luke_stevens

2 updates in one day! 1) rear of backscene painted in the same colour as the case, Wilko "Venice" (3 coats of paint and then 3 gloss varnish) 2) Inside 3 coats of Wilko "Sky Grey"... I couldn't pick another grey now could I? Luke

Not been as good with photos as last time! 1) LED lighting strips. Stuck to a piece of foamcore which had fold line marked, scored / cut in a W shape. Wired in series and stuck down before installation using double sided sticky tape. 2) , 3) and 4) Background panels cut, primed and screwed together. The original idea is that they would fold flat, but then I couldn't get a tight join between the two panels unless the hinges were installed reversed. Front Flat Back Luke

The earliest I can find of a definite orange line on an Eastern Region HST is '82, but it no longer had to 254 unit number. L

When I uploaded the last lot of photos last October I didn't think I'd be coming back to this diorama.... But like most modellers I can't leave well alone! I'd been thinking about improving the presentation and then I got invited to the TT meet up this Sunday in Cheltenham so time to put thoughts into action. 1) Parts for use. At the top is a 5m roll of warm white LED strip, and a 12v wall wart which I happened to have "in stock" (sitting in a random box, no idea from where or whence!) Below is a strip of plug in polyblocks for connections, and below that is a Gaugemaster Scenic Sounds module, which will sit underneath the baseboard and quietly burble. https://www.gaugemasterretail.com/gaugemaster-gm784-rural-scenic-sounds-module.html 2) Quick demo of the idea. Back panels made from 3 ply. There will be a bit less vertical clearance than this. I'm using the top of the case as the lid, which is a little heavy so will be bolted in place, but it gives an idea. Luke

Nice to see you are dressing up for the exhibition Paul :)

Just to check, the Blue Grey HST (ER) has the correct introductory 254 number but seems to have the electrification orange strip on the cab-end. I don't think that's correct for 1977. Can anyone confirm when the HST's started to get the orange stripes? Luke

And it is completely impossible for the viewer to see if it is lit or not! Looks good to me! L

Then why ask a question that has already been answered several times on page 1? L

Andy's confirmation from page 1

It's been mentioned several times on previous pages that these are NOT the same moulding as the Heljan models. There are material differences. Luke

They layout has had serious problems with IRDOT. They had been used to operate the crossing gates and Paul took them out after, I think Warley, when the developed a mind of their own. There was just too much infrared light in the hall. Manually blocking and clearing the IRDOT proved they were working correctly but were just being overwhelmed. Not again. Luke PS I have them running on a small diorama / test track and I think they are great, but they would not work as Beijiao needed.

See what I mean? And this is just for plain running track! From http://www.qelectronics.de/downloads/signalbuch/signale.osshd.pdf

The decoder manufacturer is https://eu.qdecoder.ch/ and if anyone is interested in Chinese / OSShD signals this is the associated description of their signal. The document is in German, but that hardly hinders its technical complexity... http://www.qelectronics.de/downloads/signalbuch/signale.osshd.pdf PS Paul, please don't try and read this it will confuse horrifically! Luke

Hi Neil, There has been quite a bit of thinking about signalling (even f it was behind Paul's back!) and how to keep it as simple as possible. The layout uses Digitrax and is pushing the limits of the complexity we can manage / understand. Anything "extra" would have to be self-standing, idiot proof and ignorable! When I’m operating either the China Rail or the Bi-directional the trains are effectively “fire and forget”: I dispatch a train from the yard and wait for it to return. The only feedback I get is if there is a problem that the operators on the industrial branch see. I cannot see what my train is doing on the scenic part of the layout. Any signalling on the China Rail would be one signal for the clockwise and one sign for the anti-clockwise. The bi-directional would be similar but with 2 signal: one at each end. The signalling on the Industrial would either be incredibly complex or “proceed on sight”, I have no idea how the Chinese would signal something old and complex… In terms of operating to signalling, we have tried and had tremendous failure with infra-red detectors: at “home” they were fine in the church hall, unreliable in the garden (summer testing). There were used for operating the level crossing at the right end of the layout. At exhibitions the gates would open and close seeming at will. Normally that would just be inconvenient but the gates controlled the vehicles crossing the tracks. There have been several times where a train on the bi-directional crashed into the Faller tour bus… We have now moved onto using magnets on locos and this is far less deadly for the tour bus occupants! I’m sure there is a simple way to do this but it’s more than we can manage at this point 😊 Luke

https://www.sh1.org/zhongguo/sl.htm

One "aspect" that makes things more complex is the operational nature of Chinese signals. At the start they were British-pattern semaphore (effectively pre-1949), but the colour light signals are Soviet-pattern. Thid not only tells a train if it can go, but how fast it can go based on its load and load of the previous train... A passenger train following a passenger train will have different aspects for a passenger train follow a freight train, or freight trains following each other :( There is a German manufacturer who provides signal control units that understand this but for Paul's "simple" layout where trains would only encounter one signal on the visible part of the layout it would be far more complex that necessary. Luke https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_railway_signalling

Thank heavens for that! L

I've been trying to get them printed in rubber to prevent breakage... L

They couple quite gently. Uncoupling is a bit more complex, Luke

I assume the Chinese police car is just about to arrive to apprehend the "Western Imperialists" threatening the stability of the Peoples Republic by undermining China Railways by "buying" stuff?!? Luke

It does give a very "Keep Away" feel... But is that what we want? You've built into the layout some amazing detail but at that distance it's just not going to be visible. How far is it from the trip rope to the detailed interiors? You talk in previous posts about the ideal viewing distance being 18inches / 45cm. With this set up how far are the running tracks from the rope? The trains are they layouts key focus not the Faller roadway! As I punter I'm not sure I'd stay to watch a layout that kept me so far back... In exhibition terms is the rope part of the layouts foot print (and part of the layout defined size) or is it expected that the rope barrier will stretch into the aisle? The latter will be exceedingly irritating for exhibition managers and punters trying to get past. Luke

It's less about the size of the layout but more its weight (or rather momentum). Being part of the layout team I can confirm it's not actually that heavy. It is a struggle for one person to carry a fiddle yard board on their own but that is because it is unwieldy: 2 people can easily carry 2 boards between them. The scenic boards are clamped together in pairs for transport and 2 people can reasonably easily carry them. If the fiddle yard boards are 10kg each and the scenic (with the transport end pieces) are 15kg then the whole layout is 8 x 10kg plus 4 x 15kg = 140kg, say 150kg with pelmet and stock. According the the ONS an average UK male is around 85kg. So if an average man leans against the layout "barrier" the layout is going to move. And it only needs a couple of mm disturbance to derail things. Don't ask how we know that... Luke

If they are going "metal bodied" then anything is fair game. At various points most GWR loco's have had some connection with Llangollen. A metal 56XX/66XX would be good, but to be really left-field an S160 would be really interesting. When they were delivered they arrived in Newport and spent the start of their lives on the Western. Luke

Whatever happened to the CAD work for the DJ Models 00 King... Just asking for a friend! 🤣 Luke

Small manufacturer = run by enthusiasts Large manufacturer = run by accountants Luke