Train spotting at Finsbury Square

[Clive Mortimore]

1 hour ago, Dr Gerbil-Fritters said:

 

good grief, man.  couldn't you just push it round with your fingers, all the while making suitable turntable noises?

 

 

1 hour ago, 31A said:

 

Where's the fun in that?  

Two very good questions. Next time I turn a loco by pushing the turntable with my finger and making turn table noises I will return to these and give you both an answer. Or better still we could arrange a visit by both of you to Sheff Ex to experience my complicated finger pushing method. 

 

Steve, your under the table gear looks wonderful.

[Dr Gerbil-Fritters]

8 hours ago, Clive Mortimore said:

Steve, your under the table gear looks wonderful.

 

It's been a while since I saw any under the table gear.  Which reminds me, must be time to contact  Dave the Dealer.

 

Wonderful to see M'lord Mallard of this parish assisting, it's been too quiet of late from Duck Towers.

 

 

[31A]

9 hours ago, Clive Mortimore said:

 

Two very good questions. Next time I turn a loco by pushing the turntable with my finger and making turn table noises I will return to these and give you both an answer. Or better still we could arrange a visit by both of you to Sheff Ex to experience my complicated finger pushing method. 

 

Steve, your under the table gear looks wonderful.

 

Thank you, Clive.  I hadn't thought of it as "under table gear" before - makes it sound slightly dodgy like something under the counter!  It's certainly not suitable for polite viewing!

 

I don't really have sound effects on my layout but actually it does make rather turntable-like brmmmming noises, with the odd squeak thrown in.  I did take a video of it working, but haven't worked out how to upload it onto here yet.

 

[31A]

12 hours ago, Mallard60022 said:

 

Guys and gals, what 31A has not showed you yet is his amazing wiring diagram for the planned control of this area. Something I could never do. There is even the switch/track layout diagram unit ready to fit.

 

Thank you, @Mallard60022 !

 

I have just about finished making a control panel for the loco yard; I've fitted all the switches but ran out of wire so I need to get some more.  I've put in droppers to each isolating section, but for now they're all temporarily connected together so that locos can run up and down but not be isolated.  The Coal Road and Three Road can be isolated anyway, by setting the points against them.  Eventually, each road will have two sections, being long enough for two Pacifics or big Diesels to stand in line, and Four Road being longer will have four sections.

 

 I thought I could wire it up 'on the wing' without drawing a diagram, it's fairly straightforward really, but I thought  drawing a diagram might avoid confusion when it comes to actually doing the wiring.  I'd better not publish it on here though, otherwise some might take it to be an advert for DCC! 

[31A]

OK if I have managed to master the You Tube, here we see 60039 testing the new turntable, complete with brrm brrm and squeal squeal sound effects.

 

Actually it was quite a good one to choose for the test as it has Alan Gibson bogie wheels (there's posh!)  which may be a bit less forgiving of alignment discrepancies!

 

 

 

[ianblenk]

Excellent!

 

[Oldddudders]

1 hour ago, 31A said:

 I'd better not publish it on here though, otherwise some might take it to be an advert for DCC! 

What sort of curmudgeon would do that, I wonder?

[Clive Mortimore]

Cor, that looks better than my finger pushing.

[31A]

Thank you, Clive!  I've never seen your finger pushing, but I'm sure it does it very nicely. 

[great northern]

1 hour ago, 31A said:

Thank you, Clive!  I've never seen your finger pushing, but I'm sure it does it very nicely. 

But we should not describe Clive as a pusher.

[Oldddudders]

1 hour ago, great northern said:

But we should not describe Clive as a pusher.

I suspect that's quite kind compared to some things he's been called. 

[Andrew P]

8 hours ago, 31A said:

Thank you, Clive!  I've never seen your finger pushing, but I'm sure it does it very nicely. 

I've seen Clive's finger pushing, and believe me, it's NOT a pretty sight.

[St Enodoc]

4 hours ago, Andrew P said:

I've seen Clive's finger pushing, and believe me, it's NOT a pretty sight.

Well, he was a nurse of course...

[Andrew P]

On 29/11/2019 at 21:26, St Enodoc said:

Well, he was a nurse of course...

Ouch

[31A]

2 hours ago, Andrew P said:

Ouch

 

Is that a prod??  More soon, I promise ....

 

[Clive Mortimore]

On 29/11/2019 at 21:26, St Enodoc said:

Well, he was a nurse of course...

As a nurse on a plastic surgery ward that specialised in hand trauma I would sometimes have to look after a patient who had arrived with us with his/her finger in a separate container. After having very intricate microsurgery to put said finger back where it belonged, I would turn up for my night shift to be greeted by the day staff going off duty "Can you put a leach on Mr Blogg's finger tonight." I therefore feel that I might have a slight advantage of the physiology when it comes to pushing and prodding with one's fingers.

 

Having also worked on a bowel ward I can talk s*** for hours.

