Lancaster Green Ayre - The Barn Owls have returned.

[jamie92208]

Hi there Jamie.

Looking very good in the toddler mate very good indeed.

Regards Lez.Z.

Thanks for that Lez.   I saw a copy last night at the club rooms and it's come out a lot better than I thought it would.   Derek Shore has did a great job with the photos and the reproduction is superb.  I'm very pleased with it.   The arrangements for Warley are in place and we are looking forward to it.

 

Yesterday I put the couplers and buffers on the EMU and took the whole set to the club to run it on the test track.   I was worried about adhesion and sure enough it needed a few ounces of lead over the motor bogie but was then capable of pushing the two trailers.  There is some snagging to do though.  

 

a) I need to find a way of stopping the oval buffers rotating while still allowing them to spring. I have some ideas involving plasticard blocks and super glue so will experiment later today.

 

b) I need to make the bogies on the steam stock trailer rotate a bit better as one kept derailing on reverse curves last night. Some brass shims should do the trick. Then I'll glue some lead under the floor of the motor car.

 

In the meantime I got some cancel buttons for the signalling system wired up and tested while Sam was testing the EMU.   The last of the boards was crated up after repairing an overhead stanchion that had come loose and we then had a general tidy up of the back room as all the exhibition stuff needs to come out of there next week.   I may be able to do some demonstrating at our show and plan to have the EMU coaches with me.

 

Jamie

[bbishop]

There is some snagging to do though.  

 

a) I need to find a way of stopping the oval buffers rotating while still allowing them to spring. I have some ideas involving plasticard blocks and super glue so will experiment later today.

 

 

Jamie

 

Jamie,

 

There is a possible solution, albeit in 4mm, in the latest copy of MRJ (#258).

 

Bill

[jamie92208]

Another day another dollar as they say. I set to work this afternoon to sort the rotating buffers out and this was the result.

I made some little fillets of plasticard that fit over the protruding thread on the buffer tail rod and the superglued them on which also locked the nut, It seems to work and the buffers still slide in and out.
See photo 2 which won't embed for some reason.

I put these on the two vehicles that have Oval buffers and then tried the three vehicles on the test track which has reverse curves. This showed rather a lot of overhang by the motor coach and induced buffer locking.
See Photo 1.

I need to test them on the layout but it's racked and stacked now. My idea for a temporary solution is to glue a strip of glazing material across the buffers on the motor car that protrudes both sides of the oval buffers. That should enable propelling to take place. Then if here is no trouble at Warley I'll take the strip pf plastic off.

 

I've also araldited a lot of printers type into the motor end of the power car.   About 5 ozs.

Jamie

Edited November 11, 2017 by jamie92208

[bbishop]

At Tolworth, I asked a North Eastern modeller about the paint scheme for the perishable vans. After some humming and hawing he agreed with me that rattle can red oxide was a reasonable approximation. So I went home via Wickes and bought a can, which I needed anyway to undercoat the Knotty van. Whilst I was there I thought about a grey rattle can as a spare, but decided against. Lo and behold, the grey can gave up the ghost half way through the tariff vans, so another trip to Wickes!

 

Bill

[lezz01]

Hi Jamie.

With the buffers I would have threaded the buffer housing onto a piercing saw and cut a channel  into the inside bore. Then drilled the buffer shank and soldered a 0.5 or 0.7 mm pin into the shank so that the pin followed the channel.....but then I do over engineer everything and if the plasticard works then hey why not  

Regards Lez.Z. 

[jamie92208]

Hi Jamie.

With the buffers I would have threaded the buffer housing onto a piercing saw and cut a channel  into the inside bore. Then drilled the buffer shank and soldered a 0.5 or 0.7 mm pin into the shank so that the pin followed the channel.....but then I do over engineer everything and if the plasticard works then hey why not

Regards Lez.Z. 

 

Thanks or the thoughts Lez.   Yours is certainly a better permanent solution.   One of the problems that I've got at the moment is that one of my modelling benches and a lot of tools are already either in France or packed away waiting to go so for some jobs it's a matter of making do with what I've still got to hand.   The big test will be when they are running on the layout to see how much the curvature effects things.   I'll probably put the Perspex strips on and then if they aren't needed take them off.   The laout is all crated up now and it's ur own show next weekend so I won't get chance to put it up before Warley.

 

Thanks again for the thoughts.

 

Jamie

 

Jamie

[sir douglas]

i was thinking while out with the dog a few hours ago, what about a fixed coupling length like a single long chain link that cant slack so the buffer heads cant pass each other and lock

[jamie92208]

i was thinking while out with the dog a few hours ago, what about a fixed coupling length like a single long chain link that cant slack so the buffer heads cant pass each other and lock

 

Worth having a look at that on Monday when the exhibition preparations are done.  Thanks.

