ianathompson

I cannot see any problems with the basic concept of establishing the town along the Wootton Creek. If I am not mistaken this was a more important site than Lynn before the Norman Conquest which was one reason why the local castle (Castle Rising) was built alongside it. At the time of the Conquest the site of what was to become Lynn was simply a marsh so establishing the town further north might have made more sense than what actually happened! The town's name (the King's part is never used locally) is supposedly derived from the Celtic for a lake or pool (llyn). I notice that you have a channel for the Ouse flowing almost due north. You may or may not be aware that the Ouse flowed in a huge loop out towards the village of Clenchwarton at the start of the nineteenth century (as I recall from my teaching days). A new channel was cut to increase the scour at Lynn as the port was silting up. This gives you scope to tinker with the local drainage and generally alter the topography. There was, of course, a Victorian proposal to dam The Wash and reclaim the land to create Victoria County, thereby doing this in reality. The history of the area in real life is about as close to ideal for any modellers' "Just Supposing" scheme. Ian T

You aren't cutting up either the Priory or St Nick's because I would have nowhere to sing! Ian T

In response to the requests about my operating sessions on this thread have now set up a page about this available at https://myafk.net/setting-up-a-session I don't want to hijack this thread so it might be best to respond on the thread here Retrospective thanks for advice on adding link. Easy when you know how! Ian T

One or two further points have come up about ops that interest me and prompt me to shove my twopennorth in! You are probably fed up with me by now! I accept that this might be the case but does any-one know of a commercially available system? I once experimentally attempted to create a generator for one station on the AFK using the logistics components on Excel. It soon became a complicated nightmare and was quickly abandoned! In any case my preference is for low-tech pencil and paper solutions. I can get a feel of the traffic requirements for the day as they are generated and begin to anticipate potential problems. These are excellent ideas for replicating the problems that the real thing faced, although ! in 5 for engine failures is rather high! I use 1 in 1000 for a goods wagon failure (hotbox etc) obtained by turning up a 9 on a 10 sided dice and 99 on a 100 sided dice. This is thrown for every goods train on its arrival at a station (when I remember). Rotating locos around is more plausible by stopping them for scheduled maintenance such as boiler washouts. I once devised a system for this but it is in abeyance due to changes in the "calendar" used for operating sessions. On reflection I might be tempted to include the nuts and bolts of these processes for the next operating session on the website, not that that is likely to start for some time. Any interest any-one? Ian T

Just ab observation about cards and dice for generating traffic. Dice don't need reshuffling and can be bought in 4,6.8,10,12 and 20 sided combinations to give different probabilities. There are 100 sided dice as well. They are rare but I have four for use in my own traffic generator. I have used these for years and wrote about my own system on the website. That is the beauty of these systems. A few alterations to the probabilities and you will soon get what you want! Unfortunately I seem to have over-egged my pudding and may have to "lose" some traffic if the chaos of the last operating "day" is to be avoided. Best of luck and enjoy your operations. It is nice to see modellers replicating traffic patterns. Ian T

A pang of unease prompts me to comment re the recent posts about simplicity, point motors and DCC. I am almost twenty years into building my own (large) layout and I deliberately chose to keep things as simple as possible after an over-engineered false start. DCC was always a "no-no" because it is a "black box" to me. At least the Grammar School physics department can congratulate itself on managing to get simple DC circuits into my head! Point and signal operation is by rods from the baseboard edge; cheap, simple and usually reliable. They cannot burn out (unlike the two of the five that I initially installed, although one was my own fault). Crossing polarity (or frogs if you must use that detestable term(!)) is determined by activators attached to the rods contacting micro-switches. A solenoid point motor needs three soldered joints at the polarity switch, three joints to the rails, four joints at the point motor and another three at the point activating switch (thirteen at least). A rod drive system uses six., i.e. half as much to come undone. Multiply this by a large number of points and...... It is a fact of life that a large system will throw up many more failures than a small BLT. There is more stock, more trackwork and more equipment to go wrong. Every large layout also seems to acquire a problem corner as well. (I seem to have created three or four!) Much more time has also to be spent on mundane chores such as track and loco wheel cleaning to maintain good running. Despite having been bedded in for some years the last operating session threw up a number of routine problems. One was a mysterious short, which was tracked within 10 minutes. [Although DC, the layout has deliberately been divided into eleven power districts, which can be isolated, to allow for such an eventuality.] Three point blades separated from their tie bars, although this can be attributed to the use of scratchbuilt points unlike your commercial ones. [Around one hundred blade ends.] A couple of crossings had the wrong polarity due to the activator being out of register. [Perhaps one twenty plus micros as all crossings including slips and diamonds are live.] A trustworthy loco ran erratically and needed remedial attention after the end of the session. [Twenty five plus locos and railcars in use per session] This is about par for the course and so I wish you well with your more complicated plans. I would add some simple advice, however. Make sure that everything is recorded in an easily accessible book so that if anything goes wrong you have something to jog your memory. I use a ring folder and replace or update sheets as necessary. Trying to troubleshoot equipment installed in 2001, from memory, is not really a good idea! Ian T

