C&L to have new ownership

[MikeH_83]

Well I do hope the new owner might continue with the production of the pre-fabricated parts (crossings/blades) as I found that much easier to get on with.  However I am just finalising my track plans and then when the business goes live again I shall be buying ALOT  (Does he intend to continue to produce the hini rail?)

[David Bigcheeseplant]

C & L will be at at Railex on the 27th & 28th May

[hayfield]

C & L will be at at Railex on the 27th & 28th May

 

As I said in an earlier reply, especially if coming on Sunday, PM me with your track parts requirement and I will put them aside (Phil stays over night and unable to restock overnight) for Sunday collection( unless the website is up and running. I guess foe Bracknell Phil will be going home so should not be as much as an issue, but again if going on Sunday PM me and I will put the items aside

[Junctionmad]

Does anyone know if Phil/C&L will be at the DEMU show and if so is it possible to ask for certain stock items to be brought there , I need some 0 Gauge track components 

[Mike Bellamy]

Does anyone know if Phil/C&L will be at the DEMU show and if so is it possible to ask for certain stock items to be brought there , I need some 0 Gauge track components 

 

 

He is on the Traders List here   http://www.demu.org.uk/showcase2017.php

 

Was also at Derby last weekend.

 

.

[hayfield]

Does anyone know if Phil/C&L will be at the DEMU show and if so is it possible to ask for certain stock items to be brought there , I need some 0 Gauge track components 

 

 

Yes they are, send me a PM before Railex and I will give it to him. The website may be up and running by then

[Junctionmad]

Yes they are, send me a PM before Railex and I will give it to him. The website may be up and running by then

Thanks John will do

[hayfield]

Peter delivered most of the remaining C&L and Exactoscale parts to Phil on Friday. I guess he is now starting to sort out the boxes as there were 300 all unmarked

 

As for the Exactoscale parts, Phil is hoping to do as many as he can, certainly the coach and wagon wheels. As for the drivers this as of yet is unknown, as down to cost

 

Phil hopes to get the website up and running by early June

[hayfield]

OT, but I was roped in as a steward for the P4 AGM on 17th June, as NLG are supposed to be hosting this and arranging the venue. However, I am aware of quite a bit of unhappy rumbling below the surface at NLG, and we have lost our Secretary who made little attempt to hide his feelings at the way things are apparently being run. I'm not even sure the venue has been booked!

 

 

Spoke with a couple of North London members  at the weekend, who stated the group  are looking forward to hosting the  P4 AGM on the 17th of June, club politics will not affect it at all.

[Guy Rixon]

As for the Exactoscale parts, Phil is hoping to do as many as he can, certainly the coach and wagon wheels. As for the drivers this as of yet is unknown, as down to cost

 

 

The C & W wheels are, IMHO, excellent, but they are hard to assemble into wheelsets unless one has the Exactoscale back-2back gauge; and those have been out of stock for ages. I predict that the wheels would sell much better if the gauges were made available again.

[Nimbus]

The C & W wheels are, IMHO, excellent, but they are hard to assemble into wheelsets unless one has the Exactoscale back-2back gauge; and those have been out of stock for ages. I predict that the wheels would sell much better if the gauges were made available again.

As would the reassurance that the range will continue to be manufactured - and hopefully, developed.

 

The Nim.

[Baldwin30762]

Hi Guys

 

I wonder if anyone can help me, I am playing around with the idea of an Irish 21mm gauge layout. Now many years ago someone produced a plastic flex track base for 21mm gauge? Can anyone tell me who it was please, I am also in contact with a few other 21mm gauge modellers so if we have to talk minimum orders I think it could be done for a new batch to be made.

 

Regards

 

Colin.   

[polybear]

Hi Guys

 

I wonder if anyone can help me, I am playing around with the idea of an Irish 21mm gauge layout. Now many years ago someone produced a plastic flex track base for 21mm gauge? Can anyone tell me who it was please, I am also in contact with a few other 21mm gauge modellers so if we have to talk minimum orders I think it could be done for a new batch to be made.

 

Regards

 

Colin.   

