Grafarman

Many thanks indeed; the pondering begins...!

Thank you - as I mentioned in the previous post I used the Peco 2nd radius setrack curves so avoiding flexi 'drift' of the curve...

Ok thank you - is it ok for a loco to run round wagons in the station area, or should there be a run around in the yard area...?

Indeed that's the sort of feedback I need - the curves are Peco radius 2 setrack so I assume these would be ok for most stock...?

Thank you, and yes I should have said - that edge of the baseboard is set against a recessed window, so can overhang another couple of inches if necessary...

Ok, so, I have a converted garage measuring 16’4” x 7’3” in which there currently resides a OO gauge four-track roundy layout which goes all round the room. This is great, and I really enjoy it, but I know at some point I’m going to have to move up to O gauge, for a number of reasons: 1. I’ve already completed a layout in N gauge, and then had to move up to OO as I couldn’t manage the details anymore; I can see the move to O being a ‘dexterity and eyesight’ move as much as anything... 2. Although I love ‘watching the trains go by’ and enjoy seeing large express locos and long lines of coaches, there’s something very appealing about realistic, detailed locos shunting wagons in a yard and travelling through beautiful scenery with a two-coach local service. This is fuelled by my love of Llangollen, my local heritage railway. I would employ DCC sound if I moved to O gauge; currently it’s all DC... 3. There seems to be an ever-increasing supply of really good O gauge locos and rolling stock from the likes of Dapol, Heljan and so on, which look the part and aren’t too unreasonable in price. 4. O gauge would give me more opportunity to make things, and do kit-building and so on, which I enjoyed doing in N gauge but have skipped in OO, using proprietary infrastructure instead. 5. There’s a chap lives just around the corner from me who handbuilds some exquisite 7mm wagons and I’d love to justify getting hold of some! So, the question hovers over all of this: will O gauge in a garage really work, or am I delusional...?! I downloaded a free version of Anyrail and started fiddling about with Peco bullhead 124 track pieces etc, eventually coming up with the plan below. As I have usually built models based on real locations I have no experience of creating branch line plans from scratch (I don’t think there’s a prototype this small!) so I have no idea as to whether this plan will work. In other words, I need to know: 1. Is it realistic in terms of trackplan and size? 2. Are there any glaring errors in the trackplan that need adjusting? 3. Are there sufficient operating possibilities to justify disposing with the OO and building it at some point in the future? In which case, what sort of movements could happen in a typical running session? 4. What kind of stock would be suitable? As far as the plan goes, the bottom right corner does currently have a lift-up flap which means the layout could go all round the room, but I didn’t think another curve could be included in that end – you may think differently... I have been through a number of plan-books, including the O Gauge Guild ‘Layouts for small spaces’ publication but nothing leapt out; hence this cry for help! All input/criticisms/advice would be very welcome! Thank you David

Must admit I'm a bit late to this party having only just seen the layout for the first time in Hornby magazine, although I had heard rumours... As someone who used to sit by the long curve at Point of Ayr colliery and 'watch the trains go by' and stand on Prestatyn station looking for the first glint off the nose of a class 40 almost a mile away along the straight line of the North Wales Coast this layout totally chimes wih my memories from the late 70's and early 80's. I've built an N gauge representation of it, albeit much shorter, and am currently playing trains in OO, but I can't wait to see what this looks - and sounds - like in O gauge, especially with this size and detail... Please say you'll be coming to within shouting distance of North Wales at some point - I could argue an essential journey for my mental health if it's near enough! Hope it all continues smoothly... David

On January 19th, 2011 I sneaked in to a then well established RMweb, and I've been made to feel welcomed, included and encouraged in equal measure over the last near-decade. Although I struggled with whether my modelling efforts were 'good enough' Andy Y, Gilbert (PN) and many others managed to convince me to stick at it, to the point when my 'Prestatyn in N' was featured in BRM Dec 2014...still can't believe it! A highlight for me was RMweb Live which was such a good day in so many ways; but also the ongoing friendships with respected modellers and strugglers alike which has served to lift my spirits and keep me motivated in life itself as well as in railway modelling as a therapeutic hobby. Here's to another decade or several...! David

Yep, as per my earlier post I lost £70-worth of signals in the same way, but the worst thing was Dapol's refusal to accept liability, even after such a short time on the layout; they were very rude and dismissive.

