PaperModelers.com

Go Back   PaperModelers.com > Designers Corner > Design Threads

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 03-20-2024, 04:48 PM
Siwi Siwi is online now
Member
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Southampton, birthplace of the Spitfire
Posts: 1,219
Total Downloaded: 134.16 MB
British Class 158 DMU

This is my first design thread and although I mostly build aircraft I wanted to design some British railway subjects. Whilst steam locos are impressive they are also complicated so for a first design I settled on a modern DMU, the Class 158 (which also exists in a longer type called Class 159). This is one the most widely used and comfortable trains at work in the UK, and has a reasonably easy shape to design. The intention is to create this model in British scales of N (1:148) and in OO scale (1:76), maybe something larger too. Note that British railway modelling scales are out of scale with model track; this is because we have narrower trains and they had to be made larger to fit the motors in but still used the European-US track widths! The N scale/gauge version will be less detailed whereas the larger one will have interior and more detailed shape.


The basic model was initially drawn in Inkscape from side and front photographs and a test print was made to check things over:




This will probably be ok for the N gauge version, but there should be a slope to the roof at front and back, and it involves some multiple truncated cone sections, so I will resort to using a 3D program to draw these.
__________________
Currently in the hanger: Thaipaperwork Martin B-26 'Flak-Bait'
In the shipyard: JSC barkentine 'Pogoria'
Recently completed: TSMC F-16, S&P Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu diorama
Reply With Quote
Google Adsense
  #2  
Old 03-21-2024, 09:47 AM
Siwi Siwi is online now
Member
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Southampton, birthplace of the Spitfire
Posts: 1,219
Total Downloaded: 134.16 MB
With a rather roundabout method of importing Inkscape drawings into Sketchup, then exporting the Sketchup model to Pepakura... and then the flat parts as a pdf back into Inkscape, we have a good draft of the cab end in something like 1/60 scale. The 158 sides have an almost imperceptable slope inwards for the last metre or so at the ends (again due to British loading gauge). The refinements are mostly the positioning of tabs and a bit of trimming some corners. I also found that it will be very difficult to reach inside to close tabs at the ends of such a long shape, so I am currently planning to create the car ends as seperate sub-assemblies that will slide into mounting points on the formers. This should also make it easier to convert the 158 units into the centre cars without cabs that form the 159.

For interest, this type is one of a large family of train types designed in the 1980s that were all based on the same body/chassis plan, called the Mark 3. If this model works out it will be not too much work to modify the model to design others in that family.




__________________
Currently in the hanger: Thaipaperwork Martin B-26 'Flak-Bait'
In the shipyard: JSC barkentine 'Pogoria'
Recently completed: TSMC F-16, S&P Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu diorama
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 03-21-2024, 05:33 PM
missileer missileer is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Annapolis, MD
Posts: 1,159
Total Downloaded: 969.48 MB
That slide in end is a neat idea. It will be interesting to see how that works out.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 03-22-2024, 01:30 AM
Siwi Siwi is online now
Member
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Southampton, birthplace of the Spitfire
Posts: 1,219
Total Downloaded: 134.16 MB
Quote:
Originally Posted by missileer View Post
That slide in end is a neat idea. It will be interesting to see how that works out.

Thanks. It will also make it more amenable to adding interior. There is a solid bulkhead separating the driver's cab from the seating area, which I plan will be made as a former on both sides that are attached using some kind of locating pin/slot. The seats and tables for passengers will be a subassembly on a tray which is slid in before the ends are closed up.
__________________
Currently in the hanger: Thaipaperwork Martin B-26 'Flak-Bait'
In the shipyard: JSC barkentine 'Pogoria'
Recently completed: TSMC F-16, S&P Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu diorama
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 03-22-2024, 06:59 AM
Marterair Marterair is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: Leicestershire
Posts: 133
Total Downloaded: 1.81 GB
Looks nice, always wanted to get on one of these trains before there pulled from service
Reply With Quote
Google Adsense
  #6  
Old 03-22-2024, 08:42 AM
Siwi Siwi is online now
Member
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Southampton, birthplace of the Spitfire
Posts: 1,219
Total Downloaded: 134.16 MB
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marterair View Post
Looks nice, always wanted to get on one of these trains before there pulled from service

Plenty at work in the South West still. Portsmouth-Bristol/Cardiff, London to Exeter and the Salisbury-Southampton loop. Handy designing something I can go see for real five minutes' walk away!
__________________
Currently in the hanger: Thaipaperwork Martin B-26 'Flak-Bait'
In the shipyard: JSC barkentine 'Pogoria'
Recently completed: TSMC F-16, S&P Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu diorama
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 03-22-2024, 11:10 AM
Marterair Marterair is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: Leicestershire
Posts: 133
Total Downloaded: 1.81 GB
Quote:
Originally Posted by Siwi View Post
Plenty at work in the South West still. Portsmouth-Bristol/Cardiff, London to Exeter and the Salisbury-Southampton loop. Handy designing something I can go see for real five minutes' walk away!
Bit far from me, but if im not mistaken EMR still have a small amount
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 03-23-2024, 07:25 AM
Siwi Siwi is online now
Member
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Southampton, birthplace of the Spitfire
Posts: 1,219
Total Downloaded: 134.16 MB
Last night I did moreorless the complete colouring of the sides and front of the N scale model and made a test build of the body. Shape and colours came out pretty well despite some kind of alignment error on my printer. The fine detail such as text has been drawn in Inkscape so on the larger scale versions will be clear and readable. The colour shades are researched to match the hex codes of the paint schemes as far as they can be determined, but I might lighten everything to make it more realistic at small scale. Also, interior silhouettes can be added through the windows.









