Small Goods running at CDOGG

Resplendent in Drummond II unlined green livery HR27 runs through the station on the club layout today with a short train of Highland stock. It was quiet in the clubroom this morning which gave me the opportunity to test the engine for over an hour on the circuit. Later I added a few more wagons that were brought in, though it was never a test of strength. I think it would manage a dozen wagons. I was  pleased with the engine's performance, it ran smoothly and gave no trouble at all. 

You can see some of the detail inside the cab in this rear view, the crew are my own sculpture, specially designed for this type of open cab. The Loco Coal wagon is built from a set of resin sides and ends which I produced myself. The wagon is completed with a mix of commercially available underframe parts and scratch built brake gear. 

The club has some great model makers and their buildings and other detail in the scenic section of the club layout make for a realistic scene.

Highland Railway 6-wheel 20 ton goods brake van, built from an etched "aid to scratch building", which I had made; the nickle silver sheet included all the hard-to-make-yourself parts.

HR 27 Small Goods, Jones Rebuild of 1891...finished

Nothing was easy constructing my Small Goods engine and the same was true when I came to paint it; my choice of paint, Precision P727 Dark Green 1905-1912, which suits the unlined Drummond II livery is now permanently deleted, only P725 Light Green remains in stock. I had a small tin of this fortunately and I experimented by using it as the base colour. I added matt black and by a process of trial and error found that simply adding black and nothing else made a credible match for the lost 727. You can judge yourselves from the pictures displayed here the degree of my success. I have no infallible recipe for the colour, making it was a haphazard business and dependent on continued supplies of 725.

Despite keeping my precious mix in a tightly lidded jar, to my dismay it dried up to a jelly overnight before I'd painted the cab interior. So I embarked on a further experiment using Revell semi-matt Dark Green 363 as a base. I added a good deal of matt black and rather less yellow (15) which produced a credible colour for the cab. I think success depends on the base colour being as near as possible to the colour you're aiming to mix. 

The cab interior is based on the drawing in Peter Tatlow's "Highland Locomotives" (p.57), showing the interior of a Loch Class engine of 1896. I think the cab of the Jones rebuild of the Small Goods was probably much the same as that of a Jones designed Loch. The backhead owes much to a Lochgorm Kits etched sheet; brass castings are mainly sourced from Laurie Griffin and 62C Models, revised to fit this particular cab. The oil can and grating visible in the center are my own white metal castings. 

The dark green base colour, mixed from my own recipe (above), was applied with a Badger Anthem 155 airbrush. The contrasting areas of black were brush painted using Humbrol matt black to which a touch of talc was added; when dry these areas were buffed with a soft toothbrush to produce a sheen. Transfers on the buffer beam and rear of the tender are methfix type from a rather depleted Guilplates sheet of Highland Locomotive transfers which are sadly no longer available. The number and maker's plates were etched to order by Light Railway Stores. 

 

The driver and fireman are my own sculpture though now available from Chris Smith at Invertrain Models in his "Heroes of the Footplate" range. The figures are designed with contrasting poses which maximise the restricted space available in the cab and by avoiding standing shoulder-to-shoulder they allow a good view of the interior and of the backhead details. 

The 4 ton capacity tender is identified by 9" Highland numerals. Design of these early tenders owed a debt to those of the LNWR, the coal had to be shoveled from floor level, a back breaking task.

 The tablet catching apparatus has a handle which goes into the cab between the side sheet and the stanchion. The fall-plate is shaped to clear the sand-boxes and allow the engine to negotiate curves on a club layout and also masks the un-prototypical, though most effective way, the engine hooks to the tender.

HR 18 Class, Small Goods.

HR 18 Class, Small Goods No.27 

Construction of this rather difficult prototype is now complete, the model has been built without the aid of a kit, though relying on commercial castings to complete it. Most of these were obtained from Laurie Griffin (LGM) practically all of them were modified in some way or other to suit this engine. The model ran with a light train on the club layout in Carlisle on Saturday where it performed impeccably, without a single derailment, much to my satisfaction.

