mitziblue Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Spotty dog 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted January 31, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 31, 2011 It might have been the wrong era, region and fuel source but it was almost the right colour. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold bcnPete Posted January 31, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 31, 2011 OK so it is the wrong era, wrong region, and a diesel to boot... oohh I dunno...smokey bacon with diesels sounds rather appealing to me Nice work Steve - It runs through your turnouts very smoothly. Keep up the hijacking of the dining room table 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted January 31, 2011 Author Share Posted January 31, 2011 Congratulations Steve! Its comming together REALLY well. I better get a move on with Highclere as you are catching me up! M. I think I've a way to go yet... ...and I can't catch up too quickly as Highclere was the inspiration several years ago to get back into railway modelling Spotty dog ? Too much Hobgoblin I suspect... It might have been the wrong era, region and fuel source but it was almost the right colour. I don't know why, but I've always been rather fond of this 24 - perhaps because it is the first (converted) 2mm loco I got running? I got 'his' and 'hers' Class 24's for our 1st wedding anniversary a year or so ago (SWMBO's is blue) and they both work extremely well with the drop-in wheel-sets. I think that this should give me the clue that my modelling seems to work best and easiest when someone else has done it! oohh I dunno...smokey bacon with diesels sounds rather appealing to me Nice work Steve - It runs through your turnouts very smoothly. Keep up the hijacking of the dining room table Thanks Pete - I'm surprised myself how well everything seems to work first time; with my attempting to do 2FS work with LGB/Playmobil scale fingers and thumbs, I'm beginning to suspect that the pixies or railway faeries are working in the wee hours to correct my bodging. You aren't missing any from Coombe Junction are you? As for diesels on Calne, I always had another cunning plan that would see the potential for running 3 sets of rolling stock on the layout; 1) 1930s/40s GWR steam, 2) 1950s BR Steam (Ivatt Class 2 & 3MT), and 3) 1960s BR Diesels (Class 03 & Derby DMUs). The working title of Smokey Bacon would cover the first 2 quite happily, but the last would have to be Stinky Bacon. However, with some of the cussin' over the past two days, when I spotted the broken chairs (and now a loose check rail), it nearly became Pork Scratching !!!! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinahand Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Thanks for the credit Trevor - but it was actually Kris who responded - Oops. Sorry about that Kris but a belated thank you for the info. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold bcnPete Posted February 1, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 1, 2011 (SWMBO's is blue) A blue diesel on the layout...this is even better 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted February 1, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 1, 2011 The Idea of running multiple time periods is a good one Steve. Would require lots more stock though. Trevor, no problems. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrimsjulie Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Well it certainly is worth having the dining room table hijacked when I see progress like this!!!. It is so exciting to see. Mind you I would like to see my diesel working on the little bit of track too!!. Lets hope there is more progress done today as well..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted February 1, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 1, 2011 Great stuff Steve. Remember the moto 'I model therefore it moves' once something runs it all comes to life. Regarding the robustness of points. I have not built any in easitrac yet. I made some using coppperclad years ago. Soldered construction like that has the great advantage that you can tweak it if its not right and the rail is held more rigidly. When I first started using C+L in 0 gauge I found that pressing gauges against the rail while the glue set I could inadvertantly distort the plastic chairs slightly. I found that soldering the frog down onto a brass screw helped and was easily hidden in the ballast. So a couple of PCB sleepers could help or a tinned brass pin through a wood or card sleeper to which you can solder then cut the sides off a chair and glue on for effect. This could make a much stronger point. It may also help to pre-bend the rails before sliding the chairs on so they are not taking any strain. Personally I suggest making your first point in copperclad makes sense then go on to easitrac. Mind you your first efforts look good to me. My first ones in EM gave me a lot of trouble and didn't look too good. However when Ian Futers told me he built five before he made one that he was happy with I didn't feel so bad. Can't wait to see how this turns out. Regards Don 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted February 1, 2011 Author Share Posted February 1, 2011 Great stuff Steve. Remember the moto 'I model therefore it moves' once something runs it all comes to life. Regarding the robustness of points. I have not built any in easitrac yet. I made some using coppperclad years ago. Soldered construction like that has the great advantage that you can tweak it if its not right and the rail is held more rigidly. When I first started using C+L in 0 gauge I found that pressing gauges against the rail while the glue set I could inadvertently distort the plastic chairs