Main revisions are:
- Add a sloped roof piece at the front. I initially thought this would be too small to be practical at this scale and just designed a flat roof, but seeing the test and a small fit error made me reconsider and a sloping piece will be tested.
- Devise a way of making the connecting corridors. Folding a piece will be way too tiny at this scale, so I think I will provide a simple option to thicken the front with layers to about 2mm and fold sides around it, and a detail option to glue a stack of pieces to get the concertina effect.
- Optional relief on the front for the couplers and recessed steps. The face piece needs reinforcing anyway so making that and suggesting cutting out the holes should do it.

- Draw additional roof details - there are some vents for the AC.
- Devise how to make the exhaust pipe at the rear. This is a tiny but prominant detail so it needs to go on somehow. Rolling a tube is going to be very fiddly although possible, so perhaps for the simple option a stack of three pieces, or using a wire core.
- Create the running gear and underfloor boxes/engine. These once again will need to be simplified, perhaps just to low relief side pieces with the option to add the whole shape. I see plastic versions for model railways just have a flat undetailed base as it will never be seen.


At this point I also have an idea of the colour schemes to draw:
- Regional Railways standard logo
- Regional Railways 'Express' (almost the same)
- Network SouthEast red, white and blue

- Northern Spirit blue and indigo
- Metro red and cream
- South West Trains red, orange, blue and white
- Central Trains green, yellow and blue
- Wessex Trains silver and purple

- Transport for Wales red and grey
- State Railway of Thailand (basically same as Regional Railways)

- Fictional Intercity black, white and red


These are all defunct or publicly owned. More recent ones may have the issue of copyright over logos etc.







Marterair, EMR do indeed operate them inherited from East Midlands; as do Northern.
__________________
Currently in the hanger: Thaipaperwork Martin B-26 'Flak-Bait'
In the shipyard: JSC barkentine 'Pogoria'
Recently completed: TSMC F-16, S&P Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu diorama
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 03-23-2024, 10:27 AM
paperairforce paperairforce is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 165
Total Downloaded: 0
Looks nice, watching with interest.
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 03-24-2024, 02:38 PM
Siwi Siwi is online now
Member
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Southampton, birthplace of the Spitfire
Posts: 1,219
Total Downloaded: 134.16 MB
This weekend - aside from running a very fast 10k - I made a second test build and painted the Central Trains version for it. I came up with an internal formers system involving folding a series of uprights connected to segments of the base. This works well but needs shortening very slightly to account for the paper thickness, so I cut it in half and I think will retain that for the final design for the same reason. The car ends are glued on the ends of this structure, and the main body wraps over it without being glued to the actual uprights which avoids the 'starving horse' issue.


The kit will have score+fold points shown outside of the parts to avoid prominant fold lines, although in fact some match the stripes of the paintwork. There will also be a distinction between 'hard' and 'soft' fold lines; the latter should be gently bent over an edge rather than scored.


Overall there are some very tiny fit issues to correct but it works well. The connecting corridor on the front was a stroke of luck: originally this would have involved stacking tiny layers. I folded up some paper to check how thick the layers would turn out and suddenly realised that it gave a perfect concertina like the real thing.



Thinking about the final design, some points: I found there was a small twist in the coach's long shape, and it was not entirely simple to attach the bottom flaps of the outer skin to the bottom of the former structure (although not hard either). I plan to address both these problems by adding another fold into the base that is glued together vertically along the centre, and that slides through a slot in the base of the upright formers. This will still allow fine adjustment to fit the car ends.



The front sloping roof piece was slightly too narrow but I did glue it over the top rather than flush and mess around with tiny glue tabs. I think adjusting it and keeping this arrangement is simpler and doesn't compromise the shape.


Gluing the front 'spoiler' flush is also better than folding glue tabs under so will repaint those to match the green.


Small revision of the sides of the rear panel to get the tucked-in corners characteristic of British trains (restrictive loading gauge again)



The paint scheme is colour matched to real life trains but is oversaturated for scale and came out darker than expected (this is consistant with my printer on other prints). Will do some experiements. The Regional Railways colours seemed fine though. I would be interested to see the results on other types and makes of printer.


Still need to draw some attachement points for suspension and the external steps, as well as simple 3d for the coupler and roof vents. The latter are inconsistant across trains as different AC units were exchanged over the years.









__________________
Currently in the hanger: Thaipaperwork Martin B-26 'Flak-Bait'
In the shipyard: JSC barkentine 'Pogoria'
Recently completed: TSMC F-16, S&P Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu diorama
Reply With Quote
Google Adsense
Reply

Tags
british, diesel engine, train

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 12:53 PM.


Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.

Parts of this site powered by vBulletin Mods & Addons from DragonByte Technologies Ltd. (Details)
Copyright © 2007-2023, PaperModelers.com