Gorby's wondrously weird whatsit – The Fowler Steeplechaser

This is what I'm aiming for.

With all my scratch-builds I start with the item I think will be the most difficult to make. I've always found wheels to be a bit of a pain to build because the process is so long winded. A bit like my writing style really.

Wrapped the first part of the strip around once. When it was dry the rest was glued on.

Then I had to add a rim to the inner edge.

If you look at the photos of the real machine you'll see the inside the wheel rim there is a toothed gear running all the way around. Gulp. Inkscape is perfect for drawing not so pretty pictures to help with the build.

Stick some plastic on using PVA and used the marks to get the teeth evenly spaced.

This bit was a little tiny bit booooooring as there are 140 teeth per wheel….and it's on both wheels so 280 teeth to shape. 😮

My homemade mini mitre cutter came in useful to cut the hub and you wouldn't believe the trouble I had making those little disks. I had to make eleven before I got four usable ones I was happy with.

This is the reason for the other Inkscape circles. They are different colours because some go to the back of the hub and some go to the front, although they all attach to the front of the outer rim due to the gearing on the rear.

Firstly I attached all the spokes which attach to the rear of the hub then when they were dry I stuck the hub on using this method to make sure the hub is straight.

Then the front spokes were attached one at a time.

There's plenty more work to do on it to tart it up but that's the basic structure done. Then I had another one to do.

Then I had to do something similar for the front wheels.

The main part of the wheels are now done, although there's plenty more detailing and a foundry full of rivets to add later. Perhaps I should have done it wheels up. 🤔

After some head scratching deciding how to build the boiler, I went down this route. I’ve since thought of a better way, but that’ll have to wait for the next traction engine build (no bloody way that’s happening 😄 ).

Then wrap 0.5mm plastic sheet around it (not fully sanded in this pic).

The easiest way to add rivets is to roll them into the back of 0.25mm plasticard and stick that onto the surface. I was surprised/disappointed how few rivets were on the boiler. This Galaxy Tools riveter is excellent.

Now the boiler has a firebox. More rivets on the firebox – that’s more like it. 🙂

Front wheelie bit added (it's turned a little bit) and the cab area starting to go on. This is exactly the sort of job I needed a tiny square for.

When I decided to build this thing I was relieved to see the top of the funnel was a straight tube. Odd I thought as all the other Fowler engines had an inverted cone funnel...then I looked more carefully at the photos and this time took measurements. Drat, it was an inverted cone.
Sooooo, how to build, how to build….. This is my solution.

First wedge applied, narrow side to the right/bottom of the funnel.

This is after all the wedges glued on, a lot of Plasto smothered on, and a lot of sanding the outside and shaping the inside.

That took about two hours work for just the top part. No wonder it's taking me so sodding long. In a kit you’d just need to glue two parts together and it would be done.

It was one of those “Drat! Drat! And double drat!” moments, I’d seriously underestimated the length of the boiler…. Added 12mm to the front of the boiler after removing front wheel assembly and a few other bits. Two steps back..... 🙁

The idea was to wrap the new front part with a short rivetty bit of 0.25mm plasticard but the original wrapping was getting too thin due to all the sanding...

So I added a full new outer layer to the whole boiler.

Scratching traction engines means making gears, lots of them. This is how I went about making them. I used Inkscape as a guide to plot the spacing of the teeth which made it easy to mark the initial cuts onto the disk.

Then I opened the first cut up to become a small groove.

Finally used a rat tailed file to shape the teeth more. Boring, time consuming but it works well enough.

Some of the gear wheels have spokes, which eats even more time.

Some of the gear wheels have spokes, which eats even more time.

One of the gear wheel assemblies.

There are two tiny 4mm diameter gear wheels which I made using a different method due to the difficulty holding a small part whilst trying to shape it. Fortunately they don’t have to be perfect as they will be mostly hidden behind the main wheels.

These are the tools I used.

Cylinder block.

The ash box fits underneath the firebox. Initially I was going to have it shut, then I changed my mind because choosing the easy route isn’t in line with my masochistic modelling nature.

In place – I’ll fit the door later. Also showing part of the steering mechanism.

Front wheel assembly back in place.

Making the flywheel.

Flywheel. In fact it’s the second flywheel because I wasn’t happy with the first one. The detail is the same on the back as well, so this is nearly two hours work.

The problem with designing a traction engine with huge wheels is that you have to put the axle somewhere silly. The axle for the Steeplechasers were so high up it couldn't take the weight of the machine. They came up with an ingenious solution of having a wheel running on a track within a wheel.

Parts required.

Still not sure if I’m happy with these. I might remake them although at the moment I’m more in the mood to put up with them and get this build completed.

There was a tube down the side of the boiler. Sprue & candle worked perfectly. You’ll be expecting to see it in place in the next photo. Nope. This is where my low winter mood kicked in and photos became a bit intermittent. You’ll see the tube at some later time.

What follows is a work of fiction….or is it? If you know differently, I’ll only accept photographic proof. 🙂

The other side....although I suspect you may have guessed that.

Adding the reversing gubbins. Look! There’s the pipe I made earlier.

Checking the gear wheels all join up where they should.

Spending time with my best furry friend Ella.
She died five weeks after this photo was taken.

The side parts of the suspension are slotted into two ‘C’ channels so the suspension actually works!

