Gladiator B16/1 A North Eastern Workhorse

Although the other threads that I have started, have mostly shared things that I have done previously this one is a current build.
The remit was to complete the already started kit of a Gladiator B16/1 locomotive as it was in the late 1950's.
The first few photos show what I started with and the rest show what I have done recently. Then over the next few days I will fill in the gaps with what I have done in between with hopefully a few tips for those that might need them.









I have fitted the cab roof and working back from the cab I have also fitted the cab side hand rails
I also started work on the washout plugs, and for the upper part of the firebox in the timeframe of this model, the oval base plate had been replaced with a round one.


In the kit these are represented by a circular half etched overlay but those in the kit were a little over etched therefore a bit on the flimsy side. So I made some replacements from some nickel rod threaded 14ba to these I added some Markits Crankpin washers (my last so I need to get some more) and a 14BA nut to finish.


Last thing, I gave it a good clean up scraping off lots of the excess solder that had built up in various areas.

 

Hi Tom,
They were fitted when I got it so I will work around them - when soldering near them I use a combination of self locking tweezers, aluminium hair grips and if I am really concerned blobs of wet tissue as heat sinks. clip the tweezers/hair grips in place on or around what you don't want to come loose and you can even use a micro flame with out dislodging anything- alternately the water in the tissue boils leaving the casting quite cool.

 

Since I am off work with the lurgy (read man flu) I may as well use the time when the head isn't much use for anything else to bring this thread a bit more up to date by filling in the gaps from where I started.

Like many people I started my bit of the build with the tender to get the feel of things.





The chassis made up, fairly straightforward, although the the bushes needed a little removing to increase the back to back clearance.



The water scoop a nice easy fold up etch that does swivel



Lamination of a pair of the tender brakes





Lastly I also made up the front bogie which is designed for side control. I will need to revisit this because there are whitemetal spring castings sat behind the wheels and at the minute they are not quite as freewheeling as we need.
As a side note and in answer to a question that I get asked quite a bit, the wheels are blackened with Birchwood Casey Gun Blue for Steel.

To get the even coverage I get a bowl of hot soapy water and dunk the wheels in it. I then scrub each one with a nylon pan shiner and while still warm I shake off the water residue and transfer to a jar of gun blue diluted about 50:50 with water and leave overnight.

When removing from the gun blue dunk in clean water to stop the bluing action and then dry off with kitchen paper. Lastly used a combination of kitchen paper and cotton buds to polish the wheels. Finish off with the tiniest drop of machine oil (I use 3 in 1 because I have it available) to help prevent rusting during the rest of the build

 

Not much modelling done this week due to not being at my best, but a bit of thinking in the lucid moments and looking at photographs of B16's. The conclusion that I reached is that washout plugs on B61/1's are a nightmare. Almost every photo you look at has different numbers in different positions - No Swindon standardisation here

So I settled on the understanding that the loco that I am building '61450' had three on the right hand side and two on the left (looking forward from the cab). 61450, would also have to be one of these with the foremost washout plug on the front corner of the firebox. Working out how to do that took a bit of head scratching.

As I have said before, mostly those things that require most head scratching and trepidation prove to be simpler to just get on and do. So it was with this one. I marked off where each one would sit and drilled a small pilot hole. For the four that are sat square to the side I just kept using slightly bigger drill bits until I hit the size for the previously made backing plugs.

For the one at the corner of the firebox, I drilled a pilot quite close to the edge of the side of the firebox and again started to make it bigger. I stopped short two or three sizes smaller than I needed for the others and then using an oval diamond file, I filed the front of the firebox adjacent to the hole so that I had a 3/4 hole in either face of the firebox. I then used a round burr in my Dremel to ease it to final size.

Fitting the backing plugs and getting them in position was fun, it took at least three attempts on all but one of them. Once they were all soldered in place it was time to add the half etched overlays to the firebox sides around the holes. I tinned them all while still on the fret then cut them out and filed of the tag.
I decided to use the microflame to solder them in position because I reasoned that using the soldering iron (aside from the possibility of getting solder all over where I didn't want it), would possibly nudge them out of position too. This created the dilemma of heating the front face while making sure that the plug didn't drop off the inside of the firebox. to get around this I cut some short lengths of coffee stirrer and wedged them between the two washout plugs inside the firebox and away I went. - I did manage to set fire to one which gave Chris a bit of a moment....

On a couple I had to add the tiniest spec of extra solder to get them firm and the one folding around the front of the firebox took a few attempts to get it seated properly in both planes but I got there in the end. They still need cleaning up but not as much as they would have if I had attempted to use the iron to solder them on.


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They are one of those details that will fade away once lost in the overall paintwork but which would be very noticeable if they weren't there. The plus point is that now that I have done them once doing them again on other locos will be quite straightforward.

