< Workshop Report >
As I noticed I visited Taiwanese model engineer You Wenjin's wonderful
workshop. Let's enjoy an enthusiastic world!
The workshop is built under stair of an apartment. It has flooring area
and concreted area. Former is models' exhibiting and maintenance space,
while the latter is machining space.
There are many HO gauge model trains in a shelf on the wall. Most of them
are Japanese models. Some tracks are powered and the trains can run a little
distance.
There are also many Gauge One locos. Most of them are Aster Hobby's locos
and obtained through a net auction in Japan.
This is 5 inch gauge Japanese loco C56 that is a kit of Dorinsha. He also has OS's Shay geared loco. He said these kits lost running opportunity after he had completed scratch built models.
This is also full scratch tiny electric loco.
A lot of trolleys are well stored utilizing overhead space.
There is a lathe in the concreted area, which is powered with 220 volts.
He has another tiny lathe for small products.
This is a milling machine with a big machine vise.
These are press machines. He has skill of press process and of designing
press die.
Two D51 locos were stored in the flooring area. Lower one is that he usually drives. Upper one was drived in a few times. That had been Japanese style at first, but he modified to Taiwanese style. They are always cleaned and usually covered with dust-free clear sheets.
The shelf is built around the flooring area. He had a plan to build a HO
gauge endless layout on the shelf. But it resulted to a maintenance stand
for large size models.
Followings are detailed photos of D51.
The leaf spring set is well constructed. The rectangle pocket is made by press-bending and brazing.
These are parts boxes. He stocks not only screws but also lost-wax and
machined loco parts. Note the enormous safety valve stocks!
The volume is due to outsourcing. He designed them and ordered to local machining shops. In Taiwan, we can get them with reasonable prices.
These are lost-wax and machined parts. He employs many lost-wax parts because usual castings cannot reproduce detailed profile. He said that it needs try and error to obtain convincing result.
For example, the left parts are lost-wax spring brackets of brass and iron, while the right parts are lost-wax and machined whistle. He tries many methods and chooses the best result.
The axlebox is also lost-wax made. The right photo shows the die set for
the wax pattern. In order to form hollow shape, the set consists of complicated
parts. He designs die sets and outsources or makes by himself. It's no
longer a territory of amateur!
The photo shows D51's driving wheel with and without machining. These are also enormous stocks.
This is a powered truck designed by himself. The gears are also specially ordered. He made many trials of powered truck so as to enforce hauling ability.
I found a loco boiler behind something. All of his boilers are made of stainless steel. He said stainless steel is the best material for model loco boiler for its corrosion-resistance, strength, gravity and easiness to build.
This Shay's engine of 5 inch size isn't his made. It was made by his master model engineer in Taiwan.
I think he is a phenomenal model engineer in Taiwan, and even in Japan.
I bless my luck to meet him. His experience and technique will make a great
help to my C53 project.
