Building Wagons Continues

On Tuesday night we visited Shelton’s place, just 5 minutes up the road from home.  He had his layout operating in a semi-automatic mode, where the train that he was controlling was doing two circuits of his inner loop, before automatically being switched to doing a circuit of the outer loop.  The outer loop has a crossing loop and station on it.  The points between the inner and outer loops are changed automatically and the signals set and reset as the train passes.  This is pretty interesting, as you just follow the route and just obey the signals.

We had about 8 of us in attendance on Tuesday Night.  As usual discussion was interesting and we had a new attendee – Glen a former SRA driver.  But we won't hold that against him.  I think he enjoyed himself.  I know I did.

On the night, I also took along my two QR HO wagons to show to the crowd.  I also had one of my original QR HO wagons which was built to a different standard.  The original wagons (built a number of years back when I build 4 of these HO wagons and 2 x HOE wagons) were built according to the 3 foot rule.  At that distance, you cannot see the wagons codes and if the wagon just looked like the wagon in question that was good enough.  paint it a believable colour and throw a bit of weathering around and everyone is happy.  However the next two iterations of this model, which I am building now are being built to demonstrate the process of building a wagon in styrene for our local NMRA get together in about 4 weeks time.  I will also submit one of these as one of my NMRA assessment models by Arthur for my Master Builder of Cars.  So Arthur had an initial viewing on Tuesday night.  He went from the original wagon, to the newly detailed version, but he mentioned those words again – no internal detail for this open wagon.  So I gave him the third wagon, which was built with that in mind.  His initial comment was that it is half way there.  I thought that was not bad, as I still had the underframe detail to add, as well as brake hoses, wagon lettering and more internal detail as well as painting and weathering.  So I was pretty content, but I still have a long way to go.

During the week, I was busily completing some clotheslines to hand over to Modeller’s Warehouse so he has some stock for the Brisbane May Model Railway exhibition next weekend.  While dropping off some to the business on Saturday morning, I picked up some interesting detail items from that shop on Saturday morning.  Some of those items have been assembled this afternoon, ready for placement on my layout at a later time.  The next task was completing some more work on the QR HO wagons I am building.  Not much has been occurring on them, apart from about 15 minutes last night.  However, work was continuing on my track cleaning wagons.  I had planned on having half a dozen available before next weekend.  I just need my rollers to be made.  I have not heard anything from my source of the rollers as to their progress as yet.  I might have to follow up tomorrow.

I have already started packing everything up to take to the May Show next Friday.  Hopefully we will catch up with lots of mates, buy some bargains and see some good layouts.

Inside My Head

So after a bit of a sleep in on Good Friday I commenced some styrene building.  First off was to spray paint some styrene ‘I’ beam that I had cut up some months ago.  This was placed on some masking tape on a piece of wood and sprayed a nice rusty brown colour, just like all my styrene ‘I’ beam fencing.

I then started getting some components together to scratch build a QR HO wagon.  As I was building it, I could hear Arthur Hayes voice in my head.  “You do know that the ribs on the outside of the wagon were also on the inside of the that wagon as well”.  Bugger!  I just hate that.  He plants that seed and the bloody thing just grows and grows, and I cannot stop thinking about it.  I was going to use one of these QR HO wagons in my 4 x scratchbuilt wagons for my Master Builder of Cars Achievement Program Certificate.  I know that my Assessor for the AP – the one and only Arthur Hayes (and let’s not forget the MMR after his name) will be looking inside my wagon to see if I had included that detail on my offered model.  I thought about adding a tarpaulin over the top of the wagon (as I can make a mean tarpaulin).  But I know that said assessor, would be looking at ways to remove the tarp and check inside.  He was still inside my head.  So I was also thinking of another two ways of making that wagon and achieving the inside wagon detail.  One way was to put two pieces of Evergreen 0.100” Metal Siding back to back.  But that would have the wagon side 2mm thick, which would make it about an almost 7” thick wagon side.  Now thinking about that as I am writing this now, I am sort of thinking that that is not really that thick.  As the walls are three dimensional and are have ribs a couple of inches thick on each side.  So maybe this is the best method to produce that detail.  I was originally thinking that I would use some very thin styrene for the walls, and then apply some styrene strip to each side of the wall and the wagon side will look just like the 0.100” Metal Siding but will be thinner.  So my plan is actually build one of each type of side and see how they all turn out.  However, in my planning I was thinking I’m short of the dimensional strip styrene required.  So on Saturday I went to the local hobby shop for a collection of some sizes of styrene.

