ikcdab

Ok I take points made about Ks kits. You are right that many good models have been mate from them. I can only speak from my own experience. As a teenager I bought the Ks kit for a 1361. I never got it to run and I still have some of the parts lying round today!

Ks kits were pretty basic, I'm sure if you were to post a few pics then the good folks on here could identify parts for you. I last made a ks kits more than 30 years ago and there is a reason why I haven't done one since! I don't think it ever ran and the kit was characterized by anonymous blobs of white metal pretending to be loco parts! It maybe good to get you back into modeling, but don't expect a museum quality product at the end.

Ian, i wouldnt want to pull the wires, but the plug comes out easily enough as it has a flange at the top which you can get a finger nail under easily enough. it doesn't click together, its just an interference fit. Ian

Hi Ian, i bought some of the DCC Concepts ground signals and these came with tiny plugs attached. They are the JST 2-pin 1mm pitch plugs. I found the related sockets on Ebay. Here is the plug (attached to the cable of the ground signal) and the socket i bought: as i mentioned before, soldering the wires to the socket was a trifle fiddly, but i used a magnifying glass and all came out much easier than expected. You can find them on Ebay with extra pins (if you need more than 2) and some come with the wire attached. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-PCS-Mini-Micro-ZH-1mm-2-6-Pin-JST-Connector-And-Wire-2-Sh-xhS-JQJ/184561447325?var=692275667535 Hope this helps. Ian C

I used JST 2-pin 1mm pitch plugs and sockets. Bought from eBay. You can get them with wires alrrsdy attached or you can solder then on. Little bit fiddly, but perfectly possible.

I think plan A looks the best. I would avoid PSE and use ply throughout as that has much less tendencny to warp.... Unless you can get some really good quality PSE. For the crossmembers and framing, you will find it more stable if you use 6mm ply and laminate three layers together, the middle layer need only be ends and the middle. If you look at my layout thread, you will see what I mean.

This really does look like a really interesting project. I will be following with interest. I think that skew bridges are completely different to square ones. The way the arches curl round is most distinctive. The different sized wing walls give it a particular look. If you can keep it skew, then I would do it.

Totally agree. Just use nuts and bolts inserted from the bottom, countersunk in.

Finally got the three-way that leads to the goods sidings completed and installed. This one I built "off-site". This meant that I could ballast it before installation. It's all wired up and working ok. Just now to connect it to the goods sidings. I thought I might weather the check rails when I ballasted. This was only moderately successful. It's looks as if I have just painted them and some has rubbed off already. I need to redo that...

All looking good. Ballasted it all yesterday, will install on layout maybe tomorrow. Will post pics when I can.

Haha John, that was me for my three-way point! Phil made up the difference very quickly. No probs at all, glad you could help out. Ian

I loaded my wagons with normal 4mm scale granite ballast fixed down with the diluted pva. Traditional method. Worked a treat and never had any discoloration issues.

I would be afraid that unless everything is fixed down securely, then it's all going to drop off when you fold it down. Do you need a continuous run? If you're happy with an end to end, then a layout along a bookshelf or similar can be very effective. Or can you slide a baseboard under a bed or settee? Something that folds in to protect the scenery would be better. Lack of space is a perennial problem, there are loads of really imaginative ideas if you look around. Having said that, your table idea is imaginative!

The steepest gradient is a function on the power of your locomotives and the weight of the rolling stock it has to pull. 25% may well work for some combinations but not others. Just go for the easiest you can A MK1 coach is 13ft (approx) high. You need to allow clearance for bridge girders and the depth of the track. Curves...a dock layout can have very tight curves. Again, it depends on the stock you wish to use.

We all know that cost isn't everything, reliability and efficiency etc are more important. But just to be clear on costs. I use Hobbyking hk15178 servos which I have found totally reliable and virtually silent: https://hobbyking.com/en_us/hobbykingtm-hk15178-analog-servo-1-4kg-0-09sec-10g.html £1.77 each. Servo mounts. I have used the megapoints ones that are £12 for 12. I have also made my own at negible cost. So allow £1 per point. Then you need a servo driver. I have used both megapoints and MERG. Megapoints do a board for 12 that cost £63 when I bought it. The MERG one is £6 for 5. Postage, wire and switches and common to all solutions so I have ignored. So for me, MERG works out at roughly £4 per point and megapoints at £8 per point. The MERG boards are self assembly kits and you need to be a member to buy them, but that gives other benefits. That's my DC costs for a totally reliable, simple and virtually silent system. DCC guys might have extra costs I am unaware of!

Thread drift....I am paranoid about switching everything off when I leave my railway barn. It's three 16v transformers and my 12v supply. I know it's irrational (we never, of course, switch the fridge off and don't expect that to burst into flames) but I couldn't rest knowing it was all on. Apart from that, there just seems no point to leaving out all on.

I think the Scalescenes tunnel can be cut to any shape you want.

I guess a lot depends on what paper and inks you used. Just try a few and see what is best....

Well yes it depends which ones you buy. I bought some cheap Chinese ones and had a 70% failure rate. On the other hand, I then bought them from Hobbyking for around £2.50 each (they have a white casing) and I have had 100% reliability. And those ones are virtually silent...

Why bother with any of those when simple servos linked to miniature relays arr quiet, inexpensive, reliable and easy to use?

well that made me go and fire up templot! Looking at my photo, the left hand vee is 1 in 10. the right hand one is 1 in 7.5 and the middle one is 1 in 6.17. I am paranoid about getting this right so will be giving it a very close examination before installation!

It's a nice kit. The wagons are general engineering dept wagons, so might have carried either. They might also have carried earth or general supplies for a worksite. However, used ballast might have been spread around where it was and was less likely to be reclaimed than we do today. I suspect that in model form, the difference between new and used ballast will be very subtle!

Ian, yes your right. I thought about this quite a lot. Without digging out the templot file, I can't check what it is, but I think its a 1 in 10 crossing. The vee matches the templot template and my wheels don't drop into the gap, so I'm ok. But I have only pushed a wagon through it so far. The real test will come when it's all powered up....

Well, after a couple of full days, we now have this.. Overall, I am pleased with it. Stock seems to run through it ok. The main problem i had was fixing the right hand short switch blade to it's tiebar. Not much room to get in with the soldering iron and then make it neat enough for the tiebar to slide under the rails. The other issue is the left hand wing rail of the central crossing. Not enough room for it to be flared so I have chamfered it. That's ok, but stock coming through in the trailing direction along the centre road might strike the end of the chamfer. I might have to shorten it a little more. Hope to get this in over the weekend.

Yes been there! My shortest switch rail is held by two full chairs. Seems ok though