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Following the lifting of legal restrictions earlier this month in England, and observing the good practice we have all got used to in the last 16 months, the UK FREMO group met last weekend (unofficially -- this was not a formal FREMO event). Over the period of the pandemic everyone has been able to make progress in various areas from rolling stock to scenery, timetables to waybills. The new abilities we shared made the event more enjoyable than the last one way back in February 2020. Slowly we are becoming closer to a fully-fledged FREMO group. Here are some of my impressions of the arrangement. One day I might be able to control the camera on my phone properly; until then everything is a bit more pointilliste than I would like. First up, a view of my own small branch station, Wasserbach. It's still a 'plywood desert' with foam and Bristol board providing only the broad outline of the scenery. I've left some of the curved fascia of the small end board in shot. This board is a semicircle of 300 mm radius that finishes the end of the station off quite neatly. The track and turnouts are now pretty reliable but as is obvious there is a lot more for me to do. The buffer stop is a massive one designed to slide on the rails and take up the energy of a heavy train running into it. I hope to swap that out for something much more lightweight. One suitable model is available from Auhagen. Unfortunately the kit that just arrived has turned out to contain N scale mouldings in a box labelled H0! Happily, elswhere there was plenty of nicely finished scenery. Here's a 'joker module' -- a small board, in this case 400mm in length, that can be used to make transitions between distinct scenic areas on larger modules either side. Joker modules are often used between hill profile and flat profile modules, for example. This one features the classic trope: a second railway line running at a picturesque angle under the track used by trains on the arrangement. Some deer graze in the rough pasture alongside the track on this 1800mm stretch which is scenically complete, and, as used this time around, formed a picturesque curved stretch for trains to be viewed in the landscape on their way to Wasserbach. There are two boards making up this section and though they were designed and built together and pair nicely in a single curve, they could be connected to form an S bend or split and used in different parts of the arrangement -- that's up to the arrangement planner. I'm happy to say that the two modules I've built that are similar in proportions to these ones were included -- their first outing, and no issues were revealed. By far the busiest station was Schwarzhausen, which was the junction station for the branch line to Wasserbach. The stationmaster and shunter were kept extremely busy breaking up and re-forming the local goods services passing through. In shot is a good variety of stock, and a couple of loaded wagons are visible. The loads will be removed on arrival and might end up going out again on a later service. There were quieter moments at Schwarzhausen, as here with a railbus waiting at the platform, but these were few. Finally, more timber awaiting shipment in the sidings at Werfen. Covid-19 kept two of our group away and prevented visitors who are still shielding from coming along, but it was a good weekend and I feel hopeful that the next meeting will not only be to a higher standard still but also accessible to the whole of the UK FREMO group and any visitors.

Apologies; as they say, 'it worked for me'. It's a thumbnail gallery of wagons and coaches; let me try again: https://www.zsr.sk/sluzby-verejnosti/ine-sluzby/archiv-zsr/albumy/ministerstvo-dopravy-vozove-hospodarstvi.html The first link needed rescuing -- as you say, the address takes you to the background page but doesn't display the image. Perhaps the web developers were all out drinking beer/watching trains go by when they should have been finishing the job.

A great archive photo of a spotless, presumably brand new 498 4-8-2 loco on the Slovakian Ministry of Railways web site: https://www.zsr.sk/sluzby-verejnosti/ine-sluzby/archiv-zsr/albumy/lokomotivny-park.html#&gid=1&pid=24 It's from their locomotives archive album: https://www.zsr.sk/sluzby-verejnosti/ine-sluzby/archiv-zsr/albumy/lokomotivny-park.htm There are some interesting photos of wagons and coaches too https://www.zsr.sk/sluzby-verejnosti/ine-sluzby/archiv-zsr/albumy/ministerstvo-dopravy-vozove-hospodarstvi.html Apologies if everyone knows about this site. I've just seen it through a link shared on the FREMO forum (credit where it's due). Make sure you are not looking at the English language version of the site, none of this is visible. Ben

Something very steampunk about the 3D print. Definitely makes me see the component parts of a wagon in a new light.

Here's that bullhead track in Blumberg, in 2016 after it had been removed from the tunnel.

