Locos for Lochinver

Jeremy Good
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Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Sun Mar 08, 2015 7:44 pm

The motive power requirement for my coastal Highland Railway terminus set in 1973/974 is fairly straight forward - Sulzer Type 2's. I need a mixture of Class 24's and Class 26's and fortunately both are well catered for in RTR form albeit not to the standard I'd like to achieve. The layout will probably need a couple of each so I've set myself a standard specification which is to include DCC with sound, sprung chassis and an upgrade of the body to a reasonable standard correcting any areas I feel confident that I can actually improve.

The first Class 24 has been evolving for a while and I'll post some photos of that shortly, especially the chassis and underframe which is progressing well.

The arrival last week of the PenBits chassis last week for the Class 26 has meant that I can show this project from the start. I'll concentrate on the chassis as I don't want to duplicate the extraordinary work going on elsewhere on this Forum - see Jon 020's "Superdetailing the Heljan Class 26" thread - and hopefully the two threads may be seen to be complimentary.

The PenBits kit comes as three highly detailed, crisply etched sheets, bearings, nut and bolts and various lengths of wire for springing and detailing.

DSC_4529.jpg


The instructions are, as ever, comprehensive and break the construction down into several manageable chunks. The result of about 5 hours modelling over the last few days is two sets of the basic bogie components - the pivot frames, the bearings carriers, the bolsters and the bogie subframe. The photo below shows the progress so far. It has all gone together very well (except when I didn't read the instructions properly) with all the parts fitting as they should - as with the rest of Ian's chassis kits.

DSC_4544.jpg


The next stage is to modify the loco itself and carry out the initial rolling test once the springs have been installed before tackling the delicate looking and very comprehensive brake gear components. More news as this progresses over the next week or so.

Jeremy
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Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Tue Mar 10, 2015 4:54 pm

Class 26 chassis progressing well. As expected with one of the PenBits chassis the parts all fit together first time if you follow the instructions (note to self!!) and the work progresses in a logical order.

The last couple of sessions have seen the gears salvaged from the Heljan loco and fitted to the Gibson P4 wheel sets. The wheels and bearings fitted to the subframe and the primary springs cut and fitted. Photo below shows one bogie with wheels and springs and second waiting for the springs to be fitted.

IMG_0253.jpg

The springs for the bolsters were also cut and fitted. The little black bits are sections of insulation from some layout wire - they are meant to retain the springs but are too loose - I need to find some finer wire!

IMG_0254.jpg

Once the two parts, bogie subframe and bolster, have been united the units look like this - ready for fitting to the chassis block.

IMG_0255.jpg

There was then a brief hiatus while I sourced some 3mm plastic rod to hold the pivot frames to the chassis. The postman duly delivered the Evergreen 0.125" rod this morning (in less than 24 hours from Fred Aldous in Manchester - great service!). This was filed down in a drill to reduce the diameter to a nominal 3mm to fit the chassis and the locating lugs made to secure the pivot frames. Frames and bogies were then united in the chassis.

IMG_0271.jpg

The buffer beams were reattached to the chassis and the body reunited with the chassis for ride height testing.

IMG_0272.jpg

This also gives an opportunity to carry out a rolling test of the chassis. It is immediately obvious that the locomotive rides much more smoothly than the rigid model and looks more solidly planted to the track - it looks like a 77ton locomotive on the move should look!

IMG_0273.jpg

Next stage is to begin refitting the bogie sides although I'm going to skip the complicated brake detailing for now and move straight to fitting the modified Heljan drivetrain and pick ups to make sure it all works properly. I can then get back to the fiddly looking but comprehensive brake gear to finish the chassis off. More anon.

Jeremy
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Jonathan Hughes
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jonathan Hughes » Tue Mar 10, 2015 5:23 pm

A very useful article Jeremy... glad that you prompted me to look across. I expect to get my kit this week and I've an order from Eileen's on its way too... for those other bits and for some additional work I'll have to do to fit one of the carriers ... that's not what's called is it 8-) I do need to learn the terminology. I've always found Ian very friendly and helpful... and patient ;) ... It'll be good to see how you project progresses :thumb
Jon.