I modelled No.27 as rebuilt in 1891 by David Jones the Locomotive Superintendent of the Highland Railway at the time and the engine displays many features typical of a Jones engine. No.27 was the last survivor of this class lasting until 1923. A grainy photograph shows the engine forlorn and abandoned at Culloden Moor, the short parallel buffers seen above are attested to by this source.

There was room inside the superstructure for an ABC Gears Mini Gooch with an M1833 motor and flywheel which provides plenty of power for an engine which typically was intended to pull a train of about 15 wagons. Weight is in the firebox between the driving wheels.

No.27 c. 1920

The tender is built from an etch given me to evaluate by Walsworth Models and described in an earlier  blog posting on 7/10/21 as "A tender in search of a Loco ". It was certainly a good help though I don't know whether it will ever see the light of day as a commercially available kit. The Small Goods, Glenbarry and  Medium Goods classes all ran with this tender, so a kit would be most welcome to Highland modellers. 

 

The reversing lever can be seen in this left hand view, emerging behind the sand box. Probably the most taxing problem encountered in building this engine was providing clearance for the cross head in the tight space between the inner and outer frames. The outer frames, front springs and cylinders form part of the superstructure which can be removed from the chassis to which the slide bars are attached. The "Culloden Moor" photo of No.27 provides evidence for the tablet catcher and the position of the front vacuum pipe.

The shape of the fall plate enables the engine to negotiate curves without it fouling the tender upright stanchions. The cab interior is typical of a Jones engine, details owe much to the cab of the Big Goods in the Transport Museum in Glasgow. On the left hand cab side sheet can be seen the handle for the tablet catcher. Backhead fittings are modified LGM and 62C castings, the reverser is of my own devising. 

Brass rivets are soldered into holes drilled in the outer frames and filed flush inside so as not to foul the chassis assembly when this is removed. 

Self-contained sprung buffers add a further challenge to the model maker; the buffer beam is mounted on the ends of the frames which protrude beyond the smoke box and cylinders. 

The large rivetted balance weights are a prominent feature usually hidden by the splashers in photos of the prototype in conventional pose with coupling rods on show. Note the sanding mechanism on the sandbox top and the difficult to make trim to the splasher/sandbox assembly. 

HR27 Small Goods-Making a Start.

 

HR27 Coupling and connecting rods have limited clearance due to the outer skirt/valence.

I have made a start, as you can see in the above photo, on a Small Goods or "18 Class" engine, No. 27 in fact, in the form that it was rebuilt by Jones in 1891. This will be built without the aid of a kit; there is no kit for this engine though an etched sheet was used as an aid to build the tender, which is the subject of an earlier blog posting of 7/10/21 entitled "A tender in search of a loco". I will rely as usual on Laurie Griffin's castings to complete the model. 

The initial difficulty I came up against was fixing the position of the slide-bars on the frames, so that the connecting rods ran freely, and ensuring that these parts, along with the coupling rods were slim enough to fit inside the deep outer valence or skirt. This was achieved by a process of trial and error and by gradually slimming down and reducing the parts to fit with files; there is not much room. The wheels require little side play as the wheel-base is only 15ft and this helps matters.

My reference drawings, from Peter Tatlow's "Highland Locomotives" show that there is space to fit an M1833 motor and flywheel inside the body shell, which should make for a powerful little locomotive. I have modified the drawing on pg. 20 to include the changes made by Jones when he rebuilt the class.   

Fitting the motor is the next step, then weight will be added in the ash-pan between the wheels and springing will be arranged for the front axle to make a viable mechanism. 

16-Ton Loco Coal Wagon, aid to scratchbuilding.

Pete has produced another 7mm scale "aid to scratchbuilding", the sixth in his series of Highland Railway wagons and displaying a higher standard of detail than ever. The new parts are resin sides and ends for a HR 16-Ton Loco Coal Wagon. They are based on the drawing and photos on page 153/4 of Peter Tatlow's "Highland Railway Carriages and Wagons", which modellers building the wagon will find invaluable.

