Slate Wagon #1

Here are some photographs of one of the slate wagons I plan to construct for the quarry yard!

 I really liked the shape and design of the large scale versions of these wagons, and the extra detail of the real ones on the Talyllyn Railway. This is my first wagon made entirely with wood, with paper for bolts metal detail. Only this one has been made, out of fifteen I plan to make in the future!

I used Folk Art Acrylics to paint and weather the model. Here on the side, the wooden buffers extend along the side, just like the real thing, and it has three bolts. All of the bolts are made the same way as I created the funnel on Rheneas: I wrapped a strip of card-stock round a modelers screw, glued it together to make a cylinder, then glued it on a paper scrap, then cut the excess to cap the bolt head.

I did something similar with the plank supports, as there are two ribbon strips around each support. I also wrapped card stock around the buffers, which encase the wood and prevents it from splitting.

Now here is how I make these cars run on Lego track: The Lego wheels and other pieces are assembled to make the underframe, that fit snugly in place inside the jig made underneath the car, with just two wood planks. This allows me to take them on and off so I can interchange them for other cars. I don't need to glue the chassis together, and I have more options when it comes to choosing the cars I want to run.

The planks for the floor are evenly spaced with gaps, running from one end to another. The wood is assembled with white glue, as well as the paper with crazy glue.

I hope to experiment with other slate car types, such as the cars on Dinorwic Quarry, and different paint schemes as well.