adriank

If you are concerned about stopping the spread of solder, I find Vaseline very effective. I use brass wire droppers soldered to the switch blades as a means of operating my points. The top of the dropper extends under the stock rail to stop the blade rising and there is a high risk of soldering the whole lot solid. I put a tiny amount of DCC Concepts Sapphire flux paste where I want the solder to be and a smear of Vaseline where I don't. The Vaseline can go right up to the flux paste. Unlike liquid flux, the paste tends to stay where put. When a small amount of solder on the tip of a hot iron is applied, neither paste nor solder encroach on the Vaseline-covered area. The Sapphire flux is excellent but corrosive and the joint needs to be washed - easily done with a cotton tip soaked in water. Adrian

Some great modelling! The Cowley Bridge Inn was a favourite watering hole when I was a student. Scrumpy was 11d (old pence) a pint or one and a penny with a dash of lemonade to make it more potable. Adrian

I asked the same question over 40 years ago and decided to go the whole hog with P4. I probably haven't achieved much by most standards but a fairly ambitious layout is steadily taking shape. With the gauges available from the Scalefour Society, I can't see that building reliable trackwork is any more difficult in P4 than in EM. I have built double slips on transition curves with little difficulty. All my rolling stock is fitted with P4 wheels. Much of the goods stock is neither compensated nor sprung and it runs just fine through the points and crossings. Diesels are easy to convert with drop-in replacement wheels from Ultrascale. Similar sets are available for some steam locomotives with the driving wheels already quartered and crankpins fitted. I have yet to convert a steam locomotive with outside valve gear and I believe EM provides more generous clearances in this regard. Pulling wheels out slightly may well provide a simple conversion in EM but one of the joys of P4 for me is the fine scale appearance of the wheels. The chassis kits from High Level are excellent and have comprehensive instructions. They provide a great stepping stone between simply swapping the wheels and scratch building a chassis. One thing I would say is that most of us get better with practice. P4 may appear challenging but it gets easier as you go on and over the years improving my own skills has provided great enjoyment and a sense of achievement. The choice is yours but I don't regret mine. Adrian

Yes, Pendre station looks similar. The date of construction - late 19th early 20th century - ties in too. Searching for 'board and batten' provided a lot of information and I can go ahead with making a model of Watchet shed with more confidence. Thanks for you help. Adrian

Can anybody throw any light on the construction of GWR wooden buildings such as the engine shed at Watchet/Minehead or the goods shed at Bourton on the Water? They have vertical planks with what appears to be thin timber strips overlapping the joins between adjacent planks. Is there a name for this type of cladding and what were the dimensions? Adrian

Ceramic tweezers are good for holding small parts when soldering. The reverse type are useful clamps e.g. for brake-shoe sandwiches. They are non-conductive so they don't take heat away from the joint and withstand temperatures of about 1000 C. Adrian

I have a Lima 117 that I'd like to convert. Which DCC conversion board did you use? Adrian

Details of the differences were given in an article by Steve Banks in the September 2003 issue of Model Rail. He suggests the model body is a hybrid of the last GWR design and the first BR one. The article describes how he modified the kit and added detail. The author lists the numbers allocated to the BR wagons built at Swindon between 1951 and 1953. Adrian

This sounds like platelayers' paradise Martin! It would solve many of the difficulties and save most of the time in making your own track. I look forward to further developments. Adrian

Frankly I've given up on using plastic chairs with plywood sleepers. Riveted track looks fine to me especially when the rail is painted and the track viewed from the side. I did try cutting plastic chairs in half and sticking them on for cosmetic effect but quickly decided that life is simply too short! What happened to the white-metal half chairs that used to be available? Adrian

There was a 1:76 drawing of the type of buffer stop you describe by Frank Crudass in the June 1970 Railway Modeller with notes on its construction. Would you like me to scan it for you? Adrian

Lanarkshire Models Adrian

Still not working for me. How does one effect an upgrade?

NWSL make universal joint connectors similar to those shown in your picture. Adrian

From the Scalescenes website: It is strongly recommended giving sheets several light even coats of artist's matt spray varnish (used to fix chalk and pastel drawings and available from most art supply shops). This helps protect the print surface during construction and reduces fading and discolouration. Always test the varnish on a scrap print before applying to your kit! Adrian

Do please tell. Adrian

E. Lyons 'An historical survey of Great Western Sheds 1947' states on page 21, "The ramp was generally 1 in 35 approaching the stage and levelled off to 1 in 80 for about 100 feet beyond the stage." The book contains several photographs of coaling stages and a set of scale drawings. Adrian

Is there any way to stop the videos appearing at the top of each topic? They are extremely irritating and a total waste of bandwidth. Adrian

Eileen's Emporium have them in stock. Adrian

"nifty" really doesn't do it justice! What a great demonstration! Thanks. Adrian

Vuescan was about half the price of a new higher spec Epson scanner so I bought a new scanner.

Hi David, I used to use ply sleepers with a combination of rivets and functional plastic chairs, an approach suggested I believe, in Iain Rice's book. However, I was never completely happy with the quality of running and thought it may be better to use either rivets or plastic chairs but not a combination of the two. Using all rivet and ply construction I am extremely pleased with the results. A B7 turnout requires approximately 110 rivets. Since I do not possess a combined punch and riveting tool, that's 110 holes to drill, 110 rivets to insert, 110 rivets to close with a rivet closing tool (from EMGS) and hammer and 110 joints to solder. The process is surprisingly quick and one I actually find relaxing. The benefits are: components are available from two reliable sources - the EMGS and the Scalefour Society only a few components are required - rivets, sleepers, rail and etched brass overlays for slide chairs (Bill Bedford) low cost - you can afford to make mistakes while you learn how to do it all soldered construction permits easy adjustment mistakes are usually confined to one or two sleepers which are easily replaced With regard to tools, I find the filing jigs extremely useful. For soldering vees, I use my own jigs made by sticking a couple of paddle-pop sticks to a piece of ply. I use a Mint gauge to check for tight spots particularly on crossings. I used to use the EMGS common crossing jig but now prefer to work directly on the Templot template. Hope this helps. Good luck with making your own track. Regards, Adrian

I'm about to embark on the construction of my first double slip and my first point and crossing work using plastic components. I am very pleased to be able to view such an excellent photograph. Thanks for posting. Adrian

Can you supply a link for Country Park Models please? Adrian

I think the worst thing about the Hornby/Wrenn R1 is the plastic underneath the boiler. That aside, the sandboxes on the model are 2mm too long so the splasher is too far back. If fitting the Branchlines chassis, which is to scale, it needs to be fitted a bit to the rear. Alternatively, you can replace the splashers. Replacement splashers are available from Branchlines with or without the sandbox. Personally I've decided to stick with the retro look and not carve up the body mainly for reasons of nostalgia. I may well scratch or kit build a more accurate body at some future date. Brian at Branchlines is very helpful and provides an excellent service. Adrian