Only just seen this topic, so a late reply. OS maps are a representation of a curved surface (the Earth) on a flat piece of paper. Map makers get around this problem by distorting their map in some way. This is known as a projection. Look in any atlas and somewhere, usually on the edge in small letters, it states the projection. What most people would consider to be the common World Map is drawn to the Mercator projection. Modern OS maps use a grid superimposed over the whole country. The grid distorts the map, particularly at the extremities, but not by too much. In the nineteenth century it was standard practice for each individual county to be surveyed on its own unique grid, for large scale maps, which resulted in less distortion at the county's extremities. However, when the sheets showing the boundary of one county with another are compared differences become very apparent. If we take the Lancashire/Yorkshire boundary as an example, the Yorkshire County series map will be at a totally different orientation to the Lancashire one, due to the use of a different grid. This practice of creating County Series maps ceased some time in the late nineteenth/ early twentieth centuries but I cannot state when. The superimposition of a map from the County Series over one from the Nationally designated grid might well account for the maps seeming to be out of register. I suppose, as well, that a station near the county border would be more prone to distortion than one near the centre of the county. Given the size of Yorkshire I would suspect that this would be more apparent than it would in a small county such as Rutland. Hope that this helps. Ian T

Erm!! This is County Premier and quite serious! Downham set 276-9 to win. Downham had a Kiwi "pro" and the oppo "pro" once scored 220+ for Norfolk in the Minor Counties. Fortunately I played with him as a kid so we had a pint and a laugh afterwards. Not much railway modelling that weekend though as I watched the international cricket after singing at the Lynn Festival service. I know this is off topic so I will now keep quiet! Ian T

As a Yorkshireman, who views cricket as a birthright, perhaps its time to redress the balance, or Ballance for those that know the county's current line up!! I have always found the game's subtleties, complexities and unexpected turns fascinating The most recent of which was being asked to come out of the scorebox and field, for 30 overs as twelfth man, at the age of 62, last Saturday in the Norfolk Alliance Premier league. It is a good job that we are not all the same isn't it? The world would otherwise be a boring place. Ian T

Barry, Gave up on umpiring after arguing with the then second team captain following an lbw decision. Spend most time scoring for the first team in the county premier. Will be watching Minor Counties next week hopefully. About the railway! The schematic line map (and the photo locations) should appear on the right of your screen. I have been told that this does not come up, however, if viewed on a mobile phone. The layout's supposed geographical location can be found at https://myafk.net/sketch-map-of-the-system The schematic should be visible on any type of page if you go to https://myafk.net/operating-session-4 It has been placed at the top of the page. Hope that this helps. Ian T

