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ullypug

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Blog Entries posted by ullypug

  1. ullypug
    After a couple of weeks of distractions and other modelling projects, I've managed to set up the layout in the garage where I can get 6 of the 8 boards erected at any one time.
    Today was all about making a set of supports for the panel and connecting boards together.
    Pleased to report that everything towards Wells is now working, after one or two wires had to be swapped round (caused by the change in colour code scheme I mentioned in an earlier post). There'll no doubt be a few bits of track to fettle as the pannier I was using slows down and speeds up in some places (I'm assuming tight to gauge on straight track) but I've spent a good half hour driving trains backwards and forwards with a big smile on my face (and if I'm honest doing what could be vaguely described as some kind of dad dancing round the garage but I don't think anyone saw me...)!
    So I just need to swap out the two boards on the left to allow me to get all the Axbridge boards up to test those too and it'll be done.
  2. ullypug
    Coming thick and fast now, helped by the thinning out of track as I approach the Wells end of the layout.
    This latest board has taken very little time to wire up and (whisper it quietly) that should be all of them now done. I've just one board to check as it was done some time ago and I can't remember what state it had got to. I've certainly changed the colour coding for the wiring since I wired it up! I daresay there'll be the odd plug to wire up as well but that shouldn't take too long.
    Hopefully I can find some time to put a few boards together at the weekend and start testing. I know they all work individually and I've joined a couple together at a time.
    It feels like quite a milestone when the next step doesn't start with 'wire up board x...'
    Let's see how long before I can have a train traversing from one end to the other!
    Pictures attached. The board is rectangular despite appearances.
  3. ullypug
    Nothing particularly exciting to write home about, but the next board has been wired up in fairly short order. Only logical as there were no points and as I'm getting towards the end I'm running out of things to have wire up!
    The good news is that just leaves one to go. Then I can start assembling things and testing in earnest.
    I'd discovered since I built the track that there was a vehicular access route through the down yard to the goods shed which required a couple of crossings with check rails. Needless to say I hadn't put those in so a little bit of track lifting and re-chairing was required. I also had to extend the goods shed track and the back siding to the up yard across the board joint. Other than that it was relatively plain sailing.
    I've drawn the outline of the station building to get a feel of the layout and as you can see it'll take up most of the board!
    Still, it's all starting to come together!
  4. ullypug

    Cheddar P4 - playtime

    By ullypug,

    I've put the two latest boards together and after a little bit of fettling am properly playing trains.
    It only represents a quarter of the layout but by golly is it fun! I'm really enjoying shunting wagons around. Just playing for 5 minutes puts me in a better mood. Must be something in this hobby malarkey.
    It's quite interesting how the odd wagon derails occasionally for no apparent reason then when you really, really look, you see some tiny defect that explains why. Oddly satisfying.
    I've taken a couple of short videos. Hopefully the links work


    Up yard and twin train operation.

    I'm testing with class 08s only because they're the closest things I had to hand. The photo shows a more appropriate pannier shuffling about and the building mock ups add a sense of scale. The last photo shows the much improved alignment into the down yard which I'm much happier about.
  5. ullypug

