Crisis Rail

1 hour ago, boxbrownie said:

We’ve stuck firmly to our own little beach here.

 

Oh please do tell

26 minutes ago, Hroth said:

 

When the whizz-bangs aren't landing so closely.

 

Seriously, as "immunity" for even the double-jabbed seems to be wearing off, when a booster programme emerges and people realise this is going to be around for a heck of a long time and will never be defeated. Rather like flu and the common cold.

 

Perhaps the situation will improve once the anti-vaxxers and mouth breathers have all died off?

 

Father used to say.

Thas' gotta dee 'o summat.

Life is a risk but not a rehearsal.

39 minutes ago, Hroth said:

I never believed the "Freedom Day" hype, and I've stuck with masks and trying to maintain social distancing in enclosed spaces.  Being "double jabbed" just means that it mitigates an infection, rather than prevents it.

 

Hey ho, we're in for a winter of fun...

 

So  - when are you coming out of your trench?

Moose lifts to Qatar continuing.

Big job breaking out. 
 

Good of wood suppliers to manufacture MDF to exactly the right height of LK-62 edging! How coincidental. 

2 hours ago, Clive Mortimore said:

For a bass guitar?

On 26/05/2013 at 16:40, Clive Mortimore said:

From and article I wrote for DEMU's UPDate magazine

 

"Rationale and Functions.

 

For there to be a depot at a location there has to be a reason for it being there. Usually it is at the end of a traffic flow or major junction. Some locations today do not seem as obvious to us as there were to the planers of modernisation. In fact some depots were built following old steam workings and were found to be in the wrong location and were under utilized very early on.

 

Depots were there to provide several functions. At some locations all that is required is for somewhere the loco crews could sign on. Other locations were purely for the stabling of locos between duties. For modellers who wish to provide this level of provision all that is required is a siding or two for the locos and a building which can be allocated as the drivers lobby etc. During the sixties and seventies some old steam sheds were utilised as covered accommodation for stabling locomotives without any other facilities. 

 

When deciding on a diesel depot for a model railway you will need to look at the level of maintenance you will be providing for your locomotives. This does not generally affect the basics of the track plan but it will help with setting your parameters. Using the 1986 destination codes for depots as a guide I will endeavour to show how these can be applied to our model railways. 

 

Level one. Basically this is a fuel point able to supply fuel, water, oil, sand and to carry out routine servicing. Some of these could be quite simple affairs, like Ranelagh Bridge, without any buildings to what on the surface looked like a higher-level depot with buildings. Old steam sheds often fell into this group.

 

Level two. As above with the ability to carry out A and B examinations. Some diagrams would include the loco having its A exam at a fuelling point like Ranelagh Bridge so to differentiate between a level one and level two depot in model form would be quite hard.

 

Level three. These have covered accommodation with inspection pits, lifting or jacking facilities. We are looking at a medium to large size depot, which in model form would be a layout on its own.  

 

Level four. Has the ability to carry out major overalls, including bogie and power unit changes. When built many depots were not designed to perform power unit changes but since have adapted to do so. This would be a Depot of the size of Old Oak Common or Cardiff Canton, how’s that for a model idea?

 

Level five. Is a depot with fully equipped workshop for component exchange and body repairs. Some WR depots could under take this type of work due to the WR managements forward thinking and equipping their depots with heavy lifting equipment early on. Liara or Toton come into this class of depot.

 

Some depots were built with predicted levels work are a lower level than the facilities suggest, this has come about due to the changes in traffic patterns and stock in use. The HST and electrification have often had detrimental effects on diesel depots.

 

Workload

 

Maintenance of diesel locomotives was worked out, in conjunction with careful diagramming of locomotives, so they were at the right place for servicing and examination. With all the variants that still plague the railway timetables this was did not always happen to plan. Things were greatly helped with the introduction of TOPS, the location of the locomotive was known as well as when it was due for servicing and could be diagrammed so that it would be able to receive attention.  The table below has been taken from Modern Railways March 1967

 

Exam  Hours run between exams (real time)  Time taken to perform exam.    Examination carried out

A               32-38 hr   (2days)                                  1hr (2man–hrs)               General service. Visual exam, test brakes and heating equipment*

B            125-150 hrs    (7-12 days)                     6 hrs (20 man–hrs)           As above. More compressive service, checks on engine and running gear.

