gordon s

I can’t disagree, but feel it wouldn’t be possible as I have looked before. By all means mark up a plan showing where you suggest it would run. Bear in mind though there are certain parameters that have to be met. You will need a run of 8.2m to descend 82mm, the minimum radius is 3’ and space is limited at the top of the layout. I certainly won’t want to rip up track unless there really is an advantage over what I have on Templot at the moment. The other issue is that space to cut through the running loops is somewhat restricted with Tortoise motors mounted under the turnouts above. Happy to look at your proposal once you can add a drawing of what you’re suggesting.

OK, made a bit of progress. Delved into Templot and now have 8 roads at least 8' long. Just measured up and 8 coaches actually need 7', so there is room for the loco as well. If I used Peco loco lifts/cassettes for the incoming locos, the overall length could reduce by a foot, improving the access further to the rear loops. The yellow box is the stairs protruding into the room. At present there is around 18" to get past. 8 roads with 8 coaches will give me storage for 64 coaches, so hopefully plenty. The four foot road will accommodate cassettes and these will be stored under ET station itself where I have more than 4' depth so they can go in end on. They will be filled with assorted freight stock and possibly overflow coaches. If I decide to keep locos on cassettes as well then they can either go under the storage or under ET station. Still to look at ET shed option, but it may well be possible for this to sit over the storage and still have plenty of clearance between the two... Food for thought anyway. Quick question for Martin. All the boards show on my Templot plan but for some reason they don't show in Sketchboard (top right area). Have I missed something? Now resolved... Thanks.

Been fitting decoders for a few hours and started on this Bachmann A2 an hour or so ago. Decoder is all in and working, but blowed if I can see a way of removing the front NEM socket on this loco. I don't want a front coupling, but don't want to cut it off either. I'd rather save the part should I ever come to sell the loco, so it can restored to its original condition. Tried turning the slotted nut above, but it just spins. Tried looking under the cylinders to see if anything was accessible from the rear, but nothing to be seen. The exploded parts diagram doesn't help, so any ideas? I'm sure it's pretty simple, but I can't see it yet. Not sure if there is enough room between the truck and the chassis to get in with a pair of long nose pliers to stop the shaft/screw rotating, but even then it may not be the right thing to do. Any guidance appreciated....

I have long admired your vision regarding track plans. Just a shame we didn’t get in touch years ago when I had a blank sheet of paper......

You beat me to it......

Ah, now you're taking me into areas I don't even think about....... I'm just a big kid who enjoys watching trains that remind me of my youth. I can suspend belief easily and trains that come from storage will run a few full circuits, so at that point they are through trains. Once I fancy a change they will stop at ET and make their way to storage. Pick up any magazine and you will often see beautiful photographs which show the expertise of the photographer, but the rest is often your imagination. A train stopped in a station is one thing, but add a caption that says the 10.00 non stop express from Kings Cross arrives in Platform 1at Eastwood Town behind Gresley A4 Kingfisher and suddenly you can see the journey the train has made. The reality that it may have made a tortuous journey to get into that platform isn't apparent from the information provided. Of course, I have nothing but admiration for Retford/Little Bytham/Peterborough North/Grantham and their prototypical accuracy and I wish I had that self discipline. My audience will be friends and family plus grandkids and they know even less than I do about the ECML from the 60's and yet they will enjoy seeing trains run around the room without stalling or needing the hand of God. The strange thing is my wife is always accusing me of stopping and rewinding a programme to check the make/model and number plate of a car or some other detail, yet somehow that doesn't extend to my love of railways. I can just enjoy them as they are and generally see the big picture rather than detail. Of course I don't want obvious howlers, hence my questions to give me ideas how to deal with an issue. Please be assured it's nothing personal, Phil, but felt I ought to explain why these things don't always seem matters of priority to me. I realise I must be a huge disappointment or lost cause to many (or maybe not) as I don't think along the same lines (apologies for the pun). I tell myself to stick with it as a beautiful swan may emerge one day. One the other hand it could yet be another ugly duckling.....

