Whaley Shunt (Shallcross Yard)

[Tortuga]

After changing the tip in the soldering iron, this was the result of an hours work:

 

Thats all the feeds soldered to the point motors ready for wiring up - apart from one orange wire that obviously needed a touch more solder.

 

Next job is to connect all the droppers to common feeds via chock blocks and see if it (hopefully) works!*
 

*I do need to add in an additional couple of droppers for the long siding first - forgot to do that earlier.

[Tortuga]

Note on the wire colours (just in case anyone wants to know)

Red: positive feed to track

Black: negative feed to track

Blue & Orange: positive feed to point motors from passing contact switches

Green: common return for point motors (and separately feed to point frogs (frogs are green) - I figure I should be able to tell the difference between the return wire and the frog feed)

White: feeds to point frogs on the tandem point (frogs are… umm… white in this case?)

[NHY 581]

On 05/11/2023 at 23:23, Tortuga said:

Thanks for the advice gents.

In the short term, I’ll look at getting some tip restorer and, if I can, some more replacement tips - if I remember right I got the soldering iron as a Christmas/birthday present when I was still living with my parents - but I suspect they’re long out of manufacture, so it’s probably time to invest in a new soldering iron…

 

To move the project on, I’m going to scrap the copper clad sleepers - not happy with their appearance tbh - and reinstate plastic sleepers at the board joints, though I’ll reinforce their positions using track pins through the webbing for added security.

 

Morning Nick, 

 

Like me, you'll probably use a couple of spare PECO sleepers but PECO actually do spare sleepers specifically as infills etc. 

 

Came across them in the catalogue yesterday. 

 

Rob. 

[Tortuga]

Cheers Rob. Forgot to mention last night; the copper clad sleepers have been removed and consigned to the bin.

 

Replacements have, of course, been fashioned from spare sleepers - waste not, want not - glued down and pinned through the webbing with PECO track pins in drilled 0.6mm holes.

[Tortuga]

I’ll just leave this here.

 

(Hope that link works!)

[Graham T]

Nice - but rather brave I thought!

[Enterprisingwestern]

8 minutes ago, Graham T said:

Nice - but rather brave I thought!

 

Optimism bordering on stupidity with a sprinkle of hopefulness and a soupcon of confidence!!

 

Mike.

[Tortuga]

Not quite the responses I was expecting to be honest?

 

Have I missed something blindingly obvious / done something monumentally stupid?

[5BarVT]

I’d be happy to test on a board as short as that.

 

 

 

 

With a safety guard across each end!

Paul.

[Tortuga]

Ah, I see.

I was beginning to think I’d shared my bank details by mistake.

 

I did experiment with some practice runs before shooting the video if that puts anyone’s minds at rest.

[Enterprisingwestern]

14 hours ago, Tortuga said:

Not quite the responses I was expecting to be honest?

 

Have I missed something blindingly obvious / done something monumentally stupid?

 

Apologies for my sense of humour.

You're a braver man than me!

 

Mike.

[Tortuga]

It’s OK Mike. I apologise for my grumpiness.

 

On reflection, running an 8F at speed, up and down a four foot long, 150mm high board without end protection was possibly not the best decision I could’ve made!
I was just so stoked to actually get something running on a layout*, I didn’t stop to consider possible consequences - still could’ve been worse!

 

(*last time I was at this stage was before I started Secondary School**)
 

(**1991ish)

Edited November 9, 2023 by Tortuga
Missing words

[NHY 581]

22 hours ago, Tortuga said:

I’ll just leave this here.

 

(Hope that link works!)

 

 

Top stuff, Nick. Always a bit of a mile stone to get something running. 

 

Good to see. 

 

Rob

[malc60015]

On 06/11/2023 at 13:24, Nick C said:

I'd agree that the iron/tip isn't getting hot enough. I've got a temperature controlled one from Circuit Specialists (https://www.circuitspecialists.eu/soldering-desoldering/soldering-stations - though they no longer show the 75W one I've got), which was recommended by, IIRC, @hayfield

 

I'd also suggest that the rail looks very tarnished, which will also stop the solder sticking. Give the area you're soldering to a good clean up with a glassfibre brush beforehand, so it's nice and shiny. 

try this:-  https://www.circuitspecialists.eu/csi-premier75w-digital-temperature-controlled-solder-station-with-75w-soldering-iron

[Tortuga]

A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all on here and especially those who follow my ramblings on either of my threads!

 

December marks the anniversary of the Whaley Shunt thread and a chance to look at progress over the year - in short the layout has progressed from this:

to this:

 

Over the course of the year cork has been laid to (hopefully) achieve that ‘buried sleeper’ look so characteristic of the C&HPR; track has been laid; a new frame (for the inglenook board) has been made, together with the extension board; the track on the inglenook board has been wired up, together with point motors and a CDU; and finally, I’ve run a loco on the inglenook board.

 

For the New Year, priorities are:

1) Sorting the alignment dowels at the joint - the eagle-eyed among you might notice the inner ends of the boards are missing!

2) Completing track laying and wiring on the extension board.

3) Completing electrification of the layout - a walkabout controller has been ordered and I need to finalise where a small point control panel will go.

4) Building / adding couplings to some rolling stock!

