Great Chesterford Junction Part Two

Just checking to see if it looks right with the old Black and White trick



Gormo

 

Thanks Ron & Richard,
The historical notes may not be absolutely correct, however from what I have read, I feel I`m in the ball park. It`s quite interesting to find out how these things evolved and also the logic behind them.
It`s interesting that good old Henry VIII thought that he could destroy churches and monasteries and consequently destroy peoples beliefs along with it. Poor old Henry got it wrong.........you can never suppress what people believe in.......you may think you are all powerful and invincible, but every dog has his day eventually, and the dog will undermine you every step of the way to that day, if he can do so...
Gormo

 

Thanks Pete,
Well it`s finished now.......just got the chimney on tonight.

Same again in Black & White

Extension fitted and detailed in the same way

The other end

Window detail

And pretty much where it will eventually be planted permanently

OK folks......that`s it.....time to move on.....there`s another one in this kit.....

More as it happens

Gormo

 

Yes I am Phil.......thanks mate..
Gormo

 

Thank you for your kind comments Echidna..........much appreciated.
If you are interested in the panel build I have a link here to Your Model Railway forum where it was first developed and shown.
http://yourmodelrailway.net/view_topic.php?id=11121&forum_id=21&highlight=great+chesterford#p214926
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
This 3 link coupling business requires a bit of a re-think re certain aspects of the railway operation.
It all became crystal clear today when I realized, that for it to work properly in my sliding fiddle yard, wagons would have to enter the fiddle yard hook first. The reason for this is that when the wagons leave the fiddle yard they will be chain first. Chain first allows me to back the wagons over magnets and couple automatically, given that all wagons respond equally to the magnetic method. It is fairly easy to uncouple in the yard regardless of which road the train is on, however re-coupling with my shunters pole would be very awkward and frustrating. So this is the best way forward and it has cemented the system configuration and this will become my reference point for all other operations.
One thing that has become obvious is that I need some additional lighting for the coupling area, however that`s a fairly easy fix.
A short video is attached showing how it works



Gormo

 

Thanks Toto,
It`s getting there........am now silver soldering chain links etc......giving a much stronger chain. It all gets down to techniques, whatever you are doing in this miniature world.
Goodnight all......ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzz.........Gormo

 

Good one Beetleton MPD,......
Silver solder is 5 times stronger than the standard 60 / 40 solder. I thought if I were going to make the chain stronger, I might as well go all out .
I used the same method as you described with flux etc.
The Superglue method works well and is a road for those who are not confident with soldering.
I found, unusually, with my chain something odd.??.........To Superglue the chain...it works very well if I heat the chain first and remove the copper coloured coating.....To solder the chain.......it works better if I don`t remove the coloured coating...????
Go figure that one out..????
Anyway, at the end of the day, the idea is to arrive at a rigid chain. To do this one must employ the method that suits and most of all, you have to understand the properties of the materials you are using and the limits of your tools.
Get all that sorted and you`re well on your way to mass producing a good solid little chain.
By the way.....I soldered one three link chain and realized quite a bit later on that it was slightly twisted. I gripped it with pliers at both ends and twisted it to correct it, and the solder joints were unaffected by the process............so it should stand the test of time.
I received some copper wire, that I had on order, yesterday and made up some dummy chain links. At this stage they are interfering with the smooth positive connection of the chain to the hook......I`m thinking it through to come up with a solution that looks good but no progress yet.
I would rather have it work properly as it is, than look better with a dummy chain and have poor performance. It defeats the purpose.
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
I am not long back from a two week holiday north to Stradbroke Island just off the coast of Brisbane in Qld.
My daughter Natalie lives in Qld and she was having a large family get together on the island to celebrate her 40th birthday.
So family came from far and wide to have a break on the island and join in on the festivities. The biggest effort was made by Natalie`s brother in law and his wife, who travelled from Alice Springs by road, some 3,000 kms one way. They made it in three days, due partly to the unlimited speed limits in the Northern Territory, and vast expanses of flat straight roads for much of the journey. They are quite experienced at this type of journey and have done it many times.
Julie and I had a much more leisurely journey at just under 1,000 kms one way and we broke that up into three days.
The further North we went, the warmer it became, to the point where I was getting about in summer gear some of the time. The nights still became cool which was good for sleeping.
This is Cylinder and Frenchmans beaches and are typical of the types of beach on Stradbroke Island.




This is Main Beach and extends down to the Southern end of the island. The Southern end is only accessible along the beach by four wheel drive. Permit required or heavy fines apply.




This is a Pandanus Palm which are quite common on the island.



One of the walking trips you can do there is the Gorge Walk. It takes a leisurely one hour and finishes just near a Gelato shop....very handy.!!



The wildlife on Stradbroke is quite used to humans, so this Mum with Joey in pouch just ignored us and carried on regardless, although she was vigilant.



The accommodation my Son was in had regular visitors who would just drop in.



Here is an example of the pristine waters around the island



And Yes....the water was reasonably warm.......not for this little black duck though..!!!



I left that up to these hardy young souls in their wet suits






I was content to try and take some arty farty photos.
So there you are folks........a good time was had by all. Julie and I did some extra touring after we got off the island. We headed West out to Toowomba and then South to Armidale, then across Thunderbolt`s Way to Gloucester, then onto Nabiac and across to Forster and then back to Sydney.
I took a lot of railway specific photos in Toowoomba which I will offer in some other threads on the forum.
I would like to say it`s good to be back home....but I`m afraid I`d rather be sitting on the deck at the house on Stradbroke watching whales breaching off the coast........but there you are.....we can`t have it all.....I`ll get over it..
Gormo