Mk 1 coach in G

Okay so I have realised I am not very good at this sitting and thinking about things lark, so decided just to get on with my next project despite all my concerns about whether it would work !!!

After checking stock levels I found I had 5 sheets of 60 thou plasticard so that seemed a good place to start. When the rest of the country sat down to watch England get beat this afternoon I set to work in the shed. and here is how I got on.

 I couldn't work out how to support the shape of the sides as they are obviously not flat ! A look at a few prototype pictures and I realised there were dividers or bulkheads that was the spur I needed.

Step 1 was a rigid base, double thickness of 60thou on the base with side to stiffen and ribs where the bulkheads go.



Then a bit of cutting to make the bulkheads using an scan of a book diagram enlarged to my chosen scale and drawn round. Once I had got one bulkhead right it was just a case of scribing round it several times.

The plan is to make each window pair either side of the doors as a single unit the doors will be separate too. then they will be stuck together. I have stuck one side unit on just to get  my head round what I am doing.







This next one gives an indication of size, the path is made from 2' flagstones..



Probably the biggest single model I have made to date !

Looking at the way the windows sit on the side I'm assuming they are not made from curved glass panes so the frames the glass sits in must take up the body work curvature to to allow flat glass ?

Thoughts comment advice always welcome..

John

that looks like if it could become a fine model.
But the small scale layout in the background looks good, too!!!!

Greetings

Frank

John
The mk1s sides are flat the body curves in from the windows down so the roof edges are wider than the floor, the profile of the ends of your coach look more like gresley (Flying scotsman) type coaches the curve gets tighter as the sides get lower almost to the point of tucking in flat and then you have the exposed chassis rail. the mk2 has the same profile but the bottom of the curve covers the chassis rail
Hope this helps keep up the great work
tony

Quite remarable! While some are crying in their beer (having spent a couple of grand to see their team lose) you get on with something useful. You are a prolific modelmaker! I wondered what you were going to build next - now I know! Can't wait to see further postings. I notice you enlarge or copy drawings to the size you want. I do the same (do you use the PC like I do?). Great job.

Mick

Which type of coach are you making. I've got a load of the Bachmann Mk1's so could take a few pics if you like?

its the mark 1 non gangway, as in lots of doors down the side

RJR


its the mark 1 non gangway, as in lots of doors down the side

 

Hi John
           Thats called a subburban ? you mean seperate compartments you have to go outside to get into the next with 2 bench seats facing each other and a door both sides, thats got to be the hardest one to start with but i have no doubt 
 
Tony

Looks interesting what bogies are you using are they the LGB Rhb coach bogies and if so where did you get them

Thanks for all the comment and advice.

Yes its a suburban ! 

They are LGB coach bogies , form Arcadia Models Shaw (they have a decent stock of LGB and do Telephone orders)

I picked the suburban partly as its shorter and it looked easier, more windows but no window bars.

The profile is correct to the drawings in the book I have, but I have flattened the area over the height of the window.

Yes the drawings are scanned and printed using my laptop.

Anyway on to the progress

I've run out of plastic card for the time being, but tonight was quite fruitful.  One side is starting to look something like.







But pointing man is complaining he cant get out .. no handles !



John

It just gets better and better.
I will be very interested in how you curve the roof over the tops of the windows.
A while ago I bought an RhB van body with a view to converting it into a small electric loco but I haven't a clue as to how I will get the roof to stay the right shape.
All agog.

Thanks Keith, Re the roof

When I built the 25 I did the roof by laminating 2 layers of thin plasticard together in strips, much like a boat hull




It has become very strong and rigid, but the downside is it is fixed (not lift off)

For this build you may have noticed the centre run of bulkheads have no roof shape, only the end ones do, that is because I plan to slot in a piece of Balsa wood and sand it to the roof shape in one piece so I can then lift it back out to detail and glaze the inside. That's how I did the roof of this rail motor all though it was a bit smaller (O guage)





John

I have to confess to being a plasticard-aholic, I have been routing in the scarp box for bits to finish of the shape on the first side (found enough !)

Tonight's pics include an end shot to help you decide if I have got the profile right.







Two reasons I have made the side up in sections, 
1) they are easier to handle 
2) I wanted to get the doors to look like they are separate.



Finally a potential caption competition ??



John

John the profile looks spot on top man top job
i have wonderfull memories going to school in suburban coaches in the sixties
only one thing not really worth a mention but. no i wont say anything
 
Tony
 
oh ok then
while prob not unheard of but a 25 pulling a subburban coach would not have been a common sight so you will have to next build a couple of suburban EMU or DMU end units to fit either end
 
No you are correct john im being far to picky rule 8 and all that
 
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Fantastic John,
 
I dont know how you keep the card so clean,  I always get marks all over it
 
You said  ->   Two reasons I have made the side up in sections, 
                       1) they are easier to handle 
                       2) I wanted to get the doors to look like they are separate.
 
Now if I were doing it there would be a third reason
                       3) so when my hand slipped & a window ended up less than square I could discard just a short bit & not the whole side  
 
 
Q?  do you shamfer the door edges so as not to loose the joint when paint is applied?

Granitechops

Fantastic John, 
  I dont know how you keep the card so clean,  I always get marks all over it

I've worked this one out, Don.
John works so damn fast that there isn't time for the dust to settle, or the muck to stick !
I wish I was that neat.
 
Keep up the good work, John !

Thanks for all the comments,

Tony "artistic licence?" besides I cant get a 63footer round the bends !

Don, reason 3 seems fine to me, I did in fact get over excited and chopped the side pillar of one of the units "Doh" so it was a good job they were separate.

I havent chamfered the edges, but there is a reason I plan to stick a second thin (10though) set of sides over the current ones with the windows slightly smaller and complete with the radius window corners. I can then cut the glazing to the size of the current hole and stick it in from the back.

Mainly cos I thought it easier to put the rads on thinner plastic !!

John

Would using a section of roof guttering not give you the profile you need , I have seen this done on a set of G1 suburban Gresley quads

got excited for a minute there Mr.Spock, but just been out and tried my roof template against a piece of guttering and unfortunately the gutter is too round. Never mind its thinking out of the box that moves things forward.

John

Gutter as roof
 
I tried it 6 years ago when I built this coach, its 30 ins long
 
the gutter was too round, so I made a thick wood insert  smaller than the coach width,
 
left about 3/4 inch gap at peak of roof, drilled through roof & wood at about 4 inch intervals along the centreline
 
inserted bolts & nuts & tightened up gradually till it got to the right shape / width
 
Hot water has no effect on this plastic its built to resist the suns heat
 
It worked as the outer bolt heads were disguised as vents
 
But
 
the construction method added too much weight & too high up
 
 

 
 

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I think them suburbans were nicknamed balloon stock or have I mixed that up with some other  memory

pete

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