Gibson Footbridge kit

Hmmm, not sure. Generally there are distinctive features which will mark something as from one company or another.

No, low-melt (as sold for whitemetal) is the last thing you need, horrid stuff.

An etched kit needs a good thin-flowing solder. Such as Carrs 188 (either in stick form or a solder paint). Others do use standard thin multi-cored solder (as sold for electronics work).

You need a decent soldering iron, probably at least 25W for that size of work, with a moderately fine tip (chisel shape rather than pointed). An alternative is a resistance soldering machine if you have one and get on with them.

Prior to soldering anything, you need to clean the parts. Use a fine abrasive. My preferences are (in this order), a Garryflex abrasive block, a nail polishing stick (flexible rubbery thing from the cosmetics department), fine wet and dry paper (polishing grades) and a fibre glass pencil. NOTE the fibre glass pencil is last due to the horrible splinters which they leave around (best removed from the skin with adhesive tape).

You need a decent flux. The usual choices are those based on a liquid acid (eg. Phosphoric acid, or Bakers Fluid), or the Fluxite cream (sold in yellow plastic tubs in the UK). Flux might be something which people refuse to mail order.

Whatever flux you use, its essential to clean the model up after a soldering session (immediately, not next day!), and use the flux a long way from any decent steel tools (unless you like rust!). I use cream cleaner (CIF) and an old toothbrush, followed by a good wash in water, then dab the water off with a tissue and leave to air dry.

- Nigel

Technically speaking Haverhill (GER) , or Haverhill North as it was later known, was on the Stour Valley line. The CVR station was Haverhill South which was goods only after grouping. When I knew the station, in the

1950's, there wasn't a roof on the footbridge.

Many years ago George Allan did a kit for a GER footbridge, this was later re-released by Kemilway, but don't know what the current situation on that is.

Thanks John, I stand corrected, it is (was) the Stour Valley line. I have been reading so much stuff on both these lines lately that I got my tracks crossed !

Correct again about the footbridge roof...some of the pics I have are from as far back as 1911 (even earlier for a couple of them) and naturally show the roof; The roof sheets were removed sometime before 04/1947, just the roof frame remained. The frame was removed sometime before 08/1958

I'm actually glad the roof was taken off because I am trying to replicate the station from the mid-late fifties; I didn't fancy the task of trying to add a roof to the bridge !

BTW...I lived in Haverhill from 1964-72 and was not too pleased when they shut it (the station) down in '67; I only wished I had the insight to take some photos back then...trying to find reference material for this project from this side of the pond is none too easy - especially colour pictures. I have the GER Society Journals and Roy Brazier's book on the Haverhill Railway and a couple of colour pics from '69..but thats it. If you know of anybody or any place that I might obtain further material I'd greatly appreciate it.

Anyway, back to marking out the station house garden ! Cheers Mal Oz

In message , Draconus writes

A lot of stuff like this was supplied by outside contractors (as with a lot of signalling equipment) so you can get essentially the same designs appearing on different regions/companies.

Colne Valley Albumn, pub by Apex Publications and the Colne valley Railway in 1983, helps narrow that down a bit. A British rail ER photo dated April

1947 on P21 shows the side supports for the roof still in place. An HC Casserley photo dated 26 May 1956 on P22 shows them absent.

Also on P22 a British rail ER photo dated April 1947 shows the station front from the goods yard, as opposed to the GR Mortimer one of the station front from Station Road, P26 Stour Valley Albumn by EW Lawrence.

I was born in Haverhill, 1949, and lived there until I went off to University. There are a few photos of trains in the station in the books that I've mentioned above, also there are a couple in Roger Carpenter's collection.

lots of snips..............

Forget the electronics multi-core. It produces an excellent fillet in all joints. OK for out of sight chassis work. Good for strength, bad for looks. The free flow idea is best, the solder just melts away into the joint with minimal cleanup.

for a range of solders and fluxes. The solder cream (in a syringe) is excellent and does go a long way.

A big iron used quickly is better than a small iron used forever.......... I use a 48watt temperature controlled Weller for most stuff. It has a range of tips available. I also have a 60watt TC Weller for the bigger jobs. Both irons use magnetic tip temperature control, so nothing fancy, the actual temperature is up around 600F.

wearing polygloves helps, avoiding in the first place is even better!

Powerflow is brilliant as a fluxing agent, but does leave a residue, so the work must be cleaned well after use.

Haven't got a clue about bridges................

Len

The Mainly Trains site is not usually big on pictures, you might find this one from Alan Gibson's own site reasonably clear

The kit is of a bridge used on the Glasgow and South Western and on the Midland, it was a fairly generic design and it or very similar may well have been used on the GE, anyway you can compare it with your photos of the real thing. I think although not absolutely sure that it is a platform mount design. Keith Make friends in the hobby. Visit Garratt photos for the big steam lovers.

"From Construction to Destruction" by E P Willingham is a quite thick history of the Colne Valley & Halstead Railway. No detailed scale plans, but a lot about the people and operation of the line. The author was a signalman on the line for many years.

Try abebooks for a copy.

Tim

That's the stuff in the Yellow tub I meant, couldn't remember the name.

However, I have found Powerflow seems to eat soldering bits much faster than Carrs Green Label liquid flux, so I've gone back to the liquids unless I really need the cream stuff.

My irons are Antex; either a 17W mains or a 50W temperature controlled. Both have the same sized body and take the same tips. The 17W is too small for

4mm work, but good for 2mm scale stuff.

- Nigel

Appreciate all this Len, have printed it off and stuck it on my wall. I like the sound of the Solder Cream. The Carrs pages say that this stuff has the appropriate flux 'built' in - so can I assume I do not need additional flux when using this product ?

>

Thanks Tim and John, will chase up the publications you mentioned, much appreciated.

No, the flux is in the cream and it is formulated to leave no harmful residues after use. I think I remember Brian Lewis (of Carrs/C&L) telling me that the cream had been developed for electronic work where flux residues are definitley not wanted.

The creams do cost quite a bit for the syringes but you can apply them quite carefully with little waste so they do last a long time.

Jim.