2mmMark

That looks rather good. Where did the etching come from? Are you making any tramcars to go with it?

I've really been enjoying this topic, an excellent small layout combined with the added bonus of extra "Shell Island". The concept of representing just a small chunk of an ironstone line in this way is inspired. The quarry faces were certainly on a grand scale and would demand a lot of space. My only suggestion for improvement would be to disguise the corners of the backscene with a curve or fillet of some sort. I have however, a complaint. I ended up on ebay last night, buying a second hand Farish Class 14 for my 2mm NCB diorama "British Oak". :-( Sigh! 3 link couplings would improve the visual aspect but possibly a less obtrusive autocoupler might be better operationally.

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Rue+de+Bechet,+Jersey&hl=en&sll=48.818067,-1.567441&sspn=1.464902,3.56781&t=h&hnear=Rue+du+Bechet,+Jersey&z=19 or http://goo.gl/maps/sVyUN Just measured it using the on-screen scale. One end has a semi-circle which measures at roughly 90ft. The other end looks a bit more generous. Whatever the radius, it still looks enormously like a classic model railway oval.

That's not 30ft radius. If it were, the diameter of a circle of track would be less than the length of a BR Mk1 coach! Google maps has the answer, it looks like it's about 100 to 120ft radius. Still very tight though.

Looking good! Can you remind me of where you're exhibiting?

Apologies for the late reply. The "Beginners Guide to 2mm Finescale Modelling" features a small demo layout which comprises 2 Y points. There's a comprehensive set of instructions on building them, plus a section on how to operate the turnouts when completed. Mark

So, your old hi-fi has met its Waterloo in search of a vinyl solution to the perennial fiddle yard problem. You're a Bjorn inventor. Mark

John, one of these: http://www.rixproducts.com/rix_pick_uncoupling_tool.htm I got mine at a show from a stand selling US models. I suspect at least one of the specialist US retailers would have them. There's probably enough detail in the photo at the link above to make one. The business end is simply a flat triangle about 15-20 thou thick. Mark.

I use AC for my uncoupling electromagnets. This avoids any tendency for the droppers to build up residual magnetism. DGs only need a short burst of magnetism so the issue of residual magnetism isn't a problem in practice. Suitable transformers for electromagnets need to be quite robust, the Phil Kerr designed electromagnets are effectively a dead short across the winding, hence the wording on them "for intermittent use only". Likewise, robust buttons for activation are advisable. The very small 6mm diameter ones are not reliable long term. However, I think I now prefer sliding permanent magnets. As the originator of the sliding magnets described in the Beginners Guide, I can confirm they work very well through 6 to 9mm of plywood baseboard. Better in fact, as having them closer means steel axles are also strongly attracted by the magnet. Neodymium magnets are powerful! I still have some of Denys' mouldings for his early couplings. These were of neccessity made in a home built injection mouding machine. Possibly, if made with engineering plastics on a commercial basis with very accurate moulds, they may well be viable. I use Microtrains for my American N equipment but do not bother with magnetic uncoupling. A simple twist with a "Rix" uncoupling pick does the job. Standard DGs have an advantage in that they can be made to look a lot small visually yet still work very well. I use this technique for my 2mm narrow gauge stock. Something I picked up from Paul Styles when he did some 2mm NG work a few years ago. Mark

I'll send you Phil's contact details. I'm fairly regular contact with him. Mark

I don't think the EMU was ever built. It would have been a bit out of place as the layout was based on Swanage. (says he with all sorts of inappropriate projects on the go!)

I've been given some drawings by J.J. Langridge which I've scanned in and uploaded here: http://s1155.photobucket.com/albums/p555/MarkFielder/JJ%20Langridge%20Drawings/ These are interesting as they show some more light on the design of the models. Mark

Here are links to some albums of the Langridge models: http://s1155.photobucket.com/albums/p555/MarkFielder/JJ%20Langridge%20Locomotives/ http://s1155.photobucket.com/albums/p555/MarkFielder/JJ%20Langridge%20Coaches/ http://s1155.photobucket.com/albums/p555/MarkFielder/JJ%20Langridge%20Buildings/ http://s1155.photobucket.com/albums/p555/MarkFielder/JJ%20Langridge%20Wagons/ Mark

I've been looking stuff up in the 2mm Magazine for Winter 1969. It looks like Langridge did in fact know A.R. Walkley and both were in the Wimbledon MRC. Langridge & H.B. Whall also knew each other and I'm told that Langridge built some of Whall's commissions. Around 1952/1953 P.D. Hancock commissioned a C14 from Whall for his Gleish Valley 2mm layout and this was documented in the Railway Modeller for August 1960. It's possible that Whall based the C14 on Langridge's design, or maybe Langridge actually built the Hancock C14. There are definite similarities but the later C14 looks rather more simplified. For example, disc rather than spoked driving wheels. It also looks like the actual medal winners were the C14 and an Adams 0395 class 0-6-0, plus a pair of LSWR coaches. The 0395 wasn't in the batch of models I photographed, so it may well be missing. In the 1969 photos, they are in Southern livery, not LSWR. By 1973, the Langridge models were definitely in LSWR livery, as there's a photo of the C14 & Adams Radial in the Feb 1973 2mm Magazine. Sounds like we need to get Pete Frame & his Rotring pens to do a 2mm version of "Rock Family Trees"! Mark

