murrayec

Lovely model Warb One of the nicest buildings in Dun Laoghaire, such a pity the Authority built that lump behind it! Another beauty behind it- the Harbour Master's Offices has been messed up to! Eoin

To finalise the wiring I started to setup the signal box to house 13 Cobalt levers, the box is designed to clamp onto the frame of the baseboard and it's design is based on the Dun Laoghaire timber sheeted 1895 McKenzie & Holland 34 lever signal box. It will be out of scale a bit but can't fit these levers into an 00 scale box....... Lower level parts cut out from 3mm & 6mm MDF. Testing a lever for fit. Glue and sealer added. Paint added. and getting the levers or the floor to fit before bolting them in. The upper section has yet to be cut out and will be used to cover the levers when the layout is not attended. A lot of wiring to do.... Eoin

Date for the next Train & Model Fair

I've been hacking away on the baseboard...... This is a photo of the jigsaw plates all now fitted. Trimming and fitting the track boards to their corresponding ends at the plates. Boards done and glued, now setting up the track to check again in prep for the 3mm underlay foam. As the sun passed the window of the room I noticed the track boards took on a wobble with the heat! So I decided that intermediate fixings along the boards would be required, and this is the solution I came up with to screw down to the foam deck- M3 threaded insert pushed into the foam, epoxied and covered over with a generous piece of Transpaseal to aid retention. So track boards fixed down all over, I set about sticking down the 3mm foam underlay. Super Elevation! .7mm card being installed under the foam on the outside of the track curves. CNCing out the PCB copper clad sleepers for soldering the track ends, these will be mounted on a 3mm MDF riser cut into the foam underlay. MDF risers and sleepers being installed. I decided to use the surface mounted Peco points motors as I had them in stock, though I did cut slots down through the track boards and foam deck if I should decide to install servo motors at a later stage. I wanted to keep the surface motor as low as possible so a modification was done to the points by adding a brass lever with a pin soldered in facing down. The motors can now be mounted on the track board and the points operated from their underside. With the track underlay foam installed I then started on the wiring of each plate and for the tracks. With wires installed I started to fit the track, soldered the rails across the coper clad sleepers, soldered the wires to the copper sleepers, and then cutting the rails across the joins. and complete and finally the first test of removing the plates to dissemble the baseboards.... I am now working on each board separately, completing the track wiring and setting up the points control system. Eoin

The painting is in the processes- I have taken some photos and will post them up soon! Eoin

I think popeye means colour not materials Take a look here for some colouring samples;- https://www.google.com/search?q=asbestos+roof&tbm=isch&source=univ&client=firefox-b-d&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiZl9XU44ziAhW8VBUIHS5hCtwQsAR6BAgJEAE&biw=1280&bih=891

Station equipment & view from inside the loco with catcher deployed and token nabbed;-

I'd say that's correct @flange lubricator, easier to get at. But all the locos would have to have them in the same position! otherwise the corresponding snatcher on the platform would have to be adjusted- height wise for the different locos, if, the snatchers were in different locations? It was a mad system! I wonder did anyone get hung up on one flying through the station? Eoin

Back to the Baseboard. The track plan was traced onto the 3mm MDF sheets and I set about cutting out the track boards, the join 'Jigsaw' pieces were worked out and then the cnc machine cut these out. This is a photo of 3 of the units- 2 curved and a straight. The male parts will be glued to the end of the track boards and the female ones are the jigsaw pieces that straddle the baseboard join. M3 countersunk socket screws into T nuts will be used to fix these down to the plates in the baseboards. The two plates to the right in this photo are the fixing plates, one will be inset in that routed pocket in the foam, the other in the baseboard adjacent . The plates have routed slots to take the track wiring with holes down through to under the board. The rear track and sidings was a complex one! here is a sequence of it going in..... .....and the final fitting & testing of the track boards butting up to their end piece. One of the curves on the sides, and the straight on the front. Before gluing the track boards to their ends I set up the track to see if adjustment was needed- all good, so dismantled it again and out with the PVA....... Eoin

The Fry Museum opening is getting closer. See the link below, a press release on the Co Co's website shows the official opening of the restored Casino House 2 days ago;- http://www.fingalcoco.ie/media/PRESS RELEASE Refurbishment work on Malahide Casino nearing completion.pdf Trains to follow soon. Eoin

I'll bring me own mug! Great news Eoin

A video of the layouts

Looking great @MikeO Looking forward to seeing that 121 up close Eoin

Hi Wexford Model Railway Club Thanks to all who organised a very enjoyable weekend and thanks to all who came over to say hello, chat and comment on the DART models. I love @enniscorthyman's layout, I was opposite him at the show and enjoyed two days of it. Enda's layout is great to, he has great family stories attached to it, I've seen photos on fb but it's better in the flesh. Looking forward to the next one and hopefully my layout will be complete by then!! Thanks Eoin

The date for the May Fair;- I could have a special DART on display at this one?? Eoin

I finally got the baseboards finished to the point of starting to lay the track and test if the DARTs can get around it;- Undercoat going on, Setting up track based on the old system I used for testing models being worked on, but it was always to close to the edge of the board- OK at home but not for display. I took it to the last Bray Fair and found my display table support idea will not work to well, so Screwfix trestles will have to do for the moment. The Seapoint Martello Tower makes an appearance again! and the final solution, I think! all runs well the DART can go everywhere with no problems. Flexible track was used to tighten up the layout to get in from the edges. The track is set up on 3mm MDF sheets to mark and cut out track boards which will be screw fixed to the baseboards with a jigsaw inset track piece for the joins! I have a plan..... Eoin

Hi dave182 Try here;- https://www.menzels-lokschuppen.de/ Eoin

Back in 2015 (cant believe that) I setup a styrene D301, its on here somewhere but can't locate it- the plan was to do a test body in styrene and then body and chassis in brass when I set up my new CNC machine back then! I did buy wheels, cranks and other bits at the time- but alas it all went in a box until I mastered the CNC thing and it got forgotten. This thread and Kirley's posts on facebook recently, has me thinking about it again...... This is a link to an article which may be helpful @john83;- http://newirishlines.org/archive-2/ its Issue 5 on the page list and here are a few photos of the test styrene body being set up;- I can now, when time permits, do it!! Eoin

Hi John83 Yes the boxes are quite different, and so are the door panels n hand rails, the cab on D301 is a bit shorter ending just behind the door, the hand break sticks out the back with an enclosing box, front steps on D301 are different, no ladders on D301, it had water over flow pipes down the side and an open meshed vent on both sides. D301 had outside crankweights and springs- some Class 08 models don't have this so look for one that does, again some Class 08 models have a slim front vent which D301's was quite deep.... Eoin

Excellent Ken, Love the development of this train, like has not been seen before, what next Eoin

Hi Guys After decals and lining is done spray with a satin or matt varnish- 'Alclad II Semi-Matte' does a fantastic dullish job..... Other possibility's if using Halfords paint for air brush- is to ask for matt paint not gloss when ordering, or use Phoenix Pints Matting Agent. Eoin

Mr Bob Take out the glass and use an airbrush to spray lightly a dilute tint on the inside or use one of the tinted stick on window films you can get online, when the glass is out use a Sharpie marker or a Rotring/Mars drawing pen to blacken the frames- carefully! Eoin

Good things are worth waiting for. Lovely stuff. Eoin