1910 Mini-Layout

[Nearholmer]

Progress on my current DIY job is impeded by that old favourite 'awaiting materials', because wardrobe kit that was delivered yesterday proved to contain a random selection of pieces, which don't fit together .......

 

So, a bit more tracklaying done. Very slow going this, because cutting Code 200 rail isnt a swift process, and threading sleepers on is b hard, finger destroying, work, best undertaken in short bursts, but i'm getting there.

 

Light relief was to strip down a c1920 Bing 'King George the Fifth". This was acquired as a sort of dodgy package deal as I was trying to get a tender for a 1924 Hornby 4-4-0. I now have two beautiful tenders, and two tatty locos! This one is far worse than the Hornby, but has a good, if filthy, clockwork drive, so I'm determined to resurrect it. Biggest issue is the dents in the boiler, but they are coming out, with the aid of the end sawn from a broom pole, which make a good "dolly". These Bing locos are very common, having been sold through Bassett Lowke and Gamages, so I'm not fearful of attacking this one - frankly, even I could only make it better!

 

Kevin

[shortliner]

Any new content there is a bonus, I'm mostly pleased that the site and all the old content is available.

A new page - 120, for November - went up yesterday

[Dava]

Kevin & others,

 

Do you have any experience of the ETS motor bogies/chassis? What is their slow running like? Do they go through Peco points?

 

http://www.ets-trains.com/en/driving-units/driving-unit-axles-distance-60-mm-1-1.html

 

I understand Skytrex used them in their RTR 0-4-0 locos.

 

Thanks,

 

Dava

[Nearholmer]

Dava,

 

ETS mechanisms are absolutely superb. The USA, Terriers and M7s that you will see on my layout are made by ETS, under commission from U.K. firms, and I know several other people who own other loos made by them; all are "a dream".

 

Most of their mechs use a clutch drive, which makes them exceedingly smooth, and have decent flywheels.

 

As to Peco points, that will depend what tyre profile Skytrex commissioned from them. They'd be mad to commission something that doesn't fit Peco points if they are aiming to sell to 'finescalers'.

 

The locos I have probably wouldn't be happy on current Peco 0 gauge points, although they are on SM32, because they have b-t-b set to coarse standards, c27.5mm, rather than c29mm.

 

Kevin

[Northroader]

There is a report in the current GOG Gazette, listing clearance tests for track. The main conclusion reached was that if a skim can be taken off the backs of check rails and crossings on a Peco point, which would gain the clearances listed by Kevin, you were away.

[Nearholmer]

Roy James, owner of the astonishing Dream City Railway uses coarse standards, and he deals with Peco points by taking the checkrails off altogether! Amazingly, it seems to work.

 

Great pity that Peco modified their point design, because earlier iterations, which sometimes pop up on eBay, had adjustable check rails, so could be set for both coarse and fine standards.

 

If you look into n the ETS catalogue, btw, most of their own locos are available with two different wheel standards and several different power supply options. But, the locos that UK firms common soon from them are available only in whatever form the commissioner has specified.

 

K

[Dava]

Many thanks Kevin & Northroader, that's really helpful.

 

Dava

[Northroader]

I've just taken the photo by Tommy Day out of the article referred to, as you can get a clearer picture of what's required:

[Nearholmer]

Interesting.

 

Has he milled/filed both the wing-rails and the check-rails?

 

Simply thinning the check-rails presumably works for GOG "coarse", which was defined post-WW2, and possibly for prewar Leeds wheels, which were very fine by the standards of the day.

 

It probably wouldn't work for prewar Bassett Lowke, which were to Greenly 1909 standards, and need 1/8" clearances at both wing and check rail, and have a very narrow b-t-b (33/32" or 65/64" possibly, without checking). I'm not quite sure about prewar Hornby; they seem have a wider b-t-b than BL, so it might be OK for them.

 

One of the reasons that led me to choose Maldon track is that it has adjustable checkrails, and quite wide wing-rail clearance, so can be set to accommodate all of the above ......... although not all at once! The only way to do that is to use "universal" points, with moving wing-rails, and the only way to get them is to make them .........

 

Sorry ........ off on a ramble....... but this stuff becomes important if you get a taste for old crocks.

 

Kevin

[Simond]

I'd guess that Marcway would make universals for you.

 

It's a shame you didn't ask about 15 years ago, as I helped Ken Stansfield remove about 8 from his layout, & replace them with Peco.

 

Best

Simon

[Nearholmer]

It isn't often that a posting relating to Paltry Circus reports actual progress, but this evening I threaded the last sleeper onto the last length of rail.

 

Still a long way to go, with a few chair-less sleepers to insert, a few minor bits of fettling to do, and then on with the wonders of electricity.

 

The small station is going to serve for now, but will be replaced later with an island platform, to allow for more intense (earnest; over-serious) operation.

 

Kevin

[Nearholmer]

Bit of a 'speriment, as our youngest says.

 

Paltry Circus may be making an appearance at a pre-Christmas gathering, and if it does, I won't have time to make ply and strip wood retaining walls.

 

So, suitably coloured mounting board, and a felt-tipped pen yields this, which I think will serve as a temporary measure. The ads are snipped out from magazines that happened to be within reach, but they give an idea of the effect I'm aiming for: very plain, except for the trains and the adverts.

 

K

[Simond]

Had me fooled. MissD wasn't convinced!

 

50:50...

 

Best

Simon

[Metropolitan H]

Bit of a 'speriment, as our youngest says.

 

Paltry Circus may be making an appearance at a pre-Christmas gathering, and if it does, I won't have time to make ply and strip wood retaining walls.

