Great Chesterford Junction Part Two

Thanks Toto,
Yes I think the 33`s are going to be good.
All I`ve done so far is clean the wheels ( not 100% ) and then I`ve lubricated what gears I can see with some INOX.
They are both down to a crawl and responsive, however one of them has the motor bogie catching on the chassis slightly.
I can`t see any broken bits, however whoever had them before has chopped off the tension locks and fitted screw link couplings.....I think there may be some extra adhesive up there in the works that is restricting the free movement.
I won`t know until I take the lids off. I have repaired a plastic chassis before, so I am confident I can get it sorted.
I also think the loco performance can be improved with a proper service.
Gormo

 

Thanks Richard,
Yes they are shaping up pretty well so far.
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
Time to bite the bullet and get stuck into Bamford.....we need to get this show on the road.
This afternoon I fed some switches into the new control panel and then reached the stage where no more could be done until the board was raised for access.
You see it here roughly at vertical, braced at both ends with clamps and timber whilst it rests on it`s supporting steel brackets.
I could have removed it completely, and will have to do so eventually to work on the other board, however for the moment it can rest here until the point work is complete.





I have marked the point holes underneath the board with their respective numbers, as shown on the control panel, and I`ve marked out some rough routes for the point rods. It seems easy enough at the moment, because none of the routes need to cross over each other or are too close to bracing timbers.





A view from the back. I may have to access this side during the build, so the sliding yard will have to slide all the way out into it`s maintenance position.





This is the hardware required to make my manual point control system happen.

From the top left to right.
1/ Plastic molding (sliced) Bellcranks 2/ Curtain holders for track systems to be used as rod guides ( Never tried this before ) 3/ 3mm screws 4/ 3mm nuts
5/ 3mm washers

From the bottom left to right
1/Small rivets to fit tie bars 2/ Terminal block inners for Bellcranks and tie bar rivets 3/ Hinges for tie bar actuators 4/ 3mm threaded nails for Bellcrank posts
5/ Small cable clips and metal eyes to keep wiring tidy.




Also, I still have a good supply of wire coat hanger wire for the rods. That will need to be straightened out a little as I use it.
I am going to need a minimum of two Bellcranks per point, most likely three, so I will have to get some of them under way, whilst I`m establishing the proper routes for the rods. At the same time some of the hinges will need their pins removed and also I need to fit some of the rivets to the terminal block inners.
So folks, there`s plenty of parts to be made before we can throw a point with a lever.
None of it is difficult, it just takes time to get it all together.
Another busy fully booked weekend for me looms again folks, so I doubt anything of any consequence will be done until next week.
Gormo

 

No Jim,
I`ve just done it all before.....

 

G`day Chris,
Yes I have used INOX on my track after seeing Greg`s videos.
He`s quite a unique presenter.....
The INOX certainly works and only the smallest amount is required as you say. The locos definitely run smoother.
I think for it to be 100% effective on your rails, you need only metal wheeled stock and no locos with traction tyres.
The INOX will dislodge gunk tyres that build up on plastic wheeled rolling stock and spread it over the rails, albeit in an extremely thin layer, at the same time not affecting running of the locos.
Locos with traction tyres will start to slip eventually and also the INOX is not good for the rubber.
It`s an amazing product if used in the right way with only metal wheeled locos and rolling stock.
As I have locos with traction tyres and rolling stock with plastic wheels, I have stopped using it on my track, the main issue being the slippage.
So for me with what I have at the moment, the Masonite ski is a very effective, non oily, non abrasive solution, especially for hidden track.
This is a video showing how I do it, however there are other ways that it can be done to get the same effect.



Gormo

 

Yes Jim...they do

 

G`day Folks,
I have started getting the hardware ready for the points build.
The pins have been removed from six hinges.The other halves of the hinges have three guides for the hinge pin, so I will remove one guide from each of those so as to have something similar to the ones below.




Six fittings have also been assembled for the point tie bars





This is just a mock up of how they work with the hinge. Actually the hinge is the wrong side up in this pic.





