Class 47 update

Hello folks,

just a quick glimpse of more progresses on the Class 47. The cosmetic bogies are now ready. Next steps will be to tackle the fuel tank and the underframe.

Stay tuned.

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At last, a Class 47 in 1:87

In 2006 I told my friends and fellow British 1:87 modellers I wanted to create a kit for Class 47. Two years later, in an e-mail dated 10 July 2008 titled “Class 47 news”, I say: “Folks, I managed to create 3 kits for a Class 47, with cast resin cabs, brass photo-etched body, and a few other bits and pieces. The bad news is, I cannot make any more of them, as I don’t have the space for the equipment, the time, and I don’t really like the quality of the assembled models. Not to mention that I have a 1-years old toddler that must be kept away from my workbench.”

In short, I had to stop. The tools and my technique were not good enough, the logistics were bad, and the available materials hard to get. I tried, and I failed.

The problem is, I don’t like failures.

I am a engineer, a stubborn engineer, and engineers find solutions.

So, almost ten years later, I finally have my solution. I had to find the tools, the competences, the time, and the opportunity. I concede it was not a quick one, but anyway there it is. This evening I can finally hold in my hands the first 3D printed Class 47 cabin. My design, made with a 100% free software, printed on my own SLA printer.

My first Class 47. The first of many, I hope.

At last.

UV post-curing

No, this odd-looking contraption is not some sort of strange psychedelic lighting, rather it is the makeshift post-curing chamber for the 3D printed parts I am producing now. The long absence from the blog — I think it is almost one year since the last time I updated it — is due to the fact that I was a bit busy:

1. I started an engineering consultancy company with two associates, one of which is authoring the other blog here.
2. As a consequence of point (1), I am now the happy owner of a Form2 SLA 3D printer.
3. As a consequence of points (1) and (2), I am now getting very familiar with a number of 3D modelling tools, in primis OpenSCAD and Blender.

Having some engineering equipment at home, in between the ‘official’ engineering activities, we do some modelling and we also offer modelling services. The three parts you see being cured in the picture are the cabin sections of a Class 47 and a Class 43 HST British locomotives, both in 1:87, and the body of a 2-axle bolster wagon of yesteryear, in 3mm / 1:100 scale, a print experiment for a fellow modeller and prospective customer.

I will update the site shortly with more informations and a new article about the Class 47, while the Class 43 HST progresses are being detailed in the Virtual Models Atelier.

Cheers, everyone.

Lorenzo

BT-H 1907 Metropolitan Railway locomotive

After a long hiatus, here I come back with something new. I am finally back at the workbench with a BT-H 1907 Metropolitan Railway locomotive.

3D printed BT-H (1907)

This model comes courtesy of a a couple of fellow modellers. I will describe in more detail the entire story behind this model in the article which will appear in due course.

Stay tuned.

HST125 / Class 43 update

Yes, I know. I have been absent for an awful lot of time. This is what happens when life gets in the way of modelling.

Anyway, I might have been inactive, but someone else was definitely not. Here’s my wife latest update on a design project I commissioned her: the basic elements for a 1:87 HST 125 / Class 43 locomotive.

Quick rendering (i.e. not entirely accurate) of the 1:87 HST 125 cabin.

It is nice, is it not?

Happy modelling, everyone.

P.S. yes, you read correctly. I am married to a (computer) modeller 🙂  It does not get any better than this, I think.

Southern Railway 1:87 decals

After a long and admittedly tortuous development, I finally managed to finish the decal sheet for the Southern Railway. This means that now I have no more excuses, and I can finally try and finish the model that has been sitting since ages on a shelf over my workbench: a West Country light pacific, scratchbuilt, still unfinished and an original work of the late Mr. Malcolm Carlsson, one of the pioneers of 1:87 in Great Britain.

G.N.S.R. typeface for locomotives.

This evening I printed the first sheet of a new decal set for the Great North of Scotland Railway (G.N.S.R.), dedicated to the steam locomotives. With this set the coverage of the G.N.S.R. is almost complete, at least for the conventional rolling stock.

It might be immodest to say, but I am very proud of the final result. Here you can see a picture (taken with my phone, sorry) of the actual item.

The latest G.N.S.R. typeface for steam locomotives in 1:87.

The 1:76 and 1:152 versions will be produced in due time, if demanded.

Cordon article, at last.

I know, I know. I have no excuses.

It took me three years (three!!!) to sort out the pictures for the G.W.R. “Cordon” article — and now you can enjoy again the full description about the scratchbuilding of this little cute wagon.

Enjoy!

And now for a change…

I have been busy recently, too busy in fact to do any serious modelling. On the other hand, I had time to explore other areas, and I finally discovered that I like to build architectural models out of paper and cardboard. In particular, it was the discovery of this fantastic site, Scalescenes, that got me started. I first tried the freely downloadable small goods shed:

A small goods shed, in 1:87

and once I saw how good it came out despite my rubbish printer, I did two things: first, I bought myself a much better printer 🙂 and second, I went for the North Light Engine Shed, which I explicitly wanted to make as a toy for my 6 years old son and still turned out remarkably good:

North Light Engine Shed, in 1:87. A british HO toy!!!

Now I only have to keep calm, otherwise I will fill up my house with these things.

A couple of articles will appear shortly, so stay tuned.

Update 23 November 2013: the small shed article is here.

Update 25 November 2013: the North Light Engine Shed article is here.

Class 47 progresses

Preparing the main parts for the class 47 shell

As you can see from the picture here on the left, I have finally started again to work on the class 47 project. I have already scratchbuilt one, which most likely will be featured here as well. That model was my first try at producing a kit and, although four of them were made, I was not entirely happy with the outcome.

This second try takes a different approach: is is (or better, will be when ready) a fully resin cast body. In the picture you can see, from left to right:

• the blank master for the cabin, i.e. still without any detail to allow production of whatever class subversion I wish;
• the still unfinished master for the central body section. In the next few days I will proceed with the application of all surface details.
• four (one free from the casting protrusions, three just out of the mould) cast blank cabins, destined to be the masters for the detailed cabins, i.e. with lights and headcode box as required. To cast these parts I am using resin charged with brass powder — it gived more weight and hopefully more resistance to the master.

Stay tuned for other posts as the project marches on.