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September 28, 2009 · 2:52 AM

A Rake of Coaches: Or How Solving One Problem Leads to Another

John Mayne

 

It started out simply enough early in 2004. I saw the listing for a laminate brake standard on the Worsley Works web site and thinking it was a model of the 1958 brake composites, I bought the coach and a Deutz loco kit. I had been involved with the MRSI Loughrea group for many years and thought these models would give us a more accurate representation of the branch line in the “modern image era.” The only thing was that I was in the middle of planning a move to New Zealand!  So the Deutz and coach have never had a trip on the Loughrea layout. The Deutz is essentially a complete loco kit without wheels motor, detail castings and turnings, the coach basically consists of sides ends and underframe, the builder has to source roof, bogies, interior, detail casting and bogies. While the Worsley Works coaches are basically similar in design to Comet, the main issue is in forming a roof as most Irish stock is wider than the British; Comet and MJT extrusions are too narrow.  I model on 21mm gauge and while proprietary Commonwealth bogies might pass muster, I wanted the model to be as accurate as possible and bogies would require custom made side-frames. I was impressed with the detail of the coach and ordered an AEC railcar set, a Laminate second and a Park Royal coach: in for a penny,  in for a pound. Basically the idea was to commission any special components required such as bogies, roof extrusions or pressings and detail parts from UK manufacturers, to complete my own models and test the potential market.

Disappointingly, few of those I contacted responded or demonstrated a willingness to follow up on a serious enquiry for the design and  manufacture of components to compete the project. I had experimented with forming the roof profile variously from brass, plasticard and balsawood without much success, there is little practical guidance on scratch building coaches or metalwork in the contemporary model press. Commissioning an extrusion locally was prohibitive. Eventually I followed Allen Doherty’s suggestion of using a proprietary extrusion as a basis for cutting and filling to a wider profile. Bogies are based on MJT torsion bar compensation units which are easily adaptable to the wider gauge, and other details are a mixture of Comet and MJT components.

The Coaches:
Unlike the relatively rapid development of the BR Mk.1 stock, Inchicore like the GWR in the 1930’s, seemed to have difficulty in building two batches of coaches to the same design and went through several stages of development before the arrival of the Craven stock in 1963. Briefly the 1953-4 period  saw the introduction of a wide range of hauled stock based on a development of Bredin’s GSR flush sided timber framed designs, including open and compartment coaches, buffet, restaurant cars and mail vans. The earliest vehicles ran on GSR design bogies and traditional steel under-frames, later batches incorporated Bulleid triangulated under-frames and Commonwealth bogies. Even in the 1950’s such stock would have been expensive and labour intensive to produce and not readily adaptable to mass production, requiring a large highly skilled workforce to machine and assemble components. The Park Royals with their prefabricated components allowed volume construction using a semi-skilled workforce. Significantly though designed for suburban and main line use, only one design of body shell was produced.

1379 class Park Royal suburban coach

1379 class Park Royal suburban coach

The laminates (aluminium, insulation, plywood panel) are best described as of modular construction with several body designs (based round a small number of components), again allowing rapid construction. There appear to have been at least four designs: a brake composite, 70 and 64 seat main line standards and a suburban coach. I recall laminate coaches being refurbished at Inchicore in the late 1970’s. Each coach was stripped down to roof, ends and under-frames, and re-skinned; either CIE still had a stock of body panels or the manufacturing capability existed. One theory was that it was originally planned to replace the bodies after 20 years, but this was no longer required following the introduction of monocoque design in the 1960’s. Inchicore appears have briefly reverted to timber frame body design for its final batch of twelve coaches (ten standards and two firsts) before the arrival of the Cravens in 1963. Significantly these coaches used the heavier BR pattern of Commonwealth bogie.

The brake standard appears to be based on the 1970’s conversion of laminate coaches to brake standards rather than the 1958 brake composite design. The brake standards of this era were converted from laminate suburban stock and 1953-4 composites. The Worsley Works kit is of a different pattern and appears to be based on a conversion of a main line laminate standard. Two laminate brakes are preserved one the DCDR at Downpatrick, another by the RPSI as a service vehicle in their Dublin excursion train rake. The laminate standard and the Park Royal appear are to be accurate representations.

