Knadgerhill - the long slog

[NittenDormer]

Well, I now have 4 baseboards instead of 2, building the framework has been really useful in getting all the relevant edges aligned and of matching height. The 2x4 boards are reasonably manageable, the 2.5 x 4 are a bit heavy and unwieldy.

 

This week's job is to cut holes in some of the plywood for lightening and wire access purposes. A summary of this weeks progress shows what I am up against...

 

Monday evening = swimming. No time for garage.

Tuesday evening =wife's swimming, obliged to stay in house.

Wednesday evening = Scouts (never too old!)

Thursday evening = model railway club.

Friday evening = possible garage time. Yippee! But I can't use the jigsaw in the evenings because of the noise.

 

The sum total of this week: unscrew 20 screws. Remove 2 (identical) parts, clamp together and mark for cutting a hole out of. Drill 4 holes with 3 getting-larger bits until there is a slot for the jigsaw blade. And that's it.

 

The great thing is that now the baseboards are built (well 4 of them anyway) I can remove 1 part at a time to alter, with the remaining joints holding everything in the correct place.

[LongRail]

Remember it is a marathon not a sprint and sometimes progress will be slow.

The boards will get heavier once you add scenery and track.

[NittenDormer]

Last week's progress, assuming 'less is more' is progress. The inner long faces which used to look like this:
now look like this :


A slight weight saving, easier to pick up, and I now have 4 3 foot x 100mm boards left over for later use.

Edited August 11, 2018 by NittenDormer

[NittenDormer]

More slow and stately progress. I now have 6 boards instead of 4 (for info, the final layout will have 9 boards, but I am not building the other 3 yet). While the 4 central boards will have an element of flat top and straight track, the 2 end ones (front and back, all the same end) are fully open with all track curved, and the landscape having significant height difference, looking like this :

All in all, it is significantly more delicate, and awkward.

I have also been wworking out more closely the track layout for the two end boards, which will look approx like this:

While there may be computer programs that do this, I prefer to use physical models. Since this picture was taken, I have marked each bit of cardboard with the track height, by marking where the set track joins are, working out how much each piece needs to rise (7mm for a radius 2 long curve, 10mm for radius 4) and marking each mm rise. Next I put each bit of cardboard under the baseboard and marked where it crossed the plywood, and the height. Because of the curves, the height is sometimes different on one side of the crossing to the other. Again there is probably a computer program that could have done this, but seeing it in the flesh works better for me, if a bit fiddly, time consuming and awkward.

All the parts were deliberately cut slightly oversize, so now I can trim then down as needed.

Incidentally, I can report that using Diet Coke boxes for cutting supports can result in a few leaking cans, and a lot of sawdust in the fridge.

[NittenDormer]

A month gone by! Progress is happening, despite the absence of posts. Once my two end boards were assembled, it was time to partially dismantle them both following appropriate marking with my cardboard track templates, and create cut outs at the right places in all 3 planes. This was rather time consuming, but left me with a board looking more Swiss cheesy, like this:

Next, with appropriate levels of experiment, it was time to take the irreversible step of converting the cardboard formers to actual wood. So it was off to the timber yard for two more sheets of plywood (I've tried to keep count but failed, 7 sheets now perhaps? ), cut into (non-equal) thirds and mark out the shapes needed using the appropriately coloured tools:


This was rather terrifying, as for some reason, nothing upsets me more than wasted wood (particularly when I have had to pay for it), so there was a lot of test measuring to get the thirds sized just right - nothing worse than getting home and finding it needed to be just a few cm bigger.

Next, I need to cut these out and screw into position, then I can even start to consider thinking about the possibility of planning some track laying. Once I understand how I am going to deal with board joints and wiring that is.

Edited August 11, 2018 by NittenDormer

[NittenDormer]

On the plus side, I now have 8 pieces of curved track bed ready to lay down. Each requires some some degree of fettling to fit, and since the boards do not yet have any diagonal supports, I just hope I screw them down in the right positions. Each part is also over long, so will need trimming once in place.

 

On the minus side, I am running out of screws. To some, this would simply mean a trip to B&Q, but as I am planning to replace most screws with glue, and I don't want to finish the layout with about a thousand un needed screws. So, time to start gluing, but the bottle says the working temperature range only goes down to 7 degrees. Brrr. Absolutely freezing today, will have to wait.

