RMweb Gold nickwood Posted December 24, 2017 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 24, 2017 What sort of couplers are on those wagons ? Hi, they are DG autocouplers available from Wizard Models. They are fitted to all of my stock and have been very reliable in exhibition use. https://www.wizardmodels.ltd/shop/couplings/dg-type-e-couplings-dge/ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highlandman Posted December 24, 2017 Share Posted December 24, 2017 Hi Nick.The new cassettes look great. It'll be interesting to see how you stop the stock from moving on them. Maybe a simple peice of upholstery foam pushed in to the ends when need. Both gentle on the stock and the couplings.Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.Andy M Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted December 24, 2017 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 24, 2017 Hi Nick. The new cassettes look great. It'll be interesting to see how you stop the stock from moving on them. Maybe a simple peice of upholstery foam pushed in to the ends when need. Both gentle on the stock and the couplings. Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Andy M Hi Andy Pieces of foam will be a fall back position if my other plan doesn't work. My old cassettes had a padded hinged bar at each end which dropped down to stop the stock running off the ends. I'm planning on having something similar but a little more sophisticated. I designed a hinged flap and have a friend producing it as a 3D print for me to try out. Once we get it to works ok then he will print all that I need. Season's greetings to you and your family as well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted December 24, 2017 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 24, 2017 (edited) Duplicate post deleted Edited December 24, 2017 by nickwood Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Johnster Posted December 24, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 24, 2017 Not a fan of foam for this; it can pull quite hard on buffers or couplings it gets caught up in, and is capable of scratching paintwork on buffers (depends on the foam of course). My 'end of fiddle yard' stops are half inch batten (skip raid) backed by foam, itself glued to a stiff card end plate, with 3 layers of bicycle tyre inner tube rubber glued to the 'railway' side, with rebates to accept t/l couplers. Any untoward movement is thus initially contacted by the buffers, not the coupler, and the amount of shock absorption seems adequate; no damage has yet been caused to stock, but I have not subjected the system to a high speed test with a heavy train. A hand propelled wagon bounces quite happily off the rubber. Fiddle yard roads have auto stops for the locos, of course, but propelling movements do not have this safety feature and, while I have yet to have a bad accident in this way, there have been minor slip ups caused by me forgetting that a road is live and making a movement at the other end of the layout. I may consider having the entire fiddle yard on a hold-down button, but it is used as the headshunt for a lot of movements and this would be inconvenient. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted December 30, 2017 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted December 30, 2017 Johnster The system I have been using of a drop down bar stops with a padded strip attached has worked well and I've had no stock damage. I use DG couplings which are quite fragile cmpared to RTR tension locks but the key is as you rightly say not to have the coupling in contact with the stop. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted January 3, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted January 3, 2018 (edited) Back to the cassettes. The 3D printed stop didn't really work. The design was ok but although the plastic section was printed at 1.5mm thick it proved quite brittle along the printed layers and snapped easily. A rethink was necessary. Here's what I've come up with as an alternative. A wooden angle moulding hinged on wires. The moulding is fixed with 5 minute expoxy resin to the wires. The inside face of the moulding has to protrude slightly forward of the aluminium angle to allow it to hinge upwards. The prototype is not quite finished as the protruding wires need to be cropped off flush. A small piece of thin foam will glued to the inside face of the stop to protect any stock from damage. The wires are bent to give a good surface contact with the moulding to assist gluing and give extra strength. Stop in the down position. Bottom edge is in-line with the top half of the buffers so as not to damage the couplings. Stop in the raised position. It will self support due to the bends in the wire. I think when I'm completely happy with the operation I will paint the wood. As the couplings on my stock are handed (ie they only have loops on one end) and therefore do not get turned, it would be useful for the operators to have each end of the cassette a different colour to denote which end has the coupling loops. Edited December 21, 2022 by nickwood 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted January 10, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted January 10, 2018 (edited) The protruding wires have been cut off with a disc in a mini drill The ends have been painted. I have mentioned before that the couplings on my stock are handedtherefore the stock doesn't get turned. The red end will connect with the dock to ensure that the couplings are in the correct orientation. The only stock that has to be handled during an exhibition is brake vans as they come off the layout at the wrong end of the train. A cassette with the stops raised to allow stock to pass through. I don't know what the collective noun is for a number of cassettes but here is my effort to build as many as the resouces I had available would allow. A few more than I need to run MM at an exhibition but it allows for expansion of the fleet Oh I nearly forgot, a little piece of foam has been attached at both ends to protect the stock from any ham fisted operators I think this (not so) little job can now be considered complete and the cassettes ready for their first outing at Southampton MRC show at the end of the month. Edited December 21, 2022 by nickwood 9 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Mick Bonwick Posted January 10, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 10, 2018 Oh I nearly forgot, a little piece of foam has been attached at both ends to protect the stock from any ham fisted operators Cassettes 049 small.jpg I resemble that remark! