otherplanet

The Servo is off the shelf from Micron radio control. Although the same basic unit is available in lots of other places. It is half buried in the rear of the boiler, which had the back cut away to make space. Underneath, the steering knuckle is an earlier evolution of my Romford crankpin based design. using the squared off larger screw as the main block, with a hole drilled for the kingpin and the steering arm soldered to the sides. The Axle is from square brass box section, cut and soldered to make a shallow U to clear the servo spindle. The track rod, made from 2 pieces of brass rod bent into L shapes, has grooves filed into the bent up ends. the steering arms are bent into loops at the end, hooked over the filed grooves and the tightened to lock onto the ends of the track rod. a short piece of brass sleeve allowed the tracking to be set accurately. Finally a pin is set perpendicular to this sleeve to engage with the servo horn. The standard horns being far too long. so this was made by drilling through the servo spindle and then inserting a piece of wire with a loop bent into it. Finally a shot of the tail hook, which is operated by a piece of SMA wire

Thank you the Camera and receiver came from banggood. I have not used them before, but a collegue at work bought a similar setup for his drone, so I thought is was worth a try. The camera and transmitter is all in one. https://www.banggood.com/5_8G-48CH-25mw-Transmitter-700TVL-120-Degree-Wide-Angle-Wireless-FPV-Camera-NTSC-p-1166067.html?rmmds=detail-left-hotproducts__2&stayold=1&cur_warehouse=CN It was the smallest integrated set with a wide range of channels on the 5.8GHz frequency range. It is low power at 25mW to maximise endurance, i dont expect to need the range. I choose the dipole aerial as it is much smaller and again, in a model railway context, I dont think I need the extra performance of the cloverleaf. All of these are assumptions to be tested. The receiver came from the same site. https://m.banggood.com/Eachine-ROTG01-UVC-OTG-5_8G-150CH-Full-Channel-FPV-Receiver-For-Android-Mobile-Phone-Smartphone-p-1147692.html?rmmds=search and plugs straight into my android phone. Using the FPV-GO software they recommend. This combination was reviewed somewhere as being compatible. I wanted a set that would definitely work so that I could learn from it. The phone clips into this headset, bought from ebay some time back to watch 3d videos on youtube. there are some superb videos on youtube from the German 1:87 RC guys who have placed 360 cameras onto a layout, and you can turn your head to look all around and watch the vehicles go past. If you search on your shopping website of choice for google cardboard. you will find a range of headsets from less than £10 upwards. It appears to be worth looking for the ones with high quality lenses. With the phone set to dual image mode, it displays a pair of images to line up with each eye. My original plan was to build it into this, . bought for me as a birthday present. Its a pre WW1 subsidy truck, The british government offered significant tax subsidies for business which purchased vehicles that complied with certain specifications from the war department, the downside being that they had to be kept in good condition, inspected once a year and made available to the war office if hostilities broke out. I believe other European countries had similar schemes. Consequently, these vehicles, produced for the military modellers are also useable for civillian applications. (although I think the Dennis was technically only just into production in 1914) I am very impressed with the kit so far, it has lots of details and the resin appears to be well cast, although there is a lot of flash. The plan is to use the canvas tilt to hide all the extra stuff, and initially I intended to cut holes in the tilt and the cab to poke the camera through. but the lens is much larger than I anticipated. So I may have to rethink. But that is kind of what I am expecting. Hence the temporary mount for the Atkinson, to try things out, see what works and what doesnt. I am thinking to try some of the button hole cameras, which are much smaller, but don't have the transmitters etc. This way I can try replacing one bit at a time to see how things go. with reasonable confidence I can go back a step when I break something. In the mean time, I have started CAD work on a working transaxle to replace the one from the kit. With the plan to complete an evolution of the model T Chassis that just has the servo end, to create a very compact servo. All plans at the moment, little things ticking in the brain whilst I experiment with stuff for the layout. The road surface worked well until I painted it, whereupon the smooth parts of the grout went very glossy. Despite the use of matt paints and then subsequently applying matt varnish, the whole surface looks increasingling waterlogged. I want it to look like it rained a few hours ago, with puddles in the ruts. but this is way too much. So work still to do.

