ianLMS

Working 2 projects simultaniously right now so plenty going on. One is a hybrid kit/scratch/rtr Jubilee. I had some parts left over from a mixed bag of stuff i got off ebay and one of the items was a tapered boiler and firebox looking very much like a 3A off a Jubilee with a short firebox. Possibly a K's kit but not sure. It maybe off a Black 5 but it lines up nicely with the drawing i have of a Jubileee. However, its all i had along with cab sides from a JE etch. So using a Jamieson 5XP kit as a template, i scratchbuilt a footplate and cab roof from sheet brass. For the chassis i purchased a cheep DCC ready Hornby rebuilt royal scot. The other project is bedding in my scalescenes terraced houses with slaters plasticard facing and the scalescenes lock keepers cottage as the Station masters house. I am currently making the garden walls, and will then plant the veg patch and turf it in due course. Mrs Station Master is a keen gardener and wanted an ornamental pond!!

Evening Graham. Unfortunately i have not had much chance or success at developing the couplings any further. I know there are new magnetic couplings from a company called Hunt which some others have used succesfully. I hear they may be trying to develop something a bit more realistic for use with steam locos and older stock, poss screw or 3 link. It will be a long while before i try anything more on my system. Good luck and i will follow your progress closely. Ian

Thank you Captain, kind of you to say so. The doors come in different sizes, but to fit these ones i opened out the door apperture to fit. With using the plasticard texture, the card inner layer needed to be cut 1mm bigger on the 4 sides for the doors and windows. To make space for the lintel and cills i cut an extra 1.5mm top and bottom, extending slightly on the width. I then glued the card to the plasticard sheet using Deluxe card glue. When dry, i then cut the plasticard 1mm less than the opening in the card and glued a 1mm sq styrene rod section to set the window or door frame back slightly. The windows are the black framed ones from the sheet he provides normally used for translucent sheets. I glue the sheet to thin card and cut the frames out using a scalpel. Colour the edge with a black sharpie helps hide the card. The lintels and cills are 1.5 x 2.5mm styrene strip. Turned flat for the lintel and on the edge for the cills. When glueing and cutting the sections of card, you need to make sure you have sufficient over lap for the corners, or you could mitre them if you are able to. I butted them the same as you would the normal way. I like the York roof tiles, but i agree they are quite thick for 4mm modelling. The card they use is probably .5mm. On the other terraced kits in the pic i used the printed tile. Without cutting in between each tile, they do just look like strips of paper, and not easy to get straight. The York tiles are pre-cut and in my opinion, easier to use and keep straight. Very pricey though!!!

Just completed the terraced houses. More detail here;

I already had a couple of the superb Scalescenes terraced houses kits and wanted another set to fill space created when i extended the radius of the curve and built new platforms. Rather than using the standard kit i wanted something with a bit more texture and detail. i decided to use the Scalescenes kit as the main structure but face it with Slaters styrene sheet. I used the 4mm dressed stone sheet. I upgraded the roof using York Modelmaking tiles, styrene rod for guttering/downpipes, tin foil for lead flashing and York front doors. Painted the sheet with vrey primer first, then picked out random stones with a variety of greys, greens etc then brushed over AK rubble weathering powder to tone it down. Added last touches include washing line, clothes/sheets from Rizzla/tissue paper, dustbins and other bits and bobs. Even added clothes pegs to the sheets on the line!!!

Brassmasters also do upgrade kits for the Bachmann 4F which would also help upgrade the Airfix one. "Bachmann MR/LMS 4F 0-6-0 Detailing" http://www.brassmasters.co.uk/4f_detailing.htm

"DCC Page 1" https://www.brian-lambert.co.uk/DCC_Page_1.html I always refer to Mr Lamberts webpage for all things electrical and he hasnt let me down yet! He explains the different options for DC DCC and insulfrog vs electrofrog.

Slower, but just as effective is nibbling the lump of coal with a pair of pliers if wielding a hammer isnt your thing. Still need a means of catching the bits and be mindful of slithers flying off in all directions, especially towards the eyes or the better halfs best dresses!!! You end up with a lot of dust either way which is useful for weathering on tenders, coal bunkers, staithes etc.

