Kit Building
There are various ways of entering Gauge One, one of these is to build a kit to get your first engine.
These range from diesel to full coal fired steam locomotives. The kits range from simple hand tools bolt together entry level to advanced kits. This short article gives you a flavour of what is required with an advanced kit. Even the advanced kits only require basic equipment. The first thing to do is to read the instructions and familiarise yourself with the kit contents.
The hand tools required would typically be drills, hand files, small screwdrivers. A good butane blowlamp and a good quality 75watt soldering iron. Various solders are required for etch brass kit building, 180’C soft solder and silver solder 630’C to 660’C. The soft solder will require a good flux like plumbers flux available from DIY stores or bakers fluid, the silver solder will require easy flow No2 flux. Typical taps and dies required would be 10BA and 8BA or equivalent metric sizes.
When familiar with all the parts I always start with the tender first on steam locomotives this allows a reasonably simple uncomplicated build which will allow you to familiarise yourself with bending, soft soldering, drilling and tapping.
Remove the etches from the excess material make sure you clean up all the edges with a fine file rounded off would be fine. If the etches require rivet detail these are usually a half etched hole and will need punching to create the rivet head, rivet punches are available or a gentle use of a centre punch and hammer produce the same result.
Carry out bending and trial fitting of parts before soldering following the instructions.
When soldering the tender sides to the tender base plate flux all the joints and lay soft solder wire on the inside of the joint. Heat the joint on the outside with a blow lamp at one end and follow the joint along as the solder flows. Never start at each end and meet in the middle as this will distort the side panels due to expansion. When complete clean all the joints with cellulose thinners to remove the flux residue and wash in a weak solution of soapy water.
