Porth Eithin

[tender]

Hi Jamie, missed you last night, must have been a good curry.

I think Peter must be getting fed up with me playing with his layout as I keep finding the odd gremlin. Still it looks pretty sorted now, just a point motor at the end of the quay to sort out and get an operating schedule together. Be up again at the weekend if your around.

[colin penfold]

I'm no expert on these things but I don't think class 20s were used. In John Vaughan's 'Illustrated history of west country china clay trains' he states that the first time class20s were seen in Cornwall was an enthusiasts special in 1986. Apparantly there were rumours in the early 80s that pairs of 20s would be used to reduce track wear from the 37s. Shame really as I think they'd look good!

 

HTH

 

Do you mean this???

 

 

 

Devonshire Dart railtour 8th July 1984. Totnes on the way west, Hemerdon on the way home 20184 and 169

[trains12]

Hi all

A number of mods have been completed to the layout which we hope will give some better operation. A new 4 road selector plate has replaced the old cassettes which should have been done years ago. Many new permanent magnets have been installed for uncoupling the B&B's as the electromagnets are still not working satisfactorily (we have had another 2 of the Gaugemasters burn out even with ample protection fitted). If this is successful Glen Gillie will also be retro-fitted with them. Have also fitted larger micro-switches to the seep point motors to stop the problem of electrical continuity to the frogs.

The layouts is now ready for loading into the trailer tomorrow morning for its journey to Hartlepool show. If you are attending please introduce yourselves we are always on the lookout for additional operators.

Cheers

Peter

[7APT7]

Hi Peter

 

Do you have any photos of the last show to upload of this layout...

 

Jamie

[trains12]

Hi all

To answer your query Jamie No! You took the photos I didn't take a single one.

The layout at the show on the Saturday had a short on the electrics which prevented proper operation, eventually we found that a micro-switch had gone down and on the Sunday a wire had come out of one of the connecting blocks, but otherwise it ran well.

The most important thing that was pointed out was that the scuba divers are incorrect for the era modelled! They have yellow tanks and apparently they should have black tanks with a black and white top!

Anyone out there who can confirm this, wouldn't like to upset any other modellers or divers.

When did yellow tanks come in? Do I need a repaint job on them?

Cheers

Peter

[7APT7]

Hi All

 

Well in that case if am the Only one with Photo's...

 

I'm still away visiting my dad in Hospital in Wolves, and will not be back till about Wednesday or Thursday...

 

I do however... have had my PC fixed with Paintshop Pro, for when I return home so will be able to start uploading.... i have been waiting for more Memory to be delivered to expand my PC 4GB to 12GB of Memory and must say running like hellfire now, hoiw ever fast hellfire is...lol

 

Speak to you on friday or saturday Peter down the unit if all goes to plan with my Dad, as he as an infection from the 2nd Operation he as just had....

 

Speak agin soon

 

Jamie

[islandbridgejct]

Hi Peter,

 

I've just been browsing this thread and was struck by your plea for comments. Overall, this is a very impressive model, and I particularly like the flowing trackwork and the operational potential, but I've a few queries of comments.

 

First, I think you need to lose the lighthouse. Lighthouses are located on headlands and at the mouth of harbours. Your quay is presumably located in a bay or estuary, with shelter provided by the surrounding land, so the lighthouse would be on the headland, possibly several kilometres away. The mouth of a navigable river would be marked with buoys, red to port and green to starboard, but your river is not navigable because of the non-opening railway and road bridges across it. You might have some kind of marker light on the small headland between the quay and the river to assist shipping heading for the quay, but I think that is as much as might be there. (Trust me on this, I'm a sea kayaker. )

 

Second, the road bridge should end behind the warehouse building, not in front of it, because the road has to continue on in front of the building. Indeed, with the bridge and warehouse so close, I'm wondering how you get off the road and into the warehouse. Could you build a warehouse so close to a road on an embankment? Could you build a road right there if the warehouse was built first? (Don't necessarily trust me on this, I'm not an engineer.)

 

Third, I'm a bit surprised at seeing a cattle dock at the end of the main line into the branch platform. Wouldn't the presence of wagons in the dock block the entire road and prevent any train arriving? Surely the home signal could not be 'off' while there are wagons in the dock? I know Leighton Buzzard has something similar, but it's effectively a siding off the release line, and all movements are signalled into the platform road. (Don't trust me at all on this: you may have some prototype in mind where this happened, and anyway, I'm neither a beast nor a stationmaster.)

 

Quibbles aside, it's a lovely layout and I hope some day I can manage something half as good.

 

Best wishes.

 

 

Alan

 

PS - I meant to add: post bigger pictures so that we can really admire the quality of your modelling. (Please.)

