A TALE OF TWO EIGHT FREIGHTS.

Two modellers build a pair of Tower Collection Stanier 8F 2-8-0’s in ‘O’ gauge.

Background to the builders.

Two modellers with very different levels of experience set out to build a pair of heavy freight locomotives. Warren Haywood is a highly experienced modeller, over the last few years he has built over 50 gauge ‘O’ locomotive kits and prefers D.J.H., Tower Collection and Gladiator. His work has been featured in a number of articles and can frequently be seen at exhibitions. Steve Lewis is a relative new comer who has only built three locomotives so far. He cut his teeth on the Tower Collection Class 02 diesel kit, which was designed for beginners and was encouraged by the results. He went on to build a Class 20 and a Class 47 but decided it was time to try a steam outline locomotive. Egged on by Warren he dived in at the deep end and bought a top of the range kit. This article details the pairs experience with the kit.

History of the prototype.

The 8F 2-8-0 designed by Stanier and introduced in 1935 was the first modern locomotive of this wheel arrangement to run on L.M.S. rails. Fowler had produced 2-8-0’s for the S.D.J.R. earlier but the 8F was a far more successful type. So much so that a total of 852 were built including a batch for the War Department, many of which saw service overseas. After the war 666 of the class operated on British soil making it the largest Stanier Class. Many of the class remained in service until the sixties.

Background of the Kit.

The Tower Collection 8F kits come with a choice of riveted or welded tenders. The riveted version will cover locomotives 8146-8225, 8264-8285, 8400-8429, 8500-8559 and 8730-8772 a total of 235 engines. The welded tender version will cover locomotives 8301-8399, 8430-8479, 8490-8495, 8600-8729 and 48775, a total of 286 engines. The information given here is as built but it must be remembered that in later life many locomotives swapped tenders so if a particular locomotive at a set date is required then obtain photographic evidence. Both kits are based on the long firebox version with the choice of Stanier tenders. For reference see “Stanier 8F’s at work” by Alan Wilkinson, published by Ian Allen.

Contents of the kit.

The Tower Collection 8F is complete except for wheels, motor, gears and couplings. The body consists of a three piece cast pewter firebox / boiler / smokebox assembly with the cab, tender and footplate supplied in etched brass. Pewter castings are supplied for chimney, dome, cyclinders, axleboxes, buffer beams etc. The chassis is mainly etched brass. Fluted nickle silver valve gear is supplied in conjunction with a mixture of etched brass and lost wax cast brass parts to complete the motion. Sprung buffers, vac pipes, handrail knobs etc are all supplied with the kit.

Extra parts required.

Both modellers chose Slaters wheels and plunger pickups and Tower Models sprung screwlink couplings. Warren used a Slaters GB03 spur-drive gearbox motor. Steve used a D.J.H. gearbox motor based on a Mashima 1833. (Please note the larger D.J.H. OGDC2 based on the Buehler motor is too large to fit into the firebox). The only other items needed were low melt solder, 145 degree solder, two part epoxy, superglue, flux, paint and transfers.

First impressions.

Steve ordered his kit and parts by mail order. The kit was ordered over the phone and good to their word Tower Models had it delivered the following day. The kit arrived packed in a strong plain brown card outer wrapper. Once removed the kit box itself was found to be a large maroon box. On opening the lid the contents were beautifully packed in foam, the major castings all wrapped in corrugated card, the smaller parts being vacuum packed in clear polythene for easy recognition. There appeared to be no trace of the main etchings but once the foam was lifted out of the box the etchings were found to be safely all wrapped up at the bottom of the box. Steve knew that these were not cheap kits and the quality was immediately obvious. The care and attention to detail in the packing, the quality of the castings, a twenty page instruction leaflet and fourteen pages of illustrations all told the same story. Steve sat himself down to read the instructions and study the parts before starting the building process.

Warren had collected his kit direct from the shop on one of his regular visits. The contents came as no surprise to him as he had built so many kits from the range before.

Building the tender.

The instructions suggest that the tender is built first. This is good advice. The modeller builds the easy bit first and gets chance to learn the basic layout and construction method recommended by the manufacturer. The Tower Collection is a range of kits manufactured exclusively for Tower Models by D.J.H. Engineering. Anyone who has built a D.J.H. ‘O’ gauge kit will be used to both the quality and the style of build that is the standard set by the Consett based company.

