O&K Steamed Up For Hard Work (1/35)

In the early 1950's Nystrup Gravel's steam locos were not used regularly. The locos were stored in a long shed at the lorry loading ramp area. The daily traffic was handled by the company's IC locos. But when demand for gravel was at its peak during summer at least one steam loco was usually steamed up.

Steam loco no. 2 pulling a train of empty skips past Banke's Bakelite on its way to the pits

The extra loco provided an added ressource and enabled a more intense traffic to be kept up. Just a few years later the steam locos were sold as scrap. My model of Nystrup Gravel's steam loco no. 2 was built in 2002 on the basis of a Fleischmann 'Magic Train' steam loco in 1:45 scale. Too bad that the 'Magic Train' range is now out of production. I would love to rebuild one more to accompany no. 2.

Nystrup Gravel's first two locomotives on the same photograph. As the old Alpha E 10 is standing in front of the loco shed, several of the newer locos must have been out of service. Otherwise the one cylinder locomotive would have remained in its shed. It was used only when all other options had failed!

Ancient Internal Combustion Locomotives on 600 mm Gauge (1/35)

Some railway enthusiasts prefer steam engines and many railway modellers share the passion for steam locomotives. I have a soft spot for the earliest internal combustion engine locos. Some of the pioneers of IC-loco manufacture weren't particularly focused on design, leading to some wonderfully alternative visual expressions. My model of a Danish built Alpha E 10 should prove that.

Not many of the earliest IC locos have survived. They were built in limited numbers, probably too fragile to serve for long and with a technology that still had to mature fully. Very few of these locos exists today and fewer are in operation. Fortunately we can now add one to the list, as the Frankfurter Feldbahnmuseum in Germany is currently test running Oberursel 6095 from 1913. The loco has a Danish connection as it came to Denmark after World War 1 to a peat company. From there the loco was passed on to a contractor that later donated it to a childrens' play ground. It is doubtful if the loco ever worked much in Denmark, but If the loco had seen limited use until then, it certainly changed as children from Copenhagen could now play the poor thing to pieces (not mentioning the Danish weather's hard treatment). The loco was rescued by the Danish Industrial Railway Society in 1982, moved to safe in door storage in the 1990's and lent to the Frankfurter Feldbahnmuseum in 2003 becoming their property in 2007. I don't think I ever dared to dream to see the loco in running condition. I think I will be visiting Frankfurt soon!

Nystrup Gravel Running Session (1/35)

Due to work, other obligations and a few teenage 'occupations' of our shed, the usual summer running sessions have been somewhat delayed. But now my small modules are set up and the first trains have been making their way across the crooked rails (that may still need some additional cleaning).

So far I have been running the gravel company's oldest locomotive and with some more running in, it will probably be a far more useful loco in1:35 scale than it ever was in reality.

  I haven't been modelling much during the summer. Rather I have been doing work on a real narrow gauge railway in company of a great bunch of men and women.

A great team of volunteers photographed on a sunny afternoon at the 40 years celebration at the Hedeland heritage railway.

As autumn is looming on the horizon I will be getting the workbench dusted off and made ready for new projects. But first I'll be enjoying some days of running trains on Nystrup Gravel's short line. Expect a few images here showing some of the trains travelling over the 600 mm track.

Driver In Nystrup loco No. 1 (1/35)

Earlier this week I finished Nystrup Gravel loco no. 1. I completely forgot the driver figure I had carefully built to fit in the loco, when I had the loco and a single module in the garden for photography . The driver has no legs. Instead he's equipped with a single nut in his lower torso to enable him to be bolted to a narrow platform just below the door opening. In that way I can remove him when the loco is parked idle on a siding or in the loco shed.

A snapshot of Nystrup no. 1 perched on the wooden box that will become its safe home when the loco is not on duty.

The Alpha E 10 Painted and Weathered (1/35)

Started almost three years ago my interpretation of one of the earliest Danish built locos with internal combustion engine is now finished. The loco from around 1908 was Nystrup Gravel's first loco. Surviving as long as into the 1950's with its original engine must be considered well done, although the loco wasn't used regularly from the mid twenties and forward. My model of the loco will get some exercise now and then, as it acts as a spare loco in case of break downs etc.

An old relic moving slowly and noisily through the woods around Nystrup. Built around 1908 it's a wonder it is still in running order.

I tested different ways to portray the greyish galvanised finish of the prototype. Here is a snap shot of some mixes on a scrap of foam board. The paint mix is pencilled below each test square.

