BetweenTheTunnels

Michael, Thats great thank you. I was hoping somebody would say that - as although I know colour lights were around in the steam days, Im not a fan on steam era layouts - at least with semaphores you can see them when they facing away from you! Problem for me is that the period i want to model, is just 23 odd years before i was born! Do you have a web address for PW Owen's website? DAS, Wonderful, I had no idea such a Society (or website) existed. Im going to have a trawl! Jeremy, Wonderful! I hadnt thought about that film - although I've heard reference to it many times in relation to the superb Copenhagen Fields layout Thanks again guys. Richie.

Evening all, A quick question if I may - im looking in the fullness of time to build a layout representing a little of the London end of the ECML in the mid-1950s. I have little knowledge of trackwork, but am learning slowly. Can anyone say whether the main lines and goods lines would have been flat bottomed rail or bullhead at that time. Im assuming the latter, but it is just a guess. Given the length of time that rail would last in sidings and platforms and turntables etc, Im assuming those would all be bullhead, but any advice would be welcomed. Also can anyone tell me when the semaphores vanished between Kings Cross and Hatfield please? I think Kings Cross was resignalled to colour light in the 1930s, but im not sure how far out of the 'Cross' that went? Cheers Richie

Hi Nick, Thanks, yes I was aware of 3SMR and the etched chassis (although I hadnt thought of getting one or two for the rods!). My whole ethos behind scratching building the J50 is to prove i can do it. There are other locos I want to build and run, for which there isnt any kits or parts available, and they are more complicated than an 0-6-0T! My reckoning being if I can scratch build this and get it to look right and run well, then i should be able to build on that knowledge going forward. Famous last words and all that, but hey we've all got to start somewhere!

Hi Chaps, Thanks for all the responses, and the various thoughts. Apologies I thought it was in my signature, but it doesnt seem to be showing. Im scratch-building this in 3mm scale, so I think the Gibson rods and Wizard Models options will be overscale. I think I might go with the suggestion made by @Izzy to start with and make a fixed coupling rod, and see what the movement and options are. I did consider that but, having not done this before, I felt it might be a case of ruling out any benefit of CSB on the wheels. If that doesnt give the end result, I think my next step will be to go for a pivotted rod on the middle axle crankpin. I can make the rods look as though there is a joint just before even if there isnt in reality. The gearbox im looking to use will be the HLK one thats designed for 3mm - ive forgotten the name of it now, but doing the sums I think it should fit ok. I was debaiting whether to have the gearbox drive to an intermediate gear, then separate gears on the middle and rear driving axles - a bit like the old ringfield assembly, but I concluded it was likely a lot of a hassle for very little (if any) gain. Unless anyone can see any benefit Im missing? Thanks to everyone for their thoughts/feedback so far Richie

Evening all, I am scratch-building a Gresley J50 0-6-0T .. my thoughts are turning to making the coupling rods, but as im using High Level Kits CSB to give some springing to the wheels, there is a need for the coupling rod to flex slightly (I think). I am therefore assuming that like the original, the coupling rod needs to be made from two separate pieces so that they can have that +/- 0.5mm deflection if needed. My query is how do people do this, and specifically how to join the two? I had thought of a nut behind the rear piece with a very small BA screw through to give a slight pivot point, but the nut will stop the wheel turning. Any thoughts or advice would be welcome please - I have had a search through rmWeb, and although there are plenty of topics that include talk of coupling rods, none that I have looked at so far seem to answer my query. Richie

Hi Rich, Thanks for that explanation. I must say it provides a very neat job. Not sure (I know they wont!) the finances will stretch that far that the moment but certainly something to keep in mind, its all about having the right tools for the job isnt it. I know you can do anything with anything, but having the right bits and pieces at the right time makes it so much easier and consequentally more enjoyable, as it generally just works. Richie

Hi Rich, Hmm must admit that result looks very clean and good. I've heard of RSUs but never really understood what they do, how they do it or why its different. I think its something to do with electric current being passed through the brass .. and London Road Models seem to have one of the most recommended RSUs i think. I'll have to do some reading and try to understand the process a bit more. By solder paste, do i assume you just put solder paste on both items and then lay one on top of the other? Richie

As an indication of my dedication to make the journey work in 3mm, thanks to fellow 3mm modellers raiding their 'must do, will do, might do, wont ever do' kit stashes, I do now have a J6, J39, N2, V2 and A3 kit to complete. Unfortunately, the 3mm Society are intending to discontinue their LNER etched brass kits, with most modellers preferring 3D printed bodies, so have also arranged to acquire a B1 and B16 kit! That lots should give me practice and keep my out of mischief for a bit! In addition to needing further wagons and coaches! Still think my first loco to be built, will be a 3SMR J50 white metal body kit on a bespoke chassis, if only for practice. Richie

