Scalefour Forum

These days I often make sandpipes (and other pipes on a chassis) from soft iron wire. It’s usually black, available in various sizes from Eileen’s, easy to bend but holds its shape well. It can be bent back and forth quite a few times without fracturing, so removal of wheel sets occasionally should ...

Thank you Terry. I expected that this would be well thought out, and I’m sure it will be very useful in whatever form it takes. My only request is that hopefully it will fit my Unimat SL, which I think means a 6mm square shank. Crossed fingers!

Philip

I can’t comment on the springing side of things, but my preference is for a carriage that weighs about 180-190g. That seems to make it possible for the buffers and any sprung gangways to do their proper work without any tendency for forces to push vehicles off the track. I should perhaps explain tha...

If you have a Unimat SL like me the only way to produce a 20° angle on the tread is to rotate the headstock. Now my Unimat with its Sherline Chuck is very true and therefore I prefer not to disturb that setting, but in any event I have found that coning is not essential for good running; a parallel ...

Proto87Stores has posted in the Guest Book (presumably as a non member he can’t post here?) about an alternative design of form tool that would be more suitable for those of us with more delicate lathes. Like me, I’m quite content with my Unimat SL and can’t see me changing anytime soon. The altern...

There seems to be no mention of this in his website, which seems strange. As Paul says, he’s confident of getting elected?

Philip

I think your original posts should stand, Allan. You have clearly gone to a lot of trouble to put this together (as with your other threads) and enough clarifying comments have been made for folk to know where you are with these older models. To remove such a resource is in my view a retrograde step...

Allan, I do agree about older models. During the lockdown I looked out quite a few older models; some I went to town on (like the Mink D in Scalefour News recently) and others just made a bit more respectable, however the fancy took me. I will need a fair few wagons for the new layout and simply do ...

Having looked at the review mentioned I wouldn’t touch it. The transformer box is very small, plastic, with quite a thin mains lead, and for the kind of current floating around makes me nervous. The foot switch (what a name for a small button!) being mounted on the transformer box means that you wou...

I ought to add (having just read Morgan’s post again) that my machine is an old Unimat SL, so will ideally only take 6mm square stock in the tool holder. Now I know of course that this machine is probably not going to be man enough to use a form tool in the normal way, but I would probably only use ...

Yes please Terry.

Philip

Hi David, Those are the people. I think it must be the precision stuff because I have some 0.5mm, but bought a long time ago. I think one of their staff was a modeller hence some sheet being supplied in strips suitable for carriage glazing. I like the thought of this non string adhesive and must giv...

I use clear acrylic sheet which I got from Charvo after reading about it - and them - in an article by Simon de Souza in MRJ years ago. It is very clear, is supplied with a protection film on both sides, and can be scored and snapped like styrene sheet. It files cleanly, and my current favourite glu...

My thanks too to all involved for a splendid day. There is so much content to keep us amused for many days to come and keep us away from modelling!

Philip

I use so many steel screws which come with the conversions I do that I feel at a loss when a screwdriver won't pick up a brass screw!

Philip

Danny,

Such an amazing amount of work you’ve done and it looks quite brilliant. Thank you so much from all of us in advance. I have already booked my morning call with the Melbourne lads so I can have breakfast whilst they are still on the red wine!

Philip

Hello Paul, I can’t really see a difference, both look good. I’m interested to learn What the painting differences were?

Philip

A diamond disc is available and I have one to try one day. I was recommended to try this ‘special steel‘ blade by the supplier and it has been pretty good. It may be that the diamond disc gives a slightly cleaner cut but as this works well still I’m not going to make a change until the blade is comp...

Terry, the guard on this machine has a little lens in it (possibly slightly magnifying) which shows the point of cutting, so this is in itself an encouragement to leave it in place. The only problem is that it doesn’t go all the way to the table bed when cutting such a thin strip, as the fence gets ...

A little while ago Tony gave us some details of his PCB shear, and I have now had a chance to try out my Proxxon table saw on the stuff, which I think is fibreglass because it's double sided. I replaced the standard blade, by now heavily blunted and of no use, with the 'special steel' blade which th...

It sounds (!) like Danny is going to do a great job and all this daft stuff about music is detracting from his efforts. Ignore it Danny, just get on with it and thank you heaps for all that you’re doing for us. And folks, if you do choose to turn the volume off, you’ll miss any interesting comments ...

Brian was one of those engineers who did so much in the early years to help us. In the dark old days there were only Romford, Hamblings and K‘s wheels, none of which were perfect, and there was this big hole which Brian so ably filled. At last we had perfectly true and concentric wheels, which are t...

You saw my reply about 2 minutes after I posted it! How on earth can you balance that stuff on your lap?

Philip

All clear here, on PC, iPhone and iPad. All at slightly different times of course!

Philip

Looking closely at the picture it seems to me that there are brake shoes etc on the other side of the vehicle.

Philip