Chris: My first layout

Thanks for the updates as ever - I see the pictures on the Moray site show very clearly how much progress you have made since the last year's show! Keep up the good work!
Best wishes
Tim

Thanks Tim.

Good grief, I hadn't noticed but you are right. I tend not to see the progress as it happens round me! Phew! And more to come.

With best wishes,
Chris.

Hi everyone.

The Moray MRG exhibition page is now complete, so you can see what the other exhibitors were showing. Enjoy.

trains.manvell.org.uk/exhibitions/20110326-Moray/

With best wishes,
Chris.

Many thanks for the photos Chris. Were there no other Z scale layouts there?

Hi Gary.

You've got a hope. Apart from my friend's layout back in 2007 (the one that made me fall in love with these dinky wee trains) I don't think I've ever seen another Z scale layout. There was one in Continental Modeller (knocked mine into a cocked hat) a while back and that's it. We have so many superb British outline models in the UK, in OO and N, that people are not attracted to continental modelling anyway, let alone in this "my eyes aren't good enough" scale.

All the best,
Chris.

Sorry about the complete lack of updates. However, not a lot has happened since March apart from the acquisition of a few extra items such as station lighting, footbridge and signal box kits and people. Not quite sure what I have been doing in the interim. However, with the prospect of exhibitions looming, I have been forced to start taking notice of the layout. One problem I have is that, being an exhibition layout, everything is controlled from the back. This means that one cannot really "play" trains as the hidden sidings are pretty boring when it comes to train movements. I need to see what I can do about this problem.
So, I have started by replacing those turnouts that got burnt out just before the March exhibition. The turnouts are in situ and I am on the process of wiring them up. Much to my annoyance, one of the has decided to malfunction. To make it worse it is a facing point so it is essential that it works. Cannot see anything wrong so it looks as if the motor has burnt out. :o(

All the best,
Chris.

Good to hear from you, all the best for the exhibitions.

Hi Rowan.

Yes, feel bad about not posting for so long. I have ups and downs on forum posting. Sorry about that. Will update you all once there is something to say (or look at).

All the best,
Chris.

Hi folks.

Well, I've started working on the layout at last. The five replacement turnouts are in situ at last. (But why, oh why, don't the new points fit as well as the old ones? It's like digging a hole and filling it in again - there's never quite enough earth.) I have been left with two large fishplate gaps. The test loco runs over them quite happily but what about wagons and coaches, esp. two-axle ones. Anyway, four of the turnouts are wired up and working. The fifth is a bit of a problem and is on hold. (It doesn't matter as I won't be using it at the expo.)

One silver lining to the cloud is that, having reduced the number spurs I was able to remove one of the route selection buttons. This enabled me to shuffle around the remaining buttons which, in turn meant that I could get rid of the ergonomic nightmare at the left end of the Versteckt Anschlußgleise (hidden sidings to you) and have something reflecting the right hand end of the Versteckt Anschlußgleise (just showing off - probably got it wrong!). The effect was immediate - no more muck ups while testing. (Well, almost.)

Plenty more to do - ballasting (panic, panic), a replacement signal box with lighting, a (Märklin) footbridge (I'm dreading that one as it requires kit bashing - not easy with only one good eye), addition of more passengers etc. and then, worst of all, rewiring so that I can operate from from or back. Probably other stuff as well. One day it will be finished and then what will I do.

I've not done a diary update. That can wait until I have finished the current task.

With best wishes to you all,
Chris.

Arghhhh! What happened to my update? I hit [Submit] and it has disappeared. Couple of diary updates on my website ( tiny.cc/breitenfurt/ ).

Best wishes,
Chris

Hi All.

My second Märklin footbridge kit arrived the other day so my hand has been forced and I have to get the bridge in place, preferably before next month's exhibition in Dundee. The kit as sold can span two or four tracks. However, I need it to span one and three tracks with one single set of access steps on the branch platform and steps going both ways on the remaining two platforms. Even in its standard form this bridge is not easy to constructs so I am totally out of my depth doing mods to it. The other difference from the standard kit is that I am reducing the height by nearly 50%. I say nearly, but what I am doing is building it half height and then I will mount it on stepped plinths on the platforms so that it clears the trains. (Bridges on the stations round here only just clear the trains as there is no catenary to worry about, so that's what I am doing.) Also, I am planning on making it demountable to make it easier to clean the tracks. I expect it to take all week to build. That leaves next week to test trains and the following week to pack everything for the expo. We live in interesting times – mainly 'cos I am finding it very hard to build. :o(

All the best to you all,
Chris.