The operating session finished some time ago but problems with the website platform prevented publication. These have now been resolved (I hope!) and the last batch of pictures is available at https://myafk.net/operating-session-5 Incidentally I noticed that I had not included the location map on at least the last two posts. This has now been rectified.. Does any-one use this? It takes a long time to set up and unless I receive some requests for it to remain it will not be there on the next occasion! 5-187 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.186 In this photo of an obscure corner of the layout the 2-10-2T backs down into the quarry road at Ospicio to pick up two vans jettisoned from an earlier train. This move is not carried out very often and the pony truck derailed on the siding points which were found to be out of adjustment. There is obviously a lot of work still to be done here, including inserting missing sleepers, but it is intended that the wall at the left will eventually become part of a loading bank. 5-189 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.190 The congestion at Urteno has required that the wagons are written onto three shunt lists. At around two dozen wagons this would be nothing out of the ordinary for the prototype but it amounts to significant congestion on a cramped model railway. The value of these lists was pointed out in the last session. Rather than dealing with an unwieldy handful of consignment notes the destinations are simply written onto the sheet. The trajnaĉefo is, in general terms, simply interested in where the wagons are going rather than what is in them. The one urgent load, of livestock, is highlighted by the asterisks. 5-192 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.193 The last train of the day makes its way over the snow covered interfluve between Altonian and Calviero provinces. The eagle eyed will note that a slug of lead has appeared in the body of the locomotive testifying to the difficulties of working trains over the AFK. In fact closer inspection suggested that progress was being halted by the pilots attached to the bogies which were catching the sides of the cutting. These have been trimmed but the jury is out as to whether the weight will remain. 5-200 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.200 The down railcar is still on the single line, having reached Abateĵo de Narrasson. There is an IBS (intermediate block signal) at Sojonno so it is not in the section directly in advance of the freight, which could have left Boursson by now had it received authority. I suppose that the spire of the Abbey represents a scenic faux pas as it reaches above the sky but it would have looked just as unrealistic had it been shortened. The exit into the backscene will one day be hidden by a station building. The brethren are Cistercians and their agricultural machine shop is in the foreground. It houses a combine undergoing repair which is an obvious attempt to distract the eye from the hole. As Capt Oates apparently said to Scott, "I'm going outside and may be some time." The N gauge layouts need work and I have begun to rebuild the garden line. Three or four items need attention on the AFK and that does not include stock building or scenic developments. It may be some time before the AFK returns to these pages! Ian T

The operating session finished some time ago but problems with the website platform prevented publication. These have now been resolved (I hope!) and the last batch of pictures is available at https://myafk.net/operating-session-5 Incidentally I noticed that I had not included the location map on at least the last two posts. This has now been rectified.. Does any-one use this? It takes a long time to set up and unless I receive some requests for it to remain it will not be there on the next occasion! 5-187 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.186 In this photo of an obscure corner of the layout the 2-10-2T backs down into the quarry road at Ospicio to pick up two vans jettisoned from an earlier train. This move is not carried out very often and the pony truck derailed on the siding points which were found to be out of adjustment. There is obviously a lot of work still to be done here, including inserting missing sleepers, but it is intended that the wall at the left will eventually become part of a loading bank. 5-189 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.190 The congestion at Urteno has required that the wagons are written onto three shunt lists. At around two dozen wagons this would be nothing out of the ordinary for the prototype but it amounts to significant congestion on a cramped model railway. The value of these lists was pointed out in the last session. Rather than dealing with an unwieldy handful of consignment notes the destinations are simply written onto the sheet. The trajnaĉefo is, in general terms, simply interested in where the wagons are going rather than what is in them. The one urgent load, of livestock, is highlighted by the asterisks. 5-192 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.193 The last train of the day makes its way over the snow covered interfluve between Altonian and Calviero provinces. The eagle eyed will note that a slug of lead has appeared in the body of the locomotive testifying to the difficulties of working trains over the AFK. In fact closer inspection suggested that progress was being halted by the pilots attached to the bogies which were catching the sides of the cutting. These have been trimmed but the jury is out as to whether the weight will remain. 5-200 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.200 The down railcar is still on the single line, having reached Abateĵo de Narrasson. There is an IBS (intermediate block signal) at Sojonno so it is not in the section directly in advance of the freight, which could have left Boursson by now had it received authority. I suppose that the spire of the Abbey represents a scenic faux pas as it reaches above the sky but it would have looked just as unrealistic had it been shortened. The exit into the backscene will one day be hidden by a station building. The brethren are Cistercians and their agricultural machine shop is in the foreground. It houses a combine undergoing repair which is an obvious attempt to distract the eye from the hole. As Capt Oates apparently said to Scott, "I'm going outside and may be some time." The N gauge layouts need work and I have begun to rebuild the garden line. Three or four items need attention on the AFK and that does not include stock building or scenic developments. It may be some time before the AFK returns to these pages! Ian T

