RSS Fetcher

I've now painted and therefore completed the station building. For the most part I used Humbrol acrylic paints and was pleased with how I got on with them. I've had problems in the past but I like the matt finish (unlike some so called matt enamels), the way in which you can mix the paints and the ease with which they dilute with water. I collected a number of greyish acrylics whilst I was at Gaugemaster at Ford but didn't realise that some are a satin finish, this is not shown on the container. As a result the first coat of paint was with one of these, my puzzlement answered by reference to the Humbrol colour chart. My conclusion is that acrylics are great for painting natural colours, for representing painted surfaces such as locos and coaches, enamels are best. I would have liked the underlying brown to show through a little more though. The results of my efforts: Photographs of the end without the extension seem to show a lighter patch of stone in the middle of the wall with darker patches either side. I had thought about trying to represent this but thought that if I did anyone looking at it would say that I got the weathering wrong! As you can see, I have added a couple of notice boards. Photos of the station show boards in the position I've fixed them although these disappeared in the "goods only" days. In part 3 of his series of books on modelling GWR branches, Stephen Williams suggested putting a raised border round the edge of the board to better represent prototype practice. The flat surface of the Tiny Signs boards are just that, flat. I didn't feel able to cut out a square in paper as he did so used the finest Microstrip instead. I also fixed the boards with two battens each, if I was presented with the job of fixing a flat board to a rough surface that's exactly what I would do.Also, as Stephen Willaims suggested, both boards were given a coat of matt varnish. I really must refer to the Stephen Williams books more,they are full of simple ideas that can make such a difference. The roof has turned out well, if a little irregular, but I didn't do too much weathering. We had Sunday lunch at a local pub yesterday, the service was slow and I found myself looking out at a house opposite with a slate roof. It had been raining and the roof looked new, pristine dark grey with no staining at all. We probably forget the cleansing properties of rain and the Welsh border country has plenty of that. I'm now looking at the edging of the platform. I recently visited an excellent little model shop in Salisbury and found a sheet of moulded Plasticard with a very small diamond pattern. This is perfect for bricks (or slabs) that formed the edge of the platform. If I had felt like it I could have scored the strip to represent the separate bricks but balked at the thought. The separate bricks are hardly noticeable and bearing in mind my complete inability to consistently measure the same distance each time I thought it would probably look worse. If anyone would like to see photos of the prototype Google "Westbrook station" and any number will come up. Take out the photos of Westbrook station in Canada, there's no mistaking them, and you're left with fewer than half a dozen and only some of these show the station building. It's a gloomy looking station overshadowed by trees but did have quite a floral display. With two trains each way a day (three on Thursday, Hay market day) Station Master Knowles had plenty of tinme to ensure the gardens were tidy. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

Well, you'd have thought I'd have spotted that way before I got to wiring up the turntable - HND Electrical & Electronic Engineering pah! Of course having the two entries to the turntable and the desk permanently live means a dead short when you align it to one or the other entry roads. Something had to be done, I thought about insulated joints etc but decided to remove the problem altogether by making the longer curve entry into a siding and removing the RHD point leading to it. New plan is now this: and it looks like this in reality Wish I'd spotted it before I bought that extra RHD point, cost me £6.50! Wiring is almost complete, just got the station area left hand side to do, should be done in another evening, then I can get on with the Boxfile for a bit Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

In April of last year I said not to expect frequent posts here and there has only been one post since that date. My 4mm finescale modelling has not completely stopped but I've done little worth writing about with any of my EM or S4 layouts and stock. There has however been big progress on building baseboards, mounting them without soil connection and then track laying, through most of last summer and autumn. No electrical wiring required because this is all live steam with remote radial control or battery driven electric with radio control Therefore I'm happy to report that I now have a garden railway of sorts, albeit devoid of buildings or scenic features, but with a passing loop on the main line, a secondary 'roundy-roundy' and two turn-outs ready for siding connection. A few pics of the garden below. I spoke about the special train 'Diamond Jubilee', and work on that is slowly progressing. A few goods wagons are built, but no guards van! My first loco has been built but still needs the livery completing, it has however done plenty of work, mainly test hauling rolling stock, both passenger and freight, all of this giving test running all over the layout too. This loco is a small, freelance diesel, radio controlled, battery driven. The electronic part of that was yet another learning curve but I can see a future for this type of control in the smaller gauges - I understand it has already been applied to RTR N gauge with success! Think about it, - no track wiring, no track cleaning, absolutely no pick-up problems, loco control like the real thing, - like being in the real cab, - that is individual control (feed in the loco address) and then, with a wireless remote control, beautifully smooth speed control from crawl at less than walking speed to "eat your heart out Mallard"! All the builds have so far been from kits but those little grey cells are already starting to itch! As a closing giggle I will tell you that the larger baseboards out in the garden are based on the baseboard design I started this blog to talk about - extruded pvc insulation foam, light as feathers but much, much stronger. Oh!, for those considering this a doubtful idea, particularly outside, the largest of the boards has now spent two winters out there and shows not a hint of twist or decay. Random pics of the full route. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

