RMweb Gold PaulRhB Posted November 6, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted November 6, 2018 (edited) Yep you’ve got a sound basis they just need a few tweaks. When you fit the dowels I mark the ends of the male dowels with felt tip pen then gently offer up the end plate so it marks the centre of the dowel. The mark can then be used to drill a 20mm, or similar, hole with a spade bit so the end plates don’t squash the dowels in or bash them sideways. Spreading the load is the key to reliability at the joints. On the copperclad sleepers have you thought about grinding away the extra top surface about a mm then gluing ballast in so you only see a scale sleeper but have a nice chunky joint protecting the track? Hide the majority of it but not reduce the strength much. Edited November 6, 2018 by PaulRhB Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted November 6, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted November 6, 2018 Yep you’ve got a sound basis they just need a few tweaks. When you fit the dowels I mark the ends of the male dowels with felt tip pen then gently offer up the end plate so it marks the centre of the dowel. The mark can then be used to drill a 20mm, or similar, hole with a spade bit so the end plates don’t squash the dowels in or bash them sideways. Spreading the load is the key to reliability at the joints. On the copperclad sleepers have you thought about grinding away the extra top surface about a mm then gluing ballast in so you only see a scale sleeper but have a nice chunky joint protecting the track? Hide the majority of it but not reduce the strength much. I have cake............. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold PaulRhB Posted November 6, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted November 6, 2018 You’ll need it Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stock_2007 Posted November 6, 2018 Share Posted November 6, 2018 I have cake............. As a great man once said "if you have cake nothing is impossible" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted November 13, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted November 13, 2018 I now have some nice DCC Concepts baseboard alignment dowels courtesy of Kevin at Coastal DCC, so now I can crack on with upgrading the board joints. I also managed to pick up some pre-cut copper clad strips from Tolworth at the weekend so I'm going to completely redo the track joints on the scenic to fiddle yard boards as these seem to cause the most issues! Photo updates to follow later on this week once I've finished off the BIG MK3 for Warley 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted November 18, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted November 18, 2018 As with everything I do, I always manage to make a meal out of it, and working on the baseboards is no exception! After adding an additional 9mm plate to the baseboard ends, they still seemed to flex way to much, so I opted for a simple fillet instead... The fillets are straight and parallel, despite my iPhone doing a great job of making them look wonkier that a donkey's hind legs! This arrangement seems to give a lot more rigidity so I'll see how it goes. I've also started fitting the dowels... They're not quite as straight forward to fit as I originally thought because they really need a decent thickness of wood to sit in - the 9mm I'm using doesn't give the best fit and they can wriggle around a bit. To over come this, I'll add a small square of 9mm ply to support each dowel. Yesterday, I had a nice surprise......there's a chap I know called Jonathan who owns a cracking P4 layout called Pwllheli and his dad Ian made up a replica of the buffer stop light at Swindon for me.... It's pretty much to scale and once I've cut the top down and sunk it in to the board, it'll look perfect. To say I'm pleased with it is an understatement The next thing is to get a decent buffer stop for it so I'll grab one from Warley next weekend. Talking of Warley, Ian's Tidworth is there along with Paul's Lulworth Cove so if you're around, please come and say hello - you'll find us next door to Mick Bryan's Newbryford 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackB95 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Really been enjoying this thread. Especially liking the platforms. A true inspiration. Keep it up! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iron Horse Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Talking of Warley, Ian's Tidworth is there along with Paul's Lulworth Cove so if you're around, please come and say hello - you'll find us next door to Mick Bryan's Newbryford Not going to have to do much walking on Saturday then......lol!!!!!!! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted November 22, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted November 22, 2018 Not going to have to do much walking on Saturday then......lol!!!!!!! Nope! And I've just found out that Greg's next to us with Ebsworth Street too! