Katzhagen - Archive - July 2017
Via dolorosa - Add-on kit for LGB's E10 by Grootspoor.com
... or never trust suspect instructions.
I got tempted by a sale at my favourite dealer and purchased an add-on kit with parts for detailing a LGB E10's facesides - without thinking about the possibility that this sale meant nothing but this item had been delisted for a probably well-considered reason.
The add-on parts turned out to be a 3D-print, evidently made by a powder printer - at least the parts' rough surface suggests this. Unfortunately, such a surface is "rather unsuitable" for modelling purposes and a plane and smooth varnish.
Since the instructions promised that the application of brake cleaner would do the trick to achieve a smooth surface, I happily got started on the kit...
...and was brought back down to earth quite soon: This worked in no way at all, like described in the "comprehensive manual" (quote from Massoth's website) - despite repeated and substantial application of the cleaner.
Why does the documentation lie to us ?
The complete 3D-print is shown on the left, the picture on the right shows the separated parts required for detailing one faceside. Separating the parts was easy to accomplish using a tail cutter and a sharp crafting knife.
A click onto the pictures opens a larger view which clearly shows the parts' rough or furry surface.
According to the "comprehensive manual" the parts had been treated with brake cleaner substantially and multiple times. Also a substantial amount of primer and paint was applied using an airbrush gun.
The result was sobering - the surfaces resembled abrasive paper (grit 120...) which meant the parts were unusable for mounting them on the model. The brake claener purchased for this purpose, the primer, the paint and last but not least the time invested - vain endeavour.
I wondered whether I had misunderstood the "comprehensive manual". Or was it perhaps nothing but a faulty translation from Dutch to German ? Either way, the German and English translations contradict each other in important details, influencing the result significantly. Furthermore, both the German and English phrasings are ambiguous since they obviously don't originate from a professional translator or a native speaker. Needless to mention they definitely weren't revised before publishing.
Accordingly the text on Massoth's website advertising the faulty instructions as a "comprehensive manual" sounds like absurd satire. You may want to take a look at the "comprehensive manual" yourself.
After blood pressure had normalized...
I got started on an attempt to rescue the parts, which devoured numerous hours since all of the parts had to be sanded thoroughly preserving both their shapes and details for achieving an acceptable result:
The picture on the left can just give a vague impression of the efforts required with the aforementioned sanding. The newly finished parts on the right are ready to be mounted.
The details adumbrated on the LGB model need to be removed for mounting the add-on kit's parts. The first related step was done with a tail cutter.
Further processing with a file, abrasive paper and plastic polish didn't allow for preserving the beams' lettering, unfortunately. Hence the beam was freed from all obstacles and a new lettering was made using a colour laser printer.
Comparison: Adumbrated details on the LGB model and the same spot after they had been removed for mounting the new parts.
After both the whistles and the outlets had been mounted, the steps' poor implementation caught my eye - a result of the printer's limited capability bringing out finer details. But remedy seemed possible by adding an etched brass grating.
The steps' surfaces were sanded, then painted and finally got a aluminum painted brass grating.
Since the remaining parts had been prepared completely for mounting, a tapped hole was applied to the chassis so that the big add-on part could be mounted.
After the big add-on part featuring steps and fittings had been screwed to the chassis, the screw coupling and the valves and hoses were mounted.
Even though the rescued parts don't meet a perfectionist's requirements, they add to a more winsome appearance of the model:
