Waddlemarsh - somewhere southwest of London sometime before today

[St Enodoc]

7 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

A very important hole has just been bored. 

 

Why so important?  This marks the start of signalling the layout. With ballasting well in hand I need this signal fitted before completing the groundwork. 

 

It also marks another event. Tomorrow SWMBO goes into hospital and when she comes home I will not be allowed to make noises such as hammering or drilling while she rests. 

 

 

Rather than try to give you a "Like" for the signal and a "Friendly/supportive" for Sharon's travails, let me just wish you good luck on both counts.

[Gwiwer]

Thank you. 

 

We were all set yesterday. Consent signed and SWMBO gowned and ready.  At which point the anaesthetist wasn’t happy with something and spoke with the surgeon. 

 

Minutes later the procedure had been cancelled and will be re-scheduled at an unspecified future time. 

 

So we were home by 9.30am kicking our heels and with leave booked which could not be unbooked. 

 

Amid the frustration there are blessings. I can at least make some noise today on the layout and elsewhere.  I might have “accidentally” purchased a new music system to replace the tired and unreliable one which has served me well for over 30 years. And which both travelled out to and returned from Australia in our big moves. And which was one of only two items we had out there which always retained its British plug. 

[Gwiwer]

Today I looked at the layout.  I then looked at the weather which has continued to be very wet.  I looked at the wine rack and decided that as it was Friday a large glass of Red Laughing Water would be in order.  After which I wasn't in an ideal state to play with some very sharp-edged toys indeed and put them away for another day!

[Gwiwer]

With a little help from a couple of electrical jump-wires pending full fixing the first powered train ran end to end on Waddlemarsh today

 

A humble 08 shunter draws a rake of vans from the goods yard, around the dreaded right-angle and down into the fiddle yard. 

 

You are allowed to disregard the clutter. 

 

Finally a still view taken from my office seat giving an idea of how everything at the fiddle yard end fits into the space. 

 

[brushman47544]

Good to see you’re progressing, but what’s with the Warship suspended in mid air? 

Edited July 29, 2019 by brushman47544

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, brushman47544 said:

Good to see you’re progressing, but what’s with the Warship suspended in mid air? 

That blue one at the back?  Ah.  Yes. .........

 

That spot is interesting.  There is a board join where the point has to go.  The board was cut away to allow the point motor to fit.  It isn't the most level join in the world.  I tried relocating the point to numerous other spots or even eliminating it altogether.  The former gave issues with curve radii.  The latter would have meant sacrificing a two-road hidden storage and only having one which in turn would mean that a Down train would have to form the next Up train rather than having the option to swap them over.  

 

So the cunning plan which emerged almost by accident is to have the point "floating"and neither mounted on a board nor even pinned down.  The three tracks which feed it are securely pinned and those hold it in position.  The motor moves the blades freely and trains negotiate it perfectly with its floating situation allowing a little give to accommodate the uneven board join as well as the change of curvature.

 

Unconventional.  But it works.  And it will end up behind the backscene so out of sight once the layout progresses further.

[Gwiwer]

Life gets in the way of things at times.  Summer has meant I have been out and about more than at home and when I have been at home there have been other pressing matters or, as happened this weekend, an attack of some sort of arthritic embuggerance which has resulted in the fingers of my left hand refusing to obey commands.  

 

Despite the above some small progress continues to be made.  The point motor holes are steadily being covered with card and ballasted over.  The "electric" tracks through the station site have been fixed and ballasted though I am not yet ready to install the conductor rails.

 

The ten-track fiddle yard has had its rails trimmed to length and correctly joined.  These tracks rest upon a bookshelf separated only by the cork underlay.  As such they cannot be pinned and for the moment are not fixed at all.  The friction against the cork might be enough but if it isn't then some spots of PVA will be called for.  

 

A couple of views of the fiddle yard one more or less end-on taken from where the scenic break will be fitted and the other at a slight angle to show how compact the area is. The yard is above one of the library bookshelves which in turn is behind the computer.  All of this is in the low-height office area beneath the bed (which is just visible) with a clearance of just five feet and requiring a well-practised duck-or-grouse manoeuvre to get in and out.