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted January 10, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted January 10, 2018 I resemble that remark! I'm not saying who I had in mind Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted January 26, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26, 2018 (edited) Everything is ready for the journey down to Eastleigh for the Southampton MRS show this weekend, well apart from these two that is.... Edited December 21, 2022 by nickwood 5 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgman Posted January 26, 2018 Share Posted January 26, 2018 Enjoy the show Nick, I will miss it as I'm off to Bristol for the O Gauge show on Sunday. Hoping those cassettes prove to be satisfactory in operation. Grahame Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Mick Bonwick Posted January 26, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26, 2018 Everything is ready for the journey down to Eastleigh for the Southampton MRS show this weekend, well apart from these two that is.... Pigeons 001 small.jpg A right pair of fly-by-nights. So are those pigeons! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john flann Posted January 26, 2018 Share Posted January 26, 2018 Nick, enjoy the show and knowing you I'm sure that everything is well prepared. Best wishes, Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold gwrrob Posted January 26, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26, 2018 A right pair of fly-by-nights. So are those pigeons! They need one of those Eastern pigeon vans to travel in. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold sjrixon Posted January 26, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26, 2018 I might just make it, Saturday afternoon. I'll have my little boy, so could be interesting, but be good to see the layout again. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Mick Bonwick Posted January 26, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26, 2018 They need one of those Eastern pigeon vans to travel in. Are you allowed to use that sort of language on here? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted January 26, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26, 2018 Nick, enjoy the show and knowing you I'm sure that everything is well prepared. Best wishes, Thanks John. It is always a good show. I had a chat with Steve Flint after setting up this evening. He is going to take a look at MM over the weekend, so hopefully I might have to write an article for RM soon. I might just make it, Saturday afternoon. I'll have my little boy, so could be interesting, but be good to see the layout again. Please make your self known Scott. I'll be happy to let you and your boy have a look backstage. Are you allowed to use that sort of language on here? Rob likes throwing a hand grenade and retreating quickly. The only thing Eastern about the GWR is Paddington, plenty of pigeons there. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BWsTrains Posted January 26, 2018 Share Posted January 26, 2018 ..... I think this (not so) little job can now be considered complete and the cassettes ready for their first outing at Southampton MRC show at the end of the month. Hi Nick, since a fiddle yard is ruled out for my layout, this cassette design looks like a good alternative. Great concept and execution. Colin Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john flann Posted January 27, 2018 Share Posted January 27, 2018 Nick, glad you've met Steve and i have no doubt when he sees MM he will be more than happy to feature it in RM. And, if you get the opportunity please pass on my kind regards, Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highlandman Posted January 27, 2018 Share Posted January 27, 2018 Hi Nick. It was good to catch up at Southampton today. The new cassettes look really good, I'm sure you'll get round the little problem you talked about. . I know you mentioned the problem with temperature changes affecting the double sided tape on foam you use to protect the stock. I have had a little think, while my brain was still in gear, and wondered if you could use some velcro to hold it in place. not the adhesive one but the sew on one. You could fix one half to the timber stop by a staple in each end and then tack, (sorry about the needlework term, if not sure ask she who must be obeyed ), the other half to the foam with some thread. Also means you could replace the foam if it becomes damaged without damaging the velcro. As always the layout looks great and always appeared to run faultlessly. All the best Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold sjrixon Posted January 28, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 28, 2018 Hi Nick.. Thanks for the offer, I did stop for a short period but children being children not as long as I wanted to. Layout does look amazing in the flesh though and good to see it as part of such a cracking show! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
