Dabbling in a larger (for me) scale

With Latton Street now having dust covers put on as it’s been far too cold in the garage since mid November, thought I’d have a go at something new.

I’ve been thinking for months I’d quite like to do something in narrow gauge, and although I briefly dabbled in 009 many many years ago, it was seeing a picture of a 009 loco balance on somebody's finger that made me think it really is to small for me now.

Inspired by various 7mm Narrow Gauge layouts I’ve seen around the web I thought I’d have a go at a few kits in O-16.5, something I can do indoors for the next few months until it’s warm enough to get back out in the garage.



While waiting for the loco body kit to be delivered, I built a scaled up  version of the Scaelscenes Small Goods Store, just to get some idea of  size.

Bit of a bodge job as I don’t think I’ve used the right thickness of  card and I’m not very good at card building kits. There are plenty of  far far better examples pictured around the web, but at least I now know  this stuff is BIG.

Comparison.



Just finished one of the Peco wagon kits and decided buffers was the way to go.



Not painted yet and I’ve messed up a bit as I’ve removed the lowest two  rivets on the left hand side of the body, not realising the hand brake  went on the other end  :thud

Working on one of the the two Smallbrook Studio loco kits I’ve bought, ‘AURA’.



I bought this one as an afterthought after already ordering ‘ECHO’ which  is a full body kit, but thought I’d do this first as it’s only really a  new cab and chimney.

More as it happens.


Ed

This thread is going to be very helpful to me because I am planning a small narrow gauge lay out next and have not got a clue on how to go about it.

John 

Watching with interest Ed, I'm going down exactly  the same O-16.5 route for the very same reasons and have been collecting bits and peices over the last year including some smallbrooke kits to build. Have you been following Nigels (BCDR) On30 kit bashing master class ? Some great little tips in there from Nigel Ron and Max on detailing etc. 
  Your right about the difference in scale with the buildings… big beggars aren't they !   Any idea on a theme yet ? I'm thinking of some sort of grungy industrial-engineering back water where wagons and logos are repaired and maybe spruced up so I can park a few logos and wagons around and do some shunting. . But I'll not ramble on in here,  looking forward to what you come up with !

Cheers

Matt

This is great Ed.  I'm so happy to see you venturing into 0 gauge. :doublethumb :chicken  Narrow gauge is, I think, a good compromise.

I'm also glad to see that you are dabbling in Scalescenes buildings. :Happy I've been doing that as well:

http://yourmodelrailway.net/view_topic.php?id=14475&forum_id=150

John

"Masterclass"?? Ha! Trials and tribulations and how to do it on the cheap with bits of styrene is a better description. If it helps others that is a great bonus.

It's nice to see others getting into 0 scale narrow gauge. Bit easier on the eyes and fingers and it can be done in the same space as a 4mm layout. Those Smallbrook Studio kits are great as scratch building aids, and the resin takes well to either epoxy or CA. Downside is that most are designed for the Hornby 0-4-0, where the wheels are too big. Branchlines in Westbury, Wiltshire, had a decent chassis with appropriate diameter wheels. I think it is still in business. Ask for the narrow gauge leaflet. I'll give a plug for A1 Models as well, easy brass kits that go on US diesel locomotives.

Nigel

Totally fictitious Matt, no real theme. I might recycle my Shunting Puzzle Plank board, to make a micro layout.

Don't think my Goods Store is anywhere near as good as yours John (Brossard), but I've scaled up the old 3 foot rule by 175% as well, so from 5 foot 3 inches it ain't too bad.

Certainly easier on the eyes and fingers Nigel. I've seen you mention the oversize wheels elsewhere. Suppose could always make it a tramway and put skirts on all the locos  

I've fitted the funnel and put some filler along the side of the tanks where they meet the spectacle plate.





The bottom of the spectacle plate and the back of the firebox attached  to it inside the cab  has to be sanded/filed to accommodate the motor  housing. Anyone with a Hornby pug will know what I mean.

Unfortunately I was a bit over zealous with the file and there is a gap  where the top of the boiler meets the spectacle plate, behind the dome  in the next picture.



It's the dark bit (I've actually put pencil on it).

Plan to cut a rectangle piece of styrene to go right across the front of the spectacle plate about 5mm high to hide it.

Now waiting for the filler to dry.


Ed


PS John (Western Way) I haven't got a clue what I'm doing either  

Hi Ed,

I knew bits of styrene and filler would be used sooner or later ;-). Tramway plates are a good idea if you don't want to mess around with the chassis. More styrene. Looking good. Contractor loco, highway construction (bypass) in the 1930's?

Nigel

[user=2094]Western Way[/user] wrote:

This thread is going to be very helpful to me because I am planning a small narrow gauge lay out next and have not got a clue on how to go about it.

John 

Join the club. Basically 2 ways - cheap and cheerful using a chassis from the scale below (N for HO/OO, HO/OO for 7mm/On16.5/On30, although an N chassis with an O body works well, estate railways and the like), or lotsa dosh kits. I've done both, and lean towards proprietary chassis' and either off the shelf body parts/shells or DIY bodies using styrene/brass sheet and tubes. Using a proprietary chassis saves a lot of time, styrene/brass keeps it cheap. Peco On16.5 track works OK in 7mm, although you can use regular OO track and just increase the sleeper spacing. Or make your own using Templot or Fast Tracks templates.

O scale bodies in narrow gauge in reality come to around 1/64 S scale, although most HO/OO bodies look fine with an O scale cab, chimney, domes and water filler covers. No hard and fast rules about prototypes, most narrow gauge locomotives got modified over the years to suite local conditions. The class 08 chassis with the jackshaft is prototypical for early diesel mechanical locomotives.The Dapol Drewry kit is a good source of bits and pieces. It's the old Kitmaster tooling, still good after all these years.

Plenty of suppliers in the UK. You can still get the Wrightline kits (from Adrian Swain), expensive but nicely detailed. Brass etches from Worsley Works, usually just the body shell, kits and bits from Smallbrook Studios…

Nigel

Don,t knock it Ed, your buildings are fine  plus they get lost in amongst the completed layout.

[user=31]sparky[/user] wrote:

Don,t knock it Ed, your buildings are fine  plus they get lost in amongst the completed layout.

Thanks Reg, at least in a larger scale the bits you have to cut out aren't quite so small.


Ed

In 7mm windows are still a problem.  I've started the Scalescenes water tower:

 (https://scalescenes.com/product/r025a-water-tower/ )

and tried to cut out the windows from card with little success.  Perhaps my hamfistedness. 

In this case I'm trying to build them (there are only two) from 0.060" x 0.060" Evergreen strip. 

I did post a thread about Brassmasters windows in 7mm so if people want these, they should inundate John with emails demanding them.

John

Slow progress…..





I'd forgotten that to do any spraying with rattle cans, I'd have to go out in the garage and we seem to have had more dark, cold, wet and windy January days than over the last few years….

……… or perhaps I'm just getting old  



Ed

You may already know Ed, but you get a better result if you warm the rattle can in a jug of hot water for a while .

Thanks Reg, good tip  :thumbs

I've just been bring the rattle can indoors for a few hours, to warm up before using.


Ed

Just building the next two wagon kits and got to the point of drilling hole for the buffers.

(Wagon floors are in the foreground below)

I've decided to go without buffers and removed them from the wagon I had already built and the loco.



Don't know why but the loco looks better to me without buffers, sort of cries out 'Narrow Gauge'.


Ed

Great!!!

Nigel

Thanks Nigel.


Ed

I've built another two wagons and the loco with two wagons will just  about fit on my version of a cassette, otherwise known as a Peco Loco  Lift.



Not a very good picture as there's not a lot of light in the kitchen, but you get the idea.


Ed

Looks the part Ed !   :thumbs  What's next ?

Cheers
  Matt

Think I'd better get on with the other loco kit Matt.

I know it's wider, so I need to make sure it will fit on the 'cassette'.


Ed