It started with a buffer

[barlowworks]

Hi everybody. And now for something completely different as Monty Python used to say. Back in February, Roger, on his thread asked if anyone fancied having a go at modelling one of these. www.youtube.com/watch?v=3502lHaZQIo (not sure how to paste a direct link but this will take you to the relevant You Tube video. Its for a Burma Mines Railway truck converted to run on rails. I replied at the time that it would look good going round the garden. Shortly after that one of our members, rwilliams sent me a PM with a link to a vehicle on Ebay that would make an ideal donor vehicle for the conversion. Always up for a challenge I duly ordered one and set too.....

IMG_2728 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

This is the donor vehicle from China, full radio control charged by a USB port with full suspension and 6 wheel drive for £29.00.

IMG_2732 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Upon taking it apart I was pleased to see that everything was held together using small self tappers. As I said, 6 wheel drive, though I only needed 4 wheel drive but I thought the extra length would be useful for the conversion. The axles were driven by nice little U/Js with sliding propshafts into slip diffs for each axle.

IMG_2733 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

I selected the 2 outer differentials and modified them to accept some spare coach wheels I had that were just the right size. I had to bush the wheels so they matched the axles in the differential but I just managed to get the correct back to back after the conversion.

IMG_2736 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

I made up some bogies with floating side frames to allow some compensation (much needed given the state of some garden railway track). All did not go to plan on this first try, there was too much rotation on the bogie pivots and the differentials revolved round the axles and constantly disengaged the U/J's. I found I had to fit a plate under the bogie to stop the differentials from rotating and also a device to restrict the rotation of the bogie. After that everything worked OK apart from the wheels went in different directions.  I later found out I had inadvertently turned one of the differentials upside down when assembling the bogies so a quick flip over had everything running in the same direction.  .

IMG_2740 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Here is the finished engine complete with working headlights ready for painting. It runs a little fast so I will have to look and see it I can slow it down a bit. Its not exactly like the real thing which has outside belt drives to the bogies but its near enough for me. Now I have to make it look careworn and abused like the real thing. I will have to show you the art of using Marmite, salt and rust washes to weather the finished engine. Overall I think I can say Challenge Met.

Mike

[mbrown]

The truck looks like one of those in that superb 1950s film "The Wages of Fear" - about driving truck loads of nitro-glycerine through the Latin American jungle..... highly recommended if you've not seen it!

(The Goon Show did a spoof version called "Fear of Wages" which also involved truck loads of nitro glycerine....)

Apologies for the diversion!

Malcolm

[Roger]

Fantastic, what a great little project. I'll be careful what I suggest next time!

[barlowworks]

Hi Everybody, here is the conclusion of my Burma Mines truck build, I hope you will bear with me as this will possibly be something completely new to a lot of you and is not the usual model engineering fare. At the end of my last post we had more or less completed the truck, this post will detail the weathering of the truck and making it look a lot more care worn and battered. Firstly, I reduced the truck into more manageable pieces and painted in with acrylic paint a light rust coating in places that I thought would soon go rusty.

IMG_2744 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

The truck body and fuel tanks were also given a similar coating.

IMG_2743 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

The next stage is to go over this with a darker rust shade into corners and edges that show up as more deeply rusted. Remember that this process also has to be done with the chassis rails and the bogies.

IMG_2747 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

The next stage was to mask up the areas that don't want to be the new body colour. After that it was time for the Marmite. Waiting until Madam Battleship was not looking I made off with her favorite pot and proceeded to dab areas of the rust paint where I wanted it to show through. The idea is that the Marmite can be washed off after the new body colour is applied using soap and water and it leaves a quite realistic rust effect. Then it was the turn of the Hairspray. This works in a similar way to the Marmite in that it can also be washed off with soap and water but in a much more subtle way. I believe the idea is that it forms a barrier between the new base coat and the body making it easier to remove. I decided not to use the salt technique as it is used mainly for producing a mottled effect and I decided that life was to short as it is.

IMG_2750 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Next I sprayed up the whole truck in a suitable colour. I wanted to use a colour that would have been mixed up in the works from whatever was to hand. That is exactly what I did to arrive at this colour using some BR brunswick green, LNER A4 blue, LNER freight gray and a tinlet of white. Not exactly colours that they would have had on the Burma Mines but definitely colours that I had going spare in Barlow Works.

IMG_2751 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

The Marmite was then washed off and the rust revealed. Also the paint was rubbed with a green scouring pad to produce the faded patches where the original colour was starting to show through. Here I discovered a basic mistake I had made in using Acrylic paint for the rust, when I washed of the Marmite I also removed some of the rust so had to go over it all again to fill in the rust patches. If I was to do it again I would use enamel paints.

