5” Pansy build thread

[turbominij]

I have on and off for the last year been working on a Pansy build it’s a loco I have wanted for years and a chassis came up at the right time.


I picked up a part build chassis and on inspection looked ok and reasonably well made.

This is the first steam loco I have built but have been around then and working on them for years with my dad and grandpa so no stranger to their parts.

it turned out the build had faltered because some one snapped a tap in the crank ends then mangled them to get them out.meaning you could not fit the wheels.

So my first steps were strip down and work out what to do

I’m planting to build a lbsc/doug/julian hybrid
Using what I already have and adapting things to get the best from it.
Each part it being drawn in fusion and printouts made and collected together in a build folder so I know exactly what drawing they are from


Since getting the chassie I have stripped it painted it to stop it rusting and continued building the missing components of the valve gear in addition to repairing the crank taking the end s off and replacing one of the webs that was also damaged this took along time to insure it was perfectly aligned and identical to the other side but when i spin it flutters a 15thow dial gauge not even registering 1 so I’m not going to get much closer than that fingers crossed it works…


It seems to have gone backwards along way rather disheartening but it goes like that and I’m now finaly going forwards again

Today I finished the first of my eccentric straps
Here are a few photos of the initial state and some of the parts I have built / repaired painted most of it needs fettling to tidy up or painting better but more interested in getting it in a state where it will run on air and prove that crank is ok.

[mbrown]

Really good to see another build thread on the forum - and an interesting project too.

The photos are great - keep the posts coming!

Best wishes

Malcolm

[dscott]

We have 3 in the Reading Club and they work very well indeed.
One built by the member was in Just off the Mill condition and painted with a 2" brush on a hot day.
But worked faultlessly all afternoon and was a pleasure to drive during an extended Luncheon.
Another came new to a guy with a faulty bunker handpump and after 2 hours of struggle came for help.
Going for the screwdriver took the longest But 4 screws under the bunker and 2 into the top of the cab saw the pump with a new O ring and back on the road for steaming.
Hint for a double acting bunker pump 2 ordinary back to back.
And easy unscrewed bits for ease of painting.
They are superb models.

David and Lily.

[dscott]

All part builds are a leap backwards.
Our Nigel Gresley went from an air running chassis to boxes of bits quite rapidly.
All items checked and many remade.
Dennis was a lovely guy and this was his last loco at 91.
He had good days and bad days, left 2 sons, both in engineering, and us with a massive start to a Great locomotive.
Yes the boiler is finished.

David and Lily.

[turbominij]

It’s been quite fun so far but very dis heartening to take a model that looked like quite a bit was done but wouldn’t turn over just pushing it and turning it in to basically box’s of bits but I’m further forward that it was dispute it being small sub assemblies rather than a complete chassie and the key bit is I now have new stub access on the crank I can 1/4



It wouldn’t take much to bolt back together and be in the same date it was with all the extra bits too but custom fitting eccentric straps to eccentrics is easier in your hand rather than between two frames

Think there is a little variation in size between the 4 but it’s difficult to measure in there so only way is to do them individually.

[turbominij]

Jan 6, 2024 7:15:51 GMT dscott said:

All part builds are a leap backwards.
Our Nigel Gresley went from an air running chassis to boxes of bits quite rapidly.
All items checked and many remade.
Dennis was a lovely guy and this was his last loco at 91.
He had good days and bad days, left 2 sons, both in engineering, and us with a massive start to a Great locomotive.
Yes the boiler is finished.

David and Lily.

This was not that far along as it had most of the valve linkage missing to the expansion links which were also missing and I have since made

Feel a little less bad about undoing it all considering

So I’m Making a hybrid eccentric strap and rod combination using dugs design where the rod and strap are unbolt able rather than lbsc s where they are silver soldered as should make removal and extraction a little easier in the future


I built these expansion links while I was trying to decide what to do with the crank leave fill and hope the 1/4 was right. or rip apart and replace the latter was the better solution I think

Expansion links were done on the mill with a rotary table extension pictured above these are to Julian’s valve gear design as to switch to Doug’s ment scrapping lots and I had already purchased the eccentric straps need a little fettling round the corners and polishing but fit nicely and move well with the die blocks

[turbominij]

