TheEdge

Ok, so a gray roof doesn't mean it has to be a WWII coach them. I suppose a bit of white wash would make it look more like a dirtied roof than a painted one?

Thanks for the advice, its definitely confirmed what I thought was the case, a little bit of signaling to be done but nothing too complex, might have to model opening gates if I can. That's precisely the sort of image and evidence I needed for proof of concept. Interesting that I learnt to drive real trains in 2017 and we still actually had a pair of these crossings where the gate was the stop signal with manual distants.

Thats where I've been getting my understanding from. I'm trying to narrow down what I've got, especially the coaches. I feel like they are painted into a really narrow window.

Quick question on what the inter-war GWR would have done for a level crossing. I'm looking at doing a tiny shelf layout (well, glorified diorama really), single line, tiny halt, no sidings, small rural lane crossing the railway. Would that sort of crossing have had anything at all or would it have been open with a whistle board and a low line speed? If it did have a proper set of gates presumably there would have been a crossing keepers hut/cottage and some signals. Distant signals only with the gates functioning as the red? Or proper distant and stop signals? TIA

I've recently gone and got myself a second hand set of the Dapol B-Set coaches in N. Its the original release numbered 6873 and 6872. As I understand from online sources 6873 and 6874 would be an appropriate pair of E147 B Set coaches, 6872 is down as E125 diagram coach from a 4 vehicle formation. But that's by the by rather, its N, those running numbers are barely legible without getting them in your face. I'm planning on doing a tiny shelf layout of some GWR riverside branch scene and I'm trying to get the right liveries to go together. The digging I've done makes me think that GWR Shirtbutton, with Third written on the doors and with a dark grey roof would make this particular paint scheme a mid-WWII application. I've come to that conclusion by mixing that it appears to be 1938 being when Third was added to doors and the grey roof being a wartime decision. The only reference I can find to the roof is that 1941(ish) white roofs got painted grey to make them less visible, but I cant see if that was the only situation where the GWR had a grey roof. If I wanted it to be very much pre-war would I need a white roof? If the grey roof does date it as a wartime livery which of the GWR liveries would be correct for the loco? I'm looking at running this with the upcoming run of Dapol Panniers. Would the Great Western full word livery still have been floating about on tank engines in the late 1930s early 1940s? My understanding is the G W R livery was a 1942 introduction, is that right? This all feels a bit overly in depth but I just want it to be right.

I've got a collection of continental N and had some fitting services look at my locos and come to the conclusion that there just isn't the space in most locos to retrofit sound. So I'm looking at other ways of achieving some sound and the idea that has jumped to mind is to fit coaches and wagons with the sound to go with their locos. In some cases I'm dealing with HST-esque semi permanently coupled power cars and coaches so it's no issue, in others I'm coming up with more fluid ideas. The first project is one of the semi-permanent sets so hopefully an easy start. The intention is to use a commercial lighting kit to get the power to the chip, then use a ESU LokSound 5 Fx chip to provide the sound. If I've understood that chip correctly with its lack of motor control and design intention for being used in cab cars I can happily just attach it to the feeds and leave it and its speaker in the coach? Then if I just consist it with the loco or use the same address for both loco and coach chip the sound should sync with the loco? Or am I over simplifying that? For other locos I have had the idea of dedicated "sound coaches" to run within consists. As there should only be a limited different types of classes running with each consist I'm hoping I can make this work but having a coach with multiple loksound chips loaded with each different class, wired to one speaker. Then again, consist them up and have the right noise for the right loco. Is that a plausible idea or a bit unworkable?

I've got a second hand Minitrix BR152 (12647) which works fine on DC but when I try and fit a DCC chip it refuses to do anything. I sat in a model shop today with another gent trying to work out the issue. We confirmed that with DC straight to the motor it all runs fine and checked the chip we had to hand and that was also working. A few queries come up. Firstly the paperwork claims its a NEM 6 pin socket but following some of the traces on the PCB we started to think that possibly the Minitrix SELECTRIX locos and chips are proprietary and wont work with a normal NEM chip. Is this the case? Someone else wandered in and made a claim that Minitrix locos like to blow diodes/transistors and those are probably bust and the PCB needs fixing or replacing. It sounded quite outlandish but is there any truth to it? Assuming the socket is a normal NEM one and it is a PCB issue is hardwiring the best option at this point to get round whatever fault there is? And is that question for the normal DCC forum or can Trix locos be strange? TIA