Just joined & saying hi

[Horus200]

@Screwdriver.

Ok thank you kindly for that.

[Mountain]

Welcome to the forum.

I've recently come back to model railways after a long break as I'm only a month off retirement. I've worked with communications equipment, computers and electronics for most of my working career so should be able to help out if you get stuck. I'm still learning about the new DCC side of model railways. My old layout back in the early to mid 1980's, used a HM5000 which is an older form of digital controller based on the Zero 1 system.

I did see someone had put insulated sheets on the inside of the roof beams in the loft space. Boarding the loft would be a good idea for you. The best thing I did was enlarging the loft entrance and installing a loft ladder.

As others have mentioned, you don't have to stick with 00. In my own situation, most of mine is 00 but I have got a small amount of 0 scale gear so you don't just have to stick to just one gauge. I also like to make scenery from old plant bits and items than normally go in the recycling bin, especially seeing the prices these scenery items cost these days.

Wow! H&M5000. I have the H&M3000.

[Mountain]

Thank you to all whom have welcomed me here. It's very nice of you all. Thanks also for all the info & or advice you've given too. I must admit most of the technical jargon means nothing to me.

Don't worry. Even some of us who have always been in the hobby find some areas we may not know so much about, as the hobby is one of the widest encoumpassing hobbies I know, so all sorts of sub subjects can be introduced.

[Horus200]

Hello there people.

I wonder if I may ask someone more knowledgeable than me something.

I've got an RS609 set circa 50ish yes old, meant to smoke too. I've gotten some smoke oil today, got home, put some in, tried it & nothing is happening from loco.

I've got a H & M Clipper single track controller for the amp output needed & still nothing.

It used to smoke when first turned up even with the H & M controller.

I've got a smoke oil that's coal fire scented.

Would I perhaps need a very specific smoke oil?

[Bigmet]

The 50 year old aspect is the most likely problem. These are children's toys and a performance life of a couple of years would be good for the smoke unit, which will burn out if typically run with no coolant = smoke oil

[Mountain]

I take it that it is a Triang loco? Lovely well made things which go on and on for years!

(Rare to find a working smoke element though but the rest of the loco should be ok. Just they have large flanged wheels so needs track that has wider (And deeper) flangeways. He motors themselves last ages and are built with easy servicing in mind. Only real things to go wrong are weak magnets (Can be re-magnetized), worn brushes (Replacable) and the occasional broken winding (Rare unless roughly handled). The motorbogie types can eventually wear at the bearings but the ordinary X03/X04 type motors just go on and on!).

[Horus200]

Thank you for your replies you lovely people.

I've managed to work out with my Girlfriends help what the issue was, the smoke oil wasn't going into the hole underneath the funnel.

@Mountain.

Yes a Triang Hornby Princess express passenger set from 71/72. Seems to work well with or without the smoke oil. Gets a fair turn of speed up on my 6" x 4" board even with 7 coaches.

@Bigmet.

Thank you for your reply. I must have struck lucky for once as seems to still work.


I've also taken it apart to clean up the smoke oil that didn't go in right place with some kitchen roll, after that I couldn't get it to even move for some reason, mind I did take the screws out of the contact plate without realising what it was. Took me a bit of faffing & fiddling with it but now it's working again. I'll be honest I've no idea what it was I did though, all I know is it's working again just like it did before.

I've never had a loco that smokes before so quite happy again now.

Chuffed ( cue drone sound ) with myself.

Wishing you all a lovely calm, relaxing, quiet evening

Hours200

[Mountain]

Ah. Contact plates known as plunger pick-ups. I believe the Princesses only had them in the first year Triang made them so you have an early one. From then on they used the more common wheel pick-ups. If anything, plunger pickups can be more reliable if done right as they kinda clean the track as they go along so the actual track t contact area can end up maintained better than rotating wheel to track contact area can, BUT with wheels, if the loco has many wheels, one csn obviously use them so they end up having better pickups due to their number... The plunger type pickups are also not so easy to hide.
The most basic G scale models are little 0-4-0's with plunger pickups (They might also have wheel pickups as well? I am not sure). But these little things are some of thr most amazing when it comes to electric pickup in the current and I have seen G scale (Though they didn't run their 0-4-0's) run on tarnished brown track on outdoor railways, but I do know these little plunger pick-up 0-4-0's are meant to be even better? I did hear of one of these things which ran on a shop shelf with a shuttle unit so was on ordinary 12v DC (I think they are 12v), and it was going back and fore on the single shelf and had been doing that for an entire year and a half and had never been switched off, and had even impressed the shop owner, and the thing was running excellently! The owner had never hat to clean the track as thr plunger pickups had done that by themselves. He said he just has not touched it!
Now admittedly your 00 scale locos are not designed quite as robustly as G scale, BUT they are designed to take a beating which is something todays model railways are not which is why so many are still around today even though some of them have had a rough time, and it is why I LOVE them, and have a few 0-4-0 chassis or locos so I can in the future use them on some more of my 0-16.5 locos. (My loco number 1 "Ruthy" has such a chassis!)

[Horus200]

@Mountain.

First year eh, never seen or heard of those pick ups before, must be old then as from what you said it seems like it was built to last, unlike today's things. Seems in good condition for it's age, paintwork looks good still.

I'm just going to keep it & enjoy using it when I do.

I've seen G scale at an exhibition, like the size of it, never had any.

Horus200

[Mountain]

Out of the larger of the two scales being G and SM32, I prefer SM32 but G is good. I generally find most G scale models to look too "Plasticky" for my liking even though they are well made which is one of the reasons why I prefer SM32.

Go down a scale again and you get to what is now called NG7, though for years it has been known as 0-16.5 (Also known as 0e and 0n30) which runs on 00 or H0 track. This is what I model in.

Then smaller again and one gets to 009 (H0e etc). I used to have a fair bit of H0e myself to run alongside 00 before factory made 009 was available. It is nice stuff which runs on N gauge track width, but I found it too small to be honest! Why I ended up in 7mm scale narrow gauge instead.

Recently, in order to address the decline in interest in SM32, there has been many enthusiasts coming out with budget kits and these are at really attractive prices which are sometimes close to cost price in order to attract more into this scale so it can get more support.
It is the cost of track where one can take a hammering but (If one has the right equipment and one using non-track powered locos) modellers have been sharing their 3D printed track programs sonone can in theory (After buying the right equipment) print ones own track.

I still prefer 0-16.5 as it is so conveninet for indoor use and my budgeting needs and it is not too difficult to convert some typee of 00 or H0 locos into this narrow gauge scale.

All of the above mentioned are the more popular scales in narrow gauge.