Spent the after noon continuing to create the the 4 eccentric straps all are now squared up on the mill drilled threaded/studded and split Then joined back together with the bolts

placed in the lathe skimming then flipped /skimmed the other side and then began the booring operation

And then the lathe cut out on restart suspect the switch has gone again



Invested in some new mill cutters and what a fifference

[turbominij]

Morning spent repairing the lathe switch as was faulty and then collapsed when I tried cleaning it

Had to make a new contractor from a stop of copper then

Added a Power switch meaning the reversing switch is not also starting the current so now we set the direction then power on much better and wish I had done it before






After all that I could get on with some of the Pansy
Continued the job of creating the eccentric straps

Finished the second one that I had to stop because the lathe does then
Finished the third one facing and boaring it out only one more to go now

Markings on the 4th were used to align and once the outer shell was removed I then drilled the 1mm oil way before the boring operation

[turbominij]

Could anyone help me identify the origin of these Pansy wheels I have 5……… so need to find one more coupled wheel

[mbrown]

It can be very hard to tell the source of castings, especially if they are of any great age, and especially when any identifying numbers etc have been machined off. Different suppliers come and go, usually passing on their old stock to another supplier (I see that EKP Supplies have just taken on the Kennions range of loco castings). It gets more complicated if different suppliers use subtly different patterns, but then take on castings from another firm so that you might get two versions of the same casting from one source.

If you are within striking distance of a supplier, it might be worth visiting and showing them your casting to see if it matches theirs. The GLR Kennions site had photos of the individual castings in their range, and EKP have continued that practice. But their picture of a Pansy wheel shows the balance weight in a different orientation to yours, presumably the 6 wheels are not all identical in that respect.

So it can be a bit hit and miss. Hopefully someone else on the forum has more helpful advice!

Malcolm

[turbominij]

Apr 18, 2024 20:25:03 GMT mbrown said:

It can be very hard to tell the source of castings, especially if they are of any great age, and especially when any identifying numbers etc have been machined off. Different suppliers come and go, usually passing on their old stock to another supplier (I see that EKP Supplies have just taken on the Kennions range of loco castings). It gets more complicated if different suppliers use subtly different patterns, but then take on castings from another firm so that you might get two versions of the same casting from one source.

If you are within striking distance of a supplier, it might be worth visiting and showing them your casting to see if it matches theirs. The GLR Kennions site had photos of the individual castings in their range, and EKP have continued that practice. But their picture of a Pansy wheel shows the balance weight in a different orientation to yours, presumably the 6 wheels are not all identical in that respect.

So it can be a bit hit and miss. Hopefully someone else on the forum has more helpful advice!

Malcolm

Tell me about it !!!
Interestingly I have 3 coupled wheels like this one photoed

2drivers that are of a similar origin and look to be the same family of castings as match all are machined

And I have two kennion coupled wheels that match their website which are also machined

I’d like to get the one I’m missing if I can rather then buying 4 new kennion ones

[johan]

Feb 3, 2024 21:28:58 GMT turbominij said:

Please, do yourself a favour and put some Faston eyelets on those wires.

[Neale]

...and I think that you have already noticed that it is better to use the NVR switch to start/stop the motor, rather than the reversing switch. These switches work well for reversing the motor and carry the running current, but are not really suitable for switching that current. It's not unusual to hear from people who use them as on/off switches that they have needed to renew the contacts. They should come with a health warning!

[turbominij]

Yep adding the on off switch made such a difference it’s really nice to use now

Been doing quite a bit on Pansy recently

Finished off the 4 eccentric straps


All of which fit nicely and have been pairs and marked for which eccentric they fit as there are variations in the eccentrics very minor. But ment they needed tailoring slightly

Built up my cylinder and valve assembly after making a new valve chest cover as it never had one.
First time the rocking shafts have been together complete
The guide bars need a little fettling on the cross head but fairly pleased with it all. Need to thin out the lower part and am thinking to add a supporting bracket to the outsides of the rocking shafts as per doughs design


Made up the brake rod and brake leaver activating leaver and busheshave also made the cranks for each end that go to the brake linkage
but not shaped those yet

I did this forked rod as a test of my process for making the eccentric rods to test my method for cutting them with out wasting to much and making them as precise a so can

It came out well the slot is within 0.0005 of 1/4” cut with a 3/16 end mill and then opened out slowly
Still need a little more fettling re the shape of the leaver but for a first try not to bad.