SRman's Current Layout - Newton Broadway

[SRman]

accidental duplication

 

 

 

Edited May 28, 2023 by SRman
accidental duplication

[Gwiwer]

7 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

Yes but top price too.

Indeed. But that’s where the market now is. 

[Gwiwer]

6 hours ago, SRman said:

accidental duplication

 

 

 

That’s what I said when I hit the  “Order” button for more stuff. 🤣

[SRman]

8 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

That’s what I said when I hit the  “Order” button for more stuff. 🤣

 

I've done that before, too. There can be such a time lag between ordering and delivery of items that we forget we've ordered in the first place. 😆😆

[SRman]

15 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

Yes but top price too.

I paid a little over £70 for the two Siphon Gs. Accurascale offer 10% off for two, plus I had reward credits and no VAT payable, so overall I think I've done well.

DougN had dropped over to return some models to me, and picked up the box and brought that in as well, so I gave him one of the Siphon boxes to open while I opened the other. He spent a while admiring the model and in particular, the detail on the bogies, which is very, very good.

 

[SRman]

I have just had some fun with swapping a few functions on both the LT pannier and the Bachmann LT class 20 (20 142), both of which have Zimo sound decoders. It took me some time to get the hang of it, with some very helpful guidance (as always) from John Guymer of YouChoos.

Essentially the CVs in the 400 series correspond to the F key, so CV402, for example refers to function 2. You then put in the value of the function key you want that to take over the operation. In my case on the pannier, I wanted the playable whistle that was on F18 shifted down to F3, as being much easier to operate in the lower numbers. Conversely, the continuous looped blower sound that was on F5 could go on what was now a spare F18. The two shorter non-playable whistles on F3 and F4 could shift up one F key. Taking the F18 key, I wanted that on F3, so put in CV418 = 3 (to shift that function to F3). The same applied to getting F2 remapped to F5 on the class 20: CV402 = 5. It's all very simple … 🤣🤔 Anyway, I now have to try to speed-match the class 20 and Sarah Siddons, but at least the same F keys work the same functions for brake and whistle/horn. They are now in consist top-and-tailing the 4 TC set.

After working my brain around that, I need a drink!! 🍺🙄

 

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by SRman

[SRman]

I have been playing around with the Decoder settings on my Heljan Met Bo-Bo N0. 12 and Bachmann 20 142 'Sir John Betjeman' to try to align the functions a bit and also to speed match them to allow top-and-tailing a Kernow 4 TC set. The result so far is in this short video I posted to YouTube. There is still a little work needed to get them to match perfectly, but they are now close enough to run reliably in this formation - you will see them hunting slightly as they pass by.

The main function I needed to remap was the brake, which was on F5 on 'Sarah Siddons' but F2 on 20 142. As I wanted to keep the rather nice whistle on 'Sarah Siddons' on F2, the class 20 had its brake reallocated to F5, and the horns from F3 and F4 shifted down in the hierarchy to be on F2 and F3. It does all work, although at some stage I may reverse all this and put the brakes on both locos onto F2.
 

 

[SRman]

As reported in my post of 22nd May 2023, I bought a used Dapol class 73 in GBRf livery. I rewired the cab lights and reversed the direction of travel using CV29 (radiator end leading), and renamed and renumbered using Railtec transfers - the 3D name plate is particularly impressive. I have now added to all that by fitting Coastal DCC sound on an ESU LokSound 5 decoder, with a bass enhanced speaker with 3D printed sound chamber from Rail Exclusive. This is a very short few clips put together this morning to show it firstly as an electric (F7 engaged), then changing over to diesel power as it rounds the bend. I can't help the shaky camera work as I was trying to operate both phone cam and locomotive at the same time. I used a video stabilisation setting in MovieMaker, with limited success.

Also in the video are two of the Accurascale Siphon Gs, and initially two of the Rapido SECR 6-wheel brake vans (shunted off after the first circuit).

On the outer circuit of the main lines are a heap of other locomotives temporarily stored there awaiting their turns on video. Each of them has had some recent work done to improve or upgrade them. The LT pannier has already been seen with YouChoos sound fitted, Met Bo-Bo No. 8 Sherlock Holmes has had a decoder upgrade to ESU LokPilot, class 16 8404 has had another ESU LokSound decoder fitted with Coastal DCC sound, class 22 D6315 has had a LokSound 5 fitted with Coastal DCC sound, replacing the previous LokSound 4 with Howes' sound (that latter will be reblown and reallocated, hopefully with Legomanbiffo's class 207 sounds for one of my class 205 units), the Black 5 has had its running sorted out and a Zimo MX600 decoder fitted (replacing a Hornby decoder), and the S15 was a recent acquisition from a late friend Brian's Estate.

