Dapol class 122 woes and an xmas running session

I hope everyone had a fantastic xmas and is continuing to enjoy some festive cheer.  The new raft of covid measures meant our xmas was even less social than we planned it to be.  Luckily, I have a fantastic partner, so we still had an amazing time.  On the regulatory 3 hrs on xmas day, my parents popped over for lunch.  My dad has started to build an 0 gauge layout and wanted to have a go with a DCC controller, so I set up Charlton ready to have a beer and run some trains.  I got some trains ready to go and put my Dapol class 122 on the track, turned on the sound chip and pressed the throttle.  The motor turned away but the unit would only crawl.  This was very strange, as I have only run the class 122 at a few exhibitions, so I was surprised it had given up the ghost.  Some googling found out that the Dapol class 121/122 have a raft of well known motor problems.  I managed to take the unit apart, damaged a few detailing pieces and eventually I sorted out the issues.

The Dapol class 122 chassis with one drive shaft removed (left).

The small drive head (top - black), had come loose from the drive shaft.  I super glued the head to both ends of the drive shaft before reassembly.

Both of the motor drive shafts have a head that had come loose, meaning the drive shaft turned but it would not turn the gears.  A lot of people on RMweb removed one of the drive shafts, so the motor only drives one set of wheels.  I followed this fix, removing one drive shaft completely, whilst super gluing the drive head onto both ends of the other drive shaft, before refitting it.  It is a very fiddly job to do, as the drive shafts are beneath the PCB board.  After this experience and seeing that many other modellers have suffered the same issue, I am not buying a Dapol locomotive again.  This is a personal blog and it is only my opinion, but I am really furious that a train that has seen very little running suddenly gives up, due to poor production quality.  The (upcoming) story of the Hornby class 50 is a similar tale.  These trains are not cheap, especially when sound fitting the locomotives and it is infuriating after all that detailing, for the train to be not able to run due to design faults.

Class 37 c. 1975 on an evening passenger service.

Anyhow, having sorted out the problems on the class 122 (it was spread over 2 days, which included a lot of blaspheming!) I spent some time running some trains this evening.  It was great fun and I caught some evening videos of trains running with the lights on.  Other project continue to make good progress, with the class 45 just needing putting back together (a job for tomorrow) with the sound chip added and the python wagon only needs one more coat of varnish.  All in all plenty of progress and all of the new baseboards for a roundy roundy layout are ordered!  Bring on the spring!!

Class 122 on an evening passenger turn.

A class 37 bringing in the last train of the day....

.....before setting back off to Barnstaple junction.

A merry xmas one and all

I am signing off the blog until xmas.  I hope everyone has a great Christmas and has some time off over the festive break.  I have made a lot of progress on a number of projects this week and hope to finish some of these off over the next few weeks, so hopefully some updates soon.  All the baseboards have been ordered for the new layout - so I am excited to start a new layout in the new year.  Until then...Happy Christmas one and all!

Engineering Van - GWR Mink in Olive Green

This weekend I have finally managed to get some time to do some modelling!  All of Sunday has so far been spent at the modelling desk, building some wagon kits and doing some painting.  After a few hours a lot of projects feel like they are finally moving forwards - great stuff!  The class 45 is in the process of receiving its final varnish coats and I also finished the rebuilding of a salmon wagon I stripped the paint from in 2016!  Today, I also dropped the wheel sets into the GWR Mink wagon, which has been re-purposed into the engineers fleet.  I have no idea what this wagon would do in real life but it is going to form part of a train, with a motley collection of older wagon stock (a python, PMV, CCT, BY and Mk1 coach) all finished in olive green to add a bit of variety to the trains running on my layouts.

Finished GWR Mink wagon in 1970s olive green.

As per normal this wagon was finished using Railmatch enamel paints applied from an air brush.  The transfers are Modelmaster and it is fitted with metal buffers and three link couplings.  I mixed the olive green to have a faded colour, adding a little drop of white into the green paint, trying to replicate a wagon recently rebuilt, but having lived outdoors for a year or two.  I am very happy with this wagon and have the GWR python wagon ready for transfers, close on its heels.  A Mk1 coach (Bachmann) in olive green is also in the paintshop, so I am hopeful I can finish this rake of rolling pre-xmas.  Otherwise, I hope everyone is well and finding time to model.  

