aselley
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Posts posted by aselley
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Having just spent the last week and a bit borrowing time to read all these entries, I have to say your attention to detail is simply inspiring. Thank you for sharing so many lessons, and tips as you bring this layout to life.
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Your goods shed looks amazing, the level of detail and the working doors are impressive., as is the signal box progress.
I really like the use of CAD, 3D printing, and then scratch building to get the level of quality you desire. Any interest in getting your own 3D printer to cut down the waiting times and make little tweaks easier?
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A while back on my Cakebox Challenge 'Long Walk Home' Mike (MikeOxon) provided me with a link to program that turned pictures into a hybrid paintings.
Its called Dynamic Auto-Painter that I did use on LWH but I have never bothered on LM, so with the lighting issues causing a few illumination problems I thought I would mess about and post a few on here for comments.
So using the picture of 5355 simmering quietly in the bay platform here are the three I have done.
1. Pastel
2.Glamour
3.Watercolour
First one took ages, the others where much quicker.
Any thoughts?
The watercolour effect might be a great tool for making scenic backdrops?
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Well the soldering was done. A case of a "poor tradesman blaming his tools" was both an apt and accurate description. A new Soldering Iron, so good solder and some good flux and job proved almost too easy. So while the wallet is lighter for the tools, at least I no longer have to replace destroyed points...or so I thought.
So I had all the points glued down, all the track as well, and I turned over the board to start on the wiring, and of course my project took 2 steps backwards...or if I choose to look at it in another light, it sent me back to school to learn some more lessons.
Clearly I am not gentle enough. (Though I must confess your honour I was being real gentle)
While wiring the points, on two of them, the frog wire fell out. Which is to say it snapped off the point, and this of course is the piece that is wired to the Cobalt motors to change polarity.
So I now have a quandary?
Is it better to,
- Just replace the points, which seems kind of wasteful. Even though "ripping it up" did do damage to the surrounding track work (though not the point), which will necessitate a bit of a bodge, when I replace it. Or,
- Is there a way to solder a dropper wire to the tracks directly like you do for power, when you convert the electro-point to DCC. I ask because, and this may be my lack of Google-Fu, I can't seem to see or find anyone else who has done this...though I doubt I am the first who has had this wire snap off.
I can also see why all the "guides" say getting the track right at the beginning is the key to layout success, since it's the track work part of the hobby that seems to dominate my learning curve.
2 steps forward, sometimes 1 back, sometimes 3...
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So even the "men in green" can't slow Andy down. :-)
Great to see you are either on the mend, or refuse to rest and instead continue to build.
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Hope you're feeling better soon Andy. And maybe a little enforced rest will let the rest of us try to keep up with the pace of your builds
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It’s been 3 weeks since I decided to ditch the code 100 insulfrogs and go code 75 electrofrogs, much of the time which has been spent at first waiting for the postman, and then secondly teaching myself to solder. At this point I’m not sure which has proved the most trying...though I concede the later might prove more useful, the learning curve has been steep and thus far not too successful. So I’m glad I’m only destroying some old code 100 rails in my practice.
So given that I had the time, I decided to also revisit the layout plan, especially since Peco has some nice points that give options that don’t exist within the Hornby range.
I spent a lot of time on the old RMWeb forums looking at the layouts offered by Hugh Flynn, before deciding that his layout 25 (see here) was just about what I was looking for.
Close enough to my original design and yet utilising some of the suggestions from Phil (Harlequin) in a previous post on this thread. And so I now have this:
The station will sit on the far left along the curve, as for the rest of the planned buildings, I have some ideas to represent part of the village, and site the boat building shed at the front on the right where it can also serve as a scenic break.
Ok, back to learning to solder.
Hi Anthony,
waiting for glue to dry can be good! Givers you time to do something else, such as a bit of painting, making a kit, more research or just having a brew and contemplating what you've done and what's to do next!
Roja
As long as the brew comes in a tool and icy glass it is a very welcome respite from the heat and humidity that is Singapore.
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We all love it when the postman brings us presents.
Looks like it's full steam ahead on the project...maybe a busy weekend for you?
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So now a start on the Board 2 / the Station Board.
The MESS.
The Tracks were laid out roughly in position to see how it looked. I have a gentle curve through the Station, then it turns slightly the other way to go over the Level Crossing to exit the board at 90 degrees, to enable a further board to be added at some stage should I or someone else desire.
