New Vise and a Cheap Tool

Two tools and a link, today.

First, the link.  Take a couple minutes and read over this information page on "Twisting Wire for Great Grab Irons" at the Labelle Models site.  (The page will open in a new window, and then you'll need to open the pdf file.  It's FREE!)  Don't get distracted reading all the other great articles - come back here and finish this page first.

Next, my new cool tool, a really great mini-vise from Micro Mark.

Sure, you can probably buy one cheaper on ebay, but this is one case where you really do get what you pay for.  I got mine on sale!  This little vise is very well made from cast steel, not aluminum, in Japan.  Think Samurai swords.  These guys know what they're doing.  I trued the jaws with a few swipes of a file, but it was already very close to begin with.  I left the sticker on the side because I think it looks cool, and I'm even considering weathering it.

The other tool is so cheap, it's free if you know where to look.

My grab iron jig is a coffee stir stick.  It just happens to be the right size in a couple dimensions:

First, it's a width gauge for setting tape on the jaws of a pair of pliers I use to bend the basic shape of the handrail.  As you can see, it lays nicely between the locating marks (+____+) on the side of the CV car.  It also serves as a means of setting the depth for the handrail's first break. 

I've got a large vintage vise on a home-built stand down in the garage.  And, I've used it to make grabs in this manor before.  However, there was a lot of slop in the jaws, and being used, they weren't that sharp.  Plus, my modeling desk is upstairs and I'd like to be able to sit down and bend a grab iron when I've got a few minutes before I have to get the kiddo to preschool, or before dinner is ready, etc.

I can bend a grab from straight wire to ready-to-mount in 2-3 minutes.  That adds up to over an hour for a car like the current ventilated car.  I'd rather break that tedium into smaller bites.  Even so, I consider it time well spent towards realism and that fine-scale appearance that I believe contribute so much when upgrading a classic kit.

I managed to get my second April post in just under the wire.  Next month I hope to show the completed ventilated box car and some progress on the second CV kit.

Central Valley Kits and Bits

March is a busy time, what with Lent, but I still made time for modeling.  A few minutes every day adds up, and when the kit comes with good step-by-step instructions it is easy to do just that and take small steps.  Small, enjoyable steps.

With a Central Valley Old Timer, that's exactly what I get - enjoyable steps adding up to a beautiful little model.  Even before construction begins, the kit itself is a thing of beauty.  Every thing in place, ready to go.

Each little package of parts carefully slipped into a slot in the cardboard spacing, the inner wood bits neatly bundled in their slot on the side, the printed sides and ends wrapped in a protective plastic sleeve, all ready to begin.  So that's what I did.

The printing on the car sides and ends may not be as crisp and clean as some of today's models, but the quality of the fine-grained, scribed plywood is excellent even after many years in storage.  Click on the picture of the interior for a close-up view.  There are lines for oats, corn and wheat; appropriate for a box car, but especially one with 'grain' printed on the solid sliding door.

As of this post I'm nearing completion of this kit.  I'll discuss a few more of the minor modifications I've made along the way to upgrade the car in the next post.  I'm waiting for a special delivery from Micro-Mark in order to do the next step at my workbench instead of the garage.  Until then, I have a second CV kit that's in need of some care and attention.

This is a bargain I found on eBay; an 'Arctic Oil Works' CV Old Timer box car.  No trucks or couplers, and in pretty rough shape, so I was able to make an offer and purchase it at a reduced price.  That's fine since it's going to need a lot of work.  The trucks you see in the picture were a find at a recent train show.  Always check the bargain boxes under the table.  These trucks were on a beat-up, poorly constructed Mainline Models GN boxcar.  I paid a dollar.  That's right, wahn dahlah.

I can salvage the roof, end blocks, details and grab irons for a future project.  The other trucks pictured above are CV T-57 Hi-speed roller bearing trucks and Kadee 501 Arch Bar trucks, each obtained under similar bargain bin cars for $2.50 each.  Not sure if I can use the T-57s in my era, so they'll be saved or sold if not, but the car they were attached to can most likely be used.  The Kadee trucks were under an ARA SP car which will not be used on the current layout, but the trucks will be.

Long post this time since I had planned to post monthly and I just missed March by a couple days.  But like I said, March is a busy month for ministry and this one has been especially so for many reasons.  I'm glad I have a hobby to help me relax.