Awngate at Pevensey Bay

Next Saturday (23rd July) I'll be taking Awngate to the Pevensey Bay MRC Exhibition. I've not been to that show before, but from the website there will be a good few layouts, and lots of narrow gauge!

Time to check out everything works, including the exhibition fiddle yard. If you get along to the show do say hello.

Airbrushing

The Hudswell Clarke has been awaiting a paint job for some time, it was last seen having coats of primer and gaps filled. So it seemed a good time to try out my airbrush. So the "spray booth" (cardboard box) was set up and the compressor connected up. Some green paint was diluted with thinners to a milky consistency, transferred to the airbrush cup with a pipette, and off I went.

I have to confess it isn't as easy as it sounds in George Dent's book (though that has been very useful). I had a few problems with the airbrush clogging up, perhaps I need a strainer as George suggests though I was careful mixing. It took a while to get used to the action of the trigger, and to get paint flowing without getting too much. I also struggled with corners finding paint built up on the edge of the side that was at 90 degrees to the side I was spraying. However, after rubbing down with fine wet-and-dry paper, and four attempts at spraying, I was happy enough with the result - though I'm not sure I couldn't have got as good a finish using a brush with less hassle!

You might notice here the "handle" consisting of a coffee stirrer passed through the coupling pockets and held with the coupling retaining screws. It makes it easy to spray and detail paint the loco without touching it.

At this point I got a bit doubtful of the colour I'd picked. I don't have many greens in my collection so I think this is the same as I've used for coaches in the past, but it seemed to look rather pale and bright (though appears darker in this photo). However I've pressed on, hoping the black parts and the weathering will tone it down...

Amberley Rail Gala 2016

This year there were more than enough volunteers to man the 009 society stand. However with the weather looking fine and my Son up for a visit we went along just to enjoy the trains and exhibits, which made it a much more relaxed day than usual.

The format was the same as always of course, and while there were some very nice layouts on show, most have been there previous years. Trade wasn't great either, while there were a couple of good book stalls I couldn't find anywhere to buy basics like paint (though my son picked up a wagon for his train set, so he was happy!). However while it would be nice if the model railway exhibition were better supported, the main attraction at the Amberley rail gala is the real railway.

This year had relatively few visiting locos (especially compared to last year's Lister-mania event!) however two fine steam locos were visiting from the privately owned Richmond Light Railway in Kent. These were running both demonstration freight trains and the passenger trains too - although double-headed as only Jenny had air brakes. It has to be said that Amberley is not exactly short of locos anyway, and can put on an impressive display of industrial diesels, while it is always a delight to see Polar Bear running!

Having more time meant that as well as riding the trains and the old bus, we could visit some of the other exhibits around the museum, which are excellent. My son enjoyed printing in the print shop, playing with the phones in the telecoms exhibition, and the demos in the electricity hall. So a good day out and well worth the trip.

You can see more photos here - covering both full size and model trains!

HMS Belfast

Last week being half-term we had a family day out to London - meaning braving over-crowded trains, that's if it hasn't been cancelled! I'd been keen to visit HMS Belfast for some time, but when we got there we found it had company. A small cruise ship (the Berlin) was tied alongside.

Waiting by the bow was a tug, the Svitzer Laceby (oddly registered in Grimsby). There was another at the stern, but I didn't get a good view.

Hang on, here's something you don't see every day...

With a blast on the fog horn, the Berlin was under way, to be reversed under tower bridge by the two tugs. 

Leaving the impressive lines of HMS Belfast between Tower Bridge and the Tower of London.

There's no mistaking her purpose though, bristling with guns. Apparently these can fire a 6" shell up to 14 miles - meaning if fired now they would land beyond London.

HMS Belfast was built in 1939 and served in the Second World War in the North Atlantic, Normandy, and the far East; and the Korean War. As well as being an interesting historical ship, it tells a fascinating story. The tour is quite hard work - lots of up and down ladders and corridors - but well worth it, both adults and kids found it interesting.

