DavidLong

Deeply envious! I wish that there was a garden centre like that near me and, even if there was, the view would be blotted out by Network Rail's accursed eight foot high paling fence.

David

I always find this to be an interesting discussion having had to put up with endless comments about eyesight when on the 2mm Association stand at exhibitions. I have had glasses since I was ten which is now nearly sixty years ago and these days I have a pair of varifocals and a pair of reading glasses to make up for my general deficiency of sight. However, some years ago I discovered that at the distance from my eyes to the workbench when seated I had near perfect eyesight. This means that all my modelling is done with no additional aids  being necessary. I do wonder if there are others who, like myself, have this unusual advantage but haven't actually discovered it.

David

On 21/06/2020 at 17:08, Izzy said:

I'm after some views on where, and whether, a signal should be placed on yet another small layout I am intending to make. I have produced the whole track layout although only part of it will feature, in order to confirm that I have the signalling basically correct. There is a level crossing to the left, protected both ways, and a few g/s for shunting, but I am a bit unsure where a starter should be when proceeding left to right. At the platform end 'A' or at 'B', or whether neither is correct.

 

 

 

 

 

As a short single line branch with junctions at both ends I am thinking it might have been worked as a single section so really only the signals protecting the crossing would be needed and not even the g/s. But looking at such as the Buntingford branch locations such as Widford had similar arrangements. 

 

Many thanks.

 

Izzy

 

added later - this will be exGE in the 60's/70's .

And which scale will this one be, Bob? 2FS? P4? S? Whichever you choose I'm sure that the end result will be delightful, as ever.

David

7 hours ago, Andy Kirkham said:

Blaenau Ffestiniog still had a loop last time I was there.

Indeed it still does, Andy. This is the view of the loco release line, which was the line on to Trawsfynydd, looking back towards the station. Ground frame just visible on the right.

David

Hi John,

This is an excellent idea. I've followed your notes and also downloaded the instructions from the EMGS site (I'm a member) and have made one this morning for 2FS. Needless to say it's a bit smaller. I was a bit nervous about making the jig itself from metal due to the close proximity of the soldering although I haven't ruled it out for the future. The base is two 75mm pieces of 15mm x 15mm pine strip and the jig bit is from 0.4mm ply. This was very easy to cut for the 1mm slots that will take the small strips of 0.9mm nickel silver to which the rails will be soldered. The slot positions were derived from a Templot template.

My trackwork is generally built using ply sleepers and Easitrac plastic chairs but around the crossing I use pcb timbers. I also use a pcb timber to link the closures to the stock rails and also one at the switch ends. These latter locations make use of brass chairs.

Up to now I've had to estimate the length of the small pieces of nickel that support the rails at the crossing, usually getting it wrong (!,) soldering them to the timbers before then soldering the crossing V and wing rails to the nickel strips. As they are often overlength it can be next to impossible to get the cosmetic chairs close to the rail. With this new system the whole assembly can be built and then the nickel strips cut back adjacent to the rail.

Here's a photo of the jig with one of the nickel strips in place to test the fit:

By the way, your note about bending the wing rails using the filing jig was one of those 'doh!' moments as it had never occurred to me that I could use the 2mm Association filing jig for exactly the same purpose. You live and learn!

i'll try to post some photos when I give it a trial run.

David

12 hours ago, Pixie said:

 

I did vow to have some bits available at the 60th Celebrations a few post ago and, whilst the show hasn’t been able to go ahead,  I’ve started to put together a listing of bits I have available which I’ll post up shortly. Watch this space. 
 

Cheers,

Steve

    (in the absence of a WhatsApp 'thumbs up' this will have to do!)

David

Always enjoy seeing progress in your work, Pete. I picked up on it soon after I joined in 2009 when I think that you had started work on the 2011 challenge. A decade plus on in time and I think that Saltmarshe Road qualifies for 'slow burn' but all the better for it. Looking forward to the next decade!

David 

On 14/05/2020 at 06:50, Mikkel said:

 

What a great setting! Apart from the interesting ideas offered above, another might be to zoom in even further?  For example, this bit:

 

 

The two lower sidings and warehouse (if that's what it is?) would be the main feature. One or two of the upper tracks could also be included, leading off into the backcene. But it depends what part of the traffic you want to focus on, of course. 

Hi Mikkel,

The long building is an air raid shelter! We had similar but smaller buildings at my primary school in the 1950s.

Solid brick walls and a large slab of concrete on the top. Just below the roof, at intervals, there were gaps in the brickwork for ventilation. After the war, schools loved them as they were very useful large storage spaces. These days they would probably be extra class rooms . . .

The 25" to the mile maps of this area in the early 1950s are littered with labels next to buildings of 'ruin'. Indeed the shell of the large square GNR warehouse that appears in the photos is exactly one such. As is well known, the London docks took a real pounding from the Luftwaffe and the resulting wrecks remained well into the '50s. 

All change now since the London Docklands Development Corporation took over the area but it is home to the extremely wonderful Docklands Light Railway. I would still like to have visited the delightful Blackwall station with its huge and impressive (William Tite designed) station building.

More information can be found here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stepneys-own-railway-history-Blackwall/dp/0947699023

Not the best volume for photos but good for background reading.

David

21 hours ago, Ian Morgan said:

Another industrious weekend sees some more wagons take to the rails.

 

I never get bored with wagons, Ian! By the way, the 'Pipe' is a 'Tube' 'cos it's bigger. A lovely kit as well and such a shame that the Chivers N gauge kits are no longer available. Up there with Parkside mouldings in terms of quality.

