Kensington Olympia in n scale

[The Pilotman]

1 hour ago, acg5324 said:

Yesterday evening I started to dismantle the Fleischmann bogie curtain sided wagon, ready to respray it. It’s a cleverly constructed wagon with all the underframe side panels just push fitted so that a variety of layouts can be modelled.....it also means they fall of easily! The ends also clip fit into a false end, these were easily removed for spraying. When you turn the wagon upside down there are two prominent clips that look like they hold the curtain sided body on. They don’t....If anyone else gets one DO NOT touch these clips as they hold the kinetic close coupler springs in place......and hour later I got the springs refitted.

 

The body and underframe has been sprayed Tamiya Navy Blue, The bogies matt Black as my model had brown bogies. Some of the models have handbrake wheels fitted. This one didn’t so I’ll have to raid my parts bin. The buffers have been removed to make life easier painting them.....they were brown too.

This one will be in Transferry livery, I will get another to put into Easiloader colours, the ladders are removable to model this wagon.

Can I ask from where you’ll be getting the Transferry and Easiloader transfers? I’ve got a spare Minitrix curtain-sided wagon that I’ve been wanting to turn into a Tiphook Rail version but no suitable transfers are available. A Transferry version would be a good alternative. 

[acg5324]

1 hour ago, Western Aviator said:

Can I ask from where you’ll be getting the Transferry and Easiloader transfers? I’ve got a spare Minitrix curtain-sided wagon that I’ve been wanting to turn into a Tiphook Rail version but no suitable transfers are available. A Transferry version would be a good alternative. 

They are from Precision Decals http://www.precisionlabels.com scroll down the front page as they are on the new release list with Norsk Hydro too.

 

Edited February 18, 2021 by acg5324

[The Pilotman]

16 minutes ago, acg5324 said:

They are from Precision Decals http://www.precisionlabels.com scroll down the front page as they are on the new release list with Norsk Hydro too.

 

Thanks for that; I’ll have to get some Transferry ones. A few years back I made a rake of ten of the Norsk Hydro wagons using the Minitrix curtain-sided vans. Steve at Railtec made up the logo transfers for me from an image that I sent him. It’s interesting that all these variants are now available in N gauge because, as far as I am aware, the Minitrix and Fleischmann wagons are the only suitable donors. 

Edited February 18, 2021 by Western Aviator

[acg5324]

I got the curtain sided wagon reassembled today. Buffers back on and decals added...to one side so far. 

[acg5324]

The diode matrix got mounted and I’ll start wiring that up tomorrow.

[acg5324]

Its Friday.......fish, chips, mushy peas and curry sauce for tea.....plus a bottle of Proper Job to wash it all down. Have a good weekend everyone.

[37114]

2 hours ago, acg5324 said:

Its Friday.......fish, chips, mushy peas and curry sauce for tea.....plus a bottle of Proper Job to wash it all down. Have a good weekend everyone.

Excellent choice of ale.

[acg5324]

6 minutes ago, 37114 said:

Excellent choice of ale.

We are lucky, in the village is an off licence that has a good range of beers from around the country not just Yorkshire....

[37114]

3 minutes ago, acg5324 said:

We are lucky, in the village is an off licence that has a good range of beers from around the country not just Yorkshire....

Sounds great.  Living in the West Country "Proper Job" is readily available both in supermarkets and pubs,  that said I have been in a few London pubs where they have it on tap although draft version is weaker at 4.5% vs 5.5% in the bottle 

[dairy farmer]

Great layout that I have followed since it’s inception.Having worked in the local during the late 80s/early 90s it certainly brings back very fond memories.Also having been a forum member for the last four years this is actually my first post.keep up the superb work.

Edited February 21, 2021 by dairy farmer

[acg5324]

3 hours ago, dairy farmer said:

Great layout that I have followed since it’s inception.Having worked in the local during the late 80s/early 90s it certainly brings back very fond memories.Also having been a forum member for the last four years this is actually my first post.keep up the superb work.

Thank you and welcome to the forum now you’ve popped your head above the parapet!

[acg5324]

Today I finished wiring board F...apart from adding the jumper to board A........DCC only two wires of course.......I do like an analogue Control panel though.

[acg5324]

Last week I found a new seller on eBay producing 1/148 scale 3D printed cars and vans....pre painted. They looked very interesting so I bought a set. A pair of Rover 3500, one a Police car. A Mk3 Ford Escort XR3 and a Mk1 Transit Van. The seller is now selling some unpainted and others as single models just undercoated, along with mixed sets that include a Mk2 Escort and Morris Marina. I will get some of the unpainted ones later.

They are produced in the UK too.....in God’s own county......my wife tells me that isn’t Sussex.

