Maxitrak Atkinson Lorry

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Another project that I have just completed is again detined for the Yeller Belly steam toy show at Horncastle in November.  This project was the upgrading and enhancement of a Maxitrak Atkinson steam lorry.  Interestingly it is fitted with a Cheddar marine boiler and a slightly modified Puffin engine, found in many model boats.  It has been fitted with a attenuator valve to conserve gas.  It doesn’t do too well on any sort of textured surface but it runs around quite happily on a very smooth surface, such as the polished wooden floor of the drill hall where the steam toy show is held.  I wanted to make the lorry into a mobile boat repair shop, that would typically travel around the local boat yards completing repairs and maintenance on the boats.

This is the lorry I bought, again over twenty years ago:

The lorry came with the trailer but I added the boat, which was got me into thinking of the idea of a boat repair lorry.

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

After a lot of work this is what I ended up with.  In this case the lorry is supposed to be around 1/16th scale but I bent the rules slightly and went for 1/12th scale doll’s house figures and accessories.

The scratch built workbench is mainly fitted out with doll’s house bits and pieces but I scratch made the finishing plane.  The floorboards are also doll’s house wooden flooring, given an enamel wash and distressed with a pan scourer.

The grinding wheel and the table saw are both powered via the drive shaft which is turned by the Meccano motor.  The battery pack is inside the wooden cabinet with the on off switch being turned on by moving the tool box.

 

The rack contains stock wood and a ladder at the bottom so our workman can get in and out of the back.

The transfers were all printed for me by a specialist company after I created the original design in Microsoft Word.

The boiler was clad and then weathered and the lamps are all operational.  The ones on the chassis from the receiver power pack and the ones on the cab from another battery pack under the driver’s seat.

Figures are doll’s house resin figures but repainted.  The roof rack was fitted with tie down rails and the chest on the roof rack is scratch built from coffee stirrers.

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

A couple of shots from during the build.

First installing the lights, first the chassis lights, powered from the receiver battery:

Then cladding the boiler:

Then the lighting in the cab.  This was seperately powered so the cab could still be lifted off to access the boiler:

The cable doesn’t need covering because it can’t be seen from outside the cab when it is assembled.

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Then the PM Research items in the back were stripped down, cleaned up and painted and made to run smoothly.  The paint is Craftmaster Coach enamel and this is the first of three coats:

The drive shaft is a combination of Meccano motor and battery case and Wilesco shaft unit;

The back was fitted out with a scratch built workbench and wood rack:

And another wooden box.  This one isn’t hiding anything, its just there as decoration.  The tie down rails are locomotive handrails:

The boiler was given an overall enamel wash, followed by airbrushed soot deposits and finally some limescale streaks from some of the fittings:

The water hose was a doll’s house item but the hose was replaced with some nice soft floppy silicone tubing:

[AStroudParticipant @astroud]

Amazing detail and a fabulous model !

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Thank you.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

An unusual theme and lovely work! Thankyou for showing us!

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

Marvellous attention to detail, and beautifully executed

Howard

[Richard SimpsonParticipant @richardsimpson88330]

Thank you gents

 

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