StuartM

A few years ago I sent this video and one other to Bachman, Hornby and Dapol explaining the virtue of such a system but none of them were at all interested. And then about two years ago at the Kernow Model rail exibition I spoke to Simon Kohler on the Hornby stand, but again he just didn't get the idea, explaining that the electronics would be to expensive (when in fact they can be produced for penny's) . It seems to me that either the manufactures just don't understand how track wiring is a barrier to not only existing modellers but also to newcomers, or they just don't want to invest in a new control system so soon after DCC, The daft thing is that Radio control is DCC it's just that the commands are sent to the loco via a radio signal rather than through the rails. Sure there might a bit of R&D around making a chassis shaped battery, but get the battery companys to do that for you. This is not ground breaking technology, it is not expensive technology. If Hornby can build a real live steam engine in 00 scale, taking existing technology and placing it in a model train is surly not beyond the wit and wisdom of such an esteemed company The only problem I can see, is the manufactures inertia

A few years ago I tinkered with the idea of a Battery powered/Radio controlled loco and made a rough and ready prototype. The advantages over conventional power through the rails would be absolutely no track wiring at all, no track or wheel cleaning!. You could run any number of locos as they would all operate like an addressed dcc loco and the battery would take the place of the chassis and would like a mobile phone last for days rather than hours, plus you'd have the fun of taking your loco to a refuelling point to recharge just like the real thing. I know that this is done in some of the large out door scales in the states but there is no reason why the technology could not be shrunk to fit into 00 gauge models or even ngauge. You can buy radio controlled planes and helicopters really cheaply so the manufactures have no excuse, It's the next logical step

Looking good Mr M Re the poor running, have you checked that all 4 wipers are making contact with the back of the wheels. I took a loco apart once, put it back together and then spent the next week re-aliened the track because of poor running only to find I hadn't fitted the wipers correctly. Just a thought

Looks really good Mullie, Pastel sticks are also rather good for weathering

I like the idea of a white background to help illuminate a dark under-board area, but I strongly advise adding a couple of coats of clear varnish if you can, to seal the emulsion and the boards, because emulsion is water based which is why its so easy to clean the brush's off under the tap afterwards, so your boards will still be affected by the atmosphere. Perhaps opening the garage door and using a mask might help, or even paying a small child to inhale the fumes instead

yes we could do with a bit more rain to wash all this mud away. I was thinking about your electrics earlier and who you said the salt air corrodes, have you thought about painting over exposed terminations etc with clear varnish as that will seal the metal, just a thought

Superb modelling Mullie, I'm also coming round to thinking that small layouts like this are the way to go because at least you have a chance of finishing them I'm also glad to see that I'm not the only one who uses cordless drill battery's to weigh the track down while the glue sets, lump hammers are quite good for that as well. I really enjoyed reading this and will follow with interest Rgds, StuartM

Thanks Jerry, I look forward to seeing more as and when you find the time Rgds, Stuart

Just found this thread, very impressive, very inspiring! The brass work is awesome I also like your photos of the signalboxs and would love to know the technique used to remove the background and fade the image round the edges to white Rgds, StuartM

Thanks for that, I missed Andy's post hence me asking the same question that others have asked. I understand that things might have gone a bit out of kilter as I belive Model rail was going to show various models as they progressed and generally encourge participation and voting but this didn't seem to happen in the end which probably accounts for the low number of votes compaired to the magizine circulation numbers. Still never mind I've waited this long another few days/weeks won't hurt and the process was v enjoyable anyway plus I've since moved on to the next project now but all the same it will be interesting to see what the results are.

So when and where will the results be announced ?

Hi Andy, when and where does voting begin?

Hi Andy, Will the link to the content be what we've already posted or do we get to post a selection of photos on a separate thread to our main one ? Rgds, Stuart

How will we know when this has been set up and how do we add our entry to it, I'm a bit of a nubie with these forums

The 9F looks excellent, the weathering is especially good!

Hi, Is it OK to used all ready made buildings from other layouts that one might have to hand?

Hi Simon, The process is relatively simple. I make electronic circuits from time to time (see the signals section of my website) and make my own PCB's (printed circuit boards) using the toner transfer method which involves printing the design onto glossy photo paper with a laser printer, then transfering the printed design from the paper onto the metal surface (copper for pcb and brass for etchs). Once this is done the metal work is soaked in a solution of Ferric Chloride until all the unwanted metal has been disolved. The design is created using Sketchup in the normal way and then adjusted for size and printed out. My design is pretty one dimentional and I'm not sure it would work for depth eg rivets and door handles etc but for a simple flat surface it works ok. To be honest I was just playing around to see if it would work, for anything requiring greater detail I'd probably use a proffesional etching company who produce small sheets of brass or steel for around £30. If you've not used sketchup before, There is a learning curve but it is realtiely easy with lots of tutorial videos on youtube.

Hi Simon, I'm impressed, the result looks very good. I've just finished a similar project myself but in Ngauge using a brass etch I used Google Sketchup as my free cad My model lacks some of the detail of yours but in the smaller gauge it's more the look of the thing http://www.stuartmoore-modelrailways.co.uk/graham_farish_class_25.htm