Saturday, November 17, 2007

Stepping up


Steps
Originally uploaded by Phil_Parker.
You have to marvel at the kit designers art sometimes. The steps for the Class 14 are a case in point. They are a real bit of nickel silver origami. I can’t even begin to describe what you get from a flat sheet of metal, suffice to say that only the upper treads had to be soldered on, everything else was formed by bending.

Once you get your head around it, the job is easy with small flat-ended pliers. I could use the “Hold’n’fold” but it’s overkill for a little job like this. Amazingly the Stanley pliers I use came from a pound shop – useful tools don’t have to be expensive.

OK, so the treads are fiddly. Lots of flux and a small amount of solder are the order of the day ‘cos cleaning an excess off will be difficult. With 3 per corner and four corners to do, practise does make perfect.

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