Believe it or not, that's a 30+ year old Mehano 4-8-2 mechanism.

Streamliner, send me a PM with your email address, and i'll send you a set of instructions on how to modify the chassis.

Thanks for the kind comments a while back!
Here are some of the things I have been working on recently in N scale:




Yes the steam tram does run, with added weight to balance it, even smoother than it does currently.



3229 is modelled on it's 1:1 inspiration which was a regular shunter at Central in the late 1960's - hence the unusual tender.

The tender on the 50 class is an etch that was already done which sped up construction considerably.

Keep on modelling!

Great workmanship James!!!! Very nice indeed!!!

Roachie

Great workmanship James!!!! Very nice indeed!!!

Roachie

Thanks Roachie

A Prototype i have been working on, Pretty crude so far, but first attempt. Needs Windows, Power and couplers

A Prototype i have been working on, Pretty crude so far, but first attempt. Needs Windows, Power and couplers

These look really cool. With a few small enhancements they will do the job.
Well done.
You should be able to get some Kato/Tomix pantographs. couplers etc which are quite easy to buy and should suit these cars....

Hi Guys, first up I have to say there is some fantastic work going on. James, the N scale locos are very nice. I have to admit that I struggle to see what I am doing in HO and can't imagine working in N scale, let alone turning out work of such quality in something so small.

I have been busy over the summer with a few different projects. First up is the Commonwealth Railways Q Transfer Wagon which was used to piggy back narrow gauge locos on the standard gauge. This was scratch built except for the Walthers bogies. With this wagon I didn't know any dimensions other than the overall length so most of it was a calculated guess from a handful of photos. To get around this I drew the side frames in cad and when I thought it looked right I printed the side frames on decal paper. I then transferred the decals on to styrene sheet so I had a template to cut the 24 holes in each side frame.



Next on the list was building a sample of another Strath Hobbies kit that has been in development (by Paul). Its the Broad Gauge 75 Brill Railcar with the original window configuration. The kit is designed to use Black Beetles and is an easy kit to build (as far as urethane kits go). With the kit you have the option to fit the roof radiators (as an insert) and the roof vents are white metal castings so it is easier to build the particular car and era of your choice. I believe the kit will be available at EOTLH in the near future. Last I knew we were waiting on supply of the Black Beetles and the decals. On this kit I have used some old BGB decals I had in my stash.





And I haven't forgotten the Jumbo. I now have the fan grills and windows in the powercar and have started work on the underfloor. the fuel tank is currently oversize and requires additional side bracing, and I still have to tackle the MAN engines but there is progress. I am not sure just how detailed the underfloor will be on the kit but this will give me a good idea of what we will be able to cast.









The final thing I have been looking at is Propane/LPG tankers. I know SDS are doing the GS tankers which had me looking around the web for photos. I came across 2 tankers that originally belonged to the SAR and in the late 70's were transferred to the VR and coded TWF, numbers 10 and 12. I believe they may now be coded NTHF but could be mistaken. The reason they caught my eye is these 2 tankers had SAGASCO signage on them. Now I am either going to kitbash a tanker that is close in size, or change the signage on a SDS GS tanker (when they are released) and accept/ignore the differences. I have started on the artwork for the SAGASCO signage but I only have a couple of black and white photos so I have to guess what the colours were. If anyone can tell me if I have the colours right, or what they should be it would be appreciated.



Cheers.

Nice work there, mattc66.

As always, EXCELLENT work Matt! Very clever how you did your CR Transfer wagon! Very smart thinking!

I believe that the Brills are available, as have been offered one by Paul at EOTL.

Looking forward to your next update!

Cheers,

Dan

I took delivery of my RR Models 720 and a Austrains CL from Dan Shephard who operates DCS model train solutions this week. Dan had installed a sound decoder in the 720 and updated the sound files in the CL to the correct files. What a magnificent job of both and I implore anyone that is thinking about getting it done do yourself a favour and have Dan work his magic. DCS offers a one stop modelling service with 100% after sales back up which is more than I can say for many other model suppliers. Dan and Chris Fretwell from Ozrail work very closely with each other and work for quotation can be left at Ozrail which makes for a convenient drop off point and maybe get a bargain while you are there. It is heartening for me to see 2 guys that strive to make their customers and clients100% happy with as I mentioned 100 % after sales back up.

I too am a happy customer of DCS Solutions, I put a call into Dan on Saturday for some LED's for this project, and promptly had a knock at the door with the goods that afternoon - can't complain about that!

The 520 project is now nearing completion..

I too am a happy customer of DCS Solutions, I put a call into Dan on Saturday for some LED's for this project, and promptly had a knock at the door with the goods that afternoon - can't complain about that!

