MisterT

Hi David - Is it this coming Thursday, 20th July? What time does it start? And is there an entrance charge? I just looked at the Bourne End Community Centre "What's On" and I couldn't see it listed there? Thanks, Ed

Hi David, Weird ... I was only thinking about this again the other day, and thinking that I should pop over to Bourne End sometime soon to take some measurements. So yes - I would indeed be very interested to see the original contract drawings for Wheatley! Where on earth did you find something like this? I spent a couple of hours yesterday searching online for GWR station drawings, and I couldn't finr anything relevant. So yes - please do send a copy over. I think you've probably still got my email addresss? Let me know if not. Thanks! Ed 🙂

Thanks Andy, Sorry, I didn't notice that. Ed

Hi All, I was browsing the the Shops page on the 2mm website earlier, and my interest was piqued by the following new product description: "3-125 - Crankpin: Flanged: 0.5mm dia: 0.75mm Base for Mk6 and later Wheels: Turned Brass. These are designed for use with the forthcoming Mk6 driving wheels and are not suitable for use with Mk5 or earlier wheels." Maybe I have missed or overlooked a recent announcement, but what are/will be the Mk6 driving wheels? Thanks, Ed

Hi Don - thanks for your reply 🙂 As you can probably guess, I am a complete novice at track building (and 2mm), hence why the advent of Wayne's kits is so appealing to someone like me. I hope to be able to use Wayne's kits for as many turnouts as possible on my planned layout ... mostly laid "asis" but maybe also adapting a few. Thanks again for your thoughts, Ed

Hi Martin - Thanks for your quick reply! 🙂 I hadn't thought about the need for special chairs and fixings around the centre part of the turnout, so what you say about equalized timbers in that part of the slip makes complete sense - thanks! And as you say, whatever I do about other timbers in the slip, or adjacent turnouts, will obviously require some degree of kit-bashing, or hand-building. Thanks again, Ed 🙂

Wayne - Thank you so much for all this development that you are doing! The turnout kits look really great, and I am eagerly looking forward to more sizes becoming available in 2mm fs 9.42mm gauge! 🙂 Martin - Thank you very much for your example of how a single slip would work on an up/down line. This is exactly the situation on the prototype that I am starting to model (Wheatley on the Princes Risborough to Oxford line) so it is really helpful to me to have a clear explanation of the order in which the point blades would be set. 🙂 However, could I please ask you (and maybe others?) about the alignment of the sleepers in such a situation? Looking at the photos that I can find of Wheatley station, it appears that the sleeper arrangement is probably as in my first diagram, with all sleepers laid perpendicular to the running lines. However, looking at all commercially available single slip turnouts/kits, the sleepers always seem to be arranged perpendicular to the the centre line of the slip (not sure if I have described that very well?) as highlighted in red in my second diagram. Do you know what the normal prototype practice would be? Or does it vary between regions/locations? Thanks, Ed

Can I also echo the comments of others ... as a complete newbie to 2mm it was great to have the chance to see so many of these wonderful layouts in one place, and it was especially nice to be able to get very close up to them without barriers in the way. I thought the range of layouts was excellent - not only the bigger and more established and well known layouts, but also lots of interesting and different ideas on the challenge layouts. A big thank you to everyone involved in organising the weekend, especially all those who travelled and set up the layouts on a very hot Friday! Thanks again to all involved for a very well managed and inspirational weekend! Ed

Hi all - thanks for the feedback. It sounds pretty much like "anything will be OK" ... I have a couple of those retailers quite near me, so I'll see what I can pick up. Thanks again, Ed

Hi All, I'm very new to all of this ... I'm trying to buy a self healing cutting mat, and I'm a bit overwhelmed/confused with all the choice out there ... whether mats do actually heal or not, and some mats say you can only use a rotary blade on them ... can anyone recommend a brand/supplier of mat that does actually self-heal (to some degree) and remain relatively smooth? This is mainly for using a modelling knife to cut paper/thin card. And I will probably get an A3 mat. Thanks, Ed

