Baldwin Gas Mechanical Body drawings started

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Big thanks to David Blondin of P'tit train de la Haute Somme

This is where the real one is stored. He has provided many photos and measurements for me. It feels as if I'm getting somewhere now though if I'm having to design the body parts. Last dimensions were to locate the chimney, lamp and sand fillers.  If you follow the link above and go into the museum, there is a photo of the engine.

Edited By Steve Addy on 17/12/2019 14:46:52

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Body of WW1 Baldwin Gas Mechanical

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Moving to the front of the loco, here are the start of the front frame covers.  I've got the bolts in the front one since this picture was taken but I need to design a press tool to joggle the flat one.

Edited By Steve Addy on 30/12/2019 23:19:05

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Other work being undertaken is the construction of a dozen steel hinges for the loco body. The idea is to use laser cut blanks with a semi circular groove to allow the barrel parts to be silver soldered in place. The groove was milled with a 3mm ball nosed slot drill. I intend to fill the slits with Tippex and use silver solder/flux from a syringe to avoid unwanted solder spread. I hope it works! Pictures show a single blank and then half a dozen after milling. The domed ends are sacrificial to be removed after the brazing operation.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Following on from the pictures above, here we have a crude tig welded jig meant to keep the hinge barrel parts in place. Followed by a set of blanks coated in Tipp-Ex to exclude the silver solder. This works better than I dared hope. Then we have a cleaned up hinge after brazing, but with the sacrificial bit still in place and finally A bag of 14 hinges. The syringe of silver solder paste from Cookson Gold in Birmingham worked very well. Usual disclaimer. It isn't cheap, but not much was consumed and i think I would have struggled feeding 42 joints with wire.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Since finishing the hinges, I moved on to finish the body frame drawings. Something wasn't right when I was working on it, turned out I was looking at a line which represented the top of the loco frames and seeing it as the top of the bottom frame of the body. Stupid, particularly when I drew it! Having realised where the grey cells were going wrong things progressed smoothly.

I have been modifying my hydraulic press to make it much wider. Hoping to collect a press brake attachment tomorrow from a local Sheffield firm – Cyclops Designs. Tom the owner is a nice chap and the design is better than any others I've seen. Usual disclaimer. There is a video of his on YouTube here

Tonight I have been puzzling over an error in the positioning of the "backhead" it isn't square with the frames. A job for when I'm awake!

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Further to the last post, I've squared up the "backhead", finished modifying the press and collected the brake attachment.. It seems to work well. Picture of the widened press with the brake attachment in place. I have the steel to make a round nosed bending tool, but with the current situation I seem to be somewhat lacking in enthusiasm. I'm sorry the picture is sideways, but when I rotated it 90 degrees it went over the other way!

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Well quite a bit of progress has been made this year as i couldn't go out to play, so I have tried to look on it as an opportunity. Here follows a few pictures for stuff done since March.

This is a louvre press tool I designed and made – the latter isn't really true as most of it was laser cut.

First picture is the full assembly.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Then we have the punch in it's guide, which acts as a pressure plate due to the polyurethane die springs, trapping the job to reduce distortion.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

This is the punch, it isn't hard as the door blanks were laser cut with a 0.5mm slot to eliminate shearing.

I had to add an angled piece in the bottom of the female die, supported on a bit of neoprene sheet as otherwise the results were deformed.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

This is the result after adding the bottom to the die, before de-burring. I have to admit to being pleased.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Then I moved onto the cab roof.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Then body framing. The angle frames were laser cut and TIG welded together.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Apart from the handle which goes over the radiator shell, this is how she looks now. I also got the front frame cover joggled and bolted on but that is hidden by spare bits below.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Cab view as above taken at the beginning of this month (November 2020).

Work is currently in hand to design the body panels, the radiator shell for another laser order later this month

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Another batch of laser cut parts arrived from Cornwall about ten days ago, so a bit of progress has been made on the framing under the chimney, the ignition switch, drilling the tank bracket feet to match the holes in the laser cut plate work and today bending the under tank plate.

Here is the chimney stiffener.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

The ignition switch

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Ignition switch brazed but needs detents making – otherwise it works.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Holes drilled in tank bracket feet. Centre lines marked on panel and body framing. The outer lines show the extent of the flat top/start of the bend.

[Steve AddyParticipant @steveaddy35670]

Panel bent after marking it with the centres of the bends. I don't know why it is sideways!

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