ChrisN

We started with what turned out to be a temporary layout in the dining room but decided that 9ft x 4ft was a bit cumbersome and I didn't have the reach to correct any derailments at the back so this was scrapped and, anyway, we needed the space back to put up the table for Christmas.

 

When we move, which will be sooner than first anticipated, I will hopefully have an 8.5ft x 4ft layout. I have been desperately trying to get a scenic space in the middle that I can lift out when there are derailments in the fiddle yard. I think I have achieved it. All I have to do now, is exchange contracts, move in, build an extension, do the thousand other jobs that need doing in a new place and I should be good for go.

Yes Polly, I'll let you in! But no spam cans, please!

 

Jeff

I was going to say:-

As someone who models 009 and has ridden behind two 9Fs, what is wrong with Spam Cans?

but that post was two pages ago and it was late yesterday evening! How do you do it? Some of us still have to go to work you know! I have to look every night just to keep up. It is better than the tele, not that I watch it, and more informative than the railway mags I keep being fooled into buying.

Now that you have some track will the number of posts go up or down? Log in tomorrow to find out

Reply generally to lighting. I had thought about, and may still, put lighting inside my station building not because I want to run the railway with the lights off but because I have detailed the inside and it is either that or leaving the lid roof loose and charging people 50p to look inside.

Wow! That is ome list of very nice locos. Just about everything you might want.

In fact, some of us really enjoy watching you build whatever it is you are building! I have the same problem...the other day when I started tidying up the wiring I made a statement that "nobody will want to see pics of wiring" - they did! Yesterday, I posted a couple of pics of the fan of turnouts going into one side of the FY. I thought people would think "oh no, not more bl***y turnouts" ... the post got a "Popular". So... I have a theory...

 

There are about 17000 members of RMweb. of these, only about 3000 have made more than 10 posts, 1000 more than 200 posts, 500 more than 500 posts and about 200 more than 1000 posts. So the vast majority of people are on here as passive viewers - many are probably looking for ideas and a hell of a lot want to see step-by-step "guides" showing how to do it. I sometimes feel guilty about apparently trivial posts, but a lot of people want to see this - including ME!

 

So carry on - I've got some buildings to construct next year, so the more you show, the better!

 

Jeff

I haven't been around for a couple of days, or is that four( ?), where has this week gone? As I was saying I have only just read this post but the strength of this thread is that details of how things are done and developed, and changed are all gone through in detail. I have seen this in some other threads and it is very instructive, on others it is like Blue Peter, 'here is something I did earlier' and although it looks good you would not then know how to do it yourself. The whole point of a forum like this is to exchange ideas so that we can learn, not just modelling but railway practise as well.

Keep on posting, it is great to see things develop and new ideas coming in.

 

I can't see myself building kits - at the moment - due to time pressures. However, who knows what will happen? I vehemently opposed the idea of building my own turnouts, but have been persuaded to have a go on the next layout. I've got a large stock of open wagons and tankers, but haven't got any hoppers of the era. So Mr Bachmann may get an order for 10...or 20!!

 

At the moment is the key phrase. I am sure someone of your modelling skills once you have built the scenics and all the structures will want something more to do. Although 20 or more of the same kit might be a bit soul destroying, so perhaps you could build the 'odd and interesting' items.

I have hesitated to comment on how you should proceed as it is all down to personal choice and what I would like someone else may not. Having said that I think you are right on going with gradients, especially ones you know you cannot take a train up. Also having moved the viaducts round so they are half clear of each other looks good.

A bit worried about the river as it looks as though it might dribble off the edge and get your feet wet. (Sorry )

Enjoy your retirement do. They will soon be over and you will be back modelling. Your workrate is quite impressive; I am not sure I have managed to touch anything in about 6 weeks. It looks as though I may retire earlier than planned, well I will if they reorganise my Department and my wife has her way, not that I am going to complain.

I have been to that station, I am sure of it. What a fabulous model!

The Harwich for the Continent sign was on Liverpool St Station early 70s and was an official sign. Students added the Frinton part underneath in whitewash!

Back in the early seventies the college I went to, during the Rag Week went to UCL and wrote "IC Rules" on the wall. UCL demanded that it was washed off so the students duly went back and washed it off. However, this was in the days when all London buildings were still filthy from smoke so now the dirty walll had a clean bit that read "IC Rules".

I saw a new set of models on the Langley web site. They were of postmen with one who had a dog attached to its leg. How long before this appears on exhhibition layouts up and down the country?

