IanLister Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 One thing I would be concerned about with wood (from an outside point of view with no experience) is long term warping or moisture induced swelling (e.g. when soaking the ballast with glue). Can anyone who has used this before comment on it's long term stability vs. plastic or soldered track? Is it fine so long as you do something to protect the wood? Hi Rabs I did quite a bit of research before settling on my material of choice, and 2 things influenced my decision in a big way apart from the properties of the walnut strip. Firstly, it's used by professional builders of very expensive model sailing ships for deck planking and other things in quite long lengths with no major issues, apparently. Secondly, and after I'd done some experimenting, I read an article in the railway modelling press by someone whose name escapes me at the moment who has apparently been testing different woods for track building for many years and reckons walnut is the best to use; I was impressed by the evident knowledge and tone of authority in the article so like a typical beginner decided to blindly follow his lead......sorry to be so vague about the source but I can't find the article to give you the details! I think it was in the copy of MRJ that featured 'Tucking Mill' by Jerry Clifford....a magazine which I inadvertently left on the Caledonian Night Sleeper somewhere between Euston and Glasgow. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium DavidLong Posted February 13, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 13, 2014 The sleepers that I have used have been made from nominally 0.8mm ply. Although I haven't done any ballasting I fail to understand why there should be any problems associated with the 'usual' method of ballasting. The use of ply for sleepers goes back to the earliest days of P4 in the 1960s and has been used by probably thousands of modellers ever since. The worst part that I found was cutting ordinary sleepers to a consistent 1.7mm width but I hope that this will be solved by the forthcoming laser cut sleepers from CRS which Andy has mentioned above. Note that I said that the ply is 'nominally' 0.8mm, in practice it is about 0.78mm which is around 0.05mm less than 2mm Scale Association sleeper strip. I haven't found this to be a problem and, anyway, I only use two pcb sleepers in the construction of a point in conjunction with brass cast chairs. These can be seen in these photos: David 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold queensquare Posted February 13, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 13, 2014 Hi Rabs I did quite a bit of research before settling on my material of choice, and 2 things influenced my decision in a big way apart from the properties of the walnut strip. Firstly, it's used by professional builders of very expensive model sailing ships for deck planking and other things in quite long lengths with no major issues, apparently. Secondly, and after I'd done some experimenting, I read an article in the railway modelling press by someone whose name escapes me at the moment who has apparently been testing different woods for track building for many years and reckons walnut is the best to use; I was impressed by the evident knowledge and tone of authority in the article so like a typical beginner decided to blindly follow his lead......sorry to be so vague about the source but I can't find the article to give you the details! I think it was in the copy of MRJ that featured 'Tucking Mill' by Jerry Clifford....a magazine which I inadvertently left on the Caledonian Night Sleeper somewhere between Euston and Glasgow. Ian The article was by Dave Nicholson, a fellow Mendip group member. We have a few S7 modellers in the Mendip group and they all use Walnut for sleepers - its lovely stuff. Obviously 7mm sleepers are a much bigger cross section than 2mm but I suspect the Walnut would be fine. Jerry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBE Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 I do like the look of those wooden sleepers. What do you use to stick the chairs on with? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBE Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 I wouldnt trust that as the only thing making a bond is the chair surface melting into the grain of the ply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium DavidLong Posted February 13, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 13, 2014 Mickey's right, Plastic Weld (is that the same as Butanone?)is ok and Mek works as well. The bond is remarkably strong as it does weld to the ply. Staining is ok but the sleepers shouldn't be painted before construction as the paint will inhibit the welding action. It works ok in 4mm so I had no reason to doubt that the principle wasn't equally good for 2mm. Once track is laid on a reasonably secure base the stresses that it has to undergo are remarkably small. The axle loading of 2mm locos is, well, not very much! David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cornish trains jez Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 The sleepers that I have used have been made from nominally 0.8mm ply. Although I haven't done any ballasting I fail to understand why there should be any problems associated with the 'usual' method of ballasting. The use of ply for sleepers goes back to the earliest days of P4 in the 1960s and has been used by probably thousands of modellers ever since. The worst part that I found was cutting ordinary sleepers to a consistent 1.7mm width but I hope that this will be solved by the forthcoming laser cut sleepers from CRS which Andy has mentioned above. Note that I said that the ply is 'nominally' 0.8mm, in practice it is about 0.78mm which is around 0.05mm less than 2mm Scale Association sleeper strip. I haven't found this to be a problem and, anyway, I only use two pcb sleepers in the construction of a point in conjunction with brass cast chairs. These can be seen in these photos: PICT0187 (Medium).JPG PICT0190 (Medium).JPG David That is some seriously good looking trackwork David! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Izzy Posted February 13, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 13, 2014 I wouldnt trust that as the only thing making a bond is the chair surface melting into the grain of the ply. I have, for over 30 years, using ply sleepers like David Long, and from my experience it works just as well in 2mm as in the larger scales. Mostly I've used Mek-Pak and never really had an issue as far as I can recall. It would be easily fixed anyway - just use the glue again! The only slight difference is that I have never stained the sleepers. Just blown over the whole track work with poster paints before ballasting, through an airbrush mostly. Probably another case of using whatever bits and technique you feel most comfortable with and find works for you. Izzy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted February 13, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 13, 2014 I used the 1 2 Butanone as sold by C+L to fix the chairs Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oily Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 Does anyone have a few spare 2mm SA handrail knobs for sale? I have a friend who has half finished the handrails on a LSWR T9 and run out of the handrail knobs (mostly because he only just had enough to start with and some have disappeared into the carpet). He can't face having to remove those already in place and start again with a new type. Many thanks if you do Oli Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethashenden Posted May 20, 2014 Share Posted May 20, 2014 (edited) Am I correct in thinking that the 5.25mm wheels on 13.7mm axles are for Micro-Trains trucks/bogies? Part number 2-003 Edited May 20, 2014 by