Chris Gwilliam

This is one of the second-generation kits from Blacksmith, with computer-generated artwork for the body etches by the late Carl Legg, and I was anticipating that it would be a significant improvement on the already very good original Mallard bodies. As you will see, it is something of a ‘yes but…’ as the body brings additional problems with its extra details. The bogies are however still to the original Mallard design, serviceable but not cutting edge. My example was bought before the Blacksmith range changed ownership following the retirement of David Smith.

The E24 and E25 composites were quirky vehicles, laid out with a coupé compartment at each end, presumably to give the right proportion of 1st to 3rd class seats needed by the running department for the traffic on offer. They provided toilet facilities for passengers in the only fullwidth 1st class compartment, but not from the coupé 1st. The 3rd class passengers had no lavatory facilities of course; the hoi-polloi just had to wait until their destination. I am not sure why the diagram number was changed mid-way though the construction of the various lots; it might have been something to do with a change in the layout of the luggage and lavatory compartments. Building dates of the lots straddle the turn of the 19th into 20th centuries. I opted for Lot 466.

Instructions

The instructions are the usual Blacksmith generic sheets on how to build their etched kits, with three more pages on this specific vehicle. They are rather terse and there are some issues which are not answered, principally concerning which end of the coach the steps for roof access are to be placed. There is no photograph to enlighten us, just a small and very blurred GWR body drawing which lacks such details. Furthermore, none of the standard published volumes has a picture of these diagrams. I guessed that the steps go at the 3rd class end, as this seems to have been the more usual choice for composites, though not universally applied.

There is a rather better GA drawing of the underframe arrangements, so it is easy to get the various components in their correct locations. I do not know if the new owners of Blacksmith have made any alterations to the instructions. Significantly more 0.9mm brass wire for gas piping, rain strips, etc. is needed than was provided, and much of the wire in the box was 1.3mm and too thick to be of use. There were some other niggles which I will cover in the build sequence, but on the whole I would say the kit is provided with sufficient parts to enable you to make an accurate and reasonably detailed model.

A warning about the full third Diagram C3/C10 kit from the same range.

I built the coach in tandem with another from the same series, the full third, also drawn by Carl Legg, which I will not cover in detail here as the basic principles of construction are much the same. But if you do plan to buy the full third, be aware that the kit was marketed as being suitable for either Diagram C3 or C10, and was supplied as standard with 8ft 6in bogies, which are correct only for C10, the C3 needing 6ft 4in bogies. However, the etches for the solebars and solebar overlays have the holes for the scroll irons at spacings suitable only for 6ft 4in bogies, and the running boards have half-moon clearances for the scroll irons cut out at the same spacings. So unless supplementary solebar, solebar overlay and running board etches for 8ft 6in wheelbase bogies are now included, the kit will not build an accurate C10, so make sure you ask for 6ft 4in bogies to be included as replacements to build a C3.

The tumblehome has been formed by finger pressure, and the top and bottom folds have been made

You should also ask for a replacement V-hanger etch with two queen posts, as the kit is supplied with the four queen post version used only on the C10. The kit is also supplied with etches for the lower hinges, but there are no slots in the tumblehome to accept them, which is quite a serious omission. The upper hinges are represented simply by small indentations in the etch. There are backing plates for the T-handles, but they are over-scale and consequently overlap the end radius of the waist panels, so I omitted them as lining out would be impossible with them attached. No such etches are provided in the composite.

An additional bar across the lavatory window to form the transom light. Note the additional ventilator in the panel above the window

Making a start on the composite body

The etch is very crowded as so much body detail is supplied, and it took me a whole morning to remove the parts from the sheet and clean them up. The most fiddly job was cutting the door ventilators out of the voids in the droplights, each one being attached by four tabs, a total of 72 edges to be filed clean. As the lower body panel is half etched, there are no recesses for the door seams, and these are best scribed in whilst the side is still flat. This is also the time to open out the tiny holes for the commode handles and T-handles to 0.9mm. The handles will be applied after painting.