Thank you all again for your help If I do not quote you directly I still am grateful for your reply

Hi Chris, I would avoid the Hornby six wheeled units, they are extremely crude to say the least. I know that MARC Models does a conversion for these, but I'm not sure if the underframe is available seperately. [He also uses the same unit to improve the Stove R] It has a quite clever method for setting up different wheelbases, with a floating centre axle for troublefree running on tighter radii curves. Jeff

Thanks, I will go through his site and see what I can find

MRJ index can be found here: http://www.modelrailwayjournal.com/ back issues can be found from a variety of sources some of whom are bound to post in the near future HTH David

Thanks I will have a search through and also had it to my list of sites

If you can get hold of the Bachmann 'Emily' coaches from their North American Thomas range, they are six-wheel coaches with full step boards. The coach bodies are a bit peculiar, with clerestories that don't extend to the ends of the roof and with flangeless centre wheelsets, but there is potential. They will go through shallow curves with a flanged wheelset (I replaced the wheels with Gibsons),The other interesting thing is that the chassis is just about the same size as the short Ratio coaches, so a little bitof fettling will give you a (somewhat crude) 6-wheel GWR-pattern coach. Adrian

I did actually manage to buy a couple and took them to pieces but before I started to hack the buffer beams I stopped and wondered if I could do something better. I then left that and started something else but as I take ages to do anything that is still ongoing. However, some things do not need alot of setting up to do so I may go back to this sooner rather than later.

Oops. First time using multiquote. Obviously got the replies in the wrong place, sorry.

Ohh, used the edior and managed to sort it out. Learning new things all the time.

Wow! Thank you so far. This is really helpful. Having spent hours trawling the internet for things I find that others have already found what I am looking for. Thank you.

NC Keyser (K's) did a 6 wheel gwr Clearstory whitemetal coach, these are quite common on Ebay as are the 4 wheelers

 

I have seen a number of 4 and 6 wheelers but I think the extra work to add floors etc may not be worth it. They tend to be a bit expensive especially as they are not exactly what I am after.

 

Comet do etched brass 6 wheel W irons, so it would be a simple job to build a 6 wheel underframe

 

I have spliced together Ratio 4 wheelers to make bogie coaches, no reason why the same process cannot be used to make 6 wheelers, use razor saw to cut along the door opening to hide joins. Use the Comet W irons and reuse the Ratio springs and axleboxes, Plasticard floor and join 2 footboards, solebars,roofs etc together.

This seems more than feasable. I shall have to dig out pictures and diagrams and get sawing away.

I've got two of the Kemilway/Peter K Cambrian carriage kits so am only too well aware of the shortcomings of their underpinnings.

Having tackled what is provided by the kit and failed, my advice would be to invest in one of Brassmasters Cleminson kits. That's what I did and am extremely impressed by the results, although I have to admit that when I first opened the packet I was a bit baffled and didnt quite believe it was going to work until I put it on the track.

Trust me, it does - far better than you could ever believe.

The Cambrian carriages call for minimum wheelbase (don't worry that the "correct" wheelbase doesnt quite tie up with what is offered by the Brassmasters kit. The dimensional accuracy of the Kemilway/Peter K kit isnt spot on and the discrepancy isnt the least bit apparent) and in EM gauge the result will negotiate two-foot radius bends with ease. In 00 I should think eighteen inch radius curves are possible.

I have dug out my etches and looked at the Brassmasters etch. Seems reasonable. My only worry is that brass to me is nearly a four letter word and I shall have to learn all sorts of things to make it all work. Still I retire in 670 odd days so I shall have plenty of time, hopefully, once I've sorted the garden out, got us ready to move..............

There was an article in an early Model Railway Journal about converting Ratio 4 wheelers into 6 wheelers, if I remember correctly. MRJ is renowned for being a little behind the times, so you may have to learn Latin or Aramaic to read it though

Managed to do German not Latin at school so that might be a problem. Is there an index that I can view for MRJ or how do I access old copies?

The Hornby 'Palthorpes/LMS milk van' chassis isn't very well detailed and doesn't have footboards either so may not be worth worrying about. I may need to add a little Standard Gauge Cambrian to my n.g. too, but as it's set in 1972 I won't need 6 wheel coaches.

You are more than probably right. It just seemed an easy way to obtain a chassis.

The advantage of narrow gauge is that you can set the time period and the locos and rolling stock can stay more or less the same. Period people can be a little more difficult if yo want variety but it is the locos and rolling stock of the main line railways where the difficulties come in unless you are a dab hand with the solder or want to be near a GWR line.