Hungarian, Finnish and Basque are supposedly related, despite, almost, covering the extremes of the continental mainland. I have made extensive use of these in "developing" Marrongacan, the language of Marrongaco province on the AFK. I do possess a Finnish dictionary as I have railway books in the language but it is easier to use Google translate. A post graduate friend married a Finnish girl and has spent his working life at Helsinki University. I occasionally get a Christmas and New Year card in the language! When asked about learning Finnish he informed me that it is just a matter of rote learning but at least the language is phonetic. As usual, many Finnish people speak fluent English, although he claims that his two sons are part of a very small Finnish Norwich City fans club. Ian T

Following a respite the session has been resumed. The full set of photos can be found at https://myafk.net/operating-session-5 5-164 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.164 With the railcar having arrived the special wastes no time in getting onto the move once the signal, in the background, drops to clear. 5-168 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.167 The delayed RFK-FDV freight is let out onto the Vulpafaŭkangulo in preference to the von Ryan. It is now running around half an hour late but will have little trouble in coping with this lightweight load. 5-180 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.179 The von Ryan jogs alongside the Aepto in the lower part of the gorge. There would be little to see as, being well away from civilisation, the whole area would be in pitch blackness. The train made it first appearance in photo 5.62 and has been 'on the road' as such for over twelve hours, although five of these were spent sitting in a siding at Ospicio watching the world go by. The loco, you might remember, was originally sent out as the Urteno banker so it is usually double manned anyway. The loco currently acting as banker was seen in photo 5.33 and is the one that those crews transferred to. The loco on this train would also have needed a double crew, with a lot of time spent on the cushions, although the real thing seemed to accept this with equanimity. As has been hinted earlier these practices will have to be reviewed before the next session. 5-184 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.183. The new train, ostensibly running in conjunction with the paper mill traffic, pulls into Lacono at 20.40, thereby delaying the adjacent railcar in platform 3. The train has been on the road for 10 hours but has failed to get past Ithilarak, a mere 18 kilometres distant. Ian T

Following a respite the session has been resumed. The full set of photos can be found at https://myafk.net/operating-session-5 5-164 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.164 With the railcar having arrived the special wastes no time in getting onto the move once the signal, in the background, drops to clear. 5-168 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.167 The delayed RFK-FDV freight is let out onto the Vulpafaŭkangulo in preference to the von Ryan. It is now running around half an hour late but will have little trouble in coping with this lightweight load. 5-180 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.179 The von Ryan jogs alongside the Aepto in the lower part of the gorge. There would be little to see as, being well away from civilisation, the whole area would be in pitch blackness. The train made it first appearance in photo 5.62 and has been 'on the road' as such for over twelve hours, although five of these were spent sitting in a siding at Ospicio watching the world go by. The loco, you might remember, was originally sent out as the Urteno banker so it is usually double manned anyway. The loco currently acting as banker was seen in photo 5.33 and is the one that those crews transferred to. The loco on this train would also have needed a double crew, with a lot of time spent on the cushions, although the real thing seemed to accept this with equanimity. As has been hinted earlier these practices will have to be reviewed before the next session. 5-184 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 5.183. The new train, ostensibly running in conjunction with the paper mill traffic, pulls into Lacono at 20.40, thereby delaying the adjacent railcar in platform 3. The train has been on the road for 10 hours but has failed to get past Ithilarak, a mere 18 kilometres distant. Ian T

Perhaps he's just bought a dog?! Ian T

I suppose that Belgium had the advantage of being a relatively compact country without far flung corners out of sight and out of mind! Even here the mainline standard gauge system was massively augmented by secondary railways of local interest. These often took the form of roadside tramways. For those interested they even had a tramway Beyer-Garratt style loco on one line. (Incidently, don't like your location! That's where I hit the majority of my scoring shots as a left handed batsman!) Ian T

