ChrisG

Jamie - hi and thank you for posting this little gem! Hope you are well. I like thinking that Godfrey's trainset might still be there and waiting to be re-discovered! Chris

If Graham 'Muz' is watching this thread, I have a question he might know the answer to... The availability of spare parts - I remmber David Jones asking me why on Earth I would want to dismantle the loco in the first place (!), but in the course of various dismantlings, alterations and repairs, I have lost a number of parts over the years. Are they going to be available? Meanwhile they fill a gap in my BR IOW roster and I've ordered a "Calbourne" and a "Newport", both in Malachite Chris Gardner

I've only just seen this e-mail, but I have to report that I abandoned the idea of developing Nick's Cowes. I have downsized my ambitions as a result of deciding to leave the loft for the shed - more interested in a small layout I have a chance of "finishing" than a big one which is never going to be completed, and which requires climbing a ladder to get to. As one gets older...... I started fitting Nick's Cowes into the shed and realised how much space it would take and also how long it would take to build the sheer number of buildings required. My thoughts turned to my 20 years old model of Cowes which was still in the rafters in the garage. I got it down to assess the possibilities - one of which was that I would scrap it. I removed all the scenery in a couple of sessions and started pushing rolling stock around it, then driving locos, and concluded that the trackwork was still good. And so that's what I've been doing for the last few weeks. It's been re-wired, points and signals now controlled by servos, working on the platforms and the station buildingm, the road bridge, etc. The shed is slightly more than 10 feet by 10 feet and the full plan involves a model of Newport in its last days (reduced operational trackwork), a continuous run with a cassette yard, the branch to Cowes, with a triangular junction (in a tunnel) and a scenic section representing Smithards Lane crossing and Gas House siding. Three nice little cameos and interesting operational potential, providing interesting operations for two operators. Base camp is to get Cowes finished and scenicked, running to a temporary cassette yard at right angles. The layout sits on metre high shelving units which store all the modeller's "round tuits", and the whole thing has a good feeling. Nick's Cowes is therefore where my old Cowes was, in the rafters in the garage. It's funny how things turn out sometimes, and it took me a while to work out what I really wanted to do layout wise. Just got a Hornby Carisbrooke this morning - lovely looking loco, and I need to get working on the new Worsley Works two car push pull set to go with it...

Yes, mounting the frame is an interesting challenge. The metal plates on the bottom which stick out at the sides, with screw holes are designed to bolt onto a flat surface. You need to have cut a rectangular hole where the levers are and the gubbins goes under board. I have worked out a way of using my frame on Ventnor West which involved mounting micro switches which are activated by the bottom of the levers. Works a treat and I have now got the servos (signals) and turnouts (Cobalts) working on separate common returns. I will be using the same approach on Cowes. I still have some work to do to finish the wiring on Ventnor West - the control panel is now permanently mounted at the front, so I don't have the complication of plugging in a separate control panel. Much neater, and I hope, reliable!

Hey Nick - using Modratec?! Brilliant. I have had a few problems with mine, using electrics to drive turnouts (Cobalts), signals (Megapoints servos), and one turnout on Mark's bit of the layout (CDU powered solenoid). Basically the electrical switch units for the Modratec frame all consist of the same SPDT switches, whereas my three drive sources need a different switching configuration and work off different power sources! This looks like it will drive me off Modratec at least as far as Ventnor West is concerned (I had a melt down at the last show following which I need to completely re-design the electrics for the layout). But my big news is that I am making major progress on setting up the shed in the garden to take your old model of Cowes! I've started working on the model of the Granville Road Bridge and hope to have the boards up in the shed within a week or two. Though VW is the current priority. Harold who makes Modratec is looking to sell the Company - it's too much for him in his retirement, but I don't think he's had any takers yet. I hope you've got all the bits you need. How are you going to drive the points and signals? Chris

There's more room for scenery than you might think. The tracks behind Cowes will be behind and under the townscape and the continuous run on the right hand side and top of the plan hidden behind a back scene. And the Mediina crossing at Newport is over an empty board. However, serious thoughts are now in play about scrapping the whole thing and starting again with a clean slate and a "step by step" approach to building a layout and finishing each bit before starting the next. And of course learning from all the mistakes made to date. Cowes again the favourite for the initial build..... It's the modeller's perfect compact terminus and three platforms for the busy times. Chris

Here's the trackplan of the empire. Newport is on the left (majorly compressed trackplan), Medina Wharf at the top (freelance track plan, this exists to replicate the function of Medina Wharf rather than to look like it), and Cowes bottom right, the only part of the layout which has the full prototype trackplan. With work going on on Medina, almost none of the layout is actually operational at the moment and once the Medina trackwork is done I have some serious "fettling" to do over a baseboard joint at Cowes. The loops bottom right represent the lines to Sandown and Ryde. The scissors crossover will be hidden behind Cowes and simply allows trains on both Sandown and Ryde lines to use either hidden loop. Thus a train departing for Sandown can re-emerge from Sandown on its return journey. The same for Ryde trains. In hindsight, it was not really necessary and I could have saved time and money just leaving it out! I was sad to learn the other day that Elite Baseboards, who built and installed my boards have ceased trading. I know they had had considerable health problems recently. I was one of their early customers I believe, and they installed the boards in the unbelievable heat in my loft. Even with an air-conditioning unit it was practically unbearable. Progress generally, following my broken ankle, is now very slow.... Chris Alton# Hants

