D869

Top work. I blame you for me ordering one of these

Guilty m'lud. Only one though?

Thankfully it won't be going under a Manor. I have other more devious plans for it.

I have another one with a devious plan to match. I haven't checked the other option but I reckon that given the prototype's provenance there are probably at least two potential ways to repurpose the Manor chassis. Both options ran in Cornwall, so maybe I need to buy another one

Could your derailing problem be due to the fact that the bogie is, looking at your photo, not attached :-)

Oh yes, silly me!

I don't have any sure answers on the bogie but wonder if a central pivot with a small amount of sideways movement is a better solution rather than the linkage arrangement supplied?

Seriously, that's looking great for a dedicated diesel head like yourself. I would agree with Rich's suggestion and try a lightly sprung central pivot with a little sideplay. Look forward to seeing the Manor in action at Aylesbury in the spring.

I made an 'M&L' 'Manor' waaaaay back when..  Relevant to Rich & 'Queensuare's comments I didn't like the long pivot bea so fitted a crosspiece with an elongated slot between the cylinders and used a lightly-sprung BA bolt to hold the pony to it.  Worked fine.  Admittedly it was twice the size and 4(?) times the mass but I would imaging the principles are the same?

Yes, I was looking at the thread about the 1920s LSWR locos last night and wondering why we muck about with such long linkages for bogies. The snag with the Manor is that the pivot would need to be in pretty much exactly the spot where the boiler securing screw fits and the bogie needs to go on after this.

I think the problem is likely to be uneven weight distribution front to rear and possibly some fouling of the cylinder crossmember. Initially I had right angles for both pivot bends and the front wheel tended to be pointing skywards. I corrected this by bending it downwards and shaving the cylinder crossmember a bit but it's not a long term solution. There's bags of empty space above the bogie so I should have lots of room to experiment.

Nice idea. I'd like to know a bit more about your controller, particularly how 2mm/N scale locos perform with it.

I've tried building a battery controller myself using a Timpdon Electronics motor speed controller run from a PP3 battery (plus 2 AAs because that's what it needs). This works reasonably well with modern low friction mechanisms (pinpoint bearings and so on) but is much less happy with older Farish and Trix mechanisms.

Regards, Andy

Thanks for the info re; power consumption. I had not anticipated that, but as there are only four turnouts that would be individually operated that peak consumption would not be excessive.

 

Now for the tech bit... you have a bench supply at (I assume 12V) and capable of 1.5A Yes?,  How do you limit it to 500mA?

I think the main issue is when more than one servo moves at the same time. Bear in mind that this can happen when you switch the power on so one possibility is that if your supply can't handle it then it could turn a power-on glitch from being just audible into a big jump.

As Nigel says, you don't need a current limit - I just happen to have a supply for which I know the limit. Normally it would be a good thing for preventing electrical damage but in this case I think it's counterproductive.

What you do need is enough amps - all supplies have a limit whether you like it or not. I've had glitching with a single MERG board with 4 servos attached (or even just two servos) when using a 500mA limit. The glitching vanishes immediately when I switch the limit on my supply to 1.5A.

You probably don't want to go down this road, but since you asked... my bench supply was built as an electronics project a looong time ago. It uses an L200 variable voltage regulator and is adjustable from 3V-30V. The same chip does the current limiting and can be arranged to provide different limits - in my case 500mA and 1.5A.

BUT....  You need a setup device as well to use the Servo4, or it does nothing.  

 

 

The cheapest setup device is a serial lead to your computer (assuming it has a serial port, or you have a suitable USB-Serial adaptor).  Once the settings have been made, disconnect the lead and done.  This requires some software running on a PC to make the settings. 

That's what I use (eBay again). The main drawback is that you need to cart a laptop around if you want to adjust your servo speed and movement range. The other snag is that the USB adapter driver isn't too well written so if I forget to close the programming software before I unplug the lead it crashes my laptop.

Regards, Andy

Welcome to the fun-packed world of servos.

ebay is full of offers for Tower Pro SG90 servos or try some of th eonline sellers.  Giantshark is one, although not a patch on its predecessor Giantcod.

That's where I got mine. Didn't know that MERG actually sold servos.