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeithHC Posted November 22, 2018 Share Posted November 22, 2018 Nope! And I've just found out that Greg's next to us with Ebsworth Street too! Surely that should be Ebsworth next to us with Greggs. Mines a sausage roll........... Getting my hat and coat......... Keith Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted November 29, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted November 29, 2018 Oak Road will now be known as the Meningitis Now layout! Having contracted meningococcal meningitis 32 years ago aged 20, and survived, this subject is very close to home, and seeing as 43041 is named Meningitis Trust, I sent the charity an email asking if I could use the layout to raise money....to be honest I wasn't expecting them to say yes! They're sending down some fundraising material and will be featuring Oak Road on their website, so every show that I attend from now on will raise money to help meningitis research. Tim Horn has kindly offered to make a full size replica Meningitis Trust - Support for Life nameplate which will accompany the layout on its travels, and you'll find us wearing some nice bright orange T Shirts to get us more attention. I also saw Steve Flint at Warley last weekend and he's coming to take some pictures of Oak Road in March so that it can be featured in Railway Modeller before the Swansea show - my royalty fee will be donated to the charity. If you see us out on the road, we'll be collecting money so please donate, even if you can only afford 10 pence, it'll be gratefully received. 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby (John) Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 Oak Road will now be known as the Meningitis Now layout! Having contracted meningococcal meningitis 32 years ago aged 20, and survived, this subject is very close to home, and seeing as 43041 is named Meningitis Trust, I sent the charity an email asking if I could use the layout to raise money....to be honest I wasn't expecting them to say yes! They're sending down some fundraising material and will be featuring Oak Road on their website, so every show that I attend from now on will raise money to help meningitis research. Tim Horn has kindly offered to make a full size replica Meningitis Trust - Support for Life nameplate which will accompany the layout on its travels, and you'll find us wearing some nice bright orange T Shirts to get us more attention. I also saw Steve Flint at Warley last weekend and he's coming to take some pictures of Oak Road in March so that it can be featured in Railway Modeller before the Swansea show - my royalty fee will be donated to the charity. If you see us out on the road, we'll be collecting money so please donate, even if you can only afford 10 pence, it'll be gratefully received. We will now have a subject to talk about next year at Showcase, as like you i contracted meningococcal meningitis in 1985 and survived, was not a pleasant 2 weeks i spent in isolation in hospital. A room by myself with a large red diagonal cross on the door as everyone without exception had to mask up to visit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted November 29, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted November 29, 2018 (edited) My story, as copied from the Oak Road website and Facebook page..... As some of you already know, 32 years ago aged 20, I contracted Meningococcal Meningits and by all rights, should not be here to tell the story, let alone build a model railway. As dramatic as it sounds, I was rushed to St Marys hospital in Portsmouth with probably an hour to live, where I lost consciousness and had a large needle inserted in to the base of my spine (called a Lumbar Puncture) to drain the infected fluid from my brain. A week later, I regained consciousness and found that the entire right hand side of my body was paralysed and I could only say three words - Yes, No and F!ck. Whilst this seems funny now, at the time, it was extremely frustrating as my thought process seemed perfectly normal, but trying to communicate with just those three words was a challenge in itself, let alone being bed ridden. The nurses were wonderful, and they probably lost count of the number of times I ripped the drip out of my left arm (maybe they should have put it in the right one??)! After three weeks, I was told there was a good chance of having serious brain damage, and that I would almost certainly never regain the full use of my right arm and leg - quite devastating news! Something wasn't quite making sense though, as I could think perfectly.....and so my determination not to be beaten started. At the turn of the forth week I began to add some more words to my speech, such as hello, Mum, please and thank you, and I became a little more boisterous - my friends came to visit and took great delight in raising and lowering the bed, which at one point crashed to the floor! We found it hilarious, the nurses not so...but they never complained, they just rolled their eyes and carried on doing their fantastic work. Week five saw me regain movement in my right arm, followed by my right leg and my speech was improving rapidly and after just six weeks, I could stand up....not the best idea as I tried to walk to the toilet and fell over halfway down the corridor! 8 months on and I was about as normal as could be....ok, those of you that know me may beg to differ, but if you met me today, you'd never realise I'd ever had Meningitis. I'd stuck two fingers up at the doctors (in a nice way) that said I'd never lead a normal life again. I still have side effects, such as my ability to do basic maths, and I've acquired OCD. My mental age fluctuates between 16 and 70....that's no joke either, even though some women think that's normal behaviour for a man, but I've learned to cope with it. They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger - I was lucky to survive, and it's certainly made me realise that no matter how bad, or difficult things can be....never give up. So there you have it, my story, in my words. If you see the layout out and about, please donate some money to this wonderful cause, even if you can only afford 10 pence....it's not just children that can get meningitis, it's adults too. Edited November 29, 2018 by scoobyra 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanks522 Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 A great charity Mike! and a great idea! i'll gladly donate to it. well done for highlighting it! Graham. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