Mark Tatlow
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Mark Tatlow » Tue Mar 10, 2015 10:53 pm

A test bed (conveniently with some poor trackwork to properly put this through its paces) available in Horsham and Wakefield during April.....................
Mark Tatlow

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John Donnelly
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby John Donnelly » Tue Mar 10, 2015 11:09 pm

Mark Tatlow wrote:and Wakefield during April.....................


oooooh, if I bring along a 37 with Penbits bogies, can I have a play :D

John

Mark Tatlow
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Mark Tatlow » Wed Mar 11, 2015 1:54 pm

John Donnelly wrote:
Mark Tatlow wrote:and Wakefield during April.....................


oooooh, if I bring along a 37 with Penbits bogies, can I have a play :D

John


Of course; DCC normally but with a tad of warning we can do DC too.
Mark Tatlow

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John Donnelly
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby John Donnelly » Wed Mar 11, 2015 2:05 pm

Cheers Mark, DCC it is...

John

Mark Tatlow
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Mark Tatlow » Wed Mar 11, 2015 2:18 pm

John Donnelly wrote:Cheers Mark, DCC it is...

John



Cool, we are an AJ layout too, although we/you could come up with a barrier/conversion loco.

Large logo with a scottish name class 37 particularly appreciated.........personally, I prefered the split headcode ones!
Mark Tatlow

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John Donnelly
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby John Donnelly » Wed Mar 11, 2015 2:31 pm

Mark Tatlow wrote:personally, I prefered the split headcode ones!


It's a split headcode one but not scottish I'm afraid - it'll probably end up being 37006 but the body and paintwork won't be done by S4N...

John

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Jonathan Hughes
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jonathan Hughes » Wed Mar 11, 2015 10:13 pm

Mark Tatlow wrote:A test bed (conveniently with some poor trackwork to properly put this through its paces) available in Horsham and Wakefield during April.....................

Maybe one day I'll spring a deltic ;) I think it was the too-tight bogies and not your track work Mark :D I've loosened it off a bit now.
Jon.

Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Sat Mar 14, 2015 12:47 pm

First fit of bogie sides complete. The spring mouldings get re-fitted later along with the brake gear.

IMG_0045.jpg


Now to modify the drive units and get it ready to test. Hopefully the track on Portchullin will give the chassis a decent workout!

Jeremy
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Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Sun Mar 15, 2015 10:30 pm

More progress with the Class 26 chassis. The bogie drive units (the Heljan mouldings) have been modified and the pick-ups reinstated.

IMG_0048.jpg


The photo shows the kit bogie subframe and the modified drive unit with original Heljan pick-ups reinstated but adjusted for the P4 wheels. As well as cutting off the parts of the bogie moulding that are no longer needed and filing down the pick-up stubs so that they can now be secured in place a little attention needs to be given to the subframes to make sure that the axles still move freely in the slots. The slots for one axle needed a little attention with the file but all were then assembled with springs and bogie sideframes.

IMG_0047.jpg


At this stage I haven't attempted the cosmetic detailing - reinstating the springs/dampers and the etched brake gear but thought I'd try and get the chassis running first.

It is a bit of a fiddle to get the driveshafts back into the couplings in the flywheels but once that was completed all the bogies were re-fitted and pick-ups connected. This is where I discovered I had wired the bogies so they both operated at reversed polarity so nothing much happened!! Removing one set of pick-ups meant that power was able to get through to the motor. Initially running was jerky but this was soon tracked down to the bolts holding the bolsters in place rubbing on the drive shafts. Loosening them off meant that the loco ran but left too much for and aft movement in the bogies. It ran smoothly on my 3 ft test track but the extra movement caused by the loose chassis bolt caused the secondary springing to work loose - due to the wire collars still being too big. A few tweaks are needed.

The short test has however shown the different ride qualities given by the springing when compared to the unsprung locomotive. Hopefully once the adjustments are made the improvement in running quality will be even more marked!
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Jonathan Hughes
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jonathan Hughes » Tue Mar 17, 2015 8:06 am

Excellent work Jeremy. I managed to cut away the end material to three plastic side frames yesterday and get them to plug-on ... which I thought quite neat. One to do today hopefully. I'm waiting on some bitsbfrom Eileen's so that I can fit the pivot frame at the no.1 end and then make up the bearing carriers.... but I'm getting there too :) They are a nicely devised kit and well worth working with. Good luck with the final workings... and then the cosmetic brake pieces too.