I wondered how best to create an impression of the galvanised upper body. After some testing I settled for a 40/60 % mix of Vallejo 70.992 'Neutral Grey' and 71.064 'Chrome'. I air brushed the mix all over the upper body, roof and all. To make the colour appear a bit more varied I sprayed selected parts of the loco with a darkened mix of the base colour. With heavily thinned white and blue oil paint I added further variety to the colour. Then I brushed on random spots of 'Chrome' and 'Medium Grey' all over the upper body. I used a small brush as my experiments painting the spots with a teased out sponge didn't work out well. Going over the body with a few thin layers of a home mixed light grey oil paint blended in the spots. I think the result is passable for a galvanised surface when seen from a distance.

Chrome and Medium Grey spots appplied all over the body. Photo taken before the layers of thin grey oil paint were put on.

Front number added with brass stencil, masking tape and red paint. 

All major work finished on my model of a Frederikshavn Iron Foundry type Alpha E 10 loco. First snapshot on a hastily cleaned up worktable. I use snapshots like this for final 'quality control'. There is often something to be fixed on my models and digital images are perfect making the faults stand out. I fix some of them and live with others.

Obviously the model had to have the number 1 painted on its sides. I used a brass stencil from an old Stencilit set and red paint. When all four red numbers had dried I gave the body a quick spray with Vallejo matt varnish from a spray can. I then added a thin wash with black oil paint. A little rust here and there was suggested with burned sienna oil paint. Finally a thin layer of Humbrol acrylic 'Matt Kahki' was misted over the upper body from above with the air brush to represent dust. Grease cup and fuel lines were picked out in Humbrol 12 - 'Copper'.

The frame was painted  in Vallejo Air 71.123 'USAF Dark Grey' with buffers in contrasting 'French Blue' Vallejo 900. Weathering the frame was done with a black wash, black oil paint around the axle boxes, scratches and worn paint with paints and pencil, a little rust with oil paint and dusting with thin Humbrol acrylic 'Light Kahki' and an application of a little pastel chalk. On two of the axle boxes I represented wet oil spillings with a little more black oil paint and gloss varnish.

There is oil in the can for propulsion and the bucket is used to refill the radiator with water. Using evaporative cooling the loco probably needed almost as much water as it needed oil.

I fixed home made coupling chains to the buffers front and rear. The chains were blackened with 'Ballistol' and painted rust. I added an etched brass bucket to the right hand side of the loco. The bucket was painted white with two blue stripes and gloss varnished.

The loco managed trains of five loaded skips on the relative flat Nystrup Gravel line.

Unfortunately there seems to be tiny cracks developing on the right side and rear wall. Perhaps caused by the sandwiching of several layers of plastic card. I'll keep the areas under observation.

Alpha-loco: Building Finished (1/35)

Yesterday evening I finished building my 1:35 scale model Alpha E-10 loco. Most of the work involved fiddly little parts. Small brackets were made from scrap etched metal or plastic strip while bolt and rivet heads were made from sliced stretched sprue.

My interpretation of an Alpha E-10 loco from Frederikshavn Iron Foundy. Back in 1908 the constructors obviously weren't aiming to win a price for best design! While the loco may not be pretty or practical I find it very charming.

On the left side I installed oil tank and water funnel. The associated oil piping were made from thin electrical wires and bits of their insulation. I found a left over resin water tap and glued it to the bottom of the radiator's water tank. I suspect the tap was used to empty the tank when necessary.

A 'hat' over the radiator pipe (the loco's front chimney) was fabricated from a scrap part found in the spares box (I think it is from an old H0 lamp) and two pieces of brass wire. All very simple - at least a lot easier than if I had to make a 'hat' from thin brass.

The loco's right side complete with closed barn door and plenty of small brackets. One of the brackets on the rear wall looks perfectly ready to receive a model of a bucket in etched brass. It will add a little interest to the otherwise quite bare right side.

All locos from the manufacturer were most likely fitted with an upper body of galvanised steel plates. Some locos seems to have been painted a semi gloss silver/zinc while others were probably left in bare greyish galvanised steel. I am currently  trying to come up with a method of painting a 1:35 model in something that resembles galvanised steel (as I'm still not quite comfortable having a silver loco trundling back and forth on Nystrup Gravel). I have had the advice to use silver and dark grey with one of the colours roughly 'spattered' on through an air brush at low pressure. Glazing over this mix with several very thin coverings of light grey could probably resemble a galvanized surface. I'll test the method, but with paint applied with a teased out kitchen sponge. The sponge will (I speculate) give a random pattern of paint in a more controlled way. I'm testing several other options on scrap pieces of plastic card. Perhaps the Christmas holidays will provide enough time to allow the loco to be painted and equipped with DCC decoder?

