St. Blazey's - My first layout - Stage 3 Building

[captrees]

And thanks for the tip... Florists wire. So many uses.

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My pleasure captrees. Not only so many uses but It also stays where you bend it to.

After a rough calculation I need to order another 120 metres of wire to finish wiring up the point motors on the layout.
Installing It may have to wait though as I am busy sorting out to go on 'walkabout' again in June for a few days along the North Downs.
All that fresh air and sleeping under the stars.
Thanks
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And thanks for the tip... Florists wire. So many uses.

I've just found another!!!

I have drilled the 1mm holes down through the baseboard for securing my PM1 point motors but wanted to be able to see the tiny holes easily from underneath so I decided to draw a black circle around each 1mm hole.
I pushed a piece of florist's wire down through the 1mm hole and poking out the underneath of the baseboard so I could see to draw the circle.
Worked a charm.
Thanks
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Hmm... my last post was a while ago. Time for an update!
Bachmann NRM limited edition 9F has arrived (Birthday gift) along with a Zimo decoder for it. I've already run it in on DC but I am yet to install the decoder as I have been too busy wiring all the point motors up.

At the moment the point motor wires are just terminated with connector blocks as the control panel has yet to be dealt with.
Unfortunately after wiring them all up I seem to have an overload on the controller. I've taken off all the rolling stock so I'm sure this is just a simple cross wire somewhere, but I am yet to investigate further.

In the meantime more mind modelling in the form of how to light and add passengers to my observation coach, auto-coach and a couple of other coaches.
My Hatton's pre-order of 3 of their short wheelbase coaches has yet to materialize even after a year of ordering them. Delivery now expected anytime between now and October. No problem. This was never going to be a quick or fast paced hobby for me.

In other areas, my search for a suitable platform shelter for Platform 2/3 has fallen flat as the footprint of all the available models / kits is just to large for my narrow Linka platforms. Also many of them are one sided whereas I need openings on BOTH sides of the shelter.

The solution ???
LINKA OF COURSE!!!

I have a mould with a excellent barred window that is not a full tiles width giving me a narrower building.
I've already made and undercoated the ends of the shelter and have an idea for the middle seating (2 Hornby benches glued back to back) to be attached to the ceiling as the shelter will have no base and will sit direct on the platform.
As usual with 99% of my buildings, it will be lit.
Hopefully I will have something to show even if it's unfinished, by Friday.

It begs the question... what do YOU do while waiting for paint and glue to dry?
Not sit there and watch it I hope.

That's about all for now.
Thanks
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A couple of pictures of where I am up to with Platform 2's shelter.
Main walls make from Linka tiles, spanned by a ceiling of balsa wood, ready to take the lighting. Undercoated with grey primer.
The glue wasn't quite dry when I moved it to take the photos but it is level.

Seating uprights made from a wide coffee stirrer, seats are standard Hornby benches glued back to back. All painted with Wilco's Java Bean.
Seat uprights also have filed out 'portals' in to let light through to the end benches (not shown) and the windows.
The seat uprights will push through filed out holes in the ceiling to help keep them glued in secure.

Platform 2 Shelter A sm.jpg (83.78 KiB) Viewed 1231 times

Platform 2 Shelter B sm.jpg (85.93 KiB) Viewed 1231 times

Thanks
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[Dublo]

Hi End2
Looking good there.
It's nice to see another Linka project on the go. I too have found that particular window mould useful.

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Thanks Dublo.
As always, having ideas above my station I've decided to extend the whole platform shelter idea by making another small compartment for the station staff. I will make a longer roof with the shelter at one end, a gap then the other compartment at the other end. I have some LCUT GWR valancing but I don't have enough for both sides of the roof so will need to order more.
http://lcut.co.uk/index.php?product=GWR ... R%2000-11c

The reason for the gap between the 2 compartments is so the station staff can easily get from the door which is on one side of the building / platform round to the other side.

I've almost built the 2nd compartment but have run out of grey undercoat for the first layer of paint and need to make up more Linka pieces as the last stone gable end I had that needed to be cut down to match the narrower width of the building, I cut down wrong / off line.