From what i can gather, dcc requires data and power from the controller to the decoder. The DCC decoders require a much cleaner signal from the track compared to just voltage which is all analogue requires. Therefore something may work fine on analogue but if the data isnt getting through to the chip perfectly, it wont operate in a way it should.

I have had many problems with kit built chassis using DCC as well, even though they run fine on analogue. They are either jerky, stall, don't run at all or not very responsive. Its at the point now that I am experimenting with using RTR chassis under kit bodies, or I will convert the layout back to DC. Some of the things I find which may help are; 1. wheels/track must be spotless 2. Are there any shorts between the wheels, brake gear or chassis 3. Oiling/greasing the axles, gearbox, coupling rods. 4. Ensure all wheels are making perfect contact with the track. Do they work when on a rolling road? 5. Test with a Gaugemaster wheel cleaner. I find that it will run on the wheel cleaner as the brass brushes make contact much easier than solid track enabling the chip to get the full signal it needs. 6. Quality decoders - I find Zimo work better than most other chips,. but its not a guarantee for success! 7. Test different pick up arrangements, using different materials and one might just work better than another.

Statfold Barns is an exceptional collection of mostly Narrow Gauge locomotives amd really is a hidden gem. They only have a dozen open days a year and i cannot recommend it high enough for a day out. They have invested so much over the last couple of years and are adding track to their lines around the estate. "Family Days Out at Statfold, England" https://www.statfold.com No link, just a very happy punter who enjoyed a day out with my dad on his 82nd birthday!

Just a few pics from this weekends Statfold Barns event being held this weekend near Tamworth. A superb day and a must for NG enthusiasts.

A few pictures showing current projects on the go. I am now adding additional housing behind the terraced houses and waiting room. I am using the Scalescenes Terraced Houses, the Lock Keepers Cottage and Row of Cottages kits, but facing them with Slaters styrene sheets to blend in with the station and provide relief. Guttering and downpipes are styrene half-round and round rod. Front doors are from York Modelmaking. Rear door are Scalescenes with the middle panels cut out and mounted behind again providing some relief. Window sills and lintels are Evergreen styrene 1.5 x 2.5mm bar. The windows are the black window frames which are usually used for printing on the transparent plastic sheets, however, I mount the sheet on thin card and cut the frames out, gluing micro-scope glass behind. On the lock keepers cottage, the roof tiles use York Modelmaking self adhesive roof tiles. the mounting board is coated in Shellac for when i bed it into the scenery. Still some work to do on the terraced houses as I am only half way there!! A bit of fettling and working out is needed if not using the standard printed sheets, but is doesn't take too long to fathom out.

Not tried Branchlines but will give them a go as well. I tried one of these motors and it works well with my Zimo MX623 decoder. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/7mm-x-16mm-Coreless-Micro-Motor-12V-with-DOUBLE-SHAFT-for-model-trains-/283239710105?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=710-127635-2958-0 Ian

"Coreless Motors" https://dccwiki.com/Coreless_Motor Quote " coreless motors should not be used on a DCC system without a multifunction decoder installed. They will overheat when operated in zero stretching modes. This is due in part to their low impedance, which makes them look almost like a short circuit. This will allow a lot of current to flow during zero stretching. The excessive current flow will result very quickly in the destruction of the motor,."

They are very nice gearboxes and i have a list ready for when they re-open for business!!

I use steel sqaure bars. I have 25mm, 50mm and 75mm square blocks of differing lengths. Useful to weigh things down and use as a solid square for building kits etc. No good to solder against though as they suck the heat out from the iron! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bright-Mild-Steel-Square-Bar-EN3B-Various-Sizes-50mm-to-1000mm-long-080A15-/301967853619?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286

I have several Scalescenes kits and used a Sharp laser printer. For my garage which is set slightly further back (5ft from front of layout), I printed the pages at 90% to see it made a difference for forced perspective. The church and farm at the rear of the layout (8ft from front of layout) I printed at 75%. The terraced houses and cottages are printed at 100%. I dont think the garage looks out of place. Personally, I would use the 94% printed kits as really the difference would be minimal. Its even less of a difference than using HO items on a OO gauge layout (3.5mm/ft vs 4mm/ft) which is quite common.

I think it depends on what decoders you use. I use Zimo and they dont have any problems with the coreless motors.