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I learnt russian 30 years ago to a passable level, but I am now a bit rusty. As in many languages, there is not always a direct equivalent to the various sounds. The "e" letter in russian is pronounced "yeah". When it has two dots over it, this becomes "yor". Note that in russian it is not called an umlaut. The Russians call it "two dots". The "B" letter is always pronounced as English "v". One of the beauties with russian is that the pronunciation is constant, the given sounds never change unless modified by diacriticals or the hard/soft signs. Unlike English where the pronunciation of the various letters changes depending on where it is in the word or just on whim. Although English grammar rules are very simple (we don't, for example, make our adjectives agree with nouns) compared to russian which is full of complex grammar rules ( numbers, for example, are a pig in russian and have to agree with gender and number), once you have remembered them, it is pretty straightforward. Ian

These do look like excellent models. I have just seen the price...£170 for two coaches. Really? Are we becoming immune to hyper inflation in the RM world?

Many thanks, that makes sense. We are running tonight and my lad is moaning about the controller so I better take it apart and fix tomorrow. Thanks again Ian

Ok. So the good controller measures 13.2 v between your points A and B when the controller is set to max. The faulty one gives 8.6v across the same A and B. The input voltage to both is 15.5v. Ian

That makes sense. I have just found my Roger Amos book and he specified 2N3055. I think I must have seen the circuit elsewhere where TIP 147 was specified. In Rogers book he goes on to specify a better circuit where he links BC327 into MJE2955. I guess thst the TIP147 is an equivalent of Roger's BC327/MJE2955 pair? Ian

Hi Bob, yes it's a tried and tested very simple circuit. It works well and I get nice smooth control with them. I made one years ago using 2N3055 power transistor that was also good. This time the circuit I saw suggested TIP147. I think it was in Roger Amos book, but I can't find it now. There are far more complex circuits around but I really like this one. Ian

I'll get out to the shed and measure today. I was away yesterday. Thank you for you help. Ian

You are mixing up the controllers that are operating properly and the faulty one. All controllers are receiving 14.8v AC input. The ones that are operating ok are outputting 11.8v at maximum setting. So losing 3v in the circuit. The one that is faulty is outputting 7v at maximum. So losing almost 8v in the circuit. Ian

Yes. I have 5 of these controllers. In normal operating the maximum output is 11.8v. one of them has developed a fault and is now only outputting around 7v at maximum. Hence my post, asking why this should be. Ian

I have read elsewhere that this design relies on the pulsed nature of the supply. There is no capacitor on any of the original designs and it's worked very well indeed with nice smooth control for two years. Ian C

I think I have the same problem! I'll try scalelink

Thank you. Although designed for a 16v AC input, the transformer only gives 14.8v. The maximum output is 11.8v so I am getting a 3v drop through the circuit. Ian

I have the MSE whitemetal leverl crossing kit. The kit supplies a nylon mesh to represent the wire mesh of the real thing. I have tried various ways to fixing this mesh to the whitemetal without success. Glue is not good as it is thick, just looks lumpy and awful. I did try using paint, but without success. Varnish was just too runny. Part of the problem is that the nylon mesh is so very flexible, so holding it while any glue dries is tricky. And, of course, the gates are not flat, being blessed with hinges, bolts and strapping. My latest idea is to try spraymount adhesive or perhaps epoxy carefully applied thinly with a cocktail stick. Anyone got any other ideas? Ian

Hi all, I have five identical controllers that are home made using a fairly simple circuit. See attached below. All five have been working very well for more than 2 years and I am very happy with them. However, one controller had started to play up. At maximum output, it is now only supplying around 7v to the track. Previously it has been supplying 11.8v at maximum output, which is what the other four controllers are doing. I have checked for obvious things such as broken wires and cannot see any - though inspecting it closely is tricky as the gubbins is behind a heatsink. The input voltage is steady at 14.8v AC - the same as the other controllers. There are so few components to go wrong so my assumption is that one of the transistors is failing - though why it should so so is a mystery to me. TIP147 is the output power transistor and this sits on a large heatsink. Does anyone have any ideas on what might be going on here? My current solution would be to build a new controller, but I would rather understand what is happening first. Many thanks Ian

Yes correct. Strictly, all contours must be surveyed. The ones that are interpolated are called "form lines". I spent many years surveying contours from aerial photographs. Using a stereoscopic device, I chased a dot along the ground to draw in contours. Actually it was very enjoyable, and my contours still exist on published maps.

Leave well alone on the stock that runs ok! For the ones that derail then b2b might be the issue... Are those ones different to the ones that run ok? If so, then adjust. If not, then it's something else....

Try this https://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=2771 It's a custom print so you can have any number you want. The cabside plates are 3d printed and very effective.

Don't fiddle about with microswitches. It's not the easiest job to get them working. Far better to use 12v miniature relays. They are really cheap and work very well. I use a double pole switch and use one pair to switch the servo and the other pair to switch the relay. There are some pics on my thread or I can post more of required. Ian

I don't think you need to. My thought was copper tape. Lay two strips so that the engine flanges run down the middle of each strip. Then lay a thin piece of wood or plastic approx 14mm wide. The wood fits between the wheels to guide the train and the copper strip provides continuity.

The only way to go is servos. Nice gentle movement. And no need to buy tortoise etc, just use ordinary 9g servos coupled to a MERG or megapoints controller. Use miniature relays for polarity switching. It's dead easy and very reliable. There is a bit more info on my layout thread or loads of YouTube videos about using servos. Ian C

https://www.hattons.co.uk/341866/railmatch_paints_rm451_faded_br_rail_blue_15ml_bottle/stockdetail

Railmatch do a shade they call faded blue

More common than you might think. The southern also like to place frames at the back of the box. Makes ssnse really, it gives you a much better view of the track and trains. Unless yiou are the signalman at Corfe Castle.

my baseboards are about 1150mm high and i have a modelling desk that is underneath that. I have lighting under the baseboard so that I can see. Seems to work OK. I guess it depends on how tall your child might be! I have made little hop-ups to elevate the shorter viewers and operators.

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