Operation Dark Winter - HO scale micro layout

Discussion in 'Planks, Switching and Shelf Layouts' started by danielb, Jun 17, 2019.

  1. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    Andy, my apologies for not being a bit more specific.

    I've got a load of HO scale street lamps which are white LEDs which will be used to light the bridges and possibly the yard.

    The blue LED reel is to light the whole layout, and will be stuck on the underside of the APA box lid, which will be placed over the layout to create a "shadow box" as it were. Lighting a layout with blue LEDs does give an excellent "moonlight" type effect, as demonstrated in here:

    https://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/32405

    I already have a reel of white LEDs which might end up going alongside the blue ones for if I want to do a "day/night" cycle. We'll see how things go.
     
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  2. Andy_Sollis

    Andy_Sollis Staff Member Moderator

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    Not so much an electronics shop, “The Range” and other similar places sell these bottle LED’s..

    but, that’s useful to know!! I can see a trip over there via W&D models coming up!
    (On a side note, went to the Model shop in the old railway building at Tuxford the other day... nice little place if folk haven’t visited, but you have to ask the security guard for access to the site... which almost fits back in with Daniels layout!)
     
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  3. Andy_Sollis

    Andy_Sollis Staff Member Moderator

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    Ah, see what you mean! Yes.
    That will be good! :thumbs:
     
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  4. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    The Goods Yard?

    Great shop to visit, I got loads of stuff from them when I first got back into the hobby many years ago. My patronage wavered when I moved onto US prototypes, but now I'm back also modelling British prototypes I might nip over there again at some point.

    Did you catch anything running on the Network Rail test track that runs alongside the estate? They've got some sort of works shed there if I remember correctly. I believe the place was "run" using a Class 08. They did at one point pay for the restoration and refitting of a Class 37 by a preservation society to run on the test track, but couldn't get approval to bring it over there, I believe. :)
     
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  5. Andy_Sollis

    Andy_Sollis Staff Member Moderator

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    Yep, that’s the place.

    no there was nothing moving. Old signal box turned up sitting on the ground, which suggests someone here has some long term plans for the place.
    Didn’t know there were locos there too.
     
  6. Keith M

    Keith M Staff Member Moderator

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    Not wishing to veer off topic, but there is also a model shop apparently called "Sudbury Junction" in the Courtyard at Sudbury just off the A50, DE6 5EB. I've not been personally (yet) but a friend has recommended the place, no new stuff, just secondhand and mainly 00 gauge I gather.
    Keith.
     
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  7. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    Good to know Keith. :)

    I might pop down there myself at some point.
     
  8. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    The blue LED reel turned up the other day, and I mocked up a quick test of the "night time" lighting. It's clear that it's VERY blue, and further testing is required.

    I'm thinking I'll need to test it in a fully lit room to begin with - as that's what most exhibition halls will be, after all.

    I'll also need to wire up and install the scale street lamps to see what they do to even out the effect. then I'm going to keep reducing the amount of blue LEDs on the layout until I find a happy medium.

    For now, test number 1:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
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  9. Keith M

    Keith M Staff Member Moderator

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    Try a lower voltage Dan. If you have any 'Wall warts' with perhaps 9 or even 6 volts DC output, give that a go and see if it helps. No different to adding in resistance, just quicker to try.
    Keith.
     
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  10. Andy_Sollis

    Andy_Sollis Staff Member Moderator

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    May also be worth using a coloured acetate over them to filter some colour out... I read that when the Dambusters did training in WW2 they wore yellow goggles and put blue filters in the windows to simulate night time in the day.
    No idea how successful that was, but they smashed two dams?

    (or it may have been blue goggles and yellow windows)
     
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  11. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    Hi all,

    It's been a while, as I've been busy working on the layout, but with a week to go before the layout is due at Mansfield show, lots of progress has been made.

    Scenery is pretty much complete now, I just have a handful of tasks that need to be crossed off the list. Thankfully I'm off work all week now so I've got plenty of time to get it done. The resistors and battery pack for the street lamps need to be added to the back of the layout, and the frame of the APA box needs painting black. I've then just got to put together a quick fascia for the fiddlestick I've made and paint that black, and then print out a few information sheets to go along with the layout at the show. Finally, I'm weathering up some freight cars to use on the day. :)

    This is the current status of the layout - with a much less harsh set of blue lighting now I've fully wired up and fitted some of the LED reel that I bought. :)

    [​IMG]

    Finally, here's the motive power for the layout, a Bachmann 44T switcher that started life in ATSF black and silver. I've repainted and weathered it, though I need to finish off the running boards, side frames and trucks before I add the grab rails back onto it. :)

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  12. Kimbo

    Kimbo Staff Member Moderator

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    Lovely weathering Dan :thumbup: Kim
     
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  13. Gary

    Gary Wants more time for modelling.... Staff Member Administrator

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    Really like the weathering on your 44 tonner. Excellent work Daniel. :thumbs::thumbs::thumbs::thumbs::thumbs:

    I bought one about 2 1/2 years ago, Bachmann with dcc. Not a very good runner and I have read since that the dc model is far superior in the running qualiteis. Maybe a keep alive will improve performance...

    Cheers, Gary.
     
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  14. Andy_Sollis

    Andy_Sollis Staff Member Moderator

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    93BD6904-D8FF-4303-A66D-D9A955CEFAF6.jpeg Great to see this layout and Daniel yesterday at Mansfield. It’s much smaller than I envisaged from the photos, and the blue lights Daniel installed are a great feature to human eyes, it’s the cameras that make it look too blue.
    My photo of the layout was taken using a filter to make it look more as we would see it rather than the camera wants us to see it.

    The background artwork is also superb!

    a great little shutting layout.:thumbs:
     
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  15. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    Thanks for the photo Andy. It was great chatting with you and Peter at the show. Always nice to catch up with forum members in person. :)

    I tried to get a few photos myself but as before, my camera picks up too much blue! The Razer 2 might be an amazing phone for Netflix and Xbox Cloud play, but it's digital camera software is attrocious.
     
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  16. danielb

    danielb Full Member

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    I suppose it would help if I actually attached the photos? :p

    Here's an overall view of the layout as it was set up at Mansfield exhibition, complete with info sheet, photograph and concept art that inspired the build.
    [​IMG]

    The scenic section of the layout:
    [​IMG]

    On Saturday, Ford ran the layout using his BN Alco C424 for most of the day, as he doesn't yet have a layout so can't run it any other way. We're in the process of changing that. :D
    [​IMG]

    And this is the perfect example of why we always run our layouts at table height - too many show layouts out there are set to the "perfect viewing height" of roughly chest height. That's all good and well, but visitors in wheelchairs can often only see the very front of a layout, and that's just not fair, in my opinion.
    [​IMG]
     
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  17. Chris Doroszenko

    Chris Doroszenko Lost in the spare room Full Member

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    This is really cool...loved how you found the mood and lit it up in the end...Awesome job...was wondering where you sourced all the boxes and whatnot like bins and barrels etc. I really like how it fills the scene.
    Cheers for sharing.
     

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