Grant Street Park is across the river and the "Sheep Baggies" have achieved almost mythical status! Did not realise until recently that Clach are named for the Washing Stone by the River. Wait until you see the plans for the NBR extension from Spean Bridge. I will publish these if/ when I persuade the under construction NB 4-4-2T to behave itself. Mind you i could always model the proposed amalgamated GNoSR and Highland which almost came about. I've always liked the Highland's 0-6-4Ts. There are too many signalmen in Norfolk are modelling the Highland already (you know who you are!) One thing that I have never understood about the Highland, especially since it served the Gaeltacht areas, is why all its literature was written in English. I stand to be corrected if wrong. Otherwise, any ideas any-one? Ian T

European states took much greater control over the development of their railway systems than the Victorians did in Britain. The standard practice was to apportion a designated area of the country to an individual company, specify the main routes to be built and leave them to get on with it, within reason. If and when companies failed, such as the Ouest in France the government was forced to step in and rescue them. This led to the formation of the French Etat system, which I suppose could be viewed as a forerunner to the US government's bailout of the north eastern railroads by the formation of Conrail. The Italian government apparently seemed quite happy to bail out its three systems at regular intervals Eventually at some point in the early twentieth century most governments decided to step in and set up a national administrative body. This system created scope for large, semi-autonomous regional railways to emerge, and also for very localised political control of minor railways. I have used some of these templates as the justification for my own model railway, the AFK. Ian T

Its quite possible that some people may have missed my pre-Grouping posts on this website so I have taken the liberty of posting some duplicate pictures here. My interest is in the relatively obscure Great North of Scotland Railway which grew hand in hand with watching Highland League football. IC15 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 1. The only completed GNoSR loco is O class No 10, seen here shunting the yard. The GNoSR utility option was, strangely, the 4-4-0 wheel arrangement which formed by far the majority of the loco stock. This model is obviously a converted Union MiIlls product wherein lie some problems. The boiler and cab should be much lower. The discrepancy is obvious when viewed against the GNoSR carriage stock in the background which has been built to a scale height. On the other side of the coin the Farish horsebox in the background exhibits the same problem. IC16 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 2. There is a train of GNoSR carriages built to this profile. Fine, they are not exactly exquisite examples of the model makers art but they did take some time to construct. They do not claim to be scale models either as they have been cut and shut to fit the Roco six wheel chassis. The mixture of liveries is, as I understand it, prototypical, in that the older (brown) stock was not repainted after Pickersgill introduced his version. I believe that some reporters stated that certain four wheelers were almost white by this time! IC17 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 3. Unfortunately the distinctive GNoSR vans, one of which is at the left, were built in the signalboxes that I used to sign for, using Farish vans as a template. They are therefore somewhat larger than their real life counterparts. The van next door is a NBR six wheeler which is probably on the emaciated side and will need attention to its roof before final completion. IC18 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 4. The remaining donor stock retains its BR livery at the moment. The pre-Grouping opens are simple repaints, although I suspect that the one on the right has been repainted into BR livery and has escaped into the wrong stock box! The class O is about to shunt the quayside, the passenger train loco has come to the platform end as was standard practice, so that the signalman could see it, and the class E (as will be) has pushed the stock into the departure platform. I suppose that it has become a case of pre-Grouping modelling for the ham-fisted! Ian T

