Younger Brother

I'm sure you're probably heartily sick of pictures of proudly purchased Bachmann Double Fairlies by now, but if you've come to this post by clicking on our social media I suppose you must still have a smidgen of interest left to want to know what I'm saying about them.

The first of our pair has arrived direct from Bachmann HQ, the model of Livingston Thompson in peak-Spooner condition, and looking just like it does today in the NRM at York.

Himself posed it next to our eldest Backwoods Miniatures Fairlie, which was also designed as LT but doctored as best we could to represent Merddin Emrys as it emerged from its re-Spoonering overhaul in 1988.

Of course, the Backwoods model is not to scale. 

The real loco is much longer and taller now, but it's pleasing to see that our one still sits a little higher than the Bachmann version, which at least gives some of the effect of what the brothers looked like when Merddin dragged LT to Tan y Bwlch for the official handover ceremony to the NRM.

Our LT has already had a short light engine test run on Bron Hebog.

However, I'm looking forward to putting this pair up against each other in a 'King of the Hill' challenge.

We already know our brass Backwoods Fairlies can handle a longer FR rake than the real locos do around the  S-bend out of Beddgelert.

The big question is whether the relatively featherweight RTR version will be able to haul an authentic number of carriages up the grade?

Watch this space...

Funkey Colours

Himself has embarked on what could be a prolonged process of painting the new Vale of Ffestiniog.

Not only does the locomotive have quite a few colours on it but the places where they join are awkward.

For example, there is a very obvious fold line on the cab sides, but that is not where the dark green changes to the mid green.

Also, there's that long central body section full of access doors which is not conducive to a simple masking operation, either.

So instead Himself is planning to use his go-to workaround solution for situations such as these and use waterslide lining transfers to give him a target to aim at.

The reason the paint in the picture above looks so rough is that the shot was taken before the transfer was applied to mark the lower edge of the dark green upper section.

Still, it was his idea to build this second one, so.....

Replicas Running

Now the varnish has set, and the bogies been fixed on,  Himself has sent me a couple of pictures of our new replicas - Ashbury 21 and Hudson toast rack 39 - on a test run on the layout.

21 is from a Worsley brass body kit and 39 was scratch built with most of the body cast in resin by myself,

This gives us a very respectable length of a 'Garraway' vintage set strengthens our 'Col Stephens' options as well, although we are a few green bug boxes short in that department.

They look very good posed in the platform at Beddgelert station on Bron Hebog.

It shouldn't be too much longer before our Bachmann Double Fairlies arrive and I'm really looking forward to seeing what the green Earl of Merioneth looks like hauling some of our green and ivory and all-over red stock.

Totally out of period for us, of course, but it's nearly Christmas so we're allowed, aren't we?

Double Jointed

Not only is the world-famous Ffestiniog the home of the articulated steam locomotive it also has a rather special double-articulated infrastructure wagon, which I am busy scratch building for a second time for a customer.

Yesterday's task was the tricky business of making it bend - in two places - which is why I waited until I was in the mood to tackle it.

The challenging bit of the process is to hold a 10BA nut captive in styrene.

This is quite simple when you're working in brass because you just solder it in place, but soft styrene is a different matter.

What I did - and I'm trusting this will be a long-term solution here - was make T-shaped sections to fit in the bottom of the boxes which make up the main body of the wagon and ream a hole that was tight enough that the nut could be pressed into it, but not so tight as to distort or crack the plastic.

The hole was also lined with a smear of super glue and then another piece of styrene - with a smaller hole - was fixed on one side to prevent the nut being pushed out and disappearing inside the body of the wagon.

With these fitted in the place in the boxes what I did next was make up the bar which connects the two vans and forms the spine which the central platform is fixed onto.

When you turn it the right way up the result is what you see in the picture at the top of the article.

The next stage will be to fix the Hudson skip wagon chassis underneath the two boxes so it can sit on rails for the first time.

Open For Business

I've got more action to report from the paint shop.