 

 

Edited August 18, 2019 by Gwiwer

[St Enodoc]

3 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

The ten-track fiddle yard has had its rails trimmed to length and correctly joined.  These tracks rest upon a bookshelf separated only by the cork underlay.  As such they cannot be pinned and for the moment are not fixed at all.  The friction against the cork might be enough but if it isn't then some spots of PVA will be called for.

Try double-sided tape Rick...

 

Edit: ...or masking tape on the sleeper ends. I do that when I'm laying track in position temporarily (see some recent photos on the MCL pages). Not pretty but very effective.

Edited August 19, 2019 by St Enodoc

[Barry O]

If its to be permanent fix a drop of siuperglue also works.

Baz

[Gwiwer]

Another indecent interval has passed with nothing being done to the layout.  A few personal bits and pieces, a little voluntary work and the good weather have all meant there has been very little time to get muddling.

 

I returned to the layout yesterday to test operation of all points before final wiring and found a couple were gummed up after ballasting.  That is a minor problem sorted with a gentle bit of persuasion from suitable tools and some hot water on a cotton wool bud to release any stray glue holding the blades and stock-rails together.  One point however had gone several steps better and has failed terminally.  A bit of a nuisance after first-fit wiring, ballasting and weathering but it has to come out and be replaced.  It is one of those which was first laid on the board back in Australia around 12 years ago and has been outdoors for most of its time since.  While it has seen very little use it is therefore not a new piece and I have no real issue about having to replace it.  

 

Awaiting our weekend guest, who was running late, I painted some tarmac road to the goods shed and settled on a position for the gantry crane.  That will be fitted next to the shed and so the painted roadway extends to where the crane will go.  It won't go in just yet as I need to reach over its position to replace the point and for numerous other jobs so while its base runners can go in any time the uprights will be fitted much later.  

 

A slowly growing pile of bits and pieces means I really must get on with some work now that the evenings are dark, cool and often wet.  Point rodding is the latest to join the pile along with a three-aspect-plus-feather signal.  The layout is semaphore signalled but in the absence of a suitable working model for a main line plus divergence in SR style I have opted to go with a "traffic light" which the SR used from the 1930s and which therefore is not totally out of place.  The signal in its rear is not modelled which avoids the need to have a semaphore arm clearing to reveal a colour-light aspect behind as was found where semaphore areas gave way to more modern signalling.  

[Gwiwer]

The yard crane posed with an Oxford Warwell conveying a Kernow MRC compressor. The loco is a class 07 just because I like them.  

 

The base runners are now fixed. The crane itself lifts off so will only be in position while operating the layout to avoid accidents during the build. 

 

The missing point is obvious but if the mail from Cornwall is as good as usual that should be replaced tomorrow

 

[DougN]

Good to see your back at it Rick. I do like the back scenes from ID backscenes you have used. I ended up purchasing 3 of them for my layouts. They improve the look of every model photo such as above! It appears to be a part of something alot bigger!  They also have the "blue haze" of distance which I find most pleasing. 

 

No good about the old point above but as you say it is was in its teenager years and didn't want to co operate... sounds like my kids at times! 

[Gwiwer]

I made a small error ordering the replacement point. One character different in the product code resulted in a code 100 piece arriving rather than the code 75 required. 

 

A swift exchange of messages with a friend in Camborne and all can be resolved easily. I can swap the unopened item for the correct one over the counter at the Guildford shop which is only a (free, thanks to my staff pass) short train trip from work. 

 

That will now be tomorrow’s task. Today I finished weathering the goods shed, added some Peco “Ash” from their new track weathering kits to resemble well-begrimed concrete inside and punched a couple of holes in the glazing with a 0.7mm bit and the pin vice. 

 

 

[Gwiwer]

One step forward - six steps back.

 

This project continues to go from short to short and I'm at the end of my knowledge and skills when it comes to sorting it out.  I fixed one more today only to discover I had introduced two more.  In fixing the one I also managed to damage some track.  

 

That damage means trains will no longer run without derailing so a bigger repair is now required.  I also found that what should be a fixed rail on the double-slip is unfixed and standing up about 1mm proud of where it should be so is also causing dramas with trains negotiating the crossing.

 

At what point does one simply say "Enough" and move on to another hobby?  I thin I'm close to it.  Two years and all I have achieved is repeatedly relocate the short circuits, damage existing work and spent more money to get nowhere.  