C             500-600hrs   (Monthly)                         8 hrs (32 man-hrs)            As above. Change lubricating oil filters, clean air and fuel filters. Clean radiators.

                                                                                                                       Check engine speed and running. Take lubricating oil sample for chemical analysis.

D           1500-1800hrs (3 monthly)                      16 hrs (72man-hrs)           As above. Check engine tappets. Remove and test fuel injectors. Examine regulator.

E           3000-3600hrs  (6monthly)                      16 hrs (96man-hrs)           As above. Inspect engine cams. Check all control equipment and tighten connections.

F           4500-5400hrs  (9 monthly)                           This is quoted in some documents but I am unable to find anything about it

 

* This applied to steam heating generators.

 

. Over the years there were slight variations. The next table relates to the servicing of class 58 in the 1990s (Life and Times of Class 58, Marsden and Hartshorne, OPC)

 

Class 58 table

Exam                                            Hours run between exams (real time)                                    Examination carried out

Fuel point or service check     Once a day to once every five days depending on diagram        Similar to the old A exam

A                                                           80 hrs                                                                            As above. More compressive service, checks on engine running gear       

                                                                                                                                                   Take lubricating oil sample for chemical analysis.

B                                                             400 hrs                                                                        As above. Change lubricating oil filters, clean air and fuel filters. 

                                                                                                                                                    Clean radiators. Check AWS, and batteries. This takes 8 hrs

C                                                          1,200 hrs                                                                        A more detailed exam lasting 16 hours

D                                                          3,600 hrs                                                                        A more detailed exam, including changing of fuel injectors,

                                                                                                                                                 checking the compressed air system, traction motors, suspension etc.

F1                                                         7,200 hrs                                                                      This is part of the component exchange maintenance system,

                                                                                                                                                  where items are renewed and the old ones go to a

                                                                                                                                                   main works for reconditioning

F2                                                        14,400 hrs                                                                     As above but includes components which have a longer service life

 

Most locos entering a TMD did so for a reason, even if it was for refuelling. If a loco were coming in for servicing or examination it would be refuelled prior to anything else. Some locos coming in for unscheduled repair would be shunted into a siding while awaiting a repair berth. There would be a few locos just coming on shed for stabling normally shunters and locos working ECS trains. On a model it is a fairly safe bet to run most locos on to the fuelling point on entering the shed.

 

From the Modern Railways 1967 article the amount of work done by Toton for a 4-week period was 1410 locos fuelled. A total of 748 were serviced and repaired, comprising of 260 A exams, 194 B exams, 82 C exams, 40 D exams and 17 E exams. This leaves 155 locos, which were repaired without being scheduled for servicing. The article goes on list a total of 353 repairs and modifications to locos but does not state how many locos had more than one repair, nor the number of faults found on examination. To fuel a loco would take sometime. The fuel pumps at Tinsley delivered fuel at 50 gallons per minute, a class 47 had a tank capacity of 850 gallons. Fuelling was normally done at the same time as the A exam, a long with other servicing, and restoring the levels water, sand and oil."

 

I hope this helps.

 

Editted to make tables look like tables again.

Interesting and informative  - a while back and time flies Clive.

All that servicing and upkeep the mind doesnt comprehend the costs to a nationalised BR back in the day - it has only come home to me being a CFPS member and seen the astronomical sums quoted for the repairs and upkeep of the Class 40 fleet.

Cant beat a decent run session.

How many PCA in rake David?

And what controller and ampage output are you at?

Cheers

29 minutes ago, Andrew P said:

Being 60's 70's Rock, we tend to play raw through the  Backline and PA and monitors for a clean driving thud.

Do a BLT.

1 hour ago, marc smith said:

 

Hi @Andrew P - only just caught up with this thread, and looked back to spot this pic.

Nice bass collection there mate. I particularly like the Jazz with the block & bound neck  
Just bagged myself a Trace Elliot 1x10 bass cab - ultra compact & lightweight (a 300W cab that weighs only 7.5kg - wow)
I could talk basses, amps, guitars and trains all day! - But perhaps much of that is for another forum? lol

The layout is looking good sir - your workshop is very neat & tidy compared to mine.
Don't get any sawdust on those instruments now.....

 

Thought the bass comments would come eventually - well done Marc.

Nice collection - well done Andy.

