Chamby

The wire is supposed to bend, it creates the pressure that holds the turnout blade tight against the stock rail. Also, if you leave the over-centre spring in Peco points, the wire will bend until it exerts enough pressure to overcome the spring.

Indeed. However much you work on these coaches, they will always be a compromise, and you have to draw the line somewhere. (Oh dear!) I might return to them when my layout is built, but for now priorities have moved on. It’s the tinted varnish that makes the biggest difference, as the bare plastic looks nothing like teak... Though not for the serious modeller (unless you are into severe butchery) this is a low cost project, but a big visual improvement is quickly achieved, so it is a great confidence builder. Phil

This might help the discussion: Top: R 3437 Firdaussi, with gloss Apple Green finish, an A3 in mid-1930's condition: banjo dome and high sided, non-streamlined tender. Left hand drive, as it was built as an A3 from new. Large cab cut-outs. Middle: R 3627 Flying Scotsman, in 1950 condition with BR blue satin finish, streamlined dome and streamlined, non-corridor tender. Right hand drive (she was originally built as an A1) and with the small cab cut-outs. She was converted to left hand drive in the early 50's. Bottom, R 3081 Flying Scotsman, the NRM collection model, by now with left hand drive, streamlined corridor tender, electrification warning flashes, double chimney and smoke deflectors. The original banjo dome was superseded by the streamlined dome on A3's, and to my knowledge was never carried by 4472/60103. The differences between the tenders are not huge, and could be remodelled with a little care. And for completeness: This one is a hybrid: Hornby's R3132 Book Law (body), renumbered/relettered as Prince Of Wales in 1949 condition, converted to RHD. With GNR railed tender, swopped from R3518 Gay Crusader. The round dome was carried by A1's and some A3 boilers into BR days, Flying Scotsman carried one until 1947, I believe. 60054 still needs to have the large cab cut-out converted to the small one. Not shown: smokebox without the rectangular panels, as Flying Scotsman would have had before her conversion to A3 in 1947. Phil.

As others have mentioned, a lick of paint and varnish, and replacing the wheels with metal ones makes a big difference. I have painted mine with a mix of 20% leather brown and 80% satin varnish, then renumbered and the coaches with HMRS transfers. Painting the sole bar bauxite also makes a difference, as does mucking up the roof. I have renumbered some of the composite coaches as all 3rds, although a purist will probably moan, they look a lot better than having a full rake of composites!

Both Hornby's Firdaussi and Book Law are A3's. So have the rectangular panels on the smokebox, and larger cab side cut-outs. Firdaussi also has the incorrect banjo dome and that glossy paint finish... You'd need: Single chimney Right hand drive A1 (no rectangular panels on smokebox) Small cab cut-outs Streamlined, non-corridor tender. Woolwinder loco, with Firdaussi's tender is probably a good fit.

So you’re doing the Fell? Respect!

It is the sound of progress! Do you remember, back in the day, when....

Tony... it’s pretty meaningless. ‘Popular’ is one of those words like ‘average’ that can be measured in many different ways. I recall a while ago that British Airways and Virgin had a spat about which one was the world’s most ‘favourite’ airline. One flew the most passengers, the other had the best customer satisfaction scores. There is no right answer. The statistics being used may not be accurate either. Many of us lost much of the data that is used to calculate our ‘reputation’ on this forum, when it was upgraded recently. I now regard such statistics as being indicative, rather than absolute. Rather than using popularity, I prefer to rate forum threads on other parameters such as engagement and how informative they are. This one is well ‘up there’ on that count! Phil

Have you fitted any circuit breakers to your dcc feeds? Although I only use a single power source, I have recently fitted circuit breakers (model PSX from DCC Specialties) to different sections of my layout and they have dramatically improved the reliability of operation. As well as confining any problems to just one section of the layout, you can adjust the current threshold at which they trip out. They reset after a few seconds, so are very useful in managing momentary power surge situations. I have fitted three... one for the up line, one for the down (each has its own power bus) and one for the accessory bus. They seem to have completely eradicated the intermittent overload problems I was having before, and when problems do arise, the rest of the layout still operates as normal. They also help you to know where to start looking re: problem solving, by indicating which section has tripped out. You'll soon get used to the whirr of the cobalts rather than the thunk of solenoids. And if you leave the over-centre springs in Peco points, you will also get a reassuring ‘click’ to confirm that the turnout has fully thrown. Phil.