 

Jamie

[bbishop]

I spent the evening painting four van bodies, the two tariffs, the GER and the Knotty.  This is the stage I like best; followed by the worst - lettering.  The Knotty is a rich madder lake.  I surprised that there are so few NSR layouts about, I suppose due to the scarcity of kits in any scale.

 

There is some work to be done on the perishables (brake gear and buffers), then a second spray with rattle can red oxide and they are finished.

 

Bill

[45156]

Got my RM as soon as it came out, and went straight to the article - the layout really came out well, and I wish you well for Warley.

[jamie92208]

Thanks for that Stuart it has come out well and I'm very pleased with it.

 

Over the last week I've been working on the buildings that sit between the back of the shed and the stationmasters house. These were part of the old Lune Foundry which was bought by the Midland and date from the Georgian period. There has been a lot of selective compression in this area and the buildings have existed as part built ones or cardboard mock ups for some time but there has always been other areas that took priority. I had some windows and doors fro them made by Dave (unravelled of this parish) at the same time as he cut the ones for the buildings that Flavio has just sent me. This gave me the spur to try and get them looking a bit better. The most obvious bit that needed work was the roofs and so with bonfire night having provided a supply of rocket sticks I made some mounting board bases that fit into the plywood carcass. These then had more card added to support the roof.

This is the base for the smaller building which was part of the moulding shop but I believe became an ironmongers.

This also had some supports added.

This is what the building was looking like.

I ordered some more slates and ridge tiles from York Modelmaking and these arrived Friday. I therefore suspended work on my wagon building demonstration and got the roofs finished. There weren't enough ridge tiles but I worked out a way to use the waste from the sheets and finished the job off. I also put the windows and doors in and after further study of the photos that I;ve got added a plasticard pediment today along with a length of mock wooden gutter along the larger building. I now need to pair the windows and doors and add downpipes.

 

I also got chance to solder an ABS wagon kit for an LNWR 2 plank wagon together and also to do some work on an LSWR carriage truck.

 

Jamie

Edited November 19, 2017 by jamie92208

[jamie92208]

Well the 5 days of Warley have now started.  I know the show only lasts two days but there are many steps to getting the layout in place for 9.15 on Saturday morning,   Tuesday was spent plumbing the new buildings that had arrived from Switzerland into place.   Then the hydrocal needed 24 hour to dry so I went back Wednesday evening to take the boards down and get them ready for transport.

Here is the shed area from the front with all the buildings in place looking along Cable Street into Parliament Street.

Here is the area at the back of the shed with the three new buildings.  From left to right there are the and drying house and then it's associated chimbley.  then comes a much foreshortened shed office. \Beside the office is the essential smallest room that was made earlier.

The third photos shows the general area and the one remaining cardboard mock up in the area.  This was the old foundry building with it's associated large chimney that Flavio made earlier.  The Managers House was used as the Stationmasters House.

Today I started by sorting the rolling stock and getting it all downstairs.   Then set off at 12 to catch the bus into Leeds to pick up the lorry.  The hire firm hadn't been certain that they could get the right type or size.  Fortunately it all worked out and I was away by 12.45. Then I had to pick up 7 pallets that my eldest son had arranged for me.   Sam arrived at 1.30 and we started loading all the stuff from the house and the shed.  It felt rather strange leaving the shed empty knowing that the layout wouldn't be coming back.  Here's the lorry across the drive for the last time.

Then it was on to the chicken shed at the other end of the village and Sam and I had to carry 4 heavy crates down the path and across the lawn to where we can park the lorry.

The shed belonged to the late Peter Marshall who helped with the design in the early days and was a good friend.  His widow has kindly allowed me to use the shed for storage and work on the fiddle yard.

We set off about 3pm and arrived at the clubrooms at 3.30 where we loaded the remaining 7 layout crates as well as stock and other items.   This is what the lorry interior looked like.

We set off about 4.30 and I dropped Sam to get his bus home.   Then an hour of heavy traffic got me to the area where our storage container is and I loaded the lighting rig and pelmets.  the lorry then got locked away in a secure compound courtesy of my local garage and I got home for dinner about 7pm.  

 

Tomorrow I will ne away about 7.45 as will all the rest of the team who are travelling from other places such as London, Scunthorpe, Long Eaton, Cleckheaton,  and Huddersfield.   We then spend the rest of the day putting the layout up and testing it.   Saturday and Sunday are show days and then strip down and pack the lorry due home about 10pm.   Monday morning will be spent packing, strapping and wrapping the layout onto Pallets ready for it to travel to France in January.  That's a busy 5 days.