Just the one Bass and only one pair of hands -  although shouldn't have parted with a decent WAL Pro One back in 1985 going through the "Mullet" phase.

Forget the backline though -  unless your doing stadium rock - Tried most setups -  H+H  - JHS (lol) -  Custom Sound  - Peavey 2 x15" Cabs (immense) -  Ampeg -  Trace Elliot -  McGregor -  Fender Bassman  - Marshall 100w with 2 4X12 (Main gigging amp in my NWOBHM days) 

If you get chance cobble together some reasonable M-AUDIO 8" Studio Monitors through a SANSAMP DI in line with a KORG Ampworks MultiFX  modelling processor. Arguably quite a decent sound (if not the best) achieved in 40 years of trying  but a 1973 Precision with new zingy Rotosounds does help somewhat.

Thanks - and yes Andy -  Cornwall is a good as ever subject for the project  - tempted for a nice branch out to the coast at Pentewan?

Following.

So the main idea is running trains David? Sounds good without getting obsessed with the finer modelling details and just have a decent although expensive consist.

On 09/08/2021 at 13:54, sidmouth said:

the stock selection and nature of the layout makes me think if youtube footage of class 37's leaving a yard in Scotland with a fury of sound and exhaust , which could be created in o gauge on your layout

 

 

 

Yes - guilty as charged and it was all a good laugh back then wasn't it? -  but the penny has finally dropped Clag and Coal goodness - what on earth were we thinking?

3 hours ago, PatB said:

 

Interesting link. Whilst I think it's unlikely that "The Ancients" would have made and used ball bearings, I do consider it entirely plausible that, given a source of suitable material, large objects could have been moved on a thin bed of pea gravel (hence my comment on ancient undertanding of friction and lubrication) and/or finely ground mud.

10 hours ago, brossard said:

Well, the dinosaurs were dominant for more than 200 M years yet they never built a bridge or a Wankel rotary engine.  HS is the one changing the planet and not necessarily for the better.  Other organisms are along for the ride it seems to me.

 

To your last point that is extremely controversial and probably breaks forum rules.  I will say that if you want to follow up on that you should read Zecharia Sitchen's "12th Planet".  It is the first of the 7 volume "Earth Chronicles" set.  Another book in the same vein is Alan Alford's "Gods of the New Millenium".  A third example of the genre is Mike Tellinger's "Slave Species of the Gods".   Whether or not you accept the claims in these books they are fascinating and do make you think.

 

John

Utter shameless. 
 

I’m childishly laughing to myself as there’s no filter on Wankel. 

9 hours ago, brossard said:

 

I agree with you.  There are ancient structures that defy explanation.  The temple complex at Baalbek Leb. (some stones weigh more than 1000 tons - we have trouble with those today) some of the buildings in S. America incl Puma Punku.  The Pyramids have been puzzled over for centuries.

 

Not just buildings.  The map produced by Piri Reis (and there are others) in the early part of the 16th century (just a few years after Columbus landed) shows remarkable accuracy.  It also shows Antarctica correctly (and it wasn't discovered until about 1830).  What is really astounding is that it shows the continent ice free!  The depiction has been corroborated by USN surveys.  Antarctica was last ice free some 7000 years ago.

 

Graham Hancock's book "Fingerprints of the Gods" is a fascinating journey around the world documenting high technology in ancient times.  His follow on book "Magicians of the Gods" gives a plausible explanation for the causes of the great flood in 11,000 BCE.

 

John

 

Was “God” a Spaceman? was the question. 

We’re entering classic Von Daniken territory. I have quite a few views that crossover into the deity side of things that make seem to make sense but I’ve stopped discussing religion. 

4 minutes ago, adb968008 said:

20 years ago I was privilege to some rather high quality imagery, in real time from a government satelite, so clear I could read the tail sign of a commercial airliner in flight.

 

So when I see grainy black and whites 20 years later, I’m immediately skeptical. For sure sometimes intelligence can be dumbed down for commercial release to hide ones capabilities, but at high quality imaging available, from multiple sources, in multiple orbits, on demand, in realtime, they could be explained away without need for this to ever reach public consumption. So to release it, dumbed down, the only thing unexplained is why to release it at all… nothing to see here, unless there's Hollywood movie coming and needs some market stirring interest generating ahead of it.

 

 

A Conspiracy?