David

19 hours ago, Ben B said:

 

  As far as I know Conwy Valley is meant to be getting a converted tube set (D train) at some point.

 

Ben,

Last I heard was that all the D trains are going to another neglected route, Bidston to Wrexham, and the Conwy Valley line will stay with Sprinters for the time being. I just hope that the 'Welsh' D trains turn out to be more reliable than the Marston Vale variety. Bidston to Wrexham needs to be (literally) plugged into the Merseyrail network but that seems to have been kicked into some very long grass.

I despair of the Conwy Valley line, it seems to be closed more often than it is open these days.The only person who appreciates the situation is Llew Jones who runs the replacement bus service. The line is close to our second home in Old Colwyn (which we can't visit at present!) and I rarely get a chance to travel on it. In November 2018 I did a complete photo survey of all the stations on the line. No trains that day as Arriva was short of units!

I can't help but think that the stations could do with thinning out a bit which could speed up the service a little. I have no idea why Dolgarrog keeps getting rebuilt as there is very little habitation nearby and Dolgarrog itself is on the other side of the river. Pont-y Pant is quite delightful but seemingly serves no purpose and I suspect that much the same  could be said of Roman Bridge.

Good news about the slate waste traffic though!

David

4 hours ago, Southernman46 said:

Quite - I remember standing on the platform at Bedwyn back in 2014?? en-route to a possession planning meeting at Reading just after it was announced that the wires wouldn't reach further than Newbury and overheard a suited chap say to his travelling partner "Have you heard we won't be getting electrified" ……………………… "Yes, I've SPOKEN to Steven about rectifying that" came the emphatic reply ………

 

There's a lot of that sort of thing in West Berkshire & East Wiltshire ………………………………. they wear hats to work still 

"We don't blow whistles at people from Newbury,  General Manager" - G T W Fiennes

David 

Mea culpa, Jack! I would only plead that I was unaware of any controversy of the various directions of the early emblem unlike the rather more well-known B.R. tribulations over the later version.

As you were, Mr Benson. I wouldn't allow a malnourished lion to come between me and your excellent modelling which I continue to enjoy.

David

That's a lovely loco, Jack, but shouldn't the unicycling lion be facing the front?

David

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/apr/15/construction-on-hs2-can-begin-government-says

David

16 minutes ago, PaulCheffus said:

Hi

 

Just finished this scratchbuilt 1/148 Belgian Ferry Van this week.

 

along with an Osprey from the NGS kit

 

Cheers

 

Paul

 

 

That ferry van is seriously good, Paul. Ferry vehicles are the great neglected area of wagon modelling. The general lack of readily available information may have something to do with it. 

David

'Like' doesn't quite seem to to do it all justice . . .

Fine piece of work, Chris!

David

Hi Jeremy,

Like others on here I was a keen follower of 'Euston' and I look forward to seeing it possibly being resurrected in the future. In the meantime I'll be following your new Swiss opus. I know very little of Swiss trains other than they always look very nice but, hey, it's trains so what's not to like!

Hope to see perhaps a little less of the high speed people wagons in future and some pics of locos and proper wagons 

David

5A fuse wire. How much do you need?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-amp-fuse-wire-36-SWG-Tinned-Copper-Wire-40-meters-FUSE-WIRE-5-AMP-0-2mm-/113965764804?hash=item1a88e390c4

My reel already has a place in my will . . . 

David

Good to meet up with you again on Saturday, Mark. Onwards to Scalefour North . . .  not with Waddenhoe Road obviously!

I felt quite the outsider conversing with three people from Northamptonshire 

David

A Class 14 chassis seen in the raw nickel.  It wasn't a dream after all!

David

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/29/sajid-javid-expected-to-back-hs2-despite-spiralling-costs

If the Treasury is onside . . .

David

1 hour ago, Captain Kernow said:

 I have plans for a 'pastiche' of Travellers' Rest in the Forest of Dean for my next P4 layout after 'Callow Lane', on a board 5' x 15".

 

The Forest beckons! Hurrah! Anything to do with Model Rail's 16xx tanks?

Back to Torre. Superb work, Martin, and without consuming acres of domestic space. So glad to see the recent updates. Look forward to seeing more of your progress.

David

What a delightful little scene, Fraser! I especially like the colouring of the stonework on the goods shed and the wall behind it.

As a matter of interest there was a one page article ('Prototype of the Month') by none other than P.D.Hancock featuring Lasswade in the May 1953 Railway Modeller. I hasten to add that I didn't purchase the issue new but I was given it by a family friend around 1962. It has always stuck in my mind as an attractive little prototype.

David

44 minutes ago, queensquare said:

Sadly much too big Jim, the CT DCX77L is what I'm after, 9.5x4.5x2.5. I used my last one up in the little  Fletcher Jennings saddle tank. 

 

Jerry

Jerry,

It's always worth trying European suppliers as I've bought a few CT chips from the Netherlands and France. I found this supplier has one in stock:

http://213.47.219.165/www.z-stueberl.at//product_info.php?info=p20174_Micro-Decoder-DCX77L-mit-4-verstaerkten-Funktionen.html&XTCsid=gyqpzali

Austria by the looks of the .at. The only downside can be the shipping charges but if you're desperate . . .

Buy now before circumstances change!

David

Many thanks for these photos of one of my all-time favourite layouts. I don't believe that I have ever seen any photographs in colour before and it is now possible to appreciate the subdued tones used in the modelling. My first acquaintance with Berrow was in 'Berrow Revisited' which appeared in a 1960 edition of RM and I always looked forward to further articles about the branch in the following years.

David