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In international and normalised standards (IEC, EN, BS, ISO and so on), it is usual for the whole publication to begin with the mandatory requirements ("the standard"), which it follows with a series of informational annexes. The annexes do not add new requirements, but rather they help users to apply the standard. The new 00-SF wiki seems an ideal place to add informational articles - for example understanding the standard, how to measure BEF, known compatibility of RTR products, tooling up, moving from Peco and so on. - Richard.

I made this post with sincerity and thoughtfulness - and I've now made a mental note to never again mention the DOGA on the rmweb. I've also realised, I don't need to write to them; and indeed, I most certainly don't want to. It is said a week is a long time in politics, but 24 hours is plenty here. - Richard.

Afraid not - I am taking in the delights of spreading kitchen foil and plasticine over stones from the garden, and pouring plaster casts to make some cliffs. Also, being self-employed, I'm working a while today too. However, you do remind me I might resolder my broken tiebar. This is my only 00-SF snag to date, and for some reason this one has failed twice. - Richard.

I submit this photo to show that at least some Peco turnouts do use wing rails with a web, though tapered. This is from one of their code 75 turnouts. I don't know about the moulding process. For what it's worth - this is my first 00-SF turnout - vee and wing rail parts from a Peco left hand small radius turnout, soldered onto copperclad. I couldn't use the turnout anywhere on my layout so I cut it in half, "made" a LH catch point, and then "made" this. It's not really a bad way to start - the machining on the vee rails lets you use either rail as the nose. Also the notches show how to bend FB rail. The only filing needed is the two point blades and the recesses for them in the stock rails. A casual inspection of this shows why I started my own 00-SF topic, which began asking about bends on the ends of wing and check rails. Nevertheless, this model got me started and I encourage anyone who is reading these threads to spend an evening with a soldering iron and see how you get on. I went on to build six more, and I'm an easy convert to the cause. I arrived here from using Peco for some years (for another post: I'm a long way from retirement) and then a dabble in EM some years ago, not other hand-built 00 standards. - Richard.

The file properties show it was created on 1st April 2007 . . . hmmm. - Richard.

If you do a Google search for "DOGA fine layout" you get nothing, and refining the search to "DOGA fine layout rmweb" gets just one ("Bitton") plus of course loads of explanations and comparisons with 00-SF. And, the DOGA intermediate standard doesn't seem to share much common ground with commercial track like Peco. It seems to me, 00-SF is a natural progression from 00-BF and from EM, but not from either of the DOGA standards. Perhaps this is another reason to choose 00-SF. (I want to write to the DOGA, but their web site gives no address) - Richard.

I'm not entirely happy with using my figures above (posts 29 and 27) because there is always an error on a measurement and taking two measurements and adding them together makes things worse. So - I've been into Chelmsford market and bought a pair of internal calipers. Moore and Wright no less. And cleaned up the faces on my metric micrometer (also M&W) and checked the zero. My metalwork teacher should be smiling. Holding a rigid feeler gauge against the side of the moulded check rail and as parallel to the stock rail as I possibly can, here are my measurements for check gauge a few millimetres beyond the open ends of the wing rails: Peco Code 75 Streamline small radius right - straight 15.18 mm small radius right - curve 15.28 mm medium radius right - straight 15.26 mm medium radius right - curve 15.35 mm (difficult to see - at the back of the layout but tried three times similar results) small radius wye - one side 15.22 mm small radius right - other side 15.23 mm All figures +/- 0.02 mm because I struggle to feel the difference. If I round each sample measurement to the nearest 0.05 mm and calculate the average, I get 15.25 mm. This is obviously not 15.2 (pity!), but it does look to be larger than 15.0. We want a bigger sample! If anyone wishes to PM me their own measurements, I could wait a few days and collate them and post them all together. - Richard.

My figures above are for the crossing flangeways. The check rails are moulded and are harder to measure with confidence because slight pressure from a feeler gauge will push them away. My measurements for the check rails: between 1.30 and 1.35 mm - the curved route on the medium radius right point between 1.35 and 1.40 mm (feels close to 1.40 mm) on the other five locations. Some of these check rails - one especially (the straight on the small radius right) are decidedly non-parallel with their adjacent stock rail. I'm giving the smallest dimension here. I'm using metric feeler gauges. I never thought they would be so useful - I only bought them for a 1 mm shim! I could really go to town with some paper or kitchen foil and a micrometer if this is useful. Next week I can measure some newly-bought code 100 insulfrog ones - and report back if other club members don't send for men in white coats. Packaging long gone I'm afraid. - Richard.

I have three Peco Streamline points on my layout. I bought these in February this year: Code 75 small radius right supplied in clear plastic wallet Code 75 medium radius right supplied in clear plastic wallet Code 75 small radius wye supplied in cardboard box I have measured them carefully. The crossing flangeway is around 1.4 mm on five out of six flangeways, and nearer 1.3mm on the sixth flangeway (being the curve on the small right). The track gauge is consistently around 16.6 mm on four of the six related gauges locations, but I cannot get the vernier square on the fifth and sixth (being the wye) due to obstructions nearby. Perhaps someone could measure some more, including some code 100 ones? If we can get a bigger sample, we might be able to add Streamline (at least, current code 75 Streamline) to the list of pointwork with a 15.2 mm check gauge. The measurements I have taken probably help to explain why I am so happy with my running at the moment too. - Richard.

