Visitors to this blog might recall that I was operating the one & only point on the layout with a Hoffman pattern point motor, which duly decided to play up from the off once I arrived at the Wiltshire groups members day at Pewsey back in August.

This point motor has been removed, it is no more!

It's replacement is a slightly modified Tortoise point motor hidden inside the large warehouse occupying center stage, see below for the now you see me now you don't photographs.

Some years ago I bought a whole load of second hand Tortoise units from the old Mendip Models shop at a very good price - £12-00 for three if I remember. This last one I modified to see if I could work two points at the same time in the fiddle yard on my American HO layout New Sarum. It was not a great success. So now I have restored its functionality with a simple brass strip (etched fret waste) to create a new pivot point for the operating wire, which will the via wire in tube operate the point. Of course all the grubby mechanical items will be carefully hidden beneath the ground and inside the warehouse.

Once this work is done and my enthusiasm for the project is restored all will come on in leaps and bounds - that's the plan anyway.