albergman

Oh my goodness!! What a wonderful result Caroline! I hope you are suitably proud of what you've accomplished here ... and probably taught your Dad a few things about steam engines too. This is just a fabulous setting for such a fine engine (pity it's not an LNER one though ... ask Dad). I see you came to the same decision as me when you were done ... never again. I said that after my first one then quickly decided to do another after which I said ... never again. Now I've started a third engine!! It's some kind of disease I guess. I'm really keen to see what you'll tackle next. Frank

Well well, all 3 of you found me on the same day! Not a lot to report at this time as I've been designing parts over and over to meet the needs of my local library where they get printed. Lots of practice with Fusion 360 though and that's fun. I've also been researching printers ... resin vs filament till I'm crosseyed looking at them. Big news is that I finally ordered a filament printer and it might arrive today!!! Now the real fun begins as I can experiment with parts much faster. The library usually takes a week to do my requests only to find there's a flaw in my design. I'm leaning towards doing almost all of the engine by print ... just for the challenge. I've had my struggles with the "lack of craftsmanship/artistry" in this approach but at my age I don't want to spend another year or two hacking a loco out of scrap material ... been there/done that/got the T-shirt. I just have a desire to have a model of yet another express engine from my youth and this seems like a fun way to get it. All of the parts above ... and many more have already been printed and sort-of assembled but I'll probably do them all over again with tweaks. Here's my drawing (captured from Fusion) of the nose. This program isn't very helpful when it comes to drawing shapes like this but I don't want to learn another. Looking forward to seeing if I can print this. The chimney and nameplates are designed as separate pieces so they won't be printed as shown here. Anyway, nice to have a couple of old friends along to see how this goes. Radpoe ... that organization has been around for 5 or 6 years and haven't got off the drawing board yet! The real progress is being made by the P2Steam.com group who built Tornado 10 years ago. They have a P2 well under way. Frank

Well they say "Never say Never" but here I am about to start yet another locomotive ... a P2 this time. I swore I'd never do another after my "Flying Scotsman" but pressed on and made the A4 "Union of South Africa". By the time that one was done I'd had enough of fabricating all the pieces of metal that go round and round and up and down ... Motion they call it. I've been following the progress of the A2 Society as they tackle their latest new build of a Mikado class "Prince of Wales" and I love the look of this engine. However, the P2's were built in two distinct styles one being the version that the A2 society have selected and several in the style of Gresley's A4 streamliners ... similar but different. Anyway, it's this A4-look-alike that I'm going to attempt. I have a "connection" to that style because, as a youngster growing up in Scotland I saw some of these engines but remember distinctly (funny what stays with you) being in the station in Dundee after visiting my Granny in 1951. We came down a flight of stairs onto the platform and there sat what I assumed was an A4 called "Cock 'o the North". I scanned through my Ian Allan spotters guide but there was no such A4. Of course it was one of the P2's. My model will be a "neverwas" engine called "Robert the Bruce", in honour of the King who, in 1329, was buried in the Abbey in my old home town of Dunfermline. So, how to avoid all that tedious hand made metal work? Well, there's these new fangled machines called 3D printers and all you have to do to make parts is learn how to design them in CAD software ... Should be easy eh? I've been motivated by several of the Britmodellers who have learned how to use Fusion 360 software and installed the free version on my PC. Watched lots of YouTube instructional videos and it didn't take long to get the hang of it. I thought I'd eventually buy a 3D printer (and still might) but in the meantime I'm using a free service available in my local library where they have a couple of expensive filament printers and will print anything you want! What's not to like? Sure, I'd prefer to use a resin printer but they don't have one and I don't have a place that can cope with the smell. That brings us up to the present and I now have a cache of about 25 parts designed and awaiting printing. In fact, I already have several test pieces printed just to make sure I'm on the right track. I plan to get all the motion printed first then build a set of frames to which I'll attach it all and, if it looks satisfactory, I'll press on with making the "body". I'll start today with some of my "drawings" from Fusion 360 and some of the printed parts. Fusion has a service where they'll produce an engineering blueprint of any part you've drawn and you can add as many dimensions to them as you want. I always make this up and print them off for each part as it gives me the dimensions I need when making the part that connects to it. So here are a few of my drawings. Wheels ... there are two different driver wheels per side .. one with a very large counterweight and 3 with a smaller one. There are also 3 different sized smaller wheels for the leading pony truck, the under-cab truck and the tender. I should mention that I have no plans available for this engine and the only dimensions I have are that the drivers are 6' 2" diameter and the engine is 13' tall. Not much to go on but I've adjusted a good side view photo to the size I want and am taking all dimensions off that ... Should work. I have a couple of these printed already. They'll need some fairing applied to smooth out the printer artifacts but should be easy. Following, in no particular order, is a selection of various parts some of which I have test prints. Here I've "assembled" some of the parts just to test the dimensions. OK, I'll leave off here rather than bore you with all the parts drawings. Frank

