halsey

19 hours ago, The Johnster said:

And buy a cheapo set as well.  It'll be carp for driving screws, but will have innumerable other uses, such as opening paint tins, stirring paint, dislodging bits of carp from flangeways and other tight spots,, the sort of abuse you don't want to give your good tools, but most importantly, you can lend them to people.  It doesn't matter much if they don't come back and that person will never ask to borrow your tools again.

I've got some v cheap ones inherited from m dad which get used for everything but aren't good enough for their actual job!

1 hour ago, Hibelroad said:

Proxxon make a good set 

Thanks £30 on Amazon for 15 seems a fair balance - now ordered

Hi

I want to buy a good quality set of "watchmakers" screwdrivers to cope with loco sized screws - any advice would be appreciated - I hate poor quality and am happy to pay for a quality item but it is so difficult to shop for something like this on the internet when you cant touch and feel the item.

Thanks

Hi,

I'm just about to start my brush "weathering" journey and am about to tackle a set of 6 Airfix LMS Stannier coaches 

I'm not trying to be too adventurous just aiming for a basic washed appearance on the bodies with oil and dirt on the bogies will start me off

What colours and which paint types should I be getting??

Hopefully this thread will be of use to others in the same position

Thanks

29 minutes ago, PaulCheffus said:

Hi

 

I’m intrigued how changing the short address has any effect on how well it runs.

 

CV1 - Short address

CV17 & 18 plus CV29 bit 5 = 1 - Long address

 

Cheers

 

Paul

 I should have been more clear - it changes the response time from stationary which I prefer

21 minutes ago, John Tomlinson said:

The Bachmann DMU's seem particularly prone to poor running after an interval. I found a lot of this is due to excess grease on the axles and bearings, which as these are the conducting path for the current makes problems hardly surprising.

 

One solution is to fit proper wiper pickups to the backs of the wheels, otherwise a good clean and minimal lubrication seems to do the trick in most cases.

 

John.

Thanks - it is now running much better and after having left it doing so for about an hour.

I think I am possibly falling into the novices trap of over lubricating, I'm using the right oil and its only on the running gear as I don't like taking bodies on and off  too much but I might do some IPA cleaning and review.

On 24/09/2020 at 07:33, halsey said:

The DMU seems to be the most temperamental so I will have a look at that later.........

 

Thanks

I seem to have improved the running of this unit by changing the CV1 value from 1 to 50 (I tried 10/25/100 values) - does that make sense - I haven't really "played" with CV settings since making the DC/DCC change so I think this year I will take the plunge a bit more.

WANTED 2 Hornby R8234 14.1mm dia 4 hole metal carriage axles (4 wheels)  please.

Why do they sell these in packs of 10 axles??

Surely most of the time multiples of 4 axles are what's needed??

3 hours ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

Ah, Bachmann's  DMU's are different again from their twin bogie diesel traction design!

 

The pick up on the  split axle principle is very good, all wheels pick up, but the transfer between bogies and the body PCB is made by rubbing contacts. Soldering on flexible wire links is one solution. Adding track power links between powered and trailer cars makes them 'bombproof', whole unit picking up on all wheels.

More info please......................thanks - other Diesel loco (LMS10000) now running OK - it was a plastic bar link between the bogie and the motor which seemed to have sprung out. 

Many thanks to Ian - problem solved

I will probably keep the 2 unboxed ones (for variety) as they are every bit as good but unboxed items don't seem popular 

11 minutes ago, Il Grifone said:

I would have kept both sets, but that's me!

 

I might still keep them as I'm not going to give them away - they are truly the best "used" I've seen - better than the 6 staniers I've just bought which were described as excellent!

The DMU seems to be the most temperamental so I will have a look at that later.........

Thanks

1 hour ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

Quite the reverse in my experience. The all wheel drive and pick up combined with good mass makes them very reliable and less temperamental than steam. One singular weakness though, which I correct the moment basic testing has proved the model is reliable. That's the clip on connections of the wires to the circuit board. It's not the best assembly method and soldering all these connections makes a world of difference.

 

LMS: Fairburn 2-6-4T

BR: 9F 

Thanks - is the circuit board tip a diesel tip or a steam tip (or both?) 

Will review both Locos........

I tried them out in the dark last night and my feelings were much improved - another suggestion found elsewhere was to paint the inside face of the roof white to get a better effect so I have bitten the bullet and bought the remaining 5 needed and ordered a tin of white spray paint

I do still think they are very pricey but the motion sensor feature sold it for me against the competition and I will only ever need 6 

Why do my locos all run at very different speeds even if the DCC controller setting is set the same and the various "std" CV settings are set the same.

This is particularly evident on "top" speed where some run too fast and some are too slow - do I need to adjust the more specialist setting - I'm truly apprehensive about doing this but I appreciate that I can reset CVs so I'm not averse to playing

Hi,

I've just today I turned on my DCC controller and started to get my stock of (all Bachmann) locos going - all 5 steam locos seem to running be OK and my 2 diesels are  being "grumpy"- is it a reality that the means of propulsion on (Bachmann) diesels is more temperamental than on steam??

Is it unrealistic to expect to go back to my layout after 6 months clean the track (which is OK and understandable) and expect all locos to work??