The 520 project is now nearing completion..

MMMMmmmmm.... Loving the 520-class! The lights look excellent too! Well done.

I'll also keep DCS in mind as well.

Cheers!

Hey all. Just finished kitbashing and decaling a VR (ex SAR) TWF LPG Tanker with the SAGASCO signage. The tanker started out as a Lima Ampol tanker with about 6' taken out of the length. This has meant some compromise with a few dimensions but I am happy with the end result. The tanker will just need a light weathering and couplers.

Getting around to getting my RKYY slab steel wagon finished.
its painted in vr blue just to see how it looks and the wrong bogies are on it.
Most of it is 3d printed

Hi all,
Here's my first attempt at loco building in HOn3 1/2 scale. It's a Tasmanian Government Railways V class. The model started out as a Worsley Works BR 04 class in 3mm scale. I approached Allen Doherty to see if he could rescale it to 3.5mm scale and incorporate some mods to better represent the Tasmanian loco. He agreed, and a few years after receiving the etch the results are below. It runs on a Hollywood Foundry Bullant mechanism

There are a number of errors and compromises with this first attempt, but I'm happy enough with it. Still, I'm now working on V2 v2.0 which will incorporate 3D printing and etches to hopefully make the most of both medium. 3D printing will be used for the basic hood shape, with etches to provide the detail, the cab will probably use etches while much more accurate frames and springing and some detail parts will use 3D printing.

I have no idea when the next one will emerge from the paint shop, but it should be fun experimenting with the process.



[

Hi Guys, I assume some of you are waiting on an update on the Jumbo Powercar. Sorry to disappoint but progress is slow at the moment.

The main reason for the slow progress on the Jumbo is I have taken to teaching myself Autocad Inventor. In the process of doing this I have started to realise the new modelling opportunities that have opened up. The first of these being the SAR 520 class loco.


Now you may be thinking that there is a resin kit of this loco already out there and that is correct. SA Rail has just completed a nice version of this loco with some photos already in this thread.

The problem I have had which I assume is shared by may people is that I don't have a mech that fits the resin body. I've had a Bachmann mountain which I intended to be a donor for some time but it doesn't even come close to fitting. Every now and then I unpack the kit and the mech, stare at them for a while and then put them away again only to think how nice it would be to have a couple of 520's running on the layout.

Well the other day I had a "eureka" moment. It dawned on me that the motor in the Bachmann mech is a flat can motor with the flats on the top and bottom of the assembly. The solution to getting the mech to fit was to turn the motor 90 degrees so that the flats fitted within the body.

Now it hasn't quite been that simple but I am now in a position where I am getting close to having a solution. A revised chassis has been drawn along with replacement cylinders. I still need to complete the support frame for the valve gear but it is progressing well.



I have printed these off on a 3D printer, along with a trailing truck and tender truck frames to check the fit and everything looks promising. The intention with the trucks is that the detailed side frames that come with the 520 kit can be glued directly to the printed frames. I have had to Dremel a small amount out of the top of the resin body to achieve the correct height but this was minimal compared to any other option.









I am heavily focussed on getting the design work completed and expect to order some sample prints from Shapeways in the next couple of weeks. We are looking to have the chassis printed in one of the metal options available to maintain weight/traction with the loco. the other items will either be resin castings from prints, or actual prints themselves (its looking likely the tender trucks and trailing trucks will be printed in ABS).

While design work is progressing well it will still be some time before we have conversion kits available in store to fit you Bachmann mech into a 520.

Cheers

Hi all,
Here's my first attempt at loco building in HOn3 1/2 scale. It's a Tasmanian Government Railways V class. The model started out as a Worsley Works BR 04 class in 3mm scale. I approached Allen Doherty to see if he could rescale it to 3.5mm scale and incorporate some mods to better represent the Tasmanian loco. He agreed, and a few years after receiving the etch the results are below. It runs on a Hollywood Foundry Bullant mechanism

Nicely done - that's a fine job. What are you using for couplers?

Nicely done - that's a fine job. What are you using for couplers?

G’day DuttonBay,

Thanks for the comment!



Couplers – yes, well, they are one of the things that I’ve learned quite a bit about during this exercise! To answer your question, the ones shown on the model were bought from AR Kits,  PDP012s, from the MainWest passenger vehicle detail range. Although they were impossible to assemble as supplied (unless I missed something incredibly obvious!) with a bit of work they look the part. I chose these after giving up on the original couplers supplied with a WD Models kit although I assume they are actually more accurate (and I think I should have another go at assembling them), as well as trying a couple of 4mm scale types from the UK, which not surprisingly proved too big.



