Some notes on constructing Ian Kirk kits

Cyril Winsor

Over many years I have built more than forty coaches from Ian Kirk Kits, I am still learning. These kits are remarkable. Firstly, for overcoming the problems of recessed panels with wood grain vertical whilst all panels below waist line have the grain horizontal, all joins covered by beading; and secondly, the very low price which even today allows an average modeller to build a carriage for less than £80.

Mr Kirk makes this possible by supplying a bag full of individual plastic parts which are spot-on accurate. In order to assemble them the purchaser has a certain amount of preparatory work, firstly to separate the part from its sprue; many use a sharp knife, I prefer to use a fine (forty to fifty tooth) saw blade mounted in a piercing saw. Even then all edges must be cleaned up with fine files so that all edge surfaces are perfectly smoothed, very important.

The instructions given show the order of assembly but not how to ensure accuracy. I use a simple jig of well-seasoned planed timber three inches wide by eighteen inches long onto which I fix a suitable length of ¼in by ½in timber to provide a top datum. On the left side I fit a 90 degrees end-stop.

Such is the accuracy of the moulded parts that, when laid out, one can see what is required and with the use of a suitable solvent the parts can be glued together. But in this state the assembled side is very delicate. I therefore assemble as recommended on a length of 15mm wide plastic strip as supplied in the kit, positioned so that the lower edge will provide a step location for the floor. To ensure the supporting strip stays exactly where I want, I use three short pieces of double-sided tape setting the lower edge 42mm from the top. Warning: whilst some kits have the same number of joins each side, other corridor stock differs. Make sure each piece of your coach is tight up against its neighbour or you will end up with one side longer than the other.

Now comes decision time: The problem is two-fold: when to fix the glazing and exactly how to position the end panels, the aim being to achieve a close-fit end to the roof but the kit does not provide a location stop.

You have two sides and two ends plus a length of black plastic for the floor, cut correctly for width but you to decide length; plus a roof which requires to be reduced in width and length. (More on that later.) With the floor length determined I draw a centre line in pencil along the length and another across the width, followed by centre lines for the two bogies. I then drill a small hole at the pivot centre to ensure I do not lose the mark. Main line corridor coaches are 61ft 6in long, and between bogie pivot centre lines there is 43ft (7mm scale 301mm). For 57ft 6in corridor and 5lft 1½in non-corridor coaches there is 35ft (7mm scale 245mm.)

Because of the difficulty of fitting the glazing, I proceed to complete the sides individually, with hand rails, door handles, paint and transfers, and a final coat of matt varnish. Only when this is fully dry do I turn the side over and fit the glazing. This is a great deal of work and it is up to each builder as to just how these matters are dealt with.

The roof

The roof as provided is correct in curvature but due to the manufacturing method it has waste on each side which needs to be removed. Ian Kirk says leave 1.5mm each side to form the cantrail. This requires you to paint the edge of the roof with body colour, which is beyond my skill. The cantrail is in fact a separate length of 3in wide pinewood which has been stained and varnished to match the teak body colour and seals the join between roof and body. For this I use a 0.020 x 0.080in length of plastic from Plastruct, colour it body colour and fix when dry. The roof of course needs detailing with roof vents, rain strip, water (cistern) filler and small hand holds, and on corridor coaches destination racks.

The chassis

We then tum to completion of the chassis, I build as the kit instructs, in particular using the plastic parts for the bogies. Some builders prefer separate metal fabrications from other suppliers at extra cost. I do not accept that this is necessary, my Kirk plastic bogies have stood up to dozens of hours of running without failure. I use wheels and axles from Easy Build who also include axle bearings which I sink deep into the plastic side frames. Colour – remember the centre of the wheels and solebars are painted to match the teak body colour.

With a completed side I then fix one side to the floor and using two or more compartment dividers as spacers fit the second side. When fully dry the prepared roof is offered up to allow the ends to achieve a close fit.

To ensure a strong join of ends to sides and floor I glue a seat section at each end. It is up to individuals to complete the internal fixings and seats as they wish. It is a lot of work but as has been said many times the satisfaction of building a model is the reward, plus of course the difference between £80 and the £200/£300 for a ready to run commercial product.

Of interest, superb restored rakes of Gresley Teak coaches are in regular use at Pickering (North Yorkshire Moors preserved railway), at Nene Valley near Peterborough, at the Severn Valley Preserved Railway and at the North Devon Line at Minehead (or were when I last visited which was some time ago.)

The above notes are for a full passenger coach only. For some reason Gresley built the guard/brake portion of his coaches six inches narrower but why I do not know. Clearly the floor can be reduced in width at this point but I found it best to construct the sides as two separate parts to be joined later. This presents a problem with the width of the brake end panels. With the non-corridor coaches the brake ends can safely be reduced in width by 1.75mm each side, but for corridor stock this would mean destroying the fine fit of the end to side that is inherent in the kit design. In this case I prefer to remove a 3mm strip from the centre of the end (by the time I have smoothed the cut it will be 3.5mm) but leaves a scar which is largely hidden by the corridor connection. The roof is not tapered and overhangs the side. I hope these notes are of help. Good luck kit builders.

If you are just starting: Squires of Bognor Regis Tel: 01243 842424 Code 5A1079/6 150mm piercing saw frame 1080/30 pack of 12 piercing saw blades 60TPI 1080/3 pack of 12 piercing saw blades 40TPI FLN 010 10-piece needle file set F12103 hand file second cut 6in Easy Build, Shawn Kay, Trenarth Victoria Road, Camelford, Cornwall, PL32 9XE Tel: 07834 063966 Wheels and axles (plus bearings)