Patriot87003
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Posts posted by Patriot87003
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For info … the cloakroom is closed.
*Update*: The cloakroom was opened sometime during the morning following feedback. The charge is £2 per item and they confirmed would be open during Saturday and Sunday.
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Good to see the MK1’s announced in OO and with a few tooling upgrades and tweaks as well. Including bogies, electrical pickups and did I see an upgraded roof with no roof ribs?
Especially good to see the bog standard TSO released in blue-grey and Intercity liveries … very tempting to recreate a 1980s WCML rake from them.
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Time flies! Another busy few months have seemingly flown by with a mix of domesticated life and work that included a 7 week training course in Milton K. I did manage a 7 day rover ticket to have a few final trips aboard the Cross Country HST’s.
43007 and 43008 have a brief rest at Plymouth during the glorious weather, 3rd September 2023.
As for the layout, the wiring for the new Yard 4 loco sidings was successfully completed. The control panel working well with the LED lights installed to show position of the points for the new sidings;
The underside of the baseboard with the two diode matrix boards;
The new sidings begun to be used …
A few new arrivals to the layout have included an Accurascale Class 37 …
… also a couple of the Cavalex Class 56’s. I recorded a brief running session and this also shows that I did give in and buy a rake a Yeoman PTA’s that also compliment the Class 59 that arrived last year, also a rake of Cawoods.
Other developments inside the shed have included replacing the original fluorescent lights with new LED lights, also laying foam tiles on the floor to help these ageing knees and joints!
I’ve begun to plan the next mini-project for the layout. Will hope to commence in the coming weeks. In the meantime I’m looking forward to attending the Doncaster show on Saturday as well as a jolly to Model Rail Scotland, plus I’m vowing to have a few more running sessions this year!-
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On 04/02/2024 at 22:02, 87023Velocity said:
Good call about 56001.
The mentions of 56001 and the cracking picture above reminded me of the Stewarts Lane open day that my Dad took me to during April 1988. I was only 11 … amazing to think it was almost 36 years ago! I’ll resist mentioning the open cab door! 😜 😇
Since running the new models in, I’ve had a running session and both loco’s performed very well. As a few others have mentioned in the thread, the performance of both loco’s was very similar so was able to double-head on DC.-
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On 28/01/2024 at 11:12, meld said:
Just received my clutch of Cavalex 56's from John Dutfield models this morning via Personal Delivery which is service above and beyond IMHO, especially as there is a slight matter of the Dartford Crossing between locations !!!
Many many Thanks to Ken and Heather for stunning and superb service.
1st one out of the box is 56120, which will be on the work bench soon to see some weathering so it can pull my rake of Accurascale Cawoods PFA's and hopefully allow it to look something similar to the pictures I have of it running through the Old Manchester Victoria on a loaded export coal service from way back in the mists of time.
Still got the biggest grin on my chops at the quality of this model!
Meld.
Lovely pics and same idea as me!My couple of 56’s arrived and run in ok and 56120 in ex-works condition hauls a rake of Cawoods …
It meets my other new 56 heading the other way, 56077 in original Railfreight livery.
Congratulations to Cav and Alex and to all those involved in delivering these mighty fine models 👏
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On 01/12/2023 at 19:40, Norski said:
Love an Aussie Grid 🇦🇺
Well … 56062 did almost go upside down at Copyhold Junction back in 1988! I can remember a trip down to Brighton and passing it by.Have found a clip on YT showing the recovery operation … could make for an interesting diorama!
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49 minutes ago, Michael Hodgson said:
Looks like we still don't have an estimate of delivery date for these.
I saw them in the flesh today at Warley and they look fantastic. Really looking forward to these.I did notice that the pre-order closing date on the tv screen showed 31st December 2023, while I think I saw the eta being 3rd quarter of 2024.
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An update on the website has been published today and the EP1 samples look superb!
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13 minutes ago, Michael Hodgson said:
I can't justify one. I don't do the knitting. And I've already given in and got a 92.... and I don't do 3rd rail either.
I liked the 89 in all the lveries they're doing it in. No, I'm still not getting one.
You don’t always need knitting in order to have a loco with a coat hanger on the roof! 😜
Eg The Class 89 visited Worksop Open Day during 1993 …
(an 89 will look good being towed to/from an open day with your 92! You know you want to!! 😁)
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The tamper looks great! I hope it’s prototypical … with random hydraulic leaks!