Another milk wagon

Progress has remained painfully slow on the modelling desk, with virtually no time for modelling again this week. This is a shame, but the world is in a strange place at the moment and there is little spare time in my daily life.  Anyhow, I did manage to finish another milk tanker for the layout a couple of weeks ago.  This is another Dapol model; these are not the best, but they all there is on the market.  I take these wagons apart and weather the different components separately before reassembly.  This model was finished with a livery that pre-dates the era I model.  So I painted and weathered over this, after sanding it down.  The idea was for a faded older livery to be poking through the grime.  Anyhow another wagon finished for the rake, only a couple more to do.

Finished milk tanker, with the older livery clearly peeking through.

Although actual modelling has been slow this week and the past couple, I have been thinking a lot about the next layout.  I do not have room to store to Charlton, so I am going to see if I can sell it.  This is quite a painful thing to do, but it is definitely time to move onto the next project and free up some space.  I now have a clear plan what I will do for the next layout, so it is just a question of ordering the baseboards this week.  I already have some of these, so it is a question of joining the dots - hopefully more to follow on this....

Some comings and goings and Charlton station

The last few weeks have been just as time consuming as the rest of this year, meaning modelling continues to take a back seat.  A few models are nearing completion, namely the class 45 and a couple more vans for the engineers department.  This is great, but I am still yet to make a start on the new baseboard for the next micro layout, alongside fairly infrequent starting up of the air brush.  However, a couple of weekends ago I did manage to get the layout set up for an hour or two on Sunday afternoon and run a couple of trains.  So here is a class 25 on an engineers strain, with the recently finished sturgeon wagon, alongside some other kit built stock (dance hall brake van, salmon wagon, CCT, BY and 20t brake van).  Then the same class 25 on parcels train with more kit built stock (CCTs and SPVs).  Just running these trains does give me a great amount of pleasure knowing the time and effort I put into building these different models.  Fingers crossed for some more progress later this month, although time is very limited between now and mid December....

Class 25 on an engineers train.

Same locomotive on the same day on a parcels turn.

A big fish: Sturgeon wagon finished (finally)

This week I managed to find a couple of spare evenings for finishing off the sturgeon wagon.  The wagon is built from the Cambrian kit and I started building it some time in 2016.  Since then, it has sat around in various boxes awaiting painting and I am delighted it is now finally finished.  I put the primer on this wagon about 8 months ago (I think) and have slowly been painting it over the last few months.

Finished sturgeon wagon in Charlton station.

View from the other side.

The wagon was built as per the instructions and painted using an airbrush with Railmatch enamels.  Transfers come from the CCT range, with a few additions from Modelmaster, such as the data panel. Overall, I am delighted with this wagon.  It looks the part and was certainly worth the effort.  There are a few areas where I think the finish could have been better, but I overall I think it looks pretty good.  I currently have another Sturgeon to build, with the doors removed, and I will look to start this kit as soon as I have finished off the multitude of half finished wagon kits I have.  

Some more shots of the finished wagon.

Next weekend I plan to set the layout up on Saturday and spend a little time running some trains.  I will see how this wagon performs on the layout and I am looking forward to seeing it running.  I also have a few other wagons very near completion and the detailing of the class 50 and 45 is progressing well.  All in all, very satisfying to see some progress.

Some buildings for the new micro layout

I have continued to make a little progress on a few models.  Time sometimes seems to run away and a week will pass with absolutely nothing having been achieved.  I think the change of routines due to lockdown and covid has hampered my modelling a little this year, but I am making a concerted effort to find dedicated modelling time and push some projects to completion.  I have a 3ft * 1.5ft baseboard to build for a new microlayout.  It will have a very basic track plan and will be connected to a series of other layouts (well that is the plan!).  So over summer I managed to make a start on two buildings for this first micro  layout, being a goods shed and a platform shelter.

The good shed is an LCUT small goods shed, laser cut, wooden kit.  It is an interesting model to construct and it is my first laser cut kit.  In the building stages it seems a little basic, although I plan to add some guttering and down pipes to flesh out the detail a little.  I am hoping to get it finished over the next week.  Until its painted I will reserve judgement on the kit, but the parts fit together nicely and it seems pretty study.

Goods shed during construction.

Close up showing the detail on the kit.

The second building undergoing construction is the platform and shelter.  I have scratchbuilt the platform shelter from plasticard and rectangular plastic struts.  It is a simple building, but the dimensions look about right.  The platform is also going to be built from plasticard and Dart castings SR platform legs.  The platform itself is an ongoing construction (i.e. I am thinking about it!!!).

Platform shelter after construction.

However, it is pleasing to see the models progressing a little and I might even get around to building the baseboard kit this week!  In addition, a few models are nearing completion in the paint shop, so hopefully a few finished models to post on here in the next couple of weeks.