Nylon cowl brackets

[Martin McIntosh]

I am looking for a source of these since my usual suppliers do not seem to have any. The ABS ones just will not do the job.

[Paul De Tourtoulon]

5 Minutes of work with a bit of plastic,,, quicker than looking on the web,,,

[RedBaron]

3D print your own using Petg filament. A bit more than 5 minutes work but when setup you can print as many as you want.

[Martin McIntosh]

The problem is that most right angled plastic is ABS. Buying a 3D printer plus s/w then learning how to use it may just be a little uneconomic but thanks for your replies. I really simply want the real things.

[Keith Berriman]

Maybe one of the formunites with a printer may offer to make some for you at a cost  ?

[john stones 1 - Moderator]

Have a browse at shelf support brackets B&Q etc, must be something in there that would suffice, the little plastic jobs that come with kitchen units.

[Martin McIntosh]

Thanks John, I already have some of those but they are rather thin and again probably ABS which strips very easily. The ones depicted which I am after last for years with No.2 self tappers. Somebody out there must have/stock them.

[RedBaron]

I know how you feel Martin about the real things - but I have found that many real things have gone for good.

When I first acquired a printer a few years ago I was not sure what I wanted it for other than getting new skills as a general aim

But not only is it used for lots of modelling parts, servo mounts, motor cowls and all sorts of fittings but I have found that it is invaluable for printing parts for broken things around the house, where the real thing has really disappeared for ever. In fact I don't know how I would manage without one now. 

Last winter I even printed some new feet for a wooden duck that lives in the garden, his old feet had just rotted away, now he has nice new orange feet.

Another winter project was to print a complete r/c spitfire.....

See examples of my model parts in the Ohmen thread pictures.

[Martin McIntosh]

Thanks RedBaron but I feel that I am now to old to take on something like that. Even a simple drawing program scares me away never mind 3D.

[Martin Harris - Moderator]

That’s where Tinkercad makes it easy to knock up simple - and not so simple - parts with a fairly intuitive graphical interface. If you’ve got a few minutes to spare, give it a try…all you need is a web browser!

[Martin McIntosh]

And a 3D printer!

[Martin Harris - Moderator]

…or a friend with one. 

[Denis Watkins]

These Dubro would work

 

https://www.nexusmodels.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/?q=Dubro+cowl+fixing

[Andy Gates]

Can you not use a bit of aluminium angle from B&Q & cut it to length?

[stu knowles]

Would you not just cut a cube of hardwood from a length and stick that to the firewall??

 

[Martin McIntosh]

Thanks again for the replies.

The Dubro ones are very expensive and would be almost impossible to fit accurately since you cannot see through the moulding sufficiently.

Screws just vibrate out of wood or alloy, all been tried in the past.

Most of my club mates now seem to be ARTFers and would not know what a 3D printer was, let alone have one.

[jrman]

Use a hardwood block with a piece of snake inner(Robart yellow) glued in for the screw fixing. Never had one come loose yet!

[Ace]

+1 for snake insert.

I have also tapped hardwood blocks (then CA'd the thread) for 3 or 4mm nylon bolts. Never had one come loose, only downside is head size but one plus is they don't enlarge the holes with vibration.

[maurice northcott]

I loved those little 90 degree nylon brackets, last got them about 5 years or more ago but cannot fr the life of me remember where I got them from......... But as Jrman said "Use a hardwood block with a piece of snake inner(Robart yellow) glued in for the screw fixing. Never had one come loose yet!"........... I have done this a number of times, a spot of superglue holds the insert in the wood...... HTH

[kc]

A trip to B&Q etc might produce a source of suitable items  - I would look in the plumbing sundries section or the lengths of  L shaped extrusions in amongst the metal sections for suitable material.

 

However ready made brackets seem available here but they are already drilled  - I expect you want one side plain to allow drilling your hole through the cowl.

Edited October 30, 2021 by kc

[Martin McIntosh]

That is right KC. I may have to try the hardwood blocks with a bit of snake fitted if nothing else turns up.

[RottenRow]

Martin,

 

Those little grey brackets were made by SLEC, their part number was SL887, but they are no longer on their website, nor that of Perkins who I think distributed them to the model trade.

 

https://www.activescalemodels.co.uk/cowl-mounting-brackets-8-sl887

 

SLEC still make a slightly different one, part number SL886-R, 12.5mm by 12.5mm, but their description gives no indication of the material from which they are moulded. The cost is £1.26 for a pack of 8 so perhaps worth a try. They look thinner though so may not take a screw well.

 

https://www.slecuk.com/accessories/general-accessories/90-deg-mounting-bracket

 

You could always contact SLEC, if they still have the mould they might produce a batch. There is no harm in asking.

 

If you really want brackets like your original ones, another option might be to buy a flat strip of nylon of the thickness of your original brackets, heat it up and bend it to the required 90 degrees then drill and cut off as required.

 

Brian.

[PatMc]

I've cut suitable brackets from both metal & plastic offcuts from curtain rail tracks & used them with no problems. The plastic ones I've used are probably nylon, they're certainly not a flimsy plastic or one that goes brittle with age.

[Martin McIntosh]

Thanks. I have some of the SLEC newer ones but they are ABS and very thin.  I shall have to look round the DIY stores again.

[Tim Flyer]

I use threaded metal inserts mounted in wooden blocks to secure cowling .
In order to accurately drill holes I use a guide made from a piece of thin aluminium sheet bent in half with holes drilled through both  sides at one end . Using this tool the drillings for holes are always spot on.