I believe Martin Wynne (of Templot fame) may know a little about 21mm Gauge:

 

http://www.templot.com/GNRI/adavoyle.htm

 

- I believe Martin had a (big?) hand in the trackwork on Adavoyle

It's possible that Martin may also have had a hand in the track base you are referring to, when trading "solid bits" as 85A Models (as opposed to "soft bits" that Martin now produces)

I'm sure you know what I mean Martin - I didn't know how else to describe it, 'specially at 7 on a sunday morning....)

HTH

Brian

[martin_wynne]

I believe Martin had a (big?) hand in the trackwork on Adavoyle

 

Hi Brian, Colin,

 

Well yes, but that was 30 years ago.

 

All the trackwork on Adavoyle was handbuilt. The only specific 21mm track products which I know about were and still are the pre-punched plywood sleepers for riveted ply construction, available from the Scalefour Society. If there had been a plastic bullhead flexi-track base available I'm sure we would have used it.

 

Bear in mind that although the GNR(I) used bullhead for its main running lines, a great deal of Irish track was/is flat-bottom.

 

This seems to be a question for the Irish equivalent of RMweb at:

 

 http://irishrailwaymodeller.com

 

There is also an Irish section here on RMweb at:

 

 http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/forum/183-irish-railways-group/

 

I have just had a quick look through:

 

 

without finding any refererence to 21mm flexi-track. That book is well worth getting if you are planning Irish modelling, see:

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1857801857/authorfrompubuk-21

 

regards,

 

Martin.

Edited May 21, 2017 by martin_wynne
FB note added

[Baldwin30762]

Thanks Martin

 

I have that one and I am a member of a number of Irish forums and New Irish Lines magazine, I think sometimes that British modellers do take it for granted about historic information being available about the railways of the UK.

 

What I have come across so far with the Irish scene is that people didn't always take notes of what was going on around them when it comes to Irish Railways, it is only after the 2 World War that information was collected about the different Irish Railway companies as such, of course there are a few Irish Heritage groups, but no where near to the same level as we have in the UK.

 

This layout has been in the planning stage for the best part of 20 years, it is not going to be a second Fry railway system in 4mm but there is so much out there that no one can get bored with finding something to model, I do suggest if anyone has a few hours (you are going to need it) to look at the Irish OS map service and go back to the 1950's and check out the track plans http://maps.osi.ie/publicviewer/#V2,615364,750893,0,9 you will not be wasting your time, honestly.

 

Colin 

[Baldwin30762]

Hi Martin

 

Just re read you notes about the Irish modelling forum, if any one wanted more information this is a good place to start, if you are in to the steam age you might find this a bit to modern,but don't forget that up until recently there has not been any RTR Irish models, I think Murphy's Model's have caught the imagination of the Irish railway modeller at the right time.

 

I am just wondering how much it would cost to produce a (and I would guess it would have to be flat bottom code 75 rail section) a plastic flex track base for 21mm gauge.

 

I have already asked on the Irish forum if anyone has heard about this before, but no one has.

 

I do appreciate the fact that it would be a very small market for such a product, but I am sure there are enough people out there willing to give 21mm gauge a try if everything was not so difficult to do, if by making laying the track that much easier and thus allowing more time to build the point work, I am sure we would see some more very fine Irish layouts on the exhibition circuit.    

 

Colin   

Edited May 21, 2017 by Baldwin30762

[Jol Wilkinson]

Colin,

 

I think the cost of producing the mould for the track bases might be prohibitively expensive. It still leaves the issue of making the pointwork.

 

Producing plain track can be done quite quickly using readily available rail, ply sleepers, plastic chairs and solvent. A sleeper positioning jig, laser cut from thin ply and stuck onto a thicker piece or chipboard for stability, would enable you to make track panels quite quickly, usingtrack gauges to ensure accuracy.. That's how I did the plain track seen here. Straight sections can be made in the jig, curved panels have one rail fitted and then finished of in situ. 

 

 

 

The jig I designed for LNWR 60' track panels was cut by Timber Tracks for me and has now also been used by several other modellers. I aligned two jigs and produced two connected panels at a time. You could also use the jig with pcb sleepers.

 

[flubrush]

I do appreciate the fact that it would be a very small market for such a product, but I am sure there are enough people out there willing to give 21mm gauge a try if everything was not so difficult to do, if by making laying the track that much easier and thus allowing more time to build the point work, I am sure we would see some more very fine Irish layouts on the exhibition circuit.   

