New reports
For the first time in a long time, we've laid new track. The oil depot "Eastleigh" has been waiting a while. So finally I got started, and pretty quickly the track was complete.
It's not a huge area: 5 points plus a double slip, plus track. The "new" feature was track crossing a gap onto the lift-up panel (the whole depot can be hinged up for access to the track below).
There are several distinct phases in my style of track laying:
- Lay the track, with dropper wires for power to each track section
- Add insulating sleeving and crimp bullet connectors onto the power droppers
- Add the power feeds. Most of the depot doesn't have block occupancy, so there aren't many distinct power feeds.
- Add and test the point motors
- Connect the DAC20 accessory decoder (which is mounted under the hinge-up panel).
We've also added a DTM30 panel to control points in the depot: most will be operated by hand. Operations will consist of taking the loco from the fron of an arrived train, then running it around and back on to the front of a train so it can depart again.
A lot of work after Christmas 2013 has seen Clanfield evolve. When you lay track, a few hours work produces impressive results; it seems that a few hours work on scenery makes almost no visible difference in comparison!
At the rear is the hill complete with working windmill. The village chuch is next to the terminus station, and we are in the process if adding gravestones in the churchyard. A row of semi-detached shops adons the backscene; there are terraced houses still to come. As you can see, there is work still to do in front of the station platform - sheep will eventually graze there.
all the buildings have working lights: while LEDs are controlled by CML Electronics MSC8 Scenery animators. When activated, the lights turn on and off automatically at pseudo-random points to make the buildings look occupied. The MSC8 also controls the windmill motor.
Looking out from Clanfield station, there is a fire station then a small small industrial area. we've added fencing since the photo was taken. The factory has a loading bay with a siding from one of Clanfield's platforms. the loading bay has a platform with a central loading ramp; we've added a brick rear wall onto the basic Peco kit.
The factory is made from a Faller kit. All buildings have lights, again controlled by an MSC8. The tall building has a fire, controlled by the MSC8. Approximately every 5 minutes, a smoke generator is activated and red and yellow LEDs in the top floors flicker to simulate a fire. The fire engine will eventually have flashing lights and possibly a lifting ladder.
You can see the pictures full size using the photograph browser in the right column
We have the Tomix track cleaning cars. we've been having to switch them on and off manually as the train runs. What was needed was a DCC decoder, but done how? There is actually a "plug and play" PCB upgrade available that takes a 6 pin plug-in decoder, but it didn't look too hard by hand.
The motor has a true stall current on about 1.2A, BUT the body of the cleaner also has a self-resetting 0.25A fuse. So the continuous current shouldn't exceed that value.
A locomotive decoder with the same DCC number as its pulling locomotive was one option. With speed profiles, I could make it ramp the cleaner motor speed from nothing to full speed as soom as the loco moves. But in the cupboard I had an accessory-only decoder without a home. It's a Lenz LF100XF with 4 functions; two are rated at 300mA which is probably high enough.
Not a difficult install: I've actually put the decoder in the dust bay, taking up tiny space and not obstructing the airflow. It runs on Function1; give it the same DCC address as the hauling loco, then press F1 when the train starts up.
What's not so simple is having Traincontroller do that automatically when the train starts. You can make that happen on a particular schedule, but not on any action of the loco. Watch this space!
OK, I admit it, no progress for a long time.... too much time spent on the Electronics to blame, plus uncertainty as to how to start the scenics.
I was given some building kits of rmy birthday last year; that has been a trigger to get started. the website now has sections describing how we constructed the backscene, and added the start of the terrain around Clanfield. This includes cuttings alongside the main line, and a removable hill.
Clanfield station has received a design change. Previously it had three passenger tracks; possibly slightly overspecified. One of these is not an access track for a goods spur, down into a factory complex away from Clanfield. This will be just a single track allowing goods to be delivered and taken away. I have the factory building; we'll probably call in "Gales Brewery" even though it doesn't look much like the real thing.
I've never constructed a building kit before. I have a few Metcalfe cardboard kits; these are very well detailed. I am constructing low relief shops at the moment for the Clanfield area. we'll try to make the fronts look more like real shops in the village.
There is a need for more electronics for scenery: to turn lights on and off in buildings at set times, and operate motors. A new DCC decoder for this is on its way from CML.
The railway comes to town! Overnight the residents of Clanfield have awoken to find a new terminus station for their village. They were disappointed however to find that the power cables had not been laid, so trains could not come to the station yet!
After about a 2 year absence - during which we worked out how to power and control the railway - more track has been put down. The "Clanfield" terminus station only took a day to lay the track (3 platforms, 5 points). The dropper wires are all insulated and terminated with crimp connectors; the next item on the agenda is the point motors, then the feeder wires. All the electronics is already in place, so very little "infrastructure" work is needed.
The biggest headache was actually printing the wire labels. I have a sheet of clear sticky labels with a white panel; the idea is that you laser print the markings required onto a whole sheet at a time I duly created a page of labels, put the sheet into the manual feed on the printer and selected "print"... and forgot to tell the printer that it was handling labels, not paper. It shot the page in very quickly, depositing plastic labels all over the inside of the printer as it went. In sorting out the mess, I made a larger one with a pool of toner appearing on the floor... oops.
The wiring followed what is now a well established process. All the electronics was already in place; it was simply a case of putting crimp connectors on the track dropper wires, then connecting up.
The one deviation from "normal" is that I decided to use Tortoise point motors for this station. I've had some issues with Seep motors (notably the switch on the PCB sometimes not making contact). The Tortoise is physically much larger, and of course a lot more expensive - but this was an opportunity to give them a go. The wiring section has some notes about installing them.