Martin, This is one of the most poignant quotes I have ever read on these forums. It makes me smile too; but above all it seems most usefully substantive. Thank you. - Richard.

My own reason for choosing 00-SF was to make better-looking points and to keep interoperability with the 00 gauge club layout. RTR wheels set up for 00-SF also run through Peco points and 00-BF, though not necessarily the other way round. The thinnest wheels I possess measure code 91, and while wheel drop happens on the coarser standards, this was not a decision maker for me. This interoperability lets me run my trains on a main line club layout from time to time as well as on my own layout, and lets me use some Peco points on my own layout too. The fundamental dimensions are check gauge and the crossing flangeway gap. The track gauge is derived from these (add together). If I needed to run coarser wheels which won't fit a 1 mm flangeway, I'd look into a 1.1 mm flangeway with 16.3 mm gauge, or 1.2 mm with 16.4 mm gauge before committing to 00-BF. The only extra tool needed is different feeler gauges for the crossing flangeway. My own track has a representation of British HO scale timbering, as preparation for a British HO layout. I discovered the HO-SF setting in Templot rather late in the day, so I think it would be best to say my SF efforts are 00-SF not HO-SF. The differences in geometry are too minor to get into detail here, and calling it 00/HO-SF would be wrong. When I ponder a new layout, the interoperability factor always seems to come back to me and win. And so I'm tending towards the British HO option rather than EM at the moment. - Richard.

Yes it is - it looks fabulous, a truly delightful model. - Richard.

I have used those flexible strips of LEDs with some success. You could start putting with two pieces of "daylight white" and one piece of "warm white" across the top of the enclosure, immediately behind the front edge and angled down towards the back of the baseboard. This will effectively make a large number of point sources, and shadows will be minimal. (Link to what I did.) With a layout in an enclosure, it might be useful to put one or two strips of warm white vertically up one side, behind a narrow fascia and pointing across the model away from the viewer. The idea being to add some modelling to the scene. which would come from low sunlight. If you try LEDs prepare to buy a dedicated mains power unit for them. - Richard.

If I draw the MX-5 alongside a Landrover Discovery or Evoque or similar, I am invariably asking for trouble. Most likely the driver never saw me arrive, and may well simply drive across me. I'd like to imagine these vehicles being given blind spot mirrors like lorries, but it's a vain hope and the drivers of these must be treated with extreme caution. I suspect these vehicles are bought by drivers who have poor observation skills to start with, and the reduced peripheral visibility goes completely unnoticed. If I may allowed the tiniest rant, I'd like to see these things classified as commercial vehicles. This would keep them out of car parks, out of the outside lane of motorways and hopefully governed below 60mph too. Dream on I guess. - Richard.

Another suggestion for the models: The blanked-off moulded ends might look better if it was possible to fit small pieces of mirror across them on the insides. Not sure how to go about this, just a loose idea! - Richard.

I've put a micrometer across mine, they are 0.110 inches so I think it's partly an optical illusion because they do look really good. The age of the £100 shunter comes along with the age of really nice RTR wheels. - Richard.

Ickworth (Suffolk), earlier today. - Richard.

The guy had hope in his heart when he passed the turning on the right - but if there was no paint at all on the road, I suggest he wouldn't have made the attempt at all. - Richard.

Supposing, all three points were Y points. The model could go on a circular baseboard with a turntable like a lazy susan. No backscene, but rather taper the landscape down to a feather edge all round. View from any angle. No point controls = very simple controls, I think three pairs of wires for the whole layout. I like this, something different but still very much in the Carl Arendt mould? - Richard.

Here's a diversion to the built environment - two views from "Level 72" on Saturday 18th July. My golly we got a clear day for the trip. Ilford XP2 with a deep yellow filter - quite moody. - Richard.

Welcome to the forums! This layout looks rather fun - and I think with your final caption "layout still to be finished" you will fit in well here. There is a special area of the forums for peoples's layouts. If you start a topic here for your own layout, you will probably get more readers and viewers. I think a lot of members will like the layout, and your video as well. - Richard.

Back in the Spring of 2005 there was a brief period when holders of a Gold Card (annual season) issued by "First Great Eastern" had their free weekend travel honoured by the new "Anglia" franchise. I went out for the day with a mate, and here are my logs from the day. We drove to Colchester North to start. (Anglia withdrew the perk after a while, and I never bought another Gold Card. It was only Hatfield Peverel to Chelmsford after all!) - Richard.

I wrote to the shop last week: Hi, Thinking about my order number LTM-001-75094 for one of your S class train models, can you tell me whether I was early enough to qualify for the special trip? Many thanks, and they replied: Thank you for your email. Unfortunately we cannot release the information to successful participants just yet. We will be sending out information and invitations to the lucky customers in the coming weeks. However I can see that your order was placed on the 01/06/2015 and so I think you have a very good chance of receiving something special in the post! This is very sweet of them, but I'll be pretty fed up if I find I've set up a business trip and it clashes with the train trip. On the bright side, if anyone's order number was earlier than mine, hopefully you are in luck! - Richard.

Yes. I guess, the people offering DCC-ready models have done the work for you. - Richard.

More grimace than smile - a bit off topic? - Richard.