About cleaning ... I don't have a printer yet but have been following this chat about the volume of IPA needed and wondered if it would be effective to load up an airbrush with it? Maybe you could begin the rinse with slightly used IPA and finish with new material? Then again, maybe I'm way off base.

Need some help here as I'm pulling out the last of my hair. Been busy making lots of parts for the loco and for fun I decided to make a little "box" thing which I presume has something to do with lubrication. No problem making the box along with its little, round handle and 5 spokes ... the latter done by a "pattern" command similar to that used for the spoked wheels. The spokes I made were straight and I thought it'd be nice to give them the radius as in the real ones ... there-in lies the problem. I have tried everything I know (which isn't much I agree) to draw a "fit-point-spline" curve to use as a path down which a tiny circle will travel. The problem is that the curve just veers off into space every time. As proof of my problem I've drawn a box, fitted a "midplane" plane into it http:// then selected that plane and drawn onto it a line, a circle, a rectangle then the curve. When I swing everything round you can see that the plane has a mind of its own and I have no idea why it's happening. It's as though it has picked up a different plane somehow. I know it's going to be a simple solution and I'll feel like an idiot but I have to ask. Why did it do that??? Thanks for any advice. Frank

Thanks for that Circloy. Sounds like an interesting business niche they've made and might be just the ticket for me. I'd probably have to wait a month or 2 to get them in my hands over here what with shipping these days. Frank

Hey ... sounds like another railway enthusiast! Thanks for all that thoughtful input Tony. As a total scratch builder I wasn't all that fussy about things moving as they should. With hand made parts it was just too difficult (for me) to fabricate them such that they'd move. Besides, my engines are just for display and my own pleasure and not built to any model railway scale. However, having said all that, this new process certainly opens the door to the kind of precision needed. I might have gone that route if decent plans were available (my A3 and A4 both had decent plans). This particular engine I want to tackle is sorely lacking that way ... I know that it's 13' tall and has 6' 2" drivers ... hardly enough to start building a precision model eh? Nevertheless, I'm going to great lengths to determine the dimensions I need as I've learned the hard way how difficult it is to put an engine together if measurements are too far off. Cheers Frank

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. Good to know there's a solution to this ... now I can get on with drawing as many parts as I need without being too selective. Frank

Hey all. I'm a scratchbuilder with quite a few models already on the site. My last 2 models were steam engines that meant a lot to me in the late 40's in Scotland ... yes, I'm old! Anyway, I want to make a model of the P2 Mikado class "Prince of Wales" that's under construction over there (I'm in Canada now). I had to devote many, many hours hand-shaping all the motion (that's the metal works that's attached to the wheels) for the last two and I can't be bothered to make 2 more sides all over again for the P2. Having seen the success some have had with resin printers I decided maybe I could knock the fiddly bits off on a printer and just hand make the big bits. Sorry for all the technical terms! So ... as the title says I've been dabbling in Fusion for a few weeks now. I've watched a LOT of YouTube videos and "classes" put on for beginners and every day I learn something new. I'm having pretty decent success and have been building up a collection of parts. My biggest concern/confusion is with what I'll call the "File Structure" F360 uses. Don't worry, I'm not going to ask anyone to explain it. Basically I've just been designing parts and saving them and not worrying too much about it. I'm afraid I'll have to figure it out sometime soon as there's a limit of 10 parts I see. I don't have a printer yet and I'll probably wait till summer over here before getting one. What I'd like to ask is ... am I heading down a dead-end road with this attitude? I guess I'm thinking that at some point I'll just print off the individual parts I've made and empty my queue. You've probably figured out that there's a lot I don't know because I really don't know what the questions are. I'll attach just a few of my parts and I'd love to hear any suggestions/criticisms you might have. I'll leave it here for now ... thanks to anyone who reads this. Frank http:// http://

