H2O

8 minutes ago, APOLLO said:

 

Brit15

I do hope all of those Ford Anglias have been retro fitted with central door locking.

25 minutes ago, Ray Von said:

Hi all, 

 

I've just been reading about / viewing YouTube vids re: controlling your layout via your mobile device using Arduino circuit boards.

It all seemed very exciting, until I got to the "programming and coding" section.

My eyes tend to glaze over whenever I am confronted with anything technical like this - does anyone out there provide a service whereby they program the hardware for the inept like me?? 

Hornby have a system.  See below.

If you cannot programme Arduinos yourself then, unless you find a generous patron who can, Hornby could be your best bet.

Even if you could programme them (or find someone who can) the total cost, reliability and ongoing support issues* could mount up.

However, if you want to tinker, don't mind being frustrated at times, want to do some coding and this is an area of the hobby you love then go for it.

* Always assuming Hornby are committed long term to their system.

1 hour ago, rodent279 said:

Hmmm.......a train full of MPs.....faulty doors........photo opportunities......I sincerely hope nothing goes wrong there.......

Already tried this in 1830^.  It didn't end well.  If only they'd had central door locking Huskisson may have seen the day out...

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opening_of_the_Liverpool_and_Manchester_Railway

^ OK no photo opportunities, Fox Talbot's invention was about 10 years later.

Silhouette looks like a MR 3F or 4F to me  however I'll bow to more learned visitors to this site.

If you can find the distance between the visible uprights on the bridge handrails or between the cross members then you may be able to estimate the major dimensions to a reasonable degree. e.g. chimney to dome or smoke box to back of tender, if you are that determined! :-)

18 minutes ago, Gilbert said:

Bl**dy H*ll...

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/avon-valley-railway-celebrates-50th-9211737?

The above link works just as well without the tell tale stuff.

I must have been there near the beginning of AVR as I distinctly remember going on a Father Christmas special in the mid 70's and getting a colouring book :-)

Bit of an interesting journey for the AVR to where they are now.

On 24/02/2024 at 23:51, PortLineParker said:

Hi all,

 

Does anyone have a handy chart/table showing the maximum loads for locos over the S&D? In one of my books (one of Ivo Peter's I think) it gives a load for a 7F and later the 9Fs, but what about the BR 4MT 2-6-0 and 4-6-0s, the BR 5MTs etc.?

 

Cheers,

 

PLP

If you're still looking I believe there are some tables of loadings for lots of different locos that operated on the S&D in the book "The Somerset & Dorset from the Footplate" by Peter Smith.  I think the later version is a combined edition of 2 earlier books.

2 hours ago, adb968008 said:

Snip:

"Old numbers mean nothing unless your proposing to go back to those standards."

Isn't a Mk1 with no CDL 'those standards'?  Stewards yes, but they can't be everywhere.

PS I'm not pro or anti anyone.

15 minutes ago, Oldddudders said:

An implausibly huge number. WCRC really need some very good arguments to be effective against that stat.

My flabber was ghasted too, the source was not quoted^, however I don't think they were making the number up - perhaps a typo?  It wasn't the April issue either.

^The item mentioned an investigation by the rail inspectorate following public concern, also an independent report from Knight Wendling.

FWIW:

From 1991, 'Rail' issue 148, page 6:

"... 112 passengers have been killed over the last 5 years when they fell out of train doors."

The high number surprised me, but some real numbers from an era when passengers were presumably more used to manual doors.

3 hours ago, RichardT said:

"On the thin evidence available this sounds like a revival of the old “third-shift counterfeiting”

Clip of earlier helpful reply.

Could these models also be ones that failed QC and go out the back door to be sold rather than in the bin?  If so you are guaranteed a lemon if foolish enough to buy direct from China.

41 minutes ago, Michael Hodgson said:

 

My dad said when the RAF sent him to Canada for aircrew training during WW2, the Lavvies on the improvised troop ship he was on had too much of an outside view .... he said you perched on a horizontal telegraph pole with sea water rushing past below you.

Was that on the poop deck?

57 minutes ago, Gray69 said:

I get the feeling that I am missing something obvious, but I can't think of the answer.

On the Bachmann DEMU, 150 and others, the coupling bar between coaches has 2 through power connections.