Roof, doors, windows and a chimney (1/35)

No, it is not a house I'm building but an ancient internal combustion engine locomotive. After having finished most of the tasks on the frame, I progressed to the upper body of my Alpha E 10 loco. I decided to make the roof from plastic card despite my worries that it would turn out too fragile. I threw all caution to the wind, cut a piece of plastic and stuck it to a can of spray paint with tape and rubber bands. The can was repeatedly doused with boiling water followed by cold water from the tap. The plastic card took on the can's radius and fitted quite nicely on the loco. It was glued to the roof ribs with my standard Revell plastic glue and held in place over night with a generous amount of tape while drying.

Here is the loco seen from above before the roof was fitted. The many holes in the plate under the roof supporting ribs allow the fumes from the plastic glue to escape. Without holes there is a risk of the glue flumes distorting the plastic. The buffers are not yet fitted in this picture.

Roof and yet another chimney fitted. Some door strapping added. The window frames are turned brass port holes from Polish company RB-Model.

Left side of the loco with one of the two front 'port holes'. The upper body is only fitted temporarily on the frames and the brass window frame just push fitted in the hole.

In my last post on the loco I mentioned that it had a tendency to 'lean forward'. I added thin shims of plastic card under the front attachment point on the frame and gradually I got the loco to sit level to the rails. The shims were glued to the frame while making sure gears and wheels still turned freely.

A ghastly sight! My model seen from below before painting.

To fit a driver figure I glued a small platform below the open top door on the inner left side of the loco. Through a hole in the platform I can fix a bolt (my standard M2, of course) into a nut glued into the figure. This enables the amputated figure (mentioned previously on the blog) to be removed when the loco is parked idle. It may seem an awful lot of work, but I really think driver figures have to be removable in 1:35 scale. If not they attract far too much attention. Parked locos aren't supposed to be crewed by vigilant drivers!

The driver's platform can be seen above the door opening. Some of the loco body's internal structure is visible as well.

Close up af 9 mm. RB-Model brass port hole (item 04809) fitted in a front window.

Alpha Driver Figure (1/35)

In my last post you probably noticed a somewhat cut down figure among the two fitted with a full set of limbs. The image used by Frederikshavn Jernstøberi in an advertisement for the Alpha E 10 had inspired me to fit my 1:35 scale version of the loco with a similar driver figure. In a box I had a MK35 kit (F072) of a suitable subject for conversion. I wanted to show a bit more of the driver, so I placed him square in the door opening.

Fitting the driver in the cab wasn't easy. There is very little room for a figure because of the way I designed the loco's upper body to make it removable. The interior takes up a lot of space, too. Consequently the figure had to have its legs cut off above the knees and the top of the hat sanded off to fit in. I donated a new left arm to the figure from the spares box. Other than that he received nothing but my usual average attempt at a paint job.

The rebuilt MK35-figure fitted in the cab. The loco is progressing but I have been temporarily stopped because I used up my supply of appropriate plastic strip.

Frame Detail on Alpha-loco (1/35)

The frame on my Alpha-loco is now fitted with axle boxes, frame ends and couplings. Everything is made from plastic card and profiles. I'm struggling a bit with the many types of materials in the frame of the loco - choosing the right type of glue seems to be critical. I will be fitting a backing piece to each axle box to 'beef' them up (they seem to be lacking depth) which will also help to keep them more safely attached to the frame.

End plates and axle boxes during construction. I used Tichy Train bolt heads on the axle boxes.

Test 'running' past the loco shed. Apart from thickening the axle boxes I will have to work a bit more to get the loco's frame adjusted to level. Surely I can work a bit with the lights over my modules too...

The images and drawings I have of locos from Frederikshavn Jernstøberi show very primitive couplings not unlike those on a skip. I wanted to have something a bit more sturdy and have fitted my model with a homemade design. Possibly the original coupling was too weak and was replaced by the gravel company? I will paint the end plates/couplings a contrasting colour to the black frame to high light them as a later addition.

Oil Loco 'Alpha' E 10 - Continued (1/35)

After almost a year of inactivity I finally got my project to build a model of an ancient Danish built oil engine loco going again. Shortly after having started the build, I had the luck of finding works drawings of very similar loco. The drawings made me realise I had to change the wheel base and length of the model. An extension of plastic card took care of the length last year and a new BullAnt from Australia fixed the wheel base this summer.

