devondynosoar118

Update- I have sorted out the sequential addresses, Nigel I found an old post of yours and that plus looking at the updated SMD84 manual has allowed me to sort out the addresses for individual solenoids and get them working. PDF manual-http://www.teamdigital1.com/resources/documents/smd84_ln_doc.pdf Next set of questions- I tried setting CV 29 value to 24, as suggested in the manual but may not have succeeded as the unit randomly cycled through solenoids until I reset it (hold smart button down until red and green leds flash alternately) then did the addresses again! I think I forgot to turn on then off again to accept the new values. Will try that later. That leaves me with- 1- Default ops address is "1" will I need to change this if I have 2 SMD84's or will the Mini Panel only send accessory commands to the individual solenoids (now I have renumbered them) via the serial bus (when I get CV29 set?) 2- I can set a unique ops number through "smart" programming to each decoder, which would enable ops mode on the main any time as I would only select that decoder. I can see this might be useful for maintainance purposes but I am hoping to program the lot then never touch it again as it's a pain! Do I really need this for it to work with the mini panel or is it only for programming?

I am still plugging away with the controls for Kingsbridge! I have gone with NCE mini panel and push buttons for point controls. I have SEEP PM1 solenoids. Set up so far- Board 1 has 9 points, 1-8 are all working fine off the handset direct. I had a mess around and was able to change all of them fine. Point 9 will have a dedicated jumper cable to board 2 for its control circuit. Currently all are feeding direct from the power cab, they will in future be controlled by the serial bus, I have the cable and connectors, waiting on the crimp. They will also feed off a separate fused 5A PSU, either my lenz one or a dedicated DC one, whichever is better. I realise I will need to set CV29 to a value of 24 to achieve serial bus control off NCE. If this is incorrect I am happy to change it, as I haven't worked the programming out yet! The only permanent connections to the DCC track bus on the PM1's are the two microswitch inputs for changing the common crossing polarity. I have a separate common for each board which rubs to the decoder. Nothing else will run off the point control. The signals and uncoupling will all be on a separate bus. Where I have had a problem- How do I know when I am programming the accessory decoder? It has no readback of any values, unlike loco decoders. Which programming mode should I use on the powercab? I have NOTHING ELSE DCC connected to the Powercab at present, as the boards are dismantled. I will have 2 SMD84's so need to change the decoder address- 1 for board 1, 2 for board 2 etc. The station is two boards total. Happy to take suggestions for renumbering that aren't the above if there's a better way. I need to change the 8 output addresses from defaults to 101-108 on the first then 202-208 on the second decoder. I need to do this from the Powercab. I see there's a "smart program" mode which is clear as mud in the instructions (idiot mode would be more useful!) The only understanding I have is that that is the key to setting the addresses of the decoder and the individual solenoids. The only bit of advice I can't take is "use another decoder" as this is what I have and it has to work. Thank you in advance for any helpful insights. Those who assisted me last time, nearly a year ago, this is the fruit of that discussion and once I crack this it's a matter of a few months work to finish the key parts of the layout and Kingsbridge will only need a fiddle yard to be ready to rock!

Beautiful work as always. Don't beat yourself up over things like the roof join, as you know it will disappear when painted and you know what they say, "that's the way the cookie crumbles.." That film was great. Notice the number of children working on the production line.

Love the top depot pic! Really atmospheric.

Got a picture of the hand lamps. Also a piece of loco coal from the Princetown branch, found after lots of walking! It was in the absolute middle of nowhere so must have dropped off the bunker on a bump etc.

1 engineering brick from Kingsbridge signal box, gifted to me by a kindly soul 1 BR rail chair, set of fishplates and bolts, also ex Kingsbridge line, found. 2 hand lamps, both from LNER/BR 1 crossing sign from the Kirby Stephen branch- Kelleth Cabin, found by my grandad when he bought the keepers cottage from BR after closure, helpfully folded in half by the wreckers and put in the shed. 1 BR bell codes card leaflet, from above crossing GWR loco dept "checks" used to pay engine men. GWR engine mans cap badge- presents from family. Picture of cabin sign.

Vallejo make good acrylics, if you are doing black letters on white, I would undercoat in white primer, then use a print roller to apply an enamel black. You could possibly use Lino print ink. Example of a miniature print roller- one slightly wider than your sign would get it in one go. http://www.lawrence.co.uk/shop/Narrow_Rollers.html#.Vy-TydR4WrUj The roller could possibly have other uses, I haven't experimented with them much in model painting!

The method I use is to spray the whole sign/lettering in the desired lettering colour, using a tinted primer if something other than white/black is required (Army Painter cans are good for this if you are not using a spray gun/airbrush.) When it's thoroughly dry I then paint the background colour in acrylic. I let that dry then use a bit of 800 grit wet paper glued to a lolly pop stick to sand the lettering, with a little water on the sanding stick. This makes an incredibly sharp edge on the letters as it takes off the acrylic, revealing the base colour. It can also be used to simulate fading etc. You have to be careful not to sand through the base colour, hence needing a stick on the sand paper. The only difficulty can be black letters on a white background. It's harder to get a clean looking white over the black. I wondered about using a micro ink roller for black letters, with a thick paint instead of block printing ink.

You might get to see a train run in to the whole platform or even the yard, this year! Thanks for the kind comments. Station building and point control action also imminent.

The streamlined King isn't a train at all, its Doc Browns time machine!

Very smart facia! As someone who also had to work out marshalling etc, I would recommend both "Train shunting and marshalling for the modeller" and "Railway operation for the modeller" by Bob Essery, best bought from EBay as Amazon is very pricy for them by comparison. Both cover common freight and general practices right into the diesel era.

