Multiple small projects

[Keith S]

Beautifully finished models. I really like all the fine details. I'd give my right arm for your modelling skills, but then I'd have problems trying to model with just one arm .....

Rik

That's a nice thing to say, Rik, but all I do is build kits and glue little odds and bobs to them. I'm afraid if you saw them close up they would be revealed to be no better than most and definitely worse than some. The reason for this "project" of improving all my rolling-stock is because of the hasty way I built it all in the first place. I used to only care about the locomotive, but lately have become more interested in wagons and things. Can't afford to be interested in locomotives!

Your scratch-building activities are far more worthy of praise than my kit-building.

[Keith S]

Here is the latest instalment in my project to improve my rolling-stock: The brake van!

It's been on my mind for some time now that my IP brake-van doesn't have brakes. I feel that brake-vans, like locomotives, can always benefit from some extra detail anyway, but isn't it funny that most brake vans don't come with very much braking gear detail. Anyway, I've started adding some to my van, and here is how it looks so far. In order to get any reasonable level of detail on this vehicle, I've had to order parts from many suppliers.

The brake-shoes are from "Ozark Miniatures" in the U.S.A. This company makes 1:20 scale rolling stock kits and parts that have a very high level of detail.

The frame irons are from I.P. engineering, and are the same ones that I put on my other goods wagons.

The steps are home-made

The vacuum bags, frame hangers and vacuum cylinder are from Brandbright.

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I haven't finished this yet; I need to make some rods to connect the brake-shoes to the central shaft and paint everything black of course. The good thing about all these parts is that they give the van some much-needed weight. It was very light before and came off the tracks rather easily. Now it has a bit of mass it seems much smoother.

[tom_tom_go]

I like the brake shoes, I have used the Cambrian ones which I think are overscale for 16mm.

If you want to improve your rolling stock further the wheels need painting or chemically blackening!

[Keith S]

That's true, I never thought of that. I painted my loco wheels but not any rolling-stock. Can you recommend a way to chemically blacken them? That sounds more durable than paint. I'd like to do that to the cylinder ends on the loco, too.

[GTB]

Can you recommend a way to chemically blacken them? That sounds more durable than paint. I'd like to do that to the cylinder ends on the loco, too.

The brake van is looking good with brake gear fitted and it helps fill in the void under goods wagons. If you want even more weight fit white metal vacuum cylinders as well, as they are much larger than air brake cylinders and therefore heavier in solid metal.


I spray my wheels underframe colour when I paint the model, it saves masking off, or dismantling the underframe........

It would be just as easy to brush paint the wheels as chemically blackening them I should think.

I use Birchwood Casey 'Super Blue' liquid gun blue for colouring mild steel, brass and copper. Contrary to what the label suggests, the finish is a deep black when used on steel and black with a slight brown tone on copper and it's alloys. Just follow the instructions on the bottle and rub it on to a clean and degreased surface with a cotton bud, until the colour builds up to what you want. It's easy enough to find here in Oz from the nearest gunshop, so I would think it should be fairly easy to find in Canada. They have a range of metal colouring solutions, including one for aluminium.

Another brand you could look for would be Jax who make a range of metal colouring solutions, including brown, grey and rust, as well as one for blackening pewter/whitemetal. They seem to be intended for the jewellery trade, as that's the only place I've found them stocked locally.

Regards,
Graeme

[Keith S]

Thanks Graeme, good advice there. I suppose I ought to have known gun blue solution would be black- you don't see many blue guns.

If you look closely at the van, there is actually a great big white-metal vacuum cylinder under there. Like you say, it's quite heavy. I had to shorten it a little because the sole-bars on this model are quite narrow.

[tom_tom_go]

I haven't successfully managed to blacken the brass to 'black' that Roundhouse use for their live steam parts or even brass overlays for buffers, not sure it's not some sort of brass composite? It either goes brown or gunmetal colour.

[philipy]

I use Birchwood Casey Gun Blue on everything. It does seem to have bit of a brownish tinge on brass, but it just looks as though its a bit rusty, which is fine on brake gear, axles, buffers, etc.

[Keith S]

I'll bet it would look quite good on those steel wheels though- I'll snoop around the hunting section of the hardware shop this week-end and see if they have any.

[philipy]

I'll bet it would look quite good on those steel wheels though-

Steel wheels with Birchwood Casey gun blue on backs & fronts. I did it with the wheels installed and it's difficult to get to the fronts to rub them, but the backs have gone that nice blackish-brownish colour. I think a little smear of oil on the fronts might lose the orangey rust colour.

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[GTB]

I haven't successfully managed to blacken the brass to 'black' that Roundhouse use for their live steam parts or even brass overlays for buffers, not sure it's not some sort of brass composite? It either goes brown or gunmetal colour.

Gun blue is designed to blacken steel and it doesn't work as well on brass. I used to use A-West 'Blacken-it' which was available in hobby shops and worked well on brass, but is no longer available.

The brass Roundhouse use on machined parts will probably be a free machining grade, which has lead in it. The etched bits will be another grade of brass again. The brass blackening chemicals sold for the jewellery trade may work better on brass than gun blue, but I've not tried them.

Gun blue is sold for touching up worn patches on firearms and doesn't do a good job of blackening large areas. The original finish on steel would have been a hot process that isn't practical in the home workshop.

Steel wheels with Birchwood Casey gun blue on backs & fronts. I did it with the wheels installed and it's difficult to get to the fronts to rub them, but the backs have gone that nice blackish-brownish colour. I think a little smear of oil on the fronts might lose the orangey rust colour.

I think that's real rust on the front of the wheel.

When using a cold blueing process like gun blue, any residual chemical has to be washed off, or it causes the steel to rust. The black oxide formed on the steel is very thin and not very rust resistant, so it will have converted to rust as well.

When I blacken parts I give them a wash with soapy water and an old toothbrush, then dry them with compressed air. I prefer to paint wheels though, so haven't run into this and I guess it isn't easy to wash wheels in situ.

Regards,
Graeme

[FWLR]

Which ever course you take in the colouring of the wheels Keith, you have done a brilliant job on the vans.
Those little extra details work very well....

[Keith S]

Thanks Rod. Building models is a pretty solitary pastime where I live. It's nice to have the ability to share it with others even if it"s just in the internet.

I've finished the brake rigging on the guards van. It's hard to see because it's all black, but there's a Brandbright vacuum cylinder under there as well as the bellcrank and rods connecting the brake shoes to the central shaft. The rods are built up out of wire and card.

and also put some on the box van as well. This one has the flywheel device mounted under it so there isn't space for as much detail as the guards van, but I put an external lever on it from IP engineering and the central shaft in this case supports the flyywheel mechanism on one end. The brake shoes and external lever do a decent job of drawing the eye away from the protruding flywheel housing.

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Haven't decided on how to colour the wheels yet, but I reckon I'll pick up some gun bluing next time I'm down south and give that a whirl.