Connoisseur LNER Lowfit Wagon
Purchased and reviewed by Robin McHugh
http://www.jimmcgeown.com
I purchased this kit from Jim McGeowan several Guildexes ago. It requires
the builder to provide wheels and bearings (Slaters are recommended,)
plus the usual paint and transfers. Parts are included for 'cosmetic' screw
couplings, but I decided to use alternatives.
Jim's kits have a well-deserved reputation for accuracy, good fit of
parts and ease of construction, as well as coming with excellent
illustrated instructions, and this kit proved to be no exception. The
instructions begin with a good general guide to assembling etched kits
and are well worth a read. The remainder of the ten-page booklet has
pictures to identify the castings and etchings, a (close to) scale side
elevation of the prototype, assembly sketches and more than adequate
step by step assembly instruction. There's also very brief prototype note
plus some recommended sources for further information. The instruction
booklets for all Connoisseur kits can be downloaded from the website
to allow prospective purchasers to decide if a particular kit suits their
needs.
Assembly was straightforward, I used an Antex 50W temperature controlled
soldering iron, mainly 145 degree solder for the brass parts
and 70 degree when fitting the castings. Flux was phosphoric acid, a 10%
solution. I clean up the parts after every soldering session using hot
water and washing up liquid, initially, followed by a scrub (baby bottle
brush) with Shiny Sinks liquid, and then a thorough rinse with very hot
water. All this soon finds parts that are not firmly fixed.
Long bends or folds were made by supporting the part between two
12 inch steel straight edges (rulers) clamped in an engineers’ vice and
using a third straight edge to apply even hand pressure when making
the fold. It's often worth going past the ninety degree angle a little as
there is usually a small amount of springiness at the bend and a slight
tendency for the metal to bounce back. Small bends were made using
a variety of pliers. I practised these techniques long before the days of
holds and folds and other aids that are now easily obtainable and
consequently have no experience of these.
I followed the instructions except in the springing of the buffers. The
instructions suggest using a wire through the coupling hook with the
ends bearing on the tails of the buffers. I prefer to use small coil springs
and this requires a simple modification that can be seen in the pictures
of the underside of the wagon.
There's a tiny bit of scratch building
technique involved to make the pins and chains that secure the
dropsides. Jim's describes this fully and it's fairly simple. A variation on
this can be used to create an impression of the lifting rings fitted to the
wagon's floor that enable loads to be secured. An etched impression on
the floor that might satisfy some builders but since I wanted to secure
the tractor with ropes, you can see what I did from the accompanying
pictures.
I also added the through pipe for the vacuum brake and some wires to
help trap the brake rigging, should it ever chance to fall off when the
wagon is in service! It all helps with the illusion.
Painting was straightforward. A coat of Halfords grey primer, some
Precision Paints LNER red oxide via my airbrush and then everything
below the solebars had an airbrushed coat of Precision Dirty Black which
is really a very dark and dusty grey. Transfers are HMRS methfix variety,
applied after a very light sprayed coat of clear gloss lacquer. I've yet to
give the wagon a bit of weathering. Screw couplings are those produced
by Premier Components and it's worth giving the milled brass hook a bit
of reshaping with some needle files before blackening and fitting in
place.
All in all, the kit is a pleasure to build and I would thoroughly recommend it as a first venture into the etched kit construction of our great pastime.
Half relief etched rings in the floor
24swg copper wire wrapped round a suitable drill shank is the basis for the rings
The rings are separated by gently rocking a curved blade along the coil till the
rings are cut through
A length of 28swg copper wire is twisted round the ring to form a tail that is fitted
through a hole drilled in the floor
The ends of the tails are trimmed to a suitable length
Premier Components screw couplings. On the right as supplied and on the left the hook has been reshaped to better represent the real thing and the adjusting screw has been shortened.
