Northroader

I find our local Wickes store is the best place for picking up off cuts at knockdown prices. Sorry, I forgot to say after my previous post on points, I boned up on Cashmores Yard and Poynton Sneer. They're great, both for craftsmanship and reviving memories of old bits of railways. I'm sure the new project ("?????") will be another in that tradition.

When you use hardboard as scenic back,I was shown a good way to curve it, in a Cardiff workshop, as it happens. You can go down to about 4" radius curve. Mark out the area where this is, start and finish. Then fill bath or other with water, and place the sheet in, with at least the marked out area fully in. Leave for at least 4 to 6 hours or bit more. Take out, covering bathroom floor with water and get slaughtered by missus.. No, careful when taking out, work on plastic groundsheet or similar. Clamp some scrap bits of sheet, ply or whatever, either side of the markings, and gently bend. Watch for any tendency for layers to flake off on the back. If this happens it ain't wet enuff or you're trying too hard. Leave it with one end flat on the floor and t'other against a wall or some such vertical, to get a right angle bend. Then let it dry out, something like 24 hours plus, before removing the supporting sandwich on each side. Bingo.

Keep this post going. We'd like to know how you get on. Good luck.

I reckon those coaches on the S&D were coming off at Templecombe, then on a stopper down the main Line through you know where. What you really, really need for Christmas is a set of Thompson non corridor stock.

Between dressing the edges and rolling, you missed out the bit where you punched out a 1000 rivets, presume on half etch, but still very neatly done, especially after rolling both ways! Model shaping nicely. I think the gas tanks like the cordon carried pressurised oil(?) gas for supply of the tanks on the gas-lit carriages, the station platform gas lamps would be suppllied by the local town coal gas supply?

Nice to see my 'avatar' on your building! Quite interested in the small radius points issue, as I tend to do restricted size stuff, but just up from micro. I have to admit I've never come across the Lima point, showing what a sheltered childhood I've had. It's hard to believe their 4F 0-6-0 would go through it? Anyhow, I enclose two efforts of mine. The first you can blame on the folks from Agenoria, sadly withdrawing because tightwads like me would rather waste their time scratchbuilding than buying a decent kit with a much better finish.. Anyway, at the base of their stand at shows they used to have a small circuit with an 0-4-0 chasing round, I'd estimate at about 10" radius. So, I tried a pizza layout on a 36" square board, 13" radius. (In O) First photo is a point off this line. Operation proved it could be done, the snag was doing propelling movements through the points, which was a no no, and certainly no use in your shunting layout. This line is currently on hold, although I've worked out what I can do with it (no, not that!) On to second photo from the next tryout, which is a small BLT with larger points, I guess about 18" radius. I can do shunting by hand through this one, and at present pushing on with wiring up to properly try it out. Maybe in a few weeks I'll be in a position to start a topic on this one. The unknown is if a new Dapol Terrier would go through it, I suspect not, and it's a lot to pay to find out, although a tempting loco.

I hope I haven't been too much a prophet of doom, certainly I don't want to put you off a great hobby. If it is all completely new to you, maybe a small line to gain experience, build up stocks, and get expertise, would be good sense, as you propose, rather than being too ambitious with a big oval at your first attempt. In the meantime, you can get an electronic thermometer with max and min recording, and see just what does happen up there. Also in the meantime, have a good luck round this website, and see what people are getting up to, there's immense variety, and you'll find something I'm sure you'll identify with.

I've been in my present loft for years, but until I had a conversion, expensive but well worth while, it was grief! It ain't just heat, there's cold as well. I made it that summer peak to winter low, there was about 40degree difference, so you must allow for expansion/contraction, unsoldered track joiners with flexible jumpers in particular. You also get dew forming in the cold, so oxidation/rust can happen. There's a window for reasonable working conditions for some weeks April and September, rest of time iffy for comfort. Your photos show you're trying some insulation which might help, but you need to bear in mind roof spaces need ventilation to preserve the structure, which conflicts with your comfort, and you really need good expert building advice if you start trying improvements. Sorry to sound a wet blanket, I'd like to see you succeed and enjoy your modelling. There's a good site, worth reading up on here, by Mallard60022, 'In the spirit of Seaton Junction' which gives a good idea of modelling in a loft. Anyway, all the best with your project.

Since my last post I've been working on getting the two points installed. One good feature of the new design is that the electrics are much simpler. The old set-up needed five section switches, the new one just two, to feed into each end of the loop lines. The lines meet in the middle at a baseboard join, so there's a natural gap in the rails. Both the sidings are off a point on the opposite board, however, so jumpers are needed on those lines. The really fiddly job, the way I do it anyway, is point control, so here's a picture as a warning! As well as the points now working, the second siding at the front has been cleared away, and the point into it replaced by plain track made up from recovered material, giving a clear run all along the front of the board. This should please the top-link engine driver on her next visit. Now off to the far end to see what I can do there.

Even if you apply Christian charity to a difficult situation, that bridge at Wantage Road (The Grove) is progressing at a terribly slow pace, it seems to me. hOw long have they been at it? How much longer to completion?

The Deltic "sound" was highly distinctive mainly because there were two engines, which would move in and out of synchronisation with each other. this produced a very slow throb. In those days I was in digs in York, half a mile from the main line, and hearing an express leaving headed South on a quiet evening was really atmospheric. I'm no expert on the DCC scene, but to conjure this up would be difficult.

On the weathering question, why not use artists pastel chalks, rather than cooking up diluted paint grunge which seems to be popular? Get them, in sticks from an art dealers, black, various greys (not fifty), umber brown, sienna brown. Then rub on emery paper to produce a powder, and scatter in small dollops where you want. Rub in with a dry paintbrush, and carry on from there. If you like the effect, you can leave it on, if not, you can wash it off to get back to where you were. You can do stiffer mixes with chalk and water, and dry brush over when dry, to get a dirtier look. This works well on the superstructure, but you might need a more oily look downstairs on the undercart.

