MattB

Wiring I tapped some u shaped nails into the balsa second layer to act as a wiring conduit and started running wiring round from the point motors to the switch panel. I added a capacitor discharge unit as I don't want to burn the point motors out. I started adding wiring for the track supply (only 6 wires now required) I picked up some eye loop screw things for tidying up the wiring and also picked up some 6mm PE spiral and started tidying up the point motor wiring. The plan being that in the box lid there will only be a two to three wiring bundles on show. The next wiring to add will be for the lights. Any resistors will have to go into the lid. Planning for two lamp posts and 1 light in the house, plus possibly a fire in a barrel in the garden. Basically I can't glue the top deck down until all the wiring is in as maintenance access is from only a couple of points at the sides (only 10mm high between the decks). I need to get an AC/DC converter unit for the lights.

So to build the layout up in layers I made the unusual step of selecting balsa wood. Usually I would use plywood and softwood for a model railway But with the depths I was trying to achieve it was simply not possible to go for any other wood. I also only had a bike for getting planks of wood back home on. The bottom layer is for the pond constructed of 3 lengths of balsa wood. The next deck up is for the road and the stream bank, with the planks being laid at 90 degrees to the layer below and clamped and glued with PVA. Then there is a frame layer of 10mm / 10mm strip to conceal the wiring. I can't put the wiring at the bottom as there is a box of wood in the way. Nor do I want to use the bottom layer of the box itself. The next deck is for the main running line which sits 15mm higher than the pond and stream. I started constructing a panel for the point motor and section switches using scrap balsa wood but this basically was not robust enough, plus I needed to get access to it for maintenance. After building it and soldering the wires to the switches and sending the other ends to terminal blocks I decided to scrap this panel and start again using a dark 5mm ply on some scrap dark 25mm/25mm hardwood that I got from a reclaimation timber yard. I wanted this to match the box colour as near as possible so it wouldn't stand out. I had another critical look at the trackplan and realised I would struggle to fit in a third point for a siding so decided that I will scratchbuild the point blades for this and have it as non operational. Despite providing a switch and a push button for section control of this part of the layout. The push switch will be reused for the lights which will all be on the same on/off switch. After some of the solder connections came adrift on the seep motors I decided to make an access hole in the bottom layer of the balsa wood layers in case they come adrift again.

The Plan - April 2018 So what to build in a layout that is small and in a box, that will look as realistic as I could possibly make it. The running line would be a loop There would be a passing place A station A pond A station yard A small goods yard? A house A garden with a potting shed A road bridge A bridge over a stream A small scrub land field A road Running line on an embankment Lights Trees and other vegetation Quite a list but I reckoned that I could fit it all in. I drew up on some tracing (baking paper) my design for the layout and also the design for the baseboard layers. I also discovered setrack 009 points that were much smaller than my streamline ones and this would aid the track layout.

Just moving the contents of the blog over to this thread as easier to update here and get any comments or advice. Started this layout in April 2018 This is a layout to keep going with modelling while my main 00 layout is in storage. Limited space in current house means I cannot build anything larger. The Box - April 2018 For a few months I had being on the look out for a small box of robust construction, ideally with handles, a lid that would fit in with the rest of the lounge furniture and not look to obtrusive. A lucky find in Hay on Wye led to the purchase of just such an item. The depth of the box was important, it is about 100mm deep on the inside. I wanted to build a small model railway, being a 00 modeller and having a few 009 items of stock, 009 was the obvious choice for scale. The size of the box is small but not impossible. I wanted it to have section control, point motors and lighting. The only item that would be outside of the layout would be the controller, but everything else would be built into the lid. Several purchases of balsa wood and other models followed. I want the layout to basically be packed with detail I want it to take me a long time to build it with care taken over the design and build.