The wires for the decoder bursting through the door opening. The asymmetric positioning of the axles is documented by photos and adds a charming, primitive look to the model - in my eyes at least...

With the longer wheel base I had to grind out a bit more room for the wheels and flywheel. I used a mini drill to remove the offending plastic. Other than that no other modifications were needed for the new BullAnt.

Advert for a an 'Alpha' loco from Frederikshavn Jernstøberi. You had to pay extra to get drive to both axles and a two speed gear box. On the standard version there was only chain drive to one axle and one speed. Scan supplied by Nordjyllands Kystmuseum, Frederikshavn.

The loco body has now been clad in a layer of 0.1 mm. plastic card and a raised panel glued on. This is the kind of plastic building I really like, Plain work with knife and steel ruler, glue and file. Next stage will focus on the frame and buffers/couplings before moving on to roof and smaller details on the body.

Covering the upper body in thin plastic card. The method gives thin edges around the open door on the loco's left side. A raised panel on the rear wall is being held down with a generous amount of tape while the glue dries.

After sanding the surface is tested with a thin layer of paint. The paint makes it easier to see if more putty is needed to make a smooth surface. The exhaust is cut from aluminium tube. I still have to make the even larger pipe serving the radiator that worked by evaporating water from the large tank at the front.

Vacation Projects (1/35)

I have now started three weeks of vacation. Except for some house maintenance tasks nothing is scheduled - not even a trip abroad this summer. I'll be spending the vacation home and in the cottage. I suppose that will leave a little time for modelling now and then. 

I hope to be able to focus on my model of an ancient Danish built one cylinder oil engine loco picking up where I left last summer. A new Bullant from Australia is on order with a better match to the drawings than the one I fitted first.

Here is where I'm starting: painted interior and basic work on the frame. The loco body is started but needs a lot more work - including a roof. 

Having just about finished a somewhat problematic lorry build what would be more obvious than to start another? It will however not be a kit bash or a conversion but a (probably) nice and easy out of the box-build. The object is a Bedford O with a heavy load trailer made by the Czech company MMK. I only plan to add some small parts and a set of specially designed decals making it a vehicle with a clear reference to one of my railway friends.

Cleaning up parts from the two kits from MMK of a Bedford lorry and a trailer. Plenty of work!

Could I squeeze some work on my newest module in, I would be glad. I'm really looking forward to getting the track down and tested - not to mention starting on the buildings. 

Interior for Oil Engine Loco (1/35)

In spare moments on my vacation I have built most of the interior on my oil loco. I have not tried to replicate anything in great detail as very little of it will show on the finished model. I have installed a rough presentation of the one cylinder engine, gear box and the most visible levers. We have had a wonderful summer in Denmark and all modelling has been done outside on a garden table. You can actually work on your tan while railway modelling!

Beginning the interior: Closed gearbox, engine mount and flywheel. All from scraps of plastic exept the flywheel that is a converted Panther tank roadwheel from my spares box.

Most of the interior in place. Engine built up from plastic and resin bits from the spares box. Brake handwheel from TichyTrain - gearshift handwheels will be leftovers from a gun kit.

I have also begun modifying the MK35 figure that will become the driver of the little contraption. Until now I have been cutting heavily into the figure's legs to make him fit in the cab. He will be fitted in the cab by brass pins through the floor to make him removable.

This is what you see of the interior through the only opening in the loco body. Even without a driver it is rather little. The body itself is ready for its 'outer skin' of thin plasticard to be fitted.

I hope to be able to present a finished loco at the next Gauge 1 exhibition in November. Even with other projects going on. I think it is a realistic deadline.

Progress on Ancient Motor Locomotive (1/35)

Work on Nystrup Gravel's first locomotive continues. Last post on the building can be found here. With the main dimensions established (through a combination of measurements taken from the preserved upper body, dimensions scaled from photographs and 'modeller's license') I began to cut plasticard for the 1:35 scale version.

Top and bottom in the upper body of the loco have been cut. Drawings and photos hang on the magnetic strip over the work area. I haven't made a 'proper' scale drawing, but rely on several sketches and my measurements from the full scale upper body. The BullAnt poses on the small box with further parts for the loco. 

Having made a start on the model I was pleasantly surprised when I received an e-mail filled with copies of manufacturer's drawings from the local historical archive in Frederikshavn. Not all relevant for the type of Frederikshavn-loco I'm building - the 'Alpha' E 10 - but very interesting and helping to clarify what certain gadgets on the loco do. The drawings made it clear to me, that particularly the interior on my model had to be redesigned. Fortunately the e-mail arrived before I had the chance to glue anything together. Now the model will feature a more or less full interior.

