Darius43

I have had the same problem with my Black Label "Golden Eagle" - it ran OK and then just stopped and made a noise like the drive train had failed. It's gone back to DCC Supplies for repair under the guarantee.

Darius

Update - DCC Supplies were unable to repair the locomotive and so a replacement has been sent out by Dapol, which I received today. It works fine on the short test track I have in the flat. Will see how it works on long runs in my friend's shed at the weekend.

 

I would like to say that I have received excellent service from DCC Supplies and Dapol.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Received Scotrail 68006 "Daring" today courtesy of Collets Model Shop via eBay. Absolutely stunning with no issues.

Very happy bunny indeed.

Youchoos sound on the way...

Cheers

Darius

Youchoos sound chips with stereo "3D" speakers installed in both DRS and Scotrail locomotives. Sounds amazing

 

Still a very happy bunny

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Interesting "old maps" view circa 1959 of the Newhaven railway network on this website:-

 

http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16&lat=50.7851&lon=0.0643&layers=10&b=1

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Received Scotrail 68006 "Daring" today courtesy of Collets Model Shop via eBay. Absolutely stunning with no issues.

 

Very happy bunny indeed.

 

Youchoos sound on the way...

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Unboxed my DRS 68002 today - received from Rails of Sheffield. All looks OK nameplate and yellow wearing panel wise. Test ran eventually*with basic 21 pin chip and all is OK. Awaiting a Youchoos Zimo sound chip later this coming week.

 

Superb model - livery application issues aside.

 

* ran fine on dc but refused to move under dcc. Tried several chips to no avail before discovering a disconnected wire at the controller (doh).

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Definitely one to take back to Hattons (as they sold it to you) rather than involve Dapol. The messy wiring looks atrocious and to have non insulated wires soldered in is appalling.

 

In my opinion, however, Dapol should get involved if this starts to become a common occurrence - especially if this is a factory fix for a faulty pcb.

 

Darius

It's taken me a while but I've finally got round to attempting the tunnel mouth. It's a bit rough and ready at the moment and some work is required to get the curve at the bottom correct before it is clad in suitable embossed plastikard but as a first attempt I'm pretty happy with it.

 

Tunnel 1.jpg

 

Tunnel2.jpg

 

It is made from clear acrylic tube cut in half and then shaped using templates to get the curves right. I used acrylic tube as it was the perfect diameter and I wanted something rigid and able to withstand the occasional knock if and when I proceed to layout construction.

Great idea to use a tube to get a suitable 3D profile. Looking forward to seeing this progress.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

I've had a very disappointing experience with the Golden Eagle. The first model sent to me had a fault 'straight from the box'. Within seconds of placing it on the track the DCC power cut-out. There was sound from the tender briefly before the power cut-out. I tried again just in case I hadn't placed it on the track correctly. The same thing happened although that time with a smell of burning.

 

I returned the model to Dapol and they sent a replacement. This worked ok for about a week (apart from the occasional sudden slow down and start up again, which I put down to dirty track). I was running the model as usual when it just stopped. The functions (smoke, sound etc. continued to work) but the train wouldn't move. There was a whine from the motor as if it and the drive shaft had become detached.

 

The replacement will be going back to Dapol and I have requested a refund. I appreciate that occasionally you can be unlucky but for the replacement model to develop a fault as well after very little use does concern me.

 

I noticed on the Dapol website (Digest forum) that a few people have had problems with the Golden Eagle.

 

It's such a shame as I really liked the appearance and functions of the model but at £400 didn't expect the problems I've experienced.

I have had the same problem with my Black Label "Golden Eagle" - it ran OK and then just stopped and made a noise like the drive train had failed. It's gone back to DCC Supplies for repair under the guarantee.

 

Darius

Phil,

 

Great photos and a great weekend!!!

 

Cheers

 

Darius

The Seaford 150!!! - I was on the first special train - wonderful stuff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers

 

Darius

We stayed in Worthing and Hove for a couple of summer holidays. My father used to exchange parishes with colleagues, staying in each other's vicarages and taking the Sunday services, but having the rest of the week as holidays. A fairly cheap option for poorly paid parsons and their families. I just about remember going to Brighton shed and works with him and there are photos he took there. I have come across a visit to Worthing in the first two weeks of September 1958 in his loco spotting logs. The timing seems a bit odd as I would have thought that the school holidays would have ended during that period. He underlined 'cops' in red - one he saw at West Worthing was 20002*. He never recorded emu's so his records there are a bit thinner than those in the west country where we lived, but he did catch some West Country pacifics passing West Worthing on trains to Bournemouth, Plymouth, Cardiff etc.

*Checking out 20002s history, I came across this interesting website http://www.davidheyscollection.com/page38.htm

Good to swap notes - best wishes - Phil

That's a great website Phil, thanks for sharing. My Grandparents also lived in Seaford - first in the mid 1970s and then from 1978 through to the mid 1990s in Claremont Road. I used to travel to Seaford by train in the CIGs and HAPs from Lewes. That was when there was the bay platform at Seaford and the stabling sidings that were full of trains on Sundays - before the long platform was truncated and the sidings lifted.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

This (not the rail dispute but the east quay) brings back memories of holidays in Seaford in the early 1970s when we visited my Uncle (who lived in Fairways Road) for our annual seaside holiday.