Just found a link to the 2013 "price guide" http://www.markits.com/MARKITS_Price_Guide_2013_09.pdf

I'm very pleased to hear that Markits are still operating. I was beginning to wonder! Whilst stories of phoning and excellent service are great, I cannot help thinking that success in the modern world is going to rely on having a catalogue, so that one can see what is available and identify it by product number, with a price list which isn't (like the old one) a work of fiction. Meanwhile simply having the old list of products available on line again would mean it would be possible to raise an order (which I do through my local model shop who are, like me, rather stymied right now!). Chris G Alton Hants

Having worked in Intellectual Property all of my working life, I am pretty sure that Mr. Jones has misunderstood what it is he has managed to protect. Whilst he can protect his own CADS and production tools, so that no-one else can use them or copy them, there is (as at least one other correspondent has said) nothing he can do to prevent someone creating their own set of CADs from the same prototype and own set of tools from their own CADs. He certainly cannot protect himself against duplicate models. If what he was saying is true, it would, for example prevent me from creating my own CADs to make a laser-cut Isle of Wight Road Van because I am tired of waiting for the one he was commissioned to make by Kernow Models yonks ago. Chris

I measured the floor area from a large scale map and divided it by 8 for each house. I estimated the height of the houses from my own photos showing the front doors.like most of my modelling they are impressionistic. I'm not sure what other buildings will be included. My Cowes site is very compact with hidden sidings running behind it. Most of the buildings will be very low relief, and until I've built the scenic skeleton I won't be 100% sure of what I can include. Probably only the backs of buildings adjouning the station site. As as you say it takes courage to attack the coaches. I will one day. The next few will be BR green. The prevalence of red is to do with stock to run on Ventnor West and Merstone. i do have a track plan and need to get it into a format suitable for posting. chris

I had a big modelling hiatus between January and March, caused by breaking an ankle and not being able to get up to the loft. I had the excitement of Ventnor West appearing in the Railway Modeller March issue, but had to pull out of the Stafford exhibition. Still, we are booked for November at Tolworth with Ventnor West and Merstone. Meanwhile, I have been building rolling stock for both layouts, and an engine shed for Newport. Now I am able to get back in the loft I will be able to resume on "Medina Wharf" (inverted commas because it is not an accurate model of the real thing at all) and get that into an operational state. Most of the track is layed but not wired. The engine shed is built from my own CADs which were laser cut for me by Julie at York Modelmaking, for whom I have nothing but praise. I am currently working on the CADS for the row of eight terraced house backs which overlook Cowes Station from Granville Road. More on these as the project unfolds! Here are pictures illustrating the latest progress. Note how many more coaches there are now on the layout! I think I am up to 14.

I have a 1932 working timetable of the whole Island, and Andrew Britton's book "Once Upon a Line" volume 3 includes the Summer working timetable for 1965 and 1966. I would be very interested to know if you ever manage to locate one for c1950. Chris

Was getting concerned about the lack of response - did it mean that I am wrong in my approach. I have to say that based on my experience I would not dream of exhibiting a shunting layout using the NEM socket version of the Kadees. I've certainly seen your layout and admired the operation! Chris

I have recently converted all my 4mm scale British outline locos and rolling stock from Sprat and Winkle to Kadee. Whilst some of the stock had NEM sockets, I found the Kadee 17, 18 & 19 couplers not reliable enough for remote coupling and uncoupling, and I have fitted with Kadee gear boxes and "whisker" couplers. In the process I have a couple of underlying observations regarding the use of Kadee couplings for British rolling stock if you are looking for a) total reliability and b) handling short radius curves:- 1) The Kadee coupling was developed primarily for use with stock which does not have buffers. Thus the imperative of keeping stock a fixed distance apart does not arise; the longer couplers when used to reverse stock around curves can easily deflect towards the outside of the curve reducing the separation between vehicles and causing derailments - especially with heavy kit built stock like mine 2) The Kadee NEM compliant couplings are more strongly sprung then the Whisker couplings and consequently less reliable for uncoupling and coupling; As things stand I have probably solved 90% of the problems. As mentioned earlier in the correspondence, I have fixed all sprung couplings in the retracted position to make things easier. I have also considered, but not implemented, the idea of a buffing beam between the buffers to keep certain items of rolling stock apart. On my Ventnor West exhibition layout I am achieving close on 100% reliability, and given that every train movement involves a shunt of some sort, this is vital to maintain hands-off operation. And Ventnor West is not plagued with the short curves I have on Cowes to Newport in the loft. One warning for those planning to use Kadees in NEM fitted stock is that not all NEM sockets are mounted in the same way - Dapol wagons are especially prone to inconsistent springing of the sockets, which can lead to unreliability. Chris Gardner Alton Hants