October 2021

Our featured image for October is Jim’s latest mega micro-project. He has sold off his N gauge Graham Farish RTR models of the traditional FFA/FGA Freightliner wagons, and is replacing them using etched kits. He claims the GF models are ‘crude’, but your author doesn’t know how he can possibly say that with such tiny models! 🙂

Anyway, two rakes (ten wagons) are from a fairly intricate design by 2mm Scale Association member Stephen Harris and a further two rakes are a much more basic (and simpler) etch by Worsley Works. They all need bogies – 40 of the little blighters – and these are constructed from a fold up etch (also by Stephen Harris), to which are soldered top hat bearings and then clothed with white metal cast sides. Needless to say, they take 2mm finescale wheels with 12.25mm long axles, not N gauge wheels with 14.8mm long axles.

The first picture shows the components, the second one shows most of them constructed and awaiting the paint shop. (Below are the “Clam” ballast wagons mentioned many months ago – no nearer being finished!)

In EM Gauge, Peter C has been finishing off the Cambrian Brake Vans that needed those 3D printed brake blocks that YMRG designed and printed for him. First up the WD/SR 25T Brake van undergoing final painting, using transfers from assorted sources. Sandboxes still to be fitted.

Next the SR 15T Brake van undergoing final painting, using transfers from assorted sources:

Finally bringing up the rear, although perhaps it should probably be on the front, is a Yorkshire Shunter in a nice understated ‘wasp’ livery. Built from a Judith Edge kit some years ago, and finally fitted with a cab side number and windscreen wipers, Pete only had to make six in all, he still hasn’t found the ones that flew away!

Next up is Allan H with rapid progress on his 7mm scale 4F, being built from a Connoisseur Models etched kit. The loco chassis looking very smart – and even better, it moves!

Moving onto 00 Gauge, Steve S has been repairing and upgrading a battered Wills T9 for a friend whose father must have started it over fifty years ago. As far as it had got, it had been assembled with a tinman’s soldering iron on a gas ring, using some sort of medium melt solder.

Collected at the end of September the body was repaired and sat on a new SEF etched chassis by the end of October – spectacular progress by Steve’s normal standards! Paired with the first of several iterations of Hornby six wheel tender – this was the view by the end of the month. A fairly comprehensive build thread for this rescue mission can be found here: https://www.westernthunder.co.uk/threads/wills-t9-repair-and-upgrade-in-4mm-00-gauge.9966/

Also in 00 Gauge Dominic has been doing bits and bobs on at Coombe Town. He has got the first parts of the Modelu guttering installed on the Goods Shed and has completed the first sliding door. The door is made from various bits of styrene strip with 3D printed wheels, which are designed to sit on the rails to allow the doors to be posed – and just how cool is that!

Finally, in 0 Gauge Dave H has been wrestling with wobbly wheels. As he says: “The only modelling I’ve done recently is to build a couple of Slaters GW cattle wagons. However I got so fed up with wobbly wheels that I decided to turn the rims of all new wheels using this little gizmo (picture below left). It’s just a bit of brass with a clearance hole for the axle, a brass peg that fits between the spokes as a driving peg, and a 6BA screw to clamp it to the axle.”

“The picture above (right) shows it in use to skim the treads on my aged cheapo lathe – it only needs a few thou off generally to get them concentric, then the transition between the tread and the flange is finished off with a half round file. Without the gizmo, they just turn on their axles with the lathe tool stuck in them. The flanges may still be a bit wobbly, but that doesn’t affect the running. If the treads are concentric with the axles, then you don’t get that awful limping effect as they run past. I’m afraid all the plastic centred wheel manufacturers I’ve tried suffer this problem occasionally – some worse than others.”

“The picture above shows the two cattle wagons nearly complete – just brake gear and roofs to add, then painting. I’ve modelled one with old style grease axle boxes, and the other with those new-fangled oil boxes.”