RMweb Premium avrojetmark Posted August 12, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted August 12, 2020 (edited) Post removed Edited August 12, 2020 by avrojetmark Decided to withdraw post 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caley Jim Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 It would help if you could be more precise as to what you mean by 'transition period'. Jim (for whom anything post-1914 is 'modern image') 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium avrojetmark Posted August 12, 2020 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted August 12, 2020 Change over from steam to diesel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caley Jim Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 3 hours ago, avrojetmark said: Change over from steam to diesel Ah! In that case, sorry, can't help you there! Jim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
justin1985 Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 16 hours ago, avrojetmark said: Change over from steam to diesel Hi Mark - that is certainly the most popular era - probably amongst 2mm Association members too, so there is no shortage of kits etc to work with. In terms of track, you'd want the 8'6" length sleepers - which were standard from the grouping era onwards. There is currently a choice of 8'6" and 9' (for the pre-grouping era) length in PCB sleepers, and the plastic Easitrac bases come in 8'6" and now also 9", as well as 8'6" concrete types etc. The complete turnout kits (1-403 onward) use plastic sleepers with holes to locate pegged chairs and solid milled crossings (noses and knuckles), which definitely makes them the easiest option, so I'd start there. The jigs for making crossings from normal rail are really helpful, but not foolproof - which is why, personally, for custom track work that doesn't suit an off the shelf kit, I prefer to use PCB soldered construction, because there is much more scope to nudge, adjust, and bodge before you break anything, if you don't get it 100% right. There is no reason not to mix and match PCB soldered track and plastic Easitrac - in fact I think virtually everyone uses the Easitrac for any significant length of plain track these days. The issue that this might create though is that the PCB on its own + rail is not quite as high as the plastic bases + rail. This is where the etched chainplates come in - the thickness of a single etched plate makes up the difference, and they make soldered track look virtually indistinguishable from plastic - but they are fiddly. The easier solution is just to put some thin card underneath the PCB sleepers (like leaving a template printed on card in place). Most importantly I'd suggest buying the TRACK book - it has loads of worked through examples of building track using the different systems, but also loads of more general tips and explanations that are helpful for anyone building their own track in ANY scale. I've been a member for something like 10 or 12 years now (I guess?) and there are still things I'm less confident about - like building steam locomotive chassis - but overall I'm sure I've made loads of progress. The most important thing is to embrace the fact that everything is a learning process, and things might not work first time - but if they don't, you'll probably have learned enough to do a lot better next time Talking of steam locos, a Jinty conversion is definitely one of the easier options, as 2mm steam locos go, but I'd suggest getting the quartering right is still a bit tricky (especially if you don't have access to the rather expensive quartering jig) and the etched coupling rods supplied with the conversion kit are very flimsy so easy to distort or break. If you're interested in the transition era, I'd definitely recommend buying a Farish (not Dapol) Bo-Bo diesel loco, like the cl.20, 24, or 25, and convert that first of all using the "drop -in" conversion wheels - that is much easier, and it will give you a more or less instant way of getting something running, and checking your track etc. Good luck! Justin 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Colin_McLeod Posted August 13, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted August 13, 2020 The topic title "Post Removed" is silly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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