NER Coachbuild 7

The lower footboards are folded through 90′ and 0.9mm wire hangers soldered on while the boards are held in place using wooden blocks.

NER Coachbuild 6

End steps are attached, buffer beams folded up and sides and ends tacked together. When all is checked and square the seams are soldered securely.

NER Coachbuild 5

The door hinges are soldered in from behind and ventilators added using a resistance soldering unit.

NER Coach build 4

 

The droplights are soldered to the rear of the sides. Open windows are represented using brass strip across the top edge.

NER Coach build 3

The tumblehome is shaped on the sides by gentle finger pressure, using a handy piece of 3/4 inch curtain rod as a former. The curve is checked using a coach end as a template.

Preparing the sides

The etched sides are cut using a Stanley knife, the tabs are small, well spaced and half etched which makes life much easier. The etch cusp is filed off and the tops folded at 90′ using a hefty set of bending bars in the vice.

Building an NER Birdcage Brake Coach

Having been commissioned to build a rake of these delightful four-wheelers, I decided to start with the Birdcage Brake. Connoisseur kits produce etches for all three coaches that ran on the North Sunderland Railway in the early 1900’s. These are excellent value kits which provide a sound basis for extra detailing.