Then onto preparing some wafers for the Bell cranks.





A 3mm nut is added underneath and taken to the thread limit and tightened. Then a washer is added on top of the nut, then the wafer, then a washer on top and finally a nut with a drop of Loctite to secure it.





The nut is set at a point where the wafer can move freely without being sloppy.





Then the terminal block inners are fitted. A drop of Loctite is added to the thread of the inner before the screw from the wafer is threaded into it. These also need free movement without too much vertical movement.




The weather is cold, wet and miserable outside, so I have taken refuge back indoors.
I`ll have another crack at it tomorrow.
Gormo

 

A drop of INOX certainly would reduce friction on the hinge. I usually give them a drop of lubricant at the very beginning and then that`s it.
The movement is minimal and the fit of the rod in the hinge has play in in it, so no great friction dramas going on there.
The bell cranks have free movement and as it`s nylon against iron, I feel no lubricant is necessary. They actually free up a bit with use and also I don`t want any lubricant to infiltrate the Loctite and make it soft or dissolve it.
These bits and pieces that go together to form this system operate with very little movement and a small load, therefore long term friction and wear are insignificant.
Gormo

 

I have made a batch of fourteen bell cranks so far, that will allow me to start adding point rodding to Bamford terminus.
I`m still not 100% sure exactly how many I will need, the guesstimate is probably three per point, so I will replenish this batch as I use them.
Any surplus bell cranks will be kept for spares anyway, so no big deal to make an over supply.





Oh well I had better keep cracking on with it.
Gormo

 

As the first half dozen or so bell cranks were dry, I decided to start setting up the points.
I have three done so far and it get`s easier the more I do.......you get into a rhythm so to speak.
Only one point so far has required three bell cranks and the purpose of that third bell crank is to change the direction of the throw.
I like to set up my levers so that when the point lever is pushed forward back into the box ( vertical ), the point will be set to it`s most logical straight through position.
For example, on the Main Lines, if all the point levers are pushed forward into their respective boxes, the Main Lines are clear for a straight through run.
To achieve this sometimes, under the baseboard, you have to change the direction of throw using extra bell cranks.
In my mind it brings a certain logic to the system, so that`s why I do it.......more work involved ....yes.....but at the end of the day, I`m more comfortable with doing it this way.
Sometimes, it can depend on the route that the rods have to follow as well......so there is always some little challenge with each point.
The next lot of three points on this board are much further away from the lever frame, so rod guides will also have to be installed to stop the rod from bowing under load.
This first set of three points only have short sections of rod , so no guides necessary here.







Gormo

 

G`day Gary,
No they`re not actually.
I drill an undersized hole for the pivot pin and tap it in with a hammer. Friction holds the pin in place and if it needs to come out ( rare ), it can be levered out.
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
Well..????....some more done this afternoon.
I still have one point to connect on the board I`m currently working on, however slowly but surely it`s getting there.
The two points I`ve done today were a bit more challenging because of there distance from the lever frame and their locations on the board.
The thing you have to keep in the back of your mind is the routes for the rods for each point and making sure you leave enough room for the last lot to go in.
As you can see here in the pic below,the fourth point from the left has had to leap frog the hinge for third from the left. This was achieved with four right angled bends in the rod that crosses over and was done to leave enough room for points five and six from the left.





One has to improvise sometimes to get the desired effect. The hinge in this case was better placed below the access hole for the tie bar, which in turn need a U shaped bend in the rod to get back up to the bell crank......and yes it works.....I don`t move on until I test them.





This is my new rod guide system. I used to employ very small cable clips before but this system is better. They are from curtain tracks. The two holes for the screws normally have the curtain hook through them and the part with the rod through it would normally slide into the curtain track.





The rods exiting the lever frame, the ones connected to the rockers, have two 45 degree bends in them. This allows you to adjust their height off the board simply by rotating them slightly.




More as it happens
Gormo