compensated end results in the linkages clashing with the compensation unit. Two causes a) the yokes are to far away from the axle and b) the long yoke is to long. I have had to change the yoke linkage to bring the yokes closer to the axle position and reduce the long yoke extension by roughly a quarter. Using some spare parts I have cut down the long yoke and also drilled another hole in the yoke linkage - it all seems to work so the next step is to modify the bodies and reprint them. All in all I am glad all this this fiddling about is not being done with axleboxes in place than would be a nightmare.

Photography is difficult when positioned around the compensation unit the best I can do is this (old set up on left, temporary set up on the right):

 

Hi Pete,

Welcome to the chaos. I actually have a wire bending gauge, not sure where I got it, but it's effectively what your describing, this one has holes from tiny to over 60mm.
I've never really got on with it and prefer to gauge the requirements by eye.

The big problem with the footboard support was my stupidity in where the holes were cut, what it basically meant was I needed 2 right angle bends separated by a 1.5 horizontal, just vicious. Had they been in the right place it would have been a simple l shape, long leg 16mm short leg 5mm.

Mossy

 

Paul,

snap - that's the one I have, great minds and fools seldom comes to mind

Mossy

 

Paul,

I really dislike the Powside transfers, after you use the first one, bits just randomly seem to fall off the sheet - horrid things but all there is.

You know the old adage wait for hours for a bus and two come along at once, well the mossy equivalent is struggle to build 1 set of clasp brakes and suddenly you have four! That's been a real eye strain. No's 2,3 and 4 still need cleaning up.

Mossy

 

Yesterday Rob emailed me asking if I could print some brake shoes for his J6 build as he was having a lot of problems preventing shorts with the etched brass components.
Not a problem a real quick job and they were posted out that evening. To me 3r printing inert resin blocks was an ideal solution to the problem. What it also did was set me thinking about minor components. I use NER short long and mineral buffers which normally come from Invertrains, but Chris is having problems with his supplier I am still waiting for 6 sets from a 12 set order. I actually designed and briefly faffed about with 3d printed buffer housing quite a while ago, but was unable to find anyone who was willing to supply the buffers, spring and retaining nuts. I even went as far as to design a buffer and end cap to work like the white metal buffers supplied in Jim McGeown's kits.

So I fished out the project and printed off short and mineral housings, buffers and caps which I am going to experiment with on the test V1/2. If all works ok then at least one of the two actual models will be fitted with mineral buffers although it is sort of implied in the Ian Sadler book that they used 'wagon buffers' so the other will use plain short wagon buffers. The mineral housing is the one with the in built step with the lettering NER.



Paul, if you read this dump the other set I sent you a set of the revised ones will be in the post tomorrow.

Mossy

 

Connecting to vac and or westie is easy, it's a simple rod from the operating rod between the brake V's, all you need to remember is vac brakes suck, westies blow, then figure out is the rod rotating clockwise or anti-clockwise that determines the positioning of the operating lever. If you have dual fitting brakes there are two operating levers, usually pretty close to 180 degrees from one another, that way both the vac and westie cause the same rotation. Probably easier drawn rather than written, if my scan would work I would do you some. Oh and don't drop one like Paul did having the cattle wagon upside down so the rotation pulls the brakes apart not together.

Mossy

 

Andy,

The NER championed Westinghouse brakes through out it's existence - westies. Operated via compressed air, the only vacuum brakes that I know they used were fitted to ECJS coaching stock which was shared with the GNR. Post grouping anything that had an on going life was slowly converted to vacuum only. Oh it also a dog but you couldn't use one of those to operate brakes!