The compo has the original style of Mallard etched commodes which are not very good, but the full third had a plentiful supply of much better ones drawn specifically for that kit, so I used them on both coaches. There are also holes to insert bits of wire for door-bumps, but I filled these with solder, as the bumps impede clean lining out at the painting stage. I also omitted the bolection overlays for the same reason. In any case they are a nightmare to remove from the etch without distortion. The whole of the panelling presents a problem for the painter if full livery is required, as Carl drew the beading absolutely to scale, but that makes it almost impossible to draw three lines, gold on one shoulder, black down the middle and gold on the other shoulder. The original Mallard clerestories drawn by Fred Blackman had a sensible degree of exaggeration on the panelling, allowing enough room for the nib of a bow-pen to draw three stripes. A less detailed model with a decent paint job seems to me to be a better compromise than an exact scale model with an inevitably poor paint job.

There are slots in the sides for three hinges in each door, but it is easier to roll in the tumblehome before they are added. The etch is very thin and it is quite easy to get a uniform curve simply using finger and thumb pressure, with the side laid at a shallow angle against a hard surface. The hinges provided are too small for the slots and tend to fall through while you are trying to solder them in place, and as the parts are to be bent into an L, they would make glazing difficult around the quarterlights. I simply slotted in a length of scrap strip chosen to be an interference fit, applied a touch of solder from inside, then cropped it almost flush with the outer surfaces with side cutters, and filed it back slightly. It also helps if you trim a little from the corners of the droplights on the hinged side of the door to give a bit more room for the soldering iron. Once all the hinges and droplights are in place, fold over the seams at floor level and at the cant rail, the latter to match the roof profile, not at 90 degrees.

On the full third I had assembled the double-skinned ends as per instructions, but with all the brass partitions in place the body was very heavy, so in an effort to save some weight I omitted the inner skin on the compo, and found that the resulting rectangle of sides and ends was sufficiently rigid once the partitions were applied. Delay fitting the end steps until after this process. I used some substitute steps which were spares from an old Mallard kit, as the ones provided seemed to me to be a bit skimpy.

The lavatory partition is made from a cut-down spare compartment partition, with an additional panel from scrap brass

Now add the partitions, but make sure you clean all the cusp off the partition edges or there will be an ugly witness mark showing through the paper-thin half-etched panels. One of the panels was so thin that there was a perforation which had to be filled. Note also that the partition in the luggage compartment needs to be cut to half width, and you will need to find a piece of scrap etch 43mm by 24mm to form the diagonal wall of the toilet compartment. Also remember when you come to fit the seating later that there should be two short seats, not one full width one, on the partition next to the lavatory, because there is an access door to the lavatory from that compartment. In fact I cut all the seats into two sections in order to install them as it is very tricky to get a full-width seat into position with the partitions already soldered in. The usual GWR practice was to place a ventilator in the panel above the lavatory window, and there are spares on the etch so you can do this (it is not mentioned in the instructions). I also added a strip of scrap brass across the lavatory window frame as there should be a transom light. The toilet window is the one between the luggage compartment and the first class compartment when the first class accommodation is at the right hand end of the coach. The mirror image window on the far side is for the luggage compartment, and I assume it was plain glass backed by bars or mesh, not obscured glass, and it would have had neither transom light nor ventilator.

Underframe

The headstocks can be folded and inserted next. They are both provided with two steps, which need removing from the headstock at the non-step end. Form the rivets on the headstock overlays and fit them. The full third kit came with buffers ready-assembled, but the ones for the compo needed springs and heads inserting in the white metal barrel, which proved to be very tiresome as the steel buffer shanks were too large and would not fit. Clearing the inside of the barrel was likely to be easier than trying to remove more metal from the shank. I used 1.2 and 1.4mm broaches rather than risk damage with a drill as one barrel already had a crack from off-centre drilling. This process wasted most of an hour, which is unacceptable in my book. The holes in the headstock and headstock overlay also needed reaming out slightly to take the buffer stems. I soldered the buffer-shank retaining nut to the steel thread to prevent the nut coming unscrewed in service.

The step end

The gas-pipe end

Third-class end showing coupé compartment with the unusual end-window. The choice of this end to mount the steps was a best-guess. Note that the compartment lacks a commode handle as there was no space for the GWR to mount one

The solebars follow. I found I needed to remove a tiny sliver from each end and to cut a notch to clear the folded-under section of the headstock. Tabs and slots assist the process of seaming up the joint between solebar and body. Small pieces of 0.9mm brass wire must be inserted into the solebar and its overlay to form mounting brackets for the running boards, and these can be fitted simultaneously with the overlay which will secure it in position. Don’t raise the dimples for the bolt-heads on the mounting plates for the scroll irons or the castings will not fit flush, and don’t fit the running boards yet as they are somewhat fragile and are best left until the work on the rest of the underframe has been completed.