[Kris]

Those look like some rather nice models. 

[acg5324]

This is a link to the eBay seller and the vehicles for sale.

https://ebay.co.uk/usr/redandy767

 

 

 

Edited February 23, 2021 by acg5324

[acg5324]

On 09/02/2021 at 15:34, grahame said:

There's an episode of The Sweeney on TV now that features driving past your new advertising hoarding to the station entrance and walking over the footbridge. It'll be on again in the +1 hour catch-up for ITV4 and again tomorrow morning - episode is 'Selected target' from 1976 (S3 E1) and featuring a very young looking Maureen Lipman.

 

 

Just managed to watch the episode in full...series 3 is on the ITV hub.

Superb episode and one in which the Sweeney don’t get their man.

Edited February 24, 2021 by acg5324

[acg5324]

Well apart from the Control panel the wiring is complete.....hopefully!!!!

 

I have a few Dapol signals to add but these will get their own wiring circuit or I’ll power them with a 9v battery.

 

It’s  been such a nice day today that I’ve had the chance to take two baseboards out in the garden and spray paint the ballast. Despite what I thought was a decent amount of masking the track colour still got through in a few places so there is a bit of remedial painting to do.

 

The boards have now all been reattached, but need levelling up. Tomorrow will be a tidy up day.

[acg5324]

Not much done over the weekend, on one of the board joints the tracks are miles out for some reason. I might have to desolder and refix them.

We spent today stripping wallpaper in a bedroom......., our decorator rang Saturday night to say he’d had a cancellation and could start with us on Monday. We weren’t expecting him for a month or so.

 

 

 

Edited March 5, 2021 by acg5324

[acg5324]

Very little done this week but I did sort out the baseboard joint, both solder joints broken on one pair of running rails.  Whilst the layout was dismantled again I moved a pair of boards away from the window so that I could get to the outside. The Warwick Rd Bridge has now been glued down and road surface added. Charles House now has paving around 95% of it and road surfaces added where appropriate. I’ve also added a lot more double yellow lines...so much that I’ve run out...fresh supplies are on the way. 

Despite getting some beads to make Belisha beacons I found a better option. I raided my wife’s knitting supplies and found some big long pins with coloured round heads to them. Some were a golden yellow colour...I’ve nicked  appropriated a couple! Don’t tell her.

 

Now the bedroom decorating is finished I can move the boxes back in there temporarily to reassemble Olympia over the weekend......might even try to run some trains!

[acg5324]

Last board dropped into place nicely this morning. Everything is connected up and no shorts that was a good start.

My c56 got the dubious honour of test loco.....it was out of its box!

 

A few faults cropped up as it trundled and stuttered( track needed a clean) it’s way around the layout. Bogies fouled several point motor rods despite my coaches clearing them. Found about 4 dead sections, looks like missed feeds for 3 of them and a poor joint on another. Couple of dead sections around the station, again looks like missed feeds.

 

I’ve  marked them all with postit notes for further investigation.

 

A zoom call with friends beckons.....it’s Gin O Clock time. Have a good weekend all.......and here’s some pics to be going on with.

Edited March 6, 2021 by acg5324

[acg5324]

[Davexoc]

I see the price of fuel at Olympia Service Station is the same price and brand as currently available just off junction 10 of the M40 on the A43 north of Bicester.

Olympia is going to be per gallon, whereas the A43 is only going to get you a litre......

[St Enodoc]

6 hours ago, acg5324 said:

 

I like that wide view.

[acg5324]

A goodish day today. Cleared all the faults I found yesterday and three others that I found. 

However today the main crossover at the southern end of the station decided to play up big time. Straight running was fine but when set as a crossover there was no power to it. No end of cleaning the blades with fine wet and dry paper, fibreglass brush or switch cleaner made it any better.

 

 

This diagram shows how it’s fed. I added additional feeds at A and B but these caused it to short....any suggestions. They are Electrofrog points, This is DCC.

Edited March 7, 2021 by acg5324

[stivesnick]

1 hour ago, acg5324 said:

A goodish day today. Cleared all the faults I found yesterday and three others that I found. 

However today the main crossover at the southern end of the station decided to play up big time. Straight running was fine but when set as a crossover there was no power to it. No end of cleaning the blades with fine wet and dry paper, fibreglass brush or switch cleaner made it any better.

 

 

This diagram shows how it’s fed. I added feeds at A and B but this cause it to short....any suggestions.

 

Both track feeds to the inner track need to be at the toe end of the point as the feeds are to the outer track. Track feeds A and B are then should be switched with the point motor to power the frog and the next section of track - hopefuly that will cure the problem.

 

Nick