Thread: Stephenson's Rocket, 1:24 OcCre Kit

Construction: The Fire-Box

Construction of the Fire-Box commenced with removing the four components of the walls from the plywood sheets and inserting the brass pins as was done for the the main boiler end caps.

13 Firebox 1.jpg


The box structure was assembled with the aid of the alignment notches cut into each of the four sides.

14 Firebox 2.jpg


The roof of the fire box was constructed from 2mm x 5mm strips in the same way as the main boiler. Once again, the edges were chamfered to provide a tighter fit around the curves.

15 Firebox 3.jpg


The instructions say to use putty to fill the gaps around the joints in the firebox. I prefer to use Durham’s Rock Hard Water Putty.

16 Durhams Water Putty.jpg


I discovered this product a while ago and quite like it. It comes in powdered form that you mix up as you need it (a little like Spakfilla, I guess). You can make it to the consistency you like, and it doesn’t shrink as it dries. It sands very nicely too, giving off an almost talcum-powder-like dust.



Then it was time to prepare for painting the boiler and the firebox. I like to use a white Gesso as a sealant and undercoat.

17 White Gesso Primer.jpg


This can be bought in any art supply store. It is a thick liquid that can be used “as-is” or thinned with water before applying. I thin it right down and just give a light coat with it. The beauty of it is, as well as sealing the timber, it provides a good “tooth” for subsequent paint to grab. Here is the boiler with its undercoat on:

18 Boiler Primed.jpg


The fire box has a platform attached and the kit provides some plastic mesh to be used to simulate the non-slip grating. Here is the mesh as provided:

19 Firebox Mesh.jpg


It was a fairly simple job to cut this to size and then attach to the firebox platform, for which I used some Super-phatic glue, having cut the mesh on the diagonal. Once the glue was dry, the fire box also received its undercoat.

20 Firebox Primed.jpg

The Boiler and Fire-Box are now in the process of being painted. I am using Winsor and Newton Artist's Acrylics for this model. The Boiler is being painted with Raw Sienna, while the "metal" Fire-Box is being painted with "Mars Black". I will also use a small amount of enamel paint for the metal pipes and some "steel" parts. To be continued (once the paint dries).....

G,Day Mate, Well after a bit of faffing I eventually got here. The forum wouldn't let me come in as mobbsie so I'm just "tony." By eck lad, you don't let the grass grow beneath your feet do you. Can you give me some idea of the size of the boiler mate. Nice job on the boiler and firebox, the only place I could see that needed filling was around the locating tabs so not much at all. Gonna follow this with interest mate. Be Good, tony. ( formally mobbsie on MSW ).

G'day Grant,

Glad to see you are getting started on the Rocket. In a month or so I expect to be starting a different OcCre locomotive...the BR-18, I believe. ( I am currently traveling and don't quite recall the description). My loco also was ordered from Cornwall.
Your start has already helped me. The build process is very similar. I had already identified all the laser wood parts and your idea of pre drilling will certainly be helpful. I have a drill press for my Dremel and will use your process.

I'm looking forward to your narrative!

Regards,

Jim

G'day Tony and Jim and welcome aboard. Great to see two old MSW shipmates here. Tony - I'll try to remember to put in a "scaling" shot with the next update. And Jim - that BR-18 is a heck of a nice looking kit too! That one is one my wish list for "one day", so I'll follow your build when you do start one up.

Looks a very nice kit. Like all the detail like the rivets I bet that is time consuming but does add a nice touch to the model.

Originally Posted by tony.

G,Day Mate, Well after a bit of faffing I eventually got here. The forum wouldn't let me come in as mobbsie so I'm just "tony." By eck lad, you don't let the grass grow beneath your feet do you. Can you give me some idea of the size of the boiler mate. Nice job on the boiler and firebox, the only place I could see that needed filling was around the locating tabs so not much at all. Gonna follow this with interest mate. Be Good, tony. ( formally mobbsie on MSW ).

G'Day & Welcome "to the Great South Land" & to a top forum "Tony".
There are quite a few members from UK on the forum as well as across the rest of the world.
The toymakers and scale modellers are a top mob....
You'll find a heap of helpful & knowledgeable blokes & ladies on the forum and for most very willing to assist.
Make sure you show off your handiwork as everyone loves a photo, especially WIP [work in progress] photos with build notes.
Enjoy the forum.
Enjoy your woodwork.
Cheers from On Top DownUnder, crowie

PS - This is a first class example of a beaut thread as described above.....Grant's doing a FIRST CLASS job.....

