Wiring Stage 1

For a simple layout it's taken me a couple of evenings just to get the track dropper wires plumbed in.....



There are still the point motors to be connected, auto coupling solenoids to be installed, along with the baseboard to baseboard connectors. It's also about time I firmed up my thoughts as to how to build and where to site the control panel! The wiring will need a little bit of a tidy, I'd better leave this until my wiring is proven....... but I'm happy with the progress so far.

Parkside PC27 Slope sided mineral wagon

Yesterday evening I spent a few moments wondering how to construct this kit. It looked a little more complex than the previous Dia. 1/108, 1/109 wagons. The sides are in two sections and have to be put together with an angle that matches a couple of supports that will be applied to the sides later in the construction. Also the floor does not fit flush to the outside edges of the ends with the sides recessed in from the ends. I was a little confused as to how to fix the floor to the ends, keeping it all square, then fix the sides on at the correct angle all in one go. After much thought, then running out of fingers and hands in many dry runs, the photo below shows my solution.....


After cutting off the buffers, in readiness for the sprung buffers, I realised that I could support the ends with two angle plates. Then after a little work with a file and some gentle encouragement I managed to position the floor in the centre of the ends.

Gluing the bottom side sections was easy, but the top sections needed a lot of work with a file to encourage them to fix snugly but...... hopefully...... I've captured the correct alignment and angle for the sides.


There is some filling to be done to mask the joint on the sides between the top and bottom sections. I think this should be attempted before installing the stanchions each side of the door.

My initial thought for this wagon is to try and replicate the one shown on page 6 of David Larkin's Pre-Nationalisation Freight Wagons on British Railways. As much as I like the condition of this wagon, I especially like the fact that it has spoked wheels.

Armchair Challenge (Part 4)

A brief update to report a little progress on the initial six wagons for the Scalefour Society's Challenge. The current state of affairs at the close of play this evening is shown below.........six 16 ton mineral wagons all in different stages of construction.

Two Parkside standard Dia. 1/108 with W irons attached can be seen at the back. Top left is an old Airfix kit Dia. 1/108 with a replacement floor fitted. On the left is a Cambrian Models LNER 16 ton mineral wagon. In the centre is a Parkside Dia. 1/109 riveted wagon. Scattered across the cutting mat is the next victim under the knife, a Parkside's slope sided wagon.

When the six bodies are completed I'll get back to the under-frames, hopefully plucking up courage to have a go at Exactoscale's chassis kit.

At last - Track laying finished

I received a parcel last week from a very kind member of the China Clay Branchlines Yahoo Group that contained a number of P4 track items. One package in the parcel contained slide chairs which are something I've been lacking. This spurred me on to try and complete the track to a point where I can start installing the wiring. Bringing the layout down into the living room over the weekend enabled me to work on a couple of bits that were a little difficult to get to where I normally have the layout erected.

And here it is ........


......at last, track laying finished...... and I hear you say "It's about b****y time as well". I can't believe it has taken me nine months just to build three points and about three yards of track......

During the last few months I've noticed that a few people paint the baseboards before laying track, wiring etc. Is this to help seal the wood from absorbing any dampness: from glues used in track-laying; scenic treatments; and/or from any damp storage conditions that the layout might experience? I'm starting to think it might be a good idea to paint the baseboards, even if it's only to tidy the layout up a little. So, a little late in the construction, I'll aim to dig out some white undercoat from the garage next weekend and give the boards a quick brushing........ Then it's time to get to grips with putting power to the track.

Compensation units

One month has passed since my decision to enter the Armchairs Modellers Challenge was taken. With the holiday and a few other things going during February not a lot has happened. So over the last couple of evenings I've squeezed in some modelling time and started to look at a couple of wagon compensation units.

My aim is to try two or three different compensation units on the wagons. I've a couple of frets from Bill Bedford, some MJT frets plus some Exatroscale units. I've used an old D&S unit on the 7 plank wagon which did go together easily enough and seems to work OK. Unfortunately this fret was the only one I had so cannot consider this as an option for future projects.

First to try was the Bill Bedford units.........


