Signaller69

Slow progress due to prognosticating, but things are going the right way. More track in the goods yard has been removed in order for realignment and relaying is now underway, which means some alteration of features around the Quay area. Will post some photos up soon which will hopefully give a better idea.

They do stick quite well on glossy surfaces yes, but need to dry completely prior to painting/varnishing; longer strips have a tendency to bunch so very careful positioning with a small wet brush or point of a knife blade is needed; if they bunch into the bristles of a brush they will never be seen again!😵 I learned from small experiments early on that they need to be applied on a glossy light coloured background, they are impossible to see on black backgrounds for instance. From online videos and photos, most Modellers seem to apply them before painting eg directly onto unpainted US brass locos, aircraft kits etc. Another point is that I used HO scale rivets which are, I think, slightly undersized for what I am representing (certainly compared to the very nicely moulded Triang rivet work on the wagon sides). I suspect O scale rivets might be worth a look for representing the more substantial wagon chassis rivets in 4mm scale. One final point is test your varnish on a test piece before treating the whole wagon. As mentioned I brush acrylic varnish over treated areas, allow to dry for another 48hrs and then spray over with acrylic car sprays which has not caused any issues.

The sheet of rivet decals I was using has 4 columns of different styles, each of 2 different spacings, each of those variants having 4 rows. Having used four rows to do the Flatrol end platforms, I realised I could use the closer spaced rows by cutting across the 4 rows to give 4 better spaced rivets, so dozens of such cuts later I managed to do the bed of the wagon too; In some ways this made application much easier than trying to position long straight lines from 1 transfer without it breaking up, and the process was much quicker than might be imagined. The whole was carefully brush varnished with acrylic satin and left to dry for 48 hours and has just had a light dusting of grey undercoat without any issues. A coat of black will follow, followed by lettering.

Current plan is a Portacabin type structure, but subject to change!

Thanks all for the supportive comments.🤩 Now I'm having a riveting time going dotty! I only have enough strips of rivets to do the end platforms (with anything approaching the correct spacing) and at £14 - £17 per small sheet - if you can get the right ones in the UK - the well will have to do without, short of cutting out individual rivets, which I don't think my eyes or mind can cope with! That said, those seem to be more flush with the deck so I may look at alternative methods. Covering much of it with a load won't harm either! I am not a rivet counter, despite the foregoing, and am pretty confident there are not the correct amount, should anyone wish to count them!🙃 Martyn.

The "Frankentrol" has had the 51L wheels and shackles added - the latter were more straightforward than I had thought - I bent the support through 90° as per the photo below, which gave a much greater area to super glue along the top edge of the solebar channel where it can't be seen. After which the shackles were also superglued into place. And the wagon could then have undercoat applied. A gloss coat will follow to give the rivet transfers a good surface to adhere to. Martyn.

Thanks John, I'm in Wemouth for a week in July so will try to call in for a gander! Martyn.

Hi Mike, Thanks for the link, I was previously aware of this useful device but had completely forgotten in the meantime! Hey ho, as you say it's a bit late now so I will go with the transfers, which are probably still more subtle than I would manage with any dedicated tool. Cheers, Martyn.

As another break from 24/25 projects I decided to have a go at producing a BR Flatrol MHH from a couple of old Triang Weltrol wagons, based on drawing 511 in the BR "Diagrams of Specially Contructed Vehicles" book on the Barrowmore site. As with many of my projects this is more about making my best of a rather dated model, than producing something to satisfy the most ardent of rivet counters..... At 58' over headstocks this was a fairly long variant and 2 Triang bodies were cut, lowered and shut to give the overall length required, with weight added inside the well and plasticard overlays added to match various photos. Talking of rivets, I decided early on not to even try embossing hundreds of the things in plasticard in neat, perfectly spaced straight lines, largely as I have a sheet of Archer resin rivet transfers which I hope will do the trick. I did decide to open out the platform end framework and fit Plastruct 'C' section girders where they can be seen, as well as extra plasticard plating where required. The inner ends of the platforms are plated as that is what seems to be on the BR versions, and as I'm probably going with a photo of a black Departmental version, this has a locker at one end in any case. I retained the original plastic bogies. The complicated single sided Bogie ratchet brake handles were bent up from some ancient castings and plastic bits, along with axlebox covers etc, a little crude perhaps but does the trick. The coarse Trix wheelsets are a temporary stop gap. Photos of the real set up; I believe this may be an MHH, or possibly its LMS forerunner (at Bristol Harbour Railway. My Photos): I found the LMS oval wagon buffers in my stash and fitted those too, cosmetic coupling hooks to go on next and I have some etched shackles to go along the sides and 10.5mm wheels in the post from Wizard Models. But otherwise it is getting close to the undercoat stage (at which point the rivets can be added, oh joy!). Martyn.