 

On the drive in to Seaford from Newhaven I recall seeing lines of wagons silhouetted against the sky - these must have been on the branch.

 

We used to turn off the main road by the Mercury Motor Inn (now gone) and drive under the brick railway bridge round past the Buckle Inn (also sadly gone) to get a first glimpse of the sea

 

Cheers

 

Darius

I'll see what I can do. The Class 304 is in a friend's shed on his model railway - he has the shed and I have the rolling stock. I will take some pics when I am next there.

With apologies to Darius for hijacking his thread.

 

No apology necessary - its great to see models of EMUs

 

I have a Replica 64' motorised chassis powering an MTK Class 304 EMU that I built last year.  It seems to struggle at times but the MTK units are heavier than the Bratchell Models units.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Am I correct in thinking that the 321 carried a different (fresher) version of NSE livery, mainly without the grey at the bottom, though I think the blue/red stripes were in a slightly different position too?

 

That's a nice model, I've always fancied a Bratchell kit but their website seems a bit basic and lacking in detail and updates, some of the liveries seem to be missing.  Then again, I'd have to fit catenary...

 

Looking at Google Images, I think you are correct.  The 321 NSE livery seems to have had the overall body light grey colour below the NSE cheat lines, whilst the NSE class 456's had a darker grey below the NSE cheat lines and wrapping around the cab front.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

456?Looks more like a 321 to me!

Both the 456 and 321 units were built at BREL York and have a similar outward appearance. The 321 draws its juice from an overhead AC supply whilst the 456 gets its juice from a DC third rail.

 

Darius

Very nice! So I'm assuming they are permanently coupled?

 

All four cars are connected using Kadee couplers.  For the connection between the units I drilled out and opened up the coupling "recess" in the cab fronts, through which the bogie-mounted Kadees protrude.

 

 

 

Cheers

 

Darius

No wonder Paul Simon wanted to go home.....

 

 

 

 

 

Jason

I thought that was Warrington not Widnes

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Thank you, currently on with this project,chip wired and working first time,running ok,hole cut in trailer load,just a few refinements and figures to fix in.When finished photos to follow,many thanks for your help.

Kind regards

Mark

Hi Mark,

 

Glad your conversion worked. It's always a great relief when the loco runs first time under dcc when you have passed the point of no return and wired everything up.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Hi.This is also my first post.I have been following this topic with interest as I bought a Wickham trolley and am hoping to fit a decoder.I think your conversion is excellent as I was going to fit the DCC chip under the roof in the trolley but did not want all the wires between trolley and trailer.It is a while since I hard wired a loco so could you just explain how you have wired it and have you left the trolley untouched i.e not removed or touched the PCB ?Thanks you for any advice,Mark.Apologies in advance if I have posted in the wrong place or incorrectly.

Hi Mark,

 

I kept the dcc decoder fitting to the trailer so the trolley and its internal electrics and the wired connection to the trailer are untouched.

 

I put a Bachmann 6pin decoder harness between the motor and the two wires serving the motor from the pickups on the trailer and trolley. I stripped the insulation in the harness plug back to reduce its length/bulk and trimmed back the wires as much as possible. You only need the red, black, orange and grey wires - orange and grey to the motor and red and black to the pickup wires. Test fit the harness wires to the motor to make sure that they are not cut too short before you solder them in place. Ditto with the harness wires to the pickup wires.

 

You could just hard wire the decoder but I don't like doing this with a £30 decoder so opted for the decoder harness option.

 

The trailer body and ballast load are a single moulding so a hole was cut in the ballast to let it fit back on over the decoder and harness as shown in the pictures. The tarp is thus needed to hide the conversion.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Excellent to see someone else doing IR stuff... We ourselves do special commissions for customers and especially deal with IR models. On 25th we'll be announcing a range of kits that the modelling market has probably never seen.

Keep up the good work and if you ever need any help with IR stuff ping us.

Thanks MGR. I took a look at your work on Shapeways - very nice, especially the T Gauge IR, which is giving me ideas about a micro layout.

 

Do you have any plans for any 00 Gauge-ish IR products?

 

cheers

 

Darius

Welcome to the forum, super job you have done there. Where did you get the idea for the markings on the tarpaulin? They certainly add interest to what would otherwise be a fairly plain cover.

Is that a DC kits class 303 lurking in the background?

Cheers,

Martyn.

Thanks Martyn. I thought the tarp looked a bit plain so added some spare decals from a Modelmaster wagon sheet. The edges of the tape segments show up markedly on the photos. I might cover them with some tissue soaked in dilute pva to try and hide them. Followed by a repaint and more markings...

 

That is indeed a DC Kits Class 303. EBay find in the process of restoration.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Wow, I remember seeing exactly these trains coming in as I was departing VT on the Deccan Queen to Poona.

 

Brilliant model.

 

Thanks Edwardian, I have travelled on the Deccan Queen a number of times.  Always impressive seeing how the railway was engineered to pass through the Western Ghats.

 

I have a plan to build the Deccan Queen as well, using a converted Electrotren Vulcan Foundry Co-Co electric loco and a lot of scratch built coaches - quite a daunting task.

 

Cheers

 

Darius

Horns and handrails added to the driving trailer. Three coaches now completed.

 

 

 

 

I now need to build at least three more coaches...

 

...and add the 100's of passengers hanging onto and off the train!!!

 

Cheers

 

Darius