[NHY 581]

Merry New Year, Nick. 

 

Thoroughly enjoyed meeting up at Stafford and following your adventures in '23. Looking forward to progress in 2024. 

 

Rob

[Tortuga]

Priority 1 has been achieved. I repeat, priority 1 has been achieved.

 

Alignment dowels fitted to the joining ends between the inglenook board and the extension: for some reason, I always struggle with getting these right, which is why the ends will need filler and paint to disguise my first attempt!

 

I can now proceed with drilling lightening holes in the joining ends and reattaching the ends to their respective boards.

 

On to Priority 2!*
 

(* or 3 or 4…)

[JustinDean]

Happy new year Nik!

Good to see some Shallcross progress. 
 

Jay

[Tortuga]

Lightening holes drilled and the ends are back on their respective boards. First trial joining seems OK, but some tweaking of the track alignment was needed - ran out of time to double check it tonight.

[Tortuga]

Oh ho! Bricks are in position at the end of the extension board! This can only mean one thing…

 

Yes, the last lengths of the track are currently being stuck in position ready for wiring up; Priority two is underway.

 

Now folks, I need some advice. Is it worth bashing the PECO buffer stop into a representation of the LNWR rail-built type?

 The main issue is the slight mismatch between the depth of the plastic ‘rails’ and the Code 75 track - is this likely to be as obvious once the track is ballasted and weed covered?

[NHY 581]

Here's my take on it Nick. 

 

Popped onto Code 75. I concealed the miss match with a bit of static fluff. 

 

 

 

 

 

Rob

 

 

[Tortuga]

Excellent work Rob! Good to know that the maestro has used the same part on his masterpieces.  Are yours secured firmly to the baseboard or track at all?  Mine seems a touch too lightly attached: one heavy shunt and…

 

Because I’m me, there will be an element of hackerage involved - same as yours, the lamps need to go and the tie rods need adding - as I intend to add plates to the vertical rails in place of the bent bits either side of the track rails.

[Fishplate]

10 hours ago, NHY 581 said:

Here's my take on it Nick. 

 

Popped onto Code 75. I concealed the miss match with a bit of static fluff. 

 

This conversation is very timely. I received some of these stops as part of a present (under 'What do you want, we have no idea what to get you'). May I ask what rail colour you have used Rob @NHY 581?

 

I've started rail painting, following another topic, but it needs darkening up. I am planning to obtain some railmatch 'sleeper grime' and was wondering if that is what you have used?

[NHY 581]

Bonjour Fishpaste, 

 

My track painting has evolved over time and still is. Mutton’s track was laid then sprayed overall with Humbrol no.29, Dark earth. The sleepers were then painted individually with track colour, Humbrol no.173. The buffer stops were also sprayed with dark earth but after being washed with soapy water as the plastic reminded me of the Airfix soldiers I had as a youngster. I left it at that I think as the track on the Lyme Regis branch ( on which Mutton was based ) was kept in pretty much good order. 

 

I then added various rusty weathering powders to the buffer beams and to the rails at the very end of the sidings, around the buffer stops. The supplied rail buffer beams were replaced with stripwood as I wanted an appearance more akin to a typical L&SWR buffer stop. I also added tie rods from brass wire and a lamp iron from a bit of metal strip. 

 

9 hours ago, Tortuga said:

Excellent work Rob! Good to know that the maestro has used the same part on his masterpieces.  Are yours secured firmly to the baseboard or track at all?  Mine seems a touch too lightly attached: one heavy shunt and…

 

Because I’m me, there will be an element of hackerage involved - same as yours, the lamps need to go and the tie rods need adding - as I intend to add plates to the vertical rails in place of the bent bits either side of the track rails.

 

 

Mange tout, Nick. 

 

You’re too kind. They were secured using nothing more scientific than a few blobs of Gorilla gel superglue and held just fine. I had two buffer stops on Mutton. Pretty certain I rounded the ends on one of the the wooden bufferbeams,  again typically L&SWR. 

 

Rob

 

 

Edited January 5 by NHY 581

[durham light infantry]

1 hour ago, NHY 581 said:

Bonjour Fishpaste, 

 

My track painting has evolved over time and still is. Mutton’s track was laid then sprayed overall with Humbrol no.29, Dark earth. The sleepers were then painted individually with track colour, Humbrol no.173. The buffer stops were also sprayed with dark earth but after being washed with soapy water as the plastic reminded me of the Airfix soldiers I had as a youngster. I left it at that I think as the track on the Lyme Regis branch ( on which Mutton was based ) was kept in pretty much good order. 

 

I then added various rusty weathering powders to the buffer beams and to the rails at the very end of the sidings, around the buffer stops. The supplied rail buffer beams were replaced with stripwood as I wanted an appearance more akin to a typical L&SWR buffer stop. I also added tie rods from brass wire and a lamp iron from a bit of metal strip. 

 

 

 

Mange tout, Nick. 

 

You’re too kind. They were secured using nothing more scientific than a few blobs of Gorilla gel superglue and held just fine. I had two buffer stops on Mutton. Pretty certain I rounded the ends on one of the the wooden bufferbeams,  again typically L&SWR. 

 

Rob

 

 

 

Mutton buffer stop...