garethashenden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autocoupler942 Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 (edited) Why is the forthcoming event (Supermeet) at Kidderminster 24th June clouded in such secrecy from non-members? On the 2mm Association Website news of the event doesn't leap out at you - details can only be found if you happen to click "events" in the first paragraph (easily overlooked by the casual inquirer). It is not even listed in "2mm events in the next six months" panel at the right hand side. I know The Association modified the frequency of Expo's to five yearly owing to the organization effort and cost involved. Surely every alternative effort should be made to bring inquisitive modellers in to see what is all about. - "Supermeets" are basically low budget Expo's but has this one actually been publcised? ('fraid I no longer take any monthly mags so can't check). The AGM is the occasion for "closed shop" gatherings! Edited May 30, 2014 by autocoupler942 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Douglas G Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 I think you've made a typo - it's Saturday the 21st June, not 24th June according to the website. I agree that it has not been well publicised to the world outside the 2mm Association. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2mm Andy Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 I think you've made a typo - it's Saturday the 21st June, not 24th June according to the website. I agree that it has not been well publicised to the world outside the 2mm Association. It is 21st June - members will receive full details in the next 2mm magazine which was posted out today. Details are on the website, albeit not as clear as I'd like - I'll ask the webmaster to make the link to the events page more prominent. The problem we have is that we don't (despite numerous appeals to the membership) have a publicity officer at present. The role is being covered by various other committee members, which is a far from ideal situation. Andy 2mm SA Secretary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
autocoupler942 Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 I think you've made a typo - it's Saturday the 21st June, not 24th June according to the website. I agree that it has not been well publicised to the world outside the 2mm Association. Whoops! Apologies for single slip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelcliffe Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 Various updates to the website have been made. Problem, as Andy indicates, is that nobody is doing the publicity role. When nobody is in charge, things tend not to happen. - Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted May 30, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 30, 2014 (edited) There was some criticism of the last event advertised as an Expo for not meeting some non or recent members expectations. We are in a difficult position because we need the chance to meet and chat as members but as a small association cannot easily match the resources of the larger societies such as Scalfourum or Expo EM. Prospective or potential members would be very welcome at the supermeet but too much publicity might give the wrong impression. Don edit I did advise Jim that I might be able to assist but was advised someone was taking on the role Edited May 30, 2014 by Donw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike morley Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 I'm a non-member who went to the Expo at Wallingford last year and thoroughly enjoyed myself. I also went to the big Expo at Oxford a couple of years ago and reckon I've never seen so much high-quality modelling under one roof before. I feel 2mmFS stands to loose far more than it might gain in terms of attracting new blood if it either reduces the frequency of its Expo's and/or makes its meets such low-profile affairs that non-members are unlikely to hear of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2mm Andy Posted May 30, 2014 Share Posted May 30, 2014 I'm a non-member who went to the Expo at Wallingford last year and thoroughly enjoyed myself. I also went to the big Expo at Oxford a couple of years ago and reckon I've never seen so much high-quality modelling under one roof before. I feel 2mmFS stands to loose far more than it might gain in terms of attracting new blood if it either reduces the frequency of its Expo's and/or makes its meets such low-profile affairs that non-members are unlikely to hear of them. We're not reducing the frequency of events, merely trying to label them better (so this year will be a Supermeet, and next year (which is our 45th anniversary year) we will have an Expo, albeit not as big as the 2010 event in Oxford), and as I mentioned above, we do have a temporary problem in the lack of a publicity officer at present which means that other volunteers have to try to cover parts of the publicity role as well as their own job. Rest assured that we're doing everything we can to encourage new blood - I'm hopeful that we will be able to announce several very exciting new products later this year which will go some considerable way to making 2mm modelling even more attractive than it is already. Our membership numbers have seen a steady improvement over the past few years, and I'm fairly confident that we will continue to recruit more new members over the coming years. Don - I'll check with Jim to see what happened re. your offer. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modfather Posted May 31, 2014 Share Posted May 31, 2014 Guys, bit of an odd question but bear with me - With no unpowered drop in wheel sets for my 108 in stock in stores, and no reorder date advised, am I best send my current wheels off for turning or can I utilise an alternative assoc wheel set instead?Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Izzy Posted June 1, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 1, 2014 Standard 6mm plain disc on 15.2's will fit in the non-powered bogies, but.... there will be no current collection, so no lighting in the trailer, and only the power bogie picking up current in the driven one. Might be okay as a temporary measure until the proper drop-ins are available again. Izzy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modfather Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Looks like a trip to the turning service then... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyewipe Jct Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 Looks like a trip to the turning service then... How quickly do you need them? I've just removed some from a three-car set that are now surplus to requirements, BUT I'm not sure exactly where I put them & I have a rather busy week coming up, so probably won't be able to look for them until next weekend. If you can wait, though, I'm sure I can help you out Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modfather Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 I'm in absolutely no rush, I've got track and baseboards to build, just keeping momentum going while my back sorts its self out! I have the two powered wheel sets, and need six unpowered, but I'll happily take the set if that suits you better... I'm sure I can find something else to put them in 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyewipe Jct Posted June 1, 2014 Share Posted June 1, 2014 I'm in absolutely no rush, I've got track and baseboards to build, just keeping momentum going while my back sorts its self out! I have the two powered wheel sets, and need six unpowered, but I'll happily take the set if that suits you better... I'm sure I can find something else to put them in Leave it with me then, & I'll see what I can unearth... :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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