luke_stevens

I think we've tried to use it... But as long as the track can't be accidentally selected then that's good. Luke

Does this mean this track is permanently out of use? Luke

I've added a scratch built dynamo, which is a bit of cocktail stick stuck through a bit of spare fret, sanded to shape and fitted into a hole drilled in the chassis. It has then had a coat of black primer... It's still on the painting stand in my spray booth so there is so much light that it looks light grey, but it is definitely black! And from the other side. It's the first coat of paint so a lot of the fibres have stood up. Where necessary I'll sand them down before the next primer coat which will only be once the L-girder has arrived for the solebar. A bonus photo as to why I ALWAYS strain my paint! With enamels it is to remove lumps and unmixed paint. here with acrylics it is to remove the pieces of paint that has dried on the sides of the bottle. I have also used a couple of AK Interactive stainless steel mixing balls dropped into the paint to get things properly mixed. https://ak-interactive.com/product/stainless-steel-shakers/ If you ae going to use the mixing balls (which I highly recommend!) then please give them a quick degrease to remove any manufacturing oil residue. I didn't and completely wrote of a couple of bottles of varnish... Luke

Having done the experimentation with the Siphon (top of pic) I know what I need to do for much of the GBL (bottom of pic) so things continue to be fast! This time I've added all 3 cross beams and have added an indication of connecting arms to the vacuum cylinders. At the moment things are looking a little rough and ready but they will be tidied up. I've still got to produce a dynamo, detail the battery boxes and get some more L-girder for the solebar. Luke

Is the box labelled yellow, or just the lid? We've had lid problems before. If I am standing at an exhibition with a yellow labelled lid in my hand how do I know which of the filled stock boxes the lid belongs to? Luke

Fast progress :) These are the assembled bogies with wheels. The spring / axle box's haven't yet been added, nor the coupler support frame as I felt they would be to fragile at this point. The tie bar between the frame has been strengthened with superglue (as I'd already broken a couple of them!) The body shell went together quickly, despite me getting a couple of the frames the wrong way round. It doesn't effect the model but it irritates... The front roof stringer on the left wasn't pushed home... I will sand it flat later. The frames stick out below the body base so they will also be sanded smooth. There is one element I'm still undecided on. With he previous model, the Siphon, I completed the model, then primed and painted. But with the GLB there ae windows to be glazed. Either I can build the model except the roof, paint, decal, varnish glaze and then add the roof. Or I can complete the model with the sides separate, paint, decal, varnish and glaze them, then attach them to the finished model. At the moment I think I'm going to do the latter. But more thought is needed Luke

Hopefully you can see how I'm trying to replicate the Hornby chassis with the kit parts :) The aliphatic resin glue hasn't set yet which is the funny white blobs. I guess I'm going to have to knock up something to represent the dynamo... I will add wire for the brake activators but not the pull rods to the bogies. As last time I will use a piece of milled brass L-girder for the solebar, when it arrives, which will allow me to give the wheels better clearence for sharper curves. I've also started work on the bogies. When wood is laser cut the laser cuts it doesn't make a perfectly vertical cut but one with a V-shape. If I was just to glue things as the came the bogies would tilt inwards, so I've filed the matching surfaces square using a mini-diamond file flat file. https://www.emodels.co.uk/mini-diamond-file-set-pfl6007.html I find that with this kind of wood product I get a better finish with this than normal mini-files. The two posts at the left are for the brake wheels, and maybe a connecting bar? You can see the small notches I've added on the internal vertical framing to allow for the M2 screw heads. The circles are for the other side of the bogies. The U-shape pieces are also for the other side and are for supporting the coupling. I think, I need to see how things look when I've got the bogies further built. Luke

The nice thing about not having any instructions is that I can't be accused of not following them... I've started this time on the chassis using Gould's book (diagrams and photographs) as well as some photos I took of the (wrong livery) Hornby model which I was lucky enough to find in my local model shop. I've since found online the correct livery model so that is on its way. The kit is designed to have the bogies attached with M2 self-taping screws pointing upwards, but I'm not a fan of self-tappers so I'm changing to M2 bolts facing down... From the photos I took of the Hornby model and the diagrams in the Gould book I'm modifying the chassis. There seem to have been 2 brake cylinders so I have moved the brake hangers from one end to both, and I've moved the brake cylinders off centre. I will need to produce an internal support but not a decision for this evening. There is also a brake wheel assembly at one end but I've moved it closer to the bogie (hopefully not too close) . The battery boxes on the GBL aren't directly opposite each other and seem to have more complex detailing on them that the kit initially had so I've filed then flat and will build up with strip styrene. My photo of the Hornby model underframe Luke