More lovely pictures! The little alley by the corner shop needs a photo of a street putting behind it to cheat the perspective. There are several good candidates in the real Kingsbridge that could be photographed if required. Beautiful work and atmosphere as always though.

As it was my Birthday this month, celebrated by going to the WSR and visiting the Taunton members day (thanks Tim and team) I had some money to spend, so I bought a pair of GWR Conflats, in this case the Peco version. My reasoning was that in Autumn 1943 many local families were evacuated from the training area around Slapton, some of whom would have taken advantage of the railways removal service if they were travelling outside the local area. Service personnel from other areas would also be relocating to the area, either as a result of service dispersal or on postings, so I figured the Conflats would be quite common at the time my layout is set. With this in mind I set out making the containers a little more "worn" to reflect the fact that many would have been hard used in the period and unlikely to have been given much painting. The first task was to take the body and chassis apart, fortunately the Peco ones are easily separated by undoing the bolts on the chassis. If you break off the plastic thread they can be glued back later. This would enable me to spray the chassis. Next I "faded" the livery, I hate this part, it was very crisply printed. I used a scratch pencil and a small piece of 800 grit wet n dry to wear away some of the lettering. I cut off the ugly Rapido coupling and its mounting, as I will be using DG's as usual. I then primed the solebars and break gear black, with citadel spray, seen here wet. Whilst that was drying I washed the body with Windsor and Newton "peat" brown ink to shade the planking. I did the same to the deck and side plates of the Conflat wagon. I left the ink wash to dry fully, then drybrushed the black parts including the roof, with a dark grey. Once the ink had fully dried it was time for a stippled layer of brown dirt, done with a flat ended stippling brush wiped almost dry. I did this with the whole model assembled to unify the finish. It was nearly finished! As a final tweak I applied sone Tamiya weathering powders to add a little sooty grime and dull it all nicely, then varnished it all with Humbrol matt acrylic varnish. Here it is set next to the un weathered second model. Close up of the finished item. I plan on finishing off the Python from the last entry some time this month and get some more DG's to sort out the couplings.

I use Stuk precision masking tape for jobs like your platform shelter. It's tedious to apply a mask but that stuff makes the best sharp edges in paint I have ever seen and isn't expensive as well as being available in a variety of widths.

Hoping to see this in real at the members day on Sunday! Well done, the last minute always arrives faster than expected.

Hi Mikkel. He toured several key training areas and watched practice landings etc. I don't think it lowered his stress level much at times. I might have to make general Patton, got to hit the books to check. There's a tank transport train to think about as well, not sure how much armour training was done there but they certainly practiced with DD Sherman's because a sunken one was recovered and made into a memorial. The mechanics had forgotten to bolt down a large cover plate on the hull, making it a wet and frightening day for the tank crew, who reputedly escaped in time.

Thanks Kris, feels like forever since I made anything. Squeezebelly has had a couple of operating sessions too. On a historical note I rechecked my branch lore and it was Eisenhower who had a GWR Python, Monty's train was made up of LNER stock (sounds like an expensive excuse for something out of region!) with LMS Pythons.

Wow, its been a long time since I did a blog entry! I recently decided to start work on Kingsbridge again, as it has been living in crates in my workshop long enough. Sorting through the spares box and rolling stock I came across a Python kit from Chivers Finelines. This was the second one I bought, as my dog, then young, had chewed the first one the minute it arrived on the door mat. I have since trained my excellent postman to leave the parcels somewhere else and trained my dog not to eat them! Why a Python? Well my layout is set in the autumn of 1943, when the Kingsbridge branch was playing a vital role in preparing the allied forces to land on the coast of France. This gave me the opportunity to model a variety of things that would never usually be seen on a quiet branchline in the prettiest county in England. One of those things is General Eisenhower's personal train. He used it to tour training camps across the country. I was keen to model a Python, as it had one marshalled in it, to carry the Generals own massive American car, naturally. Easing myself back into tiny N gauge models seemed like a good idea and this one was relatively simple! I started with the walls and floor, Next I fitted the sole bars and brake shoes. Reaming the holes out for the buffers needed my second smallest drill bit. There was some casting flash in a few pieces. The nicely scaled white metal buffers then went in very neatly. I decided to get the paint on too, starting with a black Citadel primer, then a dark brown base for the chocolate livery. I very much doubt there were any left in crimson lake by this stage, but if there were, then mine has been hand picked by the general's staff for its tidier appearance and more recent paint! The black under frame was given a light dry brush of dark grey to start the weathering process and show off the surface detail. Seeing it this close you can spot the moulding flash on the axle boxes which I missed, easily cleaned off with a sharp knife, which I shall do before finishing it. I then let the planking dry, whilst I had a brew. The next stage was to highlight the planking and lighten the brown at the same time. I competed the brown with a final highlight, then a coat of matt varnish in preparation for lettering etc later. Once that had dried (I helped it in the warming oven) I was ready to glaze the windows, with some clear sheet, bars added with a fine CD marker, not perfect but I was happy just to see them! Cruel close up... Now it was time for adding the roof, a grey Halfords primer and a dry brush with light grey, then white. The surface is now all ready for transfers and weathering, which I will do next time as I have to look at the detail for that and find my transfer stash. That left the General's Buick with a nearly finished vehicle to be transported in and reminded me I could still work with stuff this tiny. Thanks for reading. I am building up the courage and parts to tackle (after about 4 years!) the control panel of the beast.