Angus

I've used templot for all my 2mm finescale track including the Irish 10.5mm guage. It needs a little bit of dedication to learn but is a very powerful tool. As has been noted above loads of presets that cover some quite esoteric scales and guage and the possibility to set your own. You can also make up track panels that match the prototypes practice. I don't do this in 2mm but do with my 7mm scale Modelling as its much more noticeable.

Ah! Sorry misunderstood.

Hi David, I am trying to figure out in my head why the quartering would work at 45 degrees but not 90. Something feels wrong there, but not sure what? Are the axles themselves straight and true? Or one driver mounting hole not straight and true? It suggests a lack of concentricity somewhere.

There was a great talk on the SLNCR at the IRRS Manchester meet last week. Lots of photos of Enniskillen and the line I hadn't seen. Although there was some IT issues the event was record so the slides should be available.

As with Galteemore, the "gauge" description doesn't fit my Irish modelling which is in 2mm finescale. So 1:152 on 10.5mm gauge track, which, at the risk of sounding elitist, is a long way from N Gauge. I've also got a passing interest in 3mm scale on 9mm track to represent the narrow gauge, this interest is latent at the moment though as I've enough to be going on with!

A week away with some modelling tools reinvigorated my modelling. As we were staying near Oban on the West Coast of Scotland I built up some Caledonian Railway stock. An Irish item did fall into the bag in the form of a Worsley Works etch for a GSWR brake third 6 wheeler. I only had a soldering iron and some basic tools so all the detailing is still to add.

Hi Alan, In some early third class carriages the compartment partitions were not full height. This enabled lighting and ventilation to be shared across compartments. The vent would therefore fall on the partition. That said, if they are torpedo vents on an 1880 carriage I would be fairly certain they were later additions.

Hi JHB, I exchanged emails with him earlier in the year as I was aware he had started building a model of Caharcieveen in 2mm scale many moons ago. I'll contact him and check he is happy for me pass on his details. Cheers Angus Edit: I should have read further, I see Leslie has already sent you his details.

Plodding ever onwards..... the pointwork is now glued down with all electrical droppers in place. I've also been progressing laying the PCB sleepers in readiness for the plain track. I've left the tracks approaching the turntable out until I have the deck in position as I noticed the well is drilled very slightly off the centre point on the track template. This will enable some local adjustment to the track to accommodate the error. Another error I've discovered is that, despite measuring several times, I've manage to create the track plan 30mm longer than the boards. I really don't know how I've managed that! The issue being that the boards are the correct size for the alcove the layout will be sited in so cannot be lengthened. This has meant the goods yard headshunt has been sharpened from 500mm radius to 400mm to fit onto the board. It means the whole alignment isn't as pleasing and a wee bit crammed in but needs must. Some careful gauge widening should enable successful running. It is not as if any long wheelbase 0-8-0s will be shunting the yard! A spot of Ebay bidding secured a Farish Maunsell Mogul for a reasonable price and conversion parts have been ordered form the 2mm Scale Association shop which will hopefully make for a relatively straight forward conversion to 10.5mm finescale. The loco is the British N Gauge so is to 1:148 scale so will slightly dominate the remaining stock at 1:152 but hopefully not too noticeable. Some number plates are on order to create no 378, built in 1926 and shedded at Broadstone for all of its life so a likely as any of the class to appear on the Sligo line. In the period that will be modelled (the early '30s) the Sligo turntable was too small to accommodate the class so they wouldn't have appeared there. However, in my altered historical narrative a larger turntable has been installed at Larass to enable engines working excursion trains to be turned. This should lead to some odd engine movements, arriving tender first from Sligo to be turned and sent back tender first. It also occurs to me that I need to finish some of my other loco projects first as I've still not got any motive power!

I'm currently contemplating buying a Farish N Class for conversion to 10.5mm gauge 2mm finescale (coz I've not enough started and half finished projects.....). The 2mm scale association have just released a set of etched valve gear for the conversion and the Farish model utilises bearings which can swapped for a replacements that accepts 2mm finescale stub axles (another association product) to allow drop in re-wheeling. Apart from the book mentioned in Maitland's post above (which I've just bought) does anyone know of a comprehensive list of difference between the English and Irish variants? Some differences can be easily picked out from photos (cut outs on the tender sides, front footsteps, age dependent smokebox doors, wheel diameters dependent upon batch, etc), others such the width are more subtle but can be seen (the widening of the tender frames but the tender tank width staying the same leading to a step between the two). Just being lazy really and looking to avoid work that may already have been done!

With the help of some not so great bank holiday weather the pointwork is completed, all check rails added and the PCBs gapped, although I bet I missed a section. Shorts always seem to turn up no matter how careful you are. It was quite satisfying to remove the pointwork from the board it has lived on for nearly year and then peal off the template. With some free time left I prepped the baseboard, holes for the wiring have been drilled, along with slots for the point motors. Despite my careful planning I've managed to get one of the tie bars partially in conflict with a cross beam which will need some head scratching to resolve. Hopefully next weekend should see the pointwork glued down.

It must have been fun playing with a train set of that quality Galteemore. Not Jealous at all, not one bit, not even a little bit....honest.....

That's two of us then!

Thanks both, I start using some cheap magnifying lens with a built in LED mounted on a head band a few years ago. That helps with eyesight, I doubt I could do anything without them now.

A bit more progress to report, the switch blades have all been filed and fitted using my home made jig: And the tie bars have been made up With the obligatory 5p for scale. The tie bars are a bit of a faff to make but have worked well for me in the past. Some of my 2mm finescale compatriots opt for a below base board turnout unit with the blades connected by wires through the board. I've never been convinced by this approach and prefer the tried and test moving sleeper method. The problem is in 2mm scale the PCB moving sleeper is narrow so significantly weakened by the hole for the point motor level. The result is that I had several tie bars break. The solution came following conversations with another 2mm modeller who used to build pointwork on commission. His solution was to use a piece of thin double sided PCB (0.25mm) laminated to a piece of thin strip brass. The PCB can still be gapped to provide electrical isolation and the brass strip adds strength for the point motor level. These are now ready for installation, albeit I have to remake one as I've managed to de-laminate one of the PCBs, probably by using too much heat. All that is left then will be to cut and fit the check rails.... the bank holiday weekend beckons!