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On 01/05/2023 at 19:01, sb67 said:

Thanks Chris, I think I will put one on my birthday list, I'd love to take some nice photo's of my stock. 

And very helpful for insurance purposes!

Paul R

OK so the new Board 5 is now wired and ballasted. 

The Black Notley inner home signal will go in the small indentation next to the switch panel. It's a Dapol LMS upper quadrant. Probably not accurate but it will do. I am disappointed with the way Dapol have constructed these signals since although the signal clips into the servo box underneath the board, the signal is fitted and held in place by a plastic nut underneath meaning you have to disconnect the box if you want to get the signal off. I will need to do that initially so stop it being broken or chewed by the cats. I think I will put some Velcro tape on the box so I can hold it in place when the signal is removed since it will be wired into the power supply and can't easily be taken off.

I am also minded to change the wiring so the main line on this board can be isolated so I can hold a train at the signal whilst the platform or loop is cleared.  It won't take long and just requires another switch in the small panel linked to the positive track feed.

All for now Paul R

The EFE O Gauge Class 15 is surely the old Little Loco tooling and is offered at what I consider a very reasonable price for the quality of the loco.

The box shifters have it at £314

Paul R

Another great video Andy

Paul

Right the new board is now fully wired with switches in place for the isolating sections on the extended siding and additional switch holes for the Dapol signals I will be using. On this new board there will be the advance starter and inner home signals. The latter may be a bracket which signals the loop or I could use a ground signal for the latter./ Any advice please from the signalling experts. Passenger trains are not allowed to use the loop in service only as ETS.  Dapol are bringing out a ground signal at some point so I have choices as there is no sign of any bracket signals of LMS or BR origin. So the choice is make my own or use the Dapol! Either way I have made provision. The only conundrum is how to power them. There is no uncontrolled 12v DC power supply down between any of the boards. There is however a 20vAC bus which powers the points and despite there being no points on board 4 the bus has been wired through so I must have been thinking ahead! All the need to do is then take it through a pair of DCC Concepts powered dowels as there are no connecting cables between Boards 4 and the new Board 5. 

The Dapol signals work from a max of 18v DC (presumably for DCC operation) or 12v DC. So as I don't want to run the risk of burning something out I am using this voltage converter from Amazon to provide me with an uncontrolled 12v DC supply.

Every board that will have signals or an accessory that required an uncontrolled 12V supply will need one of these but as all boards have a 20vAC supply that's no problem. They are about £7 from Amazon.

I also posed some suitable traction for the HEA's

Right on to the holes

Paul R

Got these for our 30th Wedding Anniversary 

I was fortunate to get some before and for Christmas and with the extra two my daughter has promised form my birthday soon I will have a rake of 10 although I would like to get them to 12!

The thinking is that Felstead beet factory still receives coal by rail and that there is also a coal concentration depot at Braintree!

The wagons for both sites come in on a single service from somewhere up north and rather than split them at Braintree where they would have to be reverse shunted and occupy a busy single line, the train is brought to Black Notley where it is split. The first half goes off to Felstead and another engine is provided at Black Notley to take the remainder to Braintree Goods yard. The process is reversed coming back or on some occasions empties are taken out from Felstead via Bishops Stortford and the wagons are combined at Stratford to return north. 

It makes a good plausible story!

Paul

Thats neat Andy

All you need now is an NSE station building to sit in the car park. I believe Scalescenes do one.

This https://scalescenes.com/product/r003c-clasp-modular-building/

or more likely this https://scalescenes.com/product/r003a-small-modern-station/

Paul R

3 hours ago, franciswilliamwebb said:

Always good to catch up with Willow 😎

Of the five Maine we have she is the nosiest! Always where she is not supposed to be and then looks at you all innocently 

Paul R

So it's on with the track laying. 

This shows the new board connected to the Braintree end fiddle yard. Willow is not helping today!.

This one shows the extension of the running line on to the new board

This shows the siding extension.

So now I am at the point of soldering the rails to the brass screws at the ends of the baseboards and then I can finish the wiring up.

Paul R

Same here - wet and orrible!

Nice to see the DMU Andy. I think you might need a Class 207 Thumper for the Southampton Tidworth service too!

Paul R

Trees look good and help offset the back scene. Great work

Paul R

Andy

I am not sure if I missed this or not but what are you bodging the footbridge out of?

Paul R

So after a period of inactivity interspersed with wagon building I have decided the time is right to insert another board into the layout which takes it to 36.5ft long. The intention was to have yet another board of this dimension to create and overall layout 40ft long which I can get up in the garden!