Parts need from the trade to complete the wagon are listed below. A few parts for the brake gear will need to be made by the modeller himself from metal sheet and strip. Construction suggestions and photos to help are also included below.

This is what you get; inside and outside shown. 

Construction complete, full interior detail is included. I braced the inner with Plastikard with the intention of adding a coal load. 

There are brakes on one side only, Drummond's patent brake system was fitted to these wagons so they can be applied from both sides. 

The resin sides are available from the author, contact...

armstrongps1@gmx.com

017687 71302

07342 637 813

One set of castings £20.00 + post £1.45; two sets are post free: three or more sets attract a discount of 10% post free.

Parts to Complete.

W-irons...Slater's ref: 71550

Wheels are 3' 2" with 10 solid spokes. I used...Slater's 3' 1" with 8 plain spokes ref: 7121.

Couplings are CPL type to fit the hole in the draw-plate.

Buffers...Invertrain...HR 3-bolt single web. ref: FO26

Springs and axle-boxes...From myself at Border Miniatures.

Transfers...HMRS Sheet 20.

Construction Details.

On the bottom of the solebar sits a short transverse tube, which takes the brake handle and cross-rod of the Drummond both-sides brake gear. This is the fixed axle, the rocking axle is at the other end of the under-frame.

The "v" hangers are double and are soldered to metal plates for stability, the outer one is inlayed into the solebar. Metal parts were made from nickle silver strip and sheet with additional brass rivets.

The brake handle connects to the cross-rod, the upward extension of the handle mounts a pin which engages into the slot at the end of the brake-lever

Main body colour is Precision P436 Caledonian Wagon Oxide. Transfers are HMRS Sheet 20, note the number is also on the end. Wagon number plate on the solebar is printed on paper and then glued to Plastikard. 

Wood adhesive is mixed with real coal on a Plastikard base to make the load which is glued into the wagon just below the top edge. Model based on photos on pg. 154 of Peter Tatlow's "HR Carriages and Wagons".

   

Drummond 20-ton 6-wheel Goods Brake Van.

Pete's latest addition to his range of "aids to scratch-building" is an etched sheet in 0.45mm nickle- silver to build the 20-ton 6-wheel brake van introduced into service with the Highland Railway by Peter Drummond in 1909. It was felt that an etched sheet was more appropriate than resin castings for this larger project. The drawing on page 183 of Peter Tatlow's book "Highland Railway Carriages and Wagons" will prove indispensable when building the model. The etched sheet includes the sides and ends and some of the parts that are difficult to make yourself; simpler parts, such as the roof and the solebars, are left to the individual modeler to make from n/s sheet. Brass strip is used to represent the beading that surrounds the various panels on doors sides and ends, this is soldered into etched slots. Castings, wheels and other parts needed to complete the van are listed below. The later version of this van, with a steel under-frame, introduced in 1918, can also be built from the etched sheet. 

Drummond 20-ton brake van No. 21, one of only two photos of these vans in Highland livery.
Photo courtesy of  Am Baile.

Drummond 20-ton brake van built by the author from the etches shown below.

Etched sheet comprises; body sides and ends, brakes, roof lookout, end steps and supports, corner brackets, coupling plate and door drop-lights. Half-etched locating holes on the front of the etch are designed to be drilled for the insertion of brass rivets. Rivets on corner brackets and step supports can be treated similarly or pressed out with a riveting tool. 

Parts Needed to Complete the Model.

Wheels: Slater's 7123 3' 7" 8 Split-Spoke Coach Wheel.

Lamp irons: Slater's 7161.

W-irons: Slater's 71544.

Buffers F026/Roof fittings/Axleboxes HR2: Invertrain Model Railways 

Footboard Supports (x16): Sans Pareil / CSP Models. These are brass castings designed by myself to fit the model ref: L&F61 footboard support brackets

Couplings: CPL Products.

Springs and "J" hangers. White metal castings (x6) available from myself.

Brake cross-trees: LGM.