Firstly, thanks to all those who have taken the trouble to visit this log. Knowing someone is watching is always good motivation!

Moving right along....

The boiler was painted with Winsor and Newton Artist’s Acrylic. “Raw Sienna” was used for the body, while the end caps received “Mars Black”. Once dry, the whole thing was treated to a finishing coat of clear satin. The final part for the boiler was the addition of the steel bands, which are simulated here using 4mm wide strips of Aluminium cut from the supplied sheets.

21 Boiler Complete.jpg


The next step was to add the door to the firebox (a cast metal piece), and some brass hand rails. The brass rails are supposed to be made from the supplied 1.5mm thick brass wire, which is supplied in a coil. Ordinarily, I have no trouble straightening wire coils by stretching them, but this stuff was just a little too thick to play the game. Fortunately, I had some 1.5mm brass tubing on hand and substituted this instead. Paper patterns are supplied for forming the correct shape and I have been pleasantly surprised at how accurate these appear to be. Here’s the brass rails prior to installing.

22 Brass Rails.jpg


These were then added along with the firebox door. I’ve added a 20 cent piece to this shot to give a sense of scale:
23 Firebox Scale 1.jpg


And in case the 20 cent piece doesn’t do it for you:

24 Firebox Scale 2.jpg


Next up, the Leaf springs for the Chassis. These are a cast metal part that simply need painting. All of the metal parts that need to be a “metal” colour (according to the instructions), I’ve painted with Humbrol No. 56. This seems to produce a nice colour, just a shade darker than the unpainted pieces.

25 Leaf Springs.jpg


The Leaf Springs are attached to the chassis along with some “U” shaped stirrup pieces that need to be made from the supplied aluminium sheet. Again paper patterns are provided and I copied these onto sticky label paper before applying to the aluminium. I then drilled the holes and cut out the shapes. The aluminium is so thin that it cuts relatively easily by scoring with a No.11 Exacto blade and then bending. The curves on the end were rough cut and then filed to final shape.

26 Chassis Mounts.jpg


The Chassis is then attached to the Firebox:

27 Chassis Complete.jpg


The boiler is then mounted on the Chassis and attached to the Firebox:

28 Boiler Mounted 1.jpg


And another set of brass hand rails is added:

29 Boiler Mounted 2.jpg


The first set of boiler pipe work is added next. These two pipes (one each side) are cast metal fittings and simply needed painting (metal grey) before fitting. Not shown in the photo below, a timber support for these pipes must be made and fitted on the under-side of the chassis.

30 Boiler and pipework 1.jpg

And that brings us up to date for now. Next up will be fitting of more pipework and the main pistons. Stay tuned........

Cheers,
Grant

Great progress, Grant.
Your narrative and pictures set a very high standard. The quality and attention to detail are first rate! It will be interesting, knowing your penchant for very small detail, to see if you decide to fabricate a shovel, coal bucket and other small touches. Perhaps a pair of gloves for the engineer as well.

Cheers,

Jim

Thanks Jim. I'll be sticking pretty much to straight out-of-the-box for this build. It's such a nicely made kit that I don't think much else is really needed. As for shovels, coal buckets and gloves, maybe I should put in a call to our MSW shipmate Remco - I seem to recall him doing something like that!

This is going very well.

Where do you source these kits?

Originally Posted by artme

This is going very well.

Where do you source these kits?

Hi artme,

You can get them from Cornwall Model Boats in the UK. They are made by OcCre. Even though I live in the US, I've purchased from Cornwall. They have a great selection of all kinds of models and manufacturers.

Cheers,

Jim

Thanks for jumping in with that answer Jim.

Artme - you can also order direct for OcCre in Spain. I chose to order through Cornwall Modle Boats as I've had very good experience with them previously.

Here's a couple of links:

http://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/...g/OC54000.html

http://www.occre.com/model-train/rocket-locomotive.html

Cheers,
Grant

Originally Posted by gjdale

Thanks for jumping in with that answer Jim.

Artme - you can also order direct for OcCre in Spain. I chose to order through Cornwall Modle Boats as I've had very good experience with them previously.

Here's a couple of links:

http://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/...g/OC54000.html

http://www.occre.com/model-train/rocket-locomotive.html

Cheers,
Grant

Those model kits aren't cheap especially with the Aussie Dollar down at present BUT WOW are they nice.......

Just browse through the kits and marvel.... thanks Grant for the links.... Cheers crowie

Great thread Grant!