[NittenDormer]

One month on, and I have finally finished replacing the 8 bits of cardboard with 8 bits of 6mm plywood. It was a fairly convoluted process, each piece involved lots of unscrewing, measuring, cutting (the baseboard parts were mostly cut over-size until I was 100% sure of the measurements needed) and drilling. As none of the track is going to be flat or straight, the card parts usefully all had each mm in height gain marked, so I could understand the relationship between horizontal and vertical - in some cases, where the track crosses a baseboard support at an angle, one side of the track needs to be 3-4mm higher than the other.  Amazingly, all track bases have emerged within acceptable parameters of being flat across. The boards are also a good bit more stable too.

 

It was time for a little running test, using some set track. I had problems with stalling at the board join, which concerned me, but moving the track joint showed it was not the gradient, most likely poor fishplate connection, which wont be an issue when track is properly laid.  My test train consisted of a rare Caledonian/GWR combo:

and an even rarer Caley/InterCity:

 

Can the Prototype for Everything thread justify this?

[NittenDormer]

Its been almost a month since I did anything on the layout. I’ve had flu, Christmas has been both busy and knackering, and the garage has been absolutely freezing.  I haven’t had the time or energy to do anything.

 

This week though, things are looking up. I’ve dug out a part-finished Metcalfe cottage, and tonight got back in the garage.  Its still cold, but I have discovered an amazing technological solution – wear more clothes!

 

I am starting to think about the next stages already, namely track laying/wiring, and replacing the current screws with glue. But screws are doing fine at the moment, because now that I have established the track bed locations, I need to take the saw to the baseboard framework again, for various reasons – to finalise the contours, to create access points for tunnel rescues and wiring runs.

 

And to lose weight. My front end board is 750mm x 1350mm (2.5 feet x 4.5 feet), the back one is 600mm x 1350mm (2 x 4.5). Even though the back one is smaller by area, it is probably heavier because of its height – a hill rising to about 450mm covering tunnels that disguise the radius 2/3 curves needed.

 

Both of them are to move of course, and will be more so once scenery is applied and I can no longer reach inside the frame to pick up.  Unless I can find a way of including handles in the scenery? Hmmm, now there’s a thought.

To take the back board as an example, it consists of 3 pieces of plywood longways, 5 pieces across.  Each will need to be removed (one at a time so that the structure retains overall stability) and various parts cut away.

 

I’ve made a start with the easiest to get at tonight – the very back most long board, a hefty 1200mm x 600mm (vertical) 9mm ply sheet consisting part sub frame, part backscene. I won’t bore you with a ‘before’ picture, since I’m sure you can picture it, instead I will bore you with the end result:

 

 

Its not much, but it is a start. I will try not to show off every carving, tempting thought it is. Happy new year!

[NittenDormer]

2 months since my last update, and yet it doesn't feel like I have very much to show. I have spent quite a lot of time cutting holes in my boards like. ... that proverbial holey thing that escapes me at the moment.

 

I have been testing clearances at some of the pinch points, and established that things (just about) squeeze through :

 

I came up with a way of turning a spirit level into an inclinometer (putting a bit of card under one end) and will be patenting it shortly

 

 

Working on another module, I have turned this

into this

 

And And I have tried my first ever attempt at ballasting, which was fun and could be done in the house. There is still plenty happening, but the cold evenings are finally getting to me and I could do with spring, not least because I have reached the no-turning-back point of gluing the plywood together permanently so that I can get on with track laying and scenery, but it is too cold for the glue to set. Incidentally, my children ballasted some of the track pictured. I am not telling you which though.

Edited March 5, 2018 by NittenDormer

[NittenDormer]

The right pictures, just not necessarily in the right order!

[Ian R. Weeks]

Oh what an unexpected flashback.During the summer break from university in 1976 and 1977 I worked in the parks department at Irvine and was a grave digger at Knadgerhill and satellite cemeteries.Oh what fond memories of summer skiving behind the headstones.

[NittenDormer]

And for the next utterly unexciting development... This weekend I have been mostly replacing screws with glue and panel pins. Apologies that I don't have 'before' and 'after' pictures to amaze you with. It is another point of no return for me, with the joints in question no longer easily reversible if there are problems later on. Because I am an edgy, risk-taking type of guy, I have been gluing in a 6° garage when the bottle says minimum temp 7°. But I am keeping the glued parts in the house overnight.

