Some real progress with the Warwells, at last.  Here are the first three, rolling and coupled, loaded with Cromwell tanks.

But it’s been a real game getting there.  I started by using the NGS diamond frame bogies with Farish wheels.  But I have been most unimpressed with the NGS product.  It needed a washer of Plasticard to get the correct ride height for the wagon.  And when I fitted the wheels, the pin-point bearings wouldn’t turn freely, even with a little work to the bearing holes.  It got close to throw it at the wall time….

Next, the fixing pin for the bogies is almost impossible to glue into place without seizing up the bogie pivot.  This was solved by cutting the top off the pivot and using it as washer, with a small screw retaining the bogie.  One solution, I guess!

And finally, the coupling boxes, NGS NEM or Farish original, clashed with the jacks at the end of the wagon, and although I knew this was a problem, they also protruded a long way past the buffers (think recent Dapol Siphon G with NEM couplers.)  I tried cutting back and resticking the NEM adaptor to the shortened bogie, but this didn’t really work, as no glue seemed to hold to the NGS bogie material.

So I abandoned the NGS bogies, and went back to the Farish spares that I had in stock.  Less well detailed, but the pin-points run perfectly.

And as for the couplings, I abandoned the standard N gauge coupler and built my own hook and loop system.  This is based on the coupler that Iain Rice uses in 4mm scale, called the ‘Imprecise’ coupler, as the dimensions aren’t critical.  I think that I could have used slightly thicker wire, and for every coupling built, one ended up lost on the floor, but they finally came together.

All this can be seen in the photos below.  One more Warwell and three Warflats to do….

And an excellent post from Chris Morris on NGF Facebook.  It really sums up the best in railway modelling, and I wish that I would learn some of these lessons!

Thought for the day.

Building a working and fully scenic model railway is a great achievement. The builder has to use many very different skills to get there. Anyone who has got there should be pleased with themselves and enjoy the achievement. There will always be things that you wish you had done better and things that you know are wrong but don’t let this spoil enjoying what you have done.

We all learn from building a layout and we can try to do better next time. Its very nice when others are enthusiastic about the work you have done; in fact one of the best feelings. If some folk point out faults then listen and either disregard the comment because it is unimportant to you or, if you think it is valid, try to improve. Don’t be too critical of your own work though. It’s amazing how you, as the builder, know where faults are but those viewing it just don’t notice.

There will always be layouts that are better than the one you have just built but don’t beat yourself up. A lot of the very best layouts are a group activity where members of the group have different skills. On some other great layouts the owner/builder may have paid for a specialist to do some of the work. I’ve heard this described as “cheque book modelling”. Whilst I do everything myself on my layouts I see nothing wrong with buying in expertise if you need it or simply don’t have the time to do it yourself.

So in conclusion, enjoy your modelling, be pleased with what you have achieved and think about what you might do better next time.