Make that sure your supply can chuck out a reasonable level of current - servos can draw a fair bit for brief periods and if your supply can't handle it then the controller electronics run out of elecricity, which in my experience is one cause of servo glitching. I have a bench supply and things are OK with a 1.5A limit but if I drop the limit to 500mA (plenty for the steady state but not for the peaks) then things become rather more unpredictable.

You also need to figure out a robust way to attach the wire. My own under board tiebars use point sleepers and have a hole drilled for the wire, but this is a point of weakness and some have broken when knocked during under-board work, so fix something stronger to the end of yours to take the wire.

On second thoughts... if your wire does get clobbered, something is probably going to bend or break, so you should think about which something will be easiest to repair.

Regards, Andy

The sliding assembly to attach the tie bar to that provides it's positive location. The switches aren't attached to anything to locate them longitudinally at the non planed end so I'm asking quite a lot of my mechanism.

I'll have a try...

I'm thinking that your tiebar is a bit of an awkward shape, so perhaps solve that by building it up with something insulating (plastikard) until it is a nice rectangular shape and sized to suit whatever it will run in.

Then cut a slot in the top of some of that square brass tube that I see in the photo so that it has something to run in. Solder on some flanges or brackets to take some screws to fix it to the trackbed.

You also need to figure out a robust way to attach the wire. My own under board tiebars use point sleepers and have a hole drilled for the wire, but this is a point of weakness and some have broken when knocked during under-board work, so fix something stronger to the end of yours to take the wire.

Hope this is of some use.

Regards, Andy

I'm convinced that far fewer models would ever get built if we did not set ourselves arbitrary deadlines by accepting show invites.

Not sure that I understood the question regarding point control - you seem to have a lever, a wire, a tiebar and a way to link the switchblades to the tiebar, so what's missing or what doesn't do the job?

Regards, Andy

Wonderful - do like to see semaphores Andy and these are really taking St Ruth to the next level.

 

Great stuff...

it's the detials that bring things to life... well done

Thank you both.

Regards, Andy

Looks great Andy! I was thinking of having non operational ones on my layout of Par but you have shown here that a superb semaphore signal can be produced and fully operational. When the time comes, think I'll have a bash at building some operational ones.

Best regards,

Jeremy

Definitely worth doing. Making the arms move is not as difficult as you might think... although arranging the drive can be more err... challenging.

If you want to make life easier for yourself then go for dummy signal lamps.

Regards, Andy

Its amazing what a difference the signals make to the look and feel of the scene. Looking forward to you getting the camera out to record more of the new work.

Absolutely. Having seen so many stations in the West Country turned into rather barren looking wastelands by the removal of their semaphores it is nice to be moving things in the opposite direction... even if only in model form.

Regards, Andy

Looking good Jez. Can just hear those Paxmans winding up for take off.

Very encouraging having also purchased one of Nigel' s chassis kits!

Looking forward to hearing your experiences with the kit. I've found that it 'does what it says on the tin' - the instructions are very comprehensive. You still need some care and attention to detail when fitting and fettling the coupling rods, quartering etc. I've told Nigel of a couple of minor issues with the instructions - one of the brakegear photos has the plastic spacers swapped back to front and the quoted length for cutting the worm shaft is too short (mine is 15mm), but overall it's a great way to build a chassis.

Good luck!

Regards, Andy

This is looking like it's turning into a nice project.

 

The Manor Class is one of my favourite loco designs. I just love the proportions and Ixion did a great job in designing their model.

 

Yes you're right about the lined green version-but not sure if you realise but 7823 Hook Norton Manor was a Truro based engine in the early 60's I believe.

 

Hope you find the nameplates for your model and look forwards to seeing the lined green version!

Thanks Mark. Several of the Manors were based either at Cornish sheds or at Laira so there are plenty of choices. I found a handy site that seems to have a pretty comprehensive listing of their allocations and transfer dates (plus other classes too!)...

http://www.brdatabase.info/locoqry.php?action=class&id=138&type=S&page=alloc

So Hook Norton had two spells in Cornwall and moved away in 59. Others were around a bit later, so I'll probably go for one of those but it also depends on the availability of suitable photos. Several colour photos in Cornwall show them in a truly awful state - so bad that I can't tell whether they are black or green.

