ikcdab

This all sounds excellent. I read that railwsy modelling is booming and it sounds as if peco are very busy. Thats got to be good. Downside is that prices will rise if demand is high, witness the seemingly exponential increase in rolling stock prices. Ian

which area? This is a southern one: https://www.roxeymouldings.co.uk/product/1057/7b026-sr-concrete-running-in-board/ they are actually quite easy to make. Flat plasticard for the board and either old rail or plasticstruct tube for the uprights, depending on prototype. Lettering can be done on your printer or here: https://www.sankeyscenics.co.uk/7mm-o-custom-british-railways/4587820420 ian

Kitchen worktops are good, bit heavy and thick. I'd use melamine faced shelving board. Much lighter and thinner but still hard-wearing. Also a vote for the cutting mats. Wouldn't be without mine. Ian

Basically yes. All combinations were possible depending on the traffic needs.

So I've ordered them. How best to use them? Presumably the continuity strtips have to be cut to fit? And do you set them up as ++-- or as +-+-?

A bit more progress today. First bit of track laid, wired up and tested. Having pre-wired the relay panels made this all very simple. Signalbox is a temporary structure only. The viaduct is the skeleton only. Cladding to come. Ian

Brilliant, exactly the sort of thing I was after. Ordered!

Interesting, it's always good to reuse. I think this stuff varies in quality, but what I've used has been very tough and hard. The kitchen variety is usually damp resistant. With panels that size, yes I would use it to make an open framework. I normally go for girders 100mm deep, so 95mm is very close. It's just such hard stuff to use and if it's MDF, not good to screw into. I prefer ply, but given that you have this stuff, give it a go and see what happens. Ian

Steam or diesel and is there one manufacturer in particular?

So I have a DC layout, but I want to install a 12v bus circuit round the layout to feed various accessories. I see this as a main circuit with branches off as required What do you DCC guys use as junction boxes off of your bus circuits. My current choice is choc blocks but I am not happy with them as I end up having to cram two sets of wires into one side. This is what I want to replace with something better.. I need a few so don't want to pay a fortune. I just want a miniature 12v junction box. Your suggestions? Thanks

Well, jolly good luck to them. Not sure I'll see it in my lifetime!

Yes, that's true, I'm just thinking about public perceptions. Maybe I'm looking at it too much with modern H&S rules. Ian

I admire anyone who can do this in 2mm scale. Far too small for me! Well done. Now that the glue has dried, how easy is it to clean the extraneous ballast from the sleeper tops?

I'm just amazed that vehicles that were designed to carry such sensitive foodstuffs were allowed to get quite so dirty. You would have thought this was one type of vehicle to keep clean. Were all tanks discharged via the end valve, and if so how was the tank cleaned out? Flushesd from the top with water? Ian

Hi Ken that's great, looking forward to it. Whether the castle will run or not depends on the wheel profiles. Will HD profiles pass through finescale flangeways? Ian

isn't this only the vase 6with the old zinc chloride batteries? I understood that alkalines retained their Voltage right to the bitter end then gave up the ghost...

And just to add that if you Google it, you'll find lots of info on how to do it.

Well I have been working on the curved ends. I had been putting this off cos it seemed difficult to get the curve right without any kinks. I had worked out the dimensions on the plan but I didn't know whether to trust it, given it was only a drawing. Anyway I had no real other option so I went for it. Mostly the horizontals all matched up apart from one. This is the first curved section. View from other way: I need to finish this off now. Hoped to do it today but it's a two handed job and I'm here on my own this afternoon. Hope to do it tomorrow. Then I need to cut the trackbed to go on the frames. I will print out the templot plan and use it as a template to cut ply for the trackbed. Trouble is there's lots of it and many sheets to go through the printer then to stick up. @MartinWynne has given me some good advice over on the templot forum to minimise paper wastage. But for now still bashing timber frames....

Hi Ian, yes that sounds a good idea. At the moment my tools are electric saws, spirit levels, clamps, screwdrivers etc.

I'm impressed that the prices haven't gone up in more than 3 years! Ian

Haha well yes there is. The workshop is a 6m x 1.5m lean to at the back of my garage. Originally this was going to be "the" layout and I started a 6m x 450mm end to end layout. Gave me just enough space to fit in the layout down one side and the work bench down the other, though it is a bit of a squeeze. I rapidly became dissatisfied with the layout that has now been relegated to the status of test track, hence the new shed and layout. I also have the garage that I use for the larger woodworking tasks. It's great having the three separate areas, but I spend a lot of time moving between them and the tool I want is always in the other shed! Thanks for looking in. The less tidy shed with test track on left and workbench on right. Ian

Looks like an interesting project, I look forward to seeing progress. Ian

This really is the most excellent model. I have followed it for several years with a huge amount of admiration. I think that with such a first-rate model, the track should match it with prototypical chairs and keys etc. For ballast, I guess O gauge granite chips would work fine.

Accepting that if you're going a long way "under the wires", then an electric might be put on, my experience was that generally the same locomotive would have been used throughout. Crew might change though. Of course what you need is a serviceable loco with crew who have the route knowledge and who are passed for that engine.

Next is the tricky bit, building the curved baseboards each end to join it all together. I'm doing a trial run on one of them now, will report progress! Ian