Scalefour Forum

I'm almost at the stage where I need to solder the roof on to my ES1, something I've never done before. The roof has been curved and access is easy from underneath as the body and chassis are separate but I wonder where the best place to start the soldering is, is it best to start at one side and work across or start in the centre and work outwards?

John

Start at the top of the curve in the middle and work outwards.

Sounds to me like a good opportunity for some resistance soldering. Tin the inside of the roof, put in place and . . . zap. No need to add more solder. Tack in the middle, check alignment then work outwards.

Thanks David, I don't have a resistance soldering unit so old school it is

I always tried to make cab roofs on tank engines removable, aided painting and putting crews in. I used to put some clips, so the roof was held in place.

I agree with Tim. Was it Iain Rice or Guy Williams who added bent wire to the corners of the roof so they acted as springs holding it to the cab body.

On this kit, the chassis and body screw together so can easily be separated if need be for access to the interior so no need for a removable roof.

I understand you don’t need to make the roof removable, but clipping on is often the cleanest way of doing the job; no errant solder or glue seeping out. However, to solder I would merely tack with a tiny amount of solder near to each of the corners. No need to solder along each seam, it will never fall off.

Philip

Thanks all for the advice, roof is now on.

John