I have been trialling different road surfaces for running the RC vehicles on. The industrial estate videos show them running on printed paper and Upper Benllech uses plaster based roads, which the Atkinson and Scammell cope well with except for a couple of particularly steep / rough sections. However for the new layout I want to represent pre WW1 roads, unmade roads and even mud. But I still want the trucks to run reliably. So I have been trialling a short section of road surface. Starting from a base of foam board. The idea was to create something that could easily be tilted to test inclines and represent diverging paths in the mud. I trialled chinchilla dust, this gave a good structure, but the surface was so sharp, the wheels did not get a good grip. I also tried coating this with Plastidip silicone paint, which has provided improved friction on the wheels, but did not appreciably improve the chinchilla dust road surface. I then tried tiling grout, this provided a better surface, however it took a couple of attempts to make surface features which were not so over scale as to create an obstruction. So far tiling grout, with ruts created with paint brush and running spare wheel sets through, seems to give the best surface, which the Atkinson and the Model T can both cope with, even with a small incline. The model T does tend to stall its motor when it hits too steep a feature, whereas the Atkinson runs out of traction and spins its wheels. On another matter. I gave in to temptation and ordered myself an FPV camera from China. Its designed to fit onto these very small drones that are available for sub £20 It includes camera and transmitter, and then a receiver plugs into the micro USB port on my phone, which slots into a cheap Virtual Reality Headset. I was able to get the camera and receiver to connect very quickly and easily, whilst the phone worked no problem once I had found the correct App to download. I then knocked up a temporary mounting that fits where the cab normally goes on the Atkinson. This places the camera about the right position for the driver, with the chimney encroaching into the left side of the view. I added a roof as it secures the top of the camera and stops the wobbling. This is just a temporary setup to try things out. I don't intend to leave the camera in the Atkinson, rather to build a new vehicle to take it, with a nice large body to hide the electronics and the battery. I have to say though I am really impressed. the view is amazing, the software divides the screen in two, so you get an image for each eye. whilst its not 3D, it is still very immersive, and I found it very easy to assess distances and drive through quite tight gaps. Having dreamt of being able to walk through my layouts for over 20 years. This is by far the closest I could ever imagine to that experience. I know that many people have fitted cameras to model locos, including live feeds in loco cabs. Many of which look amazing. But the ability to control and manoeuvre left and right as well as speed is quite a revelation. The software also allows a video to be recorded, so here is a short clip.

How dissapointing, I was starting to get tempted myself.

this might be a bit coarse, but how about the "models of yesteryear" scammell 100 ton truck https://www.chezbois.com/non_corgi/matchbox/Model_23006.htm i believe its 1:76 aledgedly still working in the 50s https://www.pinterest.com/pin/503840277044638124/ coat with lots of dirt and rust to make it look at the end of its life for heavy haulage kits, dont forget the military modeling sites for ex WWII hardware if the link to the existing network argument is justfied, how about carrying an old coach body that has been resting in someones garden as a shed.

will any of these help with the inspiration http://www.ss42.com/pt-buildings.html there is even hogwarts, sorry, a "wizards castle" my apologies if this has already been linked to earlier in your prolific tome. I can never keep up.

Aha, you've got me! Thank you Every so often my brain turns to thoughts of how to animate a moving 'orse and then thankfully it runs away to think about something else. Maybe its time to go there again.

Thank you Robin The lag is more to do with the backlash in the mechanism, the motor starts turning straight away, just at a lower speed. about halfway through the video, I tightened the joints in the steering, which made a small improvement. However, the biggest issue when driving is over steer, the wheels turn further than you expect and before you know it, you are veering off the road. The space is about 25 x 14 x 3 maybe a smidgen more thickness as this is traded against battery thickness. Whilst i have dabbled with software for work, it is not something I have really got into. I have a copy of python for dummies on my book shelf, which I have still not got around to reading since I received it many years ago. Thank you. Are you thinking of the atmega?

Hoorah, The video is finished. It took a lot longer than I had planned, not least because I have had to find and then start a new job. I also make no apologies for getting enjoyably distracted by building a series of download and print kits from Model Railway Scenery and from Scalescenes. I made up a set of low relief buildings plus a simple baseboard of road / paved surfaces which can then be configured to represent different aspects of a scene for filming. Long term I hope to add a few more buildings, but whilst it may end up looking like a simple diorama, it is specifically intended to be a film set. Allowing different scenes to be created and buildings to be moved to allow the camera into position. Overall I'm very happy with the result. I hope you enjoy it. Oh, and note the 'servo slow' demonstration about 1:40 I have to say, that whilst it looks great, it is a pig to drive. Unlike a real vehicle, you have no feedback of where the steering is. You have to watch the position of the wheels, from a scale 100yards away! Unless you are very gentle with the steering input (and the throttle) things can get out of hand very quickly. For comparison, I also filmed the Atkinson driving around the same set. I rarely had to retake shots of that due to crashes, but the T often required multiple attempts, although I was much better by the end of filming. I think the servo slow needs to be twice or even four times as fast, but this was the fastest setting on the Deltang. I am thinking about building a new transmitter soon, I may try some experiments with a multi turn resistor and a steering wheel as an alternate steering input.

