TheLaird

Andy, thanks for your kind words. Further to Petes comprehensive and informative reply, there is a partly standardised system for decoder functions. As Pete says we still have a lot of legacy decoders going back to ESU v3.5 and so any numbering system has to take account of that. F2 is the dynamic brake, F3 Whistle or Horn, F5 Light Engine mode, F8 Coasting (where available), F9 flange Squeal and F12 inertia On/Off. Because the DMU's have to be consisted to run in multiple, the dynamic brake function cannot be used and so F2 is used for the Horn. Regards JohnE

Flocky, what little ballasting has been done to date, I have used the traditional method of dropping dilute PVA with a wetting agent onto it. Best wetting agent I've found is Fairy liquid!! Ballast is building sand. So far the noise level seems unaffected. Regards John E.

So having got over all the excitement of the video episodes and the remodelling of the LCS throat, it was back to the locomotive works for some more conversions. Three tank loco's for a friends layout, two Scots and a couple of Black uns for Leeds. "Cameronian" and "The Green Howards" join classmate "Royal Engineer" on the Leeds roster. All fitted with YouChoos sound files on Zimo chips with a large speaker in the tender and a sugar cube in the boiler to move the sound forward. Some may recognise 44781 as an ex Bradfield loco, fitted with an older zimo Digitrains sound file. 45273 has a Locoman sound on Zimo chip. Both loco's have the same speaker arrangement as the Scots.

For those that would like to see the video, www.emgs.org 1030 tomorrow.

All wired up and working, just got to figure out how to control it now!!

These changes will not affect the lever frame at LCJ, all of the new pointwork is controlled by Leeds West Box. There is a scheme afoot to replicate the NX panel that was installed there in the 1930's.

I seem to have caused some confusion with the pics of my trackwork. The double track that leaves the junction and sweeps around towards the rear of the layout, represent the lines to/from the ex-joint station that is referred to for operational purposes as Leeds City South (LCS). Shortly after leaving the junction, these lines cross the canal bridge and at that point reality ends. When I first built the layout, it was intended that the LCS lines would be purely cosmetic, however after the extension and re design I realised that they could become operational. There was not enough room to model LCS, so the lines disappeared through the backscene into the three road storage sidings along the back of the layout. The lines in LCS are at a higher level than those in the ex-Midland side, operationally called Leeds City North (LCN). This was useful as on the model they needed to clear the point servos, although it meant setting them at a higher level than in reality. Last year, I built the low relief LCS train shed and devised the roof to cover the three storage roads. This was when I decided to remove the remainder of the backscene and expose the lines leading into the train shed, although the backscene will be retained to conceal the setback sidings. The existing pointwork for the storage sidings reduced all lines to a single lead which did not look right. Operationally it could not accommodate simultaneous arrivals and departures. So this is what prompted the re-modelling of the junction at LCS. Totally un prototypical but allows connectivity between all roads. To answer one of Andrews questions, bearing in mind it was originally a storage yard, the pointwork was all copperclad. I wanted to re-use as much of the original as I could so to match it, I stuck to copperclad construction. Herbert Nigel is partly correct in that it does aim to represent the joint stn but the Farnley Viaduct lines are further around the corner and lead into the South Storage Yard. It is intended to include an amount of traffic to/from LCS, especially that which crosses to the Midland side to gain access to the Leeds Northern and on to Harrogate and beyond. Also the Farnley Viaduct traffic will be included but the main constraint will be storage yard capacity. The following diagrams may help understanding but if not please feel free to ask further. Track Plan. Schematic Diagram.

Track all stuck down so hopefully makes it a bit clearer what the scheme is. Next job is to connect operating wires and servo's, then just wire it all up... again! I think it looks a bit more like a station throat now. Low relief Leeds West Box to go in the space on the left.

So having finally completed the EMGS video last week, it's back to some modelling. After completing the City South trainshed last year, I decided not to reinstate the backscene and leave the approaches exposed. Because of this and the desire to make operations more workable, the throat really needed re modelling. The current task is to build some pointwork. Wot I hadn't appreciated is that it would require alterations to the groundwork, as the alignment has changed to accommodate this!

Thanks for posting, interesting stuff.

Hi Andrew, nice to hear from you and that things are still progressing. The squares and circles are a form of adjustable clip that hold the platform edges in place. The squares have elongated slots in them to allow for adjustment to clear stock. The section you can see is the parcels dock and is awaiting the top surface to be fitted. Regards John E

Lights, Camera, Action!! Work underway on the EMGS Video.