 

Jamie

 

[enginelane]

Well the 5 days of Warley have now started.  I know the show only lasts two days but there are many steps to getting the layout in place for 9.15 on Saturday morning,   Tuesday was spent plumbing the new buildings that had arrived from Switzerland into place.   Then the hydrocal needed 24 hour to dry so I went back Wednesday evening to take the boards down and get them ready for transport.

Here is the shed area from the front with all the buildings in place looking along Cable Street into Parliament Street.

171122-1.jpg

Here is the area at the back of the shed with the three new buildings.  From left to right there are the and drying house and then it's associated chimbley.  then comes a much foreshortened shed office. \Beside the office is the essential smallest room that was made earlier.

171122-2.jpg

The third photos shows the general area and the one remaining cardboard mock up in the area.  This was the old foundry building with it's associated large chimney that Flavio made earlier.  The Managers House was used as the Stationmasters House.

171122-3.jpg

Today I started by sorting the rolling stock and getting it all downstairs.   Then set off at 12 to catch the bus into Leeds to pick up the lorry.  The hire firm hadn't been certain that they could get the right type or size.  Fortunately it all worked out and I was away by 12.45. Then I had to pick up 7 pallets that my eldest son had arranged for me.   Sam arrived at 1.30 and we started loading all the stuff from the house and the shed.  It felt rather strange leaving the shed empty knowing that the layout wouldn't be coming back.  Here's the lorry across the drive for the last time.

171123-1.jpg

Then it was on to the chicken shed at the other end of the village and Sam and I had to carry 4 heavy crates down the path and across the lawn to where we can park the lorry.

171123-2.jpg

The shed belonged to the late Peter Marshall who helped with the design in the early days and was a good friend.  His widow has kindly allowed me to use the shed for storage and work on the fiddle yard.

We set off about 3pm and arrived at the clubrooms at 3.30 where we loaded the remaining 7 layout crates as well as stock and other items.   This is what the lorry interior looked like.

171123-3.jpg

We set off about 4.30 and I dropped Sam to get his bus home.   Then an hour of heavy traffic got me to the area where our storage container is and I loaded the lighting rig and pelmets.  the lorry then got locked away in a secure compound courtesy of my local garage and I got home for dinner about 7pm.  

 

Tomorrow I will ne away about 7.45 as will all the rest of the team who are travelling from other places such as London, Scunthorpe, Long Eaton, Cleckheaton,  and Huddersfield.   We then spend the rest of the day putting the layout up and testing it.   Saturday and Sunday are show days and then strip down and pack the lorry due home about 10pm.   Monday morning will be spent packing, strapping and wrapping the layout onto Pallets ready for it to travel to France in January.  That's a busy 5 days.

 

Jamie

Have fun,

[jamie92208]

Thanks Steve, We will do our best. I was about to write a reply mentioning the little box that you left in the clubrooms. I am very grateful indeed and look forward to opening it at the NEC tomorrow.  I will post some pictures and reveal all tomorrow hopefully.  Thanks again.

 

Jamie

[roundhouse]

Jamie

 

All the best for the weekend. Wish I could see the layout in the flesh again  but wont be at Warley this year.

 

 

Ian

[enginelane]

Thanks Steve, We will do our best. I was about to write a reply mentioning the little box that you left in the clubrooms. I am very grateful indeed and look forward to opening it at the NEC tomorrow.  I will post some pictures and reveal all tomorrow hopefully.  Thanks again.

 

Jamie

My pleasure, I seem to have one bit that I could not work out where it went and I have found some material that would make a good tarpaulin if you wanted the mechanism to be covered. The towing struts are very fragile in the down position but they would work well tied up against the smokebox door. Will have a look when you get back

[45156]

Hope all goes well for you tomorrow and Sunday, and that there is no need for the great hand from the sky to make an appearance, and that the electrics all behave.

 

I'm sorry that I couldn't get there as the invite to be part of the team was greatly appreciated, and a free visit to Warley with some expenses paid would be a dream ticket which I didn't turn down lightly.

 

Regards

Stewart

[ColinK]

In case anyone is not aware, the Greyhound Bridge in Lancaster is closing for repair in January for six months. I don’t know it the work will change how it looks. But if you need more pictures, take them soon.

 

While the Greyhound bridge is now a road bridge, it used to be the bridge taking trains from Green Ayre to Morecambe.

[Ohmisterporter]

While the work on Greyhound bridge is under way there will be two way traffic over Skerton bridge. Just as it was at the time Jamie's layout is set. 

[45156]

While the work on Greyhound bridge is under way there will be two way traffic over Skerton bridge. Just as it was at the time Jamie's layout is set. 

