CloggyDog

As an update on the 810/010 TT kits - there's a German seller who regularly lists them on a well known online auction site for under a fiver still. I have 4 which are being finished as an 810 motor (using the rather neat ALSRacing chassis, available rtr or in kit form) and 3 x 010 trailers. May get one or two more yet! I've started a thread detailing my TT scale Czech micro layout build here: Nové Město na Nedostatku

Thanks for the colour matches, guys, much appreciated. Any ideas for the blue/white livery, please? I've tried various google search queries, but to no avail. Ian - yup, I'd noticed that the 010 trailers didn't have the exhaust and that has now been removed from the 3 rooves in question. I'll look at ways of adding the missing ribs - I've done similar before in 4mm using pared-down microstrip and/or brass wire, so will have a go later.

Following some test-playing, I've flipped the viewing side to being across the tracks to the station building, rather than have the station building in the foreground to the fore. Entry still on the right side and the helpful signalling info that JBr supplied still applies (options 3 or 4). Just need to cut the slots in the 2mm EVA foam for the brass tubes (wire in tube point operation, from the front), ditto for the wiring runs (to a socket mounted in the fascia panel on the right-hand end, into which the lead from my battery controller will plug) and the track can be fixed down and ballasted, then scenicing can commence. A Laser-cut station building and goods shed are en-route from the Czech Republic. So the plan now looks like this: IMG_20190202_133049 by Alan Monk, on Flickr Etched point lever kits, derailers and a 3-aspect signal also arrived over the weekend (excellent service from www.pojezdy.eu ), IMG_20190202_120036 by Alan Monk, on Flickr Fiddly, but doable - 2 of the point lever/indicators built in about 30 mins, ready for paint (and no... I'm not having working ones! ) and I've also built the ALSRacing motorised chassis kit for my LPH injection moulded 810 railcar kit and test-run that successfully. 2 of the other 3 kits have been built as 010 trailer cars IMG_20190203_142836 by Alan Monk, on Flickr IMG_20190203_143437 by Alan Monk, on Flickr These will be finished in the modern CD red/cream scheme, once I can confirm the correct shades from any of the model paint ranges (any help here would be much appreciated) The remaining kit will also be a trailer car, but in the blue/white livery (again, any pointers for model paint range colour references would be good )

Many, many thanks for taking the time to explain the signalling options in detail, it helps hugely. The layout is, as you correctly surmised, a terminus. I will use either your option 3 or 4, and can now order the various kits and parts with a lot more confidence.

Aha! Just twigged your layout is the lovely wee one in the ukulele box, over in the boxfiles area. It pretty much inspired me to get this one of mine started, so thank you! I'm starting to think of signals and the like and sourcing models thereof - I'm guessing that such a branch terminus wouldn't have much in the way of 'proper' signalling, perhaps only point indicators?? Derailers on the 2 sidings, maybe? The diagonal blue 'end of line' indicators - would these be mounted on bufferstops, where present?

Thanks again JBr, I agree that would improve the appearance and prototypicalness, so will be making those adjustments when I come to lay the track in the coming few weeks, now that my brass tube has arrive and I've everything I need to crack on.

for 1:120, you basically have the choice of Tillig (code 80 rail) or Kühn (Code 60 rail) in ready to lay. I'm discounting the older, eastern Bloc manufacturers of yore. I've gone with Kühn (as I found their TT startset on ebay for well under half-list price, but the self-imposed restriction on board length forced me to use the short points (20o). They do now include a longer point (l/h and r/h, 10o) in the range, albeit their website has yet to catch up to the fact but they are available in the shops!. They do have curved points, but no crossings or slips at the present time. I like them; they work well and look suitably fine in appearance. The points I have are essentially electrofrog, with wiring tags built in for polarity switching and an over-sprung tiebar (like Peco). The track in the pics of the layout is all Kühn set-track components, but the loops and longest siding will use their flexi track once I get to the tracklaying stage. Tillig's is a more comprehensive range of points and crossings, with slips, scissors and tandems, etc., although they do look chunkier and I've also heard various reports of fragility and unreliability. Finally, If you have the funds, there's also the beautiful ttfiligran range of scale length (or 2/3 scale length for the space starved!) points to German or (separately) Czech practice. Available in kit or RTR form, including NG versions. Damn nice, but with a hefty price tag.

Duly noted with thanks and name corrected. Following a thread elsewhere about tracks parallel to board edges, I've experimented with skewing the whole plan slightly. No change to loop or siding lengths, and it would allow me to model the loading ramp (left hand siding) in full.