Edit: as to the fouling bolt and driveshaft, I thought about this as I'll possibly hit it too, did you try shortening the bogie frame bolt... I doubt it needs to be that long?

Jon.

Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Tue Mar 17, 2015 10:40 pm

Tweaks completed and a successful test completed, albeit only on a metre of track!

I've now found some finer wire insulation to secure the secondary springs, shortened the fixing bolts and re-wired the pick ups. It now runs smoothly along the test track without fouling the driveshafts from the motor. The answer to the question, Jon, is that the bogies fixing bolts need to be shortened to leave about about 5mm of thread to allow them to be secure in the bolsters but not foul the driveshafts. All seems well but I need to set up a more challenging test - a visit to Portchullin is on the cards...!

So the next step is the spring hangers and brake gear as well as the initial detailing of the bogie sides. I have some new bogie footsteps from PH Designs ready to replace the moulded versions and I need to have a closer look at the bogie pipework to see if replacement of some or all is viable. I want to have another look at pipework etc around the fuel/boiler tanks as well but have been considering replacing the Heljan ones with a resin cast version with speaker fitted available from Coastal DCC or DC Kits. I'll have to wait until Scalefour North to have a look at them before making that decision.

And then there are the improvements to the body...

Jeremy

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Jonathan Hughes
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jonathan Hughes » Wed Mar 18, 2015 9:40 pm

Hi Jeremy,
All sounds good... Glad it's coming together and good to hear you're looking at the bogie frames and considering changing those ... as I found myself pondering yesterday. I need to look at that too properly. As per the tanks, yes I thought there was a replacement available ... I
But couldn't see it on doc kits site... but yes I thought Charlie did say they did one. If you get a chance to look Id be interested in your opinion.
I've been pondering and working on how to affix the pivot frame at the no1 end. Ian suggested epoxy, but I wanted a mechanical fix... I think I've now found a solution that should work... Which I'll put on my thread.

Keep up the good work and enjoy portcullin... It's a lovely layout and fun to operate too :thumb
Jon.

Mark Tatlow
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Mark Tatlow » Fri Mar 20, 2015 5:01 pm

Charlie does do a resin cast one that is a housing for a really big bass reflex speaker.

In terms of what it looks like, there are issues with it but in terms of what it sounds like, that is a different matter..................
Mark Tatlow

waveydavey
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby waveydavey » Fri Mar 20, 2015 8:13 pm

Charlies speaker/tank is 1mm wider than the Heljan tank moulding which I already think is a little wide.

Legomanbiffo told me he is looking at doing a speaker enclosure in the shape of the 27 tank that will be the same width as the Heljan one.

On the other hand, spare tank frames and outers are available very cheaply from Howes so it shouldn't be too much of a modelling challenge to chop one up to fit your own speaker.

Cheers

David
Modelling Clackmannanshire Railways in 1975

Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Fri Mar 20, 2015 9:06 pm

Thanks for the speaker comments - I'll have a look at the options at Scalefour North and then work out the best route. I don't think I'll be ready for it before then anyway...

I've been trying to get a bigger speaker into the Class 24 as well. I'm using the Brassmasters resin tanks and have hollowed the out to try and get a 40mm by 10mm enclosed speaker in the tank.

IMG_0281.jpg


I need to cut a bit more away so that it fits without fouling the I beams I've adopted to mount the tanks under the chassis or the motor itself. I'm just a little reluctant to cut too much more away from the moulding in case I cut through it!

IMG_0282.jpg


I've nearly managed to get the 24 chassis running as well. It is rubbing somewhere on one bogie in one direction and I'm currently trying to track down the source of the problem!

IMG_0279.jpg


Jeremy
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Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Sun Mar 29, 2015 7:17 pm

Progress!

The Class 24 bogie problem was tracked down to a combination of the bogie securing bolt being too long and moulding pips on the Bachmann drive-train mouldings. Both fairly easily rectified and I now have a quiet, smooth running Class 24 chassis.

There has been some progress on the 26 as well. I've spent the last week's modelling being challenged by the brake gear and other detail parts. It's not that they are particularly difficult and the instructions are extremely clear but the parts are small and delicate, the clearances are small and my soldering skills aren't that good!

