5050

Behind!

I suppose one potential way of getting lynched could be to prod a recalcitrant train with a walking stick....................................

Several years ago one of our members was exhibiting his (at the time) well-known layout at our exhibition for the last time. When he arrived with a new fiddle yard it would not fit into the space - so he sawed approx. 9" from the end. His trains were a lot shorter than usual that weekend!

I don't know if there's any factual basis to this but I have come to the conclusion that farts at exhibitions don't smell the same since the introduction of can motors. The old open frame motors possibly introduced ozone into the atmosphere which 'helped' the odour as a catalyst of some sort? Either that or breathing it in affected the farters metabolism in some way? Bring back a hall full of Dublo 3-rail or Hornby 0 gauge electrics and we could test the theory. Or die in the process..............................

Now finished a couple more trucks, one being the Peterbilt Flat Truck seen before 'in the raw' and another 'adapted' from an IMEX Petrol Tanker into a stake truck. The Petrol Tanker was bought at the last Hampsthwaite meet and, as i already have the scratchbuilt Green one (see above also) I decided to make something else. The cab casting turns out to be a reasonable representation of a 1948/49 Ford - but with the usual IMEX 'chrome' chassis. Rather than a repaint I decided to scrape the chrome off the chassis with a curved blade scalpel and remove the lettering and logos with a light abrasive block, a soaking in Decosol, and a light scraping again with the curved scalpel. The base coat Yellow paint is quite thick and resistant so little damage was done. The (plastic) tank is a 'friction fit' through two posts that fit into holes in the cast bed. A dummy planked plasticard floor was cut to fit and the stakes built up from Evergreen strips and painted 'wood' colour. To break up the flat side for interest I added the two-tone striping which is some Fox transfer for Intercity coaches or similar and I also added a Black area around the lights and grill. I think that is now plenty of road vehicles for the layout! See them at Wakefield Show!

What make are those Steve?

Well, if you had beaten Nick to the correct answer, you could have had FREE entrance to Wakefield Show! You still can - if you can get here!

I think it was Rochdale show that used to serve pie and peas along with the other necessary additives, mint sauce and pickled onions. This, I strongly believe, was where the expression 'The Pies Have Arrived' originated.

Correct! The prize is admission to Wakefield Exhibition at any of the advertised times at the advertised admission rate! Aren't you lucky................................

I've been advised today that a 'deliberate mistake' has occurred with this photo. I now know what it is - does anyone else? Answers in small pencil lettering on the back of a £5 note please. Or on here................... Free.

If you look at the same image on Google Images and expand the photo (Control +) then there appears to be an angle crank linking the conn rod to the valve gear rod. http://homepage.ntlworld.com/foxfield/Roker_in_steam_at_Foxfield_Colliery_in_the_1970s.jpg

It looks like a 'challenge' to build but it appears that you've done very well with it. One point though - why is there a hole in the middle of the connecting rod?

Wake up at the back, you boy! http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/90894-wakefield-rms-exhibition-2014/page-2 EDIT - just had a thought. Did you mean would I be at Wakefield, not just the layout? If so - yes!

We've had the layout erected in WRMS clubroom again this week to try out the schedule which now more or less works OK. It'll have to do now anyway so, if you come to see us at Wakefield Exhibition on the Friday evening, please be a little patient if there's some head scratching going on! This is a photo taken today -

Was that taken on 59th and Rust?

Hi Tony, visiting here from the Scratchbuilding thread, thanks for the link. So it's you that John F. has been assisting! I was beginning to wonder if it might be the case. He has mentioned a layout in Australia and that you are visiting soon. Pity the visit doesn't coincide with the exhibition. Perhaps sometime in the future eh? The backscenes definitely have a look of Woolley Edge about them which is why I thought they looked familiar. I think the whole layout is to an excellent standard. I look forward to seeing it develop. Considering the high standard of modelling, perhaps you could try a Western Region one next Or is that going a bit to far....................................... It's not that I'm particularly biased or anything towards the products of Swindon.....

Very nice modelling indeed. Wakefield West eh? Where's that supposed to be then? Somewhere around the Horbury/Healey Mills area? I sort of recognise the view of the backscene in the shed photo (or am I completely wrong and is it somewhere else entirely?!)

The additional 'springs' on the point rodding seem to work OK and, while we were at it, we amended the positioning of some of the tie-bar driving wires on the rods. They were biased slightly to one side and imposing a springing effect on the pushrods away from the microswitches which allowed them to open just a little and possibly create the short-circuits we had been experiencing. I've also now added a lick of paint to the 'Monon' petrol tanker. A totally ficticious livery to which I will eventually add an equally ficticious brand name. And the glazing......................