Surely not.

6 minutes ago, Zero Gravitas said:

 

This is exactly what the Drake equation was developed for:

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drake_equation

WOW!

6 minutes ago, Nick C said:

If you consider the number of stars in the universe, the proportion of those known or believed to have planets, what we know about the conditions required for life to exist, and the sheer distances involved, you end up coming to the following conclusion:

 

1. There are alomst certainly multiple, probably thousands, of other planets out there with life.

2. They are all far too far away for us to ever communicate with, or even know for sure of their existance.

 

I've probably mentioned it here before - we've been pumping out radio noise (and been able to listen to it) for around a century. Radio waves travel at the speed of light, so the furthest we have managed to reach is 100 light years away - the diameter of the milky way is between 100,000 and 200,000 light years. It'd be a bit like an ant standing in London with a lit ant-size match, trying to see another ant standing in Sydney.

Fortunate really.

I have never really been with the "Here we are"  "Come and Visit us" Radio Brigade - we have enough problems to deal with at the moment.

On 24/06/2021 at 00:19, Steamport Southport said:

 

Still going. Saw them about two years ago.

 

I think that was titled the Last Orders tour. Now there are dates for 2022 so I don't think they're giving up just yet!

 

http://www.ufo-music.info/

Way

Raymond

Chapman

Sadly missed 

Strangers in the Night still a definitive live album

3 hours ago, -missy- said:

 

A classic example is the the average house fly. Ever wondered why its extremely hard to 'swat' one? Think of a fly as a mini ufo......

 

Missy.

Easier to despatch when they have been battering their heads aimlessly against the window for the last half hour.

On 22/06/2021 at 15:24, brossard said:

Don't know if Elizondo is really a huckster.  You really need to check out the History Channel series "Unidentified:  Inside America's UFO Investigation".  Elizondo travels the world investigating sightings and interviewing a lot of influential people.  The show features some very credible people, including Chris Mellon, former Asst Defense Secretary.

 

https://www.history.co.uk/shows/unidentified

 

Chile is very interesting and is alleged to have the most UFO sightings, possibly due to difficult to inhabit parts of the country (desert, wilderness).

 

While, from what I've seen and read, the evidence for UFOs is pretty clear, that they are operated by extraterrestrials is less clear.  The possiblity that these things are deep black super secret defense projects needs to be ruled out first.

 

Scientists will tell you that extraterrestrial life will exist.  They also say that given the distance from the star system that they inhabit and danger that such travel entails, there is nothing in our solar system to entice these people to make the trip.

 

John

Odd that in all of todays photographic digital technology we still have to try and decipher a few grainy images be it from a fighter jet HUD display or elsewhere.

Why nothing has been published after 8 decades or so of interest to prove conclusively and say "there you go" I don't know.

The amount of stars (Suns) in the Cosmos does guarantee that extraterrestrial life does exist -  there is little chance that we are alone but the vastness of celestial distances may still defeat other lifeforms.

As many have mentioned before - whoever "they" are with any higher intelligence than humankind should give this Fugazi Blue Planet a serious wide berth.

3 hours ago, Neil said:

 

Really?

Yes  - were well on the way.

6 hours ago, Neil Phillips said:

 

That's the only reason I wear a mask too, and I wear it as little as possible. One of the first things I learned in biology lessons at school was that human beings inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. Breathing in your own exhaust for extended periods is a very bad idea, so anyone who thinks masks are the new normal is not living in the real world.

 

As for 19th July, I'm sure a Timbuktu or Outer Mongolian variant is already waiting in the wings to scupper that. Watch this space, we'll know soon enough. But I'm with you - 19th July that's it. If we don't stand up for ourselves we'll lose everything.

Good post.

Strong point of view  - and before the Hyenas on here start to circle.

On 26/06/2021 at 12:41, big jim said:

what that needs is the sound of the screech of the fan clutch engaging as the fan starts turning, hopefully something you are planning on adding? 

 

 

Is it more audible in cab than externally though?

1 hour ago, hayfield said:

 

Certainly I will be accepting the flu jab this autumn and any booster if offered, keeping away from foreign holidays as well. Especially as they are concerned about a new wave with the Delta variant, and apparently the latest variant is the Delta Plus according to one report

Flu has been around for ages and wont ever be eradicated. It is indeed of course fatal but we still get on with our lives.