Thanks Tony, they are brilliant! If I had a lot more space then a model of Wood Green and the Hertford loop would be top of my list.... It was my great Aunt and Uncle who used to take me to Alexandra Palace and my first memories were seeing trains in Alexandra Palace terminus. Of course we wandered down the hill to cross over the rail footbridge and the sight of main line express trains at speed meant I was hooked for life. I’m guessing I was five if six at that time, so I had to wait a couple of years before I was allowed out on my bike to cycle to Wood Green from our home. Doesn’t bear thinking about cycling up the North Circular and across numerous roads as a child, but those days were so different. I even stumbled across Palace Gates station one day, but not a lot was happening, so it was back to my favourite platform with my packed lunch. I know things weren’t perfect in those days, but even as children we had so much freedom to do as we pleased.

Some interesting suggestions. The thing I want to preserve is the raised track section at the rear of ET. I chose to have a raised track bed throughout to avoid the flat earth baseboard syndrome. My favourite viewpoints are down at track level and I realised after a while that any buildings or parked? trains in that section would kill that view completely. There are all sorts of scenic possibilities from the embankment with a low level river/canal or a country road/train spotting footpath with an under bridge and any track in that area would negate that possibility. To enable that, I’m looking at taking the storage down to support frame level, which of course means a longer run to overcome the gradient and keep any gradient to 1:100. Eldavo and Martin have both talked about ‘carriage sidings’ and that’s an interesting thought. Coaches are likely to be in fixed rakes with corridor/brakes each end and you’re right, they won’t require turning. This opens the possibility of a hybrid system with storage for all coaching stock plus loco’s with one additional access road for freight traffic and two/three car DMU’s which would use 4’ cassettes. Removing the turntable and associated pointwork reduces the length of the storage requirement and fewer roads will reduce the width. This should in turn allow free access to the rear of the layout. I have no problem with freight/local traffic stock on cassettes as it opens many possibilities for mix and match and all the cassettes can be stored underneath on shelving. Freight loco’s can also be stored whilst passenger loco’s can return to shed once the stock has departed. Means moving loco’s to and fro from the shed itself, but that could be seen as prototypical....... I can hear Templot calling later this morning, so it will be interesting to see what is or not possible. The one unknown at this stage is the stairwell/balustrade that comes into the room. Thanks for your ideas.....

Yes. Sounds like the same problem I had. Check the back of the 8 pin socket for very poor wiring......

Normally I’d say Google is your friend, but the LNER forum came up trumps.... https://www.flickr.com/photos/31514768@N05/3502444862/in/album-72157617526193082/ Loads more pics if you scroll through the side arrows. Wasn’t sure about copyright, so just a link rather than embedded.

it was wonderful to see Wood Green again as I really did spend hours on the end of that platform. The giveaways were the three lines through the station, the signal gantry and the gas holder on the left. Certainly pre dates me in 1952 as I probably started there in 1956. Great memories as pics are fairly rare. I did find one of a 9F going through the Khyber Pass a few years ago. I’ll see if I can find it again.

Now that’s interesting Martin as it gives me the option to reduce the length overall and improve access around the back. Food for thought.....

Thanks for posting that pic, Tony. I know it’s a long time ago, but fairly sure that’s my favourite spotting place, Wood Green....... Takes me back a bit as it doesn’t appear that often in pics. Lovely pic of a V2 even if I’m wrong about the location....

...Or how about Townstreet. I haven't checked if they still make the stone buildings, but very enjoyable to make from their plaster mouldings. https://townstreetuk.co.uk/brochures/catalogue2.pdf

