FODEN KIT 4 AND 5

we are now working on kit 4. there is very little to do and we are expecting some laser cuts on Wednesday. if we get these the kit should go out at the end of next week or possibly the start of the following week, we don't want to be rushing at the packing stage again

kit 5 is mainly in stock, (brake drums etc) with just a few bought in parts to order. we will be looking at this on Monday and i'll have more info then.

craig

the laser cuts arrived today for kit 4...



just need to shape these and finish a few little manual jobs and the kit will be done. i would guess at the end of the week.

kit 5 is going to need a bit more work. the rear hubs for the SWB and arctic versions are different so we will have to make these from scratch.

i'll post more info when i have it.

craig

kit 4 is all but ready to go. we are waiting for some M12 washers to arrive tomorrow (ours were too thick) and the instructions need printing, apart from that it's ready to go in the boxes....





this could possibly go out tomorrow (Thursday) but we don't want to rush things, i would rather i went out on Friday and be packed correctly

here's some "control model" photos.







Kit 5 needs a bit more work, mainly the rear drive hubs, as they are different on the SWB/arctic version. we also need to order a lot of wheels and tyres.

we have started on a few of the bits, here are the rear hub caps as we were about 7 short of these....



and no, still no word on the boiler cradles, sorry

Craig

" kit 4 is all but ready to go. we are waiting for some M12 washers to arrive tomorrow (ours were too thick)


I bet Dean ordered them

no, they were standard 2mm thick washers, we have 100's of them, have had them for years. we needed to get 1.5mm

oh yes, this kit has now gone out

Craig,

I spotted the deliberate mistake, I found the back axel in the bubble wrap marked "Front Axle"

Ian

mmm, looks like we need to make some staff members a bit more familiar with the designs

more work done on kit 5

rear hub caps finished...



double wheel adapter on the Mill...



blank and finished parts...



the material for the rear hubs and wheel nuts arrived today and the wheels and tyres (all 60 of them !!!) are on order, so we should see this kit coming together quite soon

craig

new rear hubs are now well into production...



and some laser cut parts arrived with the showman's stuff.

Craig

Craig,

Excellent photos, these really help as they tend to add something the ISO's cannot thereby making the build much more pleasurable keep up the very fine works (all of you, including Dean), now all we need is a boiler cradle

Ian

we will soon have this kit complete.

wheels and tyres are now in...



simple turned parts, like wheels nuts are underway...



and the hubs are now on the milling machine.

craig

Whoopee, soon have a rolling chassis, keep up the good work lads (and Dean) just think if you was working over the weekend you could get it done even faster

I still thing the rolling chassis would look better with a boiler cradle

Have a good weekend all at STW.

Ian

we are aiming to get kit 5 out at the end of the week, and i cant see any real problem with this

i spent all day today doing the last few manual jobs and we should get the control model together tomorrow.

rear hubs being broached...



boxes and wheels waiting in the packing area...



all i can tell you about the boiler cradle it that it's on its way

craig

Kit 5 went out today as planed

here's a few photos of the control model...









i think the next kit is going to be the boilers, so lets hope those cradles turn up soon

craig

Hi Craig
Looks very good so far. I may have to make a wooden boiler cradle to get the kit mobile. Only question I have is where and how are the brakes fitted? I presume the rear brake band is, as described, a parking brake only.

Keep up the good work, it is great being able to see all the bits being manufactured.

Best Regards

Tom A

atomenter wrote:Hi Craig
Only question I have is where and how are the brakes fitted? I presume the rear brake band is, as described, a parking brake only.

i asked the very same question and the brake band is the one and only brake. apparently it will be enough

Hi Craig,

Can you throw any light on what is in Kit 6, we seem to have got to the Kit 6 stage with Kit 5 according to the previously issued leaflet, the wheels which came with Kit 5 were supposed to be in Kit 6.

I think either Dean or Steve mentioned something about the boiler maybe for Kit 6, I assume this would be Kit 6 & 7 (does the boiler still span two kits??).

Also while on that subject assuming that the boiler is next can this be fitted without the smoke box as it would appear the smoke box is not due until kit 9 from memory.

Just looking for some info please.

Thanks
Ian

Ian assuming the SWB foden shares the same front end as the c type foden then the boiler can be fitted without the smoke box.






Marks

we are currently working on this now Ian.

it's all because the STW version is spread over less kits (28 down to 24 off the top of my head). Steve has been working through the kits, trying to compress them without making one kit too large or another too small. this is why you have kit 6 part numbers in your kit 5's. to re-number everything would be more work than you could imagine due to it all being linked in solidworks.

we are supposed to/have been contacting all customers to gauge their views on the next kit being "one of the boiler payments" but im not sure if this means you will actually be getting the boiler, dean will have to clarify that.

the next kit we are looking at regards "production" will be the steering parts and possibly water tanks. as a said we are working this out now so i'll give details when we have them.

it seems that the casting delivery times are affecting a few of the models at the moment, the Showman's being a real pain it the ...

we are very conscious that from the outside things are looking a bit disorganised at the moment, but really it's all down to dealing with new suppliers on the other side of the world, unlike the laser cut stuff, we can't get in the car and go pick them up.
it seems their quoted delivery times have been a little "off". but then anyone who has seen some of the modelworks castings will hopefully agree that the new stuff is a step in the right direction and worth waiting for.

and yes, front ends are the same

Craig,

Thanks for the update that explains a lot, when your on the outside looking in it's not always clear why things are done the way they are, thanks again for the explaination.

Mark (TEF)

Thanks for the heads up one photo can be worth a thousand words, am I right in assuming that your "C" type has front drum brakes, which no doubt be hydraulic if so how are these opperated ?? I also have to ask why these are not nessassery for the "SWB" & "Artic" perhaps someone can clarify this.

Ian

Ian,

Last summmer at the Tewkwsbury rally Steve had a drive of one of the Foden's that had had the front brake drums removed and the band brake upgraded. This had been done by the customer to improve the overall appearance (scale wise the front wheels are to wide once the drums were in place) and also to remove some of the stiffness when trying to steer the engine. Steve was suitably impressed and felt it didn't take anything away from the stopping ability so incorporated it into the design. (adding the double wheels at the back also makes a huge difference on the appearance).

Dean

Thanks Dean,

See I knew there would be a reason but I had to ask what it was, so now I and others know

Yep hydraulic drum brakes and they are opertated by a foot pedal located in the footwell on the left hand side.
I am not sure if it is nessesary or not yet as i havent got the foden back to try it but i have heard mixed reports from owners with and with out drum brakes.


Craig I would be very interested to know if you have used the same rear axle and hubs on the swb forden as the c type as i would like to change the single wheel on the back to double wheels. I wonder if this is possable or not?



Mark

hubs are different and the axle boxes (Axel boxes are cut down), not sure about the axles, I'm sure they are the same but not 100%. brake band hanger is also different. wheel centre covers are also different as the wheel rim is larger

it's all about bringing the hubs in closer to allow for the double wheels, but not fouling on the Axel boxes and springs. you also have some rather large spacers to bolt the two wheels together.

im sure we have enough "extra" parts in stock to be able to do at least one conversion kit, we will need to modify another pair of Axel boxes though. if your really serious about doing it im sure Dean would be happy to put something together, he never turns down a sale no mater how small, and quite rightly so.

Thanks for that Craig but the amount of money i have spent on the burrell and foden in the last 6 months is crazy and i think i would be single again if i spent any more or it If it was just wheels and hubs i might of thought about it but it seems a lot of work to change it all and its only just been finished.



Mark