Shunting Puzzle Plank

To make the slots, I've been drilling four 3mm holes in a row and then joining them up with a Stanley knife and filing to shape.

Don't trust my trackwork positioning to be accurate enough to drill one hole

I then like to paint the wood where I've cut the slot and it's waiting for paint to dry that takes the time.

Next job is to get some droppers soldered and the track stuck down.

Until I get power to the track and I know the puzzle will work, I can't really do anything on scenery etc. and I've still got to take a decision on couplings. Kadee, or small tension lock with staple.

Either way the wagons I'm going to use will need new couplings.

Ed

 

It's just painted with white primer/undercoat at present Ron, more to protect the wood than anything else.

I did think about a coat of emulsion on the top, but all we had lying around were light colours used on the walls.

I'll just have to paint around the track when I get as far as some sort of scenery,.

Ed

 

Couple of rather dark pictures from last week (sunset is a bit early this time of year).

All track down



and wiring done.



With a view to using what I already have and not buying too much, I thought about GEM Mercontrol for controlling the points.

Although I had enough levers and wire I didn't have enough PTFE tubing, so I've used some stiff garden wire, screw eyes and beads left over from previous testing on Latton Fields.







Choc block 'inards' connect the wire to bent paper clips through the tie bar, which should allow for any future adjustment.

(I know the point control wire looks very near the bus wires but believe me it isn't, it's just the camera angle.)

Just wondering how cheaply I can do this, as so far I've only bought:

Wood and Screws (Wickes) £15.77
Folding Table (Argos) for legs (I already had one) £7.99
Rail joiners, as I'd run out (eBay) £2.90
Two points as I needed one, and one I already had broke (eBay) £13.50
I was going to use the Gaugemaster Model D from the garage to power this, but as I had some Amazon vouchers left from a recent birthday so I've bought a Gaugemaster Combi for an additional £11.21.

Wiring was all left overs from Latton Fields.

Loco(s) and wagons, redundant items from Latton Fields.

Total so far, £51.37.

Can I get the puzzle working and a bit of scenery done for less than £100

Ed

 

No time frame Gary, just something to work on while it's too cold in the garage.

I have some plans for Latton Filelds, but it'll have to wait until the warmer weather next year.

Problem with making something like this a competition is, it rather depends what anyone already has left 'in stock' from previous projects.

Ed

 

I decided before Christmas that I would need some additional motive power for the puzzle plank as the 0-4-0s I have, just wont run through the insulfrog points without stalling at the sort of low speeds required.

I already have a Bachmann J72 which I had (eventually) chipped for DCC operation, but with the change of theme on Latton Fields I un-DCCed it and screwed some Kadees on in place of the tension locks.

(sorry about dark pictures)



I had a search around that well know auction site for some more 0-6-0s, which with more wheels and pickups aren't a problem through the insulfrog points and managed to win ...



Needs a clean and Kadees fitting but it's the older Hornby J13 version based on the jinty chassis (ol' reliable), not the newer J52 which has traction tyres, and it sort of sticks to a LNER theme.

I also found this........



What a beauty, don't think it's ever been run apart from testing. Geared brilliantly for shunting, runs really slow even at full power.

Of course that got me interested in a bit of history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wemyss_Private_Railway

Fascinating stuff.

Since I didn't really need more than 1 loco I'm not including these in my £100 budget for the plank.

My game, my rules,................ and I don't care

Well, it is Christmas.

Ed

 

Been mainly playing with Kadees over Christmas.

I’ve used #5s for the wagons and although the draft boxes stick out a bit, they’re cheap and work pretty well.

The Bachmann J72 has #18s fitted by drilling a hole through the coupling and reusing the original screws.

The Hornby Austerity (J94) has a #18 on the front and a #19 on the back using the same method.

Tried both the Kadee 321 and rows of 5 x 3mm Cube Neodymium magnets.

Don’t know how everyone seems to get 3mm cube magnets to operate when flush with the sleepers but mine are N35 and won’t operate the couplings without a thin strip of styrene underneath to raise them slightly.

The J94 must have deeper flanges than the J72 as it’s wheels kept catching on the now raised cube magnets, but didn’t have a problem with the Kadee 321.

Finally the penny dropped that although the top of the Kadee 321 magnet is 0.4mm above the rail top on code 100 rail, it’s only 13mm wide.

I could have altered the back to back on the J94, but doubted my ability to move the wheels by a fraction of a millimetre after taking it all apart.

The answer was to shorten the row of magnets by getting some 2mm x 3mm x 3mm Neodymium magnets.

Three 3mm cubes plus two 2mm cubes is 13mm, same as the width of the Kadee 321.

Couplings appear to be working ok and the wheels don’t catch the magnets.



Bit messy, but I've glued and removed magnets quite a few times between these sleepers.

Bit of ballast, lick of paint, it'll do

Kadee 321 down the other end.



Bit of foam against the axle of a van to act as a brake.



Old coins no longer legal tender, acting as temporary weights.



I already had some Kadees in stock, so if I say add £10 to the cost of the plank it's now around £70.

Don't think I'll manage scenery as well for less than the target though.

Ed

 

I could bend the trip pins down Gary, but then they would hit the Kadee 321 magnet.

I am using both, but if everyone that has swapped to Neodymium cubes has bent the trip pins down, it would explain why it wont work at sleeper height for me.

Alternatively, some people may have used N52 magnets.

Ed

Edit: PS that link don't work

but I know the document your talking about.

 

Made a slightly tidier job of the next one.



Ed

 

Fiddly job though Ron.

I did try just four 3mm x 3mm x 3mm cubes to give a 12mm wide magnet and the trip pins don't quite work properly.

The Kadee magnet is 13mm wide, so it's probably the minimum width that will work.

I still think Gary's vertical version is probably much easier to install.

Ed