Hi Richard, Thanks for your reply, that makes things clearer. I've just created an account, and downloaded design space, and had a quick play. It looks like you can import different file types (including svg or dxf) so I'll have to give that a go and see how well that works. I'm thinking of buying a machine this autumn, I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks again for your help, Ed

Hi Richard, Thanks for replying about the Cricut questions; what you've said all sounds pretty positive and encouraging. Can I please ask you another couple of things? - What is the smallest diameter circle you have managed to successfully cut in paper or thin card? (I'm thinking about how to cut a few "layers" and then align them using (small) drills or rods through alignment holes.) Also, how have you got on with the software - Cricut Design Space? Do you just design your buildings, windows etc. in some other software, and then import into Design Space? And I'm a bit confused about some of the things I've read: - Is the Design Space installed on your own PC, or is it on the web? - Do you have to pay anything to upload and cut your own images, or is it all free? I've read something about being restricted to 20 uploads per month unless you subscribe to Cricut Access? - It looks like you have to log into Design Space with a userid and password? Which means that it may not be possible to buy a Cricut maker second-hand? I may have to buy a new one so that I can register a userid? Thanks again for your help, Ed

Hi Richard, Great looking layout I am especially impressed by your use of the Cricut Maker ... could I ask you a few questions? - What thickness card do you use for your building shells? - Which blade are you using to cut the main card shells for your buildings out of thick card - would it be the "Deep Point Blade" or the "Knife Blade"? - What is the actual width of the cuts made by these blades? - And how closely can you space the cuts? I'm working in 2mm scale, and I plan on making a lot of buildings, and I'm weighing up whether to buy one of these machines. I'm guessing it should be fine for cutting the basic building card shells and window/door openings. But I'm not sure whether it would be possible to cut window frames/glazing bars in 2mm scale? (Probably I may need to get windows etched.) I'd be interested in any thoughts you have based on your experience of using the machine. Thanks, Ed

Thanks for the feedback, Dave. I've just measured the roof pitch on my station building mock-up and actually it's almost exactly 40%, maybe just a shade over; so, a happy coincidence that you reckon it should be around 40%. Based on your comments about the window spacing I've taken another look, and I think you're right, I do need to bring the windows a bit closer together; and also widen the entrance to the indoor area; I think a bit like the picture I've attached. Anyway, yes, I'll PM you to get the drawings of Bourne End - that's very kind of you. And yes, I do have the Lingard book, so I'll take a closer look at that drawing of Princes Risborough to get better aligned with that. Thanks again for your help with this, Ed

Thanks @David Bigcheeseplantfor the photos and additional info I think all of the Wheatley-specific photos are now available on the Wheatley Archives, so thanks very much for sharing those with us. (I am not directly involved in the archives, but I talk occasionally to the person that maintains the entries on the website.) I am planning to model Wheatley as it was in the 1950s, so with the extra third window on the front and the increased gable projection on the rear. When all these lockdowns are finally over I will pop over to Bledlow or Bourne End to see if I can take some measurements of door/window sizes, etc. In the meantime I have knocked up some rough-and-ready paper/card mockups of the station buildings to give me an idea of how the layout will look, until I get around to building the proper versions. I hope I've captured the overall look, although I'm not sure I've got the correct door arrangement on the signal box? But please don't zoom in too closely! Thanks again for all your help, Ed

Hi all, sorry, just noticed that there have been a few more replies since I last looked here ... @MartinYes, those new photos came, I believe, from @David Bigcheeseplant... I think that the person who digitises the Wheatley Archives knew somebody who knew somebody who knew David's mother, and was then able to get hold of these additional photos! As you say, great to get a view of the "other" side of the main station building. @David BigcheeseplantHave you got any more photos or information that we haven't yet seen? It would be great if there is anything more that you would be able to share with us @Old RoaderHello! Surprisingly there don't seem to be any photos of the railway on FrancisFrith. But I'm sure you're already aware that there are lots of photos on the Wheatley Archives website, and lots of interesting stuff in the Lingard and Potts books. Yes, of course, happy to share any notes ... I'm still in the very early stages of planning, and working out how I'm going to do things, so nothing much to show yet, but I'll PM you. Thanks again all for the feedback, Ed