The solebars have been added to the body shell on the non-lavatory side

Clip off any wire which intrudes into the space behind the solebar to avoid fouling the bogies, the V-hanger assembly and buffer shanks. At some point in their lives, usually post-1914, most Dean clerestories lost the centre section of their lower running boards and as I was going to paint the coach in 1923 chocolate and cream I omitted these boards. If you are going to fit the lower running boards you should fit L-shaped wire brackets to mount them on and you may find you need to shorten the running boards to allow for bogie swing on non-scale curves.

The bolsters are folded and soldered with a retaining nut inside, and omega loop-shaped strapping is added to the gas cylinders from scrap strip. The tails of the loops are attached to scrap brass stretchers under the floor

Two different sets of V-hangers are provided, but you only need one pair, the longer ones being better, and they must be joggled to clear the trusses. This section of the etch is best built as a sub-assembly with the vacuum cylinder and cranks, then added to the floor. There are two sets of ‘rabbit-ear’ cranks provided. Use the ones with the longer shanks, which will give better clearance between the cylinder and the cross rod. You will have to mark a centre line on the underframe to ensure that the Vs are seated in the exact middle of the coach, which is not on the centre line of the door above. I substituted slivers of brass for the queen post detailing, as the etched parts had their slots obscured by un-etched metal. According to the drawings the vacuum cylinder is offset to the 1st class end and on the nearside when the 1st class is to the left.

The gas cylinders have brass barrels (cut to slightly different lengths on my sample) with white metal ends. I added some strapping from scrap etched strip rolled into omega loops and used these to attach the cylinders to the floor. You will also need to source some scrap brass sheet to form a floor on to which the cylinders and brake safety loops can be attached. The bolsters should have a nut for the bogie screw soldered on the side with the half-etched lines, best done before the folds are made. Ensure the hole in the bolster lines up with the hole in the floor by threading a wooden barbecue skewer or similar through both holes, tack-solder, check the rubbing surface of the bolster is level in both lateral and longitudinal planes, then solder up solid. If you get this wrong the body will sit lop-sided.

You might prefer to solder a screw in the bolster instead, though it will be more unsightly when you come to mount the bogie. The bolsters are of course entirely un-prototypical as Dean bogies were mounted on the scroll irons which fitted into spring pockets on their frames, not from their centre points, the fudge being necessary as the prototype arrangement is impractical for a working 7mm/ft model.

Bogies

The 6ft 4in bogie etch is, it seems, the original Mallard 4mm/ft drawing from many moons ago enlarged to 7mm/ft. Etched brake yokes are now supplied, but no mounting points on the bogie frame and no shoes, so I omitted them. I found that it is much easier to place the Slater’s Mansell wheel sets into the bogie frames if two diagonally opposite corner seams are severed with tin-snips before any folds are made, then re-soldered after the wheels are in place.

A bogie frame folded up, with the severed diagonally opposed corners re-soldered

There is a small etching error: the half etched detailing strips for the axle-box retaining bars are etched on the wrong side so the rivets are invisible when the strips are folded up. I simply cropped them off and did without. The hole in the stretcher for the bogie pivot screw is too big and it is necessary to solder a 6BA washer underneath or the bogie will slop about. The 8ft 6in bogies on the 3rd class coach require packing washers to eliminate axle end-slop, but the 6ft 4in bogies on the compo do not, provided you drill out the rear of the axleboxes just deeply enough to clear the Slater’s bearings. Take care with this as the pop-mark on the rear of the axlebox casting is slightly off-centre and needs rectifying, and don’t drill too deep or you may go right through. One of the leaf springs was broken and needed re-soldering. My example also had two out of four incorrect castings for the cylindrical spring holders, clearly interlopers from a different kit entirely, and I had to waste another 30 minutes wrapping them in collars of brass shim to get them to the right diameter and a smooth (non-grooved) profile. Most Dean bogies seem to have retained running boards throughout their lives, though a few had them replaced by small chequer plate steps at outer corners as an in-service modification; these are not provided. Alternative bogie running boards are supplied, simple flat ones on the original bogie etch, and more sophisticated ones with up-stands on the CPL-sourced coach body etch. I used the simpler ones, as they are sturdier for a model which is to be used on a working layout.