Edited August 29, 2012 by islandbridgejct

[7APT7]

Hi Peter

 

It must be pretty hard to do a layout to the exact scale and size, and to keep within room size or to make it as an exhibition layout, i would imagine you would have to take transportation of the layout into consideration, sometime we have to choose what to keep in or on a layout and what is too big or too far away from the place we try to make a layout of. To make the buildings we choose to have on a layout fit, we make them smaller in size or only part of or to have it as part of a back scene... if you were to actually make it to scale length when based on a physical location, it would probably be huge to huge it will never be exhibited or never seen by the public at shows... on top of that no one will want it at a show because of the 300ft layout (ha-ha) it would have to be. For that reason I take it some part of a layout have to be images we dream up or make it to fit, so all the building so to speak are all based locally but just haven’t been put where they should because of having to squeeze everything into our 16' layout.

 

All the Photos are great and the layout look great, even if it not to true scale, it’s still a layout to run what we like to see running even if it’s never run there, although expected I suppose for a show to only run what used to run... More Photos... the Layout is great mate...

 

Jamie

[trains12]

Hi All

In case anyone is interested the Jan issue of Hornby mag, out now, has a great article on the layout with lots of photos taken by Mike Wilde

Peter

[Danemouth]

Hi All

In case anyone is interested the Jan issue of Hornby mag, out now, has a great article on the layout with lots of photos taken by Mike Wilde

Peter

Bought it today Peter!

 

How are you keeping?

 

Warmest Regards,

 

Dave

[Andrew P]

Hi All

In case anyone is interested the Jan issue of Hornby mag, out now, has a great article on the layout with lots of photos taken by Mike Wilde

Peter

Hi Peter, Well done, I'll have to pick up a copy soon.

 

Hope you and Wendy are keeping well and the New Barn / Shed will be up soon.

[D.Platt]

Hi Peter , I have just been reading your article in the January Hornby magazine and I would like to say what a brilliant layout you have created and I've had a good read catching up on this blog ,what I would like to ask you,as someone who is rebuilding a layout and for the first time I want to make my own points I notice you use Seep PM4 point motors I have always used Seep motors but reading all the track builders in the track building section everyone say a no no to solenoid point motors so as you have used them on your handmade points how have found them on an exhibition layout ? Yours Dennis

[trains12]

Hi Peter , I have just been reading your article in the January Hornby magazine and I would like to say what a brilliant layout you have created and I've had a good read catching up on this blog ,what I would like to ask you,as someone who is rebuilding a layout and for the first time I want to make my own points I notice you use Seep PM4 point motors I have always used Seep motors but reading all the track builders in the track building section everyone say a no no to solenoid point motors so as you have used them on your handmade points how have found them on an exhibition layout ? Yours Dennis

Apologies Dennis for not replying sooner but had some major health issues.

 

PM4 motors I've been using since the middle 80's on exhibition layouts built for both myself and for other people, and have had no problems at all with these. Yes, we have had the occassional one stick or a burnt out solenoid and this is nothing when you think that GTD had 50+,  Kinmundy had about 15,  Glen Gillie has about 30, Porth Eithin has about 20. The only exception was Watermill Halt which was my first DCC layout and we used digital controlled points and had and still are causing problems.

Bridge of Muir, we did use the Cobalt motors but purely as a motor not connected with the DCC operational side.

We are in the process of building a new shed (See Glen Gillie thread) and 2 of the layouts that will go in the shed have been in store for 17 years and a quick test the other day showed that the PM4's are all working fine.

The only criticism I have with them is that the electrical polarity switching on some of them can be a little bit iffy but what I have done to get around this is place a small 1" block 5mm thick at the side of the motor and onto this I have screwed a limit switch with an extended lever, cost about 35p (I bulk buy), and use this for changing the frog polarity.

I have also used them on other layouts that I have manufactured for switching the signals and they have worked well with this.

Hope this has answered any queries and again apologise for not coming back sooner.

Yours Peter

 

ps if you are ever in the area and you want to come and see the layouts you are most welcome. Just drop mw a pm and will send you details.

[trains12]

If there is anybody out there that would be interested in buying this layout I would love to hear from you. It would be such a pity if I had to destroy it after all the work that Peter  put into the building of it.

Any reasonable offer would be considered as would rather it goes to a good home where it can be appeciated.

Please pm me if you are interested

Wendy

[trains12]

Unfortunately space is now becoming an issue with repair work being required to my barn where the layouts are stored. With this in mind I am now going to have to consider scrapping this (and other) layout unless there is anyone/club/society that would be interested in it I will leave it for one month and then unfortunately it will be big bonfire time. If anybody knows of any interested parties please do let me know as it goes against the grain having to destroy Peters work but needs must.

Continue to keep safe all

Wendy