Inverness Citadel's last outing on the road threw up a few minor problems that need attention but on the whole I was quite happy with its overall performance. The 'snagging' process involves running lots of trains and trying to solve problems rather than ignore them! N gauge bogie diesels are much more tolerant of minor deviations in track alignments (vertical and lateral) than their rigid wheelbase steam counterparts. Instead of using BR standard steam locos I decided to run the embryonic pre-Grouping stock for a change. The photos show some of the early testing. IC15 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 1. The only completed GNoSR loco is O class No 10, seen here shunting the yard. The GNoSR utility option was, strangely, the 4-4-0 wheel arrangement which formed by far the majority of the loco stock. This model is obviously a converted Union MiIlls product wherein lie some problems. The boiler and cab should be much lower. The discrepancy is obvious when viewed against the GNoSR carriage stock in the background which has been built to a scale height. On the other side of the coin the Farish horsebox in the background exhibits the same problem. IC16 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 2. There is a train of GNoSR carriages built to this profile. Fine, they are not exactly exquisite examples of the model makers art but they did take some time to construct. They do not claim to be scale models either as they have been cut and shut to fit the Roco six wheel chassis. The mixture of liveries is, as I understand it, prototypical, in that the older (brown) stock was not repainted after Pickersgill introduced his version. I believe that some reporters stated that certain four wheelers were almost white by this time! IC17 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 3. Unfortunately the distinctive GNoSR vans, one of which is at the left, were built in the signalboxes that I used to sign for, using Farish vans as a template. They are therefore somewhat larger than their real life counterparts. The van next door is a NBR six wheeler which is probably on the emaciated side and will need attention to its roof before final completion. IC18 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr 4. The remaining donor stock retains its BR livery at the moment. The pre-Grouping opens are simple repaints, although I suspect that the one on the right has been repainted into BR livery and has escaped into the wrong stock box! The class O is about to shunt the quayside, the passenger train loco has come to the platform end as was standard practice, so that the signalman could see it, and the class E (as will be) has pushed the stock into the departure platform. I suppose that it has become a case of pre-Grouping modelling for the ham-fisted! Ian T

Can i seriously suggest that you do not do this! Forty plus years ago I went down this route and it was a disaster! The thing was very lightly constructed and rapidly developed a dip which put the centre a couple of inches below the ends. It would quite happily have sufficed for pasting wallpaper but it was not a recipe for a successful model/ I don't doubt, at this remove, that it was an ultra-cheapo version but unless their design has moved on I would avoid them like the plague. Ian T

I must confess that my current main layout is large (by British standards) but I lived with an 8 foot 6 inch by 15 inches layout for well over a dozen years. It was a 7mm narrow gauge layout so in relative terms, compared to EM, it was quite small. The whole font was scenicked and a line to a fiddle yard sneaked off at the back half way along. The only suggestion which I would make, from experience, is to hinge it at the middle. This allows it to be set up quickly on a table or desk top and to be removed as quickly as you can get the stock off. One of my current layouts, deliberately designed for portability, follows this principle and works well. You probably won't be interested in the modelling, which is simply N gauge commercial offerings. There is nothing original in the design but I did give a little background on my Inverness Citadel thread. Ian T

There is a typo in that it should read "shunt-facing road". I have used this term because that is how it is labelled in A Pictorial Record of LNER consituent signalling (A.A. Maclean, OPC, 1983). There was also a "shunt-right road" signal. I would not claim that i was overly familiar with the GNoSR's eccentricities either. The only deployment of both types of signals that I am aware of was at Aberdeen North box. They were placed beneath the running signals and seem to authorise movements with empty stock. For clarification of the layout I have included a photo below., although it is not too clear unless the magnifier is used. ops decant 002 by Ian Thompson, on Flickr The signal is intended to be placed on a gantry on the platform alongside the last carriage of the arriving train, The points that it would apply to are to the right hand of the last carriage. Freight trains arrive on the reception/run round road alongside the platform but this is very short and can only take a loco nine four wheelers and a brake. They are propelled backwards into the yard and the loco then pulls forward and runs around using the double slip in the foreground. I am well aware, from first hand experience, of the cavalier attitudes of drivers on goods only lines! When that class 37 begins to run round I would like to think that it was protected from any local trip freight shunting in the yard. The model is a shunting plank devised to pack as much action as possible into a small space. It was built to give me something to run whenever I have to look after my mother. The track layout bears little resemblance to any real life layout that I am aware of, hence the signalling conundrums. It is, therefore, much more complex than the majority of GNoSR locations which used straightforward layouts. The only reason that I proposed to use the "shunt-facing road" signal it seemed the most appropriate of the limited subsidiary signals at the pre-Grouping company's disposal. The whole thing would be easily solved with a yellow semaphore arm but at some point I want to run GNoSR stock on the layout. A Stevens drop flap would probably be difficult to sight on a gantry, especially when propelling into the yard, although I suppose that a standard shunting arm could perform the same function. Auchintoul, the partner layout, was much simpler to signal, or it will be when I get around to it. Thanks for your interest. Ian T