    Cheddar P4 2018 review

    By ullypug,

    First of all, happy new year to everyone! Hope you had a good festive break.
    As we start 2018 I thought I'd do a brief review of progress on Cheddar.
    I spent the year wiring the s8dding thing. Seriously, that's it. Oh and doing battle with the lever frame, which is connected to yet more wiring in the panel. And I hate wiring.
    This may be why I was so easily side tracked building an engine for Clevedon and the PDSWJR brake van and embryonic cameo layout to match, and building a few wagons, and so on...
    At that rate Cheddar's never going to be finished so I'm going to devote a bit more time and attention to it this year.
    In my last post I'd already finished the board 4, which is the board to which the panel is connected and therefore from which all the wiring looms disperse. I was feeling really rather pleased that I could plug two controllers in and run two engines simultaneously.
    The next board towards Wells is number 5 and contains the signal box, goods shed and platform ends. Thankfully it only has three turnouts to worry about.
    Now originally I started building track at the Wells end and when I got to this point realised that the alignment in the down goods yard was not to my liking, requiring a sharp curve to meet the end of the incoming line from the slip. I was pondering whether to leave it as it is but as soon as I joined the boards together again the EM modeller in me became suppressed by the P4 alter ego and I realised I was going to have to do something about it.
    With a bit of realignment, principally involving the swapping of the hand of one of the turn outs, I was able to ease the curve and ended up with a much more pleasing flow. Trackwork was adjusted on the board top by eye, rather than with Templot. In effect the two ends were fixed anyway. All seems successful. The track in question is the far left under the wagon and yes I realise the wagon is not on the track either!!
    After this achievement, I duly set up wiring the boards, using my now usual method of Palatine droppers and a shed load of wire. Happily the board has just been finished which leaves just two to do and I think they're just plain tracks with no turnouts (hooray!!).
    So, an awful lot of waffle to say: board 5 track realigned, wired and working.
  6. ullypug
    So the good news is a week on and the panel and board have been connected up and duly tested. Trains have run, generally in the directions they were intended to and generally without falling off, though there is one rail in the slip that needs glueing to the slide chairs as it's wandering a bit.
    The only real issues were frogs wired up incorrectly to the tortoises, but that was a matter of moments to swap wires around.
    I can start fettling the track and test in earnest, though I really should learn to clean everything before I expect too much. However a selection of engines have pottered around, sometimes simultaneously as I've wired for cab control on DC to start with.
    With some time off over Christmas, I should be able to get this board signed off and ready to move on to the next one. The panel obviously was the key to everything and hopefully I can now make faster progress than I did last year.
  7. ullypug
    I'm glad I started to put the year in my blog updates as progress has slowed!
    Pleased to report that the panel/frame for Cheddar has reached my 'that'll do point', for the time being at least.
    I finally managed to get the MSE lever frame into some semblance of working order. I think it is probably one of the worst things I have ever had the misfortune to make. It certainly shows it's age and the fact that the art work for the etch was hand drawn
    If I was starting down this path again, I would use the Scalefour society's kits for these as they're much, much better in comparison.
    In the end I gave up with the sprung catch block because the parts as supplied had a working clearance of about 3mm on all sides, rendering them pretty much superfluous. I put the first one on but as it didn't work and had no bearing on the operation of the switches connected to the tail of the lever, I duly stopped. I also had to drill holes closer to the pivot of the lever so the arc equated to the throw of the DPDT slide switches shown in an earlier picture, but that's obviously not the kit's fault!
    I've put all the other switches in along with the ability to change from DC to DCC at a future point in time should I ever go down that path.
    To keep my sanity, I've also been building a couple of Slater's MR 5 planks for eventual use on the PDSWJ layout which may or may not be called China House Quay. That I'm still thinking about!
    So I've attached some really interesting pictures of the panel and the rats nest of wiring under board 4. It will get tidied up, I promise. At least with the panel finished I can carry on wiring the Cheddar boards over the winter. I'm sure I said the same thing last year mind you...
  8. ullypug
    First of all, thanks to all who came and said hello at last week's WCPR anniversary show in Portishead. Numbers were in excess of 750 through the door for the day and it was busy from opening all the way through until closure. So busy in fact that I didn't get to take many photos at all! Highlight for me was meeting Howard Carey, whose father was a guard on the line. Howard has been an amazing source of information over the years and his memory (given the line closed 76 years ago) is astonishing.
    All didn't go quite to plan on the layout front. Weston worked pretty well considering the lash up of a 43 year old Marshall transformer and a proliferation of crocodile clips. Clevedon however suffered an electrical failure on one of the cab control circuits which meant we had to improvise. Turned out only to be a blown fuse but it didn't help my nerves!

    Worryingly, I also bought a rather nice 7mm wagon from Antics to go with their WCPR Terrier. That's two items of O gauge stock...

    I didn't manage to get No 5 complete in time for the show unfortunately. Pressures of work during the week meant I didn't have enough evenings at my disposal.
    Since last week however, I've managed to fit and quarter the wheels and rig the motor and gear box. All appears to be well, though I haven't wired it up yet. I haven't fitted the worm yet as I wanted to check clearances with the body before I committed myself.
    The wheels still need attention; the semi-circular holes need to be cut through and the axles filled - for some reason I have a short set of Alan Gibson axles. No matter.
    The body has been undercoated and smokebox, chassis and roof given a coat of satin black. The body has been sprayed a curious pea green and I'm just looking at Ian Rathbone's book on lining before I attempt to find the bow pen. No 5 alas has a complicated lining livery and I want to do it justice.
    Anyway here are a few pictures of where we were as of last night. I've not taken one of the final coat on the engine yet.
    The layout's out and about at Tolworth on 11/12 November and I'm hoping to have No 5 running by then.