Front view of a 10 hp. Frederikshavn loco of the E 10 type. The loco is probably photographed in the factory yard immediately before delivery. The box held to the loco body by the two metal straps (one strangely out of level) is for oil, while the funnel above is for water for the cooling system. Notice how the funnel has a cut out that fits a bucket. It is probably the only concession to user-friendliness on the loco. A loco with no suspension, a cab filled with a huge one cylinder engine and a two stage open gearbox, nowhere to sit and tiny port holes for windows surely wouldn't please a health and safety inspector today! Photo: Image B 60650 from the local historical archive in Frederikshavn.

One of the first things I consider when building a locomotive model is how to fit the chassis. I have yet to take the plunge and construct a chassis from scratch, so any loco building at my workbench involves a chassis with motor and drive line built by someone else. That leaves me the task of either ordering a chassis that fits my model or making my model fit the chassis. Usually, however, I do a bit of both, as I try to select a chassis that I know will be able to fit the model I'm about to build within certain tolerances. Once the chassis arrives the initial fitting of the partly built model or placing on a scale drawing will show if I have to adjust my plans and the amount of detail I can show in a certain area.

BullAnt fitted to the first basic shapes that will eventually become the loco's frame. Parts for both frame and body are being worked on. 

With the newly gained knowledge of the loco's interior I have set out to hide the parts of the BullAnt that protrudes into the cab area. I will not make a fully detailed interior, just enough to give a busy impression when looking through the left door, half of which I will leave open. There is no need to model things that can't be seen on the finished model.

With the new knowledge from the drawings I had to reduce the asymmetrical position of the wheels under loco slightly. I simply added 6 mm. to the length at the front end. I also fitted a cardboard mock up to test height and clearance for the interior. The driver will have to be reduced in height to fit the cab. I'll probably chop off his feet as they can't be seen through the open half door.

The First Internal Combustion Engine Loco at Nystrup Gravel (1/35)

The horses in use at the gravel company was an obvious choise for motive power when the railway was short and the daily output of gravel limited. In a few years the gravel pits closest to Nystrup were emptied and the railway expanded. The horses had to pull the skips far longer now. Horses also had to be fed and tended when not working. To make the transport more efficient Nystrup Gravel bought their first locomotive - a then modern one cylinder oil engine loco from the small Danish engine manufacturer Frederikshavn Jernstøberi (Frederikshavn Iron Foundry). The exact year of purchase isn't know but it is believed to have been between 1908 and 1910.

Not the best of pictures, but there is not too many to choose from. A side view of a Frederikshavn loco of the same type as Nystrup Gravel's. Engine and radiator in the front of the loco. The rest was basically just empty space and transmission. The superstructure was galvanized metal and probably the reason why one is preserved today.

The locomotive enabled Nystrup Gravel to dispense with horses on the line and only a few were kept for shunting duties and for pulling equipment in the pits. The loco behaved rather well and could pull six loaded skips. The speed wasn't exactly impressive but the loco was more than twice as fast as the horses. It meant that more gravel could be transported even if the distance to the pits grew. And the loco didn't needed fuel when not working.

I'm currently preparing sketches and a design for a 1:35 model of this historic Nystrup Gravel loco. Apart from a preserved upper body there isn't much material available. Less than 10 photographs are known of two types of locos from Frederikshavn. But then no one can say my model isn't right, can they?

Some parts for my model of Nystrup Gravel's first loco. BullAnt from Australia (via Canada), Scale Link skip frame from the UK and soon to be-loco driver from MK35 of France. Mixed well with plasticard these ingredients should make one Frederikshavn-loco.



A Frederikshavn loco superstructure in service as shed for oil and gasoline. When the shed fell out of use, the peat company donated the historic relic to the Danish Industrial Railway Society for preservation. Today it is stored indoor at Hedelands Veteranbane. Photo from 1990.

The Frederikshavn-loco had a simple skip frame strengthened with steel profiles and parts from another skip frame. The superstructure seems to resemble a steel sheet shed or the steering house on a small fishing vessel. The engine in Frederikshavn-locos were in the 7- 10 hp. range depending of the type of loco.

Two views of the Frederikshavn loco preserved on Hedelands Veteranbane. While a wonder that the loco relic has survived at all, its condition isn't too good. The frame under the loco isn't the original and only fitted to enable the loco to be shunted around in the shed.