Fiacra

I came across this chap's YouTube channel recently, and it's very informative for anybody interested in finescale modelling and scratchbuilding. He has a few videos in which he describes how to use Templot and 3D printing/laser cutting to produce bespoke trackwork, and this looks like a viable option for 21 mm track. I've never used Templot, but my understanding is that it includes 21 mm templates, so it should be straight forward to produce 21 mm track and points. Has anybody here tried this approach?

Thank you - completely missed that! Thanks Beano. I'm very new to DCC and wasn't aware that generic decoders could be used - very helpful!

Hi folks, I have been collecting Irish locos over the last couple of years, with a view to building a layout in due course. Unfortunately, at the time of buying the locos, I didn't give any consideration to DCC decoders - on the assumption that I would be able to pick them up at a later stage. Alas, not so. I've been able to find decoders for my 071 and 201, but it seems that A class and 121 decoders are out of stock everywhere. I'm assuming 141/181 decoders will be available when these locos are re-released, but does anybody know if the A class and 121 decoders are still available anywhere? Or, if they'll become available any time soon? Also, I should probably emphasise that it's only the decoders that I'm looking for, not the sound chips. Many thanks!

Lovely work! Very helpful - thanks TimO!

Thanks TimO - that is very welcome news! I only have a couple of the original MM mk2d's and have been using them as conversion guinea pigs ahead of the new batch arriving. But, if the new bogies are prototype width, that will make things a lot easier.

Thanks for this info Rich. The MJT rigid bogie frame was my first foray into brass kits, but despite my trepidation it was quite straight forward. However, CCUs look like they would require a much more delicate touch - might be a step too far for me at this stage. I'll pick one up though, and see how it goes.

Well, I'm in a position to answer the question myself now - it being 'with some difficulty'. There may be an easier way, but I ended up having to remove the body from the chassis, and even then, there was a lot of blindly poking, squeezing, and forcing the attachment jaws out of position, before the bogie came away. Clearly designed to be robust rather than for easy removal. I wonder if the new batch of mk2d's will be designed in the same way? My reason for wanting to remove the bogies in the first place is to regauge the models for EM track. I've mentioned this in a previous post, but I've opted to go EM gauge as a compromise between 00 and 21mm (the availability of track, points etc, being large part of the decision). Unfortunately, the bogies on the mk2d's are not wide enough for a simple axle swap-out. My original intention was to replace the whole bogie with an MJT brass bogie frame (using the original MM bogie sides as cosmetic attachments). Alas, it seems the MJT bogies are also strictly 00 gauge - something I only realised after constructing one and attempting to install a DCC Concepts EM gauge wheelset. That's no criticism of MJT, as they don't advertise the rigid bogie kits as anything other than 00 - I suppose I assumed there might be enough wiggle room in them to accept EM gauge axles. So, it looks like the only way forward is to cut up the MM bogies and use plasticard to rebuild them to a suitable width. That shouldn't be too difficult, but if anybody knows of another way of approaching this, I'm all ears. Many thanks!

Apologies for such a basic question, but how does one go about removing the bogies from a MM mk2d? I thought they might disconnect with a bit of force, but that starts pulling the whole chassis away from the body, so it must require a more nuanced approach. Thanks for any help!

A question for the IRM folks. Now that Mk2 delivery is on the horizon, are there plans to sell the scale-Irish-width B4 bogies as separate packs (e.g. to replace the narrower bogies on MM carriages)?

Outstanding layout! The bridge in particular is stunning - how was the stonework created?

Perfect - thank you!

I received the 'ready to purchase' notifications for the mk2D's that I pre-ordered. However, I would like to get some clarification before I pay. The carriages are listed as e.g '5203 Irish Railways Mark 2d Standard - Irish Rail (Orange roof)', which I take to mean IR tippex livery with orange roof (exactly what I'm looking for). However, the description section for all of the 2D's states 'CIE Supertrain Livery'. Can anybody here shed any light on the matter? Many thanks!

Fantastic - thanks for all of this information Mayner!

Apologies in advance for adding a very basic question to this thread. Am I correct to assume that a single 15v source can power multiple point motors (if they will only be thrown one at a time)? If this is the case, how should one go about connecting everything? Presumably it's not as simple as connecting all of the wiring directly to the power source. Is there such a thing as a breakout box that can receives the two wires from the power source, and can then relay this to multiple point motors?

Thanks Eoin - this seems to be the most common solution to this problem. However, the actuating rod on these seep motors is fairly strong stuff - even cutting them takes a fair bit of effort. I'm not so sure it would bend even slightly, given the extra distance if mounted as suggested. I'll certainly give it a try though! Ah, indeed - that sounds like just trick! Thanks Andy.