 

As mentioned briefly elsewhere the detailing of the B16 is coming along nicely but not without minor frustrations.
This is where I have got to so far -


On to the frustrations, earlier I had made the oil boxes that sit on the front splasher tops, the first one on the right hand splasher too about 10 attempts to solder it on, I would get it positioned and then clamped with self locking tweezers but each time I reached for the soldering iron to solder it from the back the blessed thing either moved or fell off. Finally I got it soldered in place and decided to do the other one. This was even worse, after three failed attempts to solder it on, it flew off into space and despite a good grovel I couldn't find it. So I set to and made another, blow me if the same thing didn't happen again. A couple or three failed attempts then twang.....With the third iteration I filed a slight hollow in the base front to back so that it sat better on the splasher top and I managed to solder it on first go.




Next I made up and fitted the operating rod on the right hand side that was fitted to some locos. The casting was provided in the kit but I scratched the level from some scrap etch. This was all fairly straight forward as was drilling the foot plate and rear splashers and fitting the other oil boxes with the pipes. The boiler furniture again all went smoothly apart from the dome.






My dome casting was ever so slightly misshapen so that the oval of the dome when viewed from the top was at odds with the curvature of the boiler. As I said it was only marginally out but enough to make the dome sit slightly out of square (if a round object can sit square....) As it turns out it was a blessing in disguise because as designed the kit only caters for the earlier type of boiler. As I understand it the main visible difference between them being the position of the dome either astride a boiler band or between them.
To remedy the misshape I cut of the threaded spigot from the bottom and then using a ball shaped burr I ground out the remnants of it mounting and then I wrapped a strips of sanding belt around the boiler and twisting ever so slightly I rubbed away at the casting until it sat down 'squarely' the added bonus was that I was then able to move it back quite a way so that it only just covered the etched hole in the boiler. While ot 100% in the right place it's a lot better visually than had I just fitted it through the etched hole and moved on

 

Thanks Ian,
I am really enjoying the build. I do love adding all the little details.

 

This week work on the B16 has continued to flow.
The lubricators are on and although you get plain castings I drilled them out to add the pipework inside some microbore tube that I picked up earlier in the year from Barry of MetalSmiths fame(@lankytank).





There was a thread on the Guild site discussing drilling brass castings and one of the suggestions (besides buying proper drill bits) was to heat to a cherry red heat and let the casting cool naturally. I have used this method before and it has to be said without much success. I decided to try again and I have come to the conclusion that previously I just didn't get it red enough - this time the cheapo Microbox type drills went through it like butter. I did you my Proxxon Mini Pillar drill though.







You know when something niggles at you that there's something not quite right? Well I had the feeling and finally pinned it down to the fact that the chimney was just not quite on square so I heated it up and attempted to nudge it. I must have been a bit vigorous because the next second it was on the floor. The good news is that in knocking it off I had spread the solder a little in the right direction and putting it on square was a simple matter of putting it in place and then heating it with the microflame until it sank down in the solder. A little cleaning up and I was happy

 

gormo wrote:

Thanks Gormo,


I am glad that you are enjoying my ramblings.

I like to share the experience warts and all because for me participation in forums is a two way street for learning and sharing experiences and techniques. If nobody shared then we would all be the poorer for it and perhaps more importantly we would all potentially have to make the same mistakes and some wouldn't have the confidence to overcome them - been there and done that.

I had a MMP LMS Glass wagon on the go for about 3 years because I made a mistake and wasn't confident enough to get past it at the time so put it away in a box for a couple of years or so.

On this thread the updates are as I do them and as time allows I will go back and fill in the gaps in the build that I had done pre joining Platform1 whereas some of my other threads in true Blue Peter style relate to some that I did earlier

 

paul_l wrote:

For me too Paul, sometime I spend a lot of time worrying about a particular task and when I grit my teeth and do it, it much easier than I have built it up to be. But knowing that doesn't stop me doing similar several times each build...

 

In between popping along to Keighley show where I had a great time chatting to many people I have made much progress on the B16.


Unless something else jumps out at me while working on the chassis, the body is finished. Now it's onto the electrics plus the final details on the chassis. At this rate I may have to change plans and take it for a run on the test track at Shildon On Saturday afternoon.

While studying the one photo that I have of 61450, I noted that I had missed an oiler on the right rear splasher. I had made it but can't recall why I didn't fit it when I fitted the others but it's corrected now.

 

After my mistake with the wheels on Saturday, I sorted them out and with the weather being not too bad we cleaned up part of the circuit on the garden line and gave it a try.
Sadly, the rigid chassis doesn't take well to my less than generous curves but it is alive and now just needs final detailing.



Chris also took a few photos of it in the sunshine. Just a few more details to add before it goes of to Warren for painting.

 

Thanks Ron.

 

The last few days working on the B16 have been spent on making up the rather prominent cylinder crain cocks and their operating mechanism from the ends of JLRT coach vacuum or some such pipes of which I had four in my spares box and scrap etch. I also made up and fitted the rear sand pipes.





Tonight I reassembled it and took the following photos before dropping it off at Warren's for painting.






Plus a few arty shots to finish