slightly. I found that soldering the frog down onto a brass screw helped and was easily hidden in the ballast. So a couple of PCB sleepers could help or a tinned brass pin through a wood or card sleeper to which you can solder then cut the sides off a chair and glue on for effect. This could make a much stronger point. It may also help to pre-bend the rails before sliding the chairs on so they are not taking any strain. Personally I suggest making your first point in copperclad makes sense then go on to Easitrac. Mind you your first efforts look good to me. My first ones in EM gave me a lot of trouble and didn't look too good. However when Ian Futers told me he built five before he made one that he was happy with I didn't feel so bad. Can't wait to see how this turns out. Regards Don Thanks Don, I'd decided right from the start I was going to go down the Easitrac route, and skip the PCB versions... ...actually, although it has had its moments of frustration, having built the points VERY slowly (more from anxiety than conscientious method) and using every jig and gauge I have at all times, I found that the actual flow and movement trough the points went well on the first attempt. What I have found though, is that the chairs are inherently weak (even when carefully glued down and the rails pre-bent before fitting) and the slightest 'snag' will cause them to fail. For the next batch, I'm going to re-think the positioning of the PCB sleepers I used for power feeds and place them more towards the vulnerable positions. For instance, the curved B7 point uses approximately 28-30 sleepers of which 3 are currently PCB (ie about 10%); the revised lay-down will probably use about 5 which will lock down the ends of the crossing rails, blades, and check rails. My perception is that this will retain the 'look' of the chairs that Easitrac gives but will make the track-work a little more 'Steve-proof' . I'll get down to work it out exactly some time soon as I also want to revisit the method of using a moving sleeper as a tie-bar - too much time spent studying Highbury Colliery last weekend has made look very critically at what I've done so far. But this was always going to be the 'learning' board... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
scanman Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 ? Too much Hobgoblin I suspect... 'Ahh a name to conjure with...' I don't know why, but I've always been rather fond of this 24 - perhaps because it is the first (converted) 2mm loco I got running? I got 'his' and 'hers' Class 24's for our 1st wedding anniversary a year or so ago (SWMBO's is blue) and they both work extremely well with the drop-in wheel-sets. I think that this should give me the clue that my modelling seems to work best and easiest when someone else has done it! LOVEIT! My wife is/was completely model railway negative ' Middleaged anoraks' and all that. Then I bought her the Hornby 'Harry Potter' set for our second Xmas... That was six years ago - 'Hogwarts Castle' itself is still incomplete in the workshop! Keep going Steve - it's looking good (but keep the blue deisels where they belong - in the future!). Regs Ian 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold bcnPete Posted February 4, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 4, 2011 Mind you I would like to see my diesel working on the little bit of track too!! Am not so sure about blue diesels for the future Ian...even the other 50% stake shareholder in Smokey Bacon would like to see it in action 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 "Peace in our time..." seems an appropriate headline for the next instalment Despite the controversy that it may cause ,... ...Keep going Steve - it's looking good (but keep the blue deisels where they belong - in the future!). Am not so sure about blue diesels for the future Ian...even the other 50% stake shareholder in Smokey Bacon would like to see it in action ...I felt it a wise investment (in future peace, harmony, and the overlooking of certain as-yet unspecified and undeclared acquisitions...) to allow SWMBO's blue Class 24 to be the first to run on the fully working section of track http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZXMsur6xLg Several things are immediately apparent from this clip 1), there still needs to be a fair bit more cleaning of the track, 2), likewise the wheels, 3), I'm no photographer!, and 4), the tortoise motors are surprisingly noisy - though I hope that this will reduce when the landscaping fills in the edges of the 'sound-box'! It has taken a little longer this week than I had anticipated to get to this stage; I had (stupidly?) expected that the wiring of the micro-switches in the motors to be fairly straightforward - and in reality it was, but my utter failure to 'RTFM' meant that I kept swapping over every bit of wire except for the one that was wrong!!!! Very embarrassing, but more on that later I have also been instructed to introduce 'Captain Ted' who will be acting as SWMBOs representative and supervisor when she's not around to ensure that a modicum of propriety is maintained! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold bcnPete Posted February 4, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 4, 2011 aargh...that's more like it at one point I thought the 24 was going over the edge...but I guess you thought better of it with the Captain ready to grass you up 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 aargh...that's more like it at one point I thought the 24 was going over the edge...but I guess you thought better of it with the Captain ready to grass you up 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrimsjulie Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Well that is really great to see at long last my little diesel running and having Captain Ted to keep an eye on it too No doubt it will change to green again soon but I don't really mind though do think that the blue looks good......Keep up the good work and thanks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 A quick peek at its bottom... There's not much here that can go wrong is there? As I had previously indicated, what should have been a simple task with the wiring for board 3 became more than a little frustrating! It's only 2 tracks and 2 points, so should have been fairly straightforward - and the Heath Robinson test rig went together without a hitch! However, when tidying it all up, one of the crossings kept on coming back with the polarity reversed! Two days of proding & probing, and swapping out almost every wire, what appeared to be a short-circuit actually transpired to be an intermittent open-circuit with the multi-strand cable in one of the ribbons having completely broken! The two pairs of cables (top - red/black and bottom - red/green) are just temporary links to power the board for testing and initial playing; when I work out how to connect the boards these will be tidied-up. I've left a bit of slack on each of the droppers - for that moment when it all goes wrong and needs a re-work, and used really neat 'blobs' from a craft hot glue gun to stick the wires down so that they don't float about everywhere. I've used cable ties and sticky pads before on previous layouts, but I found that very quickly these lost their adhesion and became worse than not being stuck at all. Normally, I would plan everything before I got stuck in, but I'm supposedly an electronic engineer so I thought I could do this with my eyes closed! Now I've applied hindsight and done the planning (albeit after the event) but it will act as a reminder when I come to do the crossover at the other end of the platform... Now to move on to board 2 (the complicated one)... 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold bcnPete Posted February 4, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 4, 2011 No doubt it will change to green again soon but I don't really mind though do think that the blue looks good...... Well...I am saying nothing more on the subject Great update - Very neat wiring Steve - the use of the mirrored track plan beneath is a stroke of genius - must make fault finding easier to get the head around. You can be sure I ain't never gonna flip my boards and reveal the disasters occurring 6ft under the 6ft way... Look forward to see the next one. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted February 4, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 4, 2011 That wiring is far too neat and tidy Steve. I feel that you need to do some work at convincing someone that green and copper is the way forward. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrimsjulie Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Well I am not sure that I agree about the green being better But then again as long as it is running on the track I don't suppose I really mind. I must admit I not think that he will run the trains that I used to work on will run on it at all!! (They are just far to modern!!) Captain Ted will be keeping an eye on it for me!!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 I feel that you need to do some work at convincing someone that green and copper is the way forward. I presume that you're referring to the loco livery rather than the colour of tortoise motors and dolls house tape wiring? Actually, the era I'm focusing was primarily unlined green or austerity black, and very unlikely that they would have polished the chimneys... EDIT: Something like this... ...but I think this one is still too clean! I just happen to have a 28xx body, but I can't yet think of a justification for running it into Calne (ignoring the fact it probably could even get along the line). Oh well, I'll just have to use the 'its my train set' excuse 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted February 4, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 4, 2011 A 28xx would be great Steve. I cant remember the route availability of Calne through. Yes the Tortoise are a bit noisy on a home layout. You don't notice it at an exhibition though. I saw a bit by a US modeller who fixed them in place with velcro - don't know if it was any quieter. All very neat underneath. Great stuff. Don 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
-missy- Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 I can see an engine timeshare scheme being created at some point (did Calne ever have a flying banana visit?).... M. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted February 5, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 5, 2011 I can see an engine timeshare scheme being created at some point (did Calne ever have a flying banana visit?).... M. I think it will do now! Don 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveBedding Posted February 5, 2011 Author Share Posted February 5, 2011 I can see an engine timeshare scheme being created at some point (did Calne ever have a flying banana visit?).... M. There's several chip shops in Calne that 'Elvis' would probably like to visit... ...Yes the Tortoise are a bit noisy on a home layout. You don't notice it at an exhibition though. I saw a bit by a US modeller who fixed them in place with velcro - don't know if it was any quieter... Thanks for this Don, I wasn't sure if there was something wrong (or I'd done something daft...) with the motors - I'd tested all of the batch of 8 that I have 'in stock' and they all made a similar noise. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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