I've not had any problems with Crinan, where less water was added to the PVA near board joints, and very liberally applied. But I also try to take care to ensure nothing rubs against the rail ends, ballast etc when stacking boards for transit or during setting up. Many years ago I had issues with a loft layout where insufficient dilute PVA was added to ballast on a hot day, resulting in a "crust" of ballast peeling off the boards when dry!

Ian, In all my years of ballasting, I'd never considered trying that. Thanks for the tip. My usual method of dealing with board joints is much the same as yours, to slacken the baseboard joint bolts, slide in a length of clear plasticard or plastic bag, tighten up the bolts and apply dilute PVA over the ballast in the "normal manner" either side of the joint. A small amount of adhesive usually seeps between the board end and the plastic but it frees up easily enough when dry. Martyn.

Hi Jim, They were from Ebay a couple of years back, "JST micro connectors" various way combinations are available with or without leads, but these appear to be the same as the ones I used (not sure if it was the same seller though): https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284364643755?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=710-134428-41853-0&mkcid=2&itemid=284364643755&targetid=&device=m&mktype=pla&googleloc=1006524&poi=&campaignid=16789158644&mkgroupid=&rlsatarget=&abcId=9300845&merchantid=6995734&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpcOTBhCZARIsAEAYLuXkWSu8XQ2aXoPmIa3DpxHSBDtg4nwAzd0NN-2Hzt1Ivw87TQg9mPQaAkIJEALw_wcB Martyn.

Finally I am making a little more progress. Having been stored in the loft for many months (and thankfully none the worse for wear), the layout is now set up again - though still without a name as yet. My main aim currently is to get the fiddle yard completed; so far the missing bits to complete the trackwork have been added and today I soldered the last of the fiddle wiring, which now needs a DIN connector plug to connect into the main baseboard (when I can dig one out). Then it is just a matter of making a facia around the front and end. After that I plan to test extensively, to see how it "feels" in operation, before hopefully moving forward with the scenic work. Part of the desire to set the layout up is also to fully test the various Hornby class 24 & 25 conversions I have been beavering away at over the past few months, and the multiple working wiring (for the - hopefully - better running via shared pickups) and also wheel back-to-back adjustments to suit the code 75 track. In the case above, the female plug is fixed to the bogie of 5147, whilst the male connecting lead on 5098 runs via a slot cut into the motor bogie, which keeps it in position but allows it to be withdrawn into the loco body if the loco is to be used singly. Up to 6 such locos will be fitted with either male or female connectors eventually, to allow variations of pairings. Martyn.

Edit - Duplicate post

That's the thinking yes, whilst retaining the option of using singly if desired - I should have said the loco with the male connector can have the lead withdrawn and tucked away inside the loco body.

I have modified the first pair of 24s with the Multiple Working micro connectors of the type pictured here:The larger female end has the socket glued to the bogie frame, with the 2 wires threaded through a hole drilled through the bogie frame behind it, and soldered to appropriate connections on the motor bogie. The male connection is loosely threaded through the gap between the second loco's motor bogie and chassis cutout via a small notch in the bogie frame behind the coupling support so that it emerges on the same side as the female socket and clear of the couplings, but is other wise free floating. The red and black connections are reversed on the female loco (compared to the male shown above) as the motor bogie is the opposite orientation when so connected but I now need to test them as a pair to be certain I got it right! Care had to be taken to ensure the various wires are well clear of gears and wheels, and they have been tidied a little further since the photos were taken. Once tested, the visible parts will be painted to disguise the appearance hopefully. The female connector might be compatible with the Hornby Ruston 48ds pick up wagon connector, which might permit a different combination of extra pickups, but I need to dig it out to see if this is the case.

