LNER4479 Posted January 4, 2018 Author Share Posted January 4, 2018 Conversations at wagon derailments often started something like this: Me: Well, the first six wagons went over all right so it must be the track. Area PW Engineer: Well the first six wagons went over all right so it must be the wagon. Then we would get down to business. While I was in Scotland, my opposite number was quite often my dear late friend Richard Chown of Castle Rackrent fame. Depot derailments? It was a rare one that wasn't 'state of track' (theirs) or 'shunter mis-management of points' (ours - Form 1). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium St Enodoc Posted January 4, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 4, 2018 (edited) From another topic: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/96950-munich-to-locarno-over-the-gotthard-with-01-1066-01-202/&do=findComment&comment=2986277 I thought this might interest you Graham, now that you are a man of leisure! Edited January 4, 2018 by St Enodoc 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Clive Mortimore Posted January 4, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 4, 2018 Depot derailments? It was a rare one that wasn't 'state of track' (theirs) or 'shunter mis-management of points' (ours - Form 1). Now don't bring the guy operating the layout into it he is new to the club and seems keen. Don't want to put him off we need at least one club member who is going to pay full subs now we have all retired. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Blue Streak Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 (edited) Conversations at wagon derailments often started something like this: Me: Well, the first six wagons went over all right so it must be the track. Area PW Engineer: Well the first six wagons went over all right so it must be the wagon. Of course then there were occasions, like the time a young second man jumped down to set a set of cheeseknob* points and started to proceed the propelling train into some sidings. Unfortunately this set of points was notorious for their ability to stick a little, but the young bloke forgot on this one occasion. He looked back in time to realise that the points had split , 6 wagons had gone left and the rest were trying to go right. By the time he'd got onto the radio to call the driver to stop, the whole lot went over into the middle. His next act was to sit and eat a pie, as far away from the driver as he could get. Until the Area Manager arrived to rescue him!! He said that the subsequent investigation, issuing of a "blister" (punishment in writing) and 3 months shed. Was small fry compared to the deluge of profanity heaped upon him by his Driver. Some of those old timers were scary bu&&ers. * Do they have Cheeseknob point handles in the UK still ? Edited January 5, 2018 by The Blue Streak 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmditch Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 (edited) Thanks Scott Not as supplied, no. However, my friend Andrew has modified his by putting a resistor in the circuit, plus some other associated electrickery way beyond me that slows it to a stop and accelerates away again when encountering a stop section. But it takes a brave person to take that on - if you thought the price of current RTR stock was becoming excessive then you ought to check out the prices of these tiny road vehicles (which are, to be fair, miracles of miniature engineering - they make your money miraculously disappear). Extremely impressive, but how are you going to ensure that buses always pause on the bridge for photographs? Edited January 5, 2018 by drmditch Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LNER4479 Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 Extremely impressive, but how are you going to ensure that buses always pause on the bridge for photographs? Bus? Who said anything about a bus? It's the horse and cart that's taxing the old grey cells... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
grob1234 Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Bus? Who said anything about a bus? It's the horse and cart that's taxing the old grey cells... I expect working horse legs, otherwise it just won't do. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Barry O Posted January 5, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 5, 2018 Red Leader on the Headingley tram depot layout we found that, by fitting rechargeable AAA batteries they slowed the vehicles down (they delivered less power to the motors) and the battery charge lasted longer. I will see if we can borrow one of the vehicles to see if it still works..a Sammy Ledgard double decker would look reet grand driving across the bridge! Baz Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gr.king Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Driving with reasonable consideration for other roads users, the motor vehicles should slow down as they approach and pass the horse with moving legs and its cart. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted January 5, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 5, 2018 Depot derailments? It was a rare one that wasn't 'state of track' (theirs) or 'shunter mis-management of points' (ours - Form 1). We had a lovely one in the yard one day. For some perverse reason our Shunters liked to shunt with long rafts of wagons rather than shorter cuts - I suspect it saved walking. Anyway they came out of a road with about 50 on and started to shunt but as they did the first cut and reversed a wagon came off the road in the middle of the whole lot, very obviously on points. No Shunters anywhere near so a 'debate' ensued between me and the Yard PW Ganger - along the usual lines and of course once we were back on the road we found there was no track damaged and pulling the hand lever properly duly changed the points as they should and they closed right up - but there had been no one anywhere near them and I actually believed the two Shunters (for once). But that evening I had a call from the Yard Chargeman to tell me that the points 'were doing something funny' so I said I'd be along first thing to watch what was happening. I got there early(ish) the next morning but the Yard PWay gang were already at work - changing the hand lever box in the hope that things would be glossed over, they weren't! What had happened was that something in the lever box spring mechanism had broken so while the points worked properly if you pulled the lever what they also did was work as a spring point when they were trailed from one direction and the switches instead of going across and staying across simply sprung back after each wheelset passed. If you came out of the 'wrong' road and then reversed it was just the same as reversing on top of a catch point, with the same consequences. Operating Dept 1, PWay Dept 0. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium jamie92208 Posted January 5, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 5, 2018 Bus? Who said anything about a bus? It's the horse and cart that's taxing the old grey cells... It has been done in the tramway modelling world in 4mm. Someone put a spud under a model horse tram with a rotating drive shaft entering the horse where the rose manure normally appears. This then operated cams to the 4 legs which were just short enough to not quite touch the ground. It looked quite effective but I maybe the drive method explains the horses' long face. Jamie 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Richard E Posted January 10, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 10, 2018 Bit late to the party but another recent retiree here. Finished officially on 31st December. 45 years in work across 3 employers, longest stint was 31 years. Currently still in the 'nothing' land between work and retirement. For various reasons I've already had more out of pension scheme 1 than I paid in so it is win, win from here on. Just got to persuade taxman I'm a penniless pensioner now! And before anyone asks I've retired from the world of Banking, Insurance and Investment Management. Some stories I could tell would alternately make your hair curl and then be steamed by the anger and frustration generated. It's a bonkers world ... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Gerbil-Fritters Posted January 10, 2018 Share Posted January 10, 2018 It's a bonkers world ... It's a banker's world, you mean. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Clive Mortimore Posted January 10, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 10, 2018 It's a banker's world, you mean. I'm inclined to agree. Bertha Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Richard E Posted January 12, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 12, 2018 It's a banker's world, you mean. Not the first letter I would have used on on the third word ... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuffer Davies Posted January 14, 2018 Share Posted January 14, 2018 Another week of progress WP_20171214_20_21_05_Pro.jpg Picking up the story from the previous post, this is the end result (for now) of the 'out of shot' carpentry. What you're looking at here are the first permanent boards for Carlisle (above the fridge). These will host some hidden running lines, hence use of wood that was to hand (no need for pretty-ness). Anyhow, for now, it facilitates neat(-ish) storage, away from where Grantham needs to be set up. The Shap scenic boards, seen to the right, have since been stored adjacent to this new structure, leaving the rest of the chapel clear to set the rest of Grantham up. WP_20171214_20_53_14_Pro.jpg Meanwhile, what's going on here? Although I will eventually build a fit-for-purpose fiddle yard for Shap, some fairly simple alterations to the south end of the Nottingham fiddle yard will ease some problems we experienced at the NEC as well as making things easier for Grantham operations. This mainly centres around abandoning the turntable hereabouts. A nice idea but it has not been used in the hurly-burly of exhibition operation so it is being sacrificed in order to get rid of the older style double slip (centre) and make the roads longer. IMG_9765.jpg The rest of the week has seen some steady soldering work on the Quint set, as the current cold snap limits time in the chapel to short bursts(!) With the sides complete (including all doors handles attached), here are all the parts laid out ready for assembly of the body. IMG_9766.jpg Half way there. The excellent compartment partition pieces come into their own here as I use these to start assembling the shell. They can be adjusted quite easily and the soldering doesn't have to be too neat, being from the inside. IMG_9770.jpg And - voila! One 45ft brake composite bodyshell. You can see the join at this stage but I'm confident the eventual paint finish will disguise most of it. IMG_9771.jpg This means we're now up to three out of the five required bodies for the set. You can see the contrast between the two brake vehicles and how the D&S D.156 composite has been used to create the BC. Next will be the 5 compartment third, made from the pieces of the brake etches that weren't required. Hi, Are you still on schedule to complete the Quint set for Ally Pally? As far as I am aware you are still looking the most likely of those who bought etches from me to be first to complete a set. Regards, Frank 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gr.king Posted January 14, 2018 Share Posted January 14, 2018 Just to stir things up, I think he should apply himself to the task of finishing the set in time for "Lincoln at Newark". He would have to ignore other distractions though..... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LNER4479 Posted January 14, 2018 Author Share Posted January 14, 2018 (edited) Hi, Are you still on schedule to complete the Quint set for Ally Pally? As far as I am aware you are still looking the most likely of those who bought etches from me to be first to complete a set. Regards, Frank Hi Frank, Funnily enough, finished putting the fourth body-shell together at 1am this morning (I do my best soldering in the wee small hours!) so was going to post an update anyway. Last two vehicles are both five compartment all thirds. The first of these will use the passenger sections of the second brake vehicle that I put to one side whilst making the brake composite vehicle. Here, the bottom one has already had its side panels soldered in. The only 'fix' required for these sides now is that the edge where the cut was made does not have the edge beading so that needs grafting in. Hinges and drop windows added; about to do the handles. The necessary 'grafting' has been done; thanks to the excellent inclusion of several spare etches, I was able to cut an end off another etch and shape it to fit to create the end beading. If you compare the ends you can see that one of them has a slightly larger end panel (left hand end on the bottom etch) - that's the piece I've added in. I'm confident that this slightly discrepancy won't be noticeable at three feet away! As I'd used all but one of the internal compartment partitions in assembling the BC, I used the remaining one as a template to create some more to assemble this vehicle. I also made a set for the last vehicle as well as I do like this aspect of the design as it keeps the body shape consistent down the length of the vehicle. The result of last night's soldering session - 1. Assembly is dead easy as the partitions are accurately positioned every time using the slots in the top and bottom edges. I fix the top edge first as that's a simple 90deg fit. I then pressed the bottom edge firmly into the piece of ply to ensure a snug fit of the tumblehome whilst soldering. A picture like this shows up all the blobby soldering from the inside but of course this won't be seen once assembled (thank goodness!) The result of last night's soldering session - 2. Final job is to attach the ends. With the sides already held securely in place with the internal partitions then fixing these in place is relatively straightforward. Again, thanks to the spare ends being supplied within the etches, then I have plenty to go at. In fact, I have enough to use for the final vehicle as well to ensure a consistent profile along the full set. Well, I couldn't resist this, could I? Now beginning to look the part, temporarily placed together as a Quad (although the BC configuration was different for the Quad sets). The latest vehicle is the second one in. I omitted the underframes in setting up this shot Ready for Ally-Pally? Well, I'll give it my best shot but there is a lot still to do, including getting the articulation working smoothly. The other All Third vehicle (a Bill Bedford etch) shouldn't take long then I'll fettle and wheel Graeme (King)'s resin bogies and we'll take it from them. I'm hopeful to have a running set but maybe with a few internal and underneath details still to do. Stay tuned. Edited January 14, 2018 by LNER4479 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted January 14, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 14, 2018 I'm inclined to agree. Bertha Zzzzzzz? P Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuffer Davies Posted January 14, 2018 Share Posted January 14, 2018 Hi Frank, Funnily enough, finished putting the fourth body-shell together at 1am this morning (I do my best soldering in the wee small hours!) so was going to post an update anyway. IMG_9780.jpg Last two vehicles are both five compartment all thirds. The first of these will use the passenger sections of the second brake vehicle that I put to one side whilst making the brake composite vehicle. Here, the bottom one has already had its side panels soldered in. The only 'fix' required for these sides now is that the edge where the cut was made does not have the edge beading so that needs grafting in. IMG_9781.jpg Hinges and drop windows added; about to do the handles. The necessary 'grafting' has been done; thanks to the excellent inclusion of several spare etches, I was able to cut an end off another etch and shape it to fit to create the end beading. If you compare the ends you can see that one of them has a slightly larger end panel (left hand end on the bottom etch) - that's the piece I've added in. I'm confident that this slightly discrepancy won't be noticeable at three feet away! IMG_9782.JPG As I'd used all but one of the internal compartment partitions in assembling the BC, I used the remaining one as a template to create some more to assemble this vehicle. I