Cosmetic fishplates

[Giles Perkins]

Apologies if this has been covered but search didn't come back with anything and I can't see any threads over recent years.

I'm look for cosmetic fishplates to represent panelled track to improve the appearance of the Peco track on my Himalayan pizza layout.

Do such things exist - ie 4mm scale but for 009 track?

Thanks in advance folks.

Giles

[JulienW]

Somewhere in the modelling stash I have some 3mm scale etched cosmetic fishplates that I think came from Worsely Works.  Whilst they are not 4mm scale being 25% smaller than 'standard gauge' ones makes them look just about right for narrow gauge (and the smaller rail sections generally used).

I'm not sure if they are still available but I'm sure either a search of Allen Doherty's website might locate them, and if not then I'd send him an e-mail just to be sure (as they may not be a 'standard' item.

EDIT: Just had a quick look - this page lists' cosmetic rail joiners...

[clayliner]

Fishplates have been on my 'to do' list for a long time - a detail which I think is rarely seen but perhaps worth adding. Hopefully they won't be too difficult to make - I'm thinking thin strips of plastic with spots of paint or glue to represent bolts.

Of course, you'll only need to put them on one side of the rails, and in places where they can be seen, so considerably reducing the number required.

David.

[Graeme Dunbar]

You might be able to do it with thick-ish aluminium foil such as pie dishes are made of and use the brass kit riveting method of holding a blunted needle in a pin vice and pressing down of something with a bit of give in it such as card to make an impression without cutting through.

[clayliner]

The foregoing discussion has challenged me (finally).

I thought I'd follow Graeme's suggestion and try aluminium foil, punched with a pin. First I punched a row of holes (the pin tended to go through the foil but I reckoned that a coat of paint would obscure that) and then cut the foil to make a thin strip:


               f2a       



So far so good... but the web of 009 rail is about 1mm deep so these were simply too wide to do the job. The prospect of cutting them any narrower didn't appeal (my microsurgical skills are just not up to it) so I decided to just cut narrow strips and forget the punching. The final products were catnip to the carpet monster but eventually I did manage to glue a couple in place, using PVA rather than cyano as they need quite a bit of manipulating (again, too small for forceps so I used a damp paintbrush instead). This is the result – the far one is unpainted and the front one (not very well) painted:


   f1a by clayliner, on Flickr



Can you see them? To my eyes the painted one is all but invisible, even at this distance.

Verdict:  Life is probably too short, given the time and stress involved and the disappointing result. (Do even the P4 boys – to whom that extra 2.33mm is all important – bother with fishplates?)

If anyone else wants to have a go I'll be happy to see their results – over to you!

David.

P.S. At Julien's suggestion I had a look at the Worsley Works offering – it just says 'cosmetic rail joiners - £1.50'  but no clue as to how many you get for that price or their size.

[Graeme Dunbar]

But you will know they are there! If minded to do so you could always paint them a slightly darker colour than the rails to indicate they had been checked and greased!

https://www.lynton-rail.org.uk/page/maintaining-permanent-way


I can appreciate the tribulations of trying to get the right conditions for embossing rivets. The more understanding of the brass kit manufacturers give ample 'practise rivets' on spare bits of the fret to hone skills on.

I think it is a matter finding the right bluntness of the needle and right hardness of the underlying surface. I think using a sheet of lead has been mentioned somewhere in a book or elsewhere. Also different materials for embossing may take rivets better. The foil from the tops of better wines are another thing mentioned somewhere, but our cellar does not run to such things.

[JulienW]

P.S. At Julien's suggestion I had a look at the Worsley Works offering – it just says 'cosmetic rail joiners - £1.50'  but no clue as to how many you get for that price or their size.

Try emailng Allen?

From my vague memory for the last time I saw them (maybe in one of the many gloat boxes in the workshop here) they're about 8 to 10mm long and 1mm tall, probably designed for code 75 rail used but the 3mm guys? I think there are 10 pairs on the etch...

[clayliner]

I think punching the bolts wasn't especially difficult and the result looked okay. As you suggested, Graeme, I wondered if it might ultimately be effective enough just to paint a 'suggestion' on the rails. 

Your photo raises other questions, such as were n-g fishplates ever checked or greased? (though if that was from the L&B website presumably they do - is that because they're a superior line or because modern standards require it, especially on passenger-carrying lines?) And are the nuts or the bolt heads normally on the outside or is it random? And two bolts or four?

Another question is how far apart to place them - is/was there such a thing as standard rail lengths on n-g track? I suspect that on many lines and in many places the spacing would have been pretty random.

Thanks for the further info, Julian. The chair/spike spacing on 009 crazy track is 7-8mm and a fishplate would need to fit in between, so they might just.

David.

[Giles Perkins]

Glad this sparked a debate!

L&B certainly grease them, just checked my photos from my footplate shift last Sunday, see between Lyons wheels.

I'm inspired now to make some (just been distracted with other scenery)

[clayliner]

I'll be interested to see how you get on!

David.