Since "finishing" the board, I began to become less and less happy with the board so began editing the model. Scenic's Having completed the coal merchant area, I began working on the area next to the track, this had been planned to be just black ballast but it was recommended that I cover the area in green foliage, with the intent of covering it with some static grass work. The end result was sort of gone the way it was recommended, but I have to say I'm a lot happier about it now. Then when I first did this a few months ago. With that, I finally set about weathering and re-applying the figures to the model. I managed to find a figure which I've had for a long time. With his bowler hat, I thought, that's a manager. So I set about fitting him just outside of the building so he'd stand out and look important. Point Lever The next minor piece was to add a pull bar on the point, to allow the fireman or shunter to pull the point over when the loco is either collecting or dropping off wagons for or from the coal merchant. This was fairly simple in cutting out, undercoating and painting then fitting, I took some of the sleepers from the track which I had cut away previously on the rail to get the accurate sleeper spacings, to form an extension of the sleepers from the point then I glued the pull bar onto the model. Horse & Cart Another little job, using an old white metal kit which I cleaned then super glued together I was able to get this into the primer and paint fairly quickly as shown this was done at the same time as the point leaver. to paint the horse I cheated using similar wood paint but mixed in some varnish, as horse coats tend to be shiny when properly looked after. The cart I painted a set of different coloured woods to show that the cart has been repaired a number of times with a good number of different types of wood around the frame. Finally** So here we have it completed again, it's taken me a few more weeks but I think I've cracked it and it looks 10x better than it did a few months ago. As I said, a layout is never finished. But I'm looking to do another board in the future but this will be finished off with the J70's finally getting onto the layout. In addition Board 5 has progressed well and this has been the progress so far, the layout is planned to be at an exhibition within the next few months so time is ticking for N&SBLR to be completed with the latest board, hopefully, the LNER J70's will arrive in time to operate the layout. Thanks for reading Cheers Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

A nice weekend down south for the gang at the Southampton show and a good chance to catch up with Jerry and Paula. A good show all around and nice accommodation too. We were also happy to be awarded the Founders Cup for the best layout by the organisers. No major issues with the layout but no show would be complete without a few niggles to put on the fault list and give us something to do when we get back to base. The black surroundings of the drama studio worked pretty well with our night scene too. Our thanks to the organising team for an enjoyable weekend. Some photos... Marie Celeste? That's better Someone brought along some St Ruth appropriate reading material. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

Hi, I am wanting to make a fiddle yard using cassettes. I am totally confused why there is 100% mention of using aluminium. Why not use a piece of Peco track???? Before I go far into this, perhaps somebody can please answer that question? I have seen the latter system whereby bull dog clips are used to link the main layout to the selected cassette. Does any body know where I can find pictures of this system, please? From what I have seen at shows there is a mass of ideas! However, please let me have your solutions using easy straight forward words, exclude the word inter face. Thank you all so much for your valued help. Best wishes. John Modeller of `Halwill` on YouTube View the full article

<p>The second vehicles lighting unit is wired up so just some photos of the set as it is now. Still no directional lighting fitted - I can't put it off too much longer though.</p><p> </p><p><br /><span style='font-size: 10px'>Both vehicles with saloon lights on & BILs illuminated</span></p><p> </p><p><br /><span style='font-size: 10px'>Cab light on</span></p><p> </p><p><br /><span style='font-size: 10px'>Inter-vehicle wiring</span></p><p> </p><p>I think that the inter-vehicle wiring needs a bit of a rethink - possibly with a couple of holes in the floor and running some of them that way rather than having them all running through the corridor connections.</p><p> </p><p>Looking at the photo of the cab, I think a bit of rebuilding of the desk is needed to make it fit better - the original is rather undersized.</p><p> </p><p>Cheers</p><div id='attach_wrap' class='rounded clearfix'> <h4>Attached thumbnail(s)</h4> <ul> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21868]' id='ipb-attach-url-1108155-0-56909800-1548618540' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-7028-0-52980900-1548617750.jpg"title="20190127_185628.jpg - Size: 101.86KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-7028-0-52980900-1548617750_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1108155-0-56909800-1548618540' style='width:800;height:228' class='attach' width="800" height="228" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21868]' id='ipb-attach-url-1108156-0-57817700-1548618540' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-7028-0-19293700-1548617763.jpg"title="20190127_185639.jpg - Size: 145.84KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-7028-0-19293700-1548617763_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1108156-0-57817700-1548618540' style='width:800;height:747' class='attach' width="800" height="747" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21868]' id='ipb-attach-url-1108158-0-57822400-1548618540' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-7028-0-11594200-1548617776.jpg"title="20190127_185654.jpg - Size: 236.26KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-7028-0-11594200-1548617776_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1108158-0-57822400-1548618540' style='width:800;height:690' class='attach' width="800" height="690" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> </ul> </div> View the full article