The Black 5 was an iffy runner before, but part of that I traced to none of the tender pickups working as all were pressed hard against the sides of its chassis. Putting a decent decoder in also helped.

The S15 has had an ESU LokPilot 4 fitted, and ran superbly right from the get-go. It looked like it had never been run when I took it from its box, although Brian had fitted Kadees to it.
 

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by SRman
Typo

[SRman]

Continuing the upgrades, I have just done two of the earliest DCC conversions I did that were hard-wired using Digitrax decoders (the only ones I could get at that time that would fit, a DZ123 and a DZ125). These were my two Bachmann N class 2-6-0 locos, 31860 and 31862. I have fitted two very small Zimo decoders now, and MX617F with its 6-pin plug cut off, and an MX616. 31860 was a little stiff and jerky at first but a spot of oil and a long running-in session freed it up nicely. 31862 ran beautifully straight off. The original Digitrax DZ123 doesn't even have BEMF compensation. Both old decoders will go into the spares for possible use as lighting (function only) decoders.

After that, I had run my two new Rapido/Rails SECR 6-wheel brake vans on the tail of the train but both were derailing at particular points on the layout. I investigated this, and as reported elsewhere, found the centre axles don't have any vertical play and very little side play. After unclipping the centre brake rigging and removing the axles, I pulled out the two bearing cups and reinserted the axles, so they are now fully floating on each van. A quick circuit showed the running was more reliable.

[SRman]

The new models are coming thick and fast. Fortunately I have prepaid most of the pre-orders, although this one only had a deposit on it. The Rails/Dapol late crest BR D1 31246 arrived on my doorstep this afternoon. A very quick test on DC showed it to be smooth but my old controller couldn't go low enough to allow the loco to run slowly. I fitted a Lais Next 18 decoder (the only brand of that configuration I have at present), then programmed it. That allowed smooth take-offs and running, although it didn't seem to have a great deal of finesse to the control, it is more than acceptable. I may reprogram the firebox flicker and glow to F1 rather than F0 as it is at present, and alter the flicker rate a little if I can, but it is a nice feature that can, of course, be turned on and off at will on DCC.

The test train looks rather odd, but there is a reason for that. The double veranda SECR brake van still kept derailing at one particular place on the curve at one end of the layout. I thought that maybe the kinematic couplings of the Siphons were pushing it off if there is a kink at that point (I can't reach it to check until I clear some rubbish away!). I added the old Lima Seacow/Sealion with its wide and rigid coupling attached to the bogie to allay any doubts about the kinematic couplings being at fault, then swapping the van to the rear proved it was a fault with the van itself. A check with the calipers showed all wheel sets on both vans to be right on the 14.5mm gauge width, with one axle on the double-veranda'd van showing nearer 14.8mm. A few squeezes with finger pressure seems to have cured the derailing now as I ran this test train around at reasonable speeds with the D1 hauling and it completed several circuits without any problems.

I haven't added any extra details to the D1 yet. I have to say, the D1 seems slightly more sure-footed than the previous D, on which I removed the traction tyred wheels. The D1 doesn't have traction tyres at all.










 

Edited June 27, 2023 by SRman
Additional info.

[St Enodoc]

24 minutes ago, SRman said:

The test train looks rather odd, but there is a reason for that. The double veranda SECR brake van still kept derailing at one particular place on the curve at one end of the layout. I thought that maybe the kinematic couplings of the Siphons were pushing it off if there is a kink at that point (I can't reach it to check until I clear some rubbish away!). I added the old Lima Seacow/Sealion with its wide and rigid coupling attached to the bogie to allay any doubts about the kinematic couplings being at fault, then swapping the van to the rear proved it was a fault with the van itself. A check with the calipers showed all wheel sets on both vans to be right on the 14.5mm gauge width, with one axle on the double-veranda'd van showing nearer 14.8mm. A few squeezes with finger pressure seems to have cured the derailing now as I ran this test train around at reasonable speeds with the D1 hauling and it completed several circuits without any problems.

Much of my 6-wheeled stock runs with the centre wheelset removed.