IMG_2754 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Now its heart in mouth time, the Payne's Gray watercolour wash. This mix was liberally coated on all the truck and dried of with a hair drier to save a bit of time. It looks terrifying at the time as you are convinced you have ruined all your hard work but don't worry, all will be fine.

IMG_2756 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

When it is dry it is removed with damp cotton buds and kitchen roll to bring out all the fine detail.

IMG_2760 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

IMG_2762 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

The various parts were then given a spray over with matt varnish to protect the weathering. A nice detailing point is to mask up the clean area where the wiper cleans the windscreen, only on one side as I figured that if the passenger side broke they wouldn't bother to mend it.

IMG_2764 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Well that is the truck completed, a nice engine with a bit of character and all for £29.00, some odd bits from the scrap bin and a bit of time on my part. I hope you found it interesting and different seeing how other disciplines approach their part of the hobby. I suppose I have no excuses now and will have to go back to the Britannia though in the summer I tend to work on the garden railway if its fine and the Brit if its a bit inclement.

All the best and be safe

Mike

[don9f]

Fabulous Mike, look forward to a weathered Brit as well!

Don

[barlowworks]

I think I will let that happen naturally, I don't fancy covering it in Marmite. ☹️

Mike

[kipford]

Mike
AB FAB. I have never had the courage to actually go the Marmite/hairspray route, normally I just airbrush acrylics from a palette of about 4 colours. However the superb job you have done makes me want to have a go now. By the way have you ever used the pre-weathering technique I thought you were going to do this when I started reading the post. It works well on buildings.

Dave

[ettingtonliam]

I recall there was a chap back in the 1950s who built models of construction plant, cranes, bulldozers etc. He would paint them, then flay the paint with a chain until it scratched and chipped, then put the model out in the garden for a few months. Very realistic.

Love the Burma Mines truck by the way.

[barlowworks]

May 6, 2020 18:59:33 GMT kipford said:

Mike
AB FAB. I have never had the courage to actually go the Marmite/hairspray route, normally I just airbrush acrylics from a palette of about 4 colours. However the superb job you have done makes me want to have a go now. By the way have you ever used the pre-weathering technique I thought you were going to do this when I started reading the post. It works well on buildings.

Dave

Hi Dave

Not sure what you mean by pre-weathering, I don't think I have come across that before. To an extent this could be described as pre-weathering as the rust colours are applied to the original surface then the marmite and hairspray and finally the new colour on top. The rust effects underneath are then revealed when the Marmite layer is washed away. Give it a go, it gives a very convincing effect. The watercolour wash also makes all the difference. 

Mike

[kipford]

Malcolm
Pre-weathering is where you if say you are weathering a wagon or a building, you spray a dark colour around the areas where grime can accumulate. You then spray the finish coat and depending on how much paint you apply the dark colour shows through. The platform edging below was my first attempt at it. I picked it up from one of the plastic modelling sites where they use it a lot on aircraft models. Only really works on lighter colours though. 

Dave
Feature_2 by Dave Smith, on Flickr

[barlowworks]

Hi Dave, that looks good, a very subtle effect. I have always gone for the wash technique myself, probably what I'm used too. In my mind the real masters of weathering are the military modelling guys, not only do they model colours but textures as well. Have a look in any military modelling magazine to see what I mean.

Mike

[timb]

Mike, that looks great, reminds me of my early modelling days building Airfix kits. I always tried to make them look pristine in those days. I thought it was difficult to get a good 'fresh from the factory' look but now I am a (lot) older and a little wiser I realise the real skill is in getting the real life look right.

Well done!

Tim

[delaplume]

Hi Mike,
This is a new discipline to me and I've much enjoyed the peek into another's hobby/skill...

Marmite eh??-------- who'd have thought it ??....but it does give the very real effect of the rust coming from underneath the original paint, and not looking like someone has just sprayed some Red oxide over the top...

Selecting the right positions that might show early rusting is just as important to maintain the illusion.....typically anywhere that holds accumulated dirt and water, the bottom of doors is a good example and all those corners / edges where panels meet... something you've managed to carry-off very well...

Many thanks again.....I think my 4mm Dioramas' may well be benefiting from this !!

Alan


PS...... I've just looked up the details for}---"Wages of fear" and  the running time is shown at 2 Hrs 36 mins !!......ye gods !!

[barlowworks]

Hi Alan, yes Marmite. Just make sure you don't get caught if it's not yours. I got nabbed by Madam Battleship and was given a dose of the verbals. The thing about Marmite is its water soluble, unlike latex masking fluid, the other popular medium. It also ties in well with the hairspray as it uses the same method. Just remember that the final stage with the watercolour washes brings it all to life, a technique I use a lot.