Tony, I wonder how many folks following this thread have stuff they have produced that will stand up to comparison with your own work? You may inhibit the feedback that you have asked for, if this is an expectation? Phil

I would add a couple of points to Tony’s comments above.... Whilst the average age of railway modellers has changed dramatically over the last few decades, we seem to have reached a point where a succession of new retirees is topping up our population, as the old soldiers fade away. I don’t see a decline as yet, just fears of one based on the changed age profile. Secondly, whilst I am the only railway modeller in our neighbourhood who attends a club, my postie has advised me of at least eight railway modellers just on his post round who receive items from model shops and subscribe to magazines. The are many more silent railway modellers out there than we perhaps realise... Phil

Maybe for us old lags, the need is not so great. Those taking up the hobby more recently however will probably still appreciate foundational articles. They won’t be looking on the shelves of WH Smith though, but to newer media sources such as YouTube, where they can find video clips that are far more effective at demonstrating stuff than print/still photography will ever achieve. Phil

I fitted alpha mimic boards to my layout last month. I can heartily recommend their use. The visual confirmation, particularly when setting a series of points, is most reassuring. A clunk is one thing, but knowing which way it has clunked is much better... Now I simply look along the chosen route on the indicator panel, and check that all the lights are green. If there is a red light, then it is obvious what has to be changed. Yes of course you can work it out by checking everything manually, but for me the visual confirmation speeds things up, as well as providing a ‘belt and braces’ approach which is useful when working with novice operators! NB I have still to install working signals, so don’t have that way of checking route settings yet. Compared with all the other equipment you have installed, it is a relatively low cost addition, that being a mimic system does not interfere in any way whatsoever with what you have in use already. I wouldn’t be without mine now... Phil.

It’s been a busy day in Snozzle bay today, the Royal Marines were invading Pentewan in their landing craft! Fascinating, watching the mother ship sink it’s rear end so the landing craft could float out. Now that would add something different to the mid Cornwall lines...

Carrington station on the GCLE just north of Nottingham Victoria: it’s cutting was just 154 yards long between the Tunnels! Not a location for viewing long expresses at their best, but at a little over 6 foot long in 4mm, it would be a manageable prototype to model without compression! Phil. Edit: to clarify, the photographs were originally posted by DaveF of this Parish, in a different thread. Credit should go where it is due.

*snip*

Blimey Jesse, that’s looking good!

The ‘too perfect’ thing is simple to explain. For many years I have driven the same make and model of car, but through several iterations of design over the years. After one ‘upgrade’ I was left feeling rather disappointed, yes the car was technically much better than the previous version, but somehow it had lost its ‘character’ in transition, so was less engaging to drive and own as a result. Model locomotives are no different, I suggest. Regarding the paying public, I think it is only the more experienced modeller who is ‘short changed’ by seeing RTR stuff. Don’t forget that the average club exhibition will have many ordinary members of the public attending, for whom RTR will look just fine... and it represents a more accessible route of entry to the hobby. Phil.

They really need to re-design the front pony truck too, that double-pivot mechanism sucks big-time, giving a most unrealistic angle on curves, and a tendency to short-circuit on turnouts.

My own experience with the unifrog, after an initial enthusiasm for the OO bullhead points, has been more disappointing. There is a critical design difference compared to the electrofrog, in that the electrical break between the frog and switch blades are right at the frog throat, whereas the electrofrog has the breaks further down the switchblade. The consequence of this unifrog arrangement is that a short can occur when the back of a wheel momentarily touches the opposite polarity switch rail next to the frog, particularly when traversing the curved road. This might be the reason why the OP’s 08 stutters on the point, rather than being due to a dead frog. It is therefore more critical with unifrog points to ensure that wheel back-to-backs are correct, a common issue with some OO RTR stock. Also, if you run locomotives with dual-pivot pony trucks, such as the Hornby L1, O1, P2 etc, a similar shorting will occur due to the unnatural angle of the pony truck on curves. A third reason for shorting can be with long wheelbase locomotives, I have surprisingly experienced this with some Pacifics and Co-Co’s. A click, spark and stall... it is obvious when and where it happens, when you know where to look. I have recently decided to modify all my unifrog points by relocating the electrical break farther down the switch blade. This is not an easy task when the track is already laid and ballasted, but it does cure the problem 100%. Five done so far, another nine to go... My advice would be to steer clear of the unifrog if you are ambivalent about which track system to use.

I’m sure that Martin’s Daughter’s every move will interest Big Sister much more than a boring old fart like me!

All it needs is a bus on that bridge...

Among her many talents, Alexa works for me as a phone, timer, alarm, radio and (hands free) internet access whilst I am working on my model railway. And I can talk to folks in other rooms in the house without having to leave my workbench. No buttons, keyboards or knobs, just voice activated. Some modern technology is getting very clever these days, intuitive and finally reaching the point where it is easier to use than what it replaces. Phil.

Tony, I would set a new target when you’ve achieved the current one, otherwise you will probably lose the sense of achievement at that moment. Better to achieve every target you set, rather than be constantly pursuing one moving goalpost! Phil

In the UK at least, a combination of school holidays and warm, sunny weather at this time of year has sent most folks outdoors. Like Apollo, I’ve been in the garden: playing with the grandchildren, mowing the lawns, deadheading the hydrangeas, pruning the roses and jet washing the paths to rid them of all the winter grime. The garden has never looked so good at this time of year! According to smiling Lucy on the telly, normal February weather will resume towards the end of this week, so back to modelling then with the added bonus of feeling good about being on top of the domestic stuff! Phil