Thursday 17th April

Work log:
Geoff -  Complete rewiring of points.
Stephen - Complete wiring and assembly of control box.
Laurence - Chivvy the above along so he can have a running session.

As previously reported, John had used quite thin wire for the layout. Whilst not an issue for the track feeds, the solenoid point motors suffered from the current drop - to some extent on the pairs, but definitely on the four-way cross-over. Geoff had started the upgrading (rewiring with thicker wire) in the week, and now finished it off.

Stephen continued to assemble the control panel and complete the wiring-up of a new feed from the power supply, the temporary capacitor-discharge unit and the new (un-tried) hand-held controller. Four bolts had been fitted to the end of the panel to provide a simple interface between on and off board units. A quick sketch revealed the need for two more, which were hastily added nearby. With no preformed loops available, the ends of all connecting wires are wrapped around a drill bit or screwdriver, and a loop formed. The soldered loop slips over a bolt and is secured by the nut, allowing easy removal (!).

With all work complete, the layout was assembled, loom fitted and power applied. A couple of points needed their connections swapped over, and the temporary CD unit couldn't cope with the multiples, but the speed controller worked - sort of. Full, regulated control in one direction, but only flat-out in the other! Another loco confirmed the problem was in the layout. The CD was disconnected and the controller worked perfectly. Geoff assumed there was a 'short' in the point wiring and will look into it in due course.

Two of Stephen's models were employed for testing. A small freelance diesel built on a Tenshodo 'Spud' chassis and a brake van 'kit-bashed' from a Peco van. After track and wheel cleaning (10+ years of dirt on them!) a bit of shunting took place - a very emotional moment - and a wonderful taste of what is to come.

The joke here was that he had struggled to get all the wiring through the frame to start assembling it all, and then realised he could have simply put the front panel through from the other side - doh!

Thursday 10th April

Work log:
Geoff - overall co-ordination, materials sourcing, design development, on-board assembly/testing.
Stephen - design development, 'devils advocate', washer fixing holes and fettling. Control box assembly & fitting. Din plug fitting.
Laurence - stud turning-up.


What were we doing? 

Back a few weeks..... Laurence proposed that we introduce location studs into the board meeting-faces, to overcome the problem of aligning track joints - something not employed on Cottesmore, which contributed to 'some' issues during exhibition setting-up. 'Sceptical of Ewell' (I know it doesn't rhyme) dismissed the proposed solution on the grounds that the proposed fixings did not appear strong enough for the job. However, Geoff agreed with the principle, something which he'd successfully employed on his school layout. However, his fittings comprised face-fixed plates, which SoE deemed acceptable(!).

The studs were made from M6 bolts with 2 nuts wound tightly up to the head. This was then turned into a bullet shape stud (Laurence), to suit holes drilled in larger washers, (Geoff), with fixing holes drilled in the faces (Stephen).

There was an added frisson, when Geoff explained that the washers we were using originally came from John himself. There was a great atmosphere as the workshop hummed, turning out 3 pairs of studs and washers.

Then, Geoff tried to align the two main boards, but ran into a problem - not all of the rails would line up. And when in their best position, the scenery wouldn't play ball. We always knew that working on a 40 year old layout (20 years in a cold loft) would not be easy, and that some fettling (that word again) would be needed. So, undaunted, he fitted a pair of washers - recessed into one board face, and a pair of studs into the other.

Everything looked good, so the ultimate test was .......... put to the test ......... the boards were separated and reassembled ........ On grounds of personal safety, the results cannot be shown here, but remedial work will be undertaken before the next meeting.

Footnote:
The assembled and painted control panel frame was fitted to the front of the layout using pan-head screws and keyhole slots cut into the box frame. Stephen also presented a very old, but unused AMR hand-held controller. Geoff found a very posh 5-pin din plug and socket, which was soldered on. The socket can be fitted to the control panel next week, for a test run (if the boards are ready......

Homework!

No meeting this week, but work on Worton Court carried on - at least in Ewell.

Stephen took the preparatory pieces of wood home and assembled the rough frame/body for the control panel.

Work also continued on the yard building. Over a few weeks, it has turned into an experiment in gluing paper and the winner was found this week!

Contender one - Diluted PVA. This was successfully used on the stairs. In hindsight, it was a small area and the base was quite firm, due to the shape. (Stair page)

Contender two - Ready made wallpaper repair glue. This seemed like a good idea as it would be a consistent mix and should allow some adjustment. It was tried on a gable - quite a large area. It went on quite well, but the paper became quite soft and tore when being smoothed out at the edges. On drying, the paper shank quite a bit and the gable developed a pronounced outward curve, no doubt caused by the shrinking paper.

Contender three - 3M Spraymount. I've used this a lot at my old company, but I've been reluctant to fork-out for a can for myself. The other gable was tried this time and, I've got to say, it was a joy to use. It does allow some adjustment, but it should be applied correctly first time. At £16 for 400ml, it had better last, but it is versatile as it can also be used for gluing flock material.

Top: For some reason, I made diagonal slits at the opening tops, whereas the horizontal bottom slits work much better. As the doors and windows are almost flush with the brick face, this won't matter, but something to remember. Brick arches to be applied from another sheet of header courses - all part of the sheet design.

Bottom: Aligned at the bottom, there is some creep in the brick coursing at the top, and I'm not sure why.