For a super-fine cut (with little wastage) I can highly recommend the JLC Razor Saw - not cheap, but well worth the expense. I've used it to cut and shut coaches and dmu bodies - I generally use a small engineers square, scalpel and masking tape to mark out my cuts and then let the saw do the work with only light downward force.

Nick, a couple of options: Ratio plastic kits - easy to build and get working, but can be fragile - we used a bunch of the LNER ones (non-working) on Shirebeck but they got battered fairly quickly. Range covers all region's variations (WR lower-quads, LNE lattice, SR rail-built, LMR upper quad) and you can build most types of arrangement (single post, multiple doll and over-track gantry). I can bring a couple of kits along to the club for you to have a look at. MSE/Wizard - etched brass components, so more involved to build, but generally more robust than the plastic Ratio signals. Again, most region/type variations covered, in fact range is more extensive than Ratio. Again, we started to replace Shirebeck's Ratio signals with MSE ones, but that stalled. I think I know where the box is, may be able to bring down the club next Monday? RTR - aside from the Dapol ones (which IIRC don't have a stellar reputation) and have a limited range, I'm not aware of others? Apart from that, you'd be looking at a couple of cottage industry bods who you could commission to make signals for you at £££ One thing to bear in mind that certain types of semaphore signal WILL firmly fix your layout as being a particular region/area, so choose wisely

Following the successful use of an Ikea Lack floating shelf as the baseboard on my OO Reading Signal Works micro inglenook, my thoughts turned to the 2nd Lack I had skulking around, combined with the small but growing collection of Czech TT stock I started following an enjoyable long weekend involving an incident-filled rail tour and plenty of good beer back in October 2017. A spot of research on station layouts via googlemaps and a couple of Czech railway modelling forums gave me some good pointers and a rough plan was drafted, based upon the Ikea LACK 110cm x 26cm shelf. DSC_0115_1 by Alan Monk, on Flickr I wanted to include 2 loops off the main, plus 2 freight sidings at least and after a bit of tweaking and refining, I've come up with a layout that ticks those boxes and is (loosely) based on Nové Město pod Smrkem, along the branch between Frýdlant v Čechách and Jindřichovice pod Smrkem (up near the Czech/Polish border), with some compression to fit the board and slanted diagonally to maximise loop length. New Czech TT layout rough by Alan Monk, on Flickr I'd picked up the Kühn TT starter track set for a song, which gave me about half the points I needed, the rest came via a good German webshop. In use, there'll be a fiddlestick off the top right end. Viewing side is the lower edge and, as with RSW, I'll retain the Lack's mounting system so I can wall-mount the bracket to store the layout out of harm's way. Next stage is to lay the 2mm eva foam sheets I use as a track base, sort the wire-in-tube channels for changing the points, fix the track down and add the 5mm ply backscene, end boards, facia and lighting support, then scenic. The station is a stand-in, and will likely be replaced with a suitable laser cut kit, plus a goods shed to the right, loading ramp for the left siding, a low platform between roads 2 and 3 and some trees screening a factory building at the left rear. DSC_0064_1 by Alan Monk, on Flickr Stock-wise, a Tillig 742 Bo-Bo, a brace of the lovely LPH plastic kit 810/010 4-wheel railcars and trailers and a dozen or so assorted opens, vans and flats, all from the excellent plastic or resin kits by the likes of SDV Model and ES-Pecky. One of the 810s is motorised using the very neat motorising kit from ALSRacing. A 749 'Grumpy' will joint in due course, either I'll motorise the resin shell I have or just bite the bullet and buy an RTR one. At the moment, I'm content to use DC/analogue, most likely using my diy battery handheld, though the lure of unsilenced Grumpy thrash may change that in the future DSC_0074_2 by Alan Monk, on Flickr The name... roughly translated it's New City on Lack

9mm or 12mm is overkill for most baseboards, more so if they are supposed to be portable! 4-6mm will be sufficient and will also be lightweight.

I'd happily take them off your hands, if they are Series 50 ones. Personally, I find the Bachrus Series 50 ones superb, as they cover gauges N to O (via TT, OO, EM, P4, S) with just the one set. Being a multi-gauge modeller, the easy gauge adjustment is an absolute boon.

