Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Handrails and fittings


Fittings and handrails
Originally uploaded by Phil_Parker
Steam engine designers really don't think of modellers enough. The main handrail is a nightmare on this locomotive. While I've never enjoyed this part of any build, this one was definitely worse than most.

On the smokebox front we have a curve. Nothing special about this except it is flatter than normal. Starting in the middle of a length of 0.45mm brass wire from Gibson, I bent it around a suitable pen. Next the corners go in to get the wire heading toward the cab. This is where the "fun" starts as the tank now gets in the way so the builder can't just hold the handrail in place to check the forming is proceeding well.

Three goes later and we are heading along the front of the tank and then back towards the cab. Of course I have been remembering to put handrail knobs on as I go. Well, except for one but I was getting good at re-bending the wire by then even if I was worried about the brass work hardening and snapping.

Even fitting the thing isn't easy as you can only see the inside of the body in the smokebox and at the back of the tank. Elsewhere it was a case of lots of flux and tiny amounts of solder to work from the outside. Where I formed a blob this was smoothed out across the flatter bits of tank and then cleaned off with the fibre pen,

With this trail complete, sticking some whitemetal boiler fittings on was much more fun. Only one, the tank filler, has a stalk sticking through the body but some careful work with the 100 degree solder followed by lots of cleaning up, and this model is really coming alive.

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