Fitting the steering chain. The method of turning most traction engines was ingeniously simple.

The brass bars are (from the top) reverse gear link, steering column (without steering wheel), ash box opener. The worm gear on the steering was left over from my Robey Steamer build. I made it by cutting plastic tube as a spiral, inserting a plastic rod, glue one end of the spiral, when dry pull the spiral to form a thread and glue the other end.

Although it isn’t shown in the photos, it’s almost certain it would have had a governor to regulate the speed of the engine. To build it I’ll need to get some balls 😮 . After a failed experiment I found this in my spares box - from a Flyhawk FT-17 tank. I call them ‘sprue overflow stubs’, no idea what they are really called. Fortunately these are spherical.

Completed governor – as good as I can manage at this scale.

Fitted in place.

Then it was on to detailing the cab area – which I have absolutely nothing to go one other than photos of other traction engines. First the door for the coal bunker.

Then the door for the boiler. Many manufacturers ended up using similar boiler doors to those used on trains. The early type was generally hinged.

I also needed some valve handwheels. This is plan ‘C’. A thin slice of plastic tube, rounded off both sides, and a tiny disk, cut as a cross fits inside.

This was a disaster. I used a candle to try and bend some rod but the rod was too thin and the bends were too close together for it to be controllable, so….

Plan ‘B’….

Part way though assembling, with one bend rounded off.

Completed.

I also needed some sort of water level gauge. This is the first bit to be painted because it would be impossible to do when it’s fitted. Notice the black & white backing. It’s painted in straight lines not a ‘V’ shape. The clear tube is reversing the direction of the stripe, which is how the gauge works. The density of the water will do the same thing in the real gauge.

I think there are 29 parts in the water level gauge. It is quite a bit bigger than it should be and I’m toying with the idea of tying to make it smaller.

Next I made a pressure gauge. Well, two – made using two different methods. They are both cut from 3mm plastic rod. The one on the left had 0.25mm strip wrapped around which sticks out at the front to act as a bezel. The one on right, the bezel was cut from 0.35mm sheet and stuck on.

This is effect I’m going for. The water gauge isn’t fixed yet. I basically wanted it to look ‘busy’ rather than ‘accurate’.

Towing linkage. I was amazed at how few photos of traction engines bums are on the internet. Most are from the front or sides, so it wasn’t easy finding out what the towing linkage should be. It took longer to research than make.

Not much time for modelling so far this week but I managed to remake the water level gauge. It’s now 10mm long and I managed to do six of the parts from the first one as just two parts this time, which makes the part count 25. It also makes the previous one look huge.
It wasn’t until I was painting it I realised the top handle is turned on, oh dear, the boiler’s going to flood.

The first gauge fitted onto my thumbnail and my goal was to get it to fit on my index fingernail. I managed to get it small enough to fit on my little fingernail.

On to detailing the wheels. First the treads on the back wheels. Quite a lot of them, in fact there are exactly….lots. Do you really think I’m demented enough to count them? I very nearly did so you aren’t far off. Before fitting them I used my tiny square to draw lines at intervals around the wheels to make sure the treads aren’t skew-wiff (crooked). They are a tiny bit wider than the wheels so they can all be sanded down when dry.

To cut them I used my new cheapy mitre cutter from Green Stuff World, which I can whole heartedly recommend….not to buy – unless you can’t afford the expensive ones (which I can’t). I made some tweaks which makes it usable, such as the 0.8mm shims (shown by the red arrows) because the blade isn’t flat to the surface. It only cost about £13 so for that price it’s good enough.

Another purchase from GSW was well worth the cost – a set of moulds for producing rivets, bolt heads, cylindrical screw heads and some weird pyramid shaped thing in five different sizes. It isn’t easy massaging the Milliput into the tiny holes which probably accounts for the significant number which aren’t usable, but I’m not sure how I would have added the detail to this build without it.

The moulds from Green Stuff World.
greenstuffworld.com/..ne-molds-rivets.html

There also some smaller bolt heads I used which I cut from 0.8mm hexagonal rod, using my home made jig to cut them 0.5mm thick.

There are 296 bolts and rivet heads on both back wheels. I was quicker to do than I expected… a tiny dab of super glue gel applied with a cocktail stick and attach the bolt or rivet with a wax pick-up pencil (also from GSW). After they dry I gave them all a coat of super glue liquid, which hardens the surface of the Milliput, ensures they are completely stuck to the surface and makes them take paint better.

120 rivet heads on the front wheels.

Then I needed to assemble all the bits to see if there were any problems. Yes, there is one annoying problem which is all the more annoying as it didn’t happen when I checked it a couple of months ago. I’m not going to point it out as it’s only a minor thing which would require major work to fix. That definitely isn’t happening.

Firstly I gave everything a coat of black primer (damn, it does look quite good in black). This Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500 black primer is excellent. Much better than Mig one-shot primer.

Then Tamiya XF-69 NATO black in some areas.....followed by nearly two hours of masking. Wow this a bloody awkward thing to mask. I doubt a wind-tunnel had any involvement in the design of this monstrosity. The main body colour applied.

Another half hour masking for the Alclad brass band around the boiler. The rest of the brass details will have to be brush painted.

Pleased with that weekends work. 🙂
Although……..
The governor fell off when the X-4 went on, which wouldn’t have been a big deal if it wasn’t for me deciding to make a better one. I’ve never been happy with the original governor as it was a bit….crap. Because of the problems finding the original balls, my main priority was to remove them without loosing them.
Guess what?
I lost one.
Bugger.

After a while I gave up trying to find tiny balls around the house and reached for my wallet – always my last resort.
These resin bubble beads are intended to be glued onto fingernails and cost less than a fiver. Quite why you’d want to do that is completely beyond my powers of comprehension. Fortunately some people do, otherwise they would exist. The sizes are stated as between 0.4mm to 3mm and I need something near 1.5mm. Seems a bit excessive when I only want two, but at least I won’t want for tiny balls in the future…..which obviously means that I will never need any tiny balls for any future project, unless they are 3.5mm or larger of course.

Much happier with this one. 8mm tall with seventeen parts.

NLAWScametovisit reminded me I needed to make a shovel. When I built the Robey Steamer I made a two-part plunge mould for making a coal shovel. Boiling water is all you need to mould 0.2mm thick plastic sheet. I made a few and picked the best one.

Which ends up like this.

The high tech instrument panel...which is an amalgamation of stuff I found online. The dials are from my 1/48 aircraft decal spares which are probably saying the traction engine is at 8,000 feet, doing 200mph. The water gauge is a much better size compared to the first one (although still a bit big).
The steering wheel is the only thing on the model I haven’t scratched. It’s from my spares box and I don’t know what kit is came from. Bit of a mystery really. Very fortunate because it’s perfect and wouldn’t have been easy to make.

The gubbins (stop me if I’m getting too technical for you 😉 ). Just noticed the paint is a bit orange peely, although you can’t really see it unless it's on an enlarged photo like this. I’ve kept the weathering very minimal as it was a prototype (and I'm crap at weathering).

A coal bunker needs coal. The best way to make miniature coal is to use coal – who uses coal these days? I’m not going to buy half hundred weight to get one lump so I had to use something else. For my Robey Steamer I used tiny bits of cork, which worked quite well. Last year my daughter in law gave me some of her art materials including these charcoal sticks. I tried crushing it but it just produced un-coal like shards. Stabbing at the end with a knife worked much better. The usable bits have been sorted towards the bottom of the photo.

Flood the bottom of the bunker with PVA glue and pour the ‘coal’ in. Wait a couple of hours and repeat. I also added a small amount to the floor in front of the bunker and just under the boiler door.

A reclamation yard near Coventry sells oak boards which are rejects or off-cuts from a company which makes floor boards, which is why most of the woody things I make are made from the same boards.
Plotted a simple template in Inkscape and transferred to the board.
Used my palm router with a dovetail bit to cut some 10mm deep slots – the point of which will be explained later. The palm router is brilliant for this type of work. My main router is much too bulky so I rarely use it these days.

Then routed out the inner ellipse, free-hand, still using the dovetail bit.
The tool on the left is an NT sanding plate – which is excellent.

I think you can guess what’s happening here, although if anyone is hard-of-thinking, PM me and I’ll shake my head despondently. 😉
I do have a small bandsaw, but it’s so old it barely manages to cut pine these days. For some reason I don’t like the idea of discarding something because it’s old and knackered and well past it’s doing useful work. Probably because I identify with it. 😳

Then used an Ogee router bit for the outside edge.

I was going to varnish the wood but found out the only ancient tin of varnish I have had completely dried. I had to beeswax it instead – not ideal for this.

The idea is to fill the cut-out area with Milliput and emboss a cobblestone effect into the surface. This is why I used a dovetail bit so the Milliput is held in place by the overhang. The slots are so the centre is keyed in place as well. It was a mistake to cut the slots as deep as they are and one in the middle would probably have been fine. As it is I ran out of Milliput with only a tiny bit to go. Damnit!
I used a square section 3mm tube to emboss the cobbles. I wanted an uneven surface and it’s turned out a lot more uneven than I really wanted – it’ll do. The problem is the weather in Britland has become hot in the last week so I had to do the Milliput section at a time rather than all in one go as it takes quite a while to emboss the cobbles one at a time and I didn’t want end bit to harden before I got there.

SODDING POTHOLES!!!!
You can’t get away from them can you?
A couple of days after filling the final gap I noticed that some bits still looked wet...they were – not dried at all. My previous batch of Milliput super fine, the stick in the blue packet had a yellowish hue which made it easy to see when the two parts were correctly kneaded. Now both sticks are white, which probably caused me to not mix them together well enough.
I won’t be using this method again. I’ll revert to my previous method of embossing into insulation foam.

The following morning all was well…except a very small area I’d missed the day before. As it was only tiny I dowsed it in liquid super glue to harden the surface.
Then it all got a heavy coat of dilute PVA to prime the surface ready for painting.

Painting the base. First a generous coat of black primer followed buy Tamiya XF-82 sprayed at a shallow angle so the gaps still remain black.

Then splotches of XF-24, XF-25 and XF-54.
Dry-brush XF-20.

Finally a green wash – for moss.
Dry-brush Tamiya gloss.

Finally a couple more coats of beeswax on the wood (it had another coat after this photo was taken as well).