Hi folks, Following on from a post I made last year regarding the possibility of modelling Irish railways in EM gauge, I decided to build a small test track consisting of a single, branching line (i.e. three lengths of track connected to a turnout) on which to test run some re-gauged rolling stock - dip my toes in the world of gauge conversion before committing to a full layout. I’m using an EM Gauge Society Peco turnout and I purchased a Gaugemaster PM-4 Seep point motor to control the switch rails and the polarity of the frog. Alas, I’ve already hit a bump in the road. It looks like the throw of the switch rails in the Peco turnout is considerably less than that of the point motor (and, presumably, of regular 00 gauge Peco turnouts). As a consequence, the contact at the base of the switch rod that would change the polarity of the frog can not move a sufficient distance to complete its job (i.e. it remains in contact with one of the polarity strips on the circuit board of the point motor, rather than disconnecting from one and then connecting to the other). So, either I am doing something very wrong (which is very possible) or these Seep point motors are not suitable for finescale turnouts. As there are a number of finescale modellers on this forum, I would be very interested to hear what point motors they use, and whether or not they have to make any modifications to get them working properly. Many thanks!

Looks like that's going to be the case for me too. My order status has changed to 'paid' and I finally received an email last week to say there had been a delay in restocking some items. So, two months later and still waiting to receive anything. I suppose it's to be expected though - the producers of finescale items are probably very small operations.

Bushings! Now that I know what they're actually called, I can search for them - thanks Phil. Thanks for this info Brendan - will definitely check out the articles in New Irish Lines. It did occur to me that the hubs could be trimmed and glued in place, but that seems such a shame when they were designed to rotate. Alas, it might be the only option. Regarding the side-to-side play, it's probably not so pronounced with 21 mm as the wheels are pushed out close to the bogie frame, which (together with the glued hubs) would presumably limit the side-to-side movement? I'll have a look around for longer bushings, as suggested by Phil, but otherwise it might actually be easier to bypass the EM trials and go straight to 21 mm!

Having thought about the pros and cons of 21 mm a bit more, I've decided to have a go at constructing a short length of 21 mm track and a couple of points, just to see what it entails - and I'll convert a 121 to run on it. Before that though, I thought I would ease into the whole conversion experience by first converting the 121 to EM and running it on some Peco EM bullhead track and a couple of kit-built EM points. And so I've arrived at my first bump in the road....... The attached photo shows a bogie on the 121 with the left wheel set re-gauged to EM (on original axle), while the right wheel set has not yet been re-gauged. What I've noticed is that there is now quite a bit of side-to-side play in the re-gauged wheel set due to the increased space between the wheels and the brass(?) rings that hold the axle in the gear block. This isn't an issue on the 16.5 mm wheel set because the wheels are tighter to the brass rings and this limits the side-to-side movement. Brass rings (whatever they're actually called) with a longer cylinder would seem to be the obvious solution - or some type of spacer that can be put on the axle between the wheel and the brass ring. Does anybody know if such items are readily available? Another thing I noticed is that when the wheels are spaced for 21 mm gauge on the original axle, the outside face of the wheel is almost flush with the end of the axle. This leaves no room at the end of the axle for the rotating hubcap to slide on to it. Has anybody found a way around this? As always, thanks for any input!

Hi folks, Have any of you had problems ordering from C & L? I placed an order via their website in mid-September and got confirmation from my bank that the payment went through a couple of days later. However, my order status is still showing as 'awaiting payment/awaiting processing' on the C & L website. Have sent a couple of emails, but no response. My understanding is that C & L is a one-man operation, but still, this seems like an unusually long time. Anybody else had a similar experience?

Completely agree - very atmospheric!

Took a spin out to Maam Cross this morning for a better look - indeed it was the plough van that passed my window yesterday.

Only caught a quick glance as I went running to find my camera (but not quickly enough) - certainly similar to that though.

Was looking out the window of my house here in Oughterard (Co. Galway) a minute ago and, quite unexpectedly, saw a brake van on the back of truck pass by! Presumably on its way out to the crew at Maam Cross?

Thanks for that suggestion Andy. I wasn't aware of the MJT bogies, but just checked them out and they don't seem overly complicated to construct. I take your point on EM still not looking right - I suppose I would be settling for something that looks 'less wrong' than 16.5 mm. However, those bogies are now making me consider going P4 instead of EM, which would look less wrong again I know it might seem pointless to go to all the effort of P4 conversions rather than going to the full 21 mm, but the matter of pointwork construction for the latter still terrifies me!