Hi All, I am coming back to the Dapol 57xx Pannier conversion, and I have a couple of questions about quartering and gearing. Apologies in advance if these questions have already been covered elsewhere and I haven't looked in the right place. Quartering I have invested in the Association Quartering Tool, and I was planning to use this to quarter the wheels, with a tight "interference" fit in the muffs. However, seeing as all three sets of wheels are on geared axles, if I use this approach then it seems very difficult to achieve perfect alignment over all three wheelsets. It almost seems like I would need to create some kind of jig to hold all three wheelsets in alignment. Has anyone else who has done this conversion used the Quartering Tool, and a tight "interference" fit in the muffs, and if so, how did you overcome this difficulty? Gearing Obviously one possible way to address the difficulty in quartering is to remove the gearing on the two outside axles, so that only the centre axle is geared. I have tested the loco with the original N-gauge wheels and coupling rods and only the centre axle geared, and it seems to run quite happily. And of course, this is the approach that I have seen used in most 2mm scale loco builds. So, I suppose my question is: is it a viable approach to only have the centre axle geared? am I losing anything by removing the gearing on the two outside axles? Any advice would be appreciated, Thanks, Ed

Hi All, Sorry, while browsing the forums the other day I have only just realised that there have been several more replies that I have missed! So, really sorry for not replying before now ... Martin - I'm not sure if I've seen those first two books that you mention, I'll have to try and track them down. But I have indeed seen "A Little Book About Wheatley Station" by Robert Avery; it's a lovely little book, written in a nice chatty style, but also including a lot of useful information. I would indeed be interested to look at the article about Horspath Halt; I'll PM you later. Ian - Thanks for the feedback on maps and photos; I had already imported the map into Templot and used it to get a feel of the overall dimensions and turnout sizes; even in 2mm scale the overall station is about 9 feet long! I have also been referring a lot to the "Britain from Above" photo; it's fascinating to see what the village looked like about 70 years ago! At the moment the (very optimistic) plan is to model the whole length of the station, and a very compressed form of some of the more interesting buildings down to and around the High Street; potentially quite a lot of buildings, so of course this will keep me very busy for many years to come!!! David - I looked at your Flickr album; I think all of these photos are probably of Thame, but they're great to look through, so thank you for that. I would guess that the school that you're referring to is Wheatley Park secondary school? Fascinating to hear your recollections of spending time with Robert Avery, and also that Richard Lingard was in the same year as you. I've seen some notes about Longside, and the fact that there used to be quite a lot of railway memorabilia up there, that must have been really interesting. And lowering the signal ... excellent! You're right ... it is quite a steep walk up Ladder Hill ... I hope I will be able to give a reasonable impression of that in model form, even though I will of course have to compress things quite a bit. Thanks again all of you for your help, and sorry again for not replying before now, Ed

Thanks all for the feedback about the 57xx pannier conversion. I got a few different responses, via here and also talking to others: glueing, soldering, do nothing. I think I may start by doing nothing - i.e. just leaving the bearings as a loose fit and see how that works out. If that gives problems then I can take it apart again and try again with glueing or soldering. Anyway, it will probably be a while yet before I can press on ... I am waiting for 9.5mm wheels to come back in stock, and also I need it to get a bit warmer out in the shed! Thanks again for all the input, Ed

Hi Chris, Thanks for your reply. However, are you sure about glueing in the bearings? Isn't the current pickup via the bearings? Surely the glue won't help? Sorry in advance if I'm missing something. Ed