I cut my DCC teeth using Digitrax. Much of the basic kit was bought on various trips to the USA. I like the system with its two control nobs on each handset and 5amps which allows power to spare for the sound decoders I wanted. I use a DS100 with a DB150 as a booster I was an early purchaser of Cobalt point motors and found a few troublesome. But DCC Concepts have been very supportive. Their latest Cobalt IP is great and saves the wiring involved with separate stationery decoders. The photo shows the Digitrax 64s I use for the older Cobalts. The aim is to move all the control equipment off the baseboards. I have recently bought a couple of Cobalt SS surface mounting point motors and they also seem very good. I did consider the MERG route and although I admire their work I do not think I am quite up to grasping the intricacies! Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

The basic design is a double track continuous run (LSWR/SR mainline to the West) meeting the S&D The latter has terminus platforms and the former through platforms. The S&D climbs on partly hidden tracks until it emerges on a viaduct which leads to a raised cassette fiddle yard. After various experiments with different gradients I decided to aim for 1:50. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

<p>Peco point templates were used to plan the track layout </p><div id='attach_wrap' class='rounded clearfix'> <h4>Attached thumbnail(s)</h4> <ul> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21864]' id='ipb-attach-url-1108004-0-99969700-1548604141' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-4181-0-93937000-1548603620.jpeg"title="F2102EA7-DD55-40CB-99EE-B737F4788685.jpeg - Size: 353.69KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-4181-0-93937000-1548603620_thumb.jpeg" id='ipb-attach-img-1108004-0-99969700-1548604141' style='width:800;height:600' class='attach' width="800" height="600" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> </ul> </div> View the full article

<p>The 9mm ply baseboards were braced with 3x1 timber and covered with cork tiles.</p><div id='attach_wrap' class='rounded clearfix'> <h4>Attached thumbnail(s)</h4> <ul> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21863]' id='ipb-attach-url-1108003-0-01514500-1548604142' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-4181-0-22395700-1548603278.jpeg"title="EC447A3B-364B-497C-8073-6854CEC353A7.jpeg - Size: 191.33KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-4181-0-22395700-1548603278_thumb.jpeg" id='ipb-attach-img-1108003-0-01514500-1548604142' style='width:800;height:600' class='attach' width="800" height="600" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> </ul> </div> View the full article

A somewhat belated Happy New Year to everyone, the latest blog entry is a general look into the nooks and crannies of the layout, and it could be easily retitled 'where abouts can you put a compact camera'? Anyway enough of that malarky - on with the photos. The first depicts the business end of platform one - looking towards the Stationmasters house. Unfortunately the noticeboard cannot be read on this shot - but it says that 'The New Summer Timetable is available from the Booking Office'. - Useful information for the travelling public. The second shot is the same area, taken from the Bay side. The photographer is standing behind a couple of empty Horseboxes waiting at the loading dock. For the third shot of the same area the photographer appears to have climbed onto the roof of the parcels lock-up (I hope he had permission to do that!) Next comes a full frontal view... of the Signalbox, not much can be said about this, except the Signalman must have been called away whilst busy sweeping up spilt coal around his coalbunker, as he has left his broom behind. Now we move to the 'Loco' - this is the back of the shed, lots of 'railway clutter' dumped round here, as its hidden away from prying eyes and authority. We follow this with a view into the shed - the auto fitted pannier is busy elsewhere, and the Depot is bereft of Engines, only a lonely 16t mineral wagon loaded with coal sits on the spur beyond the turntable. Looks like the Shedman is busy emptying the ashpit - rather him than me... Now comes a visit to the other side of the tracks, and a glimpse into the Sproston Creamery loading siding, taken from behing the box. The private siding is unusually empty and the gate is open allowing study of the overhead tanker washout pipes, beyond them is the white milk filling hose,with above that a water hose hanging at the near end of the loading platform. Following this we move to the Goods yard, Starting with the coalyard, which has no coal wagons in it at present - though the coalmerchants lorry is fully loaded,so maybe we should have been here yesterday. Next view is the other side of the wagons, and here there is much activity, most of it involving a Coles 6 ton mobile crane. A couple of staff seem to be having a disagreement regarding the unloading of the open wagons. For our last photo taken on Railway Property, we go to the back of the Goods Shed behind the cattle dock, with a view into the shed just showing the 10cwt internal crane. The final photo is of the 'Station Garage' prop.S Dingle,this is just behind the station goods yard,and the staff are still working on what appears to be the main bearings on the front end of an old steam roller - its obviously a long job...so we had better leave them to it. Well, thats the end of our little photo trip around Sproston Station - do come back for another... Comments, good or bad always welcome, Regards, (SIGTECH) Steve. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