There is also room for a Loco to use the Head Shunt without opening the Gates which is a real bonus as well.
That's it for today now. Next job, modify the Points ready for fitting, although I'm still waiting for a Y Point that will be here Thursday.
I like the idea of a crossing as a scene break. A great way to "end the line" without a buffer.
mmm...got me thinking.
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As long as there is a cooling bevvy nearby "she'll be right" :-)
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I wish when I went to Bodge something it turned out this good.
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So while I wait for the new points and track to arrive, I decided to start on the quay portion of my harbour.
Will's embossed plastic sheets form the main parts of the quay wall, and the joints will be hidden behind timber supports. The small step on the left will form a loading section which will be accessed by either a ladder or some rough stone stairs.
So while waiting for glue to dry I came to the realisation this hobby does have a lot of waiting and waiting, especially for glue to dry.
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Nicholas my condolences at what must be a very hard time. Your father's models and indeed his life are something to be proud of and serve as an inspiration to many of us.
My thoughts are with you and your family.
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DC or DCC doesn't make much difference on the dead/ live frog thing. If you're mostly running 4 and 6 wheel steam engines at low speeds then you'll really see the benefits of live frog. All wheel pickup bogie diesels or higher speeds and you won't see so much benefit.
So if I was building your layout I would use live frogs.
I have spent the afternoon (on this side of the world) online researching just that. It's good to have what I found ratified by someone here...ok time to put in an order, and prepare the board for new track.
But better to find out now, and not after I did the ballast. -
All the bits were acquired, the wiring was completed, the voltage and resistance was checked from one end to the other and it all looked good.
But...
(There is always a but)
The trains stall on the points. especially when running forward. Ironically they seem to work well when running in reverse.
After a forum search, checking connections, making sure the points were flat, and clean, still problems.
So the questions left are thus,
Are Peco points (electrofrog) the best way to go for a DCC setup?
I'm currently using code 100, but everything I seem to read online suggest going to code 75 adds a realism level that is worth it, as does moving away from settrack to flexitrack.
Thoughts?
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So I started on the wiring-bus, opting for lots of feeder wires to ensure the DCC gets power and therefore signal to all parts of the track.
But of course just as you start you find you're missing a few wiring pieces you need so a trek into town to purchase what you need is the order of the morning. Hopefully some trains running this afternoon before I tackle the point motors, and then to start on the scenic elements.
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Ah, then I am preaching to the choir; whalers from a small boatyard would be just the thing. They might even be transported out by rail.
That was the idea
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Let me add my welcome to the madness, and make some minor suggestions that I think will improve the operation. These are very much a matter of personal taste, and what I would do in your situation may not be right for you, but I'm gonna put my 5 penn'orth in anyway, cos that's the way we roll in our house...
You have captured the general feel of a harbourside branch in the South West very well, especially the GWR ones, and I can see elements of St Ive's, Kingswear, and Lostwithiel in it.
I think you will regret the loco shed, and find it will be far more useful as a goods siding. It might be located in the bay platform instead. I would have extended the quay to the left, or maybe had another part of the harbour coming in behind the harbourmsster's office, so that freight can be transhipped into coasters with a Kitmaster dockside crane. Many of these little places imported domestic or gas works coal by sea from South Wales, and exported local produce as return loads in the same ships.
I very much like the fish depot, which will attract fish vans and insulated/refrigerated vehicles. But you are modelling wartime, and fishing was highly restricted, not to mention very dangerous; it has likely been commandeered for military use. If you model the 1944/5 period, ports like this were very busy with military traffic in the lead up to the Normandy landings and the supply operation for the advancing Allies afterwards, indeed this activity lasted well into 1946 as the Allied presence on mainland Europe was still massive and had to be both supplied from the UK as local production was bombed flat and the long process of recovery of men and equipment.
This leaves you without a goods shed, but I wouldn't worry too much about that; it might be 'off scene' further towards the centre of town and need a trip working off the layout. You can include it on a future extension.