I only need that small gable end piece so the rest of the Tuffcast mix will go into the platform surface/sides mould as I still need more of them.
Thanks
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[Teedoubleudee]

I love your Kibri cottage

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Thanks Teedoubleudee.
Although up to my elbows making Linka tiles at the moment I did spy another kit I may buy this morning.
The Hornby R487 Post Office kit.
Unlike their premade buildings where the windows always seem glued in on the slant and the internal walls so cave like, I can be more accurate with a kit, splitting it into internal rooms with their own lighting and internal detailing...... and every village needs a post office.
Thanks
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I don't know what the hell is going but after installing the rest of my point motors, terminated to nothing more than a connector block at the moment, I have a constant short circuit.

I've checked all wiring and everything is as it should be. I thought I may have accidently connected one of the common return wires from a motor to the DCC bus's black wire or something but no. I've even hoovered the layout in case of a stray piece of wire still to no avail.
This has only happened since installing the point motors on the front of the layout.

So much for DCC-ing and running my new 9F today.
Thanks
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I still cannot find the cause of my short circuit and the constant bleeping of the controller is driving me mad when hunting for it.
I don't understand how there can be a short circuit if the point motor wires are not connected to anything at the other end except the common return and the 12v bus throughout, which again are not connected to anything.
More investigation needed.

In the meantime here's some pictures of the staff compartment for my extended Platform 2/3's shelter. I need to take the picture now before the staff member is forever entombed inside.
Desk, desk top unit and chair made from balsa.
Red toolbox / lunchbox(?) is a piece of a painted matchstick, painted red then toned down with black wash.
Mug is from the Busch HO 7783 Beer mugs set.
Newspaper is just some thick card with scribbling on it done with a 0.3mm pen.

First here's the staff member and desk not in situ.

Next 2 pictures in situ.
In this first picture you can see I've used opaque plastic on the tiny window.

StaffComp 2sm.jpg (117.76 KiB) Viewed 1096 times

And from the other side.
In this picture you can see the hole ready to feed the lighting wiring through

StaffComp 3sm.jpg (108.23 KiB) Viewed 1096 times

Hopefully I'll have it finished soon to show the full building.
Thanks
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Well I simply don't get it. After installing the point motors connected to nothing as yet including connected to the common return, again which is connected to nothing yet I'm still getting a short circuit.
I've hoovered the layout twice still to no avail.
I've more than triple checked everything is wired as it should be yet nothing is connected except the DCC bus to the track.
Only one extra set of droppers needed to be connected to the dcc bus which is wired as it should be.
I've had enough and walked away because I simply cannot understand what is causing the short circuit when basically NOTHING is connected.

I found a sticking point motor whilst working my round the layout checking all the wiring that seem to just disintegrate when I was trying to move it over from underneath. That's another I need to buy.
This hobby drives me @£"$&"%^ mad sometimes.
Thanks
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By splitting the DCC bus up into disconnect-able sections I've managed to narrow down the short circuit to one section of the layout but all wire is as it should be and looking along the track and points in that section through a jewellers loupe I still cannot find the cause of the short circuit.

All this worked before I added the point motors and with them not connected to anything, no wire amiss and no detritus found on the track I'm at a total loss.
All DCC droppers have been tested by removing them from the DCC bus either on their own or in 2 / 3 sets of droppers. Still the short circuit persists.
Could it be a previously working point?
Thanks
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I'm still at a total loss as to what is causing the short circuit.
All wiring is 100% correct in the affected area. The only 2 droppers that needed soldering to the track are fine and even with them disconnected from the DCC bus, I still have the short circuit.

Nothing has any power running through it except the DCC bus which was working perfectly before with no short circuit.
NOTHING else is connected electrically.
Although the point motors are connected to the common return, even that's not connected to anything.
Any ideas?
Thanks
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In the meantime, not being able to run trains due to my unfathomable short circuit, here's the finished (and extended from the original idea) Linka Platform 2 / 3 shelter complete with some waiting passengers. There are from the Bachmann 36-045 Station Passengers Sitting set.
And before anyone asks.. "Why the orange on the roof?"..... Seagull deposits. St. Blazey's is based very near the sea.

Platform 3 side. Branch line terminates on this side.

Platform 2 side. Local traffic / Mainline side.

A look into the staff room / office

More to follow....
Thanks
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