JSModels

Noticed a new addition (at least, I don't remember it being there before) to the list of suppliers: Clicking on it just brings up an empty page. Just wondered what it was for?

This week I had some bad news, in that my new laser cutter has been held up a few more days... but the good news is that the machine supplier has lent me one of their demo machines in the meantime, and that was installed yesterday! It's a smaller machine than the one I have on order, but at least I've now been able to start production. This means that the launch of the 5x new 'Waterside' kits is going ahead as scheduled, and they are now available to order via my website. Note that (initially at least) quantities available are limited, and kits ordered now will not be shipped until the week after next (week commencing 10th August) as I've got quite a bit of catching up to do to produce the kits already requested. Jonathan JSModels

Peter, No, the website is fine at the moment. I've just checked the link in my signature & that's working too, so puzzled as to why it won't work for you? Website is here. If you're still having problems, please drop me a PM. Jonathan JSModels

Following on from my last update, I've received the news that my laser cutter (which I was hoping to receive last week) is finally being installed on Friday! Once that's up and running I will be working hard over the following days to cut and package all the kits for people that are on the waiting list. If you are on the list and have expressed an interest in one or more specific kits, I will contact you when those kits are ready, to confirm your order and get your postal address. I will then send you a PayPal invoice, and once payment is received, the kits will be shipped. A limited quantity of the new "Waterside" range of kits (pictured above) will be available to order on the website from 1st August as originally planned, however these will not be cut and shipped until the above backlog has been cleared, so please bear this in mind when ordering. Once the backlog is dealt with, and orders for the waterside kits are done, I will then work on getting kits made for general stock. This stock will then be available for ordering via the website as usual. Thank you all for your patience and support. Jonathan JSModels

You may well be right on all the above. I guess as long as I can neutralise any remaining acid it doesn't really matter if the blooming stays. Thanks all for the input. Jonathan

Duncan, Is it the servos themselves, or the Smart Switch control board that you're having problems with? The reason I ask is that I think the Smart Switch comes with those translucent blue TowerPro servos, which aren't the best quality. I started with those on a layout (with the MegaPoints controller) but replaced them with HK15178 servos from HobbyKing, which I found to be much better. Jonathan

Duncan, Is it the servos themselves that you have an issue with, the control board, or the whole concept? The reason I ask is that I *think* the Peco smart switch uses those Tower Pro servos with the translucent blue case? They aren't the greatest servos in the world. I used those (with Megapoints as it happens) on a layout, but changed them out for HobbyKing HK15178 servos (only a couple of quid each) which were much better quality.

Thanks Mick, I'll give that a try on a test piece. Yes it's still manual, but quicker with a toothbrush than a fibreglass pencil!!! Oh, and I've snuck one of the short pieces into the dishwasher - figured it was worth a shot, as long as the Mrs doesn't find out

I was recently given some Peco bullhead points & track by someone at my club. These had been installed on a brand new layout he was building, but then when he was wiring it up he left the layout for quite a while, under a plastic sheet, with an open pot of very old, corrosive flux paste (I'm not sure exactly what type). When he came back to it, all the metal parts had discoloured, and were covered in some sort of white 'blooms': At this point he gave up, took up all the track, and rebuilt the layout in OO9... I can only assume that fumes from the flux, trapped by the plastic sheet, corroded the metal. This trackwork is all effectively brand new (and probably cost a couple of hundred pounds!) so it seems a shame to throw it all away. Here's some closer pics: Does anyone have any ideas of some sort of chemical solution I could soak it all in to get rid of it, without affecting the plastic? It will come off mechanically (with a fibreglass pencil) but I really don't fancy spending several days cleaning them all by hand! As a test, I did clean the rail tops of a section of track with a cleaning rubber, and it took off the white blooms and discolouration & brought it back to clean, bare metal. I then left it a week or two, by which time the rail tops had dulled slightly (as I would expect normal track to do) and there was no evidence of the blooming reccurring. The discolouration doesn't really matter, if anything it helps having partially pre-weathered track! I could just paint them, but don't want to get it all laid on a new layout & then have problems further down the line caused by the residue of the flux on the pointwork. I've got some short sections of plain track I can experiment with, before I risk wrecking the points even further. Any help or suggestions would be gratefully received! Jonathan

I always assumed it was pronounced "digi-keys"

Mick, I mentioned in the other thread that I'd recommend them, so I guess you know that already, but here's my thoughts on them along with a video of them in operation: MP1 point motors You can never tell from a video how noisy something really is, but hopefully it'll give you some idea. FWIW, they're noisier now they're installed, but I think that's because of the particular baseboard construction I used, combined with where the layout is located acting as a sound box! HTH, Jonathan

If I was mounting them topside, next to the points (as Mick has done above) then yes, an omega loop would be useful. In my case, I mounted them directly underneath the points, and the baseboard is only 6mm thick, so I'm not sure how I could ease it. But it's only very slightly overthrown, and (touchwood) hasn't caused any issues yet!

I discovered the MP1 point motors a few months ago, having never heard of them previously, and I can definitely recommend them! Low profile, simple to fit (they're adjustable in every direction) and built-in frog switches. Price is pretty reasonable too, considering the other options available. The only complaint I have is that the 3mm movement is just a bit too much, and does stress the Peco bullhead point blades slightly if your baseboards are really thin (thicker baseboards would allow slightly more flex in the pin).