Apologies for not getting back before now, Phil. I've just sat and watched Alex Salmond for six hours on TV. Found it riveting and all credit to him, he didn't hesitate or bluster on any answer for the whole time. Fascinating.... OK ET.... Thanks Phil, for taking a look. Here's my take on what you are proposing. Ignore the storage lines down the middle, but I assume you are suggesting taking the storage from point A on this plan. There is space behind ET station to run another line particularly one that is descending. I'm assuming the new line will replace the existing one that starts bottom right. It would have to use that space as there is no room at all next to the side wall. Next thing to overcome is the board structure itself. I don't think I have shown this before, but the main frame is 90mm x 20mm planed timber. The track bed is raised 82mm above that and the trackbed is 12mm. The total depth is 184mm and say you need a minimum of 200mm clearance under the timber frame. You're now up to 384mm, which at 1:100 is going to need 38.4m run. I can't go any lower than the top trackbed over the stairs as it will clash with the hand rail and I'd get shot if I cut some of that away. I've only just been forgiven for this and this was 2007..... At that rate, I'd need to go round the layout twice to find a 38.4m run..... The other problem is anti clockwise trains which at present can cross the main lines into line 7 and then be shunted off into storage. With a downslope line on the outside, it just adds more complexity for trains to access the storage as they can no longer use line 7. Great if I could have both as that would work, but there is only room for one line next to the stairwell wall. I'm open to any suggestions, but really have a hang up about anything hidden from view, particularly a 15 road storage unit where trains cannot be seen and mechanically I now realise it can't be done, but many thanks for looking at it. I take a more in depth look at cassette's over the weekend to see if they provide a solution.

Pure self indulgence on my part, but whilst rummaging in my stock boxes, I came across three locos, an A2, an A1 and Deltic. None had been touched since I bought them years ago when I was working. Seemed like the ideal time to take a break from storage roads and cassettes, so out came the soldering iron and an hour later, two of them are running well on ET. The A2 will be sorted today, if I can put my hands on a decoder. Now rewind 60 odd years and there was me, standing in my usual place at the end of Wood Green platform looking up the line towards Hornsey, where I knew a decent plume of smoke would mean another Gresley Pacific would soon come thundering through. I'm guessing I would have been 8 or 9 years old, when I heard a really strange noise and this emerged as a light engine from Wood Green carriage sidings, Wow! Having never seen anything like it, I was reminded of the Triang Transcontinental Diesels and of course Deltic has held a fascination for me ever since. Saw it several times after that at Euston and then a few more times at Kings Cross, but nothing prepared me for that day at Wood Green, so the camera had to come out this morning....

I like the ideas from the posts above, but is there any possibility of corrosion on the aluminium strip in an internal environment and does electrical conductivity deteriorate over time. Like most metals, there appears to be various grades. Are all acceptable for this application? I guess I’m probably being unduly cautious, but thought I’d ask before investing in some test builds.

Looks perfect, but I only have a 2.4m ceiling height. No matter a few bits of 4 x2 will sort that.....

Here’s a direct link......

I didn’t realise Arsenal played their home leg tonight in Greece. Any reason for them not playing at The Emirates as Spurs played at home at White Hart Lane the night before.

That’s the easy bit. Route the ends and use biscuit joiners. Tongue glued in place and slot on the other track bed. A single line only requires one biscuit.

If using an iPad, go to the post you want to copy and there are three dots next to edit on the top right of the post. Click on the dots and then share and then copy the link and paste where you want it. Same difference but without the right click....

No chance Baz. It all fitted out with drawers and cupboards. It also sits downstairs in the kitchen and there’s no chance at all of getting it upstairs. It weighs a ton as I tend to over engineer things......

All done. Removed the DC gubbins and hard wired a Zimo decoder in place. Once on the track it romped away with 8 coaches with bags of power in hand. Runs like a dream and no derailments yet at any speed. Had to go back into another box and found an A2 60533 Happy Knight (31-528) so that's my job for tomorrow. If it's anywhere near as good, I'll be one happy bunny.......

Well in-between fitting decoders into Deltic and an A1, I've been nipping in from time to time and Chaz you win the prize for suggesting something way beyond my capabilities...... The appeal of cassettes is the whole unit is portable and can be wheeled about. It may be 8' is a bit ambitious and thinking about my dog grooming table it may be a wheeled crate holding twice as many 4' cassettes could be a better alternative. That could easily slide under the shed board when not in use and a 4' balancing act may be easier than 8'. I'll find out sooner or later......