The Old and the New

Normally I think the saying goes "out with the old and in with the new", but I thought I'd try my hand at combining the old with the new.

Again I've been thinking about what skills I lack and also what I've purchased to have a go at and not had the courage to start. I think it was at a Letterhead Scaleforum that, with all the bravado of a newbie to the hobby, I purchased a Craig Welsh etch for a 9ft RCH chassis. After a very poor attempt at constructing a Bill Bedford etch for a 16T mineral wagon Mr Welsh's etch was allowed to languish in a box along with a couple of wooden mineral wagon kits. In subsequent years I've been enticed to purchased some Rumney Models etches so I thought it was about time I had a go at constructing a chassis etch od some description.

When digging out the box containing Craig Welsh's etch I found this very old Ian Kirk kit.

God knows how long I've had this kit. Unlike Ian Kirk's later offerings for this type of wagon there is no internal planking detail on this vintage kit. Even so I thought if I make a good attempt at marrying this to Craig's etch it could be permanently loaded with coal to disguise the lake of internal detail.

So...

The body goes together reasonably well, though I think I may have to cut a new bottom for the wagon. I've already assigned the brake gear to the bin and the next task will be to remove the W irons and V hanger from the solebars.

As I'd spent a few moments (well more than a few) mulling over this little project, reading the build instructions for Craig's and also Rumney Models etches, that was as far as I got during last evenings visit to the "Man Cave".

A white metal interlude

The other day I received an email from Missenden Abbey reminding me of the up and coming Spring Weekend that I've enrolled on. Of all the courses available, I'd chosen to attend the session on 4mm Locomotive Kit Construction. It was a tough decision as there were 4 other courses from which I could learn much: Weathering; Backscenes and scenery;Trackwork; also DCC Sound. In the end I realised that my skills in locomotive construction are currently my main weakness. Though I have had an 03 chassis built for me and have another area group member building a Beattie Well Tank chassis, I cannot rely on the good will of these guys for too long.

The decision I have to make is what to take to Missenden. My current options being:

• A DJH 1366 kit - with the aim to get a working chassis by Sunday afternoon.
• Another Beattie Well Tank - with the aim to get a working chassis by Sunday afternoon.
• A 57xx Chassis as well as taking first attempt at a  57xx chassis for correction.
• The white metal body kit of the Beattie Well Tank that the chassis is being built for.

In thinking about the last option it made me realise that I've not yet constructed a white metal kit. Would I really need to use my time at Missenden just to build a white metal locomotive body? Hmmm... That might not be getting the most out of the weekend.

So, to test my white metal soldering skills, I blew the dust off a couple of Four Most Models wagon kits. The first to get the heat treatment was a SR 12T 8 plank wagon.

 

Well, overall it's not turned out too bad. I don't think there is anything that a little filler cannot rectify. I'm not brave enough yet to apply more solder to fill some of the joints for fear I'll de-solder a joint. As a bonus the wheels are all in the same plain and it runs true with, so far, no derailments on Tredethy Wharf. I've not installed coupling hooks yet as I'm not sure if the white metal ones provided with the kit would be up to the task.

On to the next wagon, a  LSWR 10T round ended open.

I thought I'd compensate this wagon. Possibly no need to but had itching figures to use the MJT 2291 compensation units again.

After this brief trial of constructing these white metal kits my trepidation of tackling a white metal loco kits has lessened greatly. So this little interlude from the Brake Van Special has proven to me that my time at Missenden should be used mainly on one of the three chassis building projects not wholly on a white metal kit.