Which promises to be wonderful for traffic conditions in Lancaster and Morecambe - NOT

[45156]

Wot - Warley almost over and  no pictures from anybody at all????

[sir douglas]

no pics from myself this time but a little review,

 

we had the usual intermittent problem some minor and some major but overall, the layout ran much better than at previous shows, even though there were instances of no through trains running, this time we were able to keep the viewers attention with shed, goods yard and castle branch movements, i think this time we did something right as there isnt any criticism for LGA on the show thread like there was for Ally Pally

 

Jamie and shez are currently or have just unloaded the lorry ready for France, a mistake on my end meant that i wasnt able to get there

[jamie92208]

As Sam has mentioned above the layout is now mainly palletized and shrink wrapped ready for travelling to France in January.   The weekend was hard work, especially as I picked up a tummy bug on Sunday and had to spend the night at Castle Donnington rather than getting home. However I now feel like a member of the human race again.

 

The layout went up well on Friday but test running was curtailed by electrical gremlins in the fiddle yard.  These mystified us as everything had been working perfectly 3 weeks before when we packed to boards up ready for travelling.  Saturday morning I installed a new point control switch as by the law of sod the 'dicky' point was the entrance to the down fiddle yard.   Gradually things started running and by Saturday afternoon we had the three main sections running well, the Castle Branch, the locoshed and the main line.

 

On Sunday things continued to progress and as operators became familiar with the procedures more moves started being made.   I also got my EMU running.   First s a single motor car then with 1 trailer and finally as a 3 car set.  The buffer locking was solved by addition of a piece of wire across the buffers on the motor car.   As it ran more it seemed to run in and by the afternoon was performing a full circuit from Fiddle Yard to the Station then up the Castle Branch and return.   

 

We also got light engines coming on and off shed and Robert spent a lot of time running a loco up and down the goods yard.   At one point there were 5 locos moving in the area at the same time which looked great.  We also had a trip freight running from the cassettes to the Castle Branch.   12 years after I started planning the layout it was great to actually see these moves taking place.

 

Throughout the weekend we had many visitors to the layout who knew the area.  One guy pointed to the two cottages on Damside Street (On the Castle Branch scenic) break and said that he had been born in the right hand one.

 

After the delayed journey home Mark (Shez) and I unloaded the layout but found that the crate containing greyhound bridge had been damaged and one of the catenary supports has been bent flat.  Hopefully it will straighten and get sorted with some attention from a soldering iron.   Tomorrow I'm going down to the warehouse to repair the crate and finish off that pallet.   I might even remember to take my camera.

 

It has been a tiring weekend and I would like to publicly thank the crew who came from many parts to help the dream come true.

 

Jamie

[Shez]

Thanks Jamie,

 

Model railways certainly do open up new horizons! Yesterday the workings of a continental goods shipment warehouse as we pallet ed up the crates. I can build brass locos and make them run, but couldn't get the hang of using that plastic wrapping to save my life!

 

As I said to Jamie, yesterday being on the road with Green Ayre has stretched my patience, vocabulary and lower back. I have cursed the cattle train as a re railed it for the umpteenth time, panicked as smoke emitted from the fiddle yard control panel, and  publicly declared that I wanted to chuck the Fiddle Yard in a  skip. I have questioned my sanity as we wrestled heavy crates back into the church in the early hours of the morning, and once caught a loco in mid air having sent it down the cassette by mistake. However, despite the frustrations I kept coming back for more. ( Bit like following Town really)

 

Why? well partly from the smashing people you get to work with, but also because of the sheer scale and vision of the project. To try to build it is mad, but to take it out on the road and show it people is another level. Despite the layouts shortcomings and imperfections, when you stand at one end and look down from the loco shed, over the cluster of buildings to the sweeping curves beyond, it has presence and an epic scale that's difficult to match. I really hope that its permanent home gives it the chance to develop its full potential. 

 

Thanks Jamie - its been a fantastic if sometimes bumpy ride!

[45156]

Agree, as I've been there, done that, and I have seen and operated the layout, so know its problems from first hand.  However, the complexity of the electrics and wiring is on a similar scale to the size and scale of the layout itself, and to see the spaghetti and the innards of the control box is a real eye opener.  At Lancaster, there was an Oriental lady with her son, and Jamie spent quite some time showing the workings of everything, to their amazement that there was no digital presence at all there to assist. 

 

I have worked on a much smaller layout many years ago, and on an exhibition there was an electrical fault on setup, and I spent all night trying to chase out the fault with a meter and test lamp, then having to work out a temporary rewire to restore running the the down side platforms, but with no flexibility in the operation.

 

It happens, it happens, and regrettably, gremlins lurk at the door of every exhibition hall.