I have been fitting head and tail light kits to a Bachmann class 166. To save having to add decoders to each end I wanted to run the wires required for the lighting functions through the coupling using a Viessmann 5048 coupling, which has 2 wires. It only dawned on me once I had the coupling that there are 3 wires required, the white, yellow and blue.

So how does Bachmann operate the head and tail lighting on the trailer with only 2 connectors, and is this something that can be replicated.

I don't know how Bachmann do it but it could be done by having the 2 LEDs in inverse parallel.  Current going one way lights up one LED  current going the other way lights up the other LED.  Two protection resistors may be needed, one in each 'arm', value of each based on the different forward voltage, current drawn and brightness wanted from each LED.

Agree with above.  Resistor dividers won't work very well with a motor load, I found this out in my early adventures in electronics...

If using the 12V controller you could add a series resistor.  If the motor draws up to 0.3A at 3V then a 30 Ohm 3W resistor between the 12V supply and motor should do the trick.  The resistor could be between the controller and track rather than in the stock if that works for you.

56 minutes ago, Northmoor said:

BBC4 has been repeating both series of "To the Manor Born" recently.  I don't remember it fondly enough to watch all of them but did record and watch the one where Audrey Forbes-Hamilton fights the closure of the village railway station.  Maiden Newton was used for "Marlbury" with a 3-car Met-Camm DMU in all blue used in several scenes.  Part of the story was how run-down the station looked; this being BR in about 1980 very little set-dressing was required.

 

I recall reading an article in one of the railway mags about an enthusiast ending up in a shouting match with the Maiden Newton signalman about photography on the station.  It didn't excuse his behaviour towards a member of the public, but the author suggested that he was probably sick of the sight of anyone with a camera.  He might have been on duty on the day of filming and had to deal with the constant shunting back and forth of the train and TV crew wandering across the tracks regardless of train movements. 

I remember watching that episode a year or so ago. IIRC a platform poster, best forgotten, was fortunately fuzzed out when broadcast at that time.

6 minutes ago, MyRule1 said:

Next week's episode should be interesting The RAIB investigation into the runaway train with an unauthorized person in the cab.🤣

In addition to 2 runaways shown there was no guard on the train when the murder happened and the fireman got on and off the moving loco and then walked alongside the moving loco in the tunnel :-(  We might chuckle at these 'errors' but sadly those scenes (whilst superficially amusing and part of entertainment) don't do much for the image of heretage railways operation to the wider public.  At least the signal looked to be off in the 2nd run away :-)

6 hours ago, H2O said:

Western Fuel Co(?) were operating behind what is now M Shed museum within about 1/2 mile of the city centre in Bristol up until 1990ish. Rail served via the old swing bridge, spike island from transfer sidings off the old Portishead branch IIRC. The transfer to the coal yard was done with their own shunter. 'Famously' the Peckett Henbury, run by Bristol Harbour Railway, was used for this commercial traffic when the diesel shunter was under repair.  Not 100% sure what their market was but guessing mainly for domestic use.

From:

https://bristolharbourrailway.co.uk/tag/fuel/

Looks like rail delivery to Western Fuels' central Bristol yard stopped in spring 1987. Info and video (including film of Bath Road turntable) at above website has Henbury hauling coal commercially in 1981.

9 hours ago, Rivercider said:

The traditional vacuum braked wagon load freight network was wound down and ceased in May 1984, scrap and domestic coal were among the last traffics. Thereafter remaining domestic coal depots were served by the Speedlink network with coal in HBA and HEA hoppers.

Commencing in November 1986 the domestic coal traffic was separated off from Speedlink onto the separate Speedlink Coal network, with the complete transfer by July 1987. By then there were about 37 coal concentration depots remaining. I was in WR HQ freight planning section at the time and was surprised a separate network was being set up for domestic coal traffic as many of the WR and SR depots were planned for a daily service, yet most were receiving only 5 or 6 wagons each a week!

Speedlink Coal was renamed Network Coal, and it finally closed in April 1993, (the Speedlink Network having already closed in July 1991). Thereafter the only depots regularly served were trainloads of coal to West Drayton and Preston Deepdale.

 

cheers 

Western Fuel Co(?) were operating behind what is now M Shed museum within about 1/2 mile of the city centre in Bristol up until 1990ish. Rail served via the old swing bridge, spike island from transfer sidings off the old Portishead branch IIRC. The transfer to the coal yard was done with their own shunter. 'Famously' the Peckett Henbury, run by Bristol Harbour Railway, was used for this commercial traffic when the diesel shunter was under repair.  Not 100% sure what their market was but guessing mainly for domestic use.