So continuing with the wiring. I had posted a query on the forum about an AC/DC converter unit and someone suggested making a rectifier. Not made one before and it took an evening of working out which way round the diode had to go and soldering it all up in the shed at the bottom of the garden. Good chance to test out the new adjustable temperature iron something which I have wanted since getting in to my head that I want to start making brass etch and whitemetal kits. Tested it out on a grain of wheat bulb and it worked first time Then continued with the wiring of the lights. Some people might be wondering why I can't do that at the end and its because of limited depth in the box itself. I have had to build the wiring into the frame as I can't bring it in underneath. I can't put the track down yet because the third level isn't constructed, I can't put the third level in because the wiring isn't in. Normally for the lights I would send in two feed wires and then have a terminal block splitter with the resistors for the lights near the lights themselves. In this case I want to have easy access to the resistors in case they go wrong or become unsoldered so I am going to add them to the tag strip at the top of the lid. All the lights will run off one switch after going through the rectifier. I made two cutouts for the point motors in case they become unsoldered or need replacing. The track wires are now in - Three sections (6 wires). Waiting for the lights to arrive in the post 2 short lamp-posts for platforms, 1 normal size lampost and one bonfire (without smoke) Tested the point motors ones a bit temperamental it does slide but only occasionally or if I give it a helping hand. Possibly a problem with the spring. Could swap round but might perserver with it at the moment

Thanks guys I made a rectifier using the parts suggested and tested it yesterday and the light came on

Thanks for these posts it’s only for my light railway, so only up to 10 lights altogether

Hi Does anyone know where I could get an ac to dc converter module from for converting AC16v to DC 12v For lights I’m using a gauge master controller assesories output which is 16ac great for points but not for lights I’ve looked around on eBay but was wondering if a British model railway company produces them?

I tapped some u shaped nails into the balsa second layer to act as a wiring conduit and started running wiring round from the point motors to the switch panel. I added a capacitor discharge unit as I don't want to burn the point motors out. I started adding wiring for the track supply (only 6 wires now required) I picked up some eye loop screw things for tidying up the wiring and also picked up some 6mm PE spiral and started tidying up the point motor wiring. The plan being that in the box lid there will only be a two to three wiring bundles on show. The next wiring to add will be for the lights. Any resistors will have to go into the lid. Planning for two lamp posts and 1 light in the house, plus possibly a fire in a barrel in the garden. Basically I can't glue the top deck down until all the wiring is in as maintenance access is from only a couple of points at the sides (only 10mm high between the decks). I need to get an AC/DC converter unit for the lights.

So what to build in a layout that is small and in a box, that will look as realistic as I could possibly make it. The running line would be a loop There would be a passing place A station A pond A station yard A small goods yard? A house A garden with a potting shed A road bridge A bridge over a stream A small scrub land field A road Running line on an embankment Lights Trees and other vegetation Quite a list but I reckoned that I could fit it all in. I drew up on some tracing (baking paper) my design for the layout and also the design for the baseboard layers. I also discovered setrack 009 points that were much smaller than my streamline ones and this would aid the track layout.

For a few months I had being on the look out for a small box of robust construction, ideally with handles, a lid that would fit in with the rest of the lounge furniture and not look to obtrusive. A lucky find in Hay on Wye led to the purchase of just such an item. The depth of the box was important, it is about 100mm deep on the inside. I wanted to build a small model railway, being a 00 modeller and having a few 009 items of stock, 009 was the obvious choice for scale. The size of the box is small but not impossible. I wanted it to have section control, point motors and lighting. The only item that would be outside of the layout would be the controller, but everything else would be built into the lid. Several purchases of balsa wood and other models followed. I want the layout to basically be packed with detail I want it to take me a long time to build it with care taken over the design and build.

So to build the layout up in layers I made the unusual step of selecting balsa wood. Usually I would use plywood and softwood for a model railway But with the depths I was trying to achieve it was simply not possible to go for any other wood. I also only had a bike for getting planks of wood back home on. The bottom layer is for the pond constructed of 3 lengths of balsa wood. The next deck up is for the road and the stream bank, with the planks being laid at 90 degrees to the layer below and clamped and glued with PVA. Then there is a frame layer of 10mm / 10mm strip to conceal the wiring. I can't put the wiring at the bottom as there is a box of wood in the way. Nor do I want to use the bottom layer of the box itself. The next deck is for the main running line which sits 15mm higher than the pond and stream. I started constructing a panel for the point motor and section switches using scrap balsa wood but this basically was not robust enough, plus I needed to get access to it for maintenance. After building it and soldering the wires to the switches and sending the other ends to terminal blocks I decided to scrap this panel and start again using a dark 5mm ply on some scrap dark 25mm/25mm hardwood that I got from a reclaimation timber yard. I wanted this to match the box colour as near as possible so it wouldn't stand out. I had another critical look at the trackplan and realised I would struggle to fit in a third point for a siding so decided that I will scratchbuild the point blades for this and have it as non operational. Despite providing a switch and a push button for section control of this part of the layout. The push switch will be reused for the lights which will all be on the same on/off switch. After some of the solder connections came adrift on the seep motors I decided to make an access hole in the bottom layer of the balsa wood layers in case they come adrift again.