Do you have any forthcoming exhibitions in the diary? Kirkhill is one of my favourite layouts on the exhibition circuit and would be great to see it in action again soon 👍
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With wiring the new loco sidings still progressing, a new loco has arrived to fill one of them! A bit of a random purchase as well …
Growing up in Croydon during the 1980’s saw the new Foster Yeoman Class 59’s head to Crawley on aggregate workings. My dad also took me to Stratford and Reading and was always impressive to the the silver 59’s in action; radically different to the traditional BR traction and liveries.
A 59 passes Selhurst Depot heading towards Norwood Junction (approaching Tennison Road bridge) during the early 1990s. I wish I had a better camera back then!
A 59 runs through Stratford station …The new 59’s by Dapol look impressive and I had been tempted … but the resistance ended this week! So 59005 has arrived …
While the Foster Yeoman 59s were mainly confined to the west, east and south of London, I did travel aboard a mini-tour along the WCML between Crewe and Wigan NW during August 1995 as part of the Crewe Basford Hall open day event … so some justification!
A pic of 59003 and 59101 as the Pathfinder tour left Crewe to head back to Bristol TM …
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On 11/08/2021 at 14:08, DavidMcKenzie said:
That looks like a good excuse for the northern stretch Simon, you'll have yet another excuse for an early 90s running day
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I've spent the lunch break trying to find an excuse for the southern end. Looks like this Merehead Quarry to Purfleet working is just the thing. Not sure of the exact route but it's here at Willesden Junction (photo found on Flickr, not mine) and that's more than good enough for me.
All the best,
Dave
Only just stumbled across this! Another excuse for you to justify Class 59s passing Dallam is that during 28th August 1995 as part of the Crewe Basford Hall open day event, Pathfinder operated a mini tour from Crewe to Wigan NW and back. It used 90139 to haul north top-n-tail with 59003 and 59101 to haul south, before taking a tour back to Bristol. I was lucky enough to be aboard and grabbed a couple of pics … further details on Six Bells Jn page below.https://www.sixbellsjunction.co.uk (Then use the Railtour files to find the Crewe Excursioner Tour; 28/08/95)
90139 at Wigan NW
59003 and 59101 leaving Crewe after the mini-tour, on it’s way back to Bristol TM(I’ve just been searching Class 59 WCML wanderings to justify a OO gauge bargain! 🤭)
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Quite a bit of progress has been made with wiring the new 13 loco sidings, with all the dropper wires for the track feeds connected. I have also updated the Yard 4 panel.
This pic is the original Yard 4 panel before modifications;
I used the Visio drawing software to design an update to include the new sidings with as minimal number of changes to the original switches and wiring.
I used spray mount to stick the print to the panel but unfortunately it has seemed to have gone off … and the paper was see through and awful! I then made another print and stuck on top using double sided tape and thankfully looks ok. I then used clear sticky-back plastic over the top. I also made a reverse print for the underside of the panel to help when wiring. It’s not the prettiest result, not helped by the spray mount issue … but as long as it works then I’ll be happy.
I began to drill holes for the switches for the points and isolating sections …All of the switches installed and with the blue toggle covers …
With the switches installed, I’ve completed the bus wires for the point motor switches and isolating section switches, with 4 of the isolating switches wired so far, tested and working ok. 9 more to go, then it’s the turn to wire the point motors and diode matrix.
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On 25/03/2023 at 07:17, Rich Papper said:
Just had a catch-up on this thread - what an awesome layout. I last had a read through after seeing the BRM article. I love how well you’ve tucked the storage sidings underneath to keep as much on the tracks as possible. Can’t help but feel there’s a career to be had as a contortionist to get in those gaps though!
Rich
Thanks Rich for the lovely comment … and yeah! Under the main layout can be cosy … I’ve tried to make it as accessible as possible; knee pads are essential!
The layout now has 13 additional storage sidings! The project has included adding an infill baseboard, track laying, adding point motors and dropper wires and adding buffer stops. A few pictures of the progress below …
Three turnouts were inserted between the access lines to Yards 3 and 4. Surface mounted point motors were added due to baseboard frame position. Turnouts towards sidings 1 to 7 added, with the track to form sidings 1-3 laid.
