A new stop at Cotswold Road

This is all about my DCC test bed Its planned to be on two 6ft by 18inch boards which pair together for transport. There is also a small fy extension plan for home use so it can be operated from the front.

As i said above i hope to make this a dcc test bed layout which includes adding a points decoder. I'm also tempted to control the signals by dcc to but I'm not sure if this is possible, or if its possible to control other LED lights on dcc. I've still got alot to learn.

The track plan shows a small SP with a passenger line at the back. The scenic break is a road going across the layout. A small shed is also planned for just in front of the fiddle yard. I also plan to add OHLE to this one using the dapol overheads.

Well that's it for now as i need to get on and build the boards and also save up a little to get the track in a few weeks or so. Then its if you'll pardon the pun, full steam ahead!

Cotswold Road has begun

Richard

The aftershow

Well no updates for a week as i was busy getting the layout ready. Its now returned and i'm pleased to report the layout worked fine. The only problems were mainly with the couplings and weight of the rolling stock. This can be fine tuned over the comming weeks and months.

The one area i will be working on is the fiddle yard as the cassette design did not work. Therefore i'm going to make a new ladder style fiddle yard but retaining the old one for home use only. The new one will be longer so it can take trains without too much shunting around.

I'm also contemplating my dcc test bed. The track plans have been drawn up and the wood is also here allowing the boards to be built. Theres just a few fine details to clear up before that.

Anyway thats it for now as its been a long weekend. Photos should be uploaded tomorrow.

Cleaning up

I spent most of today cleaning the wheels and doing some general maintenece on my rolling stock. Its now all working well so hopefully i should have a stress free weekend next week. I've also gone back to the tension lock couplings. So far i only have three which still have the wire bars fitted and amazingly the locos with tension locks seem much better again.

I'm going to change the track on the cassettes for code 75 flexi as it just works better. The joint has quite a step so going for the same code should solve that problem. It was causing a few wagons to derail too.

Anyway time for some rest as theres only so much one can do in a day....

The timewarp

Well first news of some new arrivals. Firstly a Bachmann 37239 in 2tg coal sector colours. Should come in useful and the second is 26037 in r/f l/l from heljan. The reason behind this one? Well it was cheap. Around £27 cheap!

Although 26s werent very common in the north west every wednesday one arrived on the 3P15 vans from Polmadie to Preston. What it worked back on no one knows. If anyone can id be interested. However i'm using it on the basis they were desperate for locos so borrowed it for one diagram.

In terms of the layout the scenic break is nearly complete. Just waiting for the glue to dry then some minor flocking and some foliaging. I have 7 days left of which two are out for family things. Another is spent leafleting leaving 4 days left. I dont want to do to much on the friday before the show leaving just 3 days to get it all ready. I do like a challenge.

Anyway please come and see it at the Chippenham Model Railway Show 2011 at the Sheldon School sports hall 24th of September 2011 10.30 till 5.

Turn of Time

Havent updated this in a few days as i have been busy modifying one of the boards. The only problem with this layout was the curve from the scenic section round to the fiddle yard. This was far to tight and giving problems. Therefore something had to be done.

My initial thought was to make it straight but then i wouldnt be able to operate it at home so i then though why not have it both ways buy using a curved point but again still to tight.

Then i decided to add two pieces of 2x1 strip to the end of the layout (its now two inches longer) and then moving the track out using a template. Bobs your uncle it worked fine. The rest of the time has been spent adding bits of wood to the board so it fills the gaps where the extention has made it longer.

I've also tidied up the scenic break as it was all over the place. The last job is to extend the top of the scenic break. This is proving a little more problematical than first though but now the break has been straightened it should prove easier. Thats the theory anyway.

Trouble is i only have 9 days to go.....


Anyway enough for today.

The new Future....

I have rejoined the Digital age today with the purchase of a NCE power cab unit. I found a nice S/h unit at the n gauge show for £74.95. It seems to work ok although i havent been able to fully test it as the two supposedly DCC fitted models i have dont have chips. They've obviously been removed and a blanking plate fitted. Anyway i hope this unit stands me in good stead. I have plans in place to build a dcc test bench so i can test it all out and explore what i need to do to get it work. This will be complete with dcc point decoders and possible even layout lighting and signals via the decoders. But i may have an N gauge layout to build first.

Hopefully then i might convert Westleigh to a DCC layout.

Anyway now time for a rest.

David Bayley is back at work.