[30368]

38 minutes ago, SRman said:

I haven't added any extra details to the D1 yet. I have to say, the D1 seems slightly more sure-footed than the previous D, on which I removed the traction tyred wheels. The D1 doesn't have traction tyres at all.

 

SR Man,

 

The D1 looks really good. I have not ordered one given that I built the DJH version. I have though bought the D which looks to be an excellent model. I have not run it yet but will keep in mind your comments.

 

Kind regards,

 

Richard B

Edited June 27, 2023 by 30368

[SRman]

1 hour ago, St Enodoc said:

Much of my 6-wheeled stock runs with the centre wheelset removed.

 

Our late friend Brian used to do that as well, particularly with the Dapol milk tank wagons. My solution is to drill the centre axle boxes to allow more float for the centre axles. In the case of the two SECR brake vans, simply removing the metal bearings on the centre axle boxes worked, allowing enough free movement to get around and over most normal obstacles. The same applied to the N class tender as well. In every case, it means the centre axle is not load-bearing at all, and is simply there for appearance, along for the ride, as it were.

[Gwiwer]

Odd that the topic of 6-wheelers should crop up again here. My Dapol milk tankers run freely and without any problems despite being asked to negotiate tramway-radius curves and first-radius crossovers

 

On the other hand the Hornby 12-wheel Pullman objects to anything other than well-laid straight track but bogie swing doesn’t seem to be the problem. 
 

Filing down the flange on the centre wheel set might be a cure for the problem on any 6-wheeler but it’s a bit of a tedious task. 

[SRman]

This video taken this morning (Wednesday 28th June) demonstrates the smooth and quiet running of the D1, as well as the now reliable running of the two brake vans.

There is a slight surge where I was slowing the train down at the end; this was due to me turning the speed up a little to carry it forward, but it does show the lack of finesse in the control of the LAIS decoder, where the likes of ESU and Zimo would tend to be a little smoother. I will replace the decoder eventually, but at present the LAIS ones are the only Next 18 decoders I have in my supplies.
 

 

[SRman]

I haven't done a lot in the last week as I have been recovering from a biopsy done on my prostate - that on its own isn't stopping me, it's painful sitting at certain angles and the medication is making my hands a little shaky. Results not in yet.

Anyway, I have done a little on the class 74 trying to refine the paintwork (the blue is still a bit rough in places) and trial fitting the Hornby class 71 windows, which had to have their surrounds cut off to allow them to sit flush in the 74's apertures (due to the resin shell being so much thicker than the plastic on the 71). The small bodyside windows will have to have individually cut glazing as they don't match any from the 71. This is still a work in progress but is much, much nearer completion now. And, all this time the chassis has been able to run with or without the body fitted. 

 

The other bit of fiddling I did today was to test run then fit a DCC sound decoder (LokSound) to my newly arrived Accurascale DRS class 37/4 from TMC. I also fitted an Accurathrash speaker by the simple expedient of sticking it in place with some black-tack! I have removed the tension lock coupling and glued the details on the leading end, including the individual snowploughs and all the electrical connections, brake and air hoses, and the name plates. For the other end I have left the coupling in place, and used the one-piece snowplough assembly, but no hoses or pipework. The model arrived missing one horn, which was nowhere to be found, but I have asked Accurascale if they can supply a replacement. They will do in due course.

 

 

 

 

[St Enodoc]

14 hours ago, SRman said:

the medication is making my hands a little shaky.

Take more water with it...

[SRman]

16 minutes ago, St Enodoc said:

Take more water with it...

 

I'm already overweight just from the fluids I have been drinking (mostly water or weak tea). Maybe the dried frog pills will help ... (Pratchett reference). 😅

[SRman]

Confession time for silly mistakes: I feel a right dill now! A short time ago I decided to upgrade a 2H unit in Network South East livery to sound. I noted that the headcode lights were not working in the motor coach, but went ahead with fitting the sound decoder and a speaker anyway. That all worked fine, but the leading headcode panel remained resolutely unlit. I checked the soldered joints on the daughter board with the LEDs, to no avail: all seemed in perfect order, except it didn't work at all!

I ordered a replacement pcb from Bachmann spares, which arrived yesterday. Started dismantling the DMBS car with the motor bogie then noticed two little switches underneath. I flicked the one closer to the driving end then tested it on the track and the lights all worked again. 

Cue internal swearing in my head! 🙄🤬

[SRman]

Another video from me, this time showing off the Dapol class 59/2 with sound from Roads and Rails, and my Accurascale class 37/4 with Accurascale's own sound and Accurathrash speaker added as after-market items. 

