Dad-1 - Workbench - West Bay Wagon Works

[Dad-1]

Right where am I, Not added much here for a while.
I suppose first I need to say that the two LBSCR brass & white metal wagons have been finished,
including adding decals for my imaginary mountain railway. I should be able to find a picture.



After spending a lot of time making some track and points I am now about to start a couple of historic
brake van models. Both are Slaters '00' kits, not your regular manufacturers. I foolishly ordered without
getting axle sets as I have loads of them in a big tin, what I forgot was that the two models I'm about
to start have 14 mm spoked wheels, even more complicated than that, one requires 8 spoke, the other
needs 10 spoke. All ordered today from H & A Models.

These are to add period charm to my North Circular Mountain Railway layout. I couldn't make up my
mind as to which would be best, so if in doubt build both ? Either one will be a better match than a
standard BR type.

Geoff T.

[Dad-1]

My Slaters Midland Railway 10 ton brake van is making progress.
To do more tonight I should have the paint out and I can't be bothered.



I've only ever made 2 other Slaters wagons and although they can feel chunky they
certainly look the part. For me a plus is that the model picture displayed on the box
has been well made & fully finished with decals. Who ever made the illustrated model
went to the trouble of removing the moulded on grab rails and replaced with wire
something I may decide to do after I've painted the interior.

My correct size wheels will arrive soon, but A point to note is they are 14 mm coach size
spoked wheels so you really do need to order when you get one of these.

Geoff T

[Phred]

Tying a knot in a rubber band to make it smaller...
Another nice little trick for me to store away.

[Dad-1]

Probably my last 2 Dapol 16 ton mineral wagons.
I started the unpainted one just gone 7 pm last evening and had it rolling
on the test track by 8.30. Just under 1.1/2 hours from opening the packet.
The painted one took me 2 hours, must have been a lazy mood evening !!



I didn't need these 2, but bought to make worth paying postage on some odds.
I shall probably turn these into chalk wagons, with a load as I still have some
of my white granules that I was given when a member of the Milton Keynes club.

I suppose I should also show the semi-finished Slaters MR short brake van. A nice
little kit that went together well. Should you think about making one of these
remember to order the required 14 mm spoked wheels. I thought I would have
something in my wheels tin, but the only 14 mm wheels were plain disc coach
wheels, not 8 spoke versions.
I also 'improved ?' by shaving off the moulded on grab rails and replaced with
wire.



I still have to finish painting, even try black strapping on the wooden solebars,
and blacking buffers & hooks. Then decide on markings, certainly a 'N' wagon,
non common user.

Few kits remaining in my stash and when finished that may be a termination of
the West Bay Waggon Works.

Geoff T.

[Dad-1]

The engineers department has a job on.
Since I made & tested my code 75 Scissors crossing back in early 2022 it's sat
on a screw in my shed, with a few other pieces of copper-clad home made track.
I was having a tidy up and thought I'd put it on some ply and have as an exhibition
demonstration piece.
I did a skip dip and rescued two roofing laths, screwed my length of ply and have
made up a 4 foot twin track with my scissors in the middle. After some thought I
worked out that I can run the crossing with frog switching done by 3 frog juicers.
Today I almost finished and although I've not attached power leads to the extra
lengths of track I plugged a controller on.
100% success first time on all routes, even with 8 track power connections to finish.
I know I go over the top on track power feeds, but once done to my satisfaction I've
never had a failure
With luck tomorrow I'll add a photo, or perhaps better a video, to show all routes
function, with the 6 common crossings switched by just 3 frog juicers.
To make the board exhibition friendly I may add platforms down each side and fully
ballast.



Geoff T

[Peterm]

Nice work, Geoff.

[Dad-1]

Thanks Peterm,

And even more importantly it actually works.

https://youtu.be/N7KtJUX7qhQ

Now what to do with it ?

Geoff T

[Mountain]

Excellent!

Question. How many isolation cuts did you need with the diamond crossing and the points? The reason why I ask is I think when I build them, I have overdone my isolation cuts and I am wondering if one can get away with less?

[Dad-1]

Hi Mountain,

Insulating cuts, they can vary depending what you want to achieve. First all
my work is for DCC systems, it won't make much difference, but on occasions
it might !!
A standard point needs 4. One in each switch rail, one on the straight stock rail
running in towards the common crossing, then another on the diverging line from
the same common crossing.
A simple crossover consisting of two points, again needs 2 x 4, so you have 8 cuts.
More complex things like my 'Ivor' triangle that consists of 2 working points and
one cosmetic 'Y' has 9 insulating cuts.
Quite honestly I've not counted the scissors, but because of the central diamond it
has several more.

Although you don't usually have any isolated areas on DCC I have incorporated before,
again using the frog switching to keep an intersecting link unpowered until needed.

Geoff T.

[Mountain]

I will need to count mine. I just imagined all possible route current could take which might possibly create a short, but I notice others not doing so many cuts as railbreaks when they make points which had me wonder if I do too many.

[Dad-1]

A long, long, time ago, when cars ran on petrol, or diesel engines I was making
a DJH '00' 439 class Caledonian locomotive kit. My very first locomotive kit.

Nothing like a Tamiya, or Hasegawa plastic kits where clear instructions and very
accurate parts are supplied.

A very heavy fall to earth !! One exploded parts drawing and many parts that needed
more than just fettling. I can't recall now, but the price was well above £100 so I HAD
to learn. Every time I reached some job I couldn't do I put it away until inspiration and
some additional skill developed to the level where I'd try again.

Now, perhaps 15 years later, I've actually found it and have it working with this video as
proof.

https://youtu.be/zV-bZZu0cJE?si=EY2gE-fmGtV3eJBI

I may finish and add decals at some time in the next 10 years ??

Geoff T.

[luckymucklebackit]

A long, long, time ago, when cars ran on petrol, or diesel engines I was making
a DJH '00' 439 class Caledonian locomotive kit. My very first locomotive kit.

Nothing like a Tamiya, or Hasegawa plastic kits where clear instructions and very
accurate parts are supplied.

A very heavy fall to earth !! One exploded parts drawing and many parts that needed
more than just fettling. I can't recall now, but the price was well above £100 so I HAD
to learn. Every time I reached some job I couldn't do I put it away until inspiration and
some additional skill developed to the level where I'd try again.

Now, perhaps 15 years later, I've actually found it and have it working with this video as
proof.

https://youtu.be/zV-bZZu0cJE?si=EY2gE-fmGtV3eJBI

I may finish and add decals at some time in the next 10 years ??

Geoff T.

Great Work Geoff, how many times have I heard of someone taking ages to finish a kit only for it to appear RTR. (He says with hope )

Jim

[Dad-1]

Thanks Jim,

I'd always wanted a Jones Goods, looked at the kit for years.
Even then by the time one was released in RTR I couldn't justify getting.
My own layouts are now for 0-6-0's or smaller, just occasionally a long
train on the clubs test track using heavy traction !!

Geoff T.

[Dad-1]

It seems Work Bench production has been at a halt for a long time.
Not only me, but everyone.

When I made a pair of white metal & brass wagons for my North Circular Mountain Railway
I thought that would be all. More or less the end of my extensive wagon workings, but these
gave a nice Narrow Gauge look. I also wanted a few to run on my planned Ivor the Engine
layout, so 3 more were purchased, 2 short and 1 long.

Now 2 ready for painting, but earlier today I was filing springs to fit.



Geoff T.

[Mountain]

They look nice.