definate maybe Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 this is a thread I always look forward to an update on and one I hope to see live in the future and as someone who lost his 9 month old nephew to Meningitis there is now another fantastic reason to follow and support this layout. Good luck with raising money and wishing you all the best. Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig1989 Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 I’ve always followed this thread with interest and when I see it I will definitely donate as it to a good cause Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted December 3, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 3, 2018 (edited) Thanks for the kind words folks, very appreciated! Right, back to the modelling......... I've now added dowels to all of the main board joints and I've just got the three fiddle yard joints to finish off. Some of the track wasn't laid particularly well, so I've realigned it and apart from one section, it seems to be behaving itself, however there's a curved point that leads to roads 8 and 9 that needs taking out and changing for something that's got a shallower radius. I'm also looking at trying to make the Conrad motors more reliable as they seemed to jam up - if this fails, I'll be changing them for some Seeps! I was supposed to be building up my O Gauge JNA over the weekend but after deciding it wasn't going to be straightforward job, I got the airbrush out and started attacking the 4mm JNAs.......... I've done 4 so far with another 7 left to do......and another 9 left to acquire! After the JNAs I tackled the Sheds, and managed to tidy up the roofs that I'd previously hand painted, along with the under frames and fuel tanks. ....although the 70 didn't go quite so well - it was better before, so I'll have another go at it tonight when I get home... It's odd that I can paint buildings, roads and ballast, yet I find weathering stock so difficult! Luckily, I've got Roger Manton (Dodgy's Weathering) to ask for advice if I get stuck, and Ian seems to have the knack for making things look used too. I guess I need to keep persevering. Edited December 3, 2018 by scoobyra 15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparxD428 Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Underframes look pretty good on the 66's Mike, particularly in the pic of 66068. Weathering is a strange state of affairs from personal experience. Sometimes you can step back and say that looks good. Then you apply the same technique to the next item and it doesn't look quite so good so you're not the only one with this conundrum ! Cheers Stu Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted December 5, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 5, 2018 (edited) After doing the JNAs, I thought I'd have a go at tackling the IOAs too.... I can really see why some guys charge a fair price for weathering stock......these took ages and they're still not finished! I still need to paint the axle boxes yellow and then mess up the insides........and then do the other 16! Luckily, I've got a few spare cardboard boxes kicking around to make up a new booth when this one's completely obliterated with paint! Edited December 5, 2018 by scoobyra 9 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iron Horse Posted December 5, 2018 Share Posted December 5, 2018 What sort of methodology are you following Mike? Look good Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted December 5, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 5, 2018 (edited) What sort of methodology are you following Mike? Look good The 'Roger Manton' one....find him on Facebook - Dodgy's Weathering This has been scored with a screwdriver to make the bucket scrapes and then painted with a brush, cleaned back with thinners and then airbrushed. As with most things i do, it's completely random. Edited December 5, 2018 by scoobyra 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnight-Freight Posted December 5, 2018 Share Posted December 5, 2018 Loco's and IOA's look really good. Once you've perfected your technique on the IOA's and you have the urge to do some more I will hopefully have some I could send your way! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Revolution Mike B Posted December 5, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 5, 2018 (edited) Loco's and IOA's look really good. Once you've perfected your technique on the IOA's and you have the urge to do some more I will hopefully have some I could send your way! No chance! Edited December 5, 2018 by scoobyra Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel Do Nicely Posted December 6, 2018 Share Posted December 6, 2018 Looks good Mike Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJTrains Posted December 17, 2018 Share Posted December 17, 2018 FYI - To all the Followers on Oak Road - There's a new banner at the Top of the RM Web homepage with the following link, asking for nominations for the shortlist for the British Model Railways awards 2018. I've nominated Mike in the category RMWeb Modeller of the year. I know that there are a LOT of very suitable candidates, (and maybe some more worthy of the praise) but if you are impressed by Mike Buicks work, or have learnt any new skills from following this thread, then I'm sure he would be humbled if you were to nominate him too; http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/140100-british-model-railway-awards-2018-nominations/ 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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