Typically, Murphy's Law struck: the Dapol JHA wagons have been running around without fault for ages, but the moment I pointed the camera at them, the last two wagons kept derailing at various places around the layout. On checking each of them, I found that one wheelset on each had gone slightly out of gauge (too narrow). Fixing that also fixed the running again.

To try to minimise my camera shake as I tried to operate the controllers and the Dapol semaphore signals at the same time as filming, I hit upon the idea of stopping the locos at the signals then throttling them up to where I wanted them to be, then before they could actually move off, hitting the red Emergency Stop button on the NCE Power Pro controllers. The NCE cabs retain that last speed setting even though the loco has stopped, so when I was ready for them to move off, I only had to hit one of the speed buttons on the controller and the decoder would then try to resume that speed, paying attention to the normal acceleration curve. Not perfect, but easier than trying to run the speed up from zero while pointing the camera in the right direction.
 

 

[SRman]

Out of interest, I dug out one of my Bachmann class 37s and posed it with the Accurascale one. The Bachmann model is not the latest retooling from 2022, but the one before that. 37 698 doesn't look too bad against Accurascale 37 423, although the extra bogie detail and cab interior detail really do stand out on the Accurascale offering. The Bachmann model is not exactly light in weight, but after handling the Accurascale model, it felt like a featherweight! 😅

The finish on this particular Bachmann offering was very good, but the other two I have from the same tooling era aren't quite as crisply finished (one in Railfreight red-stripe grey, the other in Dutch livery), but are still very good. If I was looking to compare them against the newest Bachmann offerings, I would say go for the Accurascale models as they are both less expensive and marginally better detailed. However, that in no way implies that the Bachmann models are bad in any way. The Accurascale models to have more sophisticated lighting options, but the older Bachmann model stacks up fairly well appearance-wise (I'm not sure that the 37/6 should have one of the side engine room windows though, possibly a compromise with that tooling). You won't get brand new Bachmann 37s from this tooling run, but second-hand ones are well worth considering.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 9, 2023 by SRman
Additional information.

[Southernman46]

Thanks for this - I am fed up looking at my collection of older Bachmann / Hornby loco's bought & paid for with hard earned cash and thinking please God don't let me become dissatisfied with them because of the better AS ones. Seeing these side by side is positive 👍

[John Tomlinson]

46 minutes ago, Southernman46 said:

Thanks for this - I am fed up looking at my collection of older Bachmann / Hornby loco's bought & paid for with hard earned cash and thinking please God don't let me become dissatisfied with them because of the better AS ones. Seeing these side by side is positive 👍

 

The questions I ask myself are,

 

"Yes it may be better, but is it that much better?" and,

 

"How much have I done to the original in detailing etc., that would now be redundant?"

 

John.

[McC]

Worth a mention that the 37/6 has never been actually tooled before (despite a few repainted other classes sneaking into supply) so the accurascale one is the very first of that subclass (one of the reasons we chose it) Hope that helps!

[SRman]

16 hours ago, McC said:

Worth a mention that the 37/6 has never been actually tooled before (despite a few repainted other classes sneaking into supply) so the accurascale one is the very first of that subclass (one of the reasons we chose it) Hope that helps!

 

Thanks. I suspected that was the case. The Bachmann body shell was a little more generic, and used separate end caps to model the different headcode arrangements. For its time it was a good model and still captures the look, but as I indicated before, your Accurascale ones go that much further and represent much better value than the Bachmann equivalents from the latest tooling. For anyone on a tighter budget, a second-hand Bachmann 37 from that era's tooling could be worth a second look, as long as they are prepared to compromise a little on detail. The nose and cab window shapes seem very good on both brands, although this was something like Bachmann's third attempt at getting it right.

My 37 698 and the other variants I have, 37 038 (correction: 37 035) in Dutch and 37 693 (also with inaccurate body style, then) in RF red stripe liveries all have old LokSound v3.5 decoders so the sound reproduction is nowhere near as good as the Accurascale with Accurathrash speaker. I have fitted improved speakers to all three but there are only limited choices with 100 ohm speakers.

My other Accurascale 37 which is still on order will be 37 609, and I have a Jamie Goodman sound decoder and another Accurathrash speaker awaiting fitting when it arrives. It'll be interesting to compare the sounds between the two - both will be excellent, of course. 🙂

 

Edited July 10, 2023 by SRman
Minor correction