Apologies for the few hours during which images on my site were not available. This was the result of a incorrect code in my .htaccess file which has now been corrected. Recently my site has been flooded with hundreds of automated hits and I am trying to find an effective way to block them. If anyone feels that they can help, please do contact me. With best wishes, Chris.

Grief, how long does it take plastic cement to dry. Every item I add seems to take an hour to harden. However, after half an hour it's firm enough to be able to get on with the next item.

Chris.

Dampflok wrote: Grief, how long does it take plastic cement to dry. Every item I add seems to take an hour to harden. However, after half an hour it's firm enough to be able to get on with the next item.

What kind of cement are you using now? And what is it you're trying to assemble?

Hi David. Thanks for responding. Actually, the problem was me. Without realising it I had used far too much 'glue' but, because of my poor eyesight, hadn't seen it all. The glue used was either Revel Contacta Professional or Humbrol Precision Poly Cement and I was trying to attach steps to the Märklin footbridge. I got round the problem by mounting the bridge on plinths so all the flights of steps are held top and bottom. This is the first time I have modified a kit (and nearly the first time I have ever made one) so I had enough problems without the glue. The biggest problems I had were too much cement coming out of the tube and cutting straight where the modifications required it.

There are a couple of (not very good – I was really tired) photos on my layout diary on my website. As you will see, it has been heavily modified, requiring two kits to make one bridge.

Best wishes from Scotland,
Chris.

Dampflok wrote: The biggest problems I had were too much cement coming out of the tube ...

It sounds as though you are applying the glue directly from the tube. You may find it easier (cleaner and more precise) to apply the glue using a toothpick or even a pin or needle.

Joe

Thanks Joe. This is where I climb another step on the learning curve. Like when one kit I built fell apart and I realised that MEK was not much use when used on kits.
All the best from sunny Scotland.

Dampflok wrote: Thanks Joe. This is where I climb another step on the learning curve. Like when one kit I built fell apart and I realised that MEK was not much use when used on kits.

Actually MEK works great on kits (as long as they're of the styrene variety). It may however take some practice. MEK is not a glue, it is a solvent which bonds, or welds the pieces together. It's best to use something to hold the pieces together while bonding with MEK. A simple piece of flat metal with some magnets the size of dominoes (available in most US hardware stores and probably in Scotland too ) works great.

MEK is an excellent bonding agent for any styrene-based kit, kitbashing or scratchbuilding or project. Apply it sparingly with a small brush along the joint, and hold the parts firmly together for 20-30 seconds minimum before moving on; or, as Joe recommended, use a jig to hold the parts until they're set.

Occasionally you'll find joints that are not tight enough for the MEK to make a reliable bond. You can actually make your own gap-filling cement by pouring some MEK in a small glass jar with a tight-fitting lid, and dropping several styrene sprues or other scraps into the liquid. Allow the sprues to dissolve completely, and you will then have a thicker cement ideal for loose-fitting joints.

For those unfamiliar with MEK, it's methyl ethyl keytone, sold as a paint thinner/stripper at hardware stores and home improvement centers. It's extremely economical compared to Tenax and other stryene bonding agents; you can buy a gallon of it for less than ten dollars. Use it with caution: the vapors are highly flammable, and you should avoid breathing them.

Dear Friends,

Finally a proper update. The footbridge is complete and 'fitted'. I managed to find my grey colourfix primer (which was used to paint the road and the platforms) and it has made a terrific difference to the plinths. I'm just hoping that all the steam locos have enough clearance (3mm) under it. It's all there on my website.

David. Thanks for the tip. The MEK did work with one kit but was not so good on another. And Joe, I take note of the idea of using a toothpick

Re MEK, I remember, many years ago, seeing Plasticard and MEK being demonstrated by Mr Slater himself for the very first time. It was at a model rail expo in London. I was going to use Plasticard for my plinths but could not find it!

All the best,
Chris.