What I didn’t say is that I was going to use this wagon as a topic on scratch building a wagon in styrene for our next NMRA meeting.  So I only have a few weeks before I need to have the model ready.  I have spent quite a lot of time on the first wagon this weekend already and it is very nearly completed.  I just need to add some lashing bars tomorrow morning and finish off the two ends of the wagon.  I just need to then add some detail, like handbrake wheel, air cylinder and air pipes and a bit of chain.  The bogies need to be added as well and then I can give it an undercoat.

Simultaneously, I have been working on a second side with a scratch built rids.  Boy there is a lot of work in that.  I will see if I can complete one side by tomorrow afternoon as well. 

I will have these wagons on display at the upcoming May Model Train Exhibition in Brisbane at the Exhibition grounds if anyone is interested in check them over.

The 7 P's is About to be Used - Prior Particular Planning Prevents P... Poor Performance

Tuesday this week we visited Kevin’s place for our fortnightly get together.  But as a surprise we had Rohan Fergusson up in Brisbane from Whoop Whoop (Glen Innes) and he came to my place and was a guest visitor at Tuesday Nighter’s.  It was nice to catch up with him. 

Saturday this week, we ventured down to the Action Model Railway Club for the NMRA meeting, and we had quite a few guys turn up.  There had to be very close to 40 in attendance.  It was a very informative meeting with a couple of presentations by members and some show and tells.  It just happened to clash with the RMCQ meeting this month, given that Easter brought the NMRA meeting forward one week.

Today I caught up with Warren from Gwydir Valley Models and we were talking about the upcoming New England Convention in October this year.  This will be a great event, and I think there will be in the order of close to 20 people from the local NMRA Div 1 heading down to that event, that I know of.  There will also be guys from Toowoomba attending.  It is great entertainment getting on their table at the Saturday Night dinner.

So today while watching the Formula 1 on TV (as well as the various lead up races), I knocked out 54 HO pallets.  That is the second thing ticked off my to do list in Preparation for the May Exhibition in Brisbane in three week’s time.  I will cut these up during the week and paint these up next weekend and hopefully complete a few more scale rolled up tarps.  The next two tasks on the list.

Then attention will turn to a presentation that the NMRA meeting organiser has asked me to do at the next NMRA meeting in mid-May and then I will start preparing a presentation for the October New England Convention.  I think I will re-write a previous presentation I did about 6 years with a different focus, and updated pictures, perspective and more detail due to a slightly larger timeslot.

I will also have a small stand at the New England Convention with some styrene items and some 3D printed items from a mate for display and maybe for sale.  I will take some dioramas on display as well.

Building Up a Stock Pile of Things

I was determined to do some painting of styrene shapes for my steel loads.  I cut up some more dunnage, made from 0.040” x 0.040” strip.  I then painted them two shades of brown to represent wood colours and that added about 70 lengths to my dunnage container when they dried.  Next was to paint the pipe loads.  All of these were painted silver.  Next the various ‘I’ and ‘H‘ beams and rectangular beams and solid thick slab beams were painted various shades of grey.  The next thing I normally do is then weather these with various coats of yellow, red, black and dark brown spray paint applied from a distance of 30-60cm.  So that weathering was done late this arvo.  I am quite happy with how these all turned out.  I think I will now put these items on hold and work on these at the May Show as one of my modelling display activities.

On Saturday morning this week, I went on a trip to the other side of town to attend the AMRA Buy and Sell.  Numbers seemed to be down slightly, with both sellers and buyers.  I picked up a few detail items that I will use in my scratch building and super detailing of some wagons in my next AP certificate.  I also picked up a VW shell, that will eventually go into a backyard on Cassino up on blocks for someone to restore.  The night before while he was attending a running session, PK also picked up a packet of 3 x 1:76 Oxford Land Rovers.  He offered me one and I jumped at the chance.  So that will also end up on the layout on a road somewhere.

On my way home I stopped in at a model shop and also picked up a can of red-brown paint.  I use that for various things I paint up.  Conversations turned to track cleaning at the shop and I also thought I had seen it in some of the Facebook model railway groups during the week as well.  So it looks like I will resume making some track cleaning wagons.  Maybe a half dozen to start and see how they go, as I know some of my mates are asking for them.  I just need my nephew to make up a couple of his knurled solid steel cylinders that I wrap chux around and use them in my track cleaning cars.

So this activity will probably jump the queue in my project list for the first few wagons anyway so I can have some to show to those asking in the next few weeks.

During the week, I had some email conversations with Arthur and also got him to purchase some other details items for some wagon enhancement projects for the future.

Maybe a quiet week ahead, although we have Tuesday Nighter’s at Kevin’s this week.