Les1952 Posted July 2, 2014 Author Share Posted July 2, 2014 Paint and engines, though not necessarily in that order. I've been getting on with painting the frame and sorting out the design for the proscenium. Since Trevor isn't very well at the moment I'm going to build the proscenium myself, with the able assistance of engineer Alf at the railway club. Today I got the plywood cut for the fascia boards (and the top and fascia of layout three (provisionally named Northern Shed, but that isn't due to start until late September- watch this forum....), and bought a load of timber, and hinges and a countersink tool, together with a cheap jigsaw. No use buying an expensive one, I can injure myself just as easily with a cheapo... New locos meet up at the lineside hut- showing a section of the newly painted black front edge. Going in closer, 60070 GLADIATEUR has been weathered above the footplate to full Gateshead Grot, or something approaching it. Just the oily brown to apply to the motion and wheels, and the smokebox to blacken to make one of Gateshead's finest... This one will take turn about on fast goods with the V2s, A2/2 and one of the B1s. Coming the other way is KOYLI D9002, which needs its axleboxes toning down, and possibly its yellow panel painting out. If I can remove the name cleanly I'll change the identity, though it is intended as a reserve rather than a regular runner. 60078 NIGHT HAWK, another of Gateshead's finest- though pictures exist showing her to be a bit cleaner than most. Perhaps occasional runs on the Talisman helped. Either way I'll only weather this one lightly and use it on the Sunderland to Kings Cross express. Lots do do, including working out whether I've bought the right screws to make the proscenium. All the very best Les 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted July 9, 2014 Author Share Posted July 9, 2014 Progressing Slowly I took the timber for the proscenium into the club yesterday morning and Jim and I got much of it built. there's another one just like it in the shed........ I've got to get some panel pins to support the glue holding the fascia on. I'll also get some wood primer while I'm out- hopefully there is a spray-on variety. All the fixtures and fittings are sourced, so next week we join the two halves together and get the hinges working properly, together with the locking system at the back of it. Then finsih painting it black and fit it to the layout. Meanwhile Boyes have run out of black cloth for the drape- it needs 5 metres of the stuff- but should have some in about two weeks. I've also got to make a system for hanging the nameboard on the proscenium and source an extension jack lead. Still a lot to do, but the end of the making period is in sight... Les 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 just to prove the proscenium does come in two halves- here's the other side posed outside resting on the car. Note size of car needed to transport Furtwangen ost or Hawthorn Dene. If you look closely you can see where the primer has run- despite being painted laid flat and using a spray can. Hopefully it will get fixed together on Tuesday and fitted to the layout a few days later. All the very best Les Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted July 15, 2014 Author Share Posted July 15, 2014 A whole proscenium No longer in two parts, here is the completed article , complete apart from fitting out, painting and fitting to the layout, that is.... About to be folded in two and loaded back in the car, with the dubious surroundings of the Bingham Clubroom behind. Next job, tomorrow, is to start painting the black bits black (uprights, top and back first), then paint the inside white, add the lights and fit it to the layout, though not necessarily in that order. Plenty still to do Les 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 (edited) It fits.... (it fits......) Jim came over this morning, and, with a break for a cuppa to celebrate Dave Jones doing a Q6 in N, we got the proscenium fitted to the layout. three pics, taken with the phone under odd lighting conditions- bright sunlight outside and dark in the shed. You know, I really wonder how photo editing software saves images- I altered the light balance on two of these and cropped them by 30% to get to RMWeb's 1Mb limit then saved them- and the files were BIGGER than the larger images I started with....... The layout is on the floor as there isn't enough headroom in the workshop to erect the layout with the proscenium on top. There is just a little bit of sag but not serious, and the back is heavily cross-braced. Now to finish painting the bits, adjust the nameboard so it sits level, and then get the team up to the shed to do some training before Grantham show. All the best Les Yes- a Q6 in N. Must ring Sherwood Models and reserve two........ Edited July 23, 2014 by Les1952 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two_sugars Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Layout looking good, Les . . . . . Good news about the Q6 . . Where can I find Details Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 Thanks for that- the Q6 here on RMWeb under DJModels in the Trade & Products zone. I did a little legwork for Dave by going up to the Ken Hoole Study Centre in Darlington to photograph the Q6 General Arrangement drawing they have. It has Sir Vicent Raven's signature on it so is the real deal. All the very best Les Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two_sugars Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Thanks for that, Les I found it on the DJM Thread. . . . Excellent news. Have to save me pennies thanks again John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 20, 2014 Author Share Posted August 20, 2014 Two weeks to show time Back from holidays and had a training session with the Rise Park mob- useful. Some improvements to put in before the show- The safety rail at the back needs to be a bit taller so stock can't fall off so easily. a couple of wires to bypass an electrically