I don't have much to add to what has been said about German track above, but I have built several Tillig Elite turnouts. They are not hard to make and look good. The Tillig rail is 2.1mm and is pre-blackened (even the running surfaces). This helps it to look a bit finer -- unless and until you take the trouble to paint the sides of the rail in rust colour. Tillig and Weinert turnouts, unlike Peco, don't have anything to hold them in position so you need to find something, a motor or a manual lever, that will do that job. Both Tillig and Weinert offer their turnouts ready made, but (to take the Tillig ones I have experience of) it's quite a nice task to build them and using kits will save you quite a lot of money if you need more than a couple. The weak point of Tillig turnouts is the little projection on the end of the switch rail that connects it to the tiebar. This is a fairly commonly discussed topic. One solution I have heard of is from Weichen-Walter who supplies a more robust alternative tie bar. I haven't tried it. I think that the sleeper bases and rail for both Tillig and Weinert plain flexible track can be bought separately and self-assembled. I've done this with Weinert track base which uses Peco IL-3 code 75 flat bottom rail. I am not sure I would encourage anyone to do it -- the ready made flex track is not much more expensive. I simply wanted to prevent the need for posting an awkward item (900mm lengths of track) from abroad which is silly really, it doesn't generally cost more. And couriers love awkward and delicate parcels! Ben ps. I agree with the recommendation to avoid bullhead track. I know that it was used in the tunnels of the Sauschwänzlebahn in the Black Forest but elsewhere in Germany it was extremely rarely (if ever) used. But you will find lots of it in France, and looking a bit harder also in Spain and Austria, not to mention outside Europe. So the next time?

And how far do you need to cut into the wood to make sure the brass is cleanly cut? Does it need to calculated or, say, an extra 0.1mm depth allowed in setting up the work piece? Thanks Ben

I discovered that, as shown in the photo above, the Tillig (ex-Sachsenmodelle) Pwg carries polystyrene dust from its packing wherever it goes, spread around its body like pollen on a honeybee. I threw away the (enormous) box to cure the problem.

Gratuitous pic of the Fleischmann model. I don't own this one now; it has or had digital uncoupling, which in hindsight I wouldn't have paid for, but that's personal preference. From the side of course the buffer spacing issue isn't readily discerned.

Hmm, yes. Apologies. Worth saying that the 94 is a great model with a really good presence despite the shortcomings mentioned. The superstructure stands up pretty well even half a century (I think) after it was first released and the valve gear got an upgrade at some point that brought it into line with the rest of the range. Must be in the eye of the observer, but it is a trick Fleischmann seemed to be able to pull, getting away with all kinds of naughtiness. Maybe the good running distracts? I guess the wide buffer spacing must be due to the need to keep the old-style tension lock coupling hook clear of all obstructions on an R1 curve. The older BR 94s are of the era where the Fleischmann approach to fitting a coupler was a large slot in the buffer beam and a bloody great peg to keep it there. Their arch rivals in Göppingen were using a much less obtrusive system, but I think an improvement on the Fleischmann side might only have come when the NEM 'pocket' was introduced and owners could choose which coupler they preferred. But I'm speculating. Others will know the real story :-) Ben

Life imitating art? That's brilliant. Need a large washing up bowl to float them off the backing I guess.

So... what transfers do the full-size loco painters use? A really interesting report, thanks! Ben

I can't imagine exactly what happened in the production of this model, and the MoBaDaten wiki page doesn't seem to reveal anything relevant. I have a similar Fleischmann wagon and I've done a comparison of the buffer spacing against a more conventional model (Brawa): And perhaps more significantly a comparison of the article number: A couple of other observations. Firstly, the Fleischmann model of a covered van that was made at a larger scale has buffer spacing that is almost indistinguishable from 1:87, even though the wagon is obviously much larger: Secondly, the Fleischmann BR 94 has widely spaced buffers but, I think, is otherwise to 1:87 scale (apart from the wheels and the axle spacing):

@ian@stenochs I couldn't ask for a better answer. It ties together various pieces of information I've read here and there into a coherent description! Thanks a lot.