The tender chassis is a brass etching. It is necessary to score and bend up the chassis sides after fitting the bushes. Small parts such as brake gear brackets, water scoop hangers and such like are all then soldered in place. Once the basic assembly is completed the wheels can then be fitted. It is important to check for level and ensure the brake shoes once fitted do not foul the wheels. The tender body can now be assembled. The etched brass tender sides are supplied pre-bent which saves a difficult job. The sides, front and rear are now all soldered together. A useful tip to prevent buckling or distortion when soldering is to place a steel ruler flush with the side and footplate and hold firmly whilst soldering. Once the basic tender body box has been completed all small parts such as steps, lamp irons, buffers, etc. can then be soldered in place. Even as an inexperienced modeller Steve had the tender fully assembled in under six hours. So far so good. The completed tender was then laid aside so work could commence on the locomotive. Warren having built a number of Stanier tenders before had completed the tender very quickly. As he said the construction really is simple and the exploded diagrams easy to follow.

Building the Locomotive Chassis.

Following the instructions both modellers started by laying out the frames. The axle bushes are soldered in place along with the spring details. The Slaters plunger pickups were fitted in place and the driver axles inserted. The gearbox motor needs to be fitted at this point and must be fitted on the third axle with the motor going vertically up into the firebox. Next the wheels were fitted and checked for free running. The brakes were then soldered in place and care taken to avoid fouling the wheels.

The pony truck is a brass etching and needs to be folded up, being careful to ensure it is kept square. The wheels are then fitted and the complete unit laid aside.

Returning to the chassis the motion brackets are then soldered in place. With all his experience Warren disregarded the instructions and fitted the motion brackets before he fitted the wheels. Once in place the wheels cannot be fitted. He had to unsolder the motion bracket to fit the leading drivers. This is a point worth remembering.

Both modellers found it easier to concentrate on completing the valve gear on one side at a time. The coupling rods need to be laminated as do the connecting rods. It is necessary to tap the return cranks 12BA. This came as a surprise to Steve and delayed production for a couple of days whilst he obtained some taps. Sensibly he also obtained a supply of small drill bits. A quantity of drills 0.8 / 1.0/ 1.1 / 1.2 / 2.0mm are essential and most modellers know how easy it is to break small drills.

The assembly of the valve gear is fairly straight forward but does take time and care. As each section is assembled and fitted it is necessary to check it all moves freely. A little oil should be applied once the assembly is completed. With the motor now wired to the pickups the locomotive can now be given its first test run. Look for any possible shorts or any parts fouling each other. Steve spent several hours making minor adjustments and corrections before he was finally happy with the running. Work can now start on the body.

Assembling the locomotive body.

The cab is assembled first. The roof is supplied pre-bent. The basic box of the cab is soldered up. The backhead is assembled separately and fixed into place later. It is a good idea to paint the backhead before fitting in the cab. It can be glued into place with epoxy resin later. The buffer beam assembly can now be completed and set aside. There are options here so time to check some prototype photographs. The footplate can now be assembled but ensure the brass etching is flat and level. The pre-assembled cab is then soldered onto the footplate. The large pewter castings that form the smokebox, boiler and firebox can now be cleaned prior to assembly. The basic fit was found to be excellent and details such as chimney, dome etc can be fixed in place. From now one it is just a bit of a slow job adding all the additional detail such as handrails, pipework etc. Warren had taken about 30 hours to get the locomotive to the fully built but unpainted stage. Steve reckons it had taken him more than 100 hours.

Before painting the locomotive it should be completely re-assembled and track tested. For painting the body of both the locomotive and tender are separated from the chassis.

Painting and lettering.

Both modellers cleaned up all parts for painting using soapy water. This is to help kill any flux still on the metal. Afterwards rinse the parts and allow to dry. Steve used Halfords car undercoat in a spray tin to undercoat his locomotive. Warren has an airbrush and so normally uses Railmatch paint. However, he too used Halfords undercoat. Steve used Railmatch black in a spray can to top coat the model and also Railmatch matt varnish once the locomotive has been lettered. Warren sprayed his 8F with Halfords satin black paint. Both modellers used H.M.R.S. sheet 14 B.R. locomotive lettering and insignia for both the crests and numbers. Warren used his airbrush to apply a weathered effect. Finally he topcoated the locomotive with a 50/50 mixture of Ronseal supertough matt and satin varnishes. A slight overspray of weathering was then applied with the airbrush.

Conclusions and criticisms.

Modellers are often quick to criticise and slow to praise. However, both Steve and Warren could not fault the finished models. They both appeared totally accurate and do allow for a number of variations. Neither locomotive had a single missing part. Nothing was damaged in the box attesting to the quality of the packing. The build can best be described as straight forward but slow. There was no need for anything other than minor cleaning up of the cast parts and very few items had any flash. The quality of both the etchings and the lost wax castings was extremely high. Warren with his wealth of experience claims that this is the best kit in either the D.J.H. or Tower Collection ranges.

Steve made the valid comment that although there are plenty of illustrations he felt as an inexperienced modeller that more details in the construction notes and even more exploded diagrams would be helpful. He suggested that some of the assembles could be dealt with in more detail, especially the section on valve gear. Despite this Steve is extremely pleased with his finished model and considers it well worth the expense and effort.

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