Well, it's similar if nothing else. I still think my windows may be a bit to small but as I've now laboriously cut and filed the glazing for them - they'll have to do! Good luck with the huts, there's several types of Evergreen available that will save a lot of time.

Another couple of topics relating to Woodsville for you. Points - we are fitting a 10thou strip of Nickel Silver bearing onto the operating rod to add a bit of friction rather than disrupt all the switches etc. A test will be carried out this week and if OK, then all rods will be so fitted. Road Vehicles - I've been trying to collect a representative selection of early/mid 50's vehicles which isn't all that easy. Although very nice models, most of the diecast ones seem to be a bit 'exotic' for your average 'Middle America' town so I've built some kits. Firstly, pair of 1930's autos, starting to feel their age but still running around town. The 1932 Ford Deuce Coupe is a Wheel Works white metal kit which, in kit form, is a soft-top with a folded down hood. I reckoned this might be a bit unlikely in New Hampshire so scratchbuilt a hard-top from styrene and followed a paint scheme found on the web. The other is a late 30's Sylvan Models Hudson Terraplane, a resin kit. No windows I admit - mainly because the moulded openings are all strange shapes which would have been a b*gg*r to file up and fit. Again painted similar to a photo on the web. Next a pair of 1940 Fords, both from Jordan kits in styrene. Nice kits, easy to build - and they have windows already fitted! The Black one was 'painted' using a large black permanent marker pen as suggested in the kit instructions which resulted in a nice patina. The other is supposed to be a worn dark blue - which was the result of trying to wipe off a coat of paint I didn't really care for! This is an IMEX models Stake Truck, originally a bright REA Green with a Chrome chassis! I've always been a bit discontented with this as a model until I discovered that it is actually quite a nice representation of a 1938/40 Peterbilt. I drilled out the 'rivets' holding the cab, radiator and stake deck to the chassis, sprayed the chassis black and dunked the cab into old brake fluid for a few days. It cleaned up nicely and I filed out the windows a bit to square them up and get them nearer to scale size. I didn't like the stake back so built a flat body which I think will be a bit more 'universal' in application. This also now needs a coat of paint so I'm looking around for something relatively 'ordinary'. Here we have the resin moulded cab from my clubmate Enginelane, a refugee from his Monon Layout thread. I fancied a petrol tanker to complement the Oil Depot on the layout and found a potential suitable prototype on the web. The tank is a modified Coopercraft Tank Trailer kit body as are the basic chassis and wheels. The rest is various lengths and thicknesses of Evergreen. I make no claims that this is a scale model of an actual truck but I think it provides the 'flavour flavor' of a small tanker. Again, not sure of the eventual color-scheme but I may use the one on the Oil Depot name board. See them all on the layout at Wakefield Show!

Following a bit of 'trading', this is now in my possession for use on 'Woodsville' - and looks like this - Some filing hacking and carving around the windows to enlarge them, the remains of a Coopercraft Tank Trailer kit (wheels, chassis, rebuilt tank), some plasticard, industrial language etc. and almost ready to paint. But how? Possibly to match the Oil Company on Woodsville? BTW, the white metal elements of the original have found their way into my 'large lumps of white metal and lead' box for weighting wagons etc. in the future. One man's rubbish etc. etc......................

Thanks Tony. This was an option we have discussed and if the slide switches don't work - we still might!

Thanks for your comments and suggestions everyone. We'll be having a discussion tomorrow about it!

I've now recovered from the exhibiting experience that was Halifax and can report that, considering it was the first time out and and the first time that we had attempted a full sequence, it wasn't TO bad. The layout travelled well, went up and down easily, worked electrically from the off and looked OK. In operation, we discovered anomalies in the operating sequence which can be ironed out relatively easily but we did have a problem with the electrical aspect of turnout operation. The microswitches positioned at the ends of the push-rods were springing back and breaking contact thus causing shorts and switching the DCC system off. Once we realised what was causing the problem we were able to hold the rods in against the spring as the loco passed over but an alternative system is required. This may well mean the use of small slide switches instead but we need to have a trial before committing ourselves. We need to have it sorted for Wakefield Exhibition last weekend of November so we have 2 months which SHOULD see us right! Otherwise, it all worked OK. Here is a shot of 'The Team' proudly standing behind the layout prior to the opening. Link to Wakefield Exhibition thread - http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/forum/41-exhibitions/

Thanks to you both, I was a bit curious.