Had a day off today from the layout so i set it back up so i could run some trains on it. Also i took the promised photos which have been added on my flickr page which can be found here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fatherjacksphotos/sets/72157627454727866/

I also spent some time today painting up the rail chairs and rail for the 3rd rail addition. This should hopefully be fitted after its first show.

End is in Sight

Today i finished the last major jobs that need to be completed on Westleigh. I have now fitted the end plates and the cover for the single board that is left. The layout is now more or less complete. My next and final job will be to attach the scenic break top. Once this is done then its only really final detailing to complete such as buffer stop lights, lighting towers, that sort of thing really.

I'm also already working on my next layout. This is much small so it can go in the back of a small car and doesnt take too much space when set up. It will probably be no more than 6ft x1.5ft and basically will be a single platform with a few sidings. It will be more of a testbed, diaroma and layout built into one.

Anyway a night off i think tonight as ive been very busy with it all the last few weeks.

I shall upload some photos to my flickr account tomorrow to show the works.

Smoothing it out....

I spent today trying to get some my mechs to run smoother. I have a vi trains 37 that will just not play ball. It seems to stutter somewhat. I've checked the mech and cleaned every pick up in site but not luck. Short of getting a new motor i dont know what to do.

In terms of the other mechs they run well enough but thats it. The only 100% reliable mechs seem to be the two shunters which potter about fine. I suppose i just need to spend some time actually looking at them and giving them a little more attention. if only i had a roundy-roundy layout.

Some duff modelling.

Spent this morning trying to re assemble a vi trains 47 that had been resprayed. It seems what you buy is a body and a chassis and a bag of bits some of which are so small even my eyesight cant cope. Saying that i've come across some kits that dont have this level of detail.

I've also spent this morning doing some work on my 142 pacer unit. One motor doesnt run too badly however i think to use both would simply cause fighting between the two motors. Therefore i picked up some mini connectors for use with RC modelling and plan to use those to increase the pick ups which feed each motor. If that doesnt work i shall remove the poorer motor as one motor can just about move the two cars. Either that or its investing in a branchlines remotoring kit.

My 155 also now has a detailed interior so you cant see through where you should have been able to. A few people to be added then this unit is ready for service.

All of the rolling stock i plan to use for the show is now finished but i still have some work to do on the locos and units, mainly trying to ensure they work well enough to show.

Anyway time to get back to the grind.

The new Breed! (WL)

Well i havent updated this blog in such a long time that i thought id better make better use of it.

Anyway since the last post i've built a new layout. This one is called simply Westleigh. Its an expanded concept of an earlier layout i built. This is in an L shape in a fiddle yard to station design. It fits quite snugly in my spare room but it is still small enough to be easily transportable to shows, the first one will be comming up on the 24th of September in Chippenham at the Sheldon School Sports Hall. See WWW.BMRG.ORG.UK.

I started said layout in the middle of April. In the time being i've more or less completed it to the extent its showable at a exhibitions. Its powered through the good old fashioned DC way using gaugemaster controllers and transformers.

The fiddle yard is a cassette design however i'm wondering if this works and whether it would be better to simply start again and do a conventional ladder fiddle yard. The jury is out until the first show is under the belt.

The era of the layout is set firmly in the North West in the period 1993. I go a year or two each side to give some variety. This allows me to run quite a variety of stock which i am slowly building up at this present time.

I've taken some photos and uploaded them to my flickr account which can be found here - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fatherjacksphotos/sets/72157627454727866/

I will be doing some further updates on here to explain the layout further but thats for a different time. Probably tomorrow.

Somewhere back in time....

Been too long again between updates so apologies if you still read this. Westlea Road is no more. It was dismantled and the boards are as bare as they were when they were built. But the new project is about to begin. I scrapped the Easterton idea but the new one will emerage next week. Just got one last thing to finalise first......

Ticket to Ride (WR)

Well the platform has been fitted and topped. There are 1217 individual metcalfe self adhesive on the platform. Next job is to fit the fence which is ratios 437 which is just about the same height as a 4mm scale figure. I didnt like the chainlink fence ratio do as it looks too much like what it is which is a shame as the uprights and details are very good.

The signals are both in and wired, the shed now has inspection pit lights and a small scafold style fence is going in by the station headshunt to protect the infrastructure yard. I have nearly gone through three 60g tubes of UHU glue though to do all of the above. Anyway back to the modelling.

The Phoenix Rises? (WR)

Seasons Greetings from a cold Bristol.