Well an hour or so working on the Gresley etches last night ended up being a total waste of time! My own fault really, getting to grips with the new soldering iron (See my journey in 3mm thread) and trying to solder the door vents onto the main bodyside etch. I ended up with too much solder on, then the vents wouldnt laminate with the main etch. I concluded that lack of heat with was the problem, despite the new iron being an Antex 50W and set to 450 degrees - I think the default bit that came with the iron is only a 2.3mm bit, and am still waiting on a 6mm bit, the largest Antex do, arriving in the post. I think that should help the issue, and suspect the brass is acting as a heat sink against the a glass craft board and the current bit isnt big enough to heat the brass sufficiently. Ah well, another part of the learning curve! Richie

Hi Simon, Thanks for that, its an Antex 660A soldering station with a TCS 50w iron. I did look at the all in one things, but decided a dedicated base was probably better. Richie

Quick update, time constraints with work etc have taken their toll this past fortnight, but im hoping I may get some more progress with the coach tomorrow. Ahead of this, I've treated myself to a new temperature-controlled Antex 50w soldering iron. My previous one was a hand down from my dad, the bit was all over the place and I was struggling to find a make to get a replacement bit. So hopefully the new one will see me for years to come. But a question to you kit-builders ... is there anything that you have to do with a new 'bit' before you use it, or is it just a dive in, pop some solder on and get on with the kit? Tomorrow' task, is soldering the droplights and vents onto the Gresley coach sides. Richie

Thanks for that. I havent got in to the habbit of looking at the archive yet. I've now downloaded it, although the index PDF doesnt specifically mention ProScale, so i'll have a few evenings browsing through the last 20 odd years worth of copies to see what i can fine. Thanks for that! Ah! Thank you :) My plan was to trawl further but spent a less enjoyable evening in A&E last night! Thankfully not. However, I've had a read of that thread and its quite interesting. Im going to get hold of a back issue copy of BRM June 1995 and have a read of Tony's review, if nothing else it may provide some points to look at, but I draw some happiness thoughts from one comment that the kits that were scaled down to 3mm were quiet well thought of! Cheers Bucoops! Hello Stuart, Thanks for the headsup, thats ideal. Basically check everything before building it :) I'll see how I get on then! Cheers Richie

Thanks i've tried to find that, unfortunately a google and rmweb search only throws up this thread, so I need to dig a bit deeper to find it. Richie

Hi, Not a clue, but its one of the few options in 3mm! Im not averse to using the kit as a 'scratch aid', just thought if anyone had put these together before and could offer any 'i built xyz but watch when you abc as it needs to be done cba way etc...' advice it would be useful. Richie

Hi all, I have acquired a couple of Proscale 3mm Scale kits, an LNER V2 and LNER A3. Now starting the build of them is a couple of months away, as I'm working through some 3mm coaches first, but has anyone built any of these kits in 3mm or 4mm - I believe the 3mm scale ones were 'sized down' from the 4mm variety. One of the advert videos is the esteemed @Tony Wright showing a 4mm ProScale A4 having been built. I appreciate they are older kits, but just wondered if anyone who has built them has any tips/tricks, points to note or watch for, things to avoid etc... Im planning on putting a High Level Kits gearbox/motor in them, assuming it will fit, which I think it should do. Any help/comments would be appreciated. Richie

Thanks Mike. Id seen the entry for the paid option, but didnt click onto it any further! Doh! I was just going to pay when i did an order, but I have now downloaded the PDF - thank you! Richie

Hi Simon, Thank you for that note, I have looked over the 3mm Society website on a few occasions, but somehow managed to tally miss the 'How I' section! I'll have a read of them. I think since Wizard took over Comet the PDF download seems to have vanished, but i think a printed version of £1.50 can still be obtained, which i'll get when I place and order for a few other things. I have a plan for the Gresley teak ends, based on advice from here, if it all comes together! You never know watching me c*ck it up, i mean learn as i go, may encourage you to have a go! One of my aims with this project is to build skills and try things. To be honest Im not really expecting a master piece out of this, more a step on the learning ladder. I expect I may end up taking the coach apart a few times and trying again because its not right or im not happy with it. Thats fine, this is a building block, and to some extent if i get it wrong i can then learn from that. At the end of the day, if i have to get a new set of etches its only £11! So i concluded, jump in and see what happens - the worst is that it all goes in the bin and i start from scratch again. Richie