I shall probably end up building the six wheelers, including the insides, adding some passengers but never actually building a line for them to run on. Oh well, never mind. I enjoy building things and I have wasted spent many happy hours doing the research.

Although my main modelling is of a freelance Welsh narrow gauge railway, I have for some time been investigating main line connecting services. The problem that I have with this is that my era is late Victorian, and the layout will be set in 1895. This means that any mainline coaches will be 4 wheel or more likely 6 wheel stock.

I did buy some Kemilway Cambrian 6 wheelers even though I have no skills in soldering thinking that I could at least fold them up & glue them if nothing else. I also investigated HMRS for drawings so I could fit out the interiors. However, when I received them they were completely opaque to me as to how to make them, and I have been looking to see if I could buy one that someone else has made to give me a clue as to what to do.

Also, having been bitten with the six wheel bug, I have also looked at coaches from the LCDR. What I would really like are some plastic 6 wheel coach kits which perhaps I could put different fittings on, although I am not sure that the Slaters MR ones are appropriate.

I also have some Ratio 4 wheel kits with the view as suggested somewhere else on this forum of using the Bachmann Emily 6 wheel coach chassis but as yet I have not got around to doing the necessary hacking to make it appear reasonable. Today I saw on eBay some Ratio kits that had Hornby Palethorpes 6 wheel van chassis. This is another idea for producing a 6 wheel coach.

My questions are:-

Are there any plastic six wheel kits that I have missed?

Could anyone give me advice on the Kemilway kits?

Is using RTR chassis under a Ratio kit reasonable given that most six wheelers are longer than 4 wheelers?

December 1976 "Model Railways" p. 598 has a drawing for a Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway 4-wheel coach which is pretty darn close. The Hornby model scales out at 21'6" over headstocks whilst the S&DJR coach drawing shows 22'3" - only 3mm short overall length. The wheelbase on the drawing is 12'6". The main criticism of the Hornby model is that it is too tall. There is at least a 1mm lip at the top of the coach which needs to go (easy enough job with a razor saw) and the roof arc is all wrong.

 

I'm having a go at this myself, but someone else has already got a similar conversion online for you to look at:

 

http://www.rmweb.co....-4-wheel-coach/

 

They have retained the original chassis, which I believe is borrowed from their GWR Brake Van, but I will probably bash up something from an Airfix Brake Van kit.

 

These modified 4-wheelers would be useful for pre-1900 railways (1860's - 1880's period most likely) or for light railways of the Colonel Stephens empire.

 

I've also tried chopping a couple up intl a 4-compartment 4-wheeler of 28'8" length, but my cuts with the razor saw are not quite perfect.

 

I doubt that it would suit 5.5mm scale since the height of the door is 25mm - too short unless you are perhaps adapting them for narrow gauge.

In the original thread, the link for which is above, someone has converted a Track Maintenance coach. The body is the same as the ordinary 4 wheelers but the chassis is the correct height. I have done something similar. It just neeeds finishing off.

I have been struggling to find coaches for the Cambrian that I could model/convert. The Hornby coach is a fair approximation to a three compartment first class coach, the olny drawback being the moulded 'Third' on the doors. Although I have the coach it is still waiting for me to finish my rolling stock for my main project.

Hi Chris

 

Sorry for the delay in replying..

 

The doors are from Peco, they are sold separately as a detailing pack. I'm afraid I do not have the reference number as the packet went in the bin a long time ago!

 

I think the pack might contain windows and gutters etc, so you might end up with a few things you don't want/need!

Thank you for your reply. I will look out for them.

Chris

Rescuing this topic from the depths of of the forum....

 

I haven't done a lot on the layout in the previous couple of months, been operating it a fair amount but no actual progress on the layout...until now!

 

I have started constructing the Ratio GW station kit (Castle Cary I believe) but as I wanted to model it with the doors open, I thought I would hack together a bit of an interior. I have to say that I used no prototype drawings or photos for this - just vague memories of buildings on preserved railways......so Pendon standard it most certainly isn't!! Not sure how much will actually be seen once the door frames, doors (open) roof etc are on, but at least it stops it being an empty shell.

 

The booking office

 

 

The ladies waiting room

 

 

Overall view

 

 

Gratuitous shot of the small praire waiting to pass under Frog Lane

 

 

Cheers

 

J

Hi,

What a fabulous layout! I am just building the same Ratio station and have spent a long time deciding where to put the rooms. I wanted to put a station master's office which complicated things. A question, where did you get the internal doors? I have some doors but they seem to be the right size for front doors but too big for internal ones

Chris