The last time I had the layout up in May 2022 I felt that the visible part of the layout needed a longer run into the station at the Braintree end, much like I did at the Witham end. All it will have is plain track so board connections are via the overlocking latches. I might need to run a supply there for a home signal (probably Dapol) but I can do that via the DCC concepts powered board alignment dowels. Simplicity was always the byword for Notley!

Anyhow I retrieved a spare board I had in the loft. It was one of the original short fiddle yards and was never used because it had a 10mm twist in it. Well several years in the loft have cured most of the twist but I needed to fix this once and for all. It's down to about 5mm now. My solution to this is to fit diagonal cross members glued and screwed whilst the board in fixed down straight so that when its released it stays put. Thats the theory. I read somewhere that all baseboards should be built with these to prevent warping but I never went that far. To be fair none of the other boards have warped/twisted in the last however many years I have been working on them.

The photos show where we are at.

This is the board as retrieved from the loft with Willow want to help.

These are the diagonal cross pieces cut ready for fixing

Prior to gluing the board was forced flat using these clamps

All done and waiting for the glue to dry. Once that's happened I'll get the adjoining boards out and fix the latches then tracklaying and wiring can begin.

I'll post more photos when I get that far

Paul R

You don't often see this livery modeller in 7mm

Paul R

2 hours ago, Temeraire said:

Is this a good time to mention 'bubble cars' again? 😁

Ooooh you're living dangerously!   I was thinking a 158

Paul R

Well knock me down with a feather. When you said you had made alterations I didn't think it would involve platforms. I also think they look fine - there are plenty of prototypes for everything out there. Incidentally what are you using as platform surfaces. I have always used wet and dry paper gone over with a weathering coat with an airbrush once installed. 

On your video I was looking at that space between the 2 sets of running tracks. Have you thought about a BR era modern signal box to help full that gap. A bit like Colchester or Witham or even a Southern GlassHouse version - didn't Bachman make them?

Here is what I mean its an embedded link so I don't think there are any copyright issues.

Rails have something similkar

https://railsofsheffield.com/products/scenecraft-44-064-art-deco-signal-box?variant=42204264431807&currency=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjw8-OhBhB5EiwADyoY1b7ddd4BmYj9V7o0xd8cE-A_j6ETtXSvI1tqk8iOHx15m2TrwupidRoCe0oQAvD_BwE

Just a thought. Otherwise loving the progress

Paul R

19 minutes ago, Dragonboy said:

Now are you sure that wasn’t how you hurt your leg 😉

 

Brian

Fell off the pole I heard!

Paul R

I guess that snake on the bus was an ill omen!!!!

Paul R

You almost feel its just about to start raining!  Superb picture Alan

13 hours ago, Andrew P said:

Hi and cheers mate, but deffo NO Bus on the Bridge, its a phobia, like spiders and snakes. 🤣

Hmm - not sure I've ever seen a 4mm snake?

Perhaps you could get a 3D printed one from Modelu!!!!

Make a good cameo scene Ha ha! A snake getting off the bus.

I'll get me coat.....

Paul R

Andy

You've got the perspective on those corner fields spot on. It really does look as of the landscape blends right in much further away than it really is.

Oh and you need a bus for that bridge!!!

Paul R

Well I've been a bit quiet on here as I haven't really done much to report. I've been building wagons at our weekly church warm space and the fifth one is nearly finished. They are at the point of going to the paint shop when it's not so wet. I do my spraying outdoors - wife won't have it in the house - so I need a warm fine day and there hasn't been too many of them.

Still scribing the station building but nearly finished that too. I'll post pics of all these as and when

In the meantime I have finally got round to ballasting the extension board I made up about 3 years or so ago. Format follows the same process as described way back at the beginning on this thread.

Here is the dry mix being laid

This is the ballast laid and wet with water and some washing up liquid

p

Then PVA added

Just needs to dry out.

The board will have the gangers hut and Wickham Trolley shed on it at the right hadn't end which when set up is next to the signal box. I have pre-ordered the Ellis Clark kit which looked great.

All for now

Paul R

I bought some N7 fittings from him within the last three months. no issues

Paul R

8 hours ago, Baggies1961 said:

Hi Paul,

Its the end link thats comes out and its fiddly to locate link onto the two locating lugs if thats clear?

Regards

Julian.

Julian

Ah yes got it. I had similar on another of their wagons!

Paul

Another good video Andy.

I am sure that filler is the same stuff my daughter uses for make up. Trowel it On by L'Oreal - because you're with it!!!

Will you be installing signalling?

Paul R