Many thanks indeed; great to know, I'll organise a visit in the New Year David

Beautiful coaches, and a lovely mix of liveries/types; any particular reason for the number of BSO's...? Just curious... David

Desperately sad; I can't imagine the emotional, mental and physical impact of this on the modellers and contributors. No amount of 'rough justice' for the perpetrators can address the pain and turmoil of having a life's work destroyed overnight, and I hope all concerned will be offered appropriate care and counselling to help deal with what must be akin to bereavement. My thoughts are with them all. David

Would like to get hold of a Heljan class 33 33102 in original condition. Have seen a few resprays online but would prefer the Heljan version, with detailing bits etc. if possible. PM if you know of /have one for sale. Thank you! David

The Manager of the Music College at which I studied and taught counted as her two best friends - from school days apparently - Helen Mirren and Dave Gilmour. We played Floyd's albums as background music in the college and often performed them in workshops with the students (they loved the long guitar solos too...!) I met the wonderful Ms Mirren once but Mr G remained an enigma; the weekend parties at his country home were, however, legendary, and our Manager was frequently missing on Mondays... Shine on... David

That 9f really is a stonking beast, and the weathering adds to its powerful image; Bachmann or kit-built...? David

I'd be interested to know this too as I have two of these I need to replace - both mine have failed; lights on, no movement, using 16v ac...have seen the posts above about the 'new instructions' but fear it may be too late for mine... a chap at Dapol, who was terse to the point of being rude, told me they couldn't help as they're too expensive to repair...

Thanks Andy; please see my edit above about extra content... Thanks Andy; please see my edit above about extra content...

Just downloaded the March digital edition from Pocketmags - am I missing something, or are there no digital 'extras' any more...? There used to be extra pictures/features of the layouts etc but this one looks like a scanned print copy, including lots of "get the digital copy to see how this was made" type adverts... Edit - by way of illustration: Jubilee Road Wagon Works has an offer of extra content on page 50 but I can't find it - help please! Any reason for this...? David

I hear the sound of a gauntlet being thrown down...

Very enjoyable read through today, having just got back from a holiday in Windermere the Paul Lunn article on Lakeside was especially welcome, but I would have liked an overall shot/trackplan of Peter Marriott's budget layout; I realise the plan must be very simple and the whole thing quite small but the snapshots were enticing enough to warrant a larger picture I think...or is there more to come next month perhaps...? David

Late to the party as usual, but if I could just throw my twopenn'th in here I've just finished laying a garage-sized layout in all code 75 and really wished I'd used 100! I lost so many lengths of flexi due to the rails pulling out of the sleepers and not being able to re-thread them back in again, and the slighest baseboard undulations have proved problematic and it has taken weeks of fiddling about packing and re-laying points particularly due to poor running/derailments etc... It also seems the case that even the newest locos (with properly gapped wheels) sometimes have an issue with the catch rails on 75 points, especially the curved ones (of which I laid 8) and often the front wheels jump when crossing them as the flanges catch the inside rail. Oddly enough, the best runner on the layout is an old Bachmann/Mainline-reissue Class 46 which purrs over everything unhindered whilst the front pony wheels on a new Fairburn jump every time... Ah well, you live and learn...! David

I was in there the week befoire last needing a Peco finescale point for myself and a wagon for my Dad's Father's Day present...well, sorry folks but the place is but a shadow of its former self - hugely overpriced 'basics' (the point was £4.50 dearer than most other places so I left it) and the same secondhand items were on the shelf from the previous year, probably due to their unrealistic prices. Hugely disappointed to find the railway section has now shrunk to a few cabinets and wall displays around the till upstairs; the rest being mostly cars, boats, planes, wargaming kits and associated static models. I bought an Oxford Rail wagon as I felt sorry for the owner having remembered the shop from former times, but left feeling quite dispondant... David

Thank you all for your input; I think for me the 'belt and braces' approach of 2-pole switching seems the best in this instance. I believe I can get away with 4 rotary switches so each loop can be switchable to each controller on demand so facilitating the crossover as and when needed. Question: Does anyone know if there are any 6-way 2-pole rotary switches ready-wired or that just have a screw terminal block attached, or is someone willing to wire some up for me?! My soldering skills are limited to track feeds (blobs of solder on the rail) and point motors (usually end up smothered in it!), and looking at the pictures on Ebay the terminals are way too small for my shaky fingers...! Many thanks David

Oh ok thank you I'll hold back for a bit; please explain about 'common return' please. David

Is this the sort of switch I need....? https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F183145353878