Nigel Lawton OO9 Simplex part 8 - radiator.

For such a small part of the loco the radiator is a rather complex assembly, so its getting a post all to itself. This is probably quite apt as the radiator, which sits lengthways along the front of the loco, is such a distinctive part of a Simplex.

The main body is a whitemetal casting, onto which various etched nickel-silver parts are attached. I elected to solder everything together, more sensible folk might decide that glue is a better option.

There are various holes to be drilled before starting, both for hoses and underneath for locating, once thats done the top and bottom flanges and the fan surround can be soldered in place, these will of course need tinning first whilst still attached to the etch. In the photo below the upper flange is attached;

A light touch with the iron and a tiny amount of solder is all thats required. Here's the fan surround and lower flange in place;

I'm not happy with the way the surround sits on the left side, but I didn't notice the problem until I'd soldered the lower flange in place. I'll just have to live with it.
Underneath can be seen the radiator bars and pivot etch. Once bent to shape this will surround the casting, with the hole on the right being the fan pivot;

A hole is drilled through the pivot hole into the casting, and a short length of wire inserted to make an axle for the fan, which comprises of an etch and turned pulley soldered together. Here's the other (right hand) side, showing the protection bars;

The radiator has an etched bracket at the front which sits on the footplate. This is folded up and soldered underneath the casting, along with a short length of .4mm wire which locates in an etched hole in the footplate. Another bracket sits on the top of the front crossmember and butts up against the rear of the radiator. Here it is soldered in place;

A fiddly job...
I soldered the radiator only at the front, where it meets the footplate. It took me a couple of attempts to get it to sit straight, and unfortunately I damaged the bottom of the casting with the iron. Luckily its difficult to spot but I'm still not happy. I glued the rear of the radiator to the crossmember bracket with a drop of cyano.

Next up are the hoses. The instructions only mention the top hose, which is .6mm brass rod, cyano'd into the casting and soldered to the underside of the bonnet. I've also added the bottom hose, from .4mm rod, and the overflow pipe, which sits on the opposite side. This is 38swg copper wire cyano'd into a .2mm hole, hardly worth the effort to be honest but for some reason I'm glad its there.

Here's a couple of photos of the radiator in place;

So that's the radiator. One casting, seven etched parts, one turned part, and five pieces of wire (of which two were my own additions).The level of detail in this kit is staggering!

All soldering done with my 25w Antex, using Eileen's Strong Flux and 188 degree solder for tinning and Carrs 70 degree for attaching the etches to the casting.

I once rebuilt the radiator on a full-size 20/28 Simplex. Two heavy castings formed the top and bottom tanks, held apart by steel side plates. Ribbed cooling tubes ran between the castings, held in place at both ends by rubber bungs. Each tube had to be pushed up through a bung into the top casting, then pulled down through the bottom bung. I can't remember how many ribs there were, but it wasn't a pleasant job as the ribbed tubes cut into your hands. It didn't leak though.

Paul.