Superb, I had no doubt you would achieve it. A prod and a poke on the first run is to be expected. It works well and will only get better. You will have crowds 3 deep at exhibitions with that. I love that new technology means that our model trains can now have more of a purpose when they arrive at their destinations.

Looks Fantastic. Looking forward to seeing it fully working and loading wagons / trucks.

In 00, with so much less space, I have been unable to find self-switching connectors. So use the very small jst Connectors. These are polarised to prevent incorrect orientation and fairly well insulated between the sockets. I use a single pole change over switch between the battery and the receiver / charge socket. This ensures the rx is never connected to the charger and there is no risk of metal getting into the connector and causing a short when driving. Its not perfect, but an improvement on not having the switched connector.

Well so much for the enthusiasm, immediately countered by a nasty attack of real life to distract me away from the models. Never mind, progress has continued. Most of the detailing is now completed, headlights and tail lights painted and lensed, repainting largely finished, driver added and everything fettled underneath. At some point I need to find a supplier that can create custom decals including white, and then create a job lot for all the vehicles so far. This van will belong to a successful plumber, transporting equipment and deliveries to jobs, particularly new builds and retro fitting plumbing to wealthy houses. The long overhang enables the carrying of these new fangled 'plumbed in baths'. You may note in the picture the lengths of lead piping carried on the outside. I found a photo some time back that provided the inspiration behind this concept. The plumber in question had a fleet of vans lined up side by side. The servo slow function works particularly well, although takes a little getting used to. It proved easy to program once the allocation of channels to steering and lights has been completed. But it only needs to be used on the first notch. set to anything above that, the movement can get painfully slow and your are left waiting for the steering to catch up even when driving carefully. On maximum setting it literally takes seconds, which could have some value as an actuator, but was unusable for steering. The lights are wired through 10K ohm surface mount resistors soldered directly to the deltang PCB, this reduces the LEDs to a less over the top glow, although I suspect still a little too bight. But its hard to turn them down much more. They are also too white, the search for 'warm' white LED's in the suitable package size proved unsuccessful when I was shopping for them. So I experimented with adding some coloured filters, but just ended up with lurid yellow, which felt even worse. My search will continue for future vehicles. In the mean time, they work quite well for an atmospheric shot. Video to come soon, just knocking together a film set of download and print kits to give a background / context.

Oh yes. I've had my eye on that since they were on preview. The civilian version was available for sometime before WW1 so it suits my target timescale well. But thankyou for sharing, I am always on the look out for decent Edwardian motor vehicles, but it is a very under represented topic matter. I hope the 3D chassis will fit, but might need rearranging to make it longer and lower. I am not sure how to make usable wire wheels that it should really have, although this guy seems to have a way for static ones at least. I am torn between one of these as the next model, or a subsidy truck from WD models. http://www.wdmodels.com/page5.htm. I quite fancy the Dennis, there is a restored version that comes to the local Bedfordshire steam rally. However, I must try to resist the temptation to start a new vehicle or I will never start the layout. Speaking of wheels, the T has gained its boots. It took a bit of work to get the steering link and the radius arms right and the servo needed some fettling as it was sticking. I cleared a burr from the final worm. But something else keeps sticking I think it's the first worm on the motor, the shaft of which has a little free play and I think it gets pushed against the motor body. I will give it some oil, but if that doesn't work then I'll have to take the chassis off again. Unfortunately all that took some testing, so I only managed to drive about 30cm after fitting the rear wheels before the battery went flat. Still some painting to finish.

