Revolution Mike B

Unfortunately, the research required forms part of finalising the CAD. As soon as we’re in a position to move forward with the project, we will provide an update. Cheers Mike B

Folks, the model is still very much in the research stage and therefore we have nothing of real substance to provide an update, hence Ben’s earlier reply. Given that there aren’t any Class 120s in preservation, we can’t just ‘pop along’ and get details. As soon as the project starts moving to a point of any relevance, you can be sure that we’ll let you know. Cheers Mike B

Well I’ve spent the whole weekend (apart from 3pm-5pm on Saturday watching Pompey) working on the layout. I’ve test printed the bridge for the scenic break and it’s a little too big - not to worry, CAD corrected and ready to print again when I get time. The rest of my time was spent trying to make the loops look overgrown, which in 4mm is a walk in the park. N Gauge however is a different ball game! The scenic scatter just looks like rocks in this scale, so I may strip it back and start again, although I have managed to recreate some buddleia…. ….and just for good measure, here’s a JHA that I weathered a while ago to set the scene off…. I’ve got a busy week with work coming up so I probably won’t feel like doing much with my own trains until next weekend.

Glad to help

66111 in its present day livery isn’t possible from the EWS 66 that we are presently offering due to the headlights as they’ve been replaced with the new BMAC revised version. You can replicate it in its 2018 / early 2019 version by ordering debranded with DB logos on front and side. Cheers Mike B

The Freightliner variant will be suitable Cheers Mike B

Well running trains and not working on the layout has completely gone out of the window so far this weekend. First job was to start the static gras on the new embankment…. ….and add some more foliage…. I also added a footpath, which is at the real location but on the south side of the line, rather than the north…… …….and then I worked out where I was going to put the scenic break and modified the outside of the baseboard so that the rising terrain could be supported properly. I’ve also done a whole load of other bits and pieces like adding the security fencing, and starting the bushes along the back edge of the loops. it’s slow going as nothing wants to dry, and constantly adding more glue on top of already damp glue isn’t helping! Anyway, at least it’s all moving in the right direction. Tomorrow, I’m definitely having a day off. It’s Easter Sunday and Nicky’s cooking a nice roast dinner!!

John In addition to my colleague Ben’s reply, a non sound Zimo Next 18 decoder is £35 now, so there’s very little price difference between the two decoders. As a predominant Zimo user myself, and offering an unbiased opinion (putting my work hat to one side), the V5 Nano works very well and is easily compatible to the older Zimo decoders. From personal experience, the latest incarnation of the Zimo decoder doesn’t seem as stable as the older versions which is very odd. Anyway, I digress. I’m fairly sure it won’t be too long for other manufacturers to follow the E24 route - Zimo already have a prototype and I believe this will be available later on this year. Cheers Mike B

The green stuff appears to be growing but I need to do something about that tree….it looks a bit bedraggled! I’m kind of stuck for a bit until this all dries out as I can’t risk soaking it any further otherwise it will end up warping and become a right mess. In the meantime I started airbrushing the old static grass, not that it looked bad, but just to make it look more late spring / early summer. A few blasts with some MIG Ammo bright green has broken up the uniformity and made it look a little more ‘fresh’ grass. You can see here how it’s created a nice patchy effect when the grass grows at different heights. I’d like to get the bridge end finished by the end of next month and make a start on getting the station looking like a station again rather than a construction site. No work on the layout over Easter as I want to run some trains!

Cheers Stu. As with Oak Road it’s set in late spring so I may just get away with it.

This looks way too ‘green’! The colours are going to need to be toned down a bit as they’re very bright…. …..although some of it my be the wet PVA and the poor lighting in the loft. There’s not much I can do now until it dries out, which given the current cold spell, could take a few days. I won’t lie, I’m finding doing things in 1:148 a little challenging as everything looks way over scale and I’m still finding my feet with the different techniques. I’m sure I’ll get there but it’s not as easy as it is with 1:76.2 where you can more or less make anything look right without too much effort. Right….back to the day job!

Looking forward to the greenery going in……

Well it’s been absolutely ages since I’ve posted anything relating to either layout on RMWeb, so it’s time for a N Gauge update. I’ve had a rethink on the new layout and rather than waste time and effort trying to modify the existing one, I’m going to start from scratch with new baseboards. This means that Market Lavington can stay complete, which is just at well because it will be going to Taunton RailEx this year come hell or high water! Over the last month in between having a stinking cold and going away with work, I’ve managed to start rebuilding the end I’d ripped out. There’s a new bridge and embankment, and I’ve started creating a new scenic break. It’s been slow progress but things are moving forward somewhat. Once I’ve finished the construction of this end, I’m going to get the station finished and then move up to the other end to relay some track, and modify the scenery for new over bridge. I’ve also bought a YaMoRC power booster from DCC Train Automation so that I can split the track and accessory buses. Busy Busy Busy!

There’s an easy fix for that. Remove the motor, drive shafts and gears, then you’ll have a dummy unit.

I find it really odd that people don’t understand why it’s better to call a halt to a project and correct any errors, but instead would be happy to have a model that’s completely incorrect? just stop and think about this for a minute. Dapol have sunk a fair amount of money into tooling - we’ve seen that as they’ve already shown an EP sample. However, as mentioned by a few people, it was quite far off the mark to even come close to how it should be. Rightly, they decided it was far better to offer a model that wasn’t riddled with errors. As for cancelling pre orders, I find this even more baffling. It’s not a hardship to sit on a pre order, and it’s not as though there’s an abundance of ready to run, O Gauge Sheds being offered by alternative manufacturers! And one final point. If there’s nothing to update, then there’s no need for an update. When they have something to announce, they’ll do it. That’s nothing to do with customer service…..that’s common sense!