1448 class laminate standard

1448 class laminate standard

The etchings make up in a similar manner to the Comet coach kits, with the body sides and ends designed to be removable from the chassis. There is a half etched representation of the joints between the body panels, a distinctive feature of the laminates. The chassis comprises a main floor etching, with fold down truss rods, with separate etchings for solebars and a lower body stiffener making up into a nice solid chassis.  The solebars on the laminates and Park Royal coaches do not run parallel with the sides, the coaches running on Bulleid’s triangulated under-frames.  I have left well enough alone, though solebars, say from brass angle, could be set up in a jig to capture this subtle and distinctive feature of CIE stock of the era. The sides are easy enough to curve using brass bars and a straight edge. The Park Royal sides are etched in three sections with over lapping tags but are a bit flimsy being half etched.

Laminate coach - first section of roof in position

Laminate coach - first section of roof in position

I would rather use a formed sheet metal roof like the TMD Bredins, should a suitable one become available. I recently completed a C&L narrow gauge coach: forming the arched roof even with the down ward curving ends was simple enough, though forming a “modern” elliptical roof is a different matter and a subject seldom if ever covered in the main
stream model press. The etched brass assembly is soldered, and the aluminium roof extrusion glued in place using cyno reinforced with epoxy resin, with a strip of plasticard to reinforce the joint between the two sections of aluminium and support  the filler.

Laminate brake standard

Laminate brake standard

In the end on Allen’s suggestion, I used a Comet BR Mk1 roof extrusion cut down the middle the gap filled with body filler. The roof detailing covers a multitude of sins and lifts the model. Comet torpedo ventilators and PC lining strip  gives the roof its distinctive and  jointed appearance.  I decided to include a fairly high level of detail with door hinges, knobs, handles, toilet filler and communication cord pipe-work. Next stage is pattern making and castings for bogie side-frames, dynamo and vacuum cylinders, heating and  vacuum pipes, couplers, finish painting, build layout, couple up to B141!

Laminate coach sides clamped while glue sets

Laminate coach sides clamped while glue sets

Worsley Works underframe, MJT bogie compensation units, plasticard spacers for 21mm gauge, MJT LNER buffer shanks

Worsley Works underframe, MJT bogie compensation units, plasticard spacers for 21mm gauge, MJT LNER buffer shanks

Laminate coach with Comet seating units, plasticard floor and bulkheads

Laminate coach with Comet seating units, plasticard floor and bulkheads

There is also a lot of useful information on building etched brass coaches like these on the Comet Kits website: http://www.cometmodels.co.uk/ Follow the links: Downloads  Building Coaches the Comet Way.

[Ed: for more details see the following paper on coaching stock built for or by CIE from 1945 to the arrival of the Cravens: Kennedy D (1965) Modern CIE Coaching Stock Journal of Irish Railway Record Society 7 (37): 14-61]

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September 23, 2009 · 11:05 PM

Building a Worsley Works CIE G Class

Jeremy Fletcher

 

I put together a Worsley Works 4mm etch set of the CIE G-class 0-4-0 diesel for Jim Edgar (“Jim Markle”) who required one for his intended ‘OO’ Irish branch line. The etch set arrived in the usual flat envelope containing the sections laid out on etch ‘frets’.  Resin spring/axle box dummy castings were provided. A nickel silver fold down ‘basic etch’ piece was provided to make the drive/gearbox.   No motor, gears or wheels were provided and it is necessary for the modeller to arrange his/her own.  There are no instructions supplied with the Worsley Works etch sets and it is a good idea for the intending model builder to first study the various parts and decide on the most appropriate procedure to follow. It is a good idea to have as many as possible prototype photographs at this stage.  The G-class kit is one of the more straightforward Worsley Works sets to assemble as there are few complicated double curvatures, although the need for a drive might deter some people.  It provides a good introduction to making  etched brass models.   