Sorry can't remember exactly if I have pm1 or pm4 attached tbh I prefer seep ones but had already fitted the pecos and only found out about seeps recently

I'm looking for recommendations for accessory decoders suitable for peco pm4 and seep point motors I have read about cobalt and it seems a good system but I dont know if its able to link to peco or seep gut instinct says it should be able to but I don't know if there will be enough power to throw the solenoid switch over. Currently point motors are linked to a cdu to reduce the power and I throw the points manually on the panel but want to be able to do some route setting All points are electrofrog

So what do you do with a 1ft 10' by 5 ft baseboard thats already filled with a curve of double track that has to get across the doorway. Simple! Build a big 3 storey factory with a chimney, have narrow gauge running into it from an siding and then jazz it up by having a 2nd 009 layout over the top of the 1st one and across the standard gauge - follow that up with a small loop for continuous 009 running. Have a cut out section in the middle of the narrow gauge loop with a small building in it as well to add some height contrast. As this is in the corner and a bit difficult to get to I have adopted the policy (apart for wiring) of starting at the back and working my way forward. Scenic section on the back is getting but needs some leaf scatter and fencing. Current plan is to have a gantry section with a working moveable modified crane kit between the two systems - constructed out of plastruct girders. But can't build that until the back section is done as it will get in the way. Also spent rainy morning today replacing baseboard 3 on the other side of the room by using a modified pasting table that I got for a tenner. Its gone in well which was a bit of a fluke and only required levelling. Edit - Apologies I had a compression issue with the gallery. Reuploading.

What is proving to be my yearly post on RMWeb. A lot of time spent building my tallest scratchbuild building to date and doing other activities. On Baseboard 1 some houses blocking the view behind have been removed from the front and replaced with back gardens and a station garage with scrapheap on different levels. Next stop Warley to get a lawnmower and other scenic stuff. Work progressing on Baseboard 6 which I started last year. The boards in my railway room go round the room in clockwise fashion. Board 6 is the one that you see when you walk through the door with the bridging section just in front of it. Last year I added a disused spur line at the back and then started sketching ideas for what I could do with the front - an oval space about 25 inches long and 15 inches deep and its widest point. After sketching ideas I decided to install a narrow gauge industrial line with a single run round loop a siding and a line around to a loading platform which connects to a new siding to the main line. The narrow gauge line enters the factory which has a loading platform and other ground floor interior detail. The factory itself is mostly scratch built with the only kit being the chimney. I used my usual method of plasticard with slaters sheets (flemish bond) for the glued to the exterior. Windows are a mixture but I was careful to use the same on each side. I actually ran short so decided to block some of the windows up. On the yard side I added the loading doors with a girder at the top. Then things changed - the original plan was to create an L shaped set of buildings some of them ramshackle tacked onto the factory with the narrow gauge entering through another building on the right. However for some time I had been musing about the area at the back of the board with its temporary buildings (American and Continental Outline) and have now decided that I didn't like it. A bit of mulling (and sketching) ideas and I have decided to install a second narrow gauge layout seperate to the first one on a different level. This actually crosses the mainline and the first narrow gauge layout on a spur down to the factory. The section at the back is just about large enough to put a circle of track in with a lowered section for a narrow lane. Bridges to be installed for the narrow gauge. Plus a tunnel to really add something to the terrain and an engine shed area. Small halt to be put in too. In essence this is a novelty layout but I am a big fan of narrow gauge lines. Narrow gauge Engine shed - I think its an old faller kit coming from an old layout at my parents house (26 years old) due to be fully dismantled in the next few weeks. Back in January I visited the Weston Super Mare show with some mates and we were talking about challenge layouts - last year they had built theirs and the plan was to exhibit them sometime this year - but I think that may slip and it may be now be next year. A bit of banter with - we have done ours - its your turn - (followed by - No No I haven;t got time I have enough my plate - maybe I could do a timber yard - how about that certain factory - ok I will do it) The challenge was to build a complete model railway in 24 hours that had to be to exhibition standard. Rules were: You can plan your layout You can shop for materials You can sleep You can build a framed baseboard Layout scenic area to be no larger than 2 feet. It has to be suitable for exhibition You can make the windows (too expensive to buy 200 odd) So on the weekend of the 31st Jan / 1st Feb at 10.15am (with a hangover) I got started. - For a full report of that one see here: http://bambam897.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/24-hour-challenge-layout-day-1-first-12.html and http://bambam897.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/24-hour-challenge-layout-day-2.html Though I managed to get something complete by the 'times up' point I had to seriously short-cut on quite a few items, this then led to the last couple of months of adding a bit, repainting a bit here, weathering a bit there and I am still not happy, more scenery needed but at least the operation side works well (analog). Its based on a famous factory near Bristol which is still standing although the track has now being removed. So anyway - today with the weather poor I have been indoors playing trains and modifying 009 track and generally tinkering with bits and bobs.

