Mountain Goat Waggon & Carriage Works.

[Bandit Mick]

Nice job MG! This is what I like most about our hobby - modellers like yourself using innovative ideas and stuff you often have lying around to model with rather than just buying pre-made. There are people up and down the country beavering away in garages and sheds being creative and trying things out. Great stuff!

[Mountain Goat]

Thanks. That loco is from a kit but a lot of what I have made is scratchbuilt. I love this scale and gauge because while there is a need to make everything, using basic 00 gauge mechanisms things are not that difficult, though I have been struggling this last year or so to do anything much. (Hence you may have noticed more pictures of various tools rather then the things I have made).
To beginners, I reccomend to start with hand tools and go from there. The first power tool is always going to be a good quality mini drill, and then a soldering iron with a some sort of decent stand.

[Mountain Goat]

Some photos of the progress so far:-

[JimRead]

Hello MG,

I found your thread very well done indeed, I like the way you make your own track and the locos fair play to you.

You might be interested in this, it's a video of a Triang/Hornby 'Nellie' chassis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJOXNQWUxoc

With the original motor and 100 mph gearing. I took it all apart sprayed it with Jizer, cleaned the commutator, cleaned the wheels by spinning them in a drill and removed all the flaky plating with some rough carborundum off a band sander, polished them with 400 W&D paper and put it all back together. The motor does clatter but then it would wouldn't it

If you would like I can let you have the information about the controller. I authored it with the intention of helping those who know nothing about electronics. Do forgive me if you already have the knowledge in which case all you would need would be the circuit diagram.

Cheers - J

[Mountain Goat]

Thank you for your kind comments. I have noticed with those motors that when the magnets start to weaken and before they get too weak that they get problems, in that window between the two they run so quiet and smooth that one can be forgiven to think that someone has changed the motor. I had a Triang/Hornby pannier tank which was my first loco, and I had it in Hornby days when it was new. Around 20 years later it was my smoothest and quietest runner and then I sold it as I wanted to concentrate in BR blue era.
I think I had my two Gaugemaster twin panel controllers in those days (UDS and UD if I remember correctly) but prior to that I had a H&M3000 and a lovely AGW along with a budget Hornby R914.
Anyway, going back to controllers. I am currently building the cheapest and simpliest controller which will run from a small 12V leasure battery. There is more then one reason for wanting simplicity. I want to fully understand it and I want others to be able to understand it as well.

[Mountain Goat]

Nameplates and numberplates are made from fizzy drinks can cut into strips and fed into an old labelling machine. They are then painted and when the paint has dried, the top surface of the letters and numbers is removed. (Ignore the unwanted letters. It can take a few attempts to get it right).

[Mountain Goat]

The nameplates have been done and the drop loops are finished and everything is painted and here she is!

[Walkingthedog]

That looks excellent MG. I do believe you’re getting the hang of it.

[Mountain Goat]

That one is heading for the USA. I need to work on the other locos in my fleet as they have not quite been finished yet apart from "Ruthy" which is loco number 1, though I intend to see to her pickups soon as the springy wire I chose to collect the current has a coating which does not take to the solder very well. I was thinking of using old thin guitar string wire instead as it is said to be nickel silver I believe? I will have to look for where I put it when I was gives some offcuts.

[Mountain Goat]

My next two projects are on the go. One is to make a pair of narrow gauge tankers. I was looking at this Jouef Playcraft tanker where I had offered it up for sale in the past, but there were no takers. So I was looking at it and it looks ideal. The plan is to make two little narrow gauge tankers to carry fuel for the diesel shunters to use. In this one Jouef tank wagon I have most of what I need to make a nice pair of little waggons. I have wheels and I have the main structure with a lid for each little tank. It maybe an easier project then I thought. We shall see.
The other project is to make a pair of little quarrymens carriages but more on that again.