Sommaire pour Issue 4703 de Model Engineer

Spitfire Competition How do you fancy a spin in a Spitfire? All you need to do is spend a happy hour or two splashing a little glue over a plastic kit and you're in with a chance. Airfix, one of the world's oldest and most well-known manufacturers of model kits, is giving the chance for one lucky person to experience an incredible once-in-a-lifetime flight in Britain's iconic Spitfire aircraft. Anyone who purchases an Airfix Gift Set or Starter Set through the Airfix website, will automatically have the opportunity to win the flight, which will take place in an authentic Spitfire in summer 2023. ‘The Spitfire is a British icon and, as such, is one of our most popular to build’, explains Dale Luckhurst, head of brand at Airfix, ‘It makes…

Winding the stator – four-poles Prior to winding the first four pole coil, I inserted lengths of 0.14 mm aramid insulation around the inside of the eight-pole winding to act as inter-winding insulation held in place with low-tack paper masking tape. Then the first phase of the four-pole winding was wound in a similar fashion to the low-speed winding using spacers carefully inserted into the slots so as not to damage the slot insulation. For this winding, I decided to use fractional pitch coils again as it spaces the wire out more evenly around the circumference of the stator. In order to make adjacent poles of opposite polarity, I wound the first pole of the four-pole winding clockwise and the second pole anticlockwise followed by the same for poles three…

Write to us Views and opinions expressed in letters published in Postbag should not be assumed to be in accordance with those of the Editor, other contributors, or Mortons Media Group Ltd. Correspondence for Postbag should be sent to: Martin R. Evans, The Editor, Model Engineer, Mortons Media Group Ltd, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR F. 01507 371066 E. MEeditor@mortons.co.uk Publication is at the discretion of the Editor. The content of letters may be edited to suit the magazine style and space available. Correspondents should note that production schedules normally involve a minimum lead time of six weeks for material submitted for publication. In the interests of security, correspondents’ details are not published unless specific instructions to do so are given. Responses to published letters are forwarded as…

Continued from p.571 M.E. 4702,21 October 2022 The fifth part of this series will provide details and some help in the construction and assembly of the copper boiler. Please note that the photographs are examples only and not specific to the Ballaarat boiler. In Western Australia, especially the Northern Districts Model Engineering Society (NDMES), we have completed approximately 60 copper boilers over the last six years; these copper boilers range from very small Gauge 1 up to a 1% inch gauge boiler for a Paddington. Based on this extensive experience, the intention is to describe the NDMES method of building copper boilers. This is not the only method; please select the procedure that suits your style of building a copper boiler. If you have been following this series, you should…

No excuses are needed for another article about the Waverley (ref 1). The world's last sea going paddle steamer made her maiden voyage on 16 June 1947 so 16 June 2022 saw her Diamond Anniversary steaming (ref 2 and photo 1). A trip aboard Waveriey, taken in 2021, was an opportunity to relive a journey ‘Doon the Walter’ from Glasgow to the Kyles of Bute and Tighnabruaich made in 1966 with my family on the turbine ship, Queen Mary. The Clyde at that time presented a very different picture. A steamer cruise to Clyde resorts used to be the way for Glaswegians to start their holidays but now there are onty special summer excursions on the Waverley, arguably the best steam powered journeys in Britain with wonderful scenery combined with…

November 4 Guildford MES Open Day, Stoke Park, Guildford 11:00 – 15:00. See www.gmes.org.uk 5 York Model Engineers Fireworks, Running and Supper. Contact: Bob Polley: 01653 618324 6 North Wilts MES Public Running, Coate Water Country Park, Swindon 11:00 – Dusk. Contact: Ken Parker, 07710 515507 10 Cardiff Model Engineering Society Talk: Five Boys and a Pasty, Heath Park, Cardiff. See www.cardiffmes.co.uk 12 York Model Engineers Evening Talk – 7pm. Contact: Bob PolLey: 01653 618324 13 North Wilts MES Public Running, Coate Water Country Park, Swindon 11:00 – Dusk. Contact: Ken Parker, 07710 515507 16 Bristol SMEE ZOOM Meeting – On the computer, 19:30. Contact: secretary@bristoLmodeLengineers.co.uk 19 Cardiff Model Engineering Society Steam-up and Family Day, Heath Park, Cardiff. See www.cardiffmes.co.uk 20 North Wilts MES Public Running, Coate Water Country Park,…

Continued from p.583 M.E. 4702, 21 October 2022 Now is the time to set the camshaft in its correct orientation to the crankshaft. Steve (the designer) gives a description of how to set the cam and crankshaft but this all depends on the #1 exhaust cam lobe being in the correct TDC position while the camshaft drive gear is left un-tightened before starting the process. The method entails installing the camshaft then, using the two small angular holes to the top back face of the cylinder block, which we briefly touched on at the very outset of the build, inserting two lengths of 0.062 inch diameter silver steel and securing both with M2 grub screws. These will tighten against the outer casing of the ball race and this will lock…

Continued from p.586 M E 4702, 21 October 2022 Reading through the notes that came with the part-built model took some time. Clearly a huge amount of time had been spent on researching the history of the L class but until the class received new smokeboxes and chimneys during the 1920s, most of the changes were minor and not material to the appearance of the locomotive. For example, piston tail rods were dispensed with around 1923 but these are not visible anyway. Cylinders were reduced in diameter from 20½ inches to 19½ inches at around the same time. Figure 1 shows the overall dimensions of the class as detailed in the weight diagram This shows how restrictive the civil engineering limits were on the South Eastern's lines as this was…

Warning, Geoff at large! ‘They’ say that all good things must come to an end so, in contrast, comes Club News… Progress on several fronts, for once. My locomotive Deborah is now mechanically complete, with driving trailer, and has run up and down the garage under its own power. Next – to complete the dual gauge track and run it out into the drive. I have 20 feet of track, all in. My radio station has been further improved and I finished off a power supply which has been languishing in the slough of despond (the back of a shelf) for more than a year. Following my comments in M.E. 4699 on Gauge 1 North, Bakewell, Peter Vincent, Secretary of the Yorkshire group, thought my criticism was rather harsh. He…