 

So, suitably coloured mounting board, and a felt-tipped pen yields this, which I think will serve as a temporary measure. The ads are snipped out from magazines that happened to be within reach, but they give an idea of the effect I'm aiming for: very plain, except for the trains and the adverts.

 

K

Not sure you should be bothering with "ply and strip wood".

 

I think you may have got a better look with the mounting board and felt-tipped pen. Keep at it - then you can get back to working on Birlstone.

 

Regards

Chris H

[unravelled]

Bit of a 'speriment, as our youngest says.

 

Paltry Circus may be making an appearance at a pre-Christmas gathering, and if it does, I won't have time to make ply and strip wood retaining walls.

 

So, suitably coloured mounting board, and a felt-tipped pen yields this, which I think will serve as a temporary measure. The ads are snipped out from magazines that happened to be within reach, but they give an idea of the effect I'm aiming for: very plain, except for the trains and the adverts.

 

K

I think it is in the spirit of tinplate, and works well. I trust the shadows fall the same way as on any tinplate items...

 

Thanks

 

Dave

[Nearholmer]

Dave - I don't own any tinplate buildings, so the issue is getting it to look semi-decent with 3D things ........ it will do for now, and the colour of the mount-board tones nicely with the little old station, but I'm going to persist and make wooden retaining walls when time permits.

 

A further 'speriment has proven that the loop will accommodate 3 x 48ft coaches, whereas it was really designed for 2 + van, and allow medium sized tank engines to run-round, and that the final platform will accommodate this train (just!) at both faces too, which will be seriously helpful when it eventually gets incorporated into the main layout.

 

Kevin

[Edwardian]

Bit of a 'speriment, as our youngest says.

 

Paltry Circus may be making an appearance at a pre-Christmas gathering, and if it does, I won't have time to make ply and strip wood retaining walls.

 

So, suitably coloured mounting board, and a felt-tipped pen yields this, which I think will serve as a temporary measure. The ads are snipped out from magazines that happened to be within reach, but they give an idea of the effect I'm aiming for: very plain, except for the trains and the adverts.

 

K

 

Really great effect, and very much in the spirit of the piece. 

 

Like v.muchly.

[unravelled]

I was thinking rolling stock as well as buildings for printed shadows. 0 gauge manufacturers might be different, but some of my gauge 1 stock has printed highlights and shadows around the strapping etc.  Your  shadows fall in the same direction as those on my wagons. Incidentally I have some retaining walls, complete with signs, made by my father about 60 years ago. Just hardboard strips on a sheet of hardboard, but serving to give a convincing and non distracting background, as yours do.

 

Thanks

 

Dave

[unravelled]

Just to add photos for the above.

Highlights on this wagon.

 

And 60 year old hardboard retaining wall

 

Thanks

 

Dave

[Nearholmer]

Ah, I was being very dim, I didn't think of rolling stock!

 

Well, seems that even the same artist can adopt different conventions, at different times. The artwork for both of these was created by Rob Horton. The Wright's one is IMHO a work of true genius; I know it's dead flat, but I periodically have to check that fact!

 

Older ones seem to vary in "lighting angle and intensity" too.

 

Your father's retaining walls are very much the sort of thing that I'm going to make, but I will be following the model set in the pictures in Post 1 of this thread, so a brick-colour finish.

 

Kevin

Edited November 27, 2016 by Nearholmer

[Nearholmer]

And, the Colman's one made me remember this, from the 'we want you as a new recruit' school of poster art.

 

K

[unravelled]

I have seen brick walls represented by using the hardboard rough side out...

 

Dave

[glasspusher]

This is by way of a very-little-progress report, which can serve as a warning to others .......

 

My small amount of modelling time over the weekend was devoted to getting the two baseboards to nestle-up against one another with barely any gap at the baseboard surface - surprising amount of wood planed off the end of the wonky one to get a half-decent (it still isn't wholly decent) joint.

 

All because, I built each base board complete, separately. What I should have remembered is that the "crime against joinery" trick is to build one, and the frame of the next, then clamp the frame of the second to the first, THEN, pin the top surface of the second one down. My only excuse is that the apprentices (ages 4, 4 and 8) were in full-on "helpful" mode at the time.

 

Still procrastinating about track arrangement (which is quite an achievement with three points and barely any space!).

 

Kevin

 

PS: why when I type a figure eight, do I get a picture of a rude-boy emoticon?!

 

PPS: Northroader, I tend to think of it as Coarse Railwaying, in the same way as Coarse Fishing. In fact I've just invented an interesting genre crossover cartoon-strip called "Mr Crabtree Plays Trains", where it becomes apparent that Mr Crabtree is, in fact that pipe-smoking Dad from the Hornby Dublo adverts,mand only took up fishing because his Mother in Law came for a protracted visit. The deeper plot, of course, is that both of them are really Tony Benn, and the boy is Hilary, but that only comes out much later in the series.

 

Looking at the pictures that accompanied the above post, it seems that you need extra fingers to be a pipe smoking train dad!    :-) 

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/107911-1910-mini-layout/&do=findComment&comment=2195065

Edited November 30, 2016 by glasspusher

[Simond]

How very curious!

 

Clearly over-qualified to be a postman...

 

https://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fen%2F0%2F0b%2FPostman-Pat.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FPostman_Pat&docid=IcaMrhgn125jIM&tbnid=Vd77bXB0urplfM%3A&vet=1&w=400&h=400&bih=649&biw=1024&ved=0ahUKEwjw_qXE9s_QAhUkCMAKHTriAUQQMwgjKAEwAQ&iact=mrc&uact=8

 

Simon

[Nearholmer]

Do you remember ever seeing a photo showing Tony Benn's hands, eh?

Edited November 30, 2016 by Nearholmer