I've said it before ... the ultimate compliment that can be given is that it can't be distinguished from the real thing. Wonderful model and craftsmanship Nick. Been thinking about you lately as I'm off and running on F360 ... all thanks to you! Frank

Mike Thanks for the lengthy and helpful reply. Glad to hear that there are resins which are not as toxic/smelly out there and I hope they can still replicate the fine details I've seen on some 3D prints here. Myself, I got caught up in this after watching Nick (don't know how to get his name linked) build an engine for a Ferrari F40. It was just fabulous to watch. I too am retired and 82 but I love learning new stuff ... supposed to help the brain cells they say. I'm a scratch builder and have a few cars, boats and steam locomotives on here that are 100% hand made. I've already done a "Flying Scotsman" and "Union of South Africa" (I grew up in Scotland) and swore I'd never hand-make the wheel motion for a locomotive again. Then I got hooked on the new build of that P2 class steam engine they're building over there and a light went on ... what if I "cheated" and 3D printed all that fiddly stuff? So here we are ... moving over to the "dark side". I'd already watched all 16 of Mr Rowntree's videos and like his style of teaching and also numerous other YouTube videos. I've also got F360 installed and have been cranking out loco parts just to learn the process ... yesterday was my second day and I already have a spoked driving wheel drawn! I'll likely hold off buying a printer and focus instead on learning enough to be able to produce all the bits I want. I'll be watching your progress and thanks again for the info. Frank

Mike Really interested in this project strictly for the design and printing aspect. I'm presently trying to learn enough about Fusion 360 (Linked-in course) then I'll eventually buy a printer. Can I ask what printer you are using ... I was leaning towards the Mars but after reading about smells and toxicity I have no place safe to use it. Also did you just pick up 360 on your own. I'm impressed with the parts you've already designed. Frank

Watched your video ... impressive. Pity it all had to be done at night as it must have made for tricky flying at times. Since I signed up with Linked I came across a video put out by a chap who uses it professionally where he talked about all the stuff being removed from the hobbyist version which had me wondering if it will be of any use now? Judging from the reaction in the comments people were abandoning it in droves and heading for an alternative ... Sketchup etc. I don't know whether to persevere with this now or switch as well. I guess I'll figure it out someday.

HA! Steve, I recently received a magazine from a friend in Ohio ... less than 400 miles away and it cost $20 US to mail!! I think you'd be bankrupt and disappointed to ship this thing 18,000 kms! Hope you make a start on this model or some other just to try working with the composites. A model I would recommend building as a starter would be a TR6. It's a very simple design and can fairly easily be shaped from a solid block. I did this one for an Aussie friend from Perth! I took it out to Vancouver where he lived (now passed away) and put it on his car shelf when he wasn't looking. I said "That's nice ... when did you get that?" Was fun to see him scrambling mentally to remember where it came from.

Hmmm ... my ears were burning and I thought somebody must have mentioned my name! G'day Steve and "neighbour" Ted ... I'm in Barrie. Hope you guys are safe and well in these crazy times. Steve ... glad to hear you've got some composite decking to try. I think you'll like it and in fact I'm building a tug boat using it as we speak. Not sure what advice you'd want but maybe just suggest that you approach the model in small pieces such as 2 sides, a hood, a trunk and then the roof. Rather than trying to carve the final shape out of one block (my GTO was done this way but it's more difficult) draw your side profiles on smaller pieces and bandsaw that shape out then shape and fit a hood between the fenders. Have a look at the TestaRossa or my D-type to see how I started them and maybe that'll make it clearer. You'll find it's easier to shape the hood and inside fender lines when they are separate pieces then fit them together when ready. Same goes for the trunk and rear section. I'll leave it at that but feel free to ask anything. Cheers Frank Follow up to something you were wondering about ... the strength of Composite to use as the A-pillar. I'd say no. It gets pretty pliable in thin strips so I'd recommend any other kind of wood there. Since it will be a painted project then it won't matter what you use. Also, the big problem ... windows. Now, I'm not familiar with this particular car and I've only ever tried to make windows for one model ... my Lola T70 coupe. On that post you'll see that I made a "plug" from Renshape that fit inside the car and defined the window shapes. I then used it to shrink heated, softened plastic sheets over it. I'd had success making headlight covers this way but this was a large piece and It was never very successful and I gave up the entire project ... anyone want it? I've seen others using vacuum chambers to produce windows this way so maybe that would be worth following up. The plastic I was using was lids I'd saved from various gift boxes. So, bottom line ... I don't have much advice on this topic but others may.