Paul, It's here > Standard Gauge Industrial Forum

I spent a few hours over the weekend painting one of the prototype builds for the new waterside kits. I decided to try Phil Parker's method as detailed in his review of another of my kits; grey primer, then various browns & greys sponged on, then standard plaster/filler for the mortar lines: Very happy with the results! I did make one change to Phil's method - he recommended rubbing the filler in dry, then misting water on afterwards. I tried this but without much success, so instead mixed a small amount of filler to a cream-like consistency, and rubbed that in with my finger. The rubbing action picked some pigment up from the sponged-on colours, resulting in the filler being slightly off-white (I don't think I'd left the paint long enough to dry fully) but I don't think that's a bad thing. A wooden manicure stick (a bit like a large cocktail stick) was used to pick away any large build-ups around the cills & in the corners of the window/door openings before it fully dried. The following day a quick rub with a finger and a bit of green scouring pad (used very lightly) took off any loose bits of plaster that had dried on the surface. The gutters either side were quickly shaped/carved from a square section cut off a lolly stick; the downpipe is from 1.6mm styrene rod, with 3D printed collars & elbows. The door knob is a dressmaking pin. Jonathan JSModels

For a vinyl cutter, that's ok, but don't be tempted to try to cut vinyl with a laser cutter - it gives off some VERY nasty fumes, including (but not limited to) an acid that will eat into and destroy various components of the cutter itself, and cyanide gas.

In addition to the kit pictured in my previous post, I have now completed the 'first build' of the other 4 kits in the new 'Waterside' range, so here's a quick pic of each. First up, JSM13 'Canal Warehouse Front': JSM23, 'Canal Warehouse Back 1': JSM33 'Canal Warehouse Back 2': JSM43 'Canal Warehouse End 1': And lastly, JSM53 'Canal Warehouse End 2': All the kits are laser-cut from 2mm & 3mm MDF and feature separate, removable window & door frames for easier painting, alternate doors for fitting in either open or closed positions, glazing material (not shown fitted in above images), pre-cut slate strips for roofing (shown in white, but will be dark grey in production kits) and blanking panels which can be fitted in place of any of the windows. More pictures of each kit are now up on my website or my Facebook page. Kits will be available from 1st August. Jonathan JSModels

Here's the first test cut/assembly of oneof the five new 'waterside' kits: This is JSM43 'Canal Warehouse End 1', which, along with the other 4 new kits, will be available from the 1st August. The kit is laser-cut from 2mm and 3mm MDF, with pre-cut card strips for the roof slates (note that the slates shown are cut in white, but will be in dark grey for production kits). Doors and windows are all separate & removable for easier painting, and doors can be shown open or closed. Dimensions are 145mm wide, 245mm high, and 20mm deep (40mm with the loading hood). Price at launch will be £20.00. Jonathan JSModels

Alastair, No, the website is working fine, don't know why you're having any issues? The link in your post works... Jonathan JSModels

Interesting developments here at JSModels – thanks to Phil Parker’s excellent article in the July edition of BRM, I’m completely out of stock of ALL my kits! I’ve got a limited quantity which will be available soon, but not enough to cover all the orders/reservations I’ve received over the past week or so. A brand-new laser-cutter is on order, which will enable me to produce the kits 100% in-house, but unfortunately that’s still a few weeks away. I should be fully up to speed with production on existing products, and have stock available on the website, by the end of July. The new ‘waterside’ series of kits will be available from 1st August. In the meantime, I’m working on designs for several new products as well as a couple of commissions... Jonathan JSModels

Does anyone recognise this building? I'm told it was built from a kit purchased probably around 1998-2002. It's quite unusual in that the main building is a solid block of expanded foam (presumably quite a rigid foam?) and the windows are solid/painted. Front elevation is 210mm wide, and approx. 125mm high, and it's low relief, at around 50mm deep. Apologies for the picture quality, it's a photo of a print of a photo! Does anyone remember a range of kits made like this? Who was the (presumably long-gone) manufacturer?

Just found this via your post on Facebook - don't know how I missed this thread before! Stunning work.

Edwardian, There a few differences between the two models: The Elegoo's use an array of UV LEDs to cure the resin, which are now 50W as opposed to 40W on the non-pro, so it cures each layer 25% quicker (nominally 6s per layer instead of 8s); The Z (vertical) axis mechanism has been improved to be more stable (though I haven't seen any complaints about the non-pro one being unstable at all); The pro has a air filtration system built-in, to help with fumes whilst printing; The resin vat is larger on the pro, for doing bigger prints without having to stop & refill; The print plate & levelling system has been improved; The Pro can use a newer file type from the slicing software, which is supposed to be more efficient. There is no difference in the overall dimensions of what can be printed, nor the final print quality. There's a comparison of the two machines here. I do't own either (yet!) so the above is just a run-down of features/changes I've read about. Hope it helps. Jonathan

Thanks John (and everyone else that replied!). It's to go into a laser-cut base, so putting holes in it is easy but adding a spigot to the base isn't possible. Back to the drawing board, unfortunately. Oh well. Jonathan

Thank you Kev! That's exactly why I'm designing this... That turntable above is in SketchUp. Although I'm going to have to make it bigger now, as I made the assumption that a 12' turntable would actually be 12', therefore it's only 48mm diameter!!! I'm unsure whether to do this as a 'cosmetic' turntable only, or go the whole hog & try to make it work... Jonathan