Well this year I celebrated 25 years of building model railways. On the Mattington layout I have finally run out of room for new models, as part of the 25 year celebration I scratchbuilt a small factory to go in the back corner complete with a chimney (Bachmann) I started working on the lights, however since most of the buildings are industrial, night scene lights are fairly limited. I have a welding unit and oil brazier for daytime lighting and station lights and yard lights for night time. Then I started on the next baseboard to beyond the scenic break of the station bridge. Having a couple of light industrial buildings already pre-made these have gone in the back corner. In front of that after walking along a very overgrown disused rail track I have an abandoned spur line with an abandoned coach on it. The board is broken by the two main tracks which tight curve but there is a large a gap at the front. I have just had the idea this weekend what to do with it. A short siding leading to a loading platform, a huge scratchbuilt 1 to 2 storey factory, a narrow (009) track sweeping round (in and out). All in all a fairly ambitious project, but it should be interesting to make and should look fairly busy when finished, this time I am going to have a go with modelling clay as a change from my usual slaters sheets. I have just finished wiring up the point motor (Seep PM1) took a bit of a while but thats probably since I got the C and D wires muddled up. (Not sure how.....) and the track is all cut and modified to fit the point in place.

Stirling job there. I like the way that you have even added the wide base to the bottom of the column

Having a mate with an interest in railways come over the other week proved to be rather useful. At the moment with the several bare baseboards he was brimming with ideas, such as what about a goods yard, with a station at the back - you could put a engine shed and turntable in etc etc. I had to tell him that I wanted to get projects completed first on the original baseboard before moving on to the other boards but almost got to the point of him sketching some ideas while he was in full flow! We had a look at a Hornby class 108 wheel flange problem (derailing on peco streamline track) and he has taken this away to rectify as my machining skills are limited. Out of the many ideas that he had one of them which I have taken on-board is making the bridge across the door into a girder bridge using peco girder panels. Only need to glue on about 30 more panels and that will be complete. With the rainy weather last weekend I made great strides with my station loosely based on those found on the GC and by the end of Sunday had most of the building painting completed and made a start on the detail. Using a modified Dapol canopy off ebay has worked very well. The other thing I have been mulling over is the control system (DCC) that I currently operate, I used a Dynamis system which I have had small niggles with the infrared and the functionality. So following reviews about other systems it ended up being a toss-up between NCE and Lenz. In the end I decided to go for NCE Powercab. Very pleased - in my opinion its a lot better than the dynamis system - the LED screen for one is a lot clearer to read. EDIT - The shape of the Powercab controller is good so I used a wire from an old coathanger to hold it onto the side of the baseboard leg. Anyway back to it then!

Cheers - always useful.

Difficult to find a photo of that anywhere and its out of shot from google streetview due to the canopy.

Is your grass, carpet felt by any chance?

Well its very loosely based on it, a bit of general mixture of classic GC design. The thing that had me intrigued the most was the booking office ticket point. I couldn't remember whether there was a public door into the office or some sort of window, last years visit confirmed that one!

Yes sorry Rothley - I visited Rowsley on the Peak Forrester earlier this summer so obviously got muddled up!