I seem to remember from last winter that the diesels seemed to be far more sensitive to track conditions and servicing - this is new to me but is this a well known issue to others??

I think I'm going to move these items on - they do both work perfectly OK but just seem to need more care and attention - deep down I prefer steam anyway so its not a big issue .

Comments???

QUESTION Is there a star/stand out performing DCC fitted (Bachmann?) LMS or BR Early Emblem steam loco out there 

Very UNDERWHELMED by the very expensive Train Tech CL1 lighting strips - I have tried one set and am now feeling a pressure to do all 6 coaches in my stable BUT that's £120 badly spent!

True they are very easy to fit and use (I used strong HD double sided tape) but they don't look that good except in almost total darkness 

My grumbles are that the light fitting "spread" is preset - and there aren't really enough lights there being only 5 to a 10" strip IMHO it really needs to be double that 

The profit margin on these things must be huge - there must be better and cheaper solutions ...........

PS & FYI - I decided to change my 6 carriages from non-corridor Airfix to corridor Airfix (hence my sales in classifieds) - I like Airfix due to the much smaller couplings

Feeling grumpy - I don't mind spending money (even if its a lot) but must feel/have vfm

J

Hi,

Not sure if this is the right place for a wanted ad but I'm sure the mods will move it if it isn't....................

The request applies to Airfix LMS Stanier corridor coaches - has anyone got any spare gangway/corridor bellows lying around and/or the push type narrow couplings with metal hooks 

Ideally I could do with 4 of each - happy to pay/postage for good stuff

See photos the bellows are self explanatory the hooks I have one carriage with the big hooks (rh) on but all the others have the small hooks (lh) so I need 4 of these..........

Thanks for reading this...............hope someone can help or suggest where they can be sourced

J

Hi,

Sorry if this has already been asked but HOW do you keep the track electrically clean?

This opens another can of worms - I have no figures on my layout to date as I don't know in what direction to take the plunge - what figures do people buy/like to use??

There seems to be such a variety but I do like to standardise on quality and don't mind paying for it (within reason) - I doubt I will ever want more than 100 figures on platforms, in the fields, in the goods yards, in coaches etc so even if £1 each that's OK

You are right - apologies - the lighting was the more important bit and I felt that would expose the internals which are very basic (so basic I couldn't see them!) but perhaps a little painting will suffice - I'll see when the lights are in.

Thanks for the tip re painting the underside of the roof.

J 

Back again now beginning to think of the coming winters activities................. 

Not a lot of boating done but what we did was enjoyable 

New dog (Jet) now settling in very well and Shrimp (who broke his neck) is back to normal just no collars and harness lead walking for the rest of his life.

Thoughts for the winter include a possible airbrush purchase to try something new (not sure) - weathering (lots of it), conquering track cleaning (I wish), install lighting/furnishings in rolling stock wherever possible ................ that's the pre Christmas list to get me started 

BFN

Hi,

Are there any upgrade kits available to create internals and lighting for these (Airfix) carriages?

As always recommendations based on actual hands on experience would be good.

Thanks in advance for your replies

J

NOTE - Now changed carriages to Airfix Corridor from Airfix Non- Corridor as shown here - partly to move the layouts time frame and also to provide better scope for internal lighting to be visible/show..

On 12/08/2020 at 11:49, Chimer said:

 

 

To actually see @halsey build something I planned was very satisfying, though I couldn't persuade him to implement all my bright ideas about scenery - I just hope he's happy with it!

 

 

 

 

Hi there - nice to see I'm being quoted when I'm not even participating let alone modelling...............

I suffered quite a bit with Railway "fade" at the beginning of lockdown and lost interest big time ...... so I consciously locked the door and walked away as I would have done in previous years had we been off boating for 7 months - then we sold our canal boat and bought a smaller river boat for lots of complicated but sensible reasons to do with time, accessibility from home, health etc - that is now turning into a nice project which has served us well so far ............

This spell of poor weather finds me wondering what is going on and thinking railway and the onset of winter months - wasn't it v.dark early last night?

Chris you should definitely go/try DCC - yes my layout continues to satisfy (and more) I do need to think about how to get back in to it and what to focus on - lift out bridge sections continue to be my bugbear but I MUST have a "roundy-roundy" aspect so I think they (lift outs) are inevitable and the current one is the best I have "made" so far.

Probably general weathering is where I will head next  but I do find that is very much a task which should only be attempted when you are in the "zone" other thoughts are my first stratch-build - loco - any suggestions (worried about how much new "kit" I will need to achieve a good result) - I might get this out of my system by building an R/C trawler/tugboat instead

I have organised an eye test for this week to improve my glasses anticipating more close work coming up soon....

So all good but not quite ready to get the steam up just yet.

Re the layout at the heart of this thread I like the figures of eight idea as I did like the gradient on my last layout and I recall the woodland scenics instant gradient kit was fantastic making it a much easier task to get it right than you might think.

I will not be back here daily but will watch with interest the development of your "Swansong"...........I think we all have aspects of this hobby we prefer and I definitely prefer building rather than operating - but my working life was the same always preferring starting something afresh and getting it operational to running it thereafter!

BFN

Julian