We have combined the scales this weekend and offer a number of resources for the rolling stock builders amongst you. We have divided the content by subject area to help you navigate the collected information.
Steve Duckworth has documented the building of S&DJR 0-4-4T No. 31 for us.
We also present the three projects from Tony Wright’s Activity Media DVD’s on the subject of building locomotive kits. Our 7mm tutor, Kevin Wilson, invites participants to visit his own website.
- Soldering – a key skill for the rolling stock builder, we have collected together a number of tips, articles and videos on the topic of soldering.
- Chassis Construction – every good locomotive needs to be built on a good foundation, in the case of our models that foundation is a solid, square chassis.
- Motors & Gearboxes – how you power your model can make a big difference to the realism of the final product. A power unit that runs well, fits the space available and is powerful enough to drive your locomotive is of utmost importance.
- Rods & Valve Gear – the metal “knitting” that looks so good on the finished article but is a source of dread for some modellers.
- Metal Working – all aspects of bending, shaping and finishing the various metals our kits are made from.
- Boiler Fittings – all things that attach to the boiler.
- Handrails – an important and prominent detail on any model.
- Tender Construction – some hints and aids to building the water and coal carrier for our locomotives.
- Adding Detail – the small, detail parts are often the things that mark out a good model from an average model.
- Tools – an area where we talk about and share information on the kit-building tools we can buy or make.
- Trouble shooting – whilst not strictly a locomotive building topic we look at reasons why our locomotives may not run well.
Steve Duckworth’s S&DJR No. 31
Steve Duckworth’s project to build a Somerset & Dorset 0-4-4T for his blue period S&DJR layout. The build is based on an Avonside kit but with a chassis from Rumney Models that required a little stretching to fit under No. 31. Click here to view this project.
Tony Wright’s Activity Media Projects
Some of the content you will see on the pages listed above is from the Activity Media DVD’s volumes 1 & 2 in which former Missenden tutor Tony Wright builds three locomotives. If you would rather follow the building of each of these locomotives then you may do so by clicking on this link to the Locomotive Building Projects page. These pages contain a lot of videos that can be slow to load.