  9. ullypug
    Didn't manage to get too much done this weekend, but the odd evening here and there has seen some progress. I'm now adding bits of pipework and body fittings to the loco.
    The smokebox has been made from tube and the saddle added, the old Finney T9 lost wax smokebox door casting ground down to fit and the chimney soldered on. I think I may need to replace that with something finer as it's not completely accurate. Depends if I think I can get away without telling anyone. Oops...
    Handrails have been soldered up and left removable for the time being; the engine was a dark green with full lining and I want that bit to be as easy as possible. The good news is the smokebox, boiler and cab all separate and are joined with a few screws. I can take a disassembled shot if anyone's vaguely interested.
    The injectors have been fabricated from bits of brass, split pins, wire and the odd handrail knob. Remember this is EM and the 3 foot rule applies. There'll also probably be a wheel jack in the way!
    That said I think there'll be a fair bit of tweaking and twiddling to get a few things properly into line. Photos are great for showing up the blemishes. I've a load of solder to scrape off by the looks of it and a bit of filler will be required.
    The nice thing about these prototypes is they were completely battered by the end, so the odd dink here and there is completely prototypical.
    Still to do: Springs, smokebox door dart/wheel, buffers, cab roof, whistles, sandboxes, pipework and the tank filler are still to do too. Chassis wise it's the brake gear, pick ups and couplings. I'm probably not going to make it am I?
    Edit. Disassembled photos vaguely attached.
  10. ullypug

    Ruston 165DE

    By ullypug,

    Decided to open the Impetus R&H 165DE kit that's been lurking in the cupboard as it's too cold to start spraying the 03 just yet.
     
    This kit is my best ever bargain, ??8 on a second hand stall at a local show including wheels. I thinks there's a couple of bits missing but nothing insurmountable.
     
    Spent yesterday evening soldering - it's nice to build an etched brass kit body again. I can't think but just about everything I've done recently has been whitemetal or plastic. After the complexities of the 03, this should prove to be a quicker project. I don't know much about the history of these locos, but I intend to have it as a works shunter for Wheal Elizabeth (which is a little over the top given its size). It'll probably be finished in ECC Blue and called Jamie.
     
    Anyway, photos attached.
  11. ullypug

    WCPR No 5 Part 2

    By ullypug,

    Managing to make a little progress with No 5 in-between getting Weston ready for the Portishead show in 3 weeks' time. Good news is the layout is now fully working, has a new temporary power supply rigged up (it shares the power box I use for all my layouts) and has had one or two running repairs.
    In the meantime, I've assembled the chassis using my Avonside jig and High Level horn blocks. As you can see it's simply compensated with a fixed rear axle. The footplate has been cut from 15 thou nickel silver and valences added from brass angle.
    The gearbox has been built, though I may yet change it for another type if it's noticeably visible through the cab sides and I've made a start on the wheels. The prototypes were sold disks, presumably to add weight. Trouble is in reality they made the engine prone to having hot boxes. I've had to remove some of the spokes from the Gibson wheels as there'll be 4 semi-circular holes through each one, then I've pressed super fine milliput filler into the spokes and then sanded flush with the wheel rims. Blutack keeps me from putting filler where I shouldn't.
    To break the monotony of doing the wheels (the first two took ages), I've also started to prepare the cab components. These are fretted from a single piece of nickel silver again, with the aid of a scrawker where I can. Results so far are shown below and I'm quite happy with how it's going. I know I could have used CAD and etched everything, but where's the fun in that?!
    I think I'll be lucky to have the engine finished by 22 October, but I like a nice deadline!

