A Simple Holding Cradle

[steve howe]

I'm sure many experienced modellers on here will have something like this in their armoury. I have been promising myself to make one for the last 20 years! A spate of underframe works recently prompted the need for something a bit more secure than the usual blocks and bits of steel bar wobbling about.

The component parts

The photo is more or less self-explanatory: 2 lengths of 20mm aluminium angle about 380mm long clamped together and drilled 6mm clearance, one piece also had countersunk holes drilled for wood screws. The base is an offcut of ply, not too thick, covered in 3mm foam sheet. I think C & L sell something similar, although thick felt would do. Similar strips of foam were glued to the inside faces of the angle. One piece is screwed to the base through the foam and the second is simply aligned with 6mm bolts and nuts.

The thing in action

Half an hour to make (not counting glueing time and tea) and a really handy addition to the general clutter on the bench

Steve

[Terry Bendall]

A neat idea. The loco cradles sold by PECO are a good substitute although I find the "groove" needs opening out otherwise there is a tendency to damage the fine details on anything held in it. Steve's design avoids that risk although I would probably use slightly thicker foam.

Terry Bendall

[John Palmer]

+1 and something I've been meaning to make for myself for ages. Presumably you set the clamping bolts sufficiently far apart to accommodate your longest vehicle.

One wrinkle I have to consider adding is some sort of cutout in the base. The reason for this is that I have an engine with Salter safety valves and there's a substantial risk of damage or destruction of the stems of these should the engine rest on them when inverted. So a means needs to be found of letting this particular item rest on cab roof and chimney rim, with the valve stems standing clear in the cutout.

[Le Corbusier]

I have an engine with Salter safety valves and there's a substantial risk of damage or destruction of the stems of these should the engine rest on them when inverted.

Oooh! sounds interesting .... what is it

[John Palmer]

I have an engine with Salter safety valves and there's a substantial risk of damage or destruction of the stems of these should the engine rest on them when inverted.

Oooh! sounds interesting .... what is it

It's 1532 class Johnson bogie tank 58047, a Highbridge resident in the 'thirties and again from 1948 to 1952

The picture may help to give some idea of just how vulnerable those valve stems and levers are.

[Le Corbusier]

John I hoped it might be ... that is a beautiful engine.

I have a Craftsman kit of one picked up off e-bay to build in due course. Whether I can get anywhere near yours is open to debate

[Philip Hall]

A useful dodge to prevent snagging of a model in a sponge cradle is to lay a piece of thin polythene (like a food bag) over the cradle first. The model then slides in and out much more easily.

Philip

[Paul Townsend]

I'm sure many experienced modellers on here will have something like this in their armoury. I have been promising myself to make one for the last 20 years! A spate of underframe works recently prompted the need for something a bit more secure than the usual blocks and bits of steel bar wobbling about.
loco1.JPG
Steve

This is one of my essential tools/modelling aids.
Mine is 40 years old, made to a design by, ISTR the super Dave Rowe.
Its main difference to the OP's is that mine is fabricated from wood, a 3 side rectangle of c 2" x 2" hardwood sitting on a formica covered base. The clamping 4th side is the same wood that slides into the open mouth of the 3 fixed sides. The cunning bit is that it is secured by magnets and steel strips set into the wood.

So no bolts or spanners or wing nuts!.
I use foam-facing faced with thin card or poystyrene skin so door handles etc dont get tangled in the foam.

If I wasn't tied to my PC trying to get the missus together with HMRC I would go and do a piccy...maybe tomorrow.

[allanferguson]

DSCN0535.JPG (93.19 KiB) Viewed 4132 times

I made this many years ago from (I think) 2x1 planed timber and 6mm foam camping mat. The foam is not fixed in place, so the vehicle is folded in the foam first, then the whole pushed into the device, so very little chance of snagging anything. It took a bit of experimentation to get the gap right, so that it just compresses the foam -- 45mm in this case.

Allan F

[steve howe]

+1 and something I've been meaning to make for myself for ages. Presumably you set the clamping bolts sufficiently far apart to accommodate your longest vehicle.

One wrinkle I have to consider adding is some sort of cutout in the base. The reason for this is that I have an engine with Salter safety valves and there's a substantial risk of damage or destruction of the stems of these should the engine rest on them when inverted. So a means needs to be found of letting this particular item rest on cab roof and chimney rim, with the valve stems standing clear in the cutout.

Thanks John,
Possibly moveable blocks of foam set between the sides to take up the general profile?

Just a thought.

[Paul Willis]

And for another variant on the theme...

I've shown this before on my Beer & Buckjumpers workbench thread, but this is what I use for both rolling stock and locomotives:

Wagon cradle 002.jpg (83.15 KiB) Viewed 4096 times

Wagon cradle 001.jpg (76.11 KiB) Viewed 4096 times

An offcut of hardboard to make a solid base to give it weight, some closed cell foam from a camping mat which I use to cut up for a variety of purposes, and a quick blast with a hot glue gun to hold it together.

The two channels with different height "fences" mean I can work of (say) two-plank wagons and locomotives equally well. If something is a little bit narrower, or I need to boost it up, I have a handful of offcuts of foam to pack the cradle out as appropriate.

Not as engineered a solution as something with screw adjustable clamps, but it works for me.

Cheers
Flymo

[steve howe]

Like I say, everyone has something in the armoury to do the job! I made mine adjustable so it could accommodate (ahem) 7mm 0-16.5 stock as well...

Steve

[Paul Townsend]

I'm sure many experienced modellers on here will have something like this in their armoury. I have been promising myself to make one for the last 20 years! A spate of underframe works recently prompted the need for something a bit more secure than the usual blocks and bits of steel bar wobbling about.
loco1.JPG
Steve

This is one of my essential tools/modelling aids.
Mine is 40 years old, made to a design by, ISTR the super Dave Rowe.
Its main difference to the OP's is that mine is fabricated from wood, a 3 side rectangle of c 2" x 2" hardwood sitting on a formica covered base. The clamping 4th side is the same wood that slides into the open mouth of the 3 fixed sides. The cunning bit is that it is secured by magnets and steel strips set into the wood.

So no bolts or spanners or wing nuts!.
I use foam-facing faced with thin card or poystyrene skin so door handles etc dont get tangled in the foam.

If I wasn't tied to my PC trying to get the missus together with HMRC I would go and do a piccy...maybe tomorrow.

Following unsuccessful attempt on Wed night to get Sylvia's tax return done on line I forgot about this. By the way, I don't pay her fine!

Dust has settled so here are the promised pix.

The bits of iron on the base are whatever is available or in my case the mating part bought with the cupboard latch magnets shewn ( sic) in second piccy. Magnet choice is not critical.

Note the bit of thin polystyrene sheet used to blind the foam and save door handles etc.

The wide wrist and ruler supports provided by using 50mm square timber are super when lining or tweaking pickups etc. Lovely mahogany is optional.....I had offcuts from a child's bedstead I made c 1975.

This gadget works for smaller scales than 4mm as well as P4/OO with chocks below the model. For 7mm, obviously a greater depth is needed.

Apologies for duplicated pic and first/second pix swapped; I don't know how that happened and can't tidy it up.