So, following some suitable inspriration at Uckfield last weekend. I have been making some progress in the background, although it tends to average only about an hour per week. The body is mostly complete now, with the front chassis and rear van sections joined, extra detail in the cab to add pedals etc. The headlights and tail light are wired up and installed. (surface mount LEDs). And almost everything has at least 2 coats of paint. The mechanism has also been tidied up, with the battery assembled and the necessary bracing to retain the motor assembly into the body. Painting of the driver is also progressing. 1 bit of wiring left before the mechanism can go back in, and then the wheels can go on. Picked up a bargain at the show, in the form of this little taxi. conveniently it almost fits the model T chassis, and would only need the axle moving slightly forward to keep it entirely in the passenger cabin. A future project for the box of ideas on the shelf.

Good to meet you face to face Giles. The layout was superb and lives up to the expectations set by the photos. Everything runs so nicely. The rest of the show was very good as well. Left me feeling inspired to get back and make some better progress on my own models. Thanks

Glad it all went well. Interesting that the battery lasted so well. Hope that today went as well. Looking forward seeing you all at Uckfield next weekend.

For basic on off, I have been using these tiny switches. or a similar version with the knob projecting out the face. Bought from China, via a well known online auction site. I have found them very useful, due to their lovely small size. But can't remember exactly which supplier I used. Probably the same or similar to what you have ordered. Personal experience with reed switches was how precisely you need to position them over the magnet to get them to work well, particularly if you want to cope with lots of different combinations of loco on one piece of track (or vice versa), so some standardisation of where you put the reed relative to the cab or similar point of reference might be useful.

Most industry standards result from one of three methods. 1) Someone comes up with a brilliant idea, dominates the market, such that when competitive products come along, they are made compatible 2) Lots of people solve the same problem in different ways, and either by cost, superiority, convenience or luck; one eventually becomes dominant 3) Several organisations get together to create or back one standard so that they can together dominate a market - popular with technology companies. I would say that Radio control (not railways specifically, but modern digital radio control) is heading a bit down route 2. Deltang uses the DSM2 and DSMX standards, common to some other RC suppliers (I think its Spectrum's) The allocation of channels to specific functions is already reasonably defined for road vehicles. servos use only a couple of standard connectors, and the micro drone / helicopter industry has pretty much standardised on a connector for charging the Lipo's (in fact the charge management chip inside the chargers come from only a couple of suppliers as far as I can see too.) Therefore, what is left for the model railway industry / hobby, is to define the standards that are specific to our needs. e.g. standard channels for regulator, direction, brake, uncoupling, sound selection etc. Since there are few players in the market at this time, and little competitive advantage to doing things differently, there is a reasonable chance this could happen relatively quickly. especially if everyone 'dabbling in the art' tries to implement a common standard, when programming allows. So says the man who has deliberately broken away from the RC allocation of channels for road vehicles, but never mind.

Whilst being fully aware that RC removes the need to be tied to conductive rails; your well made point leads me to realise that the opportunities extend much further into the depths of unusual railway prototypes. The one that springs to my mind is for a 'pole railroad', for which the prototypical novelty is huge.

looking good. If its not too late, and you haven't bonded any other temperature sensitive components to the axle. you can usually free up superglue by application of heat. immersion in boiling water will soften it. application of a soldering iron will vapourise it. BUT only in extremely well ventilated conditions, you dont want to breath those fumes in.

I love the green tinged 'security camera' effect on the gate. Nicely done.

Progress is slowing again, so I'll share this video now, rather than waiting until the bodywork is complete. This is the first running trial, it is nice and slow and I am very happy with the steering lock, although its a little asymetric at the moment. There is too much slop in the front axle, which I had suspected, it will need some radius arms to keep things better aligned. For reference, its running on a piece of A3 paper. I havent tried playing with any of the settings yet.

I missunderstood you. Interesting use of integrating with a Pc, My desire to bypass the servo controller is size. How small, neat and compact can I get all the gubbins. Whilst this T van is the smallest I have sone so far, I aspire to smaller. Which doesnt necessarily mean smaller prototype, rather than; less space to hide things. Unfortunately, pre 1914 motorised vehicles were very limited on fairings, covers & bodywork.

Yes they can have a very narrow operating range. In their origins as vibration motors they only needed to start and stop. There are a range though. If you look at somewhere like precision microdrives, they give the full technical specs, including power graphs. They actually sell 2 motor gearboxes with the same dims and voltage bur different speeds. Due to the motor windings. But ultimately at this size we seem to be limited to a low maximum speed, or a jumpy, start to a higher than desirable min speed. Getting maximum smoothness in the drivetrain helps, but Watching the German videos on YouTube, they seem to struggle too.