corax67

I use Carr's liquid fluxes for all of my soldering work and can thoroughly recommend them - red, black and yellow are staples of my workshop supply cupboard. Still available through mail order from Chronos http://www.chronos.ltd.uk/acatalog/Engineering_Menu_Carrs_Solders___Fluxes___etc_346.html#aTL1 Yellow for white metal/low temp melt

Drat - I was hoping to get mine before Christmas as we have a show in early January and I was hoping to get to play with it beforehand to set up the decoder or hard wire in a different one if no 'tweak ability' is built in

Hi - depends on the yard and who is running it but there is info regarding some BR special scrap wagon conversions here http://www.igg.org.uk/gansg/12-linind/scrap.htm Plus there is the option of using POA scrap wagons - for further info see LTSV wagons website http://www.ltsv.com/w_profile_008.php Hope this helps

I can't go back that far but I regret the demise of MRM - Modern Railway Modelling - mine are all safely stored on my bookcase

WHAT !!!!!!! At a tenner each for the wagons with cases thrown in it's less than a grands worth - not easily shocked but that one is a blinder

Thanks Jens I haven't had opportunity to go through your own forum. One for the wish list, maybe Santa will be extra kind this year.

Maybe it's time to adopt a system similar to the European modellers Epoch classification - this will then give scope for further Epochs to be added as the railway develops with time.

Thanks Bob I will do that tomorrow

Does the interface have to be the 23151 ? I have an LI-USB (23150) and wondered if I connect that to a basic laptop connected to a router would that allow me to run Touchcab? I would love to operate this system but funds preclude acquiring a 23151.

I wouldn't be without my Dremel tools - have the rechargeable and the Digital (series 4000?) mains unit plus the aforementioned drill stand, router attachment and a host of other bits. They replaced my minicraft units as they wore out and give sterling service. Tried a couple of cheap copies but they gave up the ghost fairly rapidly unfortunately. As well as railway modelling I have used them for cars, household jobs, making theatre props and a host of other tasks - the lithium cordless unit has seen a lot of service at shows for on-site layout repairs. Can't honestly see why you wouldn't want one.

There are much smaller available - Layouts4u do these which I use regularly http://www.layouts4u.net/bulbs.html Look at the last item on the page. And DCC Supplies also do micro pin connectors

Top man Ray - looking forward to this thread developing.

I have enjoyed the pics of your layout immensely and this morning I found myself looking at the OLE on the high speed line alongside the M20, silhouetted against the dawn sky. Never really noticed them until you began posting this thread but there is a strange beauty and delicacy in the design.

I love images like this - if you ran a configuration like this on a show layout you would be lambasted by the "expert" railway aficionados but if you can provide proof like this it is a guaranteed promotion to smugville.

Really nice work, thanks for the advice and pics. Still think I will leave mine to my brother-in-law, a freelance artist, as I have no skill whatsoever in this field

No problem running point motors off a combi in conjunction with a CDU - I have one as a backup for my shunting puzzle if the DCC were to die at a show. It's a really solid little controller and very reliable.

That's a good looking layout - the OHLE is definitely worth the effort you must have put in.

I would pay that if I could afford it - there's a lot of train in that package.

Bloody hell - that's hideous

I've been running tortoise motors for years from Lenz LS100 & LS110's without a hint of a problem. The motors are so well built I think they are tolerant of pretty much any setup.

If the decoder is mounted atop the chassis then I would imagine the field effect would be insufficient to cause any issues, however - if you have any sound fitted loco's with speakers located low in the model (fuel tanks, etc) then high power magnetic fields will not do the speakers any good at all and may cause distortion rather than running issues.

This link has a review of the Western and about half way down there are a couple of pics of the body off to show just how much room is available https://www.model-railways-live.co.uk/Reviews/186-28/Dapol/Dapols_new_OO_gauge_Western_Class_52_is_exclusively_reviewed_by_Andy_York/ I fitted a LokSound V4 and large rectangular speaker on top of the chassis in the designed space for a friend a couple of months ago and it sounds really good - if you can afford it & want sound then I would recommend it.

As there is a ton of space inside the bodyshell you can fit any 21 pin decoder (or 8pin with adapter) you like in there depending on how much you want to spend or what you have available. As for sound fitting you could just utilise the space on top of the chassis designed for a speaker rather than pepper pot drilling the fuel tank to begin with and do the full mod if you ever feel the need at a later date. I run pretty much all of my loco's on Lenz Gold variants simply because I am used to them and have never been let down by one but there are so many options out there now it is personal preference and budget that tend to be the determining factor.

If the LEDs are inside a structure then you could use bits of cellophane off Quality Street sweets over the top.

Tamiya produce a number of translucent colours amongst their acrylic range http://www.tamiya.com/english/products/list/acrylic_1.htm There is a yellow and an orange available which you may use to 'warm' your LEDs and they are fairly easy to get hold of too. Humbrol used to do some too but I cannot find mention of them in their current colour list on their website.