Himself has been busy with the multi-coloured Hudson semi-open carriages - one the replica for the FR and the other for the WHHR fleet, which have different origins.

The red (WHHR) one is from the very neat 009 Society injection moulded kit, and has had a few enhancements such as brake pipes and the safety chains across the passenger access openings.

The green (FR) version is one I cast in resin from a scratch built master I made in styrene, and has a number of differences, including the positions of the right angle uprights and the number of slats on the end panels.

The mesh doors - a mid-life upgrade which offer significantly more protection than the chains on number 42 - are 3D prints which were kindly donated to the project.

For a few minutes Himself thought he had caught me out by noticing that number 39 currently has fewer, and thicker, planks on the ends, but he forgot the golden rule of FR modelling, which is that things change so frequently you have to choose the day you are modelling your locomotive, carriage or waggon and stick to it.

Thus, this 39 shows the carriage before its most recently, and thorough, overhaul.

Cubed

Modelling time I've had this week is being taken up with working on a commission for a copy of the model we made of the FR's S&T tool van.

This is a double articulated wagon (if that's such a thing) with large box structures at each end which are redundant bodies from former BT road vans.

I've been working steadily on these since the weekend and the sides and ends have been fixed together into their boxes now, with a roof fixed on top.

This will each sit on a former Hudson skip wagon chassis and be connected by a flat platform which pivots at each end.

Bush Train

I've been sent some nice pictures of WHR diesel shunter number 9 which was finished off during the week.

It looks pretty good to me considering where we started with a set of prototype nickel silver etches from RT Models, and we've added a lot of extra details such as the castings I made for the doors along the side of the bonnet, the protective bars in front of the grill and the exhaust and lights.

I've written in previous blog posts that this model is undersized because the design was based on the majority of these Baguley Drewry locos, whereas this one which worked in Australia and was retired to North Wales is longer and wider.

However, I hope all the extra details and the colourful livery will distract the eye.

Two Can Play At That Game

The secret is out - and what a secret!

Bachmann has pulled off quite a coup with its 009 Double Fairlies revealed today.

Bachmann

 

They have raised the bar in ready to run narrow gauge yet again with what appear to be a collection of exquisite models.

The firm has blindsided the 009 community which has been sitting drumming its fingers ever-more impatiently for the Quarry Hunslets to be released, only for these Spooner masterpieces to come steaming down the tracks.

I can imagine there is consternation - and that's putting it mildly - in the boardrooms in Devon and Japan today.

Bachmann 

 

You don't have to be Sherlock Holmes to work out what's going on here.  

This is Bachmann striking back at Peco and Kato parking their tanks on its lawn with their England and Fairlie projects a couple of years ago.

They say don't get mad, get even, and I think that's just what's happened here.

What astonishes me is how Bachman has managed to keep it under wraps for so long?

It takes years to develop a model like this, especially when you set out to do it with this level of authenticity and fidelity.

To make models like these, showing Livingston Thompson and Merddin Emrys in various historic conditions, plus the Collectors Club special edition DLG,   takes a lot of research, and making contact with the people who know these engines inside out.

 

Bachmann

 

 

 

These are a very different concept to the England engines we saw previewed a few weeks back.

There are no compromises here.

There is no turning a blind eye to differences to save on tooling.

It's clear the team behind this project have set out to make a point and demonstrate how they think it should be done.

Now, it's up to us, 009 modellers, to vote with our wallets. Which approach do we prefer?

It will also be fascinating to see how Peco and Kato respond.

Will they dump their Double Fairlie project?

I don't know how far down the development path it is because all we've ever been shown is an extremely rough 3D print of the body, and nothing about the chassis.

Do they still believe that there's a different market to be exploited - one that demands Japanese norms like traction tyres and doesn't bother about added extras like DCC sockets and sound - to carry on developing it and go head-to-head?

What is clear is that Bachmann has made a big statement of intent here.

They weren't dabbling in 009, this is now a serious part of their strategy and we can only wait and see how their rivals will respond.