They're white/black/white on this engine, aren't they? So you could do commercial transfers fairly easily. Normally I do them with enamel paint with a bow pen on ordinary paper, outer lines first then middle line. Then cut out, touch up edge of paper, then stick on with uhu. Without any 'proper' bands underneath. Just black/white at outer ends cab and smoke box. Over blue paint of course, I'm getting all excited!

Seeing it with some tangible items in place, it looks really good. Great promise.

What are you going on about? This job is coming together a treat, I particularly like how you've handled the splashers. I was only familiar with these engines from a couple of photos, seeing you get this model formed has given a real,appreciation of the proportions of the real thing, and from you done before with other locos. this will look great, we all know that. I just wish I could tidy up as well as do locos!

Two folks yesterday evening raised the question of baseboard height. The trouble with a loft layout is it's pretty well decided for you, the inward slope of the roof pushes it down to below eye level, particularly if you want any sort of back scene, which I always feel is a must. No, I'm glad to see it's shaping so well.

I thought that book was just up your street!

Can't you get the missus to buy you some ventilated soffits at M&S, if you're a bit sensitive about asking in Ann Summers? Seriously, though, (it's hard to do on this thread) I'm glad to hear your leaky bits are getting sorted. (there we go again) I was thinking today about the track laying and thought I might raise expansion joins. Somewhere in the maze that is RMweb, I was reading about a guy with a layout in a garden shed who'd bought a useful item, an electronic thermometer with max and min. The insulation you've put in should hold the temperature in sensible limits, have you any ideas if this is so? With the track lengths going in, presume you're using metal joiners. May I recommend you don't solder them, leave small gaps, and bridge them with flex wire jumpers, every 3' or so. You've got a big oval of track in a loft, and if the temperature does vary a lot, the expansion will be sufficient to mess things up.

We've noticed, what are you doing, are you sitting in a pile of reed switches? Has the loco got rectifiers ?? Have you hidden a hamster in the boiler??? Is the rickshaw wallah taking tightrope lessons???? Has the maharajah eaten the curry????? We need to know, Don't keep us in suspenders!

The right hand board is now a swathe of desolation all the way across. Before taking up the dummy track and crossing, I took a picture of it out of interest: It was easy to make as one track was electrically dead, so the dummy tracks on each side of the running rails could be soldered in on that side, and the copper clad filed off between just the running rails. Then the dummy tracks and check rails bridging the gap were made out of strip wood, and top painted with metallic paint. I think these crossings seem to be a typical feature of American lines, and pop up anywhere. It would have been nice to keep it, but I don't really have the room, and found the exit for the dummy track through the back scene was a total mess to get looking decent. On we go.

Panel pins, but drill holes for them in the sleepers first (granny and sucking eggs might apply)

Interesting contrast there, Mike. All the old GWR trains are highly picturesque, but to me the old train is more attractive than the Dean, which is always held as good looking. Am I being perverse? What do other folks think?

Wonder if a gaffer- tape kit would come in cheaper than a brass kit? I agree about the other great benefit of American outline modelling being the couplers. If you've been working on a British layout, fannying around with buffers, draw hooks, and 3link couplings, working with knuckle couplers is like coming out of jail. I always marvel at the design and build of the kadee job.

Well, the grading crew got down to the cork subsoil on the LH b/board, so now pushing on with track. There were two LH points in tandem wanted for this end. Everyone says not to have your running lines parallel with the b/board front edge, I wanted these points close to the front at this end, and nearer the back at the other end of the loop, forming a reverse curve thro the depot area, although there will be a siding at the front going parallel with the fascia. There was a point in about the right place, but it took up well over half the b/board length, so that had to come out. To get the geometry of the points right, I put a Peco settrack OO point in the scanner, upped it by 175%, (4mm. To 7mm) horizontal flip to get a LH and print off two. (One of the very rare flashes of foresight I've had was to get an A3 printer with the old computer) This fitted in well, so I built the two points, using a mix of recovered and new parts, all from Marcway of Sheffield, code 124 F/B N/S rail, copper clad glass fibre 6mm sleeper strip, and also their cast brass crossings (frogs) which save some fiddling. Sleeper spacing was done from a jig cut from a plastic strip, rather than the print out. (21" spacing). The points were then tacked in place temporary, with jumper feeds to a controller for testing. I've put a Peco medium radius point in the picture for comparison. The enlarged settrack point radius was calculated at 30", and measured at 28", so I needed to check that the trains would operate through this, it's very tight, but only for a short length. For me, the main practical advantage in modelling American outline is that mostly everything is mounted on bogies, and very good at passing through dodgy track. Sure enough, the Weaver Alco and the Atlas FM ran through a treat. I tried a heavyweight coach carcass which showed some clearance problems which could be sorted, and then on to steamers. I haven't invited any Big Boys to the party, just a small Mogul, and this went through ok, just problems on intermediate drawbar which is fixable, and I must remember to watch the clearance behind the cross heads when I get the slide bars sorted. The engine is intended to be a CNR E10a, a handful of which lasted into the early 60's. 6765, which you've already met and fixed for me, appeared around 1957, so you get an idea of the time window I'm working to. Having now done a check, I can paint, wire, and fix down these points. I'm intending to operate them with slider switches placed close by each one. Then off to the other end of the baseboard, and see about positioning a point at the far end of the loop.

Sorry, Steve, two apologies, first for my crude methods, second for not wishing you well after your hospital visit.