I’ve been meaning to add a dog to the base for a while. The original intention was to have a Dobermann type pooch in an aggressive pose to make it look like it’s growling at the metal monstrosity. Then Ella died and I decided to change my intended figure for the one which looks closest to her. There wasn’t an aggressive bone in her, so the composition had to change.
I have thousands of reference photos of her. The problem is my painting skills aren’t up to the job.

Her main identifying features (other than being the most beautiful dog in the universe of course) was her pink nose and three small white spots on the left side of her nose. At least I know it’s supposed to be her.

Opmerkingen

90 9 March, 10:36

Mark
All aboard... for a very interesting subject.

9 March, 10:59

Neil
Some plastic precision going on here mate, following with interest 👍

9 March, 11:09

David Taylor
Defo in on this one.

9 March, 11:19

Rui S
Me too 😎 Scratch looking Great already 👍

9 March, 17:06

bughunter
Oh yes, I remember ....
Very interesting how many details can be read from some low resolution pictures! And you converted the info into nice parts 👍

9 March, 17:23

gorby
Welcome to the magical mystery build* mates. 🙂

* Because it's going to be a mystery to me how it's going to turn out. 😳

9 March, 17:33

S M
Wow!

9 March, 19:26

Mike Thomas
Looks like a great candidate for 3D printing but I can see where 3D printing may take away some of the enjoyment of the craft. After all, as the saying goes, the journey is more fun than the destination. Or something like that! Either way, great work so far, Gorby!

9 March, 19:40

Rui S
Wise words 👍

9 March, 23:18

Lochsa River
very cool

9 March, 23:42

Pepe
😲😲😲😲😍😍😍😍❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

10 March, 00:01

Alec K
Another stupendous effort from the master of the metaphysical?!? I am certainly in. Commendable effort so far 👍

10 March, 02:19

Dietmar Bogatzki
Taking a seat

10 March, 07:46

Spanjaard
wow gorby, amazing job on thise wheels, thise teeth are fantastic, certainly joining in

10 March, 08:18

gorby
Wow! I'm a bit taken aback at the interest in this. No pressure then. 😮
I first started hacking plastic in November so the build is now quite advanced and there have been many moments I have dreamily thought of a 3D printer. I certainly wouldn't rule one out for the future although there is a part of me which enjoys the challenge of working out how the hell to build things from bits of plastic.
Thanks for all your comments matiepoos.

10 March, 08:36

gorby
Next stage of the build from photo number 16. 👍

12 March, 11:18

Alec K
This is next level scratchbuilding Gorb. Watching with humble awe 👍

12 March, 12:34

Robert Podkoński
I am back from the short vacations, and taking a seat!

12 March, 12:45

gorby
Thanks for taking an interest mates. 🙂
I always think how crude my plastic bashing looks in comparison to many one Scalemates including one member in particular, now what's his name....eeerrrrmm, Oh yes, he's called Alec K. 😉

12 March, 15:37

Alec K
I am glad you finally stated the obvious Gorby. My ploy to use expensive tools and supplies coupled with snobbish complex commentary to outshine any work done with basic tools, copious elbow grease and uncommon creativity finally bears fruit! 😄 😄 😄

12 March, 16:44

gorby
😄 😄 😄
If I had expensive tools I'd spend most of my modelling time trying to work out how they worked. 😉
Oh oh, I've bought an expensive modelling tool!!!! It cost me nearly £13 ($16.50)!!! 😮
greenstuffworld.com/..re-cutter-tool.html#
Need to wait for it to be delivered and for my wallet to recover now. 🙂

12 March, 17:19

Alec K
Oh, you'll love that one! I sprung for something similar few years back and never looked back.

13 March, 01:57

Michael Kohl
My kinda stuff.

14 March, 16:39

gorby
New photos start at number 25.
It's odd what you think about when you're wide awake at 2:30 in the morning. I'd assumed the rear wheels were attached behind the firebox in some way and at 2:30am I realised that couldn't possibly be the case and sure enough, when I studied the photos more closely, the axle is further forward than I thought. Also as I haven't got a proper side view, I'm having to estimate sizes. When I temporarily fitted the back wheels to see how other things would fit...they didn't…. That's the problem with not having a proper side view. I did consider the bin as an option but decided that I'd devoted too much time on it to chuck it.

31 March, 16:01

Robert Podkoński
Do not give up, Gorby! We're all waiting for the photos of a completed Steeplechaser!

31 March, 16:04

gorby
Thanks Robert. This build has been a bit a struggle, but there is no way I'm giving up on four months work. Incidentally, the build has progressed quite a bit further than I've shown here, I'm just not getting much time to update the build report. I estimate there's about another months work.....every month I've been estimating another months work. 😄

31 March, 16:08

Spanjaard
thus is getting better and better at every picture, soon to be finished, do not give up gorby, end is in sight, just one more month! 😉

31 March, 18:10

Alec K
Holy GEARS batman! This is looking good! As far as lack of references goes, look at the bright side: at least nobody's going to whine about it being few millimeters too long or short 😉 😄

1 April, 00:17

Ben M
Looks like a mutant case tractor

1 April, 01:38

gorby
Thanks for your comments Alec & Ben. Yes, it will help that there isn't anyone still alive who actually saw this beastie, although I suspect that anyone who understands traction engines will be laughing their socks off. 😄

1 April, 07:14

Dietmar Bogatzki
like your build so far 🙂

1 April, 07:59

Andy Dallibar
Amazing! So drag racing pre-dates the internal combustion engine.
Very nice bit if scratch building.