Soldering is of course involved in putting the parts together and this may be off-putting to some.  It is not really that hard once you take the initial plunge and get used to it. As this particular model is of a powered locomotive it is advisable at an early stage to decide what sort of drive will be used and how much of the floor must be cut out to give clearance for it. It is easiest to cut out parts from the etchings before starting the assembly.  Cutting them out later can be very difficult and frustrating. I found it easiest to put the G-class together in a series of sub assemblies: cab,  bonnet,  main frame and the drive/gearbox assembly. The upper cab and bonnet are soldered together on the main frame and the drive/gearbox is screwed in place to allow removal for maintenance and oiling.  The cab roof is not soldered on until the cab is soldered in place.  

 

I started by making the main frame sub-assembly out of the footplate and end and side plates, basically ending up with an open bottomed box.    I first cut out the footplate sheet inside the bonnet area to accommodate the motor I intended to use and also most of the cab floor, being careful to leave enough for soldering on the cab. It is necessary to be careful when cutting out any etching sheet as any stretching of the metal will make it very hard to keep it flat afterward.  It is probably best to drill a series of close-spaced small holes alongside each cut line, break out the piece that is to be removed and then finish off the edges with a fine file.

There are pre-drilled holes to locate the buffers and I enlarged these to suit the  buffers which I made myself. There are also suitable  commercial ones available, such as  Markits  The footplate underside is provided with etched grooves (like those for fold up locations) to locate both the end and side plates.  I first laid the footplate upside down on a flat surface so that it would not distort when being soldered.  I located the end plates in the grooves and held them square to the footplate while running a bead of solder along the join.  I then did the same with the side plates and then soldered the end plates and side plates together.  The side plates also have etched grooves which should be lined up with corresponding ones on the footplate underside.  These are to locate the four triangular side gussets which are soldered on afterwards. I checked that the main frame assembly was true and square before going further.

I next made the cab body by folding around the one piece wall etching to make an open top box.  There are multiple parallel fold lines at each corner to produce curved corners.   I bent the metal around a piece of 7/64” rod to produce even bends. The etch piece edges join between the cab front windows. This joint line will be conveniently hidden by the exhaust stack.  I found that some of the cab window edges which are close to the bends buckled during the bending but were easy to straighten again.  The bottoms of the cab walls have locating tabs which engage with slots in the footplate section.  I checked that the cab fitted properly and soldered it in place.

I made the bonnet section by bending the one piece etch sheet similarly to the cab.  It also has the multiple fold lines to give curved corners although the curved bonnet top has to be bent to look like the photos.  There are outlines on the footplate and cab front to help in getting the shape of the bonnet section right.   The most tedious parts of the bonnet section were the side access door frames and shallow pyramid shape panels. The panels came flat, with fold lines to allow them to be carefully bent to shape. The wire lifting handles on the doors, when inserted in their holes were useful to locate the doors in their correct positions.  I made and soldered in place the handrails for the cab and bonnet sections before going any further.  Ideally I should have used commercial handrail knobs to hold them but could not find any short enough and the handrails would have stood out unrealistically, so I simply bent and inserted the ends of the .019” wire into the pre-drilled holes.  I also made and  soldered in the dummy front and rear marker lights, engine air inlet ‘mushrooms’, sand boxes and the exhaust stack.  I made hand grabs at the front steps from pins.

I fitted the bonnet section in front of the cab, using the outlines as a guide, and soldered it in position.  I then bent the cab roof to shape and soldered it on.  I made the front curved section over the “radiator” grille by filing from plastic which was glued in place after the soldering was all done: of course, there is no actual radiator as the prototype was powered by a Deutz air cooled engine.

 

I made the drive/gearbox from the basic etch sheet provided, with the axle holes already in place.  It was designed with fold down sides to make a box shape for the gearbox.   The drive/gearbox carries the axles (inside bearings) and the external axle box details are non functional. I found that the gearbox had been designed to suit the P4 ‘Irish’ track gauge and was too wide to fit between wheels set at ‘OO’.  I therefore cut off the sides at the fold lines and soldered them back in position closer together.  As the loco is so small and light it would be barely capable of moving anything with only one axle driven and I therefore made a drive to both axles by means of a gear train, with the motor lying horizontally along the top of the gearbox, inside the bonnet.  I used NWSL 72DP brass gears with an overall speed reduction of 32:1.  The wheels are salvaged from a previous re-powering project.  There was just enough room above the motor in the bonnet for a couple of stick-in lead weights to help traction in this tiny locomotive.  I have not painted the finished locomotive as Jim Edgar wanted to do that himself. 