If I had my way though I’d have fitted #58 Kadees – not because they are accurate for the V class, but because one day this is meant to run on an operating layout. You may ask why I didn’t fit them to this model? The answer is that’s one of the errors I made with this loco – when specifying the dimensions for the Bullant, I overlooked the need to leave some room for couplers!



Assuming I do a V2.0 of V2 this will be one of the major corrections to make.



Alan

If I had my way though I’d have fitted #58 Kadees – not because they are accurate for the V class, but because one day this is meant to run on an operating layout.

During my planning of an On30, and later 1/35 scale layout (neither of which came to fruition) I was faced with similar problems. The prototype used link & pin. Kadees were an obvious solution (#5 rather than #58 due to the scale I was using) but I was prepared to experiment with various English options, which although they don't necessarily look like the prototype, can be quite small and unobtrusive. And after all, a Kadee looks nothing like a link & pin (not a screw coupling for that matter).

I have just done a quick paint job on my 3D-printed model of a WAGR WOB iron ore wagon.  Apart from bogies and couplers, the only added parts are the air hoses, handbrake wheel and uncoupling lever.  It still needs another coat of yellow, some WAGR decals and weathering!

Hmmm.  Looks like I need to figure out how to include the photos.  I will have to work on that some more.

Try this link: https://flic.kr/p/s5cQGb

and https://flic.kr/p/ratXYQ

mattc66 wrote

"I have started on the artwork for the SAGASCO signage but I only have a couple of black and white photos so I have to guess what the colours were. If anyone can tell me if I have the colours right, or what they should be it would be appreciated."

and has since finished the LPG tank...and will not be happy with this...

Haven't looked at this thread in a while but from the SAR Modellers Yahoo group some 4 years ago when I posed this same question the blue trapezium is noted as gold or yellow and the flame as two shades of blue with a white centre. This being the reverse of what mattc66 has done. A blue flame does make some sense because clean burning gas will usually be blue with a white centre.


Denis

My first kit to be worked on in a long time has been a delightful (?) RMM dolomite hopper kit. I bought it from the Sandown exhibition and once I got it home I found that the roof hatches were missing, and I couldn't find any good photos to make my own from. As a result I decided to create VHQF 412 G, which was the first VHQF fitted with shed plates, and the only one to have them flat instead of the inverted 'V' as found on others. Once I started on it I found that one of the internal chute guides was missing as well, so created my own. I'm detailing it as highly as I can, using an Auscision VHSF hopper as a guide. It won't be a perfect match but I'm happy with it, and the shed plates will hide any discrepancies anyway.

[/url]VHQF 412 G by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 1 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 2 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 3 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 4 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 5 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 6 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 7 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 8 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

[/url]VHQF 412 9 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/people/54476947@N08/]Greensleeves.94, on Flickr

The brake detail is mostly scratchbuilt, with a few SEM parts that I had spare; the bogies are Associated Distributors' (Powerline) 50 ton aligned and it's fitted with Kadee 158's. I had to file down the bogie mounts a fair bit as well as the wagon was sitting rather high. I've given it a preliminary coat of paint to cover the brake detail, it's now waiting on the shed plates to be fitted and then the full coat when the weather gets better.

Hi guys,


I am actually working on my Lander carriages for H0n3 1/2.


Until now I made the underframes, bogies and the roof with Polyurethan.

For the body I try to draw the side parts on the computer and then it should be milled (Windows and the door will be around 0,3mm lower than the normal side).

The side part you see here is for the MCL.

Other planned carriages are LBL, LAR, MAS, MBS, MBL, MCDL and MDCG (These are all drawed, but the program for the machine has to be programmed)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/134346253@N06/19169291255/in/datetaken/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/134346253@N06/19143197966/in/datetaken/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/134346253@N06/19169419385/in/datetaken/

I hope they will look good

Many greets from Austria

Been busy since my last post - one of my projects has been to complete this Sn3.5 scale "QMC" vehicle carrier. Only 2 of these were built by the WAGR - the QMC were one of the longest wagons on the narrow gauge at 70ft long.

It is a 3D printed model by Marbellup Models with a mix of Biante and DDA 1/64 scale vehicles

Another completion is this WAGR "QBB"  flat also in Sn3.5 scale. Its a Urethane cast kit from G.A. Models with Railwest Bogies



I have a couple more of these QBB's on the go as well as this variant which is a QBL - essentially it just has longer stanchions, but as these wagons were conversions from earlier wagons this one has retained its Queenposts rather than getting an angle iron  rebuild underframes.