1 April, 08:03

gorby
😄 😄
Thanks for the comments mates. 👍

1 April, 14:58

S M
Wow! those gears must have been a lot of work!

1 April, 19:21

gorby
Thanks SM. The gears are easy work, they just take a lot of time. Great way of getting through some podcasts (currently No Such Thing as a Fish). 🙂

2 April, 08:39

bughunter
The model would not look any better if it had been made from a kit!

2 April, 21:39

gorby
Thanks Frank. I tend to use less filler on a scratchbuild than I would normally use for a kit, although it can be a bit frustrating spending hours making a part which would take minutes with a kit.

3 April, 09:53

Lukas Muller
amazing !!

3 April, 10:43

Alec K
I feel compelled to point that that, as with most hobbies, it's about the journey 🙂

3 April, 11:00

Bohrmann
This is art in the making ! 👀

3 April, 11:29

gorby
Thanks very much mates. 🙂
You are correct Alec, but there times on a loooooong journey you just want to get there NOW!!!! 😄 😄 😄
Normally my annual winter build gets a lot more time devoted to it. This winter there has been quite a few things happening which has cut into my modelling time, including two occasions when I didn't have time to do any modelling for about three weeks. On both occasions I had to get myself interested in the project again. I've never given up on a kit or a scratch-build (I don't have a shelf of doom) and I don't intend to start now. I've started so I'll finish. 🙂

3 April, 14:20

Michael Kohl
No shelf of doom? Well, that means, that the two of us both have an average one. Man, this makes me feel so much better now. 👍
You made my day!
But now I gotta go - to start a new project. 😜

3 April, 15:30

David Taylor
As a now 60yr old I did my very first totally scratch built model starting last June and finishing it just into the new year.I have to say totally rewarding and satisfying.Watching this one with great interest.

3 April, 18:01

bughunter
I also really enjoy thinking up and making my own parts (I only hate the last ones of many identical parts). And in the end, you have a unique piece in your display case 👍

3 April, 18:41

gorby
That really made me laugh Michael. 😄
Frank & David, it is rewarding to make something from scratch, it also helps keep your mind active and occupied. Which is even more important when you start to get a mentally befuddled, ageing human wreck like me. 😄 😄 😄
Thanks very much for your comments mates. 🙂

4 April, 10:01

Mick Burdett
Your skill amazes me Gorby, nearly makes me want to give up !

10 April, 20:27

gorby
Thanks very much Mick. I'd advise you to have a go at scratch-building - you'll be surprised at what you are capable of making. I think I was the one who was most amazed at the result of my first full scratch build.

11 April, 08:46

gorby
New photos start from number 42.
I have absolutely no idea what the mechanical engine gubbins looked like. Yes, I could study other examples of early traction engines, it turns out that the one I've chosen to build is very different to other traction engines in many more ways than the wheels, so a lot of this is going to be based on 'best guess'. A photo from above would have been very useful. It's a shame Victorians didn't invent the steam powered photographic drone.

13 April, 16:05

Alec K
It may be fiction, but it looks great 👍

13 April, 17:01

Spanjaard
since we can not proof inaccurate (and I would not care if somebody can) it its simply stunning

13 April, 19:43

David Taylor
If you get a look at the gubbins on a traction engine your pretty much spot on.

13 April, 19:46

bughunter
Put some paint on it to hide the plastic and with some steam I'm sure that it will run!

13 April, 19:59

gorby
Thanks for your comments matiepoos, there's plenty more detail to come. 🙂
I've spent hours looking for reference photos and and videos of how traction engines worked, so there is some reason in the apparent chaos even if it is a little simplified. I'm a bit irritated because I had to leave out the clutch gearing as I couldn't see anywhere to put it and there was no evidence of a clutch on the photos.

14 April, 06:37

Tini Hendriks
Da real thing💪🏼. Following with respect

15 April, 08:21

gorby
Thanks Tini and welcome to the build. 🙂

15 April, 08:47

gorby
New photos start from number 50.
This was about the time in the build we found out my best furry friend had an inoperable brain tumour. I know some people won't give a monkeys and are wondering why I mention it. She has become very clingy – constantly needing someone to be with her and that someone is generally me, she's a member of our family and I'm happy to spend more time with her. This obviously means – more time with Ella = less time mangling plastic.
This happened just over a month ago, so I do have a lot more progress to report. I may be giving the impression of working quickly, eeerrm, not the case. I'm just playing catch-up with the build progress…..
Back to the build.
Many traction engines only had suspension on the rear wheels and some didn't have suspension at all. The only information I've found for the suspension on the Steaplechaser is that it had leaf springs. Nothing can be seen in the photos which is a bit odd as normally leaf springs are visible either side of the wheels. Which means the springs were either incredibly narrow conventional springs, very narrow elliptic leaf springs, or they were transverse leaf springs – which I decided to go for. I did find an image showing a transverse suspension on a traction engine which helped me decide, of course now I can't find it.

21 April, 14:34

NLAWScametovisit
So sorry to hear about Ella, Gorby. That's very heartbreaking. I'm glad you were able to spend that extra time with her, and I'm sure she's glad too.