My advice for a wartime layout is not to overdo the blitz stuff. Anti Aircraft guns, barrage balloons, bombed out buildings, Spitfire on a string; this is a small fishing port in the West Country, not the east end of London, and the worst of the action will have likely passed it by! By all means go for a dusty, war weary, look, windows taped against blast damage, and men in uniforms on the platform, maybe even a military presence on the quayside with a working party loading a coaster or landing craft, a couple of them skiving off for a fag round the back out of sight. But go easy on the tanks, troop carries, and ambulances, the odd jeep or staff car will be enough! This has been done to death already!
Keep the photos coming; it is always interesting to see how other people go about things. Good luck, and most of all, enjoy yourself!
I'm not wedded to the idea of the engine shed, I just read somewhere that most GWR lines had one, but I could easily "leave it" for a future expansion and at the moment just pretend its of board. I do realise that fishing was both restricted and very risky during the war, and so was thinking of co-opting the fishing facility for something else (military), but still hinting at it roots. Much the same that I hope to model the boat shed as more of a shipwright making whalers for the RN, as a small hint to the war effort without making it the sole focus. So I totally hear what you say about overdoing the war. I do want to try and tread a subtle hint without making it the sole focus.
I do like the idea of a dockside crane, and a second goods shed instead of the engine shed is something I will consider.
Given that I plan to scratch build or design and 3D print most of the buildings on the layout, I am not limited to including any existing purchases.
Thanks for the 2c and the good ideas.
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Hello Anthony - welcome to RMWEB,
I see you have lost no time in getting a baseboard built and some track laid, and sketching out a basic layout design.This is a good thing because it keeps the enthusiasm for the project fresh and the mind receptive to any new ideas.
Must say I like the design produced by Phil (Harlequin of this Parish..) -He has a certain flair for this type of work!! Your plan is also well thought out, - though I think you will struggle to get two coaches inside the runround loop - which will in turn limit your passenger working to using just single coach trains, or push - pull/autotrailer stock. Maybe something to think about.?
My layout 'Sproston' is only 6 7" x 5 1" (sorry I'm just old fashioned - tend to work in feet and inches ),the baseboard being made from two flush wooden doors fixed together.
Regards
(SIGTECH)
Steve.
Hi Steve,
Well I will confess it was actually my third attempt at a baseboard, the first two being rejected for being too flimsy and then not big enough respectively. Added to which it was an excuse to go and buy a new set of tools.
I spent lots of time working on the plan, and there were lots of rejects before I got to the point that if I didn't start something I would be tweaking, deliberating and rejecting forever, which kind of defeats the purpose of letting me "play trains" and be a little creative building the terrain.
I do see what you mean about the runaround, and it's something to consider, especially in regards to how I want to envisage the area being used. At the moment I would say that passenger traffic was limited at this branch during the war and it was mainly freight. But that's more an excuse because I don't own any passenger coaches...yet.
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Jim,
The trees look great and your scratchbuilding is truly first class. So much inspiration.
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Hi Anthony
Welcome to the forum and following the lead set by John & Andy is no bad thing, they were two of the people I followed when I first joined.
I'm not sure what help I can give as I tend to model what I see, no imagination for track plans and freelance buildings whatsoever so it's the real thing or variants of for me. Enjoy your time on here as there is plenty of inspiration to be found.
Jim
Thanks Jim,
You might have no imagination for track plans, but having just spent the last hour going through your layout you have a masterful eye and skill at scratchbuilding. Truly amazing stuff.
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Looks like you have made a good start best of luck with the project.
Thanks...I feel like this has been the somewhat easy part, and that from here it will get a little harder.
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So I think I finally settled on a plan. Much like the previous one with a few changes and a smaller quay area which let me slide the whole layout forward and give me more room at the rear.
So next step was/is building the baseboard, and adding some raised sections to give some terrain variety and put in the platform section.
At this point the track is just "tacked" down and not yet fully fixed. Next job, wiring up for DCC.
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Looks good Anthony, also Check out John Flann's Hintock St Loe, and Hintock / Port Bredy Layouts.
Thanks Andy,
I have read John's entries from the start, and am a little in awe how he (and you) regularly just hack into your layouts to make changes and yet still keep them looking amazing.
Porth Merryn has been very inspiring when it comes to planning a port. So thank you.
Little Muddle
in Layout topics
Posted
513 pages read and all caught up.
Simply inspiring Kevin, from the idea of building a landscape and then fitting the rail through it, to the constant re-invention and new additions, not to mention all the amazing photos.
I just have one (overriding) question: how did you do the thatch?