Traction Engine Progress

The Garrett traction engine is the focus of my attention for the moment. I'm waiting for a delivery of hexagonal plastic strips from the UK for fitting my Lister locomotive with some much needed bolt detail. In the meantime I'm busy assembling the traction engine.

Many parts have raised lines presumably to help decal placement. I'm sanding the lines off. Pipes coming from nowhere and endning on the middle of the water tank are dealt with at the same time. New pipes with proper functions will be fitted later. The sanding is mentally soothing. Nothing really to think about, just make sure a piece of plastic is worked into a flat surface. I'm using files and really cheap sanding sticks from the make-up section of my local super market.

I had a few title on the shelves of my library to help me get in 'traction engine mode'. Despite the books there are still a gadget or two on the model I don't what's for.

The wheels aren't fixed yet, but I've got the water tank and front wheel suspension glued in place. The cylinder assembly is glued, but can still be separated from the boiler. That will ease assembly of the motion and gears.

The Nystrup pixie finally caught on a photopgraph? No, it's one of my 1:35 figures posing with a 16 mm scale figure and traction engine to show what my change of scale means size wise.