The out of the box identity of the green one is Foxcote Manor but it looks like that one was always a Cambrian loco so I'll need to change it.

Regards, Andy

Those look like nice coaches Richard.

I can't see much need for extra weathering to be honest - coaches did get cleaned (at least on the sides) and your chassis colour looks pretty good already.

Regards, Andy

You're supposed to wind the clock forward, not back

 

Looks like an interesting project Andy...and an interesting challenge from the hydraulics...

I know... I guess I'm just weak willed... but covering a wider range of dates bracketed by the hydraulic period seems like a not too great shifting of my goalposts.

It's St Ruth's fault for setting the date at 1965 which was the first excuse I had for winding the clock back a bit from 1968. D604 takes us back pre 66 and now there's steam which takes us back to the early 60s. I can't blame St Ruth for this one though because regular steam working ended at Penzance in 1962... although I think that several group members really want to run steam.

... and then there are still the EWS 66, the two speed (fast and stop) Voyager and a few other 21st century interlopers that are awaiting some proper wheelsets. Can't claim that they are in the hydraulic period by any stretch of the imagination.

Regards, Andy

Nice project. Looks like you can get Manor nameplates here: http://www.modelmasterdecals.com/GW_Manor_N.php

Thanks Mikkel - they seem to have a good selection, so I need to go figure out which loco to choose.

Regards, Andy

You have been busy Pete. Nice one for taking serious cutting implements to all that N gauge plastic.

Some couplings and a bit of paint in strategic places and they'll be cracking.

Regards, Andy

Its just wanting to get it right plus trying to figure out the best way of doing it so others dont struggle too much.

Oh, do we all get to play too? - cool!

Wondering if it (and its friends) had a less ornate livery before its first withdrawal though.

Bulldogs are quite appealing too...

Regards, Andy

Usually the connector on the PCB is a lot longer and we supply extra connectors, like the ones featured above to allow fitting to thicker baseboards. But due to Pete using a box file he asked for the smallest connection as he was limited on space.

I like the use of IC sockets - very neat. I just wish I could find as simple an answer for semaphores.

Regards, Andy

You can't beat a nice 4-4-0. Look forward to seeing Truro finished - whichever 'mark' you are on by then.

Bet you can't wait to get on with the lining!

Regards, Andy

Go on... switch them on. You know you want to!

I'm guessing that the PCB needs to be fixed up against the lower surface of the baseboard. Correct?

Regards, Andy

Last night I ordered some more wheel centers. I have now ordered some without a central hole for the axle along with some of the original design. Hopefully my lathe is upto the job and will be able to drill the holes concentrically (I havent had much luck with this previously, even with collet chucks). I will try out the wheels with the axle hole first though as thats the easiest solution!

Sorry to keep banging on about Chris Pendleton, but he doesn't recommend drilling the axle holes. Instead he uses a tiny boring bar after mounting the wheels by the rim in a collett. Not sure if this would be possible at half the size though. He also has some words about how to ensure that the collett is concentric with the lathe spindle - all about making it on the same lathe and marking it so that when you use it you fit it in exactly the same orientation as when it was made.

Regards, Andy

Hi Julia,

I can't offer any advice from my own experience (other than tea and sympathy regarding wobbly wheels) but have you read the article by Chris Pendleton in the latest MRJ? It's all about curing the deficiencies of less than perfect 4mm scale wheels, conducted with Chris's usual level of attention to detail. Obviously some of it is 4mm specific but I suspect that a lot of what he's talking about will be relevant if you're trying to build your own wheels.

Regards, Andy

Welcome to 2FS... or FS160 or whatever....

> so my wife doesn't realise that I am filling the house with railways

umm... isn't building it in the kitchen a bit counter productive then?

> which system I am going to use for the fiddle yards

Modules are probably the most space-efficient and require just a flat-ish surface on which to shuffle them. Then you just need to decide how to arrange the alignment and feeds - bulldog clips or some sort of plugin arrangement. Having two modules attached simultaneously at double track spacing is a bit more of a puzzler though.

What will you use for the overhead wires?

Regards, Andy

Last one out, turn off the lights...

 

Have a good Christmas Andy - hope to see St Ruth again in person some time next year.

Cheers Pete. Hope you are spending some time with the family and that Santa brought you some nice new things.