On the Britain From Above web site, there's a shot of a train on the LSWR line through Ashford Middlesex that looks like it's being hauled by a Radial. It's just possible as these are 1920's photographs. As Mr. Langridge lived in Isleworth, he might well have seen them in service. A long shot maybe? Edit - my mistake, it's a 0-4-4 http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/EPW023523

These two locos jointly won a silver medal at the 1928 Model Engineer exhibition. This era would almost certainly have meant 100% scratchbuilding, wheels, motor & gears included. After a period of time when they were thought lost, these models plus others have recently been rediscovered as part of the estate of a member of the Langridge family. There will be some more details on these in the next edition of the 2mm Magazine. Mark

No, in this instance, there are no skirts in the kit(which presumably makes it a steam trollope rather than a steam tram). The wikipedia entry for this loco shows a different outline http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:GMWE_Nr5.jpg&filetimestamp=20061122204320 and I think the loco was later rebuilt and used in Alsace on the Erstein-Oberehnheim-Ottrotter railway. I seem to be acquiring a somewhat eclectic range of narrow gauge models. Perhaps I'll need to build a 2mm narrow gauge equivalent of the Madder Valley in order to accomodate them. Mark

Something a bit "left field" has been on my workbench - some etched kits for German metre gauge stock from Roy Bergauer. First an Offener Güterwagen Ow 10.839p, etched body on a lightly modified Marklin Z gauge wagon chassis. The etched design is clever but somewhat ambitious as the internal detail (comprising floor, sides & ends) is assembled as one box and the external detail is designed to be a fractionally larger box. Unfortunately, the tolerances are such that this doesn't quite happen, so I cut the external sides & ends up and applied them seperately, filling any gaps at the corners with 5 amp fusewire filed square when in situ. Thankfully, the etch is in nickel-silver so soldering was easier. Brass would have been tricky due to its higher heat conductivity. Next an Offener Güterwagen "Bettgestellwagen" (bedstead wagon) Same type of design as before but a more complex build due to the steps & brakeman's seat. I would not like to travel on one of these in the depths of winter! This one sits on a shortened Marklin chassis. I used solder for the details and solder paint when laminating the sides & ends. This is a Fakultativwagen which I think translates as "facility wagon". These were convertible for passenger and freight use, hopefully only occasionally for the former. This was an easier build as there is no internal detail to worry about. The etch comes with a basic chassis which is designed to allow the axle pinpoints to run in etched dimples. I replaced this with 2mm Association top-hat bearings and the chassis rolls nicely. Above is a steam tram G.M.W.E. No.5 (Gera-Meuselwitz-Wuitzer Eisenbahn). Again a slightly tricky assembly which is designed to wrap around a floor & roof. The sides * ends did not quite meet, so again the fusewire technique was called into action. The body hides the Marklin mech quite well, with a cosmetic boiler covering a lot and motor hidden behind side panels, leaving a reasonably clear cab. This is still to be finished as some of the inside needs painting before the roof is fixed on. The horizontal plates are not steps, they are lamp brackets for some quite sizeable oil lamps. It's been interesting to see a slightly different approach to kit design The kits are not as sophisticated as some 2mm scale etching but the end results are quite effective. Apologies for the heavy Marklin Z gauge track, I didn't have any proper narrow gauge track handy. Mark.

If you were to use a pulley reduction as the final stage down to the wheels, consider how would you replace the drive belt if required. You'd need a demountable wheelset. Not impossible but an added complication. Mark

The sides of those RCH wagons are upside down - is that deliberate? Wondered if you are representing some peculiarity of JER stock.

Remember you've only got to break the copper to insulate. I find that 2 adjacent cuts with a scalpel are sufficient and then you can pick out the sliver of the copper foil between them.

Don't forget the MRC is based in London - 4 Calshot St. near Kings Cross. Might help pass an evening or two.

Every 2mm finescale modeller must build a Sentinel. It's in the rules... Seriously, it's a good first exercise in chassis building & gear meshing. There's one frame spacer/motor mount to file up from a lump of Tufnol or similar insulating material (Perspex?) and 4 simple shapes in 20 thou brass or nickel-silver. With no quartering to worry about, there's every chance of a successful end result. The one in the photos here has a body started by Denys Brownlee, finished by me and put on a chassis which I'd already built. Amongst some of the bits I inherited from Denys was a part built chassis which I've completed and will go under the as-yet unbuilt Sentinel kit for which I constructed my chassis. I would like to try a belt drive to replace the spur gears. I think it could well be quieter as the spur gears do tend to be a bit audible in a quiet environment. Mark