     
    edit: grammar
  12. ullypug

    Weston WCPR

    By ullypug,

    In 4 weeks time, Weston and Clevedon will again have a service provided by the Weston, Clevedon and Portishead Railway, albeit in 4mm scale (EM Gauge) at the Portishead WCPR group show.
    With the looming deadline, I've spent the day clearing a space in the garage so I could retrieve Weston from the dark recesses where it's been residing for the last 6 years since it was last out.
    After much effort ( I can see why I switched to lightweight foam baseboards ), I managed to remove the spiders, woodlice and other insects, put it up and assess the damage.
    The good news is that there's no major structural damage and that trains run from one end to the other. The bad news is none of the point motors work, which kind of suggests that there's a loose wire or a shorted connection on that circuit somewhere.
    Overall I'm not too disappointed as I was expecting to have to service the Tortoise point motors anyway as I was expecting an oxidisation of the contacts. So hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to get it sorted.
    For those of you who can't remember what the layout looks like, here are a few photos with Weston on track testing duties.

  13. ullypug

    WCPR No 5 - part 1

    By ullypug,

    Having redrawn the engine to what I think is a more accurate outline, I've set about making the chassis.
    I'm using 10 thou nickel silver for the rods laminated with three layers and 15 thou for the chassis mainframes.
    All were marked out with the vernier and cut with a scrawker into rough shapers before tidying up with files.
    The chassis frames were sweated together before I fretted out the outline and drilled holes for the brake gear hangers and compensation beam.
    The rods are hinged on the middle crank pin.
    Next step is to assemble the chassis using the jig and some old EM frame spacers I've got left over from previous kits.
    The chassis mainframes are only 11mm deep to give you a sense of scale!

  14. ullypug

    Manning Wardle No 5

    By ullypug,

    During the rather enjoyable exhibition at Expo EM Autumn this weekend, I started to think about the gap in my loco fleet, namely no 5. It was one of the engines that didn't have a name.
    This was one of the two engines the line purchased from new, the other 'Walton Park' being too heavy for the line was transferred to the East Kent Railway.
    No 5 as far as I have deduced was a Manning Wardle class L, modified with disc wheels. I'm still trying to find out whether an accurate drawing exists as the one published in the Colonel Stephens Society newsletter many moons ago has a number of errors.
    Assuming nothing will be forthcoming and armed with some decent photos and some known critical dimensions, I've sketched up a first draft of a working drawing. It's going to have to be a scratchbuilt job of course but I have wheels, motor and the gearbox so I should be able to start cutting metal soon. It's not terribly big, scaling out at 90mm and it sure is an ugly spud, but it had a certain charm!
    Also attached are a couple of photos from the weekend exhibition.

  15. ullypug
    Work on Cheddar is so slow at the moment. I seem to be doing quite a lot but for minimal signs of meaningful progress.
    With the wiring on board 4 finished, I've started on the control panel that will be attached to the back of the layout at this point.
    I'm using 2 lever frame kits from MSE; one is of considerably older vintage than the other. I really liked having levers on Wheal Elizabeth, though that was only 5. Cheddar will have 25.
    I'm wiring the turnouts and signals to be independently operated from the track power, be it DCC or DC.
    So far I've made up the frame kits which were a bit of a struggle but once painted they don't look too bad.

    The levers will be linked to DPDT slide switches to change the polarity on tortoises for the turnouts/signals and I'm presently wading through the delights of wiring them up.
    Eventually the frame will sit in a box with just the top of the frame visible and the section/uncoupler switches located alongside.

    In between all of this I've been playing with the odd wagon to break things up a bit. The mink D & mink G were acquired part built in OO so have had springing and under frame detail added. The BR Fruit diagram 1/230 is a straight Parkside kit with springing.


  16. ullypug
    Health warning : it's not that interesting
    Glad I put the year in the blog updates...
    So, I have at least started the wiring of board 4. I do this with the board on end so I can see what I'm doing and more importantly, have access to the CD player to take away the monotony.
    Palatine droppers are soldered to the rail and tails soldered through. Most of the TOU's are in place and I can start wiring it all up. The single slip and double rail catch point makes the wiring logic interesting.
    There's going to be a 28 lever frame attached to the rear of the board here. Other than that, it's onwards at a dead slow pace.
    Told you. You should have watched Poldark instead!
  17. ullypug
    OK, so things haven't progressed as far or as fast as I'd hoped. I blame the distractions of the Collett Goods and one or two other diversions.
    Still, a rare day off today after a weekend up North has allowed me a little time at the work bench.
    4 months on from the last blog post and all that's happened on Cheddar is another board now has power.
    It does have 4 point motors and now includes the catch point I forgot to install the first time round protecting the up line from the stone sidings at Cheddar West. It also has the Axbridge end crossover.
    A couple of videos have been embedded below.
    I couldn't find a prairie under the debris that is the modelling room so a blue Hymek deputised on this occasion.
    The next board has the single slip and in theory marks the half way point of the layout wiring.
    It may not be all that thrilling but it is mildly satisfying!
     