I put together a Worsley Works 4mm etch set of the CIE G-class 0-4-0 diesel for Jim Edgar (“Jim Markle”) who required one for his intended ‘OO’ Irish branch line. The etch set arrived in the usual flat envelope containing the sections laid out on etch ‘frets’.  Resin spring/axle box dummy castings were provided. A nickel silver fold down ‘basic etch’ piece was provided to make the drive/gearbox.   No motor, gears or wheels were provided and it is necessary for the modeller to arrange his/her own.  There are no instructions supplied with the Worsley Works etch sets and it is a good idea for the intending model builder to first study the various parts and decide on the most appropriate procedure to follow. It is a good idea to have as many as possible prototype photographs at this stage.  The G-class kit is one of the more straightforward Worsley Works sets to assemble as there are few complicated double curvatures, although the need for a drive might deter some people.  It provides a good introduction to making  etched brass models.   

Soldering is of course involved in putting the parts together and this may be off-putting to some.  It is not really that hard once you take the initial plunge and get used to it. As this particular model is of a powered locomotive it is advisable at an early stage to decide what sort of drive will be used and how much of the floor must be cut out to give clearance for it. It is easiest to cut out parts from the etchings before starting the assembly.  Cutting them out later can be very difficult and frustrating. I found it easiest to put the G-class together in a series of sub assemblies: cab,  bonnet,  main frame and the drive/gearbox assembly. The upper cab and bonnet are soldered together on the main frame and the drive/gearbox is screwed in place to allow removal for maintenance and oiling.  The cab roof is not soldered on until the cab is soldered in place.  

 

I started by making the main frame sub-assembly out of the footplate and end and side plates, basically ending up with an open bottomed box.    I first cut out the footplate sheet inside the bonnet area to accommodate the motor I intended to use and also most of the cab floor, being careful to leave enough for soldering on the cab. It is necessary to be careful when cutting out any etching sheet as any stretching of the metal will make it very hard to keep it flat afterward.  It is probably best to drill a series of close-spaced small holes alongside each cut line, break out the piece that is to be removed and then finish off the edges with a fine file.


There are pre-drilled holes to locate the buffers and I enlarged these to suit the  buffers which I made myself. There are also suitable  commercial ones available, such as  Markits  The footplate underside is provided with etched grooves (like those for fold up locations) to locate both the end and side plates.  I first laid the footplate upside down on a flat surface so that it would not distort when being soldered.  I located the end plates in the grooves and held them square to the footplate while running a bead of solder along the join.  I then did the same with the side plates and then soldered the end plates and side plates together.  The side plates also have etched grooves which should be lined up with corresponding ones on the footplate underside.  These are to locate the four triangular side gussets which are soldered on afterwards. I checked that the main frame assembly was true and square before going further.

I next made the cab body by folding around the one piece wall etching to make an open top box.  There are multiple parallel fold lines at each corner to produce curved corners.   I bent the metal around a piece of 7/64” rod to produce even bends. The etch piece edges join between the cab front windows. This joint line will be conveniently hidden by the exhaust stack.  I found that some of the cab window edges which are close to the bends buckled during the bending but were easy to straighten again.  The bottoms of the cab walls have locating tabs which engage with slots in the footplate section.  I checked that the cab fitted properly and soldered it in place.

I made the bonnet section by bending the one piece etch sheet similarly to the cab.  It also has the multiple fold lines to give curved corners although the curved bonnet top has to be bent to look like the photos.  There are outlines on the footplate and cab front to help in getting the shape of the bonnet section right.   The most tedious parts of the bonnet section were the side access door frames and shallow pyramid shape panels. The panels came flat, with fold lines to allow them to be carefully bent to shape. The wire lifting handles on the doors, when inserted in their holes were useful to locate the doors in their correct positions.  I made and soldered in place the handrails for the cab and bonnet sections before going any further.  Ideally I should have used commercial handrail knobs to hold them but could not find any short enough and the handrails would have stood out unrealistically, so I simply bent and inserted the ends of the .019” wire into the pre-drilled holes.  I also made and  soldered in the dummy front and rear marker lights, engine air inlet ‘mushrooms’, sand boxes and the exhaust stack.  I made hand grabs at the front steps from pins.