After alot of sole searching i cant bring myself to destroy WR. As its the first layout i have ever finished i've got attatched to it. So in a desperate bid to keep me sane i have decided to re-do some bits of the layout. This begins with removing the rear siding and putting a station in its place. This will also allow me to replace the dodgy 3 way that was in the fiddle yard.

The new project is not dead yet but the boards will be going in to store for a short while. Maybe until the urge to get them out again surfaces.

Anyway now is not the time to be modelling, its the time for enjoyment so raise your glasses for 2010 and toast to 2011!

The New Blood (EAS)

I know i havent updated this for a long long time but sadly family things have got in the way, anyway its business as normal now and time to announce the new project.

Easterton was something which i was playing with before i built Westlea Road however Westlea kid of got in the way, anyway the decision has been made to stip Westlea for bits so i can build this new project. So far its been fully budgeted and so far i have got the wood and the track sorted, i just need to await the finance to get it all. Hopefully i should begin building the boards over christmas.

To give you some background on the layout, its 11 by 2 for the main scenic boards with the fiddle yard at a 90 degree angle to the rest of the layout. Its got a small 2 road station with a small SP and a warehouse unloading area. I toyed with the idea of using code 75 track but i decided to go for 100 in the end as it was easier, i will be using electrofrog points and this will also be a start for DCC control. I'm planning to get an NCE powercab unit as it seems reasonable for the money.
I'll try and upload a plan on here if possible in the next day or so.

Richard

Long Time Lots Of News

Its been a while since i updated this blog. Mainly because various different things have conspired to get in the way but here we are again.
First news is that Westlea Road has gone into storage in the loft while i sort out some stock. Essentially WR has served its purpose and its now time to look at its replacement (which i actually got half way through about 2 years ago) and i'm doing track plans at the moment http://www.37412smodelphotos.fotopic.net/c1871565.html
Click the link to see them so far. I intend to reuse the current fiddle yard so it will just be three new front boards. So far the jury is still out on the plan but i'm tweaking and playing around with them to see which one gives me the best operation and is the most interesting.

Apart from that not much else to report.

A pandoras box update! (WR)

I thought i would update this given things have been going on in the background.

First of all there weren't too many wiring faults with the layout. Those that were there were mainly me getting the wires crossed. Needless to say after a few nights of swearing and sweating (its very hot under the layout with a headlamp and a soldering iron for company, its even worse upside down) it has settled down quite nicely. I had to replace the hardstanding as the polyfilla method just didn't work so it was chipped out and replaced with plastics, it now works fine. I've also got the LEDs to work in the shed correctly. I.e they dont burn everything in sight!

I also now have some packs of the dapol catenery masts to fit. I was planning intially just fitting them and then add the wire later on. The 3rd rail is being installed on the rear tracks where units are likely to run, i also have a third rail flasher unit to add, just a question of how to mount it.

The lighting towers havent gone in yet simply because i dint fancy doing it at the moment.

In terms of the stock I'm having trouble with a new hornby PCA. The wheels seem to fine and keep dropping into the VEE of the double slip point and derailing. Everything else though manages it fine so I'm looking to re-wheel it and see if it makes any difference, my lima and dapol ones run without fuss.

The rest of the stock is being weathered at the moment with alot of it being done by simply drybrushing. Only the PCAs have so far received any form of airbrush weathering.

Also my blog address has now changed to www.theelectriccockroach.blogspot.com - I blame Tim Hall for this idea!

Dont go away (WR)

Just a quick update seeing as how i havent updated in months. It all works. Just a few tweaks to do. I will do a full update later on this week but expect to see a big annoucement.

Richard

New fotopic update (WR)

Just been updating my fotopic account with the latest Westlea Road photos.
http://37412smodelphotos.fotopic.net/c1870325.html

Enjoy

A new dawn (WR)

A nice bit of time away has got me back into the mood to do some work on the layout. The layout has been completely rewired from the bottom up as there were too many wiring glitches when testing. I've also begun the last of the woodworking and have cut the fiddle yard fascia. This just needs to be painted up. I also need to the sort the trestle legs as they are a little flimsey (well their built like bricks but the screws used were too small). It really is starting to come to completion that i really dont have much choice now than too look at the stock.....

The stock is in some respects comming on well but at the moment its all awaiting time. I tend to do most rolling stock work during the winter as its just such a shame to do it during the summer. I'm still after alot of locomotives and units but the wagon rakes are comming together and the coaching stock is nearly complete. Just two more guvs or BGs required. All it needs then is finishing which could take a long time and that is time i dont have.

Anyway still more to do so back to the grindstone.