  18. ullypug

    Cheddar- Five Ways Bridge

    By ullypug,

    With the second board now wired and working, I've been building Five Ways bridge this week.
    I'm now sold on the 'Green World Stuff' embossed ABS sheet for the correct stone type and I've been trying to faithfully recreate the prototype bridge, which still stands today. I've had to make a couple of guesstimates in respect of dimensions but otherwise it's a close enough representation to my eyes anyway. I dragged an assorted collection of stock to gauge clearances (and to have another play!).
    With the bridge in I've started to think about terra forming in this area so have been consulting the OS Maps. Five Ways Farm sits just alongside the bridge to the right of the video and should make a nice scenic feature, along with its very large apple orchard behind the raised siding.
    I know this will mean nothing if you don't know the area but I can see how I want it to look in my mind at least!

  19. ullypug

    First move under power

    By ullypug,

    Afternoon
    I've been wiring. I'd forgotten how long it takes and just how many mistakes you can make along the way!
    But on the plus side, I now have the first board powered up and working. The only track left to build is the run off to the (as yet unconstructed fiddle yard). It's on DC at the moment but wire sized and installed for eventual DCC.
    The water works siding is in and you can see the prairie shuffling back and forwards on the attached video. I'm not turning the board over yet to photograph as it's all a bit untidy. I do admire those that produce beautifully neat wiring looms. I don't ever seem to manage it.
    There's a bridge to add along with a stone loading point on this board in the foreground (in mock up at least) before I work back towards the station, wiring each board in turn. Still, at least I can start to play trains!
     

  20. ullypug
    Evening all
    after a summer recess and the always wonderful Wells exhibition, the modelling season is well and truly back with us and I'm looking forward to the annual pilgrimage to Scaleforum next weekend.
    After one or two distractions (more of that later) and by way of a release from the travails with my Lima 55xx, I've returned to the track building on Cheddar. The good news is I'm on the last board now and fiddle yard notwithstanding, have built the (hopefully) final turnout. You can see progress in the photo below. The siding to the right in the distance leads to the Water Works siding, the line next right is a siding leading to McAlpine's loading point towards the camera and Cheddar west GF. The next line left is the bi-directional running line and the rising line furthest left is the headshunt/stone loading siding on the down side.
    I'm going to leave a short length incomplete at the baseboard edge so I can run a length of track through once I've built the fiddle yards.
    I'm hoping I can start the lovely task of wiring the thing over the winter. It's going to be DCC/DC convertible but I'm not sure what to use as plugs/sockets for the main track bus. Anyone got any suggestions?
    If it was just DC I'd use D plugs but I've never wired for DCC before so I might need to have a little trial first.
  21. ullypug

    June 2016 update

    By ullypug,

    I've had a bit of success with my quest for Mendip Stone.
    I've found a Spanish supplier that does, what I think anyway, is a reasonable representation of Mendip Limestone.
    http://www.greenstuffworld.com/en/textured-sheets/155-abs-plasticard-smooth-rock-wall-sheet-a4.html
    I'd ordered some previously and finally got round to having a play with it, once I realised that the present incarnation of the 45xx chassis wasn't going anywhere (literally). More of that later.
    So rather than cut the chassis into lots of little pieces, I've had a go a re-doing the overbridge at the Wells end of the station with its curved abutment walls. I think this is it!
    I've added coping stones from 80 thou plasticard and have got to the point where I can finally put this board to one side with a 'tick'.
    So that then set me thinking about the storage system I'm going to need to start to be able to put these boards somewhere.
    So I've had a go at making side packing pieces which will ultimately be clamped together with toggle up/over catches.
  22. ullypug

