Ray H

This is what the unpowered bogie looked like after it had been stripped of the cast components which had all been assembled with compact adhesive. I'm not engineer (and I not a much better modeller) but I'd like to think that I could do better. I refitted the wheels yesterday because I'd been building a couple of points and wanted something to test them with and this is the only thing I had that stood any chance of keeping the two axles together!

Presumably they were all day trips. I'd have thought that the Saturday trains - and you try finding anywhere that allowed you to take a holiday that didn't start and end on Saturdays seven days apart way back then - would have set out from the seaside before lunch taking one week's holiday makers home and passed the next week's holidaymaker's train en route. Even as late as the 1970s the Festiniog railway recognised that Saturday was changeover day and their custom was significantly less than the rest of the week and Friday afternoons were busier than Saturdays but quieter than the rest of the week as people started getting reading to head for home the following morning. I doubt it was too common for holiday makers to stay in their chosen holiday town for too long after breakfast as their journey home wouldn't be exactly quick and they'd generally aim to be home in time for their evening meal. The new arrivals were generally travelling at the same time but in the opposite direction having left home after breakfast and, in a number of cases, after lunch because Saturday morning working was still common even when I started work in 1964. I seem to recall having been told that a lot of the seaside town stations had numerous sidings specifically to accommodate the stock for the "Saturday" trains with the odd one or two possibly being used for short day trip extras during the week.

David Thanks for your informative post. Unfortunately the person who built the kit that I bought must have found the problems you described but tackled them in a completely different way. As a result whilst those cast parts of the bogie assembly that remain could be re-used, the etched parts are more than beyond redemption and a replacement set is on order from a different source. Edited to correct typo

I didn't know Andy was working for you! :-)

Both of the points are for a sidings off a 100" radius curve with the curved element being the main line. I shall see how they fit on the layout at club this evening and then decide whether to curve the exit. Many thanks for the comments and apologies once again to Andy for taking up some of his thread's page count - can we get to 150 pages before any grass is laid? At least the discussion hardly mentioned s*u*a*g*s!

Here's the first of the two 100 inch radius points for the club 7mm layout. Unlike the previous one which was a re-make of a Blue Peter one - one that I made earlier (did you see what I did there?), this was built from scratch. The previous one was built before I learned of Brian's easier method of making the common crossing (frog), the latest was made using Brian's method and was a lot quicker. With a bit of luck I'll have time to make another 100 inch one this afternoon, before I go to club. The point was made from a Templot template. Consequently I'm a little puzzled that the divergent track is not curved throughout. The exit end looks straight on the template and as can be seen from the above that's mirrored in the point itself. I wonder if that is because I used a previous template of a 100" inch curve to which I had insert a point and latterly set the point's geometry as straight. Apologies to those who struggle with Templot - I'm not much better myself, hopefully those with more experience may advise. Apologies also to Andy for hijacking his thread but I suspect there will be a few followers of Bitton who are considering making their own points using Templot so hopefully this post will be of use.

Mike Andy would have built two layouts in that time! Me, I might just manage to uncover the woodturning lathe in the garage to take a few snaps to put it on ebay so that I can clear some space and start making baseboards for the new layout.

Perhaps I may be allowed to show my most recent construction just so that I can be considered a member of the club! This one is 7mm and is hopefully to the same dimensions as a Peco one which it is designed to compliment. This is the test bed for a couple based on Templot templates to a 100" radius for the same layout (at our club). My intention is to use these three points as practice pieces before I endeavour to build all the scenic section (4mm) points on my next layout.

I wish my handwriting was that neat!

Ah, yes, I forgot . . . . . Railwaymen get (?) double time for working on Sundays!

