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Anyone for the "Tube"?

Started by John Candy, Mar 20 2014 11:02

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0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

LankyTank

John

An enquiry to Peartree Engineering a.k.a Model Railway Parts on either 01379 608000 or info@modelrailwayparts.com might bear fruit (sorry, no pun intended..... oh, go on then....)

www.modelrailwayparts.com/


HTH
Barry

John Branch

Thanks, Barry, I'll let you know.

John

IanT

Hi John,

Re: my recent post about cast iron pulleys...

"They are just under 44mm in total diameter with a thickness of 10mm. I think (for use in G3) the maximum scale tread possible would be about 2ft 8" (bottom of pulley groove is 37mm) so you could probably get a turned tread of 36mm, one side of the pulley wall acting as a flange. So not big enough for standard gauge wagon wheels...."

So that might be a possible source of materials, maybe you just need someone (Walsall?) to machine them for you.

Regards,

IanT
Nothing's ever Easy - At least the first time around.

John Branch

Not sure whether to post here or on the more recent thread on choice of motors, but as my latest project is for power bogies for LT 1938 tube stock, I thought this was the best place.  Photo attached is first mock up of the closest I have yet come to an axle hung design.  It uses a pair of unidentified , but identical, motors salvaged from the wreckage of a Canon inkjet printer. Subjectively, it seems to deliver enough ooomph to do what I want, although it will be a few months yet before this is demonstrable.  As in the prototype there will be one motor per bogie, thus 2 per car.  My hope is that there will be enough power to haul a dummy motor car ( or even 2 trailers) to make a train of it.  I have no idea what the rated power/voltage of the motors are, but as some probing with a meter before final destruction of the printer revealed, the power supply seemed to deliver +12v-0--12v.
Next milestone is a running bogie, will keep you posted

John





John Branch

Further to my previous posts, the attached photos show one complete-ish and one bare bogie for the 1938 stock motor car.  I have most of the MEL-cut parts for two bodies and another set of bogies, so that answers the question about what I will be doing during the "Great Isolation of 2020"

John

John




John Branch

Since March (can it really have been that long ago?), I have been through that process that a lot of us have experienced, from concept to reality.  It is never until the end that we discover whether it was all worth while.  I am nearly there-probably a month or 2 away-and have something to show for it..  I have a running 38 tube stock driving motor car, and it is quiet, smooth and fast.  It needs a lot of finishing work and something to pull.  The something will be an identical car sans motors.  The reason I went so far with the first one was to assess if it had the strength to pull a dummy.  It does, and so the dummy is coming along.  The photos are not quite up-to-date, as I am still working on getting the roof to fit before it is revealed to the membership.
John






IanT

Looking good John!   :)

Regards,

IanT
Nothing's ever Easy - At least the first time around.

Traininvain

Looking brilliant!

Ever since I saw the large scale model tube train shuttling up and down above the main gallery at the London Transport Museum I've fancied one of these.

Fantastic!

Ian

John Branch

I find it somewhat disappointing that the the progress made on my various project in this time of lockdown and every-day-the-sameness has been so slow.  Months have gone past and only marginal improvements in the state of my stock have been achieved.  However, progress has been made, both in the (almost ) completion of the 2-car 1938 tube stock set and in a 2-car set of 1920 "F" class stock.  A pic of each is attached.  I guess you can sort out which is which!






753

John

Very impressive work, could you give more detail on how you made the coaches and materials used.
Thanks

Mike

John Branch

I'm working on a full description ( mainly to remind myself of what I did before reaching my dotage). Essentially, any part that needs cutting really accurately and/or repeatedly is farmed out to MEL, some material is used as supplied.  Most material is 1mm steel, with some 0.5mm brass, bending and curving is achieved with thumbs, a vice or two, a soft-faced hammer  and 2",21/2" and 3" steel pipe as anvils.  There is no technology applied by me, just MEL's clever laser cutter.  Everything is soldered and some sub-assemblies are nutted and bolted as well.

Once a few more things have been worked out, ' I'll put finger to keyboard, to describe the whole shebang!

John

AshleyW

looking forward to the shabang! ash

753

John

Thanks for the info, I think 1mm steel is an underused material, as it's cheap and suits laser cutting very well.

It would be interesting to see panelled coach sides made with styrene panels laid over steel sides?

Mike

MikeWilliams

Mike, some years ago I tried laser cut stainless steel sides, ends and partitions for a paneled carriage.  I gave up and went to etched brass because 1) I couldn't form the curve of the sides; 2) the 20g beading was too thick; 3) Even 20g beading was so thin and lacy that during cutting it deformed, came up from the base of the cutter and wrapped itself around the cutting head, much to the disgust of the laser operator!

One day I will dig out the parts and see if I can finish it off.

Mike

John Branch

Regarding panelling, my first foray into laser  cutting was for some "Ashbury" Metropolitan  coaches.  These were built of teak and were fully panelled.  I had the side cut from 08mm ply, with door and compartment windows all cut out, and then a fret of .8mm ply cut and stuck to the side  (after it gad been stuck to shaped formers to give the correct tumblehome) The fret is very fragile before assembly, but has lasted many years in assembled form.
I have a few spare samples of frets if anyone wants to see if this would be useful to them.
The laser company was York Modelmaking.

Couple of pics attached.

John


combo duplicate remover