And onto the next one! A couple of weeks ago I asked Osborn's Models if they had thought about doing a kit of one of the Southern railway GBL (Gangway Bogie Luggage Van). 5 days later the kit arrived! https://www.osbornsmodels.com/arch-laser-ocww-altt090-sr-maunsell-bogie-brake-56591-p.asp For full disclosure this is sample rather than a production kit which was gifted to me by Osbourn's Models. It came without wheels, couplings, buffers or instructions. I'm going to be building it my way :) Most of all it's a lovely kit! I remember the first time I saw a Malcom Mitchel etched kit and I wondered if it should be built or framed. Also on the photo is a copy of David Gould's "Southern Railway Passenger Van" from The Oakwood Press. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Southern-Railway-Passenger-Vans-X/dp/0853614288 And the Cambridge Custom Transfers Sheet BL127 – BR ExSR bogie vans B, CCT & GUV to Diagrams 3093, 3096, 3097, 3098, 3099, 3100, 3181, 3182 & 3183. https://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm

The book I previously mentioned has them allocated to all 4 regions, running mainly freight though there ae reports of them on suburban service in Newcastle and a passenger service into St. Pancras. The book is quite certain that the didn't end up on the S&DJR but Rule 1 applies. Wikipedia give distribution as: 174 to the Great Western Railway, 168 to the London & North Eastern Railway, 50 to the London, Midland & Scottish Railway, 6 to the Southern Railway but there was (obviously) through working. There would be loco heading towards the South Coast ports for onward travel to mainland Europe. The axle load seems to have been 15t, which s a pretty much go anywhere (if it could go round the curves). In GWR terms that's a Yellow weight classification, the same as a 2251 or a light Prairie 45XX. The book also talks about the mileage they were racking up in the region of +20,000 miles per year equivalent, which is very respectable. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USATC_S160_Class https://www.lner.info/locos/O/s160.php https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Western_Railway_Power_and_Weight_Classification Luke

Budd delivered them to the Brazilians so 5'3" wasn't a problem... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budd_Rail_Diesel_Car Luke

What all good rail enthusiasts do to all other good rail enthusiasts do, provide a link to quality reference materials! Enjoy the read. It's a fascinating story... (There is a picture of one on the GWR with a painted PDN allocation...) Luke

The book you DON'T want to read if you're trying not to buy an S160... 80 pages, lots of information including regional allocation in UK, many detailed black & white photos, 3 colour plates (By R.N. Higgins, Published by Big Jim Publishing Ltd 1980)

If you still have the original IRDOT's it would be easy to check. I have an N-gauge shuttle demo which will quite happily work outside in full sunlight as long as the tube isn't pointing towards the sun. But I certainly wouldn't suggest refitting them at this point. If we have a system that works then let us continue to use this system, though it is useful to have an idea as to why the original IRDOT's didn't work as designed or expected which I had found it puzzling... Yes! I certainly agree with this! Luke

What a ghastly exhibition event!!! On a dull day maybe, but in the heat and light it must have been truly dreadful! The Operating team has my sympathy! Luke

I know this is the first time the was Faller IRDOT issues, but I was wondering if the IRDOT's that caused so many issues on the bidirectional had also had the tubing cut back. That would explain a lot of the issues we had in the past. Luke

If you order figures from somewhere like https://www.modelu3d.co.uk/ this is pretty much how they come. I'm actually surprised that the supports are as thick as they seem to be. But it looks like it will be an interesting cameo! Luke

It could be used to power Chinese cyclists!!! Luke

Hi Paul, I hope I'm not being stupid but the IRDOT's I have used have a long black piece of shrink fit tubing above the sensor to ensure that there is no infra-red leakage from other sources. But the picture above seems to show the tube cut away... From the Heathcote Electronics website "The sensitivity can also be adjusted by allowing more or less infrared be emmitted. Heat shrink tubing covers the emitter and detector. Its purpose is to prevent the infrared going sideways from emitter to detector. If this is trimmed back more infrared will be emitted and the range increased. However be careful not to expose both emitter and detector as the infrared will then travel sideways making the detector think it is permantly detecting a train. If longer pieces are shrunk over the top the range will be reduced. Normally none of these measures are required and the units work satisfactorily as supplied." - http://www.heathcote-electronics.co.uk/how_infra_red_model_train_detection_works.html

If anyone is interested it's pretty much perfect for a Western D1000. I've not looked into bogies for 47 and 37/50/55 as Hornby is going to produce those bogies. Here is the chart I did last year of Continental bogies and British prototypes. Luke TT UK D&E possible chassis matches 061122.pdf

That would be me :) Yes, Lincoln Loco cl33 using the bogies from a Piko Taurus electric. The original chassis and motor were just too big. Making a new frame took a while but most of that was more about working out what to do and how to do it. Now it would be a much faster process! I shouldn't complain; it's been a fun process! At some point I'll get back to finish the cl 33. Other things got in the way... Luke

Wagon full of depleted Uranium, so very heavy? L

Maybe it the plan for the building that they _should_ have built, rathet than the one they have built?

Last night's photo of the finished diorama. Photo of the diorama at today's Cheltenham TT exhibition Luke

The image that got missed from Fridays first post! The 12v smoothed dc supply comes in on the right and divides, one leg to the Gaugemaster sound unit and one to a plug for the lighting cable