[NittenDormer]

Gluing this week. I have discovered a new supply of clamps in the wardrobe.

[NittenDormer]

This week I have been mostly... buying second hand points in preparation for track laying. Now I am waiting for them to arrive and see what state they are in.

[NittenDormer]

You know how I was complaining a while ago about the weather being too bad for modelling (in the unheated garage). Well, now the opposite problem applies - the weather is too good. The bicycle is getting dusted off (and the legs), the Giro is on TV for 3 weeks, the Tour de Yorkshire looked simply stunning... it is a conspiracy.

 

Nonetheless, there is the usual snail-like progress. I am currently working towards laying track out from the fiddle yard, round the first 180-degree curve and along the front.

 

To this end, I am looking at the front-end board:

 

This is the first (of many) pinch points, where the track, having set off at a mere +50mm above the baseboard bottoms, crosses a stream/river. As you can see, the riverbed has been set into the baseboard framework rather than on top, giving me a little more clearance (this also allowed be to use offcuts rather than a new piece, which pleased me far more than it should).  There is still only 13mm between the bottom of the track bed and the 50mm-height flat base (the track here is climbing, a classic mish-mash angle of 1mm every 3 inches, although you could call it 1 in 75 if you had to). My 9mm and 5.5mm plywood did not add up to 13mm, so in looking for something to support the track bed, I came across some discarded hardwood venetian blind slats which, when crudely snapped and glued in blocks of 5, fit the 13mm gap perfectly (you can see the two blocks clamped in the background). Strangely, the 13mm blocks seem to fit both sides of the stream gap, although there should be a 1mm or 2mm difference in the height needed. 

 

Here is a second angle.  The venetian blind supports are doubly useful because there is no other support for the trackbed between the back of the baseboard (where the tunnel-shaped hole is) and the upright nearest the camera. The stream bridge will be approximately between the tissue and the clamp:

 

 

Meanwhile, at the fiddle yard exit, I have a height difference due to using different thickness of cork on the two boards. As these are 3mm and 2.5mm, the difference should only be 0.5mm, but something will need to go under the non-fiddle-yard trackbed to align it. Strangely, the 2.5mm blind slat seems to work for this too.

 

Edited May 17, 2018 by NittenDormer

[NittenDormer]

And yet again, there has been far too long a silence.  Tonight, after finally deciding to start watching the football (word cup) I discover there isn't a game. In some ways a relief, after last night's 120 unproductive minutes.

 

Dunno whether it is the hot weather, but some of the previously stuck down cork is no longer sticking. So first job - do what has already been done again. It is Wickes floor tiles, which have a shiny side and a normal-cork side. Previously I had stuck the shiny side down, this time I am trying the corky side down, with added oomph in the 'adding pressure':

 

 

Other colours of paint are also available.

Next was to remove some track previously tentatively pinned down. I say tentatively in the sense that it was not in the final position, however the pins had been hammered right down, resulting in me investigating track pin removal techniques. The web-suggested options either did not work or pulled the cork up, but I discovered a pair of mini screwdrivers applied from both sides will lever it up in a controlled fashion:

 

 

Then - woohoo - I have tentatively pinned down some track in the intended position. This is in the fiddle yard, so appearances not important, but I am not sure how to get both rails on the flexi track lined up - they go out of sync as soon as I bend it, as per the track nearest the camera:

 

 

Next experiment was how to align the end of the flex track so it does not kink off in another direction at the join. It doesn't look too bad, I will return with  fresh eyes and a mirror tomorrow to check.

 

 

Sadly this momentum is unlikely to be maintained, with the Tour de France starting next week, and a trip to the vicinity of a certain Welsh narrow gauge line that always makes me think of Carry On don't Lose Your Head's Sir Rodney Effing (with two 'F's).  Which reminds me of an outdated joke:

Q How do you fit an elephant in a Safeway bag?

A First you take the 'F' out of 'Safe', then you take the 'F' out of 'way'.

If you know the answer, post a reply (then I will know someone is reading this rambling).

[NittenDormer]

With the Tour de France over, I need to start searching for another excuse for my lack of progress. Not to worry, the 3-week Vuelta a España starts later this month.