dodgy point on the back. two signals still to be installed. One of these might become a home at half-mast with a flagman, giving an excuse for the sound-fitted locos to stop. Alternately a Dapol signal, but power supply may be an issue. a little more brown paint on the ground here and there. Alf pointed out there was no clutter round the Nissen huts- that might have to wait. The second extension cable to supply the LEDs in the proscenium arrived this morning. One more coat of white to apply before I fit the lights on Friday morning. Still plenty to do. Les Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold BoD Posted August 21, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted August 21, 2014 Good luck on your first show. Although I'm sure luck won't come into it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two_sugars Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Bit too far for me to travel, Les, but well done and enjoy it John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 23, 2014 Author Share Posted August 23, 2014 (edited) Getting nearer EEK... two weeks today and the layout will be in Grantham with punters looking at it.. Progress made since Tuesday- The lights have now been fitted- one mistake was I forgot there is the best part of a foot at each end that doesn't need lighting, but too late to alter that now... The telegraph poles are planted the device along the back to stop Alf (or me) knocking trains onto the floor is now fitted The decency curtain is now the size it needs to be and is ready for velcro fitting. Still to do- curtain needs finishing and fitting the signals need adding- I've made space for a pushbutton on the layout back for a Dapol home signal beside the trackside hut, the other end will have a Ratio distant set at caution. There is still some black paint to touch up. The information pages for each end need to be written and printed off. a bit more soak testing of the trains- I've made some substitutions on the passenger trains to stop them parting company. The goods stock is getting closer. As I'm happy with each train it will go into the stock box in the right order. I've also been checking locos and cleaning wheels so there shouldn't be too many problems there. Last pic is one I took just before going on holiday. Bongo on Mr Simon's fish train. All the very best Les as ever edited for eras of tai ping... Edited August 23, 2014 by Les1952 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium MrSimon Posted August 23, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted August 23, 2014 Did the fish run alright? Last time I had it out some of the axles were a bit tight - is it running at Grantham? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 23, 2014 Author Share Posted August 23, 2014 (edited) The fish train mostly runs OK, some tight axles. It probably won't be running at Grantham as there isn't space for it in the fiddleyard. It has had a turn on Rise Park, however. Edited August 23, 2014 by Les1952 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 27, 2014 Author Share Posted August 27, 2014 First signal erected Not ordinarily a big deal but there will only be two, though I'm looking at the idea of simple colour lights on the colliery. The latter can wait until after Grantham. Of course it is only when taking pics after planting the thing I notice the lever and the safety loop have gone AWOL..... It is a fixed distant (at least in practice), the purpose of which is to give another reason to keep train speeds low -as if a man with a welding torch percehd precariously on top of the netting over the railway wasn't enough. A Ratio lower quadrant with the finial cut off looks sufficiently like a slotted post job from this distance. Eight working days before loading the layout to go to Grantham. Tomorrow a trip out to get a new staple gun so the curtain can be attached, together with a drill bit to make a hole for a Dapol signal if it arrives, and a 4-pin DIN socket to input power to said signal. If the sihnal is there at Grantham it will be working. All the very best Les 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 28, 2014 Author Share Posted August 28, 2014 Brilliant typing - sihnal...... Still, it arrived this morning so tomorrow I need to source a 14mm drill. The push button (rescued from MHN408- Darlington Corporation Guy Arab double-decker No.84 at the scrapyard in 19something) has been secured to the back of the layout and I got a stereo jack plug and socket to take the operating circuit across the board join, with a 4-pin DIN to allow it to use Furtwangen Ost's PSU. Might yet have a working signal to give an excuse for the sound-fitted trains to stop before it goes to Grantham... Les 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 29, 2014 Author Share Posted August 29, 2014 Working signal installed and working. Quite a battle to get the wiring runs in, even though the actual wiring isn't difficult. There is a 4-pin DIN socket on a cross-member under the board taking power from the Gaugemaster unit that otherwise powers Furtwangen Ost (one more thing to forget to take to a show...). Red and black wires are taken fron there to the signal giving 16V AC power to it. The red and black ones are attached to the signal already so it only needed the DIN to be as closer on the framing as I could get it. There are two other wires coming out of the signal base. These go to a chocky block near the signal. Here they become an easily identified twin-grey wire. This passes to a stereo jack inline socket and plug to the old bus bell-push on the framing near where the operator for the Southbound trains stands. Confused? You will be. Actually achieving this involved mid-air upside-down soldering (of course) as they layout really should have been taken down for the job. However the signal worked first time! Proof below. I wasn't too sure how well the signal would be seen by drivers- so here is a driver's eye view approaching it. It had to be beyond the hut as the baseboard is single