Bits 'n' Pieces



Hang on t' brass, lad!

The insignificant objects in the picture are significant in my modelling. On the right is a valve wheel off the 'small dome' of my 042T Weidknecht Decauville. It has appeared before, which in a way is why it appears again now: I decided I was unhappy with the amount of solder defacing it and its 3 companions. So at ExpoNG last year I loitered at the Meridian Models stand and bought myself a Meriparts bag of assorted wheels. Last weekend the original offenders were removed and replaced with what I hope are a better testament to my soldering abilities.

The object on the left is, or was intended to be, a replacement crank for the same loco. It is 4.5mm long and links a rod from the loco cab to the steam dome. Again I was unhappy with the huge blob of solder that was my initial effort at fixing it. The picture shows my first attempt at crafting a replacement crank, fashioned from a spare bit of fret. As I was holding it in a pair of tweezers and bring the soldering iron towards it: 'ping'! It was lost.

From the depths of somewhere rose a calmness that threw me: I didn't swear. I simply picked up the brass fret and made another part which as it turns out was better than this one. This one, by the way, turned up as I was cleaning off my workbench in preparation for visitors (one of the problems of modelling in the spare bedroom).

The significance for my modelling is that I've tended previously to depend solely on kits as they are. When I've spoiled a part in the past, it has either been disregarded or the entire kit given up on. When I eventually finish this loco, I may be a step nearer tackling a scratch-build than I expected.