Now this part is going to take some time and I guess there are a number of ways to do these either from solid or as parts. I'll be doing

Most of the parts for the slide bars were made some time ago and have already been covered, this entry is the final stages and fitting to the chassis. Before

Continuing with the various parts to fit to the cylinders, this time we have the 6 relief valves. I have followed Don's overall dimensions but added extra detail and made

Last time I had made a start on the outside cylinder cross shaft and showed the trunnion positions. I then made the shaft, silver soldering it's arm in the middle

The sum of the parts involved in this design are a little bewildering at times and trying to work out what can be done and in what order is no

I've been busy over the last few days and getting very close to the final fitting of the cylinders, unless I have forgotten something, of course. First up was to

This entry see's me decide after close scrutiny on the final look/design of the relief valves and permanently fitting them to the draincocks. They are not fully completed yet

I have left the final fitting of the valves until the connecting rods, crossheads and bearings have been made and before they can be fitted the cylinders and the slide

This entry will be picture heavy as I try to explain Jim's design and also how I have adapted and then made it to fit my model. For those not

First I'll share the drawing to Don's design, the spindle will of course be the same but the bobbin will be updated to what I believe was first drawn by

Well I did warn you that I might not be doing the spindles/bobbins next...:)  The thing is, now that I have repainted the running boards and very happy with

As I have stated on numerous occasions I was not at all happy with the paint finish on the running boards and smokebox/saddle, the opportunity recently arose allowing me

Having machined the crosshead blanks it was then on to the more involved parts of the design. First I clocked one of the crossheads upright in the machine vice, as

I'll begin by showing the drawings, the 'valve' (bobbin) will be redesigned, I haven't drawn this up yet, that will be the last item on this current list. Something to

Once I had finished the bushes for the outside links I then moved on to the 6 pins, one of which is slightly longer for the 1:1 lever fulcrum.

Continuing with the valve connecting links I next machined the small collar around the holes. I have modified these a little to give more metal to the slot tabs, basically

Valve connecting links These are another one of those parts which require a number of setups and a little thought in machining them, this is how I have tackled them.

Onto the final machining operations for the 2:1 lever, I'll make the bronze bearings in one batch once I have made the 1:1 lever and the 3 connecting

With the mill repaired (the inverter/speed controller was the guilty party) I could return to the lever.  At the time of failure I was in the middle of machining

I'm now returning to the motion and I'm going to start with the 2:1 gear for connecting the valve events for the middle cylinder, before doing so I need

This will be short entry just to show that the brakes now refitted to the chassis and tested. First picture is a general side view to show the brakes once

The brake shaft pull rods, adjusters and leading pull rods are the last parts required to complete the brake gear. I haven't taken pictures during their manufacturer as they are

On to the pull rods, I began with the 'U' shaped ends which slide over the beams and are then secured with the remaining pins. These are the same width

I decided that it would be wise to test fit the hangers along with their cross beams before moving on to the pull rods. You can see the brakes hanging