I have now completed the first bogie and the loco has been put back together in anticipation of further testing. I know I'm not going to have much time in the next week to do the second bogie but I will get to it soon...

The detailing parts include the brake shoes and their hangers, the brake pull rods, the operating linkages as well as the AWS mount and the buffer beam guard irons. The photos show the bogie in the completed brass state and then with the bogie side frames modified and refitted to the loco. The parts themselves are cleanly etched and go together well but even in finished form are rather delicate as shown by the slight bow I've managed to introduce to the pull rods.

IMG_0288.jpg


IMG_0293.jpg


IMG_0292.jpg


This bogie is only now missing the cosmetic springs which need to be recovered and prepared from the Heljan moulding and an AJ coupling before it can be considered complete. On to the other bogie soon!

Jeremy
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Jonathan Hughes
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jonathan Hughes » Mon Mar 30, 2015 7:44 pm

Excellent work Jeremy. I'm at about the same stage having fitted the last of the cosmetic parts this weekend... and yes, good instructions but some parts are fragile. I've two observations to add as a part of this, which I was going to put on my thread, but you're here too, so ...:
The ends of the brake pull rods need a small piece of wire added in the ends (there is a hole) to represent the tensioner (I suspect). I didnt see this mentioned in the instructions. secondly... I had to do a bit of research about the guard irons. Ive found that some 26s had irons that bend forward not vertical - but not many have them... but more importantly, if you're fitting ploughs, then don't fit the guard irons. I was concerned about clearances so did some research... of the detail photos I have of 26038 there are no guard irons (but how representative is this?) I spent some time pouring over other photos and its not an easy thing to see, but some photos of locos being scrapped, with ploughs just detached and no guard irons helped to confirm this. I've yet to add the front detail but I've cut the guard irons off...
But yes, a fun project ;-)
Jon

Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Thu Jul 30, 2015 12:39 pm

IMG_0065.JPG
After the burst of modelling activity in the run up to Scalefour North not much has happened since. Largely this was down to life getting in the way of important things, like modelling, but also getting diverted into building some of the track for the layout - the fiddleyard track and station approach pointwork is now ready to be laid.

The Class 26 had a brief test outing on Portchullin before Scalefour North and then on the Saturday evening at the show where it was joined by Ian Penberth's sprung green Class 37 for a trip along the layout. They both ran successfully but the Class 26 got packed away for the return journey and hasn't been out since!

Anyway the realisation that if I keep up progress with the track I will soon need a loco or two to run on it has seen me get on with the detailing of the other bogie before I start on the body. More photos soon-ish...!
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Jonathan Hughes
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jonathan Hughes » Wed Aug 12, 2015 8:54 pm

Hi Jeremy, good to hear that the 26 had a test run.... and don't worry about time for modelling - I've had a similar issue so progress on mine's slow too. We'll get there eventually :thumb
Jonathan

Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Sun Feb 21, 2016 9:23 pm

Completed! Well the chassis is at least. Having put it off for a while I finally got round to the second bogie (and the brake gear in particular) and have now put it all back together.

IMG_0510.JPG

IMG_0511.JPG


The only part still needed on the chassis is the AWS shoe which I will put together while I am doing the rest of the cosmetics.

The verdict? The kit is fiddly in places but all parts are etched perfectly and fit properly so by following the copious instructions step by step it comes together in a logical and straightforward way. Ian's instructions also provide usefully placed suggestions for checking and testing as you go along. I haven't been able to test run the finished loco yet but it did run extremely well without all the cosmetics on the second bogie so there is no reason why that should change now. I'm not sure I'd suggest this as a first PenBits chassis though, the Class 24/25 or the Hymek chassis are simpler with less brake gear etc to worry about and they are probably a better starting point. A Hymek might just appear on my other thread in the next day or so....

The next job is to get on with the detailing and decide how far I want to go with that...
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Jeremy Good
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Re: Locos for Lochinver

Postby Jeremy Good » Thu Sep 12, 2019 3:47 pm

Due to a change of plan this project has not progressed beyond this point.

My modelling has a more Cornish bias at the moment whilst re-stocking Wheal Elizabeth and beginning to build Bodmin (General) so the temptations of the Scottish Highlands have been put on hold and the stock will be sold in due course.

Jeremy


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