I fitted the bonnet section in front of the cab, using the outlines as a guide, and soldered it in position.  I then bent the cab roof to shape and soldered it on.  I made the front curved section over the “radiator” grille by filing from plastic which was glued in place after the soldering was all done: of course, there is no actual radiator as the prototype was powered by a Deutz air cooled engine.



 

I made the drive/gearbox from the basic etch sheet provided, with the axle holes already in place.  It was designed with fold down sides to make a box shape for the gearbox.   The drive/gearbox carries the axles (inside bearings) and the external axle box details are non functional. I found that the gearbox had been designed to suit the P4 ‘Irish’ track gauge and was too wide to fit between wheels set at ‘OO’.  I therefore cut off the sides at the fold lines and soldered them back in position closer together.  As the loco is so small and light it would be barely capable of moving anything with only one axle driven and I therefore made a drive to both axles by means of a gear train, with the motor lying horizontally along the top of the gearbox, inside the bonnet.  I used NWSL 72DP brass gears with an overall speed reduction of 32:1.  The wheels are salvaged from a previous re-powering project.  There was just enough room above the motor in the bonnet for a couple of stick-in lead weights to help traction in this tiny locomotive.  I have not painted the finished locomotive as Jim Edgar wanted to do that himself.

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March 9, 2009 · 2:05 AM

UTA MED Three-Car Diesel Train

Jeremy Fletcher

 

It is not intended as a direct insult to the steam junkies, but my own personal preference is for old railcars etc. which have been neglected or ignored in the past by the mainstream as a lower form of life compared to  steam locos, which they are not! Only now are they receiving more attention and appreciation, but still individual prototypes only attract modellers’ attention after all have been scrapped and proper measurements are hard to get! I previously made a model of the long gone GNR railcar ‘A’ on which I wrote up an article for New Irish Lines, May 2005. I have since made a model of the UTA MED diesel train. I made my model of a three-car MED set using brass etchings which I got made by Allen Doherty (Worsley Works). The etching sets are a basis for scratch building rather than what are normally sold as a kit: they just include body sides, ends and floors. Other parts such as roof and bogies, have to be obtained elsewhere or made by the modeller. I made the coaches by building them up directly from the etchings rather than doing “overlays” on existing available coach bodies.   Suitable ‘donor’ coaches would be extremely difficult to get where I live!.   Building directly from etchings is certainly a much more laborious way of doing it as I found out! There is much more soldering and it  requires care to avoid excessive warping and distortion.

Worsley Works three-car MED set

Worsley Works three-car MED set

Worsley Works three-car MED set

Worsley Works three-car MED set

Worsley Works three-car MED set

Worsley Works three-car MED set

The Worsley Works MED coach sides came in individual between-doors sections, aligned in their correct relative positions only by the fret sheets and separated by the spaces for the sliding doors.  It was therefore necessary to attach these together by soldering in the separate sliding door etches to produce complete one-piece body sides before they are separated from the frets to maintain the alignments.  It is also easiest to curve the body sides to the correct profile using the coach ends as templates before removing them from the frets.  This is made easier by first bending the sides and the sliding doors separately before soldering the doors in place.  I added narrow brass strips between the sides and the door edges to give more “depth” to the openings.   The coach sides were very flexible and prone to buckling, so I made interior partitions from shim brass and added brass cant rail strips along inside the top edges to add rigidity. I made the coach roofs from thin styrene sheet (Evergreen) which I bent to match the profile of the coach end etches.  Working with styrene sheet has its own fun aspects as it tends to warp when joined with liquid cement! I made the cab ends by filing from styrene.   Much filing and fiddling were required! I used the etched brass floor sheets provided.  As they are very thin and flexible I reinforced them by soldering on pieces of discarded brass code 100 rail. 