 

Colin,

 

It might be worth talking to the whoever in the 2mm Association arranged the production of their plastic based track.   It might give you some idea of costs of mould making and production costs for a product which is similar to what you are looking for.

 

Even if you get someone to design and produce a mould tool for your track base,  you might also fall foul of the minimum order number required from the people doing the moulding.  For the S Scale Society Parts department I deal with one company in the UK who does a lot of work for model railway track parts and their minimum order number is 10,000.

 

Jim.

[hayfield]

I think C&L once stated that a new mould for track bases was £20,000 from memory, though if made in China I think someone told me they were about £5,000

 

Unless a group of you get together will be far less expensive using individual components, for non scenic areas just cut flexitrack down the middle and relay

Edited May 23, 2017 by hayfield

[Vistisen]

J

 

I think C&L once stated that a new mould for track bases was £20,000 from memory, though if made in China I think someone told me they were about £5

 

Unless a group of you get together will be far less expensive using individual components, for non scenic areas just cut flexitrack down the middle and relay

 

I take it you mean £5000 in China!

[Baldwin30762]

Thanks Guys,

 

Looks like I will have to wait until C&L are up and running again to buy some this stuff to have a play with, I am starting to play with templot at the moment and I have got the basics, it is just a case of getting my head around such things like doing a diamond crossing.

 

I will get the hang of it at some point. 

[Greenmodelmonkey]

Thanks Guys,

 

Looks like I will have to wait until C&L are up and running again to buy some this stuff to have a play with, I am starting to play with templot at the moment and I have got the basics, it is just a case of getting my head around such things like doing a diamond crossing.

 

I will get the hang of it at some point.

 

 

It's well more the effort and don't know how I could do without it now I have mastered it!

[hayfield]

Thanks Guys,

 

Looks like I will have to wait until C&L are up and running again to buy some this stuff to have a play with, I am starting to play with templot at the moment and I have got the basics, it is just a case of getting my head around such things like doing a diamond crossing.

 

I will get the hang of it at some point. 

 

 

Phil will be at Railex this weekend and I will be giving him a hand, I can find out when the mail order site will be open and report back, or if it help happy to pick up a few bits which I could post to you

 

The diamond crossings are quite easy, unless you wish to curve them

 

 

Select a turnout of the correct crossing angle

From the toolbar click on tools

Click the make a diamond crossing dialog  

 

OR

 

Just press shift and F1 keys at the same time

 

Either way you have a diamond crossing 

[martin_wynne]

The diamond crossings are quite easy, unless you wish to curve them

 

Select a turnout of the correct crossing angle

From the toolbar click on tools

Click the make a diamond crossing dialog  

 

OR

 

Just press shift and F1 keys at the same time

 

Either way you have a diamond crossing 

 

Hi Colin, John,

 

tools > make diamond-crossing works equally well if curved.

 

The result will be a regular diamond-crossing (same radius in both roads).

 

The tricky bit to understand for beginners might be that a diamond-crossing is comprised of 2 linked templates, not a single template:

 

 

 

If you want instead an irregular diamond-crossing, such as where a curved track crosses a straight track:

 

1. Have one template as the control template and the other as the background template. Click on the background template to get its menu on the left.

 

2. On that menu click peg/align tools > make diamond-crossing at intersection menu item.

 

That works fine provided the resulting diamond-crossing is flatter than 1:1.5 angle.

 

Have a look also at the tools > make ladder crossover functions.

 

If you want to discuss diamond-crossings in greater detail, please refer to the Templot Club user forum at http://85a.co.uk/forum/

 

regards,

 

Martin.

[RBAGE]

Phil will be at Railex this weekend and I will be giving him a hand, I can find out when the mail order site will be open and report back, or if it help happy to pick up a few bits which I could post to you

 

The diamond crossings are quite easy, unless you wish to curve them

 

 

Select a turnout of the correct crossing angle

From the toolbar click on tools

Click the make a diamond crossing dialog  

 

Any news on the timing of mail order availability? I'm down to my last 2 lengths of rail and still much to do.

 

OR

 

Just press shift and F1 keys at the same time

 

Either way you have a diamond crossing