Axlebox/spring castings soldered on with low-melt, and running boards attached

Checking the fit of the spring pockets

Forming a sleeve around the incorrect spring pocket casting so it resembles the correct version on the other bogie

Clerestory roof

Upper and lower brass roofs were pre-rolled to the right profile, though the lower roof was too wide and needed 1.5mm cropping from each edge with tin snips (unlike the full 3rd, which had a very skimpy lower roof and an upper roof which was too narrow and had to be replaced). The clerestory sides arrive as a flat etch with two folds to make to form a shallow U, and a slight curve needs forming in the base of the clerestory deck to match the profile of the lower roof. A series of slots help you make the fold easily, but leave unsightly gaps, which I later hid behind strips of Microstrip.

Mark a centre line on the lower roof to assist with accurate positioning, and initially just tack the ends of the upper deck. Check that it is central by holding it against the body ends and, when satisfied, seam up the upper deck ends to the lower roof. Then fix the remainder of the deck to the lower roof via the oval holes left where the ventilators have been removed. Add the upper end panels and two short lengths of wire to represent the gas pipes, which need to match those on the 1st class body end. Rain strips of 0.7mm wire are sweated on, and an L-shaped bracket from scrap brass strip was added beneath each end to assist in attaching the roof to the body.

The clerestory deck tack-soldered to the lower roof. The base of the clerestory component needs to be lightly curved to match the profile of the lower roof, best done before the sides are folded up

Test fitting the roof. The unsightly gaps left at the junction of the lower roof and the clerestory sides will be camouflaged by a length of Microstrip

The assembly is washed to remove flux, and the ventilators can be glued to the witness marks on the sides of the clerestory with superglue. The upper deck needs drilling to accept lamp tops, not forgetting the one above the lavatory. Two more rain strips are needed for the upper roof, and gas pipe runs, 0.9mm for the main supply and 0.45mm for the pilot light supply. Omit this thinner pipe if you are modelling the Compo in pre-1910 condition, as the pilot light system was an in-service modification.

Painting

The entire body was sprayed with an aerosol black primer, then masked and a thin coat of grey primer was added to the upper half of the body, then masked again when dry and the lower body air-brushed in GWR chocolate. It was then masked yet again and the upper body airbrushed GWR cream. The company colours are my favoured Comet cellulose, which I find will adhere to acrylic primers without crinkling the undercoat if it is applied sparingly. An airbrushed coat of satin varnish followed to protect the cellulose, which remains soft if not sealed, so that any mistakes in the lining process could be quickly wiped off with a dab of white spirit on a tissue if I made mistakes during lining (and there were a lot – see my comment above about the too narrow width of the beading).

The lining was done in the following order: black horizontals, black verticals, (Humbrol 85 satin black), maroon droplights and bolections (Humbrol 73 matt wine), ‘gold’ corner radii and horizontals (Humbrol 63 matt sand), and finally gold verticals. Transfers are HMRS Pressfix. Door furniture can now be fitted. My example lacked two T-handles, only 14 were provided but 16 are needed. There was some very good glazing in the box, Cobex or similar with protective film, but the full 3rd came with an inferior sort with a pronounced curl that rendered it useless. There was sufficient of the good stuff for both vehicles though it was a close-run thing. I sprayed the 3rd class seating a mottled dark red-brown (red oxide and black aerosols cans sprayed simultaneously using both hands!) but I left the 1st class seats mid-grey as supplied.

Close-up of the E24: the difficulty of lining the exact-scale panels is apparent. The commode handles were spares from the C10 Third

The acid test is how I would answer the question ‘Would you build another?’ and the honest answer is, no, I don’t think I would if full livery is required. The lining out was so troublesome. But if the coach could be in the simplified 1927 livery, then yes, I probably would.

The completed C10 Third, shown for comparison purposes. You should be able to make out the wrongly sited scroll irons, which are etched at centres suitable only for a C3 with 6ft 4in bogies