<p>A small dedicated room was painted sky blue and a faux wood floor laid. Cantilevered brackets were added to support the baseboards</p><div id='attach_wrap' class='rounded clearfix'> <h4>Attached thumbnail(s)</h4> <ul> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21862]' id='ipb-attach-url-1107910-0-37386400-1548599415' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-4181-0-67571600-1548598816.jpeg"title="EF91AC46-9909-430C-8DA3-9E106EF86FFA.jpeg - Size: 199.6KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-4181-0-67571600-1548598816_thumb.jpeg" id='ipb-attach-img-1107910-0-37386400-1548599415' style='width:800;height:600' class='attach' width="800" height="600" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> </ul> </div> View the full article

<p>Having recently taken delivery of an extra Class 33 (1990s railtour condition), SDJR Jinty, and West Highland liveried MK1 (Fort Bill-Mallaig mid 80s), I posed some little cameos.</p><div id='attach_wrap' class='rounded clearfix'> <h4>Attached thumbnail(s)</h4> <ul> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21861]' id='ipb-attach-url-1107621-0-51588300-1548533942' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-09406900-1548533349.jpg"title="IMG_E0308.JPG - Size: 211.74KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-09406900-1548533349_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1107621-0-51588300-1548533942' style='width:800;height:463' class='attach' width="800" height="463" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21861]' id='ipb-attach-url-1107622-0-52625000-1548533942' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-73605600-1548533371.jpg"title="IMG_E0304.JPG - Size: 242.34KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-73605600-1548533371_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1107622-0-52625000-1548533942' style='width:800;height:497' class='attach' width="800" height="497" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21861]' id='ipb-attach-url-1107623-0-52630400-1548533942' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-62034500-1548533388.jpg"title="IMG_E0305.JPG - Size: 188.38KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-62034500-1548533388_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1107623-0-52630400-1548533942' style='width:800;height:455' class='attach' width="800" height="455" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21861]' id='ipb-attach-url-1107624-0-52634800-1548533942' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-65056600-1548533410.jpg"title="IMG_0302.JPG - Size: 213.36KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-65056600-1548533410_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1107624-0-52634800-1548533942' style='width:800;height:383' class='attach' width="800" height="383" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21861]' id='ipb-attach-url-1107625-0-52639100-1548533942' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-31725300-1548533424.jpg"title="IMG_E0307.JPG - Size: 199.67KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-18087-0-31725300-1548533424_thumb.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1107625-0-52639100-1548533942' style='width:800;height:475' class='attach' width="800" height="475" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> </ul> </div> View the full article