When I started out with the various 24 & 25 conversions I mentioned the idea of making some of them capable of multiple working via micro plugs and sockets, which should provide mutually improved running qualities. Before I can do this I needed to sort the couplings as I use Kadees; the simplest solution was to adapt No.20 NEM couplers with a hole drilled through the shank and screwed to the part of the bogie moulding left after cutting off the tension lock loops and trimming excess plastic away to leave a flat mounting surface. The result may not be as aesthetically pleasing as a No.5 screwed to the rear of the bufferbeam but it does allow for sharper curves. The screws used are of possibly Triang or Hornby Dublo origin, being very small but with a large head which helps keep the coupler level. From normal angles the result isn't too obtrusive. Now I need to figure out the placement of the plugs and sockets... Martyn.

Interested to see you are doing 37112. Here are a couple of rather poor photos I took c.1983 at Mallaig on my first trip on the line (photo of photos sorry). Martyn.

Things are going the right way, tonight the old NCL depot track and point were salvaged after soaking the area with water to loosen the PVA and ballast. The 2 "new" lengths of siding have had their respective power feeds attached and the further (carriage siding) has been pinned into place. The NCL depot and MacBraynes depot are plonked roughly where I anticipate them going. The roadway / footpath along the dock edge will need removing and the new ends of the sidings (where the point was removed) need attention, before building a new road surface, and figuring how this will interact with the yard trackage in places. As some may have seen elsewhere, various Hornby class 25 conversions are nearing completion too (some to 24s), and these will all be suitably local prototypes for use on Crinan. Martyn.

I'm in much the same boat regarding the loss of images and not bothering to go through several threads to replace them, unless someone asks about something. I have decided to carry on and post new photos of what I'm doing going forward though, and hope you will feel able to keep us up to date with Banff as it is such an interesting project. All the best, Martyn.

Latest rat 5147 has had a coat of varnish, along with 5176 and a touch up on 5098. As I wanted to get on and get the various bodywork and paint done on these, the downside is that now all 3 need glazing and various handrails, lamp irons, headcodes etc adding, a tedious job at best. I also got round to adding an identity to my SLW 24......which also now needs masking for some matt varnish on the cabsides. I've decided not to reload all the photos lost in the RMweb ether, life is too short! But will do if anyone wants particular info. Martyn.

Very useful info thankyou Clive, which will come in handy, as I'm no good at cutting out plasticard windscreens I'd better get an etched one, thankfully 264 didn't seem to carry frost screens for my period so will save a bit there...... Hope the coach roof grafting is going well! Cheers, Martyn.

I quite agree regarding the roof fan/grille James, as with any solid moulded grille it makes a massive difference; thanks for the reminder regarding frost grilles, must check my photos! I did the Shawplan windscreens on a previous Lima 40 about 15 years ago and they do make another visual improvement, but I really struggled with fitting glazing at the time. I managed to get the transfers applied on 5147 so hopefully that will get a coat of matt varnish later. Martyn

Ah, the 40, yes it's getting nearer the top of the to do list! I have a roof fan and grille to pay for from Shawplan, once I decide if I want to order and fit their cab windscreen overlays too, or just fettle the existing ones - maybe. I can't quite decide! Other than that the nose profile may receive some attention if I can see a way to reduce the apparent depth slightly, but it really is a right load of maybe's at the moment! Martyn.

Hi James, We're back in the RMweb room! Yes thanks, all good here, modelling time seems limited to snatched opportunities currently even though I've been on my 4-weekly "long weekend" from work. Hopefully have rat 5147 fully liveried up in the next day or 2 so will post up some photos in due course. Cheers, Martyn.