Another view at the same stage …
The track to form sidings 4 to 7 was then laid …
An infill baseboard was installed adjacent to the access lines to Yard 4 …
Turnouts and track laid to form sidings 8 - 13. Clearances checked at each stage as well as length of each siding. Each can store a MK3 coach (23m long in real world), so should be long enough for even the longest of loco’s. A few spare offcuts of flexi track were joined.
Another view of sidings 8-13 from a different angle … buffers installed and glued in position on most of the sidings (a few to be bought and installed to complete). Not the smoothest of prettiest of track alignments but it’s functional and been tested and no problems so far.
Buffers also installed on sidings 1 to 6, while siding 7 is protected by the frame up to the main layout.
Under the board is a bit of a nest of wires at the moment with the dropper wires from each track and point motor! I’ve repositioned a few of the Lego Technic wiring holder pieces and re-glued.
Updating the control panel and completing the wiring will keep me busy for a while!
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5 hours ago, cairnsroadworks said:
The pair looks great. Now the million dollar question - does 87006 have black doors in model form?!
Thanks! To answer … yes, the cab doors and window surrounds do appear to be black on the model.3 hours ago, Graham108 said:Just a quick question out of curiosity - why is your 92 running with panto down yet the 87's are running with both up!
Oops; well spotted! With the 92 I took the pics as soon as the loco was placed on the layout … and before I read the instructions regarding how to unclip the pantograph! I had a quick try but didn’t want to force it to risk breaking. I’ve since learnt how to unclip the pan but not taken any pics since.-
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Well … work has gone crazy busy recently so progress with the layout and latest project is paused for now … however my birthday pressies from 2021 have finally arrived! 😁 Just unboxed and tested each 87 and each are very smooth runner, while no obvious QC issues to report so far. A few pics …
I couldn’t resist hooking the IC Exec liveried 87’s to a steel coil rake … over 10,000hp! I’ll renumber and rename one of them while probably keeping the other as 87009 City of Birmingham.Hopefully work will ease off in the next week or two to allow some progress to occur during the Easter break and beyond … while a few other pre-orders are on the horizon. I recently attended the Model Rail Scotland show and the forthcoming Heljan 86’s look good …
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My birthday pressies from 2021 have finally arrived! 😁 Thankfully on a day when I was able to get home early from a work meeting … just unboxed and tested each 87 and each are very smooth runners. The quality of the printed and etched nameplates seems to have improved as well compared to previous releases, while no obvious QC issues to report so far. A few pics …
I couldn’t resist hooking the Intercity Exec liveried versions to the steel coil rake … over 10,000hp of power! I’ll probably keep one of them as 87009 City of Birmingham while renumbering and renaming the other …-
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I attended during Saturday … very enjoyable show and day out. With the MML having a minimal service due to the strikes and engineering works, I drove across to Grantham and had a very pleasant trip up and down the ECML; even managing a decent Seatfrog 1st class upgrade back north.
As I made the earlier connection at KX, I made the effort to walk up the hill to Ally Pally joining the queue about 9:15. As others have mentioned, queuing in the rain wasn’t much fun and entry seemed a bit slower than ideal. However, the rest of the show and day was superb. A good mix of layouts and trade … my personal fave was Alderford, well I do like sectorisation era and some sparks! It’s the first time I had seen it since converted to a through station and ‘roundy-roundy’, but plenty of operational interest and lovely rakes … along with some good light engine moves.
Also managed to have some good chats with the various manufacturers, with BRM’s Howard and the McKinley team. A pleasant walk back down the hill and a good trip back to round off an enjoyable day. Congrats to all of those that put in the hard work into the layouts and behind the scenes to make the show possible.
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8 hours ago, BR(S) said:
After showing pre-order status on the Hornby website for a long time after the Engine Shed blog said they'd arrived, 87009 and 87006 are now showing as in stock. Hopefully in the shops soon.
Both loco’s now showing ‘Out of Stock’
Hornby appear to be teasing us! 🤪
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I managed to fit in a jolly to Model Rail Scotland today and visited the Heljan stand. Livery samples of 86401 in NSE and 86417 in IC Mainline were available … lovely looking models.
I had a brief chat with Ben and he’s feeding back to the factory that the white numbers and lettering are a bit darker as the NSE blue is showing through, so hopefully will be improved before production (maybe due this summer, with the 86/2’s still targeting the end of the year).