Regards Charlie View the full article

<p>Yes, the port scene has a name. There's a castle at the top of the hill, and a port at the bottom - hence Castleport. How dull, I hear you say, and you may well be right. If Google is to be believed, no other town in the whole of the English speaking world has deemed the name worthy of use, even though there are plenty that would qualify. Where the name does crop up it tends to be associated with mundane things like retail outlets and shopping malls.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> The town itself, climbing up the hill to the castle, was inspired by the riverside area of Durham, as depicted in the posters below by Brangwyn, Newbould and Taylor...</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> Properties in the town offer little of architectural merit, the recent building boom having thrown up a load of quick-build housing of shoddy cardboard construction. The residents of Castleport can expect a future of subsidence, sagging rooflines and peeling wallpaper. The examples in the image below are typical of the rest...</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> Steps leading up from the dock provide access to the town. Those beside the station come out opposite Evans' emporium and are known, naturally enough, as the Stairway to Evans...</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> A view to the left...</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> ...and a view to the right...</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> That about sums up Castleport. More detailing still needs to be added. No doubt the population will come out of hiding eventually. For now though, I'm happy to leave it at that and move on to the third and final scene on this baseboard, which will be industrial.</p><p> </p><p> Cheers, Alan.</p><div id='attach_wrap' class='rounded clearfix'> <h4>Attached thumbnail(s)</h4> <ul> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21859]' id='ipb-attach-url-1106874-0-96307300-1548413342' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-56466200-1548409509.jpg"title="Tweedale25-1.JPG - Size: 63.42KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-56466200-1548409509.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1106874-0-96307300-1548413342' style='width:640;height:471' class='attach' width="640" height="471" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21859]' id='ipb-attach-url-1106875-0-97552900-1548413342' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-75245400-1548409521.jpg"title="Tweedale25-2.jpg - Size: 42.04KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-75245400-1548409521.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1106875-0-97552900-1548413342' style='width:640;height:180' class='attach' width="640" height="180" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21859]' id='ipb-attach-url-1106876-0-97560000-1548413342' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-00528900-1548409531.jpg"title="Tweedale25-3.jpg - Size: 38.55KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-00528900-1548409531.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1106876-0-97560000-1548413342' style='width:640;height:361' class='attach' width="640" height="361" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21859]' id='ipb-attach-url-1106877-0-97565900-1548413342' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-05123800-1548409549.jpg"title="Tweedale25-4.jpg - Size: 123.01KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-05123800-1548409549.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1106877-0-97565900-1548413342' style='width:640;height:520' class='attach' width="640" height="520" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21859]' id='ipb-attach-url-1106878-0-97570800-1548413342' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-85493100-1548409559.jpg"title="Tweedale25-5.JPG - Size: 67.36KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-85493100-1548409559.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1106878-0-97570800-1548413342' style='width:640;height:520' class='attach' width="640" height="520" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> <li class=''> <a class='resized_img' rel='lightbox[21859]' id='ipb-attach-url-1106879-0-97575000-1548413342' href="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-40805200-1548409568.jpg"title="Tweedale25-6.jpg - Size: 107.63KB, Downloads: 0"><img src="http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_01_2019/blogentry-26120-0-40805200-1548409568.jpg" id='ipb-attach-img-1106879-0-97575000-1548413342' style='width:640;height:473' class='attach' width="640" height="473" alt="Attached Image" /></a> </li> </ul> </div> View the full article

I finally managed to build the last sections of baseboard for my layout, these two sections were both odd shapes and needed to be drawn based on the reality of what I'd already built and not just from the overall master drawing. I've already discovered that 'square' means a different thing to builders and walls aren't always at 90 degrees to each other! The short section over the right hand side of my desk carries a 3'6" radius curve which is does most of the turn back to get along the wall with the fiddle-yard. This meant that I could just support one end on the existing layout boards and the other on a leg next to the door frame. The result means that I can remove it relatively easily when I need to do anything serious with the 3D printer which can still sit in the corner. The truly removable section over the door is almost straight and I built it with only a 30mm depth of framing as it is so small. The result is lightweight but very strong. The track is just ready-to-run P4 track stuck to a cork base. The baseboard ends have a strip of paxolin screwed to them onto which I've soldered the rails. The shaped piece of ply means that the removable section will sit in a rough alignment when it is put into place. Also soldered to the paxolin are some pieces of brass tube which form a simple bolt to get the alignment accurate and these also take the track power across the baseboard joint. I know from experience that I will need to modify these to add a sprung wiper contact as electricity tends not to reliably flow between two concentric brass tubes (yes really!) I put a brief video up on Youtube to show some of the first trains running round the room. Some of the track in this section is still a little jury-rigged so I still have a bit of work to do on that front. I've still got to complete the back road of the fiddle-yard and wire up the two points at either end of the loop. I've also got to make a load more cassettes so I can start storing and swapping stock. I came up with a simple method for electrical connection between the cassettes. The end of the rail is soldered to a length of sleeper strip which goes across the width of the cassette. I solder two L shaped strips of brass (scrap etch) to these and then on one of them a short strip of phosphor-bronze to form a wiper. There are usually 3 cassettes in a row and I'm feeding power from either end so there is a bit of redundancy. I'll see how this works in practice. I am also considering a redesign in the sides of the cassettes. Having a low, narrow cassette with a length of track down it sounds fine but you can't get your fingers in to rerail stock easily. This is particularly impossible with bogie vehicles where you find the bogies have a mind of their own. Making the sides much lower would weaken the cassette too much so I've tried making it taller and then cutting some access holes in the side. Time will tell if this is better solution. Obviously this is one heck of a milestone in the layout construction and one I frankly didn't expect to get to this time last year. Thanks to everyone for their support and encouragement both online and 'in real life'. David Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

