SparxD428 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Love this layout and those factory units. Will be taking tips on how to make my one look as good, and then apply retro 80's look to it. Keep the pics coming , great layout. B) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 Love this layout and those factory units. Will be taking tips on how to make my one look as good, and then apply retro 80's look to it. Keep the pics coming , great layout. B) The low relief factories, which I have still yet to paint are from Ten Commandments http://www.cast-in-stone.co.uk/ They come un-painted and are made from cast plaster. At the moment they're just laid against the backdrop wall. Cheers Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard60098 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Hi Phil, Great looking layout an its coming on a treat now i see you like your grids then fela same here thou i spotted a couple of 37's in the background in 1 of your shots also liking the vids to keep both pics an vids coming & keep up the good work Cheers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 Hi Phil, Great looking layout an its coming on a treat now i see you like your grids then fela same here thou i spotted a couple of 37's in the background in 1 of your shots also liking the vids to keep both pics an vids coming & keep up the good work Cheers. Thanks for the comment - Variety is the spice of life, but also you can't get too much of a good thing. I've probably got the same number of 37's as 56's. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 Tonight, I've been experimenting with some LED's as lighting in the station building. Sorry for the grainy pictures, but it was quite dark in there! All quite easy really, although a little tip - check what's underneath the board before you drill through it - luckily it was just a cardboard box this time. I had thought that I would also put some platform lights on, however as it is at the edge, I think I would be forever knocking them over, so will have to think of something else - any ideas gratefully received. Cheers Phil 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 21, 2011 Author Share Posted March 21, 2011 More platform building tonight and a wall at the end of the siding bottom right in the first photo (made from the usual cat food box). Another couple of evenings then I hope to be able to fit it all together and fix in place. Here is what the station will look like fully loaded: Also had a belated birthday present - some EWS 100 ton hoppers, which are fitted with Kadee couplings - my first ones, so need to have a play with them. Cheers Phil 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rammy Posted March 21, 2011 Share Posted March 21, 2011 Looking great! I think those LEDs are spot on for the station lighting. Dave Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 Looking great! I think those LEDs are spot on for the station lighting. 'Spot on' - like it. I was thinking overnight that I might add a bulb or two inside the building so light shines out through the window, although this might just show up the plain cardboard interior, and I've got better things to do at the moment than starting to build an interior for that, just in case someone looks through the window - I'll do some experimentation. Cheers Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rammy Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 I see you are going down the Kadee route too. I got my first Kadee's at the weekend. I bought a pack of #18 and #19 from the Nottingham show and have fitted the #19 to one of my 66's. They look so much better than standard couplings don't they. Dave Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I see you are going down the Kadee route too. I got my first Kadee's at the weekend. I bought a pack of #18 and #19 from the Nottingham show and have fitted the #19 to one of my 66's. They look so much better than standard couplings don't they. Dave Yes they look fantastic, and I look forward to seeing some pics of yours installed. From what I have read you can get auto un-couplers to fit into the track. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrighty Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Yes they look fantastic, and I look forward to seeing some pics of yours installed. From what I have read you can get auto un-couplers to fit into the track. Hi Phil, Layout is really coming along well, loving the station lights and the new EWS hoppers. I have kadee's, mainly fitted to my container wagons. When I bought them, I also puchased one of the un-couplers which I have never fitted! They only cost around £4 which is pretty reasonable I think. Cheers Chris 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 Oh no - a whole new world I now need to learn about #18 or #19, magnetic un-couplers, magnet directions..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rammy Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 I got a pack of #321 uncouplers to practice with asthey fit on top of the track. Once I am happy, I will change to the magnets that go beneath the track so that they can be hidden. Have a look here to get an idea of the various couplers available. Dave 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I got a pack of #321 uncouplers to practice with asthey fit on top of the track. Once I am happy, I will change to the magnets that go beneath the track so that they can be hidden. Have a look here to get an idea of the various couplers available. Dave Thanks Dave, I'll probably do like you and try some of the surface mounted ones then progress to hidden ones once I get the hang of it, mind you all this distraction is keeping me from actually completing the trackwork and ballasting, which I know will make a huge difference to the look of the part I'm currently working on. I made a concious decision not to install point motors on this part as a) it's just next to where I stand/sit B) I've got a lot of points in that area (probably too many) so it would cost quite a lot to do c) I wanted to get a bit under my belt that I'm sure will be re-engineered sooner or later. however I'm now having second thoughts. Perhaps I could drill the holes in the board ready, but not fit the motors for now, hmmmm Hopefully I'll do a bit tonight and post some more updates. Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 The good news is that I've finished building the last bit of platform. I also tried out the light inside the station building and think it's a good idea. I'm going to put a wall inside it so turn it into two rooms, so it will look better if you peep inside - more work. You can just see the light in the rear window in this picture. The bad news is that when the platform was installed, and I tried running various loco's in and out, they were fouling on the edge, so..... I've had a bit of a re-think on the track work and removed one set of points. I am also thinking of changing what was going to be a refueling point / engine yard and just make it sidings for carriages. I'll mull it over but looking at the pics before uploading it seems very busy (I purposely filled all the track up to see it at it's worst). Perhaps I'll go down from three roads to just two. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRDBLUE17 Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Its really coming together well now. It doesn't matter how well you measure your platforms even with the longest vehicles you have something will still catch you out - I can only run Hornby Class 60's in one direction as the buffer will foul my platform and I only discovered this well after it was all built and tested - everyone just says thats prototypical though and a real 60 would probably do the same on the real line! One thing that might work is just carve a little of the platform edge away just next to the point to allow for the overhang of longer locos running round. Keep up the good work, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 23, 2011 Author Share Posted March 23, 2011 Thanks for the advice on shaving a bit off the platform - and glad to hear it's not just me having problems - I'll give it a go. Not much to announce tonight, apart from the arrival of a new bus to sit outside the station - unfortunately not with working lights (or DCC sound). I did try to take some video of the newly lit station with some locos coming in/out, however it just ended up as black with the odd dot moving - not that good. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpleymodeller Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Nice to see the layout developing, keep the updates coming! B) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poindexter Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 Good to see your cracking on. I would really consider wiring some points up to a panel (even the ones close at hand), its great fun and really adds to the play factor err I mean operating potential of the layout. Nice work on the LEDS and the station area. Guy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 25, 2011 Author Share Posted March 25, 2011 Thanks Guy, and I was coming round to that idea myself tonight strangely enough. After much messing about I was actually 'playing', with the trains - isn't that what I was doing it for in the first place? Anyway it got a bit silly me constantly having to go and flick the points so that's it I'm going to put point motors on and I suppose some kind of control panel, then automate it etc. etc. However I'll start off by buying some point motors, installing them then worry about the rest later. Other stuff from today - I installed some decent spotlights £10 each from Homebase and a great improvement - I can properly see what I'm doing down there - yes I know it looks like a window, but as it's in the basement with just a grille in the pavement it's never really got daylight in there. I like this cropped one as it's a full shot of what I'm trying to do as a small area and get completed before starting on the rest of it. And this is the rest of it. Yes, and I know I was saying less is more, well it's now become more is more again: I've got high hopes for getting through a few jobs this weekend, and will keep you posted - thanks for looking and all the comments. Cheers Phil 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
class"66" Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Your layout is realy coming on well buddy......... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave ottney Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 Great looking layout. I have an operational question on UK layouts. It seems to me that many of the stations on these layouts are stub ended. Are the trains backed in to the stations? If the loco is pulled in first then I'm assuming that the train then backs out of the station and is turned somehow if its on a point to point layout. As you see I'm a bit confused. Many of the layouts here in the states have stations that are on double ended sidings so the train can just pull in and then continue on forward as it leaves. Oh yea I'm pretty sure you will enjoy operating with KD's, though they don't look much like the couplers that are on the trains over your way do they? Besides using the magnetic uncoupler ramps they uncouple well using a pic made from a simple sharpened skewer or dowel. I do this on HO, N and On30 couplers. On large scale (KD #1 scale) I use a flat head screw driver to uncouple. I've found that while the uncoupler ramps are cool and provide neat hands off operation, they never seem to be in quite the right place . Looking forward to seeing more about this layout. Dave Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 26, 2011 Author Share Posted March 26, 2011 Great looking layout. I have an operational question on UK layouts. It seems to me that many of the stations on these layouts are stub ended. Are the trains backed in to the stations? If the loco is pulled in first then I'm assuming that the train then backs out of the station and is turned somehow if its on a point to point layout. As you see I'm a bit confused. Many of the layouts here in the states have stations that are on double ended sidings so the train can just pull in and then continue on forward as it leaves. Oh yea I'm pretty sure you will enjoy operating with KD's, though they don't look much like the couplers that are on the trains over your way do they? Besides using the magnetic uncoupler ramps they uncouple well using a pic made from a simple sharpened skewer or dowel. I do this on HO, N and On30 couplers. On large scale (KD #1 scale) I use a flat head screw driver to uncouple. I've found that while the uncoupler ramps are cool and provide neat hands off operation, they never seem to be in quite the right place . Looking forward to seeing more about this layout. Dave Hi Dave Thanks for the comments. As for terminus stations as we call them, this is how I operate trains in/out of them. 1. Train pulls into platform but not right to the end. 2. Loco uncouples from carriages and pulls past point 3. Reverses over point onto other line 4. Runs back to the front of the train 5. Reverses onto the other end. The other way I can do it is to just uncouple the loco then a different loco pulls onto the back. The third way I also operate this on is for the shunter to take away the carriages and shunt them into a siding. Of course now there aren't really any passenger trains that have loco's at the front - they're all integrated multiple units (there are two examples in the photos), so it doesn't matter which way they're going. I was going to do the above as a video, but I would have had to manually alter all the points and drive at the same time - another reason to put point motors in. Thanks for the advice on the couplings/ Kadees and you're right they look nothing like what is in use over here. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 26, 2011 Author Share Posted March 26, 2011 In addition to messing about as above, tonight as an evening of painting. I have installed a new backboard behind the station and put a first coat of 'Hydrangea' onto it, which is much better than the previous colour I had on the other backboards called 'Skye Blue' , but of course you were all too polite to tell me ;-) I've also cleared the rest of the area to be done and done a first coat of grey, however I now have no roundy lines to run trains on, until it is finished - hence me being on here. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beresford Junction Posted March 26, 2011 Author Share Posted March 26, 2011 And just in case you want something to watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CExltdfoyv4 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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