here- it is double thickness futher back as the valley is formed from an infilled box. The base needs bedding in. I've already cut the finial off and will put a flat white cap on the post and make it dirty white instead of steel, hopefully to pass it off as more North Eastern. I'm not convinced there would have been a home at this place, though it might protect the exit from Easington Colliery further South. On the layout its purpose is to halt the sound-fitted A3 and WD and give a reason for them to perfoprm their party pieces. The 2MT will run the other way on the inspection saloon and stop to look at the track gang. Still a lot to do, but apart from the curtain most won't be noticed if I don't get to it before Grantham. Time to feed the cat. Les 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted August 30, 2014 Author Share Posted August 30, 2014 Saturday Progress not a lot to photograph but- The curtain has been measured up against the front and the velcro on the layout tacked on- the curtain itself has the other part of the velcro pinned into place and Jane is going to sew that over the next couple of days. As a result of tacking the velcro on I decided the layout wobbles a bit too much. I've found a spare piece of timber that I've screwed into place on the legs as a diagonal brace. This will do for Grantham as a temporary and a more permanent bolt-on solution sorted between then and Sileby. The signal has been painted white and the base bedded in. The white cap has also been added since the pic. I've typed up the packing list for the car, and for the two bags that go with the layout, and for each of the boxes of bits. I'll proofread this tomorrow and revise it. Still making progress. Les 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted September 3, 2014 Author Share Posted September 3, 2014 Still adding details. ... and proving a layout is never finished... A packet arrived from Langley yesterday morning, so there is a little more wildlife in the green bits... Foxy one is making his way along the hedge in front of the footpath, while foxy 2 is below the colliery workshops. Hidden in this area are three rabbits and a badger..... honest! Hiding in the open at the end of the bridge is a grey squirrel. All trains tested and packed away. Box of fittings has more M6 bolts in it than you would need to build a cruise liner. All electrical bits apart from one wall wart and Cab are now in the electrical box. Name badges for the operators have been done (together with a new pair for Furtwangen ost at RMWeb Live). Panic not yet set in..... Les 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted September 6, 2014 Author Share Posted September 6, 2014 Set up at Grantham So far so good, just about. Everything works- including the pair of 0-6-0STs Jim has brought to relieve pressure on the colliery. Lessons learned about the ends- the travelling ends need handles and we need to use a shorter bolt facing outwards on two of the holes- and I managed to paint the wrong side of one of the end braces but otherwise few problems so far... Set up and ready? Time to get ready for day one.... Les 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stivesnick Posted September 6, 2014 Share Posted September 6, 2014 Les Great to see the layout at the Grantham Show today and have a brief chat. The weathering on the freight stock is first class. Keep up the good work. Regards Nick Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian D Posted September 6, 2014 Share Posted September 6, 2014 Looks the business Les. Hope all goes well at the show. Regards, Brian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted September 6, 2014 Author Share Posted September 6, 2014 Thanks for the kind words, gents. Layout performed well- two loco casualties- 60019's decoder seems to have lost the plot and 60085 has dropped a rod. Both now upside down in the box. D9007 has been shorting out one of the points in the fiddle yard, and is now on a straight path road. Most other problems were self-inflicted, often not looking for tails of trains fouling adjacent roads or knocking a leg with foot or knee. The brace with the unpainted bit is on back-to-front....... Time for bed, said Zebedee.... Les 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted September 7, 2014 Author Share Posted September 7, 2014 Grantham Day 2 Layout performed impeccably- we seem to have learned how not to short-circuit the whole thing, probably as there were less than half-a-dozen derailments all day. Loco casualties- 60010's chip lost the plot, and 60070 has wheels so mucky it wouldn't run smoothly (or so it seems). Against that the Deltic ran all day out of track 5 in the fiddle yard without problems. One other oddity- A1 "Hal O'The Wynd" hasn't any traction tyres- found out when it couldn't start a train the other A1 had just been taken off. Tomorrow's jobs include looking in the box to see it there is a tyred wheelset.... The layout is back in the shed and Furtwangen Ost is on its stand ready for preparation for RMWeb Live next weekend. After that there is a point to change in the colliery yard and some upgrading of the wiring before HD is erected. Some new photos to follow, and maybe a video if it came out.... Les 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les1952 Posted September 8, 2014 Author Share Posted September 8, 2014 (edited) Grantham Show, the video (he says hopefully) http://youtu.be/MgLGn0UvbZU I don't know why this isn't embedded on the preview- doing something wrong. Only problem with holding the camera yourself is that you rely on someone else driving- the WD is definitely a bit quick off the mark, but at least it shows the signal sequence just about working.... Pics not yet processed. All the best Les ps-it was pointed out the squirrel is the wrong colour- I'll repaint it shortly... (greys hadn't reached County Durham in 1960) Edited September 8, 2014 by Les1952 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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