 

A few months ago, I bought a very basic (Maplins) soldering iron. Today was my first attempt to use it for real (I tried attaching 2 ends of a wire last week, but only 1 stuck, and I burnt my finger, so I am gradually ticking all the boxes).

 

This is my first attempt at getting track attached solidly and aligned correctly at a baseboard join. I am starting at the fiddle yard, so appearances are not vital. It seemed far too fiddly to attempt soldering accurately in situ, so I drew round the track and transferred to a spare piece of cork that was more manoeuvrable… ta da!

 

 

In the comfort and bright lights of indoors, this is the result. It may not be the prettiest or strongest joint in the world, I don’t expect it to be perfect first time, but it is better than what I was capable of last week. However, any comments or suggestions welcome. For statto’s, the soldering iron is 40w, the solder is ‘lead free, Sn 99.3%, Cu 0.7%’ (I have no idea whether any of that is good or bad), and I didn’t use flux, because I can’t get my head around whatever it adds to the process. Time will tell whether it has actually stuck securely, or accurately. And yes, given that the solder is on the inside of the rail, I have tried running a wagon over it for smoothness.

 

 

[NittenDormer]

I now have the track for my first cross-board joint:

Only problem is, a close look at the tracks reveals a slight mis-alignment:

Which I am not sure how to resolve. It doesn't look so bad with the left hand track mis-aligned, maybe I can leave it:

Either way, Iit is too difficult for me to fix just now, maybe I will come back to it.

[stevejjjexcov]

Hi in the second photo the left hand track looks to have a curve so just unsolder and realine the other one looks to have a kink where it joins the next point.

 

The best way to solve the problem is to remove the miss alined track and the short pieces of track from the points. Then relay a length of track between the points,solder in place then cut the track across the join with a disc cutter or razor saw. This should cure the problem.

Hope this helps

 

All the best Steve

[NittenDormer]

Thanks for hte 

 

Hi in the second photo the left hand track looks to have a curve so just unsolder and realine the other one looks to have a kink where it joins the next point.

The best way to solve the problem is to remove the miss alined track and the short pieces of track from the points. Then relay a length of track between the points,solder in place then cut the track across the join with a disc cutter or razor saw. This should cure the problem.
Hope this helps

All the best Steve

Thanks for the suggestion Steve, in the end I went for unsoldering one track and redoing it (I have those track nipper things rather than a razor saw). 

[stevejjjexcov]

That's OK glad to help

[NittenDormer]

And the progress continues, but slowly...

 

The LH end of the fiddle yard is coming along nicely, from this...

 

 

... to this...

 

 

Note that the pins are deliberately sticking up, as the moment I securely pin/glue it down, I will remember a reason why I shouldn't have done that.

 

Looking the other way is not so promising...

 

 

There seems to be an endless list of actions needed to complete whatever I want to do.

I can't lay track all the way to the baseboard edge because I want to make sure the next board aligns correctly first (I've bought some aligners from Station Road Baseboards that are pretty good, however my inability to align the holes on the first 3 or 4 efforts meant that the boards became less aligned after using the alignment dowels).

I can't align the next board because I haven't permanently stuck it all together yet.

I can't stick it together yet because I need to cut some of the parts to fit the tracks (particularly the two furthest from the edge).

I can't cut the parts yet because I am not sure of the exact track layout.

I'm not sure of the exact track layout because I haven't built the next board beyond that one yet...

 

 

[lmsforever]

Are you enjoying the Tour of Spain good racing this week tomrrow is going to be very hard,oh like the track laying  .

[rob D2]

I now have the track for my first cross-board joint:20180804_213124.jpg

Only problem is, a close look at the tracks reveals a slight mis-alignment: 20180804_213137.jpg

Which I am not sure how to resolve. It doesn't look so bad with the left hand track mis-aligned, maybe I can leave it:

20180804_213731.jpg

Either way, Iit is too difficult for me to fix just now, maybe I will come back to it.

 

I think you’ll need to cut channels between tracks to stop short circuit ?

[NittenDormer]

I think you’ll need to cut channels between tracks to stop short circuit ?

Thanks Rob, I have done this, but since the photo.

 

Are you enjoying the Tour of Spain good racing this week tomrrow is going to be very hard,oh like the track laying  .

Vuelta a Espana AND Tour of Britain this week. What a nightmare!