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I’ve started a new project to increase the number of loco-sidings below the layout. A few reasons have prompted this … the first being thinking about operating the layout transitioning between the mid-1980’s era through to the early 2000’s and back again. Also a few nice additions to the fleet are pre-ordered! I also like to include light engine moves on and off the main layout to rotate the fleet and provide operational interest, while not having too many light loco’s cluttering the main layout loco sidings and depot at any one time.
The spur towards Yard 4 has created an opportunity to use this baseboard space. The baseboard will be extended a bit to increase the space without interfering with the footprint of the main layout above.
The planning stage used lining paper, Peco point paper templates, railway curves with Tracksetta curve templates. It’s looking like I’ll be able to fit 13 new sidings. Due to the distance from the control panel, I’m intending to motor each turnout and locations have been checked to avoid any clashes with the baseboard frames.
Track for Phase 1 of the project has arrived. This will cover the three new turnouts to be installed from the Yard 4 approach line, along with the five turnouts for the seven sidings. 2nd Radius curves are the minimum being used. A couple of short sections of set track have been cut to check the plan and the spur for the second group of sidings has been repositioned slightly to allow for slightly longer sidings.
Next stage of the project will be to remove the existing access track to Yard 4, install the three turnouts (with point motors), reconnect the access track to Yard 4, install the turnouts, point motors and sidings for the Phase 1 seven roads, plenty of dropper wires to be connect and testing. I’ll then check the plan for the remaining space and Phase 2 sidings, modify the baseboard and install the track. I’ve used the recent colder evenings to draft an update to the Yard 4 control panel.
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15 minutes ago, andyman7 said:
Provided you connect the ordinary DC controller and turn it up to maximum power, and then control your HM7000 decoder fitted loco via the app you will get sound. If you do not use the app and instead just control the loco from the DC controller, it looks like no sound. But why would you do that when the app is free?
Fair question … my layout is DC with Gaugemaster panel controllers and I also have the option to switch two ‘cabs’ to use the HM6000 and App from my IPad.I much prefer the controllability and feel of the panel controller ‘knobs’ … and I can easily keep an eye on and control multiple trains at once, often up to 6. The downsides being I have to use cab-control principles, I can’t ‘walkabout’ with the panel controllers and not able to control lights, other functions etc being DC only.
I’ve found the HM6000 very useful for some purposes, especially being able to ‘walkabout’ my shed to control one or two cabs/loco’s … but the feel and controllability via the App is just not the same as a knob.
Hence every time I’m back at the control panel, I revert back to control via the panel controllers.
I’ll be very interested to see if the feel of the HM7000 app is any better …
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I’m getting my head around this new HM7000 system … it does sound very interesting with many possibilities.
I’m figuring that one benefit of the HM7000 approach is that it maybe less likely to fry Bluetooth decoder? Also less likely to kill a DC loco motor by placing on DCC? (If the existing DC power inputs to the track are kept).
Also another benefit being annoying short circuits are less likely to ‘stop the job’ if DC power to the track is kept? (Such as at diamond crossings).
My current layout is DC and for me to transition to DCC would require either a lot of decoders up front or very careful management of isolation sections or removing non-decoder fitted loco’s from the layout until fitted.
If I understand HM7000 correctly, I could keep my DC cab-control setup as currently (and drive from the existing control panel), but gradually transition to the HM7000 App by purchasing more decoders over time (and when operating those locos fitted with the decoders, simply switch the decoder mode then crank up the DC control knobs to full power).
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![56001. [FBR14-007]](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49080604496_28771d9576_b.jpg)
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Model Rail Scotland 2024
in Exhibitions
Posted
Agree … and yes, following feedback they opened the cloakroom sometime during the morning. They confirmed the cloakroom would be open during Saturday and Sunday. I’ll update my original post … and thanks to the kind folk at Accurascale for storing my bag during the morning!
Enjoyable show; Eastfield looks amazing although seemed to have some tech gremlins. Good luck to the team sorting them for the rest of the weekend and look forward to seeing again.
Enjoyed plenty of other layouts especially Crewe Gresty Bridge. Looks great, smooth operation and packed with details including the Mornflake factory. Just needs smellavision …
Look forward to returning again next year!