Hi All, For my first 2mm loco conversion I've started working on the Dapol 57xx conversion, as detailed by Pete King in the Feb/Mar 2016 Magazine. However, whereas that article described pressing normal drive bushes (3-112) into the original Dapol bearings, I am using the Dapol Pannier Conversion Bearings (3-225), which presumably are intended for this job and were introduced after that article was written. I actually have 2 issues/questions: 1) I'm finding that the Conversion Bearings are a bit of a loose fit; they measure about 3.8mm, whereas the original Dapol bearings measure about 3.82mm. It's a tiny difference, but it means that some of the Conversion Bearings actually fall out the side of the chassis while I am handling it. (I haven't yet fitted any muffs, gears, wheels, etc. - I'm just having an initial look to see how the parts fit.) Do you think I maybe need to knurl the outside of the bearing, or the inside of the chassis, so that the bearings are a tighter fit in the chassis? Or won't it matter? 2) When I insert one of the gear muffs (3-102b) into the Conversion Bearing inner recesses, and measure across the outer faces of the bearings, I get about 8.22mm. In the article, it says that the distance across the bearing outer faces should be a maximum of 7.75mm to allow for a bit of side play. So it sounds like I need to shorten the muffs by about 0.47mm (from 6mm to 5.53mm). Does that sound right? Or do I need to shorten the muff a little more, so that the muff has a bit of side play within the bearings? Hope someone can advise, Thanks, Ed

Hi All - Thanks for all the very quick replies, and the offers of help, and the overall welcome. I will look into all the things that you have mentioned regarding soldering. And that series of "Nick" videos does look very interesting - I shall have to settle down and watch those some time! And for sure, when I get my joiner's pack, I will see who is near me and might be able to offer some practical help. I see a few varying responses and suggestions about the locos, and to be honest it's left me a little confused about the best approach. However, it will be a very long time before I am ready to tackle any kind of work on a loco, so I guess I can think about this again in due course, see how my skills are progressing, and what I think I am happy to try tackling. Nigel - when you said "the current small Farish locos which will take the replacement hornblocks and wheelsets" which locos did you have in mind? Thanks again for all the replies, Ed

Hi All, I am returning to the hobby after about 40 years, and I am planning a new layout. I have a few old N-gauge bits and pieces, but I would really like to have a go at 2mm finescale. However, one major stumbling block: I have never soldered before! So I am at the beginning of a very steep learning curve! I have just applied to join the 2mm SA, and I will of course spend more time buying and reading the various publications. However, in the meantime, could I please ask a few questions: 1) Obviously I am going to have to buy a soldering iron and associated bits and pieces, and get in lots of practice; from what I've read, it looks like the starting points will be to try soldering some simple pointwork, and a few wagon chassis. I know this first question is not really 2mm specific, but what type of soldering iron/solder/flux/paste/cream etc. would you recommend for a beginner in 2mm soldering activities? Or could you recommend somewhere good that I could read up on all this? 2) At some point I will want to run GWR steam locos. At the moment I have a 40+ year-old Farish 61xx and a Dapol 14xx. I think I know the answer to this next question, but can I please double-check: is the only option with these locos to wait until I have built up the skill/confidence to attempt to construct an association etched chassis? As far as I can tell, it is not possible to "reprofile" or "drop in" wheels on these locos. Is that correct? 3) Am I right in thinking that an N-gauge loco will run OK on plain Easitrac? I think so; so this would at least give me the chance to start to see some trains moving on a stretch of plain track, before I reach the point where I can convert the locos. Finally, I would just like to say that I am full of admiration for all the 2mm modelling that you guys are doing, and also really grateful for all the 2mm products/services that you are now offering through the association - it is really inspiring! Thanks all, Ed

Hi Dave, Thanks for sharing these further details about the sign. It will be nice to make the sign the correct scale size, and it should help with trying to get the buildings the correct scale size. Thanks again, Ed

Hi Dave, Thanks for replying to my question about Wheatley. I followed your signature link to this thread - Wylde - which you seem to be basing on Thame. I can see that the Wheatley and Thame signal boxes look very similar (in fact, almost identical). Did you ever come across any drawings of the various Thame buildings? Also, how is Wylde progressing? Ed