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Hi Nick Was wondering where you went after the F40 masterpiece. Love the models you turn out especially that Brough. Your photography adds a lot to each as they look like the real thing in the sparse background. FYI ... as boredom sets in during the shutdown I've decided to have another go at Fusion 360. Signed up for the free month at Lynda's (Linked-in) site yesterday so we'll see how it goes. Frank

Hi Steve and BBS Hope you all had a wonderful Xmas down there. Lovely to see progress again on this terrific model. However, I wasn't too happy to see that creature you found in your shed ... one more reason not to visit Oz!! Crikey, you really have some weird wildlife down there. I was sure after you said there was "a lot of running and screaming and maybe some wetting of pants" that you'd say "and BBS was pretty scared too". Anyway, I'm taking notes on how to finish the interior of the cab as that's something I've never addressed so keep up with pictures for my sake. Can't wait to see this beauty coated in red and black paint. It's going to be a stunner. Frank

Thanks for the explanation. 30 microns!! Wow, that's tiny. No wonder you can get the details you have. Production process huh? Wishing you great success.

Just fabulous work Nick. Nice of you to give a nod to "the way we were" and actually MAKE something. So is this an actual filmed (using a camera) work or something that Fusion lets you do? The way the parts lift off makes me think this is coming out of Fusion ... not that it matters. Just curious. I see the wheels seemed to be turning so maybe it is a "real" film. Also, are there now 2 finished engines or is this all smoke and mirror stuff too? PS what's a "chitubox"? (at 24 seconds in). Frank

Great story and an outstanding model. I think models that you have an attachment to are the best ones and will bring back a memory every time you look at it.

Still here and getting the odd day trying to finish up both engines. Went backwards quite a bit on Scotsman once again as I decided I could do better. Bane of my (model-making) life. Anyway I got a piece of wood cut to size, edged and shellacked to make my base for Union of South Africa. Cut a couple dozen sleepers and glued them down then tackled the buffers I wanted at one end. As with my Scotsman I wanted to have the engine sitting on a siding "on standby", ready to go if there was an engine failure nearby ... I read that the LNER used to do that. The buffers I wanted were to be ancient, made of heavy timbers and re-enforced with heavy steel plate and I was able to find suitable metal in my stash ... from an old dismantled printer. Some round headed tacks served nicely as heavy bolts. Buffers were turned on my lathe from aluminium rod. My rails are new stock from a local shop and I believe they are Lionel (G gauge?) but seem appropriate scale for my engine. I now had nice shiny plate steel on my buffers and I wanted to weather them ... something I've never done and didn't want to learn. I see Johndon (in this section) has just posted a rusting exercise and is obviously skilled at it ... not me. Instead I found some interesting YouTube tutorials on how to rust steel quickly using vinegar, hydrogen peroxide and salt ... all of which I had. I had to scuff the (anodised?) surface finish off the steel and likewise off the rails but my Dremel made quick work of that. I read another tip that the process works even better if the metal is pre-heated so I ran a micro-torch over it then quickly sprayed a mist of the formula. In seconds rust started to appear! I repeated the heat/spray process several times and each one made deeper rust. I know this will have limited application for most modellers as steel is the only thing this works on but maybe tuck it away for reference. So here's my rusty old buffers. I'm still waiting for an order of ballast to arrive and that will tidy up the scene. Thanks for looking in. Frank

Getting repetitive here but that's wonderful. I'm assuming all the pulleys are glued on and not free to rotate so, are you able to print that belt so that its teeth line up with all of the pulleys and just slides on? Why am I asking ... of course it can and does?? Frank

Seems impolite not to comment on this ... just staggering!!

Hi Steve et al Just found this thread and have read it (almost) non stop up to here. What a wonderful bit of sleuthing going on here and a book detailing your progress would make an interesting read. You got me hooked on it right on page 1 when I read about it's origins on the Firth of Forth ... right where I grew up (Dunfermline) and Aberdour was our family go-to beach and where I'd cycle to do train-spotting. Truly impressed with your dedication Steve! The story is fascinating and we haven't even got to the good bit where you'll actually build the model ... erm, you will build it won't you? I smiled too when I saw you had a book by James Gurney as I follow his quickie, on-site painting expeditions on YouTube. Trivia ... in case you racing fans wondered ... he is a cousin of the great Dan Gurney! Cheers Frank