One of the features of the G-scale meetings here in the North-West, and no doubt elsewhere, is the occasional appearance of some new, large and hugely-impressive piece of mobile hardware on the host’s tracks. Whilst I would not readily admit to the sin of envy, I have on occasion idly wondered what it would be like to own such an item. Finances preclude obtaining an off-the-shelf item of sufficient pedigree, so some form of home-grown product was called for. To look the part it had to be big, and different. As I work in the oil industry my initial thoughts lay in that direction, and the idea of a large piece of refinery plant came to mind, a railway version of the road haulage industry’s ‘abnormal load’.

 

A look in an LGB catalogue showed that a double-bodied freight car in excess of 2ft long was feasible, in this case carrying a transformer. The practicalities of keeping sixteen wheels in continuous contact with my winding, undulating track were fortunately not apparent at the time, or else the project might not have proceeded any further.

 

What did rapidly become clear was that one leviathan, however majestic, would not make a train by itself. So a further look in the book came up with a depressed-centre vehicle (a molten-steel carrier) that might inspire a design for a reactor-type vessel carried vertically on a low-loader. I already had an LGB petrol tanker and a cement silo wagon which could pretend to be an oil tank load of some kind, so the makings of a four-car rake were there for the modelling. The thought of carving-up expensive Germanic hardware did create a nervous feeling in the wallet area, but some exploratory unscrewing revealed that it need not be too drastic, mainly extra detailing and

re-painting.

 

The four bogies for the new wagon were simple wooden structures of 9mm square section, glued and pinned. Plasticard was added to the top and side surfaces, to represent metal plating. Each bogie pair was attached to one of two wood frames 25cm by 10cm, which in turn were secured to the main load-carrying deck. The model therefore had six centres about which to pivot, giving each part considerable freedom to go its own way, given any chance at all. The disc wheels were from the Brandbright catalogue, as were the Ffestiniog-type coil spring axleguards. The decking was formed from six pieces of 18mm x 9mm hardwood, 53cm long and glued lengthwise.

 

The next problem was the choice of cylinder to form the basis of the main load. I did briefly consider the use of Pringles containers, but was unable to keep trial specimens out of the hands of the rest of the family for long enough to conduct experiments with the necessary stringency. Decanting the contents to separate storage merely served to accelerate the rate of consumption to an unacceptable level. The most promising contender was the decorated cardboard tube used to house bottles of the superior sort of malt whisky, samples of which just happened to be within easy reach of the kitchen table. Many of these were acquired on a series of fact-finding missions by members of Southport MRS, as part of a long-standing project to explore the historic links between Scotland’s railways and its national beverage. Marvel dried milk drums were also a serious competitor, but suffered from a serious lack of interest in consuming the internals.

 

Extensive research was necessary to establish just which whisky container would produce the most practicable and pleasing model. I did not flinch from the task of disposing of their contents in the most environmentally-friendly manner possible. Bottle of dry ginger ale seemed to make the process easier. I was reminded of a magazine piece written years ago by an O Gauge scratch builder, which started along the lines of: 1) Take one can of beer, 2) Drink contents, 3) Remove ends from now-empty can, slit lengthwise and reform into shape of selected boiler.

 

To spare any reader embarking on a similar project from the rigours of this process, I can reveal that both Glenmorangie and Laphroig containers are suitable, and can be readily joined together to form one long vessel. This was done by supergluing the two metal tops back-to-back and Bosticking each tube to its top.The complete assembly was then covered in art paper.

 

The next concern was getting hold of suitable detailing parts to make a long, plain tube look convincing as a catalytic cracker/depropaniser/distillation column or whatever. I was in no illusion as to my ability to scratch-build such items as pressure gauges, level detectors and manholes. This problem was rapidly solved by visits in quick succession to the North-West Area Group’s monthly meeting and the York Easter Show. The former found Back 2 Bay 6 offering small packets of die-cast metal valves of various types, the latter Duncan Models selling 7mm kits of vertical boilers bedecked with so much valvery and instrumentation they resembled metallic pincushions. Brandbright supplied the tank lids for use as manways, and piping was a combination of plastic rodding, paint wires and drinking straws.

 

The paint job was kept simple, consisting of matt black for the bogies and underframe parts, brown for the wooden decking and Halfords red aerosol primer as a topcoat for the vessel. This was secured on the decking by brass wire painted black and superglued into O-gauge rail chairs on the deck. The wire was then removed temporarily to insert the bolts securing the bogies, which I forgot to do first time round. Various couplings were considered but I eventually settled on LGB, for compatibility with the motive power.

 

Cautious testing on the Tamarisk Light Railway confirmed a growing suspicion that extra-long wagons on the straight are fine, but 1st radius curves are problematic unless everything is dead square and level and there is plenty of overhang clearance. None of these apply in my case, even outside the tunnels. So at the moment the wagon has only a restricted-access certificate, pending construction of a high-speed line on the other side of the garden. At present this is fraught with the same sort of financial and planning difficulties that bedevil construction of the Channel Tunnel line through Kent, but likewise I am confident of ultimate success, and without needing Railtrack to bail me out.

 

Regarding the LGB modifications, the petrol tanker merely had a relief valve added to one end. The cement/oil tank had its unloading mechanism removed, a relief valve fitted on the main tank and additional valve detail on the small cylindrical vessel mounted across one end of the deck. The 7mm boiler, less some of its fittings seconded to the other vessels on the train, fitted neatly across the decking at the other end. The paint schemes were the same as for the double-whisky model.

 

At about this time, with three of the four models nearly completed, the thought occurred that if one long load was good, then two must surely be better. The milk tin concept was therefore

re-evaluated, on the basis that it offered the prospect of a vessel of even larger girth than the existing one, and that low-fat milk was, after all, good for you. Construction followed on similar lines to the first, the exception being the use of compensated bogies to ease the cornering dynamics. The main body of the vessel this time was painted in aluminium car spray.

 

Attention then turned to the depressed-centre wagon. The end-decks were constructed in similar fashion to the two behemoths, but to a less extravagant length scale, and with plastic and brass I-beams added to the outside of the decking. Roundhouse bogies were used, for the sake of variety. Thoughts of fancy curved transitions from upper to lower level were rapidly abandoned in favour of angular but simpler butt-joints. The centre platform was part of a deceased video recorder chassis, stripped of its quite extraordinarily complex mix of electronics and mechanics. How did I know to retain this item from two years ago? I didn’t, but just followed the modeller’s first rule of raw materials, which is never to throw away any item of plastic, wood or metal which can physically fit in house, shed or garden. As an aside, the laser transport mechanism from a defunct computer CD drive would make an excellent load for a flat wagon - it looks like a high-tech machine tool.

 

A large plastic water bottle, purchased at the bargain price of 50p, was used as the load. Suitably trimmed for size, and with similar valve appendages as the other vessels, it looked the part, having somewhat more subtle curves than the average dried-milk carton. Again it was finished in aluminium.Assorted cast-offs from the more aggressive type of child’s toy were located on either end-decking, to simulate additional refinery equipment.

 

The end result was very gratifying, if only on the basis of ‘never mind the quality, measure the length’. With an LGB Swiss electric on the front the five-car train is 10ft long in running trim. Individually the components are not likely to win and modelling prizes. Collectively they may suggest, from a good distance and in a flattering light, that big can still be beautiful.

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