Preparation, Preparation, Preparation

Much of the work involved in making a model is preparation rather than construction. For example, I've made a start on an O14 Hudson Hunslet kit by Nonneminstre Models - which involves preparing the white-metal castings for the chassis to ensure a good fit before assembling them, and filling any gaps. As the prototype chassis is a single, massive casting rather than the five pieces of the model, I've taken the unusual step of giving it a coat of primer before proceeding further with the build so that I can see any remaining gaps and imperfections, and treat with filler and emery paper.

I'm planning to adapt the kit as per the Thakeham locos, but while I have plenty of photos I don't have dimensions yet, so this may sit on the back burner for now.

At the same time the Hudswell Clarke 009 loco has been primed. First I blackened the nickel-silver which both helps paint adhere, and disguises any wear or nicks in the paint along the edges. Then any gaps are filled - I find Squadron Green Putty ideal - before the model is cleaned. A couple of coats of Halfords etch primer are then applied, and once hardened the model is examined and any visible gaps or imperfections seen to with more filler and emery paper - before another coat of primer.

Meanwhile I've started yet another loco kit - of which more another time. However the build starts with preparing the N-gauge loco chassis - which means dismantling it completely, and chopping it up. As you can see that means a fine mess, I hope I can get it back together again - and working!

SWING 2016

Last Saturday I headed over to Bognor to the SWING exhibition, which has now established a reputation for having a good selection of industrial and narrow gauge layouts. Though I think it has struggled to keep the same small and friendly feel in the larger venue, it has allowed more layouts - and bigger ones too, such as the live steam 16mm scale.

Strangely I still like the small ones best though, like Compass Point by Chris O'Donoghue in 009. It packs in a lot of detail in a small space, and achieves that atmosphere that is impossible to define.





Chris Ford and Nigel Hill's ultra-simple and quite different Morton Stanley is also full of atmosphere, following the "less is more" route in 7mm scale.



Abbey End is David Malton's O14 model of the terminus of the Abbey Light Railway in Leeds, though sadly now closed. Despite being a simple prototype David has captured the woodland setting, with the varied and colourful stock, and achieved a fascinating model



Portwenn is a delightful 7mm scale layout with an attractive quayside, now in the new ownership of Simon King I hope it gets to more exhibitions.



Simon Wilson brought Wangford, just part of his Southwold Railway layout in 009. As this board is normally at the back of the layout it is nice for it to be more visible, and the simple set-up with a fiddle yard each end allows a procession of trains through the station.



Those are just a few of my highlights - you can see more photos here. Trade support was good too, with some narrow gauge specialists as well as both the 7mm NGA and 009 society sales stands. Not that I got much time to browse with my Son nagging, however he really enjoyed making a tree for his layout as guided by a very patient chap on one of the demo stands - a nice touch - and the ride-on train too.

Motor-Bogie Rebuild

At Sparsholt I spotted this on the 7mm NGA stand:

Branded Keykits I guess it's pretty old, but it looks like a Wrightlines motor bogie, which is currently unavailable (like much of the Wrightlines range, sadly). It's essentially a Tenshodo motor bogie replacement, but with a Mashima motor mounted with it's widest dimension vertical to allow the wheels to be pushed in to 14mm gauge - very useful given the number of 7mm scale kits that utilise the Tenshodo unit. This one had crudely fitted pick-ups, mismatching bolts and a broken wire - but the motor turns when it got power.

It didn't take long to dismantle. I checked and adjusted the wheel back-to-backs, and found some M2 bolts that were a good fit - the nuts are secured with Araldite. I moved the PCB down away from likely body fitting and closer to the wheels, and attached new pick-ups from phosphor-bronze strip - which I find much springier and more effective than wire. With the motor refitted, wires reattached, and keeper plate bolted in place the unit was running.

Now I know these things can be a little fast, with relatively high gearing, but a few lumps of whitemetal on top slowed it a little. The motor seems to run quite hot too, I don't know if it could do with more airflow. However it dos occasionally stop at low speeds, seemingly at the same spot, and I think more of a mechanical bind than pick-up issues - though I can't see anything wrong with the gears. I'm hoping some running in will help.