HSB

More progress with all the window sills now in place and two walls of the annexe glued together.

Code 55 flat-bottomed rail is available but the nearest bullhead produced is the code 40 from the 2mm Scale Association or code 60 from the 3mm. Personally I think the PECO track is quite well done while Tillig rail is grossly overscale.

A little bit more done this week with all the headers now in place over the windows.

I've now done the plastering including extending the outcrop of rock along the ridge. I've also started to modify the house in the background which is loosely based on one I photographed in Kamp Bornhofen. Unfortunately after shrinking it to fit the layout I found the proportions didn't look quite right so I am raising the height of the dormer roof which will allow me to raise the height of the window by a scale 45 to 50cms. Just a thin card mock up so far to test the principle.

After another longish gap I've actually got around to doing a bit more to Brückenheim! There was a hole in the scenery at one end of the station where I originally planned to put a house but have now decided it would be better just covered in vegetation so I have instead built it up a bit and it's now about ready for a coat of plaster

This might be true of some of the bigger breweries but I've got a picture of a chimney which is actually a lot shorter than the adjacent tower!

We've managed a couple of sessions this week but won't be able to get together again until next week. I've propped two walls up against the mock-up and stood the chimney in position which gives quite a good impression of what it will eventually look like. I've also been cutting out the walls of the small three storey extension which will be next to the loading docks.

The gaps are getting longer! We have only managed a few sessions since my last post including a gap of over three weeks when Rod first had back problems, then his wife had Covid, then he had Covid, then we were both away on holiday at the same time! Anyway, there's been a little bit of progress on the brewery but still a long way to go.

As I said at the start most people will want to use PECO points but this thread was aimed at those modellers who, like me, would like to have models with the underframes in proportion with the bodies which is effectively impossible with NEM standard wheels and axles. The simple explanation is NEM TT axles are 18.2mm while the typical prototype distance over axle boxes scales out at only 16.9mm! I realise there are a lot of people who don't care about realistically proportioned models and will be happy to run whatever is thrown at them and nobody is trying to stop them doing whatever they're happy with. I'm actually coming around to the idea that it might be better if they just produce RTR models in 3mm scale as they could then be produced in correct proportions and it would be fairly easy to change the 12mm gauge wheelsets for 13.5mm or 14.2mm gauge finescale wheelsets from the 3mm Society (and FiNetracks now produce easy-to-build point kits for 14.2mm gauge). Judging from some of the comments on this thread I think a lot of people wouldn't know the difference anyway! I do, however, believe finescale TT:120 is quite possible using the 3mm Scale finescale standards for 12mm gauge with appropriate length axles but will require quite a bit of hacking around to reduce RTR underframes to near the correct width. It may even be possible to make use of PECO track with a couple of simple modifications. Flangeways can be easily reduced with plastic strips (something I ended up doing in N gauge many years ago when I was modelling US outline) and wheel drop can be reduced with a suitably shaped sheet of plastic, wood or card in the frog gap. Finally, to those who say wait and see what is produced, PECO points have already been shown to be compatible with NEM wheelsets and anything which is produced from now on will be made to run on PECO track which inevitably means wide wheels!

It's not a point of not wanting them to succeed it's a case of wanting them to get it right!

The points actually look quite fine but while wide wheels might be hidden by bogie sideframes on diesels those sideframes will have to be pushed out to accomodate them!

When I said exact scale track I really meant exact scale GAUGE! But the problem is not just the width of the wheels it's the length of the axles.

The one thing that worries me most about TT:120 is the probable use of NEM wheel standards. Exact scale track and wide wheels don't really mix and means underframes and bogie frames end up being pushed outwards to accomodate the resulting axle length. On Continental models the extra width of the bodies helps to disguise this and it will no doubt be possible to get away with it on some British models but not on older freight stock or larger steam locos with outside cylinders. I would hate to see a repeat of what happened with British H0 back in the 70s with loco bodies distorted in width or generally overscale. What is needed is narrower wheels which would not only look a lot better but would allow the use of shorter axles. Of course most people will want to use the new PECO track so ideally they should be compatible with their points. I have been looking at possible options. Upscaling the 2mm Scale association standards produces a wheel width of 0.064" and Code 64 just happens to be the NMRA P87 wheel width! NWSL actually do a HOn3 26" diameter wheel which scales out at 36.4" in TT although the axle is even longer than the NEM TT ones. Looking closer to home the 3mm Society have some Fine Scale standards which are only slightly wider than this (1.65 - 1.75mm or 0.065"-0.069") and includes dimensions for 12mm gauge although none are currently available for this gauge (and we would need shorter axles anyway). Interestingly, an 8mm diameter wheel scales out at 37.8" in 1:120 (only a fraction overscale for the standard 37 1/2" wagon wheel) while the 9mm wheels scale out at 42 1/2" so just about right for BR Mk1 and older coach wheels. With regards to axles; scaling down the standard 26mm length used in 4mm scale produces a length of 16.25mm which should work with the 3mm Fine Standard wheelsets. I would be interested to hear the thought of others who would like to see reasonably fine TT wheel standards. PECO describe TT:120 as 'the true to scale gauge for British Outline' and it would be nice to see it live up to that description!

Lenz and Brawa are both 1:45 although Brawa have now withdrawn from 0 gauge. Kiss used to be 1:43.5 but were changing to 1:45.

Instead of Continental ferry wagons why not the BR diagram 1/127 ferry wagons as they would have potential sales across the Channel.

David Taylor actually uses Continental H0 couplings (not tension-lock).

They only started appearing on Western Region as replacements for withdrawn diesel hydraulics by which time they would have been in BR blue.

A month since our last post during which time we've only managed one or two afternoons a week when neither of us was tied up with other things but we have managed to make a little bit of progress.

I believe the Class 14 was based on the V60.

While there is a strong case for having a slightly narrow gauge as in EM or 0 I don't believe 00 or TT3 were ever really justified. I do hope though they produce some finer wheels than the NEM standard.

12mm gauge is also used by many 5.5mm scale narrow gauge modellers with kits for this scale being first produced by GEM may years ago alongside their 00n3 stuff.

Same wheelbase but different sized wheels. Several other locos shared the same wheelbase such as the SR Q Class

Cape Gauge (1067mm) was also used in other countries around the world including South Africa, Japan and Taiwan. There was also the East Cornwall Mineral Railway which was later converted to standard gauge as part of the Bere Alston to Callington branch. Many of our tramways were also built to this gauge.

Well, after a very long hiatus, I've actually done something on Brückenheim with a light now mounted over the station door. I bought this at the Thornbury exhibition a few weeks ago and i have now glued it into position after repainting the underside of the shade white and the rest in satin black (it was originally all gloss black). I also reduced the size of the mounting plate slightly. It was made for 00 but works well in 0.

I see they continue the usual mistake with the brake gear on the wagon chassis being the same on both sides!