There were 2 diagrams as the 3 new builds differed from the 3 ex-RF conversions (the interior was 'flipped' so the externals were also flipped to suit) There are (iirc) 3 survivors, covering both batches. The griddles do contain a couple of unique features, including the narrowest window on a Mk1. In terms of tooling, you're looking at sides, new roof and a bunch of underframe kit - the latter probably already covered with the various Buffets and Restaurants. Double the sides/roof if both diagrams are done (can't really see that happening) Someone did offer some etched overlays on here and elsewhere a few years ago, but I had no response to repeated requests I did think about drafting some overlays up to run on my Silhouette cutter, but I seem to have misplaced that particular round tuit In terms of usage, ECML certainly and the survivors were later concentrated in Scotland for internal ScR services. More gen here: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&p=531697

Have you heard of Metric, Clive?? Saw them live in that there London last evening and they were superb. I think they'd be right up your straße. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVn2UM8-sKI

I use Waterloo - Reading (or vice versa) once or twice each week, always during the peak and FC is almost always empty or used by folk chancing it on a std piece (or no piece at all...) Very, very rarely does the guard come through and check tickets. On the very odd occasion I've travelled FC (legitimately), I found the FC seats on the 458s to be no better/worse than the std seats.

Point control - I use wire in tube, set into my foam underlay later, terminating in a modified section of 'chocblock' to act as the toggle, as SB said, works best with self-latching pointwork like Peco. Couplings - quite subjective and much depends on scale and whether you're bothered about the 'hand of god' reaching in or not. Personally, I use Kadees on my current OO/H0 'nook, screw/3-link on the EM and O gauge ones. You may need to play around with various options to see which one suits YOU best.

Cawood PFA container flats https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/cawoodcontainer IIRC, DC Kits did a kit in 4mm, but it's been OOP for some years now.

You can probably rescale at the printing stage?? I know I've done a couple of Scalescene's other kits to H0 by simply printing at 90-ish% size rather than full (100%)

For most RTR rolling stock, it's as simple as dropping/unclipping the OO wheelsets out and replacing with the equivalent EM wheelsets which are available from the trade (Alan Gibson, Kean-Maygib, etc). Takes less than a minute for a 4-wheel wagon. For locos, yes - most diesels are much simpler and require a few simple tools, the most critical of which is an EM Gauge Back-to-Back gauge. On many of my Bachmann diesels I simply pull the wheels out to suit the new gauge, making sure the pull is equal on both sides and the b2b is a snug fit between the backs of the wheels. I think Dapol and Heljan can be done in similar fashion. It's also possible to do similar to some Hornby diesels (the high-end 31, 50, 56) by drifting each wheel slightly along it's stub axle. An alternative approach is to replace the RTR wheelsets with Keen-Maygib steel 14mm coach wheelsets, salvaging and re-using the gear and bearings from the RTR wheelsets. And there's also the Ultrascale conversion sets (and similar sold via EMGS stores), though the cost is higher and the wait time (for Ultrascales at least) is much longer. Steam locos, notably those with outside valve gear are more complex, a quartering tool is needed, but used with care, simpler inside-valve gear conversions are straightforward.

http://www.emgs.org/society-announces-ready-to-lay-em-gauge-track/ 18.2mm gauge plain bullhead track due Dec 18, B6 lh/rh turnouts, with parallel sleepering on the straight road, due spring 2019, available through EMGS stores (including at expoEM events)

I've seen a couple of motorisations mentioned on the British H0 Scale society's egroup, with most using the Hornby (ex-Lima) Class 67 chassis, suitably modified. The bogie wheelbase matches the 81 in H0 and the bogie centres can be fairly easily adjusted to suit.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/59942-locomotive-exam-lists/ Usally the frequency was based on hours worked, so an A Exam after c50 hours worked and was a basic check that everything worked and levels checked and topped up as required. Every 5th A exam became a B Exam and so on.

Iain Hunter's roundy-roundy Australian H0 layout Broadford (like his earlier EM layout Maiden Lane) is based around 3 hollow trolleys of around 4' length x 2' width x 4' high. The top surface comprises a scenic board (1 off) and the outer fiddle traversers (2 off) with the other scenic boards, middle fiddle board, stock shelf, lighting gantry, set-up/break down kit, etc all packed and secured within each trolley on internediate shelves or supports. A simple ply box protects the top scenic boards. 4 large castors underneath each allow the trolleys to be wheeled around and loaded (via a simple ramp*) into a Luton-sized van. The many, many stock boxes sit on a simple low trolley, strapped into place. Arriving at a show, the 3 trolleys are roughly positioned, then the joining scenic, fiddle and curved end boards are attached and connected up. Overall layout size is around 24' x 8' Set-up is around 2 hours (including stock and testing), break-down around 90 minutes or just under. *The trolleys are just liftable by 2 blokes - before the ramp was made, they were lifted in and out of the van.

Darlington turned out a final batch of 08s (D3454-72, later 08 369-87) with the external long-strap hinges after Crewe and Derby had standardised on the pressed door/short strap type. See the Dapol 08 thread: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/102801-Dapol-08/?view=findpost&p=2432705