On 16/02/2024 at 14:13, Pete the Elaner said:

Maybe you could consider an alternative to PVA?

 

Many consider it the 'tried & tested' product for ballasting, but it is a resin wood glue. It is great for gluing wood together, but fixing ballast requires different properties, so why assume it is good for this too?

A resin is a poor product for fixing ballast & PVA reacts with some ballast, leaving it slightly green.

 

I've heard Copydex as an alternative, stays soft so may be lower noise and can be reworked, however need to contend with fish smell too!  Sadly I can't help too much as this is only what I've heard or read, no experience of it my self.

2 hours ago, Wickham Green too said:

I don't know whether this would still have been applicable ; - 

 

Is there a drawing for the type where there is a subtle curve (in the same direction) on the shorter sides? This is so the gap doesn't open up as the slabs go round the edge of curved platforms. Perhaps not the best description but this can be seen on some platforms, perhaps an older design?

3 minutes ago, Damo666 said:

Apologies. I took this to mean they were made and supplied form China, so therefore cannot be exported outside China. My apologies.

OK, understand now where you were coming from - so no probs.

14 minutes ago, Damo666 said:

  

Not quite sure what you are getting at? Rapid Electronics are a British company who have sourced these parts from China and hold this stock in the UK. For whatever reason they can't or won't export outside the UK. So ok for UK readers to buy these, but probably not those in Europe or further afield.

Spotted today 5x small rechargeable 3.7V 240mAh batteries including a USB powered charger for £12.50. May be useful for low power LED constant lighting circuit or microprocessor boards.

https://www.rapidonline.com/airgineers-micro-drone-5-batteries-and-usb-charger-set-70-1176

Not bought any so only going on published data.

Features (from website):

3.7V 240mAh

Dimensions: 35 x 20 x 6mm

Weight: 7g

Fitted with 30mm lead and 2-pin connector

3 hours ago, scottystitch said:

If built, the return loop station would take its inspiration from this layout (I can't remember the name of it just now, but I think it's an O gauge layout..:

 

 

Best

 

Scott

AFAIK I've seen this layout in a magazine. This is very much like the arrangement at Mangotsfield station on the old Midland route into Bristol. The South platforms were for Bath (Green Pk), the North platforms for Gloucester. The real station was the West corner of a triangle, in the middle of which was not a mill but a chocolate factory :-)

Mangotsfield station is where Arnold Ridley was inspired to write The Ghost Train as a non stop Bath to Gloucester train went along the unseen side of the triangle.

On 28/02/2023 at 19:46, Northmoor said:

I think it was a tongue-in-cheek suggestion (surely?) that some body such as HRA would actually plan which of its members' lines should close.  Nobody has the right or powers to decide that anymore than the Association of independent Retailers could decide which corner shops to close - they don't own them!

 

One thing and one thing only will decide which railways do or don't survive the coming recession: good management.  That is no different to any other time; there have always been preserved railways that have been less successful than you would expect based on their location, etc.  Short of an Act of God weather incident - and I can't think of a preserved railway closed by one - everything else is to a greater or lesser extent in the control of the railway's managers.  There is always a challenge attracting enough volunteers with the right skills to railways; attracting managers with the right business skills, sufficient enthusiasm for railway preservation and willingness to do the job for what will be a modest salary, is probably one of the hardest searches of all.

 

You are absolutely right about the mobility or otherwise of volunteers.  In the case of rolling stock, a team of volunteers moves with "their" locomotive.  They may do lots of other volunteering on railway A as well as working on their own project, but if the loco moves to railway B, many may be lost to A altogether.

Perhaps it was a reference to Beaching II in 'identifying lines for future development'?  Maybe Serpell could be put into action with no preserved railways beyond Plymouth and Aberdeen.

For the avoidance of doubt the above _is_ tongue in cheek.

6 hours ago, Colin_McLeod said:

 

However, anyone posing that question on Google now will get the full benefit of this thread in their results.  Thank you @Stefen1988 for asking.

 

Sadly this is the wrong date for WR, as I mentioned earlier in response to the text found by google, this incorrect info will live on as many people will stop there and just quote the search result found :-(