Progress has been ongoing - albeit not well documented on my part! The LokPilot FX has arrived and has been wired in along side the LokSound and a Zimo speaker in each vehicle. I am using the 'Decoder Lock' feature of many decoders to program (this uses CV 15 & 16 to ensure only the selected decoder responds to programming commands). Zimo speaker in the trailer vehicle All of the lighting works as hoped in the motor vehicle, a bit bright but when it is all together this can be adjusted through the decoders. Internal and Leading Cab Light on BIL Lights on I have had to lengthen the toilet area to house the decoders as the roof is taken up by the lighting boards and the Pacers don't have a lot of hidden space with their large windows and open seating area. Lenthened toilet area with decoders and wiring visible before glazing is installed I have used thin wire between the two vehicles which mean it is now permanently coupled. Most of the remaining work is simple to do - Fitting NRN Radio pods, creating a floor for the motor area, adding head/tail lights and fitting a functional coupling to either end. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

My last Post https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/880/entry-21774-a-deltic-dalliance/ reviewed past ready-to-run Deltic models. The message was that the prototype was large, lengthy (and noisy) and that a scale model was not compatible with train set curves. In an attempt to solve the issue Bachmann appeared to have adopted a ‘Belt and Braces’ approach. The Bachmann model has a narrower profile for the leading bogie wheels while at the same time thinning the bodywork with ‘cutouts’ in the vicinity of the front and rear bogie wheels. Then in addition, Bachmann controversially raised the running height of the model by almost 2mm (6inches). The perceived wisdom on the ‘web’ is that it is relatively easy to lower the Bachmann model to give the correct ride height. I would take up the challenge. Bachmann D9004 Queen's Own Highlander, lowered and coupled to a Bachmann Mk1 As with a lot of things in life there is generally more than one route to the desired goal. MkII Bogie Tower 'as bought' Probably the shortest route to follow involves cutting away the plastic wings on the top of the bogie towers. If this doesn’t provide the necessary ‘drop’ in height then the bogie support ribs within the Bachmann chassis block can be ground down. Carrying rib for bogie tower It follows that it is also necessary to reduce the overall height of the tower lowering the shoulders of the top spigot so that it can poke further through the chassis block. I have not attempted this route as I was seriously unhappy at the thought that I was ‘damaging’ both the chassis block and the bogie towers and that in the event that the results were not as expected the process would not be reversible. I also had a residual concern as to whether the free rotation of the bogie towers might be compromised, particularly where there were changes of both horizontal and vertical track profile at the same time. Bachmann Bogie Tower Mk III Bachmann have changed the design of their bogies and the latest (I shall call their MkIII bogie) has thicker ‘wings’. It occurs to me that the required drop in height might now be achievable without the need to grind any of the chassis away. I wonder if anyone has gone down this road? Bachmann Bogie Tower Mk II I decided to avoid any grinding and to concentrate on the bogie towers. (Mk1 with four wheel drive and MkII with six wheel drive are identical in this respect.) If I was to be unsuccessful spare towers are available off eBay or from Bachmann. First I shortened the two support pillars that feature either side of the drive shaft. Ideally these should be reduced in height by 2mm but in retrospect it would be better to aim for 1.5mm. I think they are formed from Nylon. They are certainly very tough and do not readily cut with a craft knife. Too much pressure with a knife blade and there is a danger that they will snap off the main body of the bogie. I used part of ball point pen to make a circular collar to slip over the column supports and to act as a height guide whilst I carefully pared away the top of the column. Getting both pillars the same height is paramount. Bogie Tower caps, 'as bought' left, 'ground out' right The caps that are screwed to the tops of the tower also need some attention. I used a grinding tool attached to my Proxon drill (similar to a Dremel). The tab at the ‘back’ of the cap that presses down on the worm drive needs to be reduced in height to match the change in height of the columns. Depending on whether the column height was reduced by the full 2mm or by a slightly lesser amount it might also be necessary to grind some of the plastic away from the underside of the cap to make more space to accommodate the drive shaft coupling to the worm. I have to admit to the process being rather one of trial and error. Bogie Towers, before left, after lowering right I should also point out that the columns have a blind hole in them for accommodating the cap fixing screws. I drilled these deeper with a 1mm diameter bit. After reassembly and reattachment to the metal chassis block my model sounded like the proverbial ‘bag of nails’. I spent a couple of evenings trying to figure out what was catching only to eventually realise that the bottom of the tower to chassis fixing screw was rubbing on the drive shaft coupling beneath the cap. I used a file to remove about 1mm in length.. There are three views below of finished bogies. Bachmann Deltic Bogie Tower - Lowered There are a couple of guides on either side of the worm. These seemed to be surplus to requirements and at one point I thought they might be catching the underside of the chassis block. I cut the tops off them. Bachmann Deltic Bogie Tower - Lowered The space between the towers which accommodates the drive shaft coupling is very tight and I pared some plastic off the inner faces of the tower. Bachmann Deltic Bogie Tower - Lowered I have now converted two sets of bogies and there are some views below of the reassembled models. Bachmann models D9002 and D9004 with lowered body shells Bachmann D9004 Queen's Own Highlander with lowered body shell How does it work? Surprisingly well, there is a YouTube video showing one of the lowered models running round the layout. I have included a scene showing the model successfully negotiating two pairs of Mr Peco’s old fashioned Medium Radius Streamline points from the 1990s. What could possibly go wrong? Everything appeared fine until I started to carry out some un-prototypical movements – running the wrong way through sets of points. I had particular problems with a Peco Streamline curved point. Coming from the curved branch the front wheels of the bogie would leave the track whilst exiting the point at the end with the blades. Whilst the Peco curved points have ‘form’ when it comes to causing derailments, there is another cardinal rule on any model railway to the effect that if all the other rolling stock runs faultlessly – then the fault is with the engine or wagon and not the track. On closer inspection it was apparent that my model had a slight ‘lean’ to one side. The Bachmann towers are surprisingly precise and despite the apparent sloppiness of the tower fixings to the chassis it is essential that the caps at the top of the towers are perfectly level across the width of the chassis. (A slight fore and aft tilt doesn’t seem to matter so much.) Is everything square? I placed a steel rule across the chassis and measured the height on either side. I kept the bogies a ’loose fit’ and stood the model on a glass chopping ‘board’. It was then relatively easy to adjust the tops of the columns to bring the caps at the tops of the tower level. How easy? Well it is easy enough to pare plastic away but I also had to add a couple of shims (homemade plastic washers) to the tops of a couple of the columns where I had been too enthusiastic. After squaring everything up the model runs perfectly. A reminder It makes life a lot simpler refitting the bogies into the chassis if the drive shafts are fitted the correct way round. The shafts are ‘handed’ and the spherical end needs to ‘pop’ into the bogie coupling whilst the rectangular ‘fins’ need to be able to slide within the motor coupling. I suspect that having the shafts fitted correctly makes the running quieter. Drive shaft spherical connection to bogie Drive shaft rectangular connection to motor Conclusion Is it worth the effort? I am not sure but I enjoyed the challenge. Bachmann Deltics with lowered body shells View the full article

