Saturday 23 June 2012
Wednesday 15 February 2012
Making progress
The correct slugbuster unit arrived from RS yesterday and I purchased 6mm and 10mm twist drills today to create the hole through which the unit passes. On a scrap piece of 2 inch aluminium angle gripped in the steel jaws of a hobby vice I used a power drill to initially drill a 1mm hole in a punched centre, then opened this out to 6mm and then 10mm, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7G36dZgS5k&feature=youtu.be
There was little precision in the preparation for this test hole but the slugbuster worked perfectly and the EM gauge society dowels are a precision fit in the 25.4mm hole created.
There was little precision in the preparation for this test hole but the slugbuster worked perfectly and the EM gauge society dowels are a precision fit in the 25.4mm hole created.
Monday 13 February 2012
Losing the will
FWBs opportunity to supply the slug buster expired today when I visited them to extract a refund of almost £50. Once home again I used RS tools via google and the internet to order the correct tool for next day delivery at £30. Fingers crossed.
Good news with the quest for the correct Hornby Maunsell coaches to model set 179 in 1960 guise. After a trawl of the internet I found a new R4305E and R4320A. Not your regular journey for Southern coaches with one travelling from Stow, Lincolnshire and the other from Paignton, Devon. Lovely representations of the prototype and the first true SR coaches for TG.
Templot is occupying most time at the moment with repeated attempts to achieve the best trackplan.
Good news with the quest for the correct Hornby Maunsell coaches to model set 179 in 1960 guise. After a trawl of the internet I found a new R4305E and R4320A. Not your regular journey for Southern coaches with one travelling from Stow, Lincolnshire and the other from Paignton, Devon. Lovely representations of the prototype and the first true SR coaches for TG.
Templot is occupying most time at the moment with repeated attempts to achieve the best trackplan.
Thursday 9 February 2012
Slug busting......not just yet!!
A little frustrating after several days waiting for the Greenlee slug busting unit to arrive, to then open the box and find the version for fitting into a hydraulic press rather than the self-contained version required.
However, this allows more practice with Templot.
Current reading is the Okehampton line by the Irwell press.
Currently on order are the 2 SR green Maunsell coaches by Hornby intended to recreate set 179 which when coupled behind the Hornby T9 will become a 1959/60 Exeter to Plymouth working. Away for machining and re-tyring by Ultrascale are the wheelsets for the 2 Dapol class 22 locos.
Intended identities for the 22s are: D6321 in mid sixties green, sywp, split headcode and D6327 in late sixties/early seventies battered BR blue, sywp, split headcode.
Comet coaches are getting together the 3 kits required to recreate set 857, a 3 coach Bulleid set.
However, this allows more practice with Templot.
Current reading is the Okehampton line by the Irwell press.
Currently on order are the 2 SR green Maunsell coaches by Hornby intended to recreate set 179 which when coupled behind the Hornby T9 will become a 1959/60 Exeter to Plymouth working. Away for machining and re-tyring by Ultrascale are the wheelsets for the 2 Dapol class 22 locos.
Intended identities for the 22s are: D6321 in mid sixties green, sywp, split headcode and D6327 in late sixties/early seventies battered BR blue, sywp, split headcode.
Comet coaches are getting together the 3 kits required to recreate set 857, a 3 coach Bulleid set.
Thursday 2 February 2012
Current progress video link
A selection of recent topics including: levelling the plate glass, the new workbench, Dapol class 22s waiting P4 wheelset mods to be returned from Ultrascale and the china clay open wagon sheet metal from Euthymol toothpaste tubes can be seen here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbFkSHXlCF4&feature=youtu.be
Current reading centres on The Okehampton and North Cornwall titles from the Irwell press.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbFkSHXlCF4&feature=youtu.be
Current reading centres on The Okehampton and North Cornwall titles from the Irwell press.
Slug busters and machine screws
Tuesday of this week was one of our busier days with TG. Colin Calverley came with me to FWB engineering supplies in Stoke-on-Trent to source some of the fixtures and fittings for the layout. Countersink hexagonal drive machine screws with their associated Nylok nuts and washers are recommended for the aluminium assemblies and also for securing the EM gauge society baseboard locating dowels to their backing plates. Whilst a tool called a 'slug buster' is apparently ideal for drilling the 1 inch hole (through the aluminium end plate pairs) in which the dowels can be accurately located. Needless to say the required tools were ordered.
The afternoon saw the two of us cutting various thicknesses of plasticard spacers and supergluing them to our uneven worktable to provide a perfectly level support for the 6ft x 2ft plate glass. This will allow the baseframes to be checked accurately during construction.
The evening involved a visit to Nick Allsop, our track and signalling guru to discuss the revised track layout and likely signalling equipment provided in such a situation. TG will have two signal boxes, one adjacent to the junction and the other effectively a yard box at the other end of the station. An additional siding will be provided on the down side and the goods shed will now be a continuation of the dock at the rear of the station. Provision of a Credition style footbridge will also bring in a co-acting up platform starting signal. Provision of a junction starting signal at the Plymouth/Barnstaple end of the up platform will facilitate auto trains arriving from those directions, reversing and departing towards same. Opportunities for lower quadrant semaphores will be the inner home signals in the up direction immediately prior to the curving girder bridges.
The afternoon saw the two of us cutting various thicknesses of plasticard spacers and supergluing them to our uneven worktable to provide a perfectly level support for the 6ft x 2ft plate glass. This will allow the baseframes to be checked accurately during construction.
The evening involved a visit to Nick Allsop, our track and signalling guru to discuss the revised track layout and likely signalling equipment provided in such a situation. TG will have two signal boxes, one adjacent to the junction and the other effectively a yard box at the other end of the station. An additional siding will be provided on the down side and the goods shed will now be a continuation of the dock at the rear of the station. Provision of a Credition style footbridge will also bring in a co-acting up platform starting signal. Provision of a junction starting signal at the Plymouth/Barnstaple end of the up platform will facilitate auto trains arriving from those directions, reversing and departing towards same. Opportunities for lower quadrant semaphores will be the inner home signals in the up direction immediately prior to the curving girder bridges.
Friday 27 January 2012
Revised trackwork
The appeal of the single track curved girder bridge at Barnstaple is tempered by the knowledge that such a structure and attendant 15 mph speed restriction would not have survived long in a main line, albeit, single line diverging junction situation. The tapering and more lightly curving structures shown on the revised plan are also likely to require stone pillar supports as against the more fragile looking metal versions.
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