21 April, 15:07

Rui S
Hi Gorby, I'm with NLAWScametovisit. I hope she will keep on fighting. Best wishes Mate.
As to the build, just Excellent scratch work 👍

21 April, 16:18

David Taylor
Sorry to hear about Ella.Where did you find the water gauge or as usual did you build it.

21 April, 16:51

Alec K
Sad news about Ella, so sorry to hear. Modeling can wait. …but that water gauge looks amazing 👍

21 April, 18:15

S M
Poor Ella. Best wishes for Ella and be close to her. Modeling can wait because plastic never disappears.

21 April, 19:40

Spanjaard
fully agree with the above. family goes first (human or not).
the water gauge is incredible.

21 April, 21:08

gorby
Thanks everyone for your comments or likes.
Ella is still happy and absolutely loving the extra treats and fuss. We've had several friends visit and say "we're here to see Ella". She is a remarkable dog who everyone seems to fall in love with the first time they meet her. Thanks for your comments.
Shame you all like the water gauge as I'm currently in the process of trying to re-make a smaller one. 😄

22 April, 06:02

bughunter
After returning from the trip to the Mosonshow, I read your post. Honestly, the plastic doesn't matter in such moments of life. All the best for you both!

22 April, 06:12

gorby
Thanks Frank, I hope the show was good.

22 April, 06:31

Mike Thomas
Don't worry about other people's opinions on you mentioning Ella. Yes, it's a model site but we're all humans, too. I've had an animal of some sort in my life since birth. Dogs, cats, hamsters, frogs, lizards...whatever. Our dog, Nipper, was there before me and 62 years later, me and Minnie (my rescue cat from the shelter) are living life pretty good. To be honest, I think I prefer animals over most humans anyway. Give Ella a boop for me and please keep us updated.

22 April, 17:40

gorby
Thanks Mike, I do get very attached to my dogs and Ella is even more special than most, a true furry angel. She nearly died twice in her first year of life so she has had 9 extra amazing years she almost didn't get. By most dogs standards, she's had a very privileged life.
Trying to keep busy to keep my mind off the inevitable.

22 April, 17:58

bughunter
It was was the effort to do a smaller gauge 👍 The first one was the training version 😉

25 April, 20:46

Robert Podkoński
That's amazing!

26 April, 05:13

gorby
Thanks mates. 🙂
Frank: you are absolutely correct. Making the first one make it a lot easier to tackle the second one.

26 April, 05:45

Spanjaard
and it looks fantastic gorby!

26 April, 06:57

gorby
Thanks Spanjaard! 🙂

26 April, 09:23

Landlubber Mike
Wow, this is modeling at its finest. Looking forward to following along!

26 April, 16:01

gorby
Thanks very much Mike, I'm glad you like it. 🙂

26 April, 18:45

NLAWScametovisit
Gorby, the quality of this build has me expecting to log on one day to photos of you using a micro shovel to load coal into the fire box!

26 April, 22:11

gorby
😄 😄 😄
Thanks very much for the compliment and thanks also for reminding me I need to make a shovel. 👍

27 April, 13:18

gorby
New photos from number 71.
The build is complete! There are things which I'm not 100% happy with but isn't that always the case with us modellers?
Just the colouring-in to do now.

28 April, 10:47

Spanjaard
It looks truly fantastic gorby. that tool seem quite interesting. now it is in my wishlist Rivet modls (Green Stuff World 1420, )

28 April, 12:48

Alec K
Just stupendous 👍

28 April, 13:36

bughunter
If you paint that beast in different grey shades it will look like pic 1 and 2 👍 Impressive! With that capabilities you don't nee a kit.

28 April, 15:09

Ben M
Thanks for sending me down this rabbit hole: douglas-self.com/MUS..raction/traction.htm

As usual I learned a lot and the result is beautiful. Wishing you the best and sorry for your loss.

28 April, 15:22

David Taylor
love building hate colouring in.Sorry for your loss.

28 April, 17:22

S M
Looks fantastic! Congrats for finishing building!

28 April, 20:56

gorby
Thanks very much for your comments mates. Sorry I haven't replied sooner, Ella died unexpectedly a couple of hours after I posted the last update, which is why I haven't been in the mood for modelling this week.

1 May, 07:54

Spanjaard
a big hug from Amsterdam, my deepest condolences my friend.

1 May, 08:59

gorby
Thanks Spanjaard. It has hit me even harder than I thought it would, but at least she was playing, running at the park and eating well two days before, so she didn't suffer for long, which we are very grateful for.

1 May, 09:18

Rui S
My deepest sympathy in this dark hour, Gorby. I can just imagine your pain mate. I hope you will recover as soon as possible. If not, they say that to overcome such pain, you have to get another hairy beauty, like Ella...

1 May, 13:22

bughunter
My deepest condolences also from me my friend.

1 May, 17:10

gorby
Thanks mates. Ella will be hard act to follow, so we intend to wait for a while. When you've been used to living with a dog for so long, it's difficult to not have a dog in your life.

1 May, 17:22

NLAWScametovisit
Gorby, I'm so sorry. It sounds like you gave her a life that was wonderful, and she knew she was loved. I'll happily raise a glass for Ella.

1 May, 17:28

Alec K
So sorry to hear. Hang in there my friend.

1 May, 17:42

gorby
Thanks mates. 🙂

2 May, 07:18

Ludvík Kružík
Losing a beloved friend is always painful. I wish you to overcome the pain soon and to keep the good memories of the time spent together.