Delighted to say there has been further progress this week, as I have made a start on building my first etched brass coach - a Gresley full brake. As I'd asked some questions about the Gresley vehicles on a separate thread i'll document the build over on that thread, with references from here. Now placed an order with Worsley Works for a BR Mk1 coache, due in a few weeks when the etches are back in stock, and an order is about to go into the 3mm Society for 14.2mm wheelsets, some wagon kits and some rail. Nice to say things are slowly moving forwards, i've come up with a little 'dog bone' shaped test track, and got it designed in Templot. It might not be scenified, and it is something of a tail chaser, but it is primarily for testing locos, running in chassis and giving me somewhere to play run trains to start with, rather than being a proper prototypical layout - that will follow in due course! Richie

BUILD UNDERWAY This is a somewhat interesting comparison to the wagon kit. For starters its etched brass, rather than plastic, so solder rather than glue. Its also a Worlsey Works etch so more of a scratchbuilder helper than a kit, with no instructions. The Worsley Works etches, im told, follow the Comet Coaches way of building, an a friend has given me some help with some info on those, but is obviously not a book. I need to order the appropriate item from Wizard Models. However, I have managed to extract the inner ends sections that fold up and form the connection between the floor and body, and laminated these to the coach ends. To be honest I've done very little etched brass work in the past, so the soldering to me looked quite neat. Still a bit too much on the iron I think, but its all a learning curve. So we are underway! The next task will be to solder the window frames and vents on to the bodyside I think. Richie

Evening all, Well pleased to say the Humbrol Liquid Poly turned up this afternoon, so tonight has seen my first bit of 3mm scale modelling undertaken! Im sure many people have built plastic kits before, so i'll not do a 'blow-by-blow' account, except to say there are a couple of 'finishing off' items to be done - I need to acquire replacement buffers when the 3mm Society Shop is available, and some 14.2mm wheels. The roof needs painting white (I think) before being attached, and it also wants some liquid led weight inside it to weight it a bit. So... at 19.45pm I started with this ... and at 21:10 concluded with this ... Really impressed with the kit - not surprising as its made for the society by Parkside i think. Easy to go together, very nice finish and very little flash to be cleaned up on the moudlings. Each only needed very minor dressing to sit right. I also think that the level of 'easily applied' detail on the underframe is superb. This has also confirmed to me that there is a really nice size to 3mm modelling - compared with a five-plan N gauge wagon here ... the height isnt a fair comparison as the Mogo doesnt have wheels. Overall very impressed and its confirmed that I think i might finally be on the right road. Richie

Hi Ian, Thanks for the comment over on my new 3mm thread. I've just spent an enjoyable hour or so reading back through your thread. Well done on replacing some of the images after the rmWeb crash. The layout is looking really good, you should be proud of what you have achieved! Im a MERG member too - plan is CBUS and Servo drivers for points on my layout ... but im a bit away from that at the moment! However, very impressed with your handywork on the track. I've done a little bit in the past, but not much so a learning curve coming there. Now following along with interest! Richie

Thanks Ian, There is something about the 3mm Scale that just really gels with me, somewhat more than OO ever has - plus I cannot get distracted by a RTR manufacturer bring something new out! Also something to be said for the fact that everything will be handbuild - just hoping I can make a decent job of it now! Im going to build the wagon kit that the society have sent, and then my current plan is to purchase the LNER J50 body from 3SMR, and build my own chassis for 14.2mm. I think i've got it all sorted out in my head now, re frames, wheels, hornblocks, gearbox etc. The white metal body should be reasonably heavy and I think it has plenty of opportunity for adding detail such as steps, lamp brackets and handrails etc. Once that is done, i've spent £11 and bought some Worsley Works bodysides and end etches for a 3mm Gresley D43 Full Brake, which if I can make something reasonable out of it, should have given me a good grounding in building a loco, wagon and coach, so I can decide where to go next! Anyway, thanks for the interest. I've asked a couple of questions of more knowledgable people about the brake coach over in the Scratchbuilding section, if you want to take a look, but i'll keep this thread update with progress. Richie

Thanks guys, much appreciated.

Evening all, the etch arrived from Worsley Works this afternoon, very nice. One query for those who have scratchbuilt from Worlsey etches before. There appears to be a break (with tabs) between the top part of the bodyside panelling and the bottom. Im assuming this is to make creating the tumbleholme easier, but am I correct in thinking that the bottom of each side is separated from the top and then soldered back, or do they remain connected? I know it could be a personal preference of how people build things, but i'd appreciate a bit of guidance from those who have done these coaches before. Cheers Richie

Membership pack for the 3mm Society arrived today, really nice surprise to find two six-inch lengths of trackwork in it (one 12mm, one 14.2mm) and a compliementary plastic wagon kit, complete with wheels. Really good way of getting people started with building something nice and simple. 10 out of 10. So my 3mm saga is now off the running board ... a Gresley Full Brake etch from Worsley Works has also turned up, so i've now got a couple of things to build!