aac Posted January 28, 2018 Share Posted January 28, 2018 Nick, Enjoyed meeting you and discussing MM at Southampton yesterday. A very nice layout, and really good colouring tones used on the buildings and scenery. I took note of your guttering tips! Cheers David (aac) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold nickwood Posted January 30, 2018 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) Thank you to everyone who has commented and liked what they saw. It was another good show with Much Murkle and I had quite a few RMwebbers stop by and chat. I really enjoyed it. The cassettes performed well, even better than I expected with only a couple of minor irritating issues (see below) which can easily be put right before the next outing at BRM Doncaster in a couple of weeks time. Nick, glad you've met Steve and i have no doubt when he sees MM he will be more than happy to feature it in RM. And, if you get the opportunity please pass on my kind regards, John, I passed on your regards and Steve Flint asked me to respond in kind. He is going to be in touch regarding some sort of feature on Much Murkle for Railway Modeller but he has quite a backlog of layout features to publish. We discussed the possibility of adopting a different angle for a feature other than the standard 'this is my layout, I constructed it like this etc etc' and it is likely that this is the direction we will go in. I'm not sure quite what type of feature it will end up as but it should be an interesting exercise none the less. Hi Nick. It was good to catch up at Southampton today. The new cassettes look really good, I'm sure you'll get round the little problem you talked about. . I know you mentioned the problem with temperature changes affecting the double sided tape on foam you use to protect the stock. I have had a little think, while my brain was still in gear, and wondered if you could use some velcro to hold it in place. not the adhesive one but the sew on one. You could fix one half to the timber stop by a staple in each end and then tack, (sorry about the needlework term, if not sure ask she who must be obeyed ), the other half to the foam with some thread. Also means you could replace the foam if it becomes damaged without damaging the velcro. As always the layout looks great and always appeared to run faultlessly. All the best Andy Hi Andy good to see you again at the show. For the benefit of others reading this, the foam I used on the stop ends of the cassettes didn't bond well to the adhesive tape and ocassionally would fall off. Easily replaced by just pressing it back in place but annoying all the same. It's interesting, that having used velcro copiously to fasten things together when transporting the layout I hadn't even given it a thought for this solution. I like the idea (apart from the sewing bit, I'm no good at that) but not I'm not sure it's the right solution yet. Rocket card glue has also been suggested as a possible solution as I'm told it has latex in the formula and won't soak into the foam and make it rigid. I need to do a bit of experimentation I think. The other minor issue with the cassettes was that the stop ends are a couple of millimetres or so too wide on each side. This really only affects the loco cassettes as they are stored on shelves at the end of the fiddle yard four abreast. The width of the stop end was preventing them sliding into place properly. This will be an easy fix using the electric chop / mitre saw to shave a blade widths off each end of the stop. Edited January 30, 2018 by nickwood Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold teaky Posted January 30, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 30, 2018 Thank you to everyone who has commented and liked what they saw. It was another good show with Much Murkle and I had quite a few RMwebbers stop by and chat. I really enjoyed it. The cassettes performed well, even better than I expected with only a couple of minor irritating issues (see below) which can easily be put right before the next outing at BRM Doncaster in a couple of weeks time. John, I passed on your regards and Steve Flint asked me to respond in kind. He is going to be in touch regarding some sort of feature on Much Murkle for Railway Modeller but he has quite a backlog of layout features to publish. We discussed the possibility of adopting a different angle for a feature other than the standard 'this is my layout, I constructed it like this etc etc' and it is likely that this is the direction we will go in. I'm not sure quite what type of feature it will end up as but it should be an interesting exercise none the less. Hi Andy good to see you again at the show. For the benefit of others reading this, the foam I used on the stop ends of the cassettes didn't bond well to the adhesive tape and ocassionally would fall off. Easily replaced by just pressing it back in place but annoying all the same. It's interesting, that having used velcro copiously to fasten things together when transporting the layout I hadn't even given it a thought for this solution. I like the idea (apart from the sewing bit, I'm no good at that) but not I'm not sure it's the right solution yet. Rocket card glue has also been suggested as a possible solution as I'm told it has latex in the formula and won't soak into the foam and make it rigid. I need to do a bit of experimentation I think. The other minor issue with the cassettes was that the stop ends are a couple of millimetres or so too wide on each side. This really only affects the loco cassettes as they are stored on shelves at the end of the fiddle yard four abreast. The width of the stop end was preventing them sliding into place properly. This will be an easy fix using the electric chop / mitre saw to shave a blade widths off each end of the stop. You could try some draught excluder perhaps? That way, as long as it sticks to the cassette, the foam should remain bonded to the tape. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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