2 May, 07:58

Mick Burdett
Sorry for your loss Gorby, know what it's like to lose a furry chum, so understand what you are going through

2 May, 15:52

gorby
Thanks mates. There's some very nice people on Scalemates isn't there. 🙂

3 May, 05:30

gorby
New photos start at number 82.
Still playing catch-up with the build. This installment will bring this report to where I currently am in the build.
On to the colouring-in – otherwise entitled 'Where did it all start to go so wrong?'.
I much prefer building to painting and that is very evident in my skills. This is going to require a hell of a lot of detail brush painting and my lack of a steady hands means there will be lots of touch-ups and quite a lot of swearing.
What colour to do?…… It looks like most early Fowler traction engines were black with a few later ones in either dark blue or dark green. Looking at the photos it looks too light to be black and I think black would be a bit dull….and I find all black paint jobs difficult to get anywhere near realistic. I went with blue (Tamiya X-4) because I think it would be the next most likely…..well that's a bit of a fib. I went with blue because I like blue and that's a good enough reason for me. 🙂
The advantage is that no one knows what colour it actually was, so I could paint it pink and no one will be able to provide photographic evidence it isn't accurate. Fortunately (for me) as it was a prototype it doesn't look like it has any fancy coach-painted decoration.

4 May, 09:26

Michael Kohl
Oh. I don't really know what I actually expected, but blue it wasn't. But it definitely looks cool. I particularly like the black front with the brass stripe - and everything else for that matter.
Nice to see this one proceeding. Hope the build will help ameliorate you're feeling of loss too. I am anxious for more.

4 May, 11:07

Mike Thomas
I just caught up with your build....and your news. I'm so sorry for your loss, Gorby. May she rest in peace.😢

4 May, 11:54

bughunter
Oh yes! This color came out of the blue. 😉

4 May, 14:27

Lochsa River
a modeling master.....

4 May, 18:43

Bruce Huxtable
I do like a good shovel, and this scratch-built example raises the bar.... 🙂 OMG, what if someone mentioned eggs and bacon being cooked on it ... 😉

4 May, 20:25

NLAWScametovisit
Glad my shovel comment helped! I think this blue looks really good. It's very industrial and I can definitely picture an Edwardian child slapping a big brush full of blue paint on the side of the engine. I feel you about the building vs the painting, I'm always nervous to start the painting since I feel I'm going to ruin all my progress. And that is a damn good shovel!

4 May, 21:27

Ben M
The blue looks superb.

5 May, 00:21

gorby
Thanks mates for your comments about the build and also about Ella. Some of your comments made me laugh and that's exactly what I need this week. 👍
The detail painting is taking even longer than I thought it would because it's a bloody awkward thing to paint. Thanks for continuing to follow the build.

5 May, 06:55

Torsten
Very interesting, follow

5 May, 08:15

Bruce Huxtable
I'm glad you shared your news of Ella, your special companion, Gorby. I am so sorry for your loss, and my thoughts are with you.

5 May, 08:20

Ludvík Kružík
Gorby, you've made great progress on your model. It's fascinating to watch the progress of building this amazing model, which is made from almost nothing.

It's a great inspiration for me to get started on my scratchbuilding projects that I've been putting off for later.

5 May, 10:07

gorby
Thanks Torsten. 👍
Thank you for that Bruce.
Thanks Ludvik. I certainly recommend having a go at scratch building, it's very rewarding (occasionally frustrating) working out how to build each part. One piece of advice, don't start with a traction engine. 😄

5 May, 16:17

NLAWScametovisit
I'm really impressed with how the trucknutz- I mean governor turned out

5 May, 17:45

Ludvík Kružík
Gorby, thank you for your valuable advice. I will definitely not be building a traction engine at this time. Although... yours looks very good... and as they say, never say never.

My scratchbuilding plans are for aircraft. I'm very tempted to build a model plane of the Czech pilot, designer and a big fan and promoter of aviation ing. Jan Kaspar, with whom he made a flight from Pardubice to Prague on May 13, 1911.
eu.zonerama.com/LudvikKruzik/Album/7765761

5 May, 22:53

gorby
I had to Google trucknutz as I've never hear of it before. Certainly made me smile. 🙂
That would be fantastic Ludvik, although scratch-building that aircraft, particularly the engine, would make a traction engine build look easy. 😉

6 May, 15:06

NLAWScametovisit
Glad I could introduce you to a core tenant of American culture. 😉

6 May, 19:21

Bruce Huxtable
Following your inspiring example, Gorby, I am trying to scratch some addition into each new kit. My Everest is soo much smaller than yours 🙂

6 May, 20:06

Ludvík Kružík
Gorby, I'm glad I amused you and aroused your interest in the history of Czech aviation.
But this is your thread dedicated to your traction engine build. Sorry for introducing a little digression to another topic.

6 May, 20:55

gorby
Bruce: That's how the scratching bug starts. 😉
Ludvik: No problem at all, always good to learn something new, I found it very interesting learning about Jan Kaspar.

7 May, 07:17

gorby
New photos start at number 90.
Very limited modelling time this week, although it didn't need much more work to get the Steeplechaser across the line. You won't be seeing the completed model yet as I want to have a go at a simple base for the final unveiling. Thanks for having a look. 👍

10 May, 16:27

John Hughes
Well, if you raised the boiler pressure high enough, you might just get 200mph and 8,000ft out of it!