Hmmmm....... Above is my first attempt at putting together one of Mr Bedford's compensation units. To be fair it was built a few months ago, the units were easy to fold and I ran a little solder along the internal folds to stiffen them a little, but as can be seen it is not a very successful attempt. The W irons are not square to the base and when the axles are depressed the W iron splay out a little further..... I couldn't see where I'd gone wrong and the unit was put onto one side for some thinking time. I was sure that, as these units have been around for some time, it was the way I'd put them together that was the problem.

In a subsequent discussion with one of the P4 area group members it was suggested that I use Exactoscale square axles with these units. This I did and the next unit I built.........




has gone together nice and square.....................


The MJT units are similar to the D&S units but again I'm not totally happy with my first attempt as the axle is a sloppy fit not as rigid as the D&S units. The rocking unit is shown below......


I'll persevere with the MJT units on one of my wagons but the jury is still out as to which unit I prefer. I have yet to pluck up the courage to build one of Exactoscale wagon chassis kits which do look a little more complex to put together than either of the above. No doubt once one is built they it won't seem that daunting.

Trial and (plenty of) error

Back to the track this evening and a little more trial and error with the V on the B8 point. I now hope I've produced something that will work OK. The rail seems firmly fixed, there's electrical continuity between V and wing rails and, to my amazement, a wagon will roll effortlessly through it. For the amount of time and effort I've put into building this V this is all very satisfying.



The technique I've used is to glue to the sleepers some of Bill Bedford's brass Point Slide & Special Chair etches to which I've soldered the V and wing rails. This has been the trial and plenty of error bit. Very little of the brass etches are visible either side of the rail which has tested my soldering skills to the full. I'm getting good at burning sleepers! ....... Hope the joints hold up when in use as I've only soldered one wire dropper from the V and will be relying on the brass etches to transfer the current to the wing rails. Next time I scratch build a point I might consider soldering some wire droppers on to the wing rails. The chairs around the V still need to be installed but this will be done later when I'm fully satisfied with the whole point.

The photo below is of my trail run for constructing the switch blades and might help to explain the above technique.


The above photo shows where the brass etches will be glued to the sleepers. I'm hoping that two soldered joints will be sufficient to hold the switch blade in place. Use will be made of brass fish plates at the joint with the closure rail. This should help secure the switch blade in place and also help with electrical continuity between them and the closure rail.

Any alternative suggestions to the above will be gratefully received........

What to build

Well I've done it.........entered my first Model Railway competition! I've no illusion that I've any chance of being placed but hope it will spur me on to build a few wagons and develop my skills.

So what to build?

Ideally for Tredethy Wharf I would build six Clay wagons….. Hmmmm…..I've set the bars fairly high in the respect that I would like to try to install sprung buffers on all goods stock. As yet I've not found a supplier of sprung self-contained buffers for clay wagons and not sure that I'm ready to tackle converting those supplied with the kits. For Tredethy Wharf I'll need 20 or more wagons and more for future projects.……. I don't want to fail to meet one of my objectives at the first hurdle.

So six general merchandise wagons it is…… the next question is, six of the same type or six different ones?

The decision I've made is that I'm going to tackle six of the same type. My thinking is that it will be quicker to batch build, then, if I have the time, I'll gradually build two or three of another type and so on and so forth. Finally, if I've managed to build more than the initial six, I'll be able to select the better ones for my competition entry.

I've always had a liking for 16T mineral wagons. Not sure if this was from seeing endless trains of mineral wagons rattling though Reepham station when I was knee high to a grasshopper. I've collected a few kits for these wagons over the years. Wenfordbridge branch saw its fair share of these wagons for local coal and coal for the Wenford driers. They will offer me excellent challenges in weathering. and not be too difficult to compensate. Sprung buffers, etching/castings for brake gear and different castings for axle boxes are all readily available. I have relevant books by John Hayes, Geoff Kent and Martyn Welch and a few reference photos in other books. It makes sense, to me, that these will be the first six.

So, out came the kits, from the Parkside range, 4 x Dia 1/108 PC21s; 1 x slope sided PC27; 1 x riveted PC54; 1 x French PC22; 1 x Cambrian LNER; 2 x Airfix kits; plus a few part-built Airfix kits from my EM gauge days; and a part built Parkside French type. Out came all the compensation units and different castings I've collected during this last year. Might need a few more bits as I go along, especially sprung buffers. There are plenty unbuilt kits for me to go at, so the part-built kits while be put to one side for the moment. I've collated a few components together and hope to make a start over the weekend...... Well.....hope so.