I've now completed the station building apart from the painting. Unfortunately due to the weather it looks as though we won't be going down to Ford tomorrow (celebrating Mrs. D's birthday) so the light and dark stone I was going to get from Gaugemaster will have to wait. In my last entry I was about to make substantive progress with the roof. The jig I made to cut the tiles (in 5thou Plasticard) worked well apart from the odd occasion when I failed to notice the strip was firmly against the stop which resulted in a slightly narrower tile. Experience prompted me to make another jig (visible in the front of the building in the photo below). This was simply a strip of etched NS waste with a length of bullhead rail soldered to it. The distance between the edge of the waste and the edge of the rail is important as this will be the height of the tile visible. I made sure the first, bottom, row was in line and thereafter the other rows were laid by aligning the edge of the rail to the bottom edge of the tiles already laid. The next row was then laid with the bottom of each tile abutting the top of the etch. This ensured the row spacing was consistent and that they were all in line. As a check I ruled a few parallel lines on the underlying Plasticard base to ensure that as I went up towards the apex of the roof the rows were not sloping one way or the other which would have been disastrous for the appearance. Fortunately the template ensured this did not happen. In total I think I laid about 600 tiles but with a ready supply of pre-cut tiles and the jig in place I found I could lay a row of 21/22 tiles in 2 minutes or less. I just put some liquid poly on the base sheet and picked up the tiles with the point of a craft knife, in fact it was putting the cement on that was the biggest hindrance to quick progress. As the underlying tiles showed above the jig it was easy to locate the tiles midway over the underlying joint and against the strip of NS etch. I can say that without these jigs I would not have been able to do the roof, I find difficulty in measuring millimetres from a ruler and even the smallest variance in the size of the tiles would have been immediately noticeable. I thought the ridge tiles would be slate but photographs show conventional rounded clay tiles. This caused a little head scratching but I found a length of thick walled plastic tube of about the right diameter in my "plastics" box. (I also have a "metals" box.) I filed a flat along the length of the tube, actually exposing the hollow core. The core was further filed out which then enabled the length of tube to be fitted over the apex of the roof. I have only traced 4 photos of the building, 3 of those are taken from a roughly three-quarter angle looking towards the plain end wall and only one is taken, again at a roughly three-quarter angle, of the wall with the extension. This one was taken after closure. I have no photo looking directly at the front (or indeed back) wall. The plan did not show the extension or detail of guttering and downpipes although it appears from the photos that there was guttering along the front and back, as indeed one would expect. I still had a few lengths of fine plastic angle which, if the external right angle is sanded down, makes very acceptable guttering. I must try and get more of this as the back gutter is made up of 4 strips as I didn't have one length long enough. The downpipes were plastic rod which fortunately takes a little bending. There was no sign of the downpipes on the front face of the building so I had to assume they angled in and were fixed to the end wall. Such is the joy of modelling a prototype location but I don't think anyone alive can tell me that's wrong! One final complication was the chimney. The photo I used for reference showed the chimney lost in a haze but it was only after I looked at another photo did I realise the structure was a good deal higher than I had made it. It was also more elaborate at the top so I spent some time adding further layers. It is interesting to see how ornate chimneys could be when compared with the rest of a building. A couple of other minor points. The door handles are brass handrail knobs and the gap between the extension roof and the wall of the main building was covered by a strip of 5thou Plasticard to represent the lead flashing. I was quite pleased to see on a better photograph of Clifford station (the other on the Hay extension and with a similar, though larger building) that the lead flashing was prominent; I previously guessed it must have been there without any evidence. For those who don't know the Golden Valley Railway, it is worth mentioning that the branch originally ran from Pontrilas to Dorstone. The stations all had wooden buildings. Soon after opening the line was extended to Hay on Wye with three new stations, Clifford, Westbrook and Green's Siding. The latter was always just a halt but for some reason the other two stations were favoured with a substantial stone structure for the main building even though they contributed less traffic than Dorstone for example. I can perhaps now make a start on painting the stonework. I found by Googling a colour photograph of an existing bridge on the Hay extension which was useful in determining the colour of stone used. It is clearly made from the same stone as Westbrook station building as the blocks appear identical, and indeed very similar to those on the embossed sheet I used. The bridge is a light brown with what I thought was a slight grey tinge, again similar to that used for the embossed sheet. This type of research is one of the interesting parts of modelling a prototype location and it's always a good feeling to fill one of the holes in your knowledge of the prototype. This has been an interesting exercise and it's nice to be able to construct something from scratch rather than a kit. Now I have to think about what I do next. Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

