The dummy engine detail visible under the ends of the bonnet were made out of scraps of 1mm styrene sheet and detailed with 10 and 12 BA nuts and bolts. The triangular brackets were also added.

The Bonnet was made so that it held in place the ballast weights but could be unclipped if necessary. The ends were cut from 1.5mm styrene 2 pieces 58mm x 38mm. Mark one 58mm edge as the bottom and radius two top corners at 17mm radius. Make both ends the same. Cut two inner strengtheners to the length of the engine bearers less the thickness of the bonnet sides. Assemble these in side of the bonnet sides to resemble a back-to-back seat. The ‘back rest’ piece should be flush with the tops of the bonnet sides.

Next cut the wrapper from 0.75mm styrene, 87mm x 122mm. There should be a contoured cut out from each 87mm edge. I cut my wrapper slightly too long and trimmed to fit when assembled. This meant that the cut outs had to be made after assembly. Time spent on this assembly is worth the wait. Taking one side at a time, I held this with the short edge and square corner on to the long edge and ran solvent along the joint. This is easier to do than to explain! Place a weight (not too heavy) on top and support the assembly and leave over night to set hard.

The next step is to carefully roll the assembly over onto its top, thereby curving the wrapper around the curve of one top ‘corner’. Brush solvent along the join, weight and support as before, and leave to set. Repeat again for the remaining side. When the bonnet assembly is set it can be trimmed where necessary and the cut-outs marked out and carefully cut out.

The remaining fittings were fabricated in no particular order and are mostly styrene assemblies. The radiator has a thick styrene central ‘core’ piece with two thick blocks added each side top and bottom to form the header tank and sump. Sides are a thinner styrene let in slightly. The radiator tubes are thin copper transformer wire, this is the coated stuff found in mains transformers. I coiled it around a 1/16th inch rod mounted in a hand drill. I wound enough for one tube at a time and slid this off the rod until I had enough for both sides. These were then glued in place.

The fan and mount assembly was soldered up from pieces of brass strip and fixed in place with small brass pins (not glued, the pins are sufficiently tight to hold the fan in place and can be removed for repair, if required). The filler cap is a piece of brass tube with a plastic cap added. Two mounting brackets were made from scraps of styrene and fixed to the sides; brass pins were added to represent the bolts.

The white raised lettering on the radiator header tank is made up from the 1.5mm molded alphabets produced by Slater's Plastikard.

The buffer / coupling blocks are fabricated from blocks of 1.5mm styrene sheet. Various sizes were cut and added sandwich fashion to a base plate, then filed to shape. The coupling pins are brass rod with a washer soldered on.

The re-railing beam brackets were made from white styrene, but later changed to brass for strength, and to enable the brass tube used for the beams to be soldered on.

The sandboxes are made from sections of square plastic tube from the Plastruct range. The ends, lids and hinges are scraps of styrene. The spring ‘bumpers’ are shaped brass strip, I didn’t have any of sufficient depth to cut them from one piece, so I had to solder an extension piece to the middle bottom to form the extra bearing face. The cosmetic axle boxes are from the same square plastic tube, with bolt details added. The radiator pipe work is plastic sprue from a plastic construction kit (I rarely throw anything away!) and the grill cover is expanded aluminum used for car body repairs, fixed to the radiator with brass wire stays ‘bolted’ on with brass pins.

The seat is a styrene box with a brass back rest and hinges, the bucket seat was made from the aluminum mesh, shaped to the correct pattern and covered with filler putty.

Terry Bowden