10 May, 16:31

gorby
😄 😄 😄

10 May, 16:42

bughunter
This is not orange peel skin! This is the underlying cast structure 👍
Love it!

10 May, 17:14

gorby
😄 😄 😄
Of course.....that's what I meant. That's the story I'm sticking to now. 😉
Thanks Frank.

10 May, 17:24

NLAWScametovisit
I was just going ti say the same thing as Bughunter, i think the texture makes it look even better

10 May, 17:30

Spanjaard
coal ia a great addition

10 May, 19:29

Rui S
Beautiful machine. Great work allround 👍

10 May, 19:41

Alec K
Very realistic coal 👍 😄

10 May, 20:21

gorby
Thanks very much mates. 🙂

11 May, 07:52

Mr James
Agree with Rui S

11 May, 09:26

gorby
Thanks Mr James. 👍

11 May, 14:54

Dietmar Bogatzki
Your build amazing 👍

12 May, 17:10

gorby
Thank you Dietmar. 🙂

13 May, 06:20

Michael Kohl
I don't see no orange peel - just intended structured finish. 🙂

13 May, 16:03

gorby
Thanks very much Michael. 🙂

13 May, 16:48

Ludvík Kružík
Perfect scratchbuilding. Your model looks great! I really like it a lot. 👍

14 May, 15:18

gorby
Thanks very much Ludvik. I must admit that I am quite pleased with it. I'm working on the base at the moment - and it's giving me a hard time. 🙂

14 May, 16:18

gorby
New photos start from number 94.
On to the base. I finally managed to get a bit of time to getting the base started. Get yourself a drink as this is a surprisingly long update, or miss it altogether as this is a plastic free episode….

17 May, 16:45

bughunter
Regardless of your figure painting skills, I recognized Ella immediately! And I know only this single pic you showed.

17 May, 16:48

NLAWScametovisit
What an incredible memorial to Ella. Truly heartwarming. 🫂

17 May, 19:16

Spanjaard
great job depicting Ella!

17 May, 20:28

Michael Kohl
Your technique for creating cobblestones is quite elaborate (although the result is convincing). You might consider those textured cylinders for one of your future builds.

greenstuffworld.com/..15mm-fow-flames.html

I used the cobblestone one for one of my projects.
Velorex | Album by panorama (1:72)

At the beginning I was disappointed by the effect but when I gently squeezed the surface after texturing it, I had the appearance I was looking for.

Might be worth a try. Cheers Michael

17 May, 21:29

Ludvík Kružík
The tiles on the base look really believable. You can see on the Ella figure that it was made with love. What a great idea to honour her memory.

17 May, 21:39

Rui S
Beautifull Tribute to Ella. Very well done 👍

17 May, 22:20

gorby
Thanks matiepoos for your comments and likes. Nice to know you like the figure representing Ella. 🙂

Michael: I made a GSW order a few months ago an did conciser one of those cobblestone rollers – they are a great idea. I decided that I wouldn't get enough use out of it to warrant the expense. There are too many tempting things on that site clamoring for my money.

18 May, 07:47

Michael Kohl
Oh, I know what you are talking about. 🙂

18 May, 09:32

gorby
Thanks everyone for following my build. The completed monstrosity can be seen here: John Fowler & Co. Steeplechaser 1877 – a glorious failure. | Album by gorby (1:48)

18 May, 15:40

Bernhard Schrock
Building a model from scratch is a challenge. Building such a model from scratch based on just two photos is an art! Magnificent!

18 May, 16:28

Spanjaard
fully agree with Bernhard!

18 May, 17:33

gorby
Thanks Bernhard & Spanjaard. In some ways having so little information gives you a lot of room for imagination and the research to fill in the gaps made me learn a lot more about traction engines than if I had full plans. I can guarantee that my model isn't 100% accurate, the important thing is that I don't really care if it is or isn't. To me, as long as it looks nice I'm happy. Thanks very much for your comments. 🙂

19 May, 06:47

Album info

I've been itching to do some scratching for a while and as the pup has had her monthly flea medication it must be time to break out the plasticard….
The Steeplechaser was built by John Fowler & Co. in 1877. The 12 foot (3.66m) wheels were intended to reduce the ground pressure and give better propulsion in soft soil. Surprise surprise it proved to be too clumsy to be useful, but that didn't stop Fowlers from producing a similar machine two years later with 9 foot (2.7m) driving wheels - the usual maximum diameter was 7 foot.
One of the biggest problems I'm going to face with this build is that there are only two photos of this machine, although one of the advantages is that there are only two photos of this machine. Who's going to prove me wrong? 🙂
Added to that, only one dimension is recorded, the size of the back wheels. I could search out similar Fowler engines to cross check dimensions but where's the fun in that? That would be like taking it seriously and that just sounds wrong. Like the Robey Steamer I built a few years ago, I'm just going to make an educated estimate* of the other dimensions from the photos.
So far its turned out to be a lot more challenging to build than I thought it would. Not having a clue how traction engines work might possibly be a reason for that. 😳
Oh, I nearly forgot to say, it’ll be in 1/48 as attempting it in 1/72 is likely to make my brain melt. 😮

* I'm going to make it up as I go along.

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