[Mallard60022]

8 hours ago, Clive Mortimore said:

As a nurse on a plastic surgery ward that specialised in hand trauma I would sometimes have to look after a patient who had arrived with us with his/her finger in a separate container. After having very intricate microsurgery to put said finger back where it belonged, I would turn up for my night shift to be greeted by the day staff going off duty "Can you put a leach on Mr Blogg's finger tonight." I therefore feel that I might have a slight advantage of the physiology when it comes to pushing and prodding with one's fingers.

 

Having also worked on a bowel ward I can talk s*** for hours.

Not on this thread Clive but I can see why you feel at home on many others...………………………….miow!

ATB

Duck Arse.

[31A]

OK time for the latest instalment in the loco yard development.  This episode may seem like an advert for DCC; those made squeamish by more than two wires might want to look away.

 

Here's the wiring diagram for the control panel.  I thought about 'winging it' and just connecting things up as I went along, but thought I really ought to draw it out.  Quite surprising how complicated it looks for what is really quite a simple layout!  Actually there was a slight error as I found out when I came to test it; I don't imagine anyone can spot it ....

 

 

And this is what the inside of the control panel looks like.  It is upside down and reversed compared to the diagram, as it is dangling from its wires.

 

 

And this is what it looks like from the proper side:

 

 

 

[Clive Mortimore]

1 hour ago, 31A said:

OK time for the latest instalment in the loco yard development.  This episode may seem like an advert for DCC; those made squeamish by more than two wires might want to look away.

 

Here's the wiring diagram for the control panel.  I thought about 'winging it' and just connecting things up as I went along, but thought I really ought to draw it out.  Quite surprising how complicated it looks for what is really quite a simple layout!  Actually there was a slight error as I found out when I came to test it; I don't imagine anyone can spot it ....

 

 

And this is what the inside of the control panel looks like.  It is upside down and reversed compared to the diagram, as it is dangling from its wires.

 

 

And this is what it looks like from the proper side:

 

 

 

Hi Steve

 

If it works I ain't going to find the errors. Well done, nice to see some traditional DC wiring.

[St Enodoc]

4 hours ago, 31A said:

I don't imagine anyone can spot it ....

Nope.

[31A]

10 hours ago, Clive Mortimore said:

Hi Steve

 

If it works I ain't going to find the errors. Well done, nice to see some traditional DC wiring.

 

Cheers Clive!  It works now; it didn't according to the diagram.

 

The complication is that there are two outlets to the rest of the layout, on the front of the control panel these are the two lines diverging upwards ending in arrow points - via the fiddle yard (right hand) or via the Up Siding (left hand).  So to cater for this the two switches (SP2 and SP3) for those sections are DPDT centre off with 'up' connecting to relevant 'external' section and 'down' to local controller and the three sections on the Spur (SP1, SP2 and SP3) are 'daisy chained' together, except that I forgot to 'daisy chain' the negative (black) between SP2 and SP3.

 

I think it's sorted now but despite testing yesterday evening the proof will be in operating the layout, to see whether it does what it should!

[31A]

With the loco yard now in use, albeit obviously with a lot of scenic work still to do, it's interesting to see what locos use it.  This is the position at the end of today's operating session, and the timetabled "End of Day", with the locos in the picture stabled for the night.

 

 

 

[Mallard60022]

On 15/12/2019 at 21:18, 31A said:

OK time for the latest instalment in the loco yard development.  This episode may seem like an advert for DCC; those made squeamish by more than two wires might want to look away.

 

Here's the wiring diagram for the control panel.  I thought about 'winging it' and just connecting things up as I went along, but thought I really ought to draw it out.  Quite surprising how complicated it looks for what is really quite a simple layout!  Actually there was a slight error as I found out when I came to test it; I don't imagine anyone can spot it ....

 

 

And this is what the inside of the control panel looks like.  It is upside down and reversed compared to the diagram, as it is dangling from its wires.

 

 

And this is what it looks like from the proper side:

 

 

 

Damn it Monsewer, that is too bl00dy tidy/neat/smart/ DC/annoyingly simple/efficient. Booooooooo!

A. Sparks

[All thumbs]

Nice to see the loco yard is laid in bullhead - IMO chaired track really makes a difference even if later you do smother it in ash, clinker etc.

[31A]

4 minutes ago, All thumbs said:

Nice to see the loco yard is laid in bullhead - IMO chaired track really makes a difference even if later you do smother it in ash, clinker etc.

 

Thank you.

 

Ballasting etc. is on my mind, but a few other things to finalise first.  I haven't done much modelling lately, but did get three very nice buffer stops for the loco yard from Lanarkshire Model Supples just before Christmas, two of which I've put together.

 

I hope to carry out the ballasting carefully so that at least some of the bull head can be appreciated, even if other areas are, as you, say, smothered in ash & clinker.  In particular I'd like to show daylight beneath the rails, which isn't easy with the older Code 75 Streamline.

 

I've been thinking about ground cover for the yard actually; quite often in loco yards etc. the ground surface is flush with the top surface of the sleepers, but I'm not sure how best to do that.  In the past I've used tiling grout with some success but it is very messy.  I've read of people using Das modelling clay, but then others seem to have problems with it cracking and coming away later.