Etched Sheet is now available at Sale Price from Pete Armstrong/Border Miniatures @ £25.00 plus post at cost.

2nd class £1.99, 1st class £2.39, Signed for £3.79

armstrongps1@gmx.com

017687 71302

07342 637 813

The rear of the buffer beam is made from "L" section brass, the hollow beam is then filled with Milliput. The solebars could also be made from "L" section material though mine are cut and bent from n/s sheet.

Construction Notes.

A good deal of work is carried out "in the flat" before the sides and ends are soldered together. Rivet holes should be drilled along the bottom edge of the sides and on the buffer beam to take brass dome head rivets. The corner angle-irons and step supports can be treated similarly or rivets can be pressed out from the rear with a press. Holes for handrails need to be marked out and drilled after the 1 x 0.5mm section brass strip has been soldered into 0.25 deep etched grooves on the sides, doors and ends.

Note that three separate handrails form a cluster either side of the doors. Lamp-irons, steps and their supports, coupling plates, door handles and drop-lights can be added at this stage too.

Both brass rivets and pressed ones are in evidence here. Battening of 1 x 0.5mm section is  is in place.
The sides overlap the ends. 

Three handrails are grouped tightly either side of the doors, they are mounted on the battening.

Roof lookout in place. Stretchers soldered at either end of van; "L" section brass section forms the buffer beam inner.

Roof lookout sides are in position, I have extended them a little, the lookout roof is bent to shape and positioned next.

The van ready for the roofs.

The lookout roof and the main roof are soldered flush with the sides, the end of the main roof overhangs the van end.

  

Note the 1 x 1mm brass section soldered along the edge of the roofs.

The Under-Frame.

The brake van superstructure is a separate unit to the under-frame, the two are screwed together. I did not build in any suspension, only a little side-play on all wheels and some vertical movement on the center axle, which slides in a brass horn-guide in the w-iron. The brakes were soldered to a backing sheet of 0.45 n/s then cut out, tidied and drilled for the cross braces. The end of the backing was left long then bent back at right angles to form a foot to help position the brakes.

The "J" hangers and springs, seen in the photos, are cast as a single unit in white metal from my own moulds. I would prefer brass castings and am investigating the possibility. The hangers and springs can be fabricated from parts available from Laurie Griffin, 36-028 6ft coach springs x 6, which can be shortened to 5ft. Also useful are 36-026 "C" hangers x 12. 

Structure of the under-frame showing brakes, linkages and white metal "J" hangers and springs; the lower footboard is not yet in position. Slots need to be cut in the upper footboard for the lower footboard supports and any additional detail included by the model maker. The back view of the silhouetted brake shows the foot formed by bending back the backing layer. 

Brakes, cross-trees and linking arm are shown; lower footboard is in place. Note the double-thickness brakes with rivet detail.

The prototype end footboard support is mounted on the rear of the buffer beam at right angles to the solebar. I have soldered it to the solebar, as seen here, otherwise it would lock the underframe to the van body. The footboard supports are cast from my own pattern by CSP to fit the situation (see parts list). White metal J-hangers and spring casting available from myself.

Clearance Sale.

Clearance Sale of Highland Railway Resin Wagon Sides and Ends in 7mm scale. 

All Remaining Castings are Reduced to Clear, while stocks last.

All 7mm scale resin wagon sides and ends are now £15.00 per set. Postage is £1.50 for 1 set and post free for 2 sets or more.

In stock currently are...

1. Drummond 8-Ton 2-plank Ballast Wagon.

2. 7-Ton Swivel Cradle Timber Wagon.

3. Jones 15 foot 4-plank Open Wagon HR d.19

4. Drummond Open Fish Truck with drop sides.

Illustrations of all these wagons appear in entries on this Blog below.

To order while stocks last contact Pete on...

Email... armstrongps1@gmx.com

Mobile...07342 637 813

Home... 017687 71302

 

Jones 4-plank open wagon completed with commercially available fittings and a few bits cut from n/s strip.