Mike

[barlowworks]

Hi everybody. Just a quick update from Barlow Works. After all the shenanigans of the Burma Mines Truck build we are back on more familiar territory today. If you recall the last thing I made on the tender was the removable fire iron tunnel. Continuing the theme of removable bits we move to the rear platform on the tender which requires to be removable to allow access to the hand pump, stop taps and filters. I already had the platform, thoughtfully provided by the previous builder, it was then just an exercise in hole drilling for the rivets and hand rails and the hole for the tank filler.

IMG_2765 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flckr

Here is the platform riveted and with the water filler added. This is a Doug Hewson item and is very nicely done. The eagle eyed will notice the change in rivet pattern with the cross rivets. I was convinced there was 5 rivets per side after checking out photos I had taken of Evening Stars tender at York. Every other model I looked at had 4 so I decided to do the same. Also the line of rivets should line up with the rivets on the side of the tank but mine were slightly out so I re-drilled the rivet holes to line up with the rivets on the top which looks much better.

IMG_2768 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

This is the finished platform complete with handrails with handrail knobs from Polly. I spent a day trying to master the noble art of metal spinning but alas it was not for me, all I succeeded in doing was making a series of petticoat shaped domes, not right at all. Eventually I bit the bullet and bought a piece of 3 inch diameter brass and turned up this dome, a very satisfying exercise.  I even added the little tab for the chain that is attached to the dome for what I assume is holding the water filler lid. It is quite clearly there complete with chain on Evening Stars tender but on Oliver Cromwell's tender there is no chain. I suppose it depends how anal I get so see if I fit a chain and hook or not. Luckily I didn't have to fit the tank top steps as they had not been fitted yet in my chosen period.

IMG_2774 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Finally, on to the back of the tender and these are the tank fixing brackets that secure the tank to the chassis, yet another exercise in Anglo Saxon getting all the nuts and bolts to fit. They are welded to the tank so I tinned the back of them then soldered them in place with the little blowtorch. Also note the cut out in the back platform as highlighted by Geoff in his Clan build, I'm amazed I actually managed to remember it.

IMG_2771 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Next will be the lamp brackets, Western Region ones in this instance. I must try not to make them all the wrong way round this time.    Only them and the handrails and fitting the ladder (which was also made by the previous builder) and that will be the upper works finished.

All the best till next time,

Mike

[timb]

Lovely work Mike, comming on a treat!

Tim

[barlowworks]

Hi Everybody, just a quick update from Barlow works.

The tender is nearing completion with final details being added to the rear. In this shot we can see the Western Region lamp brackets as required for 70018 Flying Dutchman, an Old Oak Common loco at my chosen date of 1955. There was a fair bit of Anglo Saxon expended on all the details on the rear of the tender mostly due to my inability to bend two pieces of metal in the same place to make a matching pair. The lamp brackets were tricky little buggers requiring 2 bends per bracket and all 4 to be identical. To this end I marked the bracket shape and fold lines all on one sheet of brass. I then milled V cutouts  on the bend lines with a V cutter so they were all the same (I also made them face the right way this time ). I also milled a V to locate the lamp stop on the side of the bracket. Finally they were all silver soldered along the bends and a piece of rod silver soldered for the stop. After carefully marking out and drilling the rivet holes I located the brackets with rivets soldered on the inside to make them watertight and the brackets soldered to the back sheet for a more secure fixing (belt and braces ).

IMG_2778 by Michael Cawthorne, on Flickr

Next came the handrails, another exercise in fruitless Anglo Saxon. I eventually managed to bend up matching handrails which are held in place by collars lock screwed on the inside then soldered in place again to make them watertight. Finally I fitted the ladder. This had already been made by the previous builder but the rungs had rivet heads on the sides which is incorrect for a welded ladder. I filed the rivets off which made it look much better but the ladder promptly fell apart . I managed to rescue the situation by soldering the rungs back in place. The ladder is removable for access to the tank, the real one being bolted to brackets welded to the tender, in this instance the ladder also has the brackets on the ladder but locates with pegs into holes in the top platform and the bottom angle.

There are a few things still on the list to complete the tender, mostly small details and piping runs, then its on to the engine (gulp). I've decided to paint the engine and tender at the end of construction so I can set up my workshop as a paint shop for the duration rather than keep changing things around.

All the best

Mike

[don9f]

Hi Mike, excellent progress as always! Are you fitting tender identification / capacity plates? Always a nice finishing touch to a model.....

Cheers Don

[barlowworks]

Yes I've got the plates. I thought I would fit them after painting.

Mike

[don9f]

That’s good.....you can get 1.2mm stainless hex screws, or smaller still in brass and fit them to tapped holes if you wanted to do it that way (taps from ebay).

Cheers Don