For a newbie could you explain: what gives this guarantee? The fact that you won't slacken the chuck? I'd like to see a photo of the arrangement you used when profiling the tyre -- next time perhaps? Thanks a lot -- this thread is very helpful. Ben

Not the most inspiring photos, but these show the remains of the mechanism that converts the cable pull into a lever movement and some of the gubbins at the top of the mast. As shown above it's a cable drum with a cam follower inside it that moves a vertical rod to operate the Signalflügel (arm) This is a Schmalmast (narrow mast) rather than a Gittermast (lattice mast) but I don't think the different mast construction had much impact on the mechanism. The signal mast was lying beside the headshunt at Bahnhof Rennsteig in January 2018. 1. The remains of the casing covering the cam follower mechanism. This is the foot of the mast and the bolts through the holes on the L shaped angle held it down onto a concrete plinth. 2. Inside the casing showing cable still wrapped around the drum 3. Top of the mast showing the arm pivot and the Laterneblende (spectacle plate), with the foot of a second one beside it

There are lots of mechanical signalling installations still operating in Germany, if you can get there :-) Often the signals are now operated by motors rather than cables.

The MIBA guide by Stefan Carstens (German language) is very good: https://www.vgbahn.shop/mechanische-stellwerke-1 The pictures and diagrams tell you much of the story. I have a copy of the 'digital' edition in PDF but have not tried pasting the text into Google -- might work For information in English I'd like to plug the German Railway Society's series of signalling guides, but this aspect is not covered. The usage of signals and the terminology related to track layout and signals is very well covered though, so there's the plug. Anyone who is interested in a guide in English could leave a comment here... I cannot and will not make promises of any kind but the level of interest would be good to know. Disclosure: at time of writing I'm a member of the GRS. Ben

You can tweak any loco as long as you don't expect to get a refund from the manufacturer when something breaks ;-) I doubt it is a good idea to change the back to back on the loco's axles ( this is very likely to get you into trouble on pointwork). It might help with reliable power collection, I though doubt that. A cure is most likely to be a question of checking the pickups are clean and make contact with all wheels, whether the axle is slid to one side or the other. The ultimate option is to re-wheel, and for this your best bet with H0 is to send the loco to a specialist and reckon on spending comfortably over EUR 100 as the wheels cannot usually be bought separately (unlike for UK scales) and the work is far better done by someone who does it day in, day out and has the benefit of the experience and tools. I have used the only such person I know of, who is in Germany. It's a matter of how you want to spend your money -- more models or nicer running and better looking ones. Ben

Interesting to see that. Amusing that they choose to give dimensions in inches :-) Broadly speaking the UK appears to be the world centre of 'aftermarket' model steam loco driving wheels, across the scales from h0 up. I'd be very happy to be corrected on this though!

I've seen several layouts based on African and Asian 3'6" gauge prototypes in Continental Modeller over the last couple of years, so there is interest if not a vibrant community. Micro-layout suggests small locos to me -- southern Africa not so much :-) Look forward to seeing what you come up with. Ben

A pointless comparison with @Porkscratching's Kriegslok, but this is my progress on a Thunder G10 van kit (mentioned above) started on roughly the same date, as of now. Almost all the bits you see are nice and simple channel sections, and all fitted beautifully and were free of flash, so unsurprisingly it hasn't been the existential challenge the BR52 seems to be. I'm just moving a bit more slowly :-) Could anyone advise on the technique for filling in the mould release pin holes with liquid sprue?

I found this: https://www.stadtimmodell.de/shop/schienenfahrzeuge-h0-und-n/s-bahn-modelle-h0-und-n/br-490-s-bahn-hamburg.html It's the new BR 490 available in H0 in sets with various configurations and options. However, although it is a mass market model it is not yet available to buy :-) I hadn't heard of the producer before and they have at least one other item in the works, so I guess keep an eye out for progress.

AMF87 sell nice looking wheels in RP 25, but see comments elsewhere about current availability in the UK. As for diameter, you don't state this but I see information around the web suggestion Jouef's standard was 10.4 or 10.5mm (that changed At some point in time; I've measured some recent products and they're more like the expected c.11mm)

The SNCF K van now has shortened axles for its Gibson 12mm wheelsets, running in waisted bearings. The brake blocks look very tight but the faces have been very lightly filed back and everything runs smoothly. With that work done the buffers are at the right height. In view of the fact the factory fitted 11mm diameter wheels this is good news. Yes there is a roof. The wagon needs to weigh about twice as much as it currently does though, and the weight will go inside the body.