Princess Elizabeth build...

[mjt60a]

Hello Mick. The mystery figures are Slaters Miniatures O gauge railway figures....

Thanks for that, I had no idea what they were - I haven't seen them anywhere since I bought these ones...

[mjt60a]

Hi Mick,
I really like the effect on your telegraphs....is there a certain make you use?....

I used 'Pebeo VITRAIL yellow no 14' which I bought from a pretty good (ie. large place with loads of stock) art supplier, seems the stuff you used to be able to get from every B&Q, Homebase, etc, is no longer available..
it is meant for making imitation coloured glass lampshades, windows, jars... and is usually used with self adhesive lead strip..
I used it over chrome-like self adhesive tape, and on small areas or complex curves, humbrol silver paint (for some reason, I find the silver doesn't show the chrome flakes like the brass/gold/bronze paints do)
you could use that 'bare-metal-foil' that model car builders use or, as I did, aluminium tape for pipe insulation from pretty much any DIY store...   

http://www.craftcellar.co.uk/contents/en-uk/d50_vitrail_glass_paint.html

[djcf]

Hi Mick,
Thanks for the info
Clark

[mjt60a]

Spent this (last) weekend correcting a couple of faults which had developed... 
I'd put lock-nut on all the nuts on the wheels and was about to fit them more-or-less permanently (unless they get damaged) when I found the outer sides of the paddleboxes had developed an inward curve... don't know why, maybe because only the outside is painted and has shrunk? Whatever the reason, I noticed also that the bottom edge is slightly above the top of the belting - no doubt that's because the wood of the sponson deck is between the bottom of the sponson cabins and the frame supporting the belting. I should have allowed for that but didn't think of it until now.
So I cut a couple of strips to stick on the bottom of the paddleboxes with another piece overlapping the two, thinking it would also stiffen it enough to correct the inward curve but it didn't make any real difference so I had to araldite a strip of brass onto it too (after roughening both surfaces) All looks OK now and the wheels have been fitted. Next, figure out exactly how to fit the motors/gearbox in such a way as not to amplify the noise it makes!
   

[mjt60a]

attached the wires and capacitors to the motors this morning....
I noticed that, looking at the double gearbox, one half is a mirror image of the other which means the motors have to run in opposite directions for both wheels to turn the same way, and the 12 volt motors I got to replace the original 3 volt ones have a '+' next to one of the terminals... I've seen that before on the more expensive 'racing buggy' motors and it usually means the brushes are angled to give better performance going forward - and they don't run in reverse very well at all, so I opened one to have a look inside... it has simple copper wipers, not the spring loaded carbon type I've seen before (and which can get damaged if they run the wrong way) so I thought it should be OK.
So I painted a spot on each of the driveshafts and connected the motors to the battery... the port side driveshaft turns slightly faster when going forward (ie. with the starbd motor connected in reverse) I thought it could just be a difference in the motors or more friction in the starbd gearbox (they're very old and haven't been lubricated at all yet) so I tried reversing the power and found the starbd shaft is a little faster when in reverse... so it seems like the motors do run better in one direction than the other - but the difference in this case is so slight that I don't think it will cause too much of a problem...

[mjt60a]

...one other thing, possibly the most pointless yet, I added two portholes to each of the paddleboxes where waverley has them - so the passengers can see the wheels turning!
...actually, so if I decide to put lights inside there and run the model at night, it will illuminate the paddles 

[Tug--Kenny]

I do like that idea. If the paddle wheels are brass then the reflection would be amplified and also diffused by the water. 

I shall look into this possibility on my Waverley.

Cheers

Ken

[mjt60a]

Well, it's been a while since any progress was made and that's because I've been spending every bit of free time I had working on it. Now the weather has warmed up a bit I've seen just how much work needs doing on the garden and house repairs 
...all I've managed to do so far is; fit two meccano pulleys to the gearbox shafts. The shafts are a smaller diameter than meccano so I cut short lengths of brass tube that fit in the pulleys with a hole filed in the side for the retaining screws to pass through and grip the shafts. It's not perfect but it will probably work, if not I could either use different pulleys that do fit the shafts, try to get a piece of thinwall tube to fit between the shaft and tube that's in there now (don't know if that would work as they're actually quite close to the right size) or... use some other meccano ones I have that don't have the central brass bush with the retaining screw, I could drill them out and solder them on a couple of brass inserts for 'huco' or graupner flexible couplings with the correct size hole for the gearbox shaft.
Also just started making an alternative funnel as the styrene one is too rough to use, new one is the cardboard tube from a roll of kitchen towels with resin and tissue over it for strength and water resistance, it is looking OK so far 

[mjt60a]

This week, after letting the resin set properly, I gave it a coat of P38 and sanded it - looked good. Then a coat of primer - one or two areas could use a little more filler but it'll be fine, just need to do that before cutting to the correct length and adding the hoops and eyebolt-type things where the stays connect the it can be painted... 

[Stuart Badger]

Sounds as though it's coming together nicely Mick - how about some pics? pretty please!!

All the best

Stuart

[mjt60a]

Ok, here's how it looks at the moment, the shiny bits are where the primer is over resin and is in fact perfectly smooth, it's the 'shadows' that need filling and the whole thing needs shortening by about an inch - more at the back so it 'leans' toward the stern... 

[djcf]

Good idea for the funnel with the cardboard tube...must be very strong & light...will keep that in mind for the future.
cheers
Clark

[mjt60a]

sanded and primered  a bit more and fitted the hoops, these are from evergreen strip, one end is tapered by dragging across sandpaper then wrapped around the funnel, cut to slightly over length and glued using styrene cement on the tapered end. When set, superglue was applied to the edge allowing capillary action to draw it in. Then it's filed/sanded to give a constant thickness at the join and any bits of superglue carefully sanded away...
Also have now cut it to length and angle of tilt, araldited pieces of balsa inside and marked positions of the funnel stay attachment rings, plus where the whistle and escape pipe thingy will go...
...to get the hoops straight (as straight as I can, that is) wrapped a piece of printer paper around the tube and check that it overlays itself without the edge forming a kind of spiral, if you can imagine what I mean, then drew around it in the position of the lower edge of the hoop, this gives something to line it up with before putting the superglue on

[mjt60a]

made and fitted the stay attachment rings, they are the copper wire from telephone cable (found on the ground next to a distribution case up the street) wrapped round a very small screwdriver and twisted (see picture) then cut off. the twisted part is epoxied into holes drilled in the funnel....

[mjt60a]

...also had a go at the 'naval-type' top using styrene parts, doesn't look too bad, I'll take a pic later when the glue sets...