Indomitable026

Installation starts from the bottom upwards.

Now I’ve got all components threaded on the right hand stock rail including (from the bottom up) ; standard chairs, check rail chairs with check rail, standard chairs, a gap for later insertion of slide chairs, two more standard chairs and finally two and half panels of ‘fast track’.

I’m making good progress today - I’ve soldered up the two remaining crossings. One has been installed at the top of the picture below and I’m just looking to start installing the second one at the bottom.

Happy New Year! Thank you for the support, encouragement and just the general interest in my “It’s only a bit of a shed” project. Cheers.

Happy New Year to you all. Here’s a couple of pictures from “back in the day”... DitD will be back...

Such an interesting time for variations of locos and liveries. Happy New Year and I’ll come to your ballasting party...

This is the view the other way in to the fiddle-yard. I’ve just started laying out the sleepers for the centre road. Nice and sunny today..

Interesting, although I’m going to need something pretty snappy in an exhibition situation. I mean - I’m not sure how tolerant the public will be with nothing moving while I have a quick game of Ludo down the way?

Just a steady number to finish the day today. I’ve just prepped some sleepers for the two tracks crossing the board joint. They’re not stuck down yet - I will thread rail through one side to get the correct curve before sticking down. I’ve got metal (brass?) chairs to go on the copper clad - this gives extra strength at the board joint.

Having pretty much run out of track jobs on the main board I’ve put the fiddle-yard up as well. I’ve made up the last to 1 in 6 crossings, so they’re ready to fit. So really the next job is make a start on the remaining track in the fiddle-yard and across the board joint - which requires a bit of special treatment. From this view is apparent what an interesting layout this will be to operate. I envisage using a card system effectively setting up puzzles to shuffle everything around. If anyone has any suggestions on card systems I’d be interested to hear. I think also there may be the possibility of a further point from the left hand track in the fiddle-yard in to the left hand bay of the shed. Something for the future perhaps? Originally I was just going to put a dumb track there that was connected to nothing and stand some stock on as a sort of mini backscene. We’ll see...

I hope you don’t mind me mentioning but you’re missing a fishplate... touché.. (from the Internet Quality Assurance Dept)

You can get either plastic or brass, so yes if you need the rail break you need the plastic.

Ah - fast track - that’s it!. Yes cut off where I put the check rail in for the tight curve into the wash road shed. There’s also one or two odd ones where I’ve had to replace damaged ones - don’t ask...

Yes the Jig for the ‘V’s is from the Scalefour Society stores, there’s also one for filing the switch blades. As you say you can use the the jig to both file the ‘V’s and also then to hold them while soldering as shown below. The ‘ready to lay’ sleepers for plain line have grey chairs already moulded on - the brown ones are the separate component ones used for the Switch and crossings (points). I’m unsure of the origins of the plain line sleepers - all the other components are Exactoscale. I’ve just ordered new sleepers and by chance they’ve just dropped through the letterbox. Below is a photo of the Exactoscale sleepers on the left and the others on the right. In terms of rail bends - yes it’s from what ever plan you are using. Mark Forrest very kingly drew this up for me in Templot to get all the nice curves. Other plans are available such as from Exactoscale - they also show you what chairs you should be using in what position... Fishplates - yes. I keep getting chased up to fit these - one of the benefits of ‘on line quality assurance’... I’ll be fitting cosmetic ones when I find them. Most of the rail joints are already where I need them but I can cut more if required. I’m really pleased you’ve found this useful. There are two reasons I post; 1) hopefully to pass something on and 2) it motivates me to get on with stuff!

Its not tedious at all - good to see the progress and how it’s done! Good effort - keep going...

I’ve just spent a highly civilised couple of hours on a Zoom call with my good friends; Andy Banks (Wagon Basher), Nigel Brazier, Chris Tooth (2manyspams), Andy York, John Wardle (Old Gringo), Geoff Cook and Mark Forrest. During this time, amazingly I’ve fashioned up 2 sets of 1:6 common crossings and 4 check rails... So an excellent evening all round...

A general bits and pieces day today; a good tidy up, the removal of the remaining sleeper webs, second rail on the Rose Street curve, second rail on the wash road and a coat of primer on the shed floor.

Here’s a nice shot off Flickr, showing what will be the backdrop for most of the length of the layout - the side of the wash bay and associated buildings. Note also how nice the large logo livery looks without the orange warning stripes on the cant rail - something that gets lost sometimes with all these modern 37s carrying retro liveries and the models that follow... https://www.flickr.com/photos/isispics/6783671832/in/photolist-bks6ib-REuguw-2j4PQdX-2iyq7U8-PyrZLq-Z5j8db-2irULcK-2jxDX69-T9qv4k-eHHjup-NxNN8Z-F7CeCc-2k9HLQr-23m7h1k-2hZknEU-2hxeCRz-TQTLmv-tqZGBq-26sre6F-2j4SuDJ-pNDX2K-RDy15x-HAi46n-cfACJf-KLCWzD-DbFQ92-S2q5Ar-a3Fe4J-2hyWrZu-2kftx7d-DwJqBF-2iEvxpp-2bgpuLn-pmi88-2k5LbSp-2gPgake-fWdzme-7HaTnF-2eoEwVq-RrYbWD-2kiRy7q-MkzVcS-2kiSbuw-2iLBsL3-oTADQD-2hNRCvN-2jyhgDr-y67T3r-PCsknK-T7rEd3

Only a little progress today, I dug out the airbrush and gave the ‘ground’ a first coat of cack... It’s actually browner than that to the eye...

I’ll just leave this here, by way of a reminder on what we’re meant to be building... https://www.flickr.com/photos/andy_hoare/7287130904/in/photolist-c6Ws91-KLCYan-2ieTuA8-HsU1B6-UbssZp-2azDPH9-E7KYjH-28cxeKE-NEFNt5-C1Dfu8-9o9cR4-2drhYKU-22z9uMW-2h4j2ea-2hZgLqH-NYrwj1-2hDX8Pm-BT7R4X-2jgbNao-PNtw6F-T7VuY1-J96qeB-9vcckJ-s5WUth-2joPs65-Byxq7B-2hJUCSC-2hZjdJi-2jUTgAV-2jrPNFw-2hPhFQi-2jx37NE-2jbg3ik-26u53Qu-T9quCF-dHRyMe-22z9uTC-2iJYSG3-2ieR6Lg-2iJYPyz-2i6Xy61-2aHWFCD-2k3XjJg-2htyFRs-2iK1yQt-2k7CWZ2-a2Nyzy-M3cA1i-k7sWJ4-pRMMpA

I’m not sure planting trees on layouts counts towards climate change targets...

I’ve got the Rose Street curve in now.

I remove them because I can see them - i like the look of low ballast and seeing it right under the rail. Just personal preference.

arrrggghhhh. I’m so scruffy - I mean - how many people have to go along the top of the board with a chisel first to take off spilt glue/ paint or whatever, before laying track! It’s because I’ve been using the front of the board to work on. Well now it’s time to lay the front Rose Street curve so I need to clear this area. First job is removing the webs from the sleepers, I do one side only first. Thread rail and then stick down. The second rail is then added and finally removing the remaining webs. It’s a balance - you obviously need the web to space the sleepers - but they are harder to cut out when the rails in place.

Final update of the day. I’ve got the rest of the left hand rail on the pit road installed plus some sleepers off the end. I’ve also finished the chairs around the two crossings. Slightly annoying, I’ve just realised I’ve got not slide chairs, but no great issue as I have to wait for the dropper wire now anyway. So we’re about as far as we can go on these two for now.