    May 2016 update

    By ullypug,

    Morning all
    just a bit of an update on Cheddar.
    I hadn't realised it's been 3 months since I last updated, but then progress has slowed a bit (mainly as a result of other distractions!), but in between making track for a friend's layout and tinkering away with the prairie I've stuck the odd bit of track down for the 7th board.
    You can see in the picture what I mean; the line on the left is the stone loading siding which rose up towards the bridge. I think ultimately I'll need one of the High Level fly shunter wagons to replicate the gravity shunting on this siding. The middle track is the main bi-directional running line whilst the one on the right is the siding which ran up to the McAlpine stone loading point and Cheddar West Ground Frame up towards Axbridge.
    The eagle eyed of you will spot a pen line setting out what will be the Bristol Waterworks siding, the turnout for which will be on the next board, but will end up on this one. I'm going to squeeze things around here a little bit so I can represent some of the waterworks buildings (eventually).
    So one more board to do scenic wise anyway before I think about the next bit - roundy roundy seems to be the way to take this (after suggestions from the potential operators - I didn't say 'revolt'...).
    In the meantime, I think I'm going to need to think about the storage options for this - some form of stacking arrangement seems sensible.
  23. ullypug
    OK, I have reached the point where I wished I'd gone down the etched chassis route. So I'm going to stop and have a think about whether I should.
     
    Have spent the evening b*ggering about with the drawbar. All ok after several attempts to solder 2 wires the correct way round. Body put back on. Binds have reappeared on the cylinders again, where previously there were none. Hmm. I have a sneaking suspicion that something's moving around which shouldn't be. I've also decided that there are quite a few things I'm going to have to do to the Hornby body. Smoke deflectors for one. Filling the holes left by the removal of the crest another. Respray, relining, renumbering and a shed load of pipework are going to be required, which is ok but I suspect the chassis is going to be the weak link. I have an awful feeling that I could spend a lot of time fettling the chassis for it to a) not work or B) cause an awful lot of grief.
     
    Options:
    1. Wait until Scaleforum and buy an escapement file. Have one last go at the cylinders.
    2. Acquire etched chassis, spring all axles and do it properly.
     
    Will keep you posted.
  24. ullypug

    February 2016 update

    By ullypug,

    Afternoon all
    Not much to report this month. We had a great time at the Southampton show and I ended up coming away with another delightful little loco from CSP. More of that anon.
    Having had a bit of a break from Cheddar, it has been good to crack on with some more of the track work and I can see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, scenic section at least, now that the Axbridge end crossover is done. Whisper it quietly but that only leaves the water works siding turnout... Once again it's time to change the boards round and replace the completed one with the next. Two to go.
    Four of the boards are up in the garage and in my mind it's starting to look a lot like Cheddar. Or is that Christmas?
    Inbetween bits drying, I've also dug out some long term residents of the to-do pile. Nowhere near the standards set by others of this parish I admit, but enjoyable none the less.
    The PMV is out of the box Bachmann and just rewheeled. The Ratio toad will be diag AA20 I think and the
    Parkside conflat is being converted to an ex GW diagram (I hope). The latter two are sprung.
  25. ullypug

    Exhibitions

    By ullypug,

    Afternoon
    Hadn't realised I've not posted an update since March. How time flies.
    Clevedon has a few shows this year, starting with the Southampton exhibition this weekend.
    Thereafter it'll be at
    York - Easter
    Epsom & Ewell - April
    Oop North - September (provisionally)
     
    Also, rather excitingly I can confirm a one off event on Sun 22 Oct 2017 (next year) when both Clevedon and Weston will appear at the same time. This will be the 100th anniversary of the WCPR's opening of the extension to Portishead and the WCPR group have decided to put a show on in Portshead to commemorate the event. It will be a light railway bonanza with a number of Colonel Stephens layouts in a variety of scales. More details will follow as they're finalised. Logistically it's going to be a challenge having two layouts operating at the same but it is for a special event. At this stage I'm not planning on repeating the exercise.
    As to Clevedon itself, fitter Hill's cottage is nearing completion and I've planted some trees behind the PW sheds. Photos attached with a temporary back scene. Everything seems to be where I left it and I'm looking forward to having a play next weekend. Do pop by and say hello if you're passing.

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