[mullie]

What you have done so far looks great stick with it. This is the best hobby after all.

 

Martyn

[Gwiwer]

Martyn - thank you.  There seems not much point sticking with something that causes so much frustration and gets no further forward.  If I knew of someone locally who was a wiring wizard and had half a day to spare then a deal might be struck involving tea and cake.  

[mullie]

8 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

Martyn - thank you.  There seems not much point sticking with something that causes so much frustration and gets no further forward.  If I knew of someone locally who was a wiring wizard and had half a day to spare then a deal might be struck involving tea and cake.  

If you look at my Pott Row thread you will see I ripped up all my track over the summer and have relaid it, whilst that was a big set back the layout, which is tiny, now works well and whilst away over the weekend I have been planning the extension. you will get through this and sometimes what seems drastic measures save time in the long run.

 

Unfortunately I live in deepest Dorset and still work full time so can't offer to help . There will be people following this thread who can give you helpful advice and know far more than I do, but then again you already know that.

 

Martyn

Edited November 17, 2019 by mullie

[ian]

4 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

Martyn - thank you.  There seems not much point sticking with something that causes so much frustration and gets no further forward.  If I knew of someone locally who was a wiring wizard and had half a day to spare then a deal might be struck involving tea and cake.  

 

There must be someone who fits that description within the Greater London area Rick.

 

Perhaps a new topic calling for such a person in the Electrics (non DCC) and/or Modelling Questions, Help and Tips might bear fruit?

 

Sadly Shropshire is a bit far from you for an afternoon outing.

 

Ian

[DougN]

Rick, 

 

You'll get the wiring right eventually. Stick at it. Which part are you having the most trouble with? I am positive that you will either find it is a missing isolation point or a lose wire. I know a few people who over the years have just gone through and cut all the wires off and started again. (Ok i have done that!)

 

The idea could be to do a drawing of the layout and using coloured pencils (for the wires) to locate the problem. I know that Double slips almost need a total supply of their own (IE they are a single peice of track) to work out the wiring! The same goes for 3 ways... 

 

good luck, you'll beat it into submission! 

[Barry O]

Stand back, take a deep breath, do what Manna says then..havapint before fixing it all!

 

Not due in London for a while so difficult to help but a drawing could be perused and help offered.

 

Baz

[St Enodoc]

6 hours ago, DougN said:

I am positive

That might be the problem...

 

G. Ohm

[SRman]

Well, there goes the negativity!

I'm inclined to agree with Doug: if all else fails, start again with the wiring, double-checking the insulating joiner locations. If there is a double slip, have insulated fishplates at every joint, and give it its own power feeds.

Have you re-used older points? If so, check the little tags under the switch rails to make sure none have come adrift and causing both sides to touch the stock rails.

It may turn out to be something simple, and with Murphy's Laws, something obvious but you are too close to the problem to see it. Just don't give up, Rick.

[burgundy]

I am well qualified at inventing new ways to create a short in the wiring (see both Vintners Yard and Roswell Mill). I suggest you forget about wiring for a while and start something different. When it has all slipped to the back of your mind, come back and start the fault finding again with a clean sheet. 

Best wishes 

Eric 

[Gwiwer]

3 hours ago, burgundy said:

I am well qualified at inventing new ways to create a short in the wiring (see both Vintners Yard and Roswell Mill). I suggest you forget about wiring for a while and start something different. When it has all slipped to the back of your mind, come back and start the fault finding again with a clean sheet. 

Best wishes 

Eric 

The problem is that "Something different" now requires the tack to be permanently fixed where it isn't already in order to move on.

 

Yes there are double slips involved and there seem to be different designs of point despite they carry the same Peco product code.  I tried insulating one double slip at all rails and feeding power to it separately but what ever I did the result was dead rails somewhere.  

 

Puzzled.  No - more like totally and utterly befuzzled.  

 

I'll try to organise a diagram of sorts.

[burgundy]

3 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

The problem is that "Something different" now requires the track to be permanently fixed where it isn't already in order to move on. 

Puzzled.  No - more like totally and utterly befuzzled.  

Dump the trackwork and wiring for a bit and build some rolling stock or buildings?

Let the layout and baseboards collect dust for a while!

Best wishes 

Eric