also made a set for the last vehicle as well as I do like this aspect of the design as it keeps the body shape consistent down the length of the vehicle. IMG_9783.JPG The result of last night's soldering session - 1. Assembly is dead easy as the partitions are accurately positioned every time using the slots in the top and bottom edges. I fix the top edge first as that's a simple 90deg fit. I then pressed the bottom edge firmly into the piece of ply to ensure a snug fit of the tumblehome whilst soldering. A picture like this shows up all the blobby soldering from the inside but of course this won't be seen once assembled (thank goodness!) IMG_9784.JPG The result of last night's soldering session - 2. Final job is to attach the ends. With the sides already held securely in place with the internal partitions then fixing these in place is relatively straightforward. Again, thanks to the spare ends being supplied within the etches, then I have plenty to go at. In fact, I have enough to use for the final vehicle as well to ensure a consistent profile along the full set. IMG_9786.JPG Well, I couldn't resist this, could I? Now beginning to look the part, temporarily placed together as a Quad (although the BC configuration was different for the Quad sets). The latest vehicle is the second one in. I omitted the underframes in setting up this shot Ready for Ally-Pally? Well, I'll give it my best shot but there is a lot still to do, including getting the articulation working smoothly. The other All Third vehicle (a Bill Bedford etch) shouldn't take long then I'll fettle and wheel Graeme (King)'s resin bogies and we'll take it from them. I'm hopeful to have a running set but maybe with a few internal and underneath details still to do. Stay tuned. Thanks for the update, they are looking very impressive. I'm really looking forward to seeing them in the flesh whenever that is. Keep up the good work. Frank Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LNER4479 Posted January 14, 2018 Author Share Posted January 14, 2018 Thanks for the update, they are looking very impressive. I'm really looking forward to seeing them in the flesh whenever that is. Keep up the good work. Frank And thanks to yourself, Frank. I harboured an ambition to put together this set the moment I clapped eyes on the picture in the Cawston book of an ex-works set in platform 5 with an Atlantic at the business end - but it was your production of these excellent etches that has enabled me to do it as I was 'stumped' for the brake vehicles prior to that. Like most of the best things in life, worth the wait 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium OnTheBranchline Posted January 14, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 14, 2018 We had a lovely one in the yard one day. For some perverse reason our Shunters liked to shunt with long rafts of wagons rather than shorter cuts - I suspect it saved walking. Anyway they came out of a road with about 50 on and started to shunt but as they did the first cut and reversed a wagon came off the road in the middle of the whole lot, very obviously on points. No Shunters anywhere near so a 'debate' ensued between me and the Yard PW Ganger - along the usual lines and of course once we were back on the road we found there was no track damaged and pulling the hand lever properly duly changed the points as they should and they closed right up - but there had been no one anywhere near them and I actually believed the two Shunters (for once). But that evening I had a call from the Yard Chargeman to tell me that the points 'were doing something funny' so I said I'd be along first thing to watch what was happening. I got there early(ish) the next morning but the Yard PWay gang were already at work - changing the hand lever box in the hope that things would be glossed over, they weren't! What had happened was that something in the lever box spring mechanism had broken so while the points worked properly if you pulled the lever what they also did was work as a spring point when they were trailed from one direction and the switches instead of going across and staying across simply sprung back after each wheelset passed. If you came out of the 'wrong' road and then reversed it was just the same as reversing on top of a catch point, with the same consequences. Operating Dept 1, PWay Dept 0. What was the overall score by the end? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted January 14, 2018 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 14, 2018 What was the overall score by the end? I think we lost - I had some pretty useless Shunters (well pretty useless at shunting although a group of them were apparently very good at, hmm, 'film making' - until they had their collars felt). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gr.king Posted January 14, 2018 Share Posted January 14, 2018 (edited) Ready for Ally-Pally? Well, I'll give it my best shot but there is a lot still to do I can see I shall have to keep pestering. Come on, we want to see this set finished and running at Lincoln - Newark show! You know you want to. There's nothing else to do now that you can boast freedom from the day job. Edited January 14, 2018 by gr.king 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Barry O Posted January 15, 2018 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 15, 2018 "nothing else to do".. Pah! If only...... Baz Rocket scientist(retired) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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