Well after nearly a two and a half month stay in Hospital, thanks to the fantastic and severely under appreciated NHS I have survived and live to write more blogs. I really cant find the words to thank all the staff who looked after me and went above and beyond to provide me with the care and treatment I needed. I have a long period of rehab ahead of me, in learning to walk again, regain control of my right arm, and build up my muscle mass again but this is a small price to pay, So the bad news is as a type this with a very shaky left hand is that I wont be able to do any modelling for a long time to come, the good news for many of the people who read my blogs is that I wont be doing any modelling for a long while to come So before I nod off again (this rehab is exhausting) a massive thanks to anyone involved with the fantastic NHS, we are truly very lucky and should be very grateful that we have such and organisation to look after us. I literally owe them my life View the full article

Good morning, I wonder if someone could advise me on the process of posting a video on RM Web, . I`ve watched several on here with interest and some quite lengthy ones but I`m afraid all my attempts end in failure, probably because they are too long. Is it a case of trial and error till you get down to the max 30Mb or is there another way? Many thanks, Jim. View the full article

Good morning, I wonder if someone could advise me on the process of posting a video on RM Web, . I`ve watched several on here with interest and some quite lengthy ones but I`m afraid all my attempts end in failure, probably because they are too long. Is it a case of trial and error till you get down to the max 30Mb or is there another way? Many thanks, Jim. View the full article

So another damp cold Saturday allowed me to get all the track laid on the centre board. The adjustment the screws allowed for at the baseboard joints worked really well - allowing for the differences in alignment that somehow crept in between mine and Santa's workshops Just need to wire up the centre board and then we at least have a layout for the Mansfield Show Didn't take long for George to move in though ... The lack of power does not deter him as he still likes to push them round - grown up Brio Note G has solved the dual mode issue without resorting to expensive new trains - HST power car at one end and a class 90 at the other Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article

So another damp cold Saturday allowed me to get all the track laid on the centre board. The adjustment the screws allowed for at the baseboard joints worked really well - allowing for the differences in alignment that somehow crept in between mine and Santa's workshops Just need to wire up the centre board and then we at least have a layout for the Mansfield Show Didn't take long for George to move in though ... The lack of power does not deter him as he still likes to push them round - grown up Brio Note G has solved the dual mode issue without resorting to expensive new trains - HST power car at one end and a class 90 at the other Attached thumbnail(s) View the full article