I had a vague association with the ECML special traffic planning in the mid-sixties (as a very young man) and yes, Kings Cross platforming was a nightmare. By the time all the specials had been slotted in there wasn't room to swing a cat. That said, I recall that some of the stock for the extras was that which would have otherwise worked in or out of the Cross as ECS so that saved the odd path. Some of the suburban trains that were normally booked into the main line part of the station were occasionally diverted to the CWL to reverse to free up a platform and putting one unit on top of a second (or third) in the suburban side to release a platform for another unit (normally reversing in the main line side) was another trick. We should also remember that not all local services were DMUs so there was the added problem of loco releasing which extended the platform occupation time. Luckily although not too frequently used if I recall was the ability to divert via the Hertford loop to overcome Welwyn viaduct's restriction. Another thing to remember is that in those does the class system dictated the priority of trains so the lower class freights that may have had a path where you wanted to put a relief Class 1 were simply shown to be regulated as required in the almost certain knowledge that they would have already been regulated elsewhere and therefore weren't going to be there at the time the extra was scheduled. Those were the days when theatre scenery and pigeon traffic were still reasonably plentiful and parcels traffic movements in the run up to Christmas meant no end of extras.

Track laid by Tuesday, scenery finished by Wednesday lunch time and the next layout started by Thursday morning. You can't keep a good bodger down!

It does beg the question whether Adrian and Andy P have been drinking out of the same glass, wink, wink! Or, just maybe, the germ is being carried round the country on 4mm scale trains! P.S. Hope you feel better soon

Sorry to hear that and that you've got a cold. I hope yours is better soon and that George recovers quickly from his ailments as well.

Will we have the benefit of sharing the tales of your exploits today Mr. P? We understood that you were to be visited by a certain gentleman from further up north, presumably to finish all your track building, laying, ballasting, signalling and scenic work so that you can press on with your next venture - hand-built points in 12" to 1' scale - which we believe you have every intention of completing by Tuesday evening! P.S. I hope you both had a good day!

Fell running?

What about the tea lady. Please note that I said nothing about sausage makers/sellers!

Brian I'm just back from a few days away and trying to catch up on all that's been posted everywhere so apologies if this has been mentioned but Andy had some problems with condensation on his similarly insulated shed. Yours also looks to be pretty air tight. Were you aware of Andy's (ventilation) problem? I subsequently decided to add "ventilation" before anyone put the wrong interpretation on the sentence as it was originally!

Mick Indeed but I suspect Andy has a greater supply of plasticard. On reflection it would probably be better if they were dedicated to the crossing angle as I suspect that the provision of adjustment to cope with various angles would make them too flexible for other angles and allow excessive to prescribed tolerances to creep in. One good advantage of metal ones is that they could be pushed up against the nose of the common crossing and the closure/wing rails could be positioned against the other end and soldered in place thereby all but guaranteeing the correct alignment. I suppose that the shear number of crossing angle/length combinations and the different scale tolerances (even in OO) stops anyone producing something like this for retail. Would it be possible to make (thick) brass etches and sell them by the sheet I wonder?

OK I admit it, I only got grade 3 for maths in my O Level exam! Yes, you're right but maths aside I wonder of the concept might be useful.

Andy Is this idea worth a try for testing your frog assemblies. I believe that the usual OO flangeway is 1.25mm. This isn't too far of sixty thou (of an inch) if my maths are correct. Could you use some sixty thou plasticard strip as gauges to check the spacing between frog and the wing rails? If you could make two piece into an X shape such that the X would drop between frog and wing rails at one end and the outsides of the other end of the X would help you align the closure rails. You could make a fixed X if all the angles are the same but you could otherwise probably slot the two pieces with a little room in the slots to make the angle variable. I only suggest this because one of the images above appears to suggest that one of the closure rails isn't in line with its associated frog rail.

Andy I'd liked to have visited your open day but the rest of the family (in Cumbria) got in first and as I'm going there by train I can't even drop in when passing! I think your club has these sessions quite regularly so maybe next time. I have been looking at another (old) thread about making 4mm points as I'm determined to go that way in due course. However, I noticed reference there to PCB thickness and SMP track which I recall you intend to us (as do I). The inference from what I read is that the SMP sleepers are thinner than the Peco ones so it seems necessary to use 1.06mm thick PCB sleepers on the pointwork to match. Apologies if I'm mistaken but it may be worth noting otherwise. Good luck with the open weekend.

That soon? Can't you make it next month instead Pete?

I wonder if Andy's printer is set to "Fill Page" rather than print actual size?

Go on, admit it Mike, you're dying to see the track down so you can plead for some grass!