I powered the MED set by means of small flat can motors with flywheels, one under each power car, hidden by the under floor/engine details, driving by flexible shafts to small homemade final drive gearboxes which ride on the inner axles of the bogies.  This gives four driven axles out of a total of twelve, with the problems of traction tyres!. I used Comet LMS bogies which I modified to give insulated sides, with insulated half stub axles (Athearn style) to give current pick up on axles.   All axles pick up.  I used Northwest Short Line nickel silver wheels, which stay clean and give good pick up, and the MED set runs smoothly.   I used Markits coach buffers and Ratio corridor connections. I made basic interior seats from styrene as the coach interiors are very visible through the many windows. The MED train runs fairly well on ordinary DC, but  I do not know how well it would run on DCC.

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March 8, 2009 · 7:40 PM

Getting Started On Soldering: The TDR Three-Plank Wagon Kit

Paul Titmuss

 

It is evident from discussion that there are a number of modellers who want to progress to brass and nickel silver kits, but are loathe to make the jump because there seems to be nothing for the ‘beginner’ to try their soldering skills with first. I was at this stage once and still find soldering outside my ‘comfort zone’, but am becoming more skilled and increasingly confident, though I don’t profess to be an expert. The Tralee & Dingle three-plank wagon, available from Worsley Works is, I believe, a good starting point. It is low cost (£4.50 + £1.50 P&P), can be used for either 009 or 00n3, and if you bottle out can be stuck together with glue (I have built a wagon using epoxy resin). It is designed to fit the Parkside Dundas Tralee & Dingle van chassis. I am attempting to build Annascaul Station on the Tralee & Dingle Light Railway and whilst there is a lot of stock available from model manufacturers several key items are not catered for, the three-plank wagon being one of them. With the help of published and unpublished photographs (generously loaned by David Rowlands) I drew diagrams for the wagon and sent them to Allen Doherty at Worsley Works, who used them to  create the necessary brass etches for the kit. The best published photograph of a three plank wagon (and one I relied upon heavily in the diagrams) can be found in The Tralee & Dingle Railway by David Rowlands, published by Bradford Barton, p75. By the time of closure each of the remaining wagons had been reconstructed so there were differences between them.

Photo #1: This shows the etch, constructed wagon body and the completed wagon on Parkside Dundas T&D van chassis.

Photo #1: This shows the etch, constructed wagon body and the completed wagon on Parkside Dundas T&D van chassis.

Photo #2: The set up used for soldering. An Antex 25W soldering iron and stand, flux and 145° solder. I do not usually go to the extreme of soldering outside, but on a nice day its quite pleasant, but dont drop any parts!

Photo #2: The set up used for soldering. An Antex 25W soldering iron and stand, flux and 145° solder. I do not usually go to the extreme of soldering outside, but on a nice day it's quite pleasant, but don't drop any parts!

Photo#3: The first job is to tap in the bolt heads. I do this with a pin whilst the brass etch is resting on a piece of hardboard. A light tap is enough. When this is done flux and solder (tin) the insides of both sides and ends. When completed cut the parts out of the fret and clean up the rough edges with a file.

Photo#3: The first job is to tap in the bolt heads. I do this with a pin whilst the brass etch is resting on a piece of hardboard. A light tap is enough. When this is done flux and solder (tin) the insides of both sides and ends. When completed cut the parts out of the fret and clean up the rough edges with a file.

Photo #4: Line up the pieces, ensuring that the outside overlaps the inside section equally at both ends. I have recently acquired some little clips to help. The work is then held in a vice.

Photo #4: Line up the pieces, ensuring that the outside overlaps the inside section equally at both ends. I have recently acquired some little clips to help. The work is then held in a vice.

Photo #5: Flux is applied to the top edge and then solder run along the joint.

Photo #5: Flux is applied to the top edge and then solder run along the joint.

Photo #6: When happy with the join put the side or end on the work surface, inner side up and then apply heat from the soldering iron to help the tinned sides make a better bond. There should be a little solder on the tip of the iron to help with the transfer of heat.

Photo #6: When happy with the join put the side or end on the work surface, inner side up and then apply heat from the soldering iron to help the tinned sides make a better bond. There should be a little solder on the tip of the iron to help with the transfer of heat.

Photo #7: To join a side end place upside down on the work surface. The end piece goes inside the wagon side. Make sure the joint is fluxed. I hold the work in place with Blu-tack®. I also used some fine graph paper to help get the pieces square. The join between the two parts can then be soldered.

Photo #7: To join a side end place upside down on the work surface. The end piece goes inside the wagon side. Make sure the joint is fluxed. I hold the work in place with Blu-tack®. I also used some fine graph paper to help get the pieces square. The join between the two parts can then be soldered.

Photo #8: When both pairs of sides and ends have been joined I then solder up the remaining corners an the basic body shell is complete. You may wish to trial fit the chassis floor at this stage (see photo #11).

Photo #8: When both pairs of sides and ends have been joined I then solder up the remaining corners an the basic body shell is complete. You may wish to trial fit the chassis floor at this stage (see photo #11).

Photo #9: The strapping can then be applied. These pieces can be easily fixed using epoxy resin. If you attempt to solder the straps make sure they are tinned on the fret first, and would be an idea to apply the straps to the work before the sides are built up. The tall end straps are raised from the body and I glued these to strips of plastic card, and then these in turn were glued to the wagon ends.

Photo #9: The strapping can then be applied. These pieces can be easily fixed using epoxy resin. If you attempt to solder the straps make sure they are tinned on the fret first, and would be an idea to apply the straps to the work before the sides are built up. The tall end straps are raised from the body and I glued these to strips of plastic card, and then these in turn were glued to the wagon ends.

Photo #10: The corner plates need to careful bending in a vice. I held them between two rulers and pressed the edge over with a small piece of 1 x 1 timber. On the actual wagon the short edge went along the side so there is no need to panic if the two edges are not the same length. To complete the door straps lengthen the hinge gap by cutting into the etch. Place a fine piece of wire (not supplied) on the edge of the board (with Sellotape®) and press to shape. If the wire has been tinned and the job fluxed this is an easy soldering job. Cut off spare wire and etch before fixing in place. The door straps should just overlap the edges for the door sides.

Photo #10: The corner plates need careful bending in a vice. I held them between two rulers and pressed the edge over with a small piece of 1" x 1" timber. On the actual wagon the short edge went along the side so there is no need to panic if the two edges are not the same length. To complete the door straps lengthen the hinge gap by cutting into the etch. Place a fine piece of wire (not supplied) on the edge of the board (with Sellotape®) and press to shape. If the wire has been tinned and the job fluxed this is an easy soldering job. Cut off spare wire and etch before fixing in place. The door straps should just overlap the edges for the door sides.

Photo #11: The Parkside Dundas chassis can be made up. The floor needs to be carefully sanded to size, a tad off each end (including the sole bars) and a little more off the sides (circa 0.25mm each side) so that the body fits the floor (it might be an idea to fit this before the strapping is applied as a dry run). Dont get too carried away as it is easy to remove too much floor. Next the body is glued to the floor. Vacuum pipes need to be sourced (or those that come with the chassis can be used) plus couplings of choice added to complete construction. It is best to give the brass a coat of etched brass primer before painting and weathering to taste. Hopefully, you have now completed a first successful taste of soldered kit construction. Do remember that if you bottle out with the soldering then the kit can be glued together, so it wont be wasted.

Photo #11: The Parkside Dundas chassis can be made up. The floor needs to be carefully sanded to size, a tad off each end (including the sole bars) and a little more off the sides (circa 0.25mm each side) so that the body fits the floor (it might be an idea to fit this before the strapping is applied as a 'dry run'). Don't get too carried away as it is easy to remove too much floor. Next the body is glued to the floor. Vacuum pipes need to be sourced (or those that come with the chassis can be used) plus couplings of choice added to complete construction. It is best to give the brass a coat of etched brass primer before painting and weathering to taste. Hopefully, you have now completed a first successful taste of soldered kit construction. Do remember that if you bottle out with the soldering then the kit can be glued together, so it won't be wasted.

Acknowledgements:
Thanks to David Rowlands for the loan of photographs, Allen Doherty for the preparation of etches and Simon Starr for exchange of ideas.

Addendum:
If anyone has already purchased one (or more) of the three-plank wagon kits there was an error with the original production etch. The right hand door straps are now available on receipt of an SAE from Worsley Works. My third wagon was completed with these.

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