Mk 1 coach in G

This afternoon I got home earlier than planned so i used the time to block up and sand the roof section with some Balsa wood









This method was a lot quicker than the one I used to make the loco roof !!! 

John

How do you get such neat cuts in plasticard, mine just seem to wander about.

Alpineandy


How do you get such neat cuts in plasticard, mine just seem to wander about.

I'm sure others have better answers but I find my cuts wander when I'm lazy and try and cut plastic rather than take my time and score it.


Use a decent steel rule, and a sharp blade. Make shallow light movements to score the top surface of the plastic then applying pressure from behind the cut snap the plastic along the score. You don't need to cut it all the way through. That takes longer and usually results in less than straight lines.


Windows are the same, score the 4 sides, usually a score only needs to be half the depth of the plastic.
Once the scoring is done, start at one corner and score to the centre, repeat for all 4 corners until the diagonal scores go all the way through creating a "diagonal cross" the 4 triangles formed can now be snapped out along the scored edges.

If anyone not use to using plasticard would be interested I could do some "how tos" with pictures, but I don't want to teach my grandma to suck eggs.

RJR

Alpineandy


How do you get such neat cuts in plasticard, mine just seem to wander about.

I'm sure others have better answers but I find my cuts wander when I'm lazy and try and cut plastic rather than take my time and score it.


Use a decent steel rule, and a sharp blade. Make shallow light movements to score the top surface of the plastic then applying pressure from behind the cut snap the plastic along the score. You don't need to cut it all the way through. That takes longer and usually results in less than straight lines.


Windows are the same, score the 4 sides, usually a score only needs to be half the depth of the plastic.
Once the scoring is done, start at one corner and score to the centre, repeat for all 4 corners until the diagonal scores go all the way through creating a "diagonal cross" the 4 triangles formed can now be snapped out along the scored edges.

If anyone not use to using plasticard would be interested I could do some "how tos" with pictures, but I don't want to teach my grandma to suck eggs.

I would greatly welcome any "how to" pics and details please.

Yes please,  a how to, step by step
 
one thing I have found is that when doing longer cuts, it pays to CLAMP the straight edge while scoring, saves blade wandering when edge slips while concentrating on the blade,
 
slows things up though, but you dont have to do it a second time  

This really is a great thread and now we will get a blow by blow account of cutting plasticard! what I need is a tutorial on how to get the blood stains off plasticard....................................

The term "Balloon coach" usually refers to  push pull coaches that were common on the LBSCR, usually one or two coupled to a Terrier, E4 or similar. The LBSCR coaching stoch had a small loading guage (one of the reasons ex London Underground stock was sent to the Isle of Wight to replace the ex LBSCR coaches that ran until the demnise of steam.

There were some main line sets also.

The Balloon coaches were large by comparison and had a bloated appearence so hence the name.

Granitechops


Yes please,  a how to, step by step
 
one thing I have found is that when doing longer cuts, it pays to CLAMP the straight edge while scoring, saves blade wandering when edge slips while concentrating on the blade,
 
slows things up though, but you dont have to do it a second time  

Also, never, never, never cut along the bevelled edge of a straightedge unless you really want to lose the end of a finger!! 
Use only the right angled flat side.

A "how to" will follow when I get one of the kids to help with the camera ! Not enough hands to do it myself !

Today's update is a double day effort as I didn't post yesterday. 


On the one side that had been seen previously I have now added the second skin made from 20 thou (0.5mm) plastic. In this' the window aperture's are 1mm smaller all round and have radius corners. 



On the other side I have started the thicker first layer of side panels.



I have also fitted the seat backs and bases, which pointing man seems to find quite interesting.




This last picture shows the window step formed by adding the thinner second wall on the outside. The glazing will sit into this step. The seating will have "cushions" added to thicken them up 



John

Both sides now have complete sides, only one side hase the top thin cladding though. I needed a break from cutting windows so I have started on the underside trusses.









John

From experience I have realised when scratch building its always a good idea to have frequent test runs, just in case you get something really wrong that renders the model inoperable. So last night after adding the thin skin top walls to the second side and also altering the bogie positions inwards to suit the underfloor framing a test was in order. I am pleased to report it ran first time no problems.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsSFwKygAb8

John

This really is astonishing.

Superb!

WOW. That coach and the 25 are amazing!!! But im sorry to say they both look so wrong going round such sharp curves... How about taking them (and perhaps leaving behind :thumbup to a railway with LGB R3... Say the DVR?  


Seriously good and now insanely jealous of your skills in building such amazing bits of kit!

Gobsmackingly amazing, is all I can say!

Excellent work with styrene
 
Andy
 
What do you mean - it doesn't go round and round ?  Of course it doesn't, it's a model railway !

thanks for the kind words and encouragement.

Invites to visit other railways and being distracted into leaving stock behind ? Mmm

Not much to show for tonight's efforts, hinges and guttering.


John

Superb work mate, wish I had the patience